Chapter 106: The Symbionts Part 2

Alliance Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, November 1st, 1999

The screen showed a dark sky with a lot of stars. Judging from the relative lack of light pollution, the camera was in the countryside, not in a city. Samantha Carter knew that already from the file, but confirmation was always good.

The quality wasn't the best - it was a little grainy. Not a high-end camera. Something else that she knew already. But it was better than most security cameras. She could see glowing lights in the sky as the camera turned around and focused on them.

"Oh! What's that?"

"Fireworks! Pretty!"

"Fireworks? Out here?"

"Those aren't fireworks!"

"They're coming closer!"

"Planes?"

"Shuttles! Must be alien shuttles!

"Oh! Aliens, here?"

The sound quality was… not very good either. But the excited voices of a family of four - as shown in the earlier parts of the recording - were clearly audible.

"Those are… Dear Lord!"

The camera shook as the lights grew larger, more defined - and then spectral forms flew above it, low enough so the camera could pick up barking over the screams from the family, shortly before the camera showed the ground, then trees, as the man holding it must have ducked. He would have been too late to avoid the flying objects, Sam knew, if they had been coming for him.

But they hadn't come for him. The camera swung back and forth until it caught the back of the spectral forms flying through the sky. Wolves or dogs, Sam noted. Hounds, she added a moment later. A dozen of them. Exactly a dozen.

"What were they, Dad?"

"I don't know, dear."

"Flying dogs? Like Swift Wind?"

"I don't think so, dear."

No, not like Swift Wind. Sam shook her head as she stopped the recording on her screen. She hadn't noticed anything new this time. Nothing useful.

She opened the stills taken from the recording. The best showed a large wolf or dog's form, lined in glowing red-orange colours, racing through the sky, its legs moving as if it were running over a field.

"That's not an Etherian creature," Glimmer said behind her. "Not anyone I recognise, at least."

"It's not Swift Wind," Adora added.

"We already know that," Catra said. "Swift Wind has wings. And he doesn't glow like that."

"Well, he could if you used some glowing paint," Bow pointed out. He cocked his head. "Although the silhouettes are wrong.

"There aren't any wings, and the movements don't match those of winged flight," Sam said. She had run the recording through a few simulations to compare the movements to those of Swift Wind during his appearance at Disney World a few months ago.

"Do we have recordings of the attack?" Glimmer asked.

"No. Just the reports from eyewitnesses," Sam said. If they had such recordings, she would have shown them already.

"And those reports match these images?" Adora asked.

"Yes." Sam nodded. "Red or orange glowing spectral dogs, attacking a small house in Wales and burning it down. The resident, Father Julian Gardner, was found dead in the remains by the fire brigade."

"Ah."

"Did he burn to death?" Catra asked.

"The autopsy hasn't finished yet," Sam said. "But the pictures we got…" A click of her mouse opened another series of pictures on the big screen.

"Ew!"

"That's…"

"Looks like they tore out his throat. It reminds me of the remains of some of the scouting parties we lost in the Whispering Woods."

"Catra!"

"What?"

"Preliminary examinations support this assumption," Sam said. "The body was found in the middle of the living room, and the witnesses claim that he would have had enough time to escape through the door after the creatures left before the fire consumed the house."

"See?"

"That's not the point!"

"Anyway," Glimmer spoke over Adora and Catra's bickering, "Those weren't Etherian creatures. I've never heard of anything like them."

Sam nodded. She had deemed that unlikely in the first place - they had extensive security on both sides of the Stargate to prevent unauthorised access. A must, with magic, Goa'uld and shapeshifters present. The chance that such creatures had snuck through was very low.

But if they hadn't travelled to Earth from Etheria, they would have had to come from another planet, which was equally unlikely. Or they had originated on Earth. Sam pressed her lips together. She would have preferred it if the creatures had come through the Stargate, despite what that would have said about their security.

"So, since it's not from Etheria…" Catra trailed off.

Sam sighed as Daniel, who must have bitten his tongue to not speak up while their friends had watched the recording, eagerly nodded. "I've done a bit of research. I'm no expert, of course, but the date, the pictures, the location and the accounts of the witnesses all fit my conclusion." He pushed a key on his laptop, and a set of pictures appeared on the screen to the side. A mix of illustrations and paintings of various styles, mostly medieval. "Yesterday was Halloween. A celebration based on the old Samhain, of Celtic origin - well, that's a simplified version; the popular perception of what's supposed to be 'Celtic' is slightly outdated, and nowadays, we have..."

Sam cleared her throat.

"Ah, sorry!" Daniel smiled a little sheepishly at her. "Anyway, Samhain was said to have mystic - or magical significance in folklore. And the pictures and descriptions we saw match the myth of the Cŵn Annwn, also called the Hell Hounds." He pushed his glasses up. "It's just a hypothesis for now, but I believe this is an example of a major magic feat achieved by following Earth traditions. Magical traditions. I think someone successfully called up or summoned the Wild Hunt."

Alliance Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, November 2nd, 1999

"...and reports from Ireland confirm similar incidents, although none of them fatal. In Dublin, several witnesses described 'a leprechaun prancing in the street'. Footage from security cameras seems to support those reports."

The picture of the news anchor was replaced by a grainy, black-and-white recording of a small, tiny creature with an oversized hat flitting past the pavement. Too small to be a human child.

Catra shook her head as the news anchorman reappeared.

"Authorities are still trying to determine if the Giant's Causeway has been altered, as some experts claim. What has been confirmed is that the Stone of Destiny on the Hill of Tara has been glowing since the night of Halloween - or Samhain. So far, neither the British nor Irish governments have commented on repeated requests for further information, though anonymous sources from both countries maintain that there is definite proof of several magical incidents, and we…"

Catra changed the channel.

"...and while the United Nations are debating how to deal with potentially lethal magic incidents, protestors are assembling in front of the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, and the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York. The police are trying to separate those demanding harsh measures against practitioners of magic and those defending magic as part of their religion, but several clashes have already been observed, leading to at least two wounded people in New York. This comes on the heels of the tense protests for and against the so-called 'synthetic symbiont' the Alliance High Command has developed, which are expected to fundamentally alter healthcare as we know it should they be approved for treatment, and…"

Catra changed the channel again. An overweight, angry man appeared, speaking into a microphone someone else was holding.

"Weren't we told that the magic on Earth would be safe? Weak? Harmless? And now, a good, God-fearing man - a priest tending to his flock! - was murdered by fell sorcery! Burned to death in his home! How many more people who will not bow to godless aliens will suffer his fate? How many more curses will be cast at other men of the cloth? How much longer until we will finally heed what the Bible tells us? Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live! That is God's will and…"

Catra rolled her eyes and muttered a cure as she changed the channel again.

"...and in light of the events on Halloween, one wonders if we should not rethink our stance towards the Middle-Eastern countries' controversial policies towards sorceresses. While a blanket criminalisation of all magic is clearly too much, harsh punishments for dangerous sorcery seem an adequate response to this new danger, and…"

Was everyone going crazy? Catra hissed. "So, that's their angle! One death - which hasn't even been confirmed yet as a magical murder - and they're asking for witch hunts."

"You know how Earth media work," Glimmer commented - though Catra could tell that she was angry as well. "They always do that when something happens. Our allies could really do with better control over their news services."

"Good luck with that." Catra snorted. Their allies had been very clear about 'freedom of the press'. She glanced at Sam and Daniel.

"Well, it's a really delicate problem," Daniel said. "Our past experiences have left a lasting impression - the ability to control the media can be horribly abused, and…"

"Yes, yes!" Catra made a dismissive gesture with her hand. "We know."

"Yes." Glimmer nodded. "So, since control over the media is out, what can you do about this?" She pointed at the screen, which had turned dark.

"About the magic issue? Or the symbionts?" Daniel asked.

"Both," Glimmer told him.

"There is not much we can do about the symbionts," Sam said. "We're still working on actually adapting them to humans, and we can't tell how long that will take - and how much longer building facilities for mass production will take."

"It's up to the various governments how to handle this," Daniel added.

Catra snorted again. "You think we will let anyone monopolise the symbionts?"

"I wouldn't presume to make such an assumption." Daniel wasn't very good at acting innocently.

"We're not going to do that, but we also won't get dragged into that mess," Glimmer said. "Not if we can help it." Her expression clearly showed that she was sure they could help it.

Catra agreed. The Alliance wouldn't work out if single countries could hoard symbionts. Or keep their people from using them if they wanted to.

"Yes." Sam nodded. "But despite the hysteria and hyperbole, the media raised a good question: How could anyone send the Wild Hunt after someone? Magic of that power is supposed to be too difficult for a beginner. At least, according to what we have been told." 'By you' remained unsaid but clearly understood.

Catra looked at Glimmer. She was the expert here.

Her friend sighed. "Yes, and I stand by that. But we also said that we don't know how Earth's magic would express itself. It could be that this - sending out such creatures - is how this planet's magic works. You certainly have enough legends and myths about magical creatures helping and harming people."

Daniel leaned forward with an eager expression. "You mean that Earth's native magical traditions might be rooted in summoning and controlling - through various means - different, ah, spirits? Almost every culture has myths about otherworldly creatures and how to interact with them. Djinns, kami, angels, demons, spirits, ghosts and various other mythical creatures. But would those be created by whoever calls on them, or is the magic calling upon existing creatures?"

"That's a good question," Glimmer said. "We don't know - yet. Etheria doesn't really have such traditions."

Daniel looked even more excited about the research they would have to do.

Sam, though, looked concerned.

Alliance Base Lübtheen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, November 3rd, 1999

Everyone has gone nuts, Jack O'Neill thought as he saw the new 'security measures' taken at the Base: Lookouts to spot magical attacks. "So much for listening to the experts…" he muttered as he stepped through the gate to his part of the base.

"It's supposed to be just until we get other means of detecting such threats, sir," Jones, standing guard - with binocs - said.

Jack stopped and turned to look at Jones. He was a Navy Puke, former SEAL, but other than that, he was a good soldier. "And if we spot a 'Wild Hunt' approaching, what do we do?" Jack asked.

"Alert the base, sir!"

"And then?"

Jones grinned. "Pray?"

Jack snorted. "I'm pretty sure the priest prayed. Didn't save him."

"Well, sir, if the rumours about him are true…" Jones trailed off with a shrug.

Jack suppressed a sigh. It hadn't taken the media long to dig up rumours about child abuse and cover-ups. Some people were already talking about 'divine vengeance' having been visited upon the man.

"We can pray to She-Ra for protection," the other guard, Kelly, spoke up. He had a perfectly straight expression - Jack couldn't tell if the man was serious or joking. And he was SAS, which meant his sense of humour was British, further complicating matters.

But Jack wasn't touching that landmine today. "We're actually getting Etherian sorceresses assigned to the base for our protection." Amongst them Castaspella, though she was coming for research into Earth's magical traditions, now that they seemed to be emerging.

"Really, sir?" Kelly perked up.

"The Alliance isn't going to leave our main base vulnerable to any witch with a grudge," Jack said.

"Why would witches attack us, sir?" Kelly asked.

"Who knows what someone summoning the Wild Hunt thinks?" Jack shrugged. "They might think we threaten their gods or the world or something."

"You think they worship the snakes, sir?" Jones looked concerned now.

"I doubt that," Jack replied. Although, truth to be told, he couldn't be sure. Stranger things had happened. Not that he would tell his troops that. "Magic and snakes don't mix."

That seemed to reassure the two soldiers. Jack was about to turn around and continue towards his office when Kelly spoke up again, "Uh, sir… we've heard another rumour. A mite concerning."

"Yes?" Jack tilted his head - he needed his coffee. It was too early for this.

"Some people claim that we're going to get the snake symbionts, whether we want them or not," Jones said.

Oh, for…! Jack had to nip that in the bud. "We don't have any symbionts yet - they're still working on the things," he said. "And once we have them - we don't know when that will be the case - no one will be forced to get one. It'll be strictly volunteer-only. If we even get any in the first place. Last I heard, demand is going to be high in the civilian market." And amongst the rich and powerful, of course.

Despite the concern the two soldiers had voiced, that didn't seem to please them either. "If those things are safe, they could be very useful for us," Kelly said. "Especially for missions behind the enemy lines, without the possibility of medevacs."

Jones nodded. "And we wouldn't have to worry about alien bugs." He shuddered - probably remembering the 'here's why you don't eat or drink anything on an alien planet without our permission' lecture Dr Fraser had given Jack's soldiers at his request.

"We're aware of that," Jack told them. "But we're not going to force anyone to put a symbiont into their body." Even if some idiots were thinking about it, according to Adora. As a 'cost-saving measure', even! If that spread to the civilians, if someone suggested that people on welfare would have to get a symbiont so they wouldn't generate more costs…

He pushed the thought away and nodded at the guards. "So, don't worry about that, OK? One way or the other, we won't let you down." Jack would make sure of that.

"We know, sir." Kelly smiled, as did Jones.

That's one of the best things about the Alliance, Jack thought as he resumed walking to his office. With the princesses fighting on the frontlines, the politicians wouldn't be able to screw the soldiers over.

It was a small consolation, though. Between the symbionts and the new magic threat, things were bound to be messy for a while. And there was only so much Jack could do about either. He had to trust that his friends had things in hand. More or less.

He had work to do. Soldiers to train. Officers to pick. And the mission to contact Teal'c's mentor and family to prepare. His friend was counting on him, and Jack wouldn't let him down either.

Alliance Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, November 4th, 1999

"...and this is Chulak, Teal'c's home planet. We've got spy bots covering the system since it belongs to Apophis, who is kind of one of our main enemies since he has already attacked Earth once. Twice if you count his visit through the Stargate."

Adora nodded at Entrapta's exposition and looked at the holoprojection slowly rotating behind her friend. It was a smaller planet than Etheria or Earth. Shorter daylight cycles, as Entrapta had told them.

"...and that's the Capital, named City of Chulak." Entrapta's hair tendrils pointed at a spot on the planet's main continent. Another tendril pushed a few keys on the computer next to her, and the screen behind her changed to show aerial pictures of the city.

Built on a hill but without fortifications, Adora noted. At least no visible fortifications, though a ground attack would have to fight through narrow streets and dense buildings, where the Jaffa would have the advantage as long as they had civilians to hide behind so you couldn't shell or bomb their positions. With stealth shuttles, you could drop troops directly on the palace - the temple - but you'd still have to root out the warriors in the city…

"These are the last known locations of Teal'c's family and Bra'tac," Entrapta went on as her hair whirled, highlighting more spots on the planet. "However, aerial surveillance showed both locations as deserted - or abandoned. Unfortunately, our spy bots aren't built for atmospheric entry since their main task is to system and orbital reconnaissance, so we don't have any more detailed information."

Adora pressed her lips together. That didn't look good.

"If Apophis had captured Bra'tac, he would have announced that to show his strength," Teal'c said. "There would have been a public execution or similar demonstration of the false god's power."

"Yeah, that's his style," Jack commented.

"And your family?" Glimmer asked.

"I believe that, should Apophis intend to use them as leverage against me, he would have announced the fact that he has them so I would hear of them," Teal'c replied. "However, since they have denounced me, they should be safe from retaliation."

"Unless he wants to turn you into a spy," Catra said, "and doesn't want us to know that he's holding your family as hostages."

"He would have to be able to contact Teal'c covertly for that," Jack retorted. "That's not easy - we aren't exactly on speaking terms with him, and we don't frequent the same places. Well, when we do, we tend to blow them up," he added with a grin.

"He could still attempt to use them against you," Catra pointed out. "Or just keep them prisoner in case there's an opportunity to use them."

Teal'c inclined his head.

"Well, we'll have to find out where they are," Daniel said with obviously forced optimism. "We did it once already."

"Apophis's hold on Chulak is not as tight as on other planets," Teal'c said. "He conquered it from Chronos, but he never invested too much in the world."

Adora could see that on the screen. Chulak's Stargate was standing in the open, without visible fortifications or guards.

"Chulak isn't part of Apophis's core worlds," Sam said.

Adora nodded. The System Lords usually focused on a few worlds, developed and well-defended. And many of the remaining worlds under their control only had token Jaffa garrisons - sometimes not even that - and few settlements that provided raw materials or agricultural produce to the core worlds. And recruits for their armies and slaves for their factories, farms and mines.

"So… do we sneak through the Stargate, or do we fly there?" Daniel asked. "We've used the Stargate before, and it doesn't look as if they changed anything." He peered at the pictures on the screen.

"Or that's what he wants us to think," Catra muttered with a frown. "It's the best spot for a trap. He has to have surveillance on it, at least."

"The false gods often rely on their faithful to report to them," Teal'c said. "Or, rather, they used to - we cannot rely on them remaining so complacent. Not with the tensions between them running high."

"Yeah. Apophis is the kind of snake to pull something like that," Jack said. "But can he do that on every world?"

"Can we risk it?" Catra cocked her head to the side.

"He would still have to spot us to trigger what trap he might have laid." Jack grinned. "We've got a good record for sneaking through Stargates."

And a ship would take weeks to reach the world. They could send a flotilla, with Third Fleet's flagship, so they would be able to use the Stargate to travel there, but that was still a bit tricky - and too close to an invasion. And you didn't launch an invasion without more intel about the planet.

"So we try to sneak in?" Glimmer asked.

Jack nodded. "Yes. Like old times," he added with a grin.

Stargate Command had been running such missions, Adora knew. But they had also often been running into trouble on such trips. Still, it was feasible - and Jack had been training his command for such operations for months now. They needed some real experience.

She nodded. "Yes. But we'll use spy bots first. On the ground as well."

"Yes!" Entrapta beamed. "We can use our new stealth bots for that! The Goa'uld shouldn't be able to detect them!"

"But we'll need a cover for the gate activation. The gate opening without anyone coming through would look suspicious - and make the Goa'uld suspect that we have such stealth assets," Sam added.

"I think between us and the Tok'ra, we can come up with a cover," Catra said. "They've been running such missions for a long time."

Adora nodded again. "Then it's settled."

Alliance Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, November 5th, 1999

"Sam. Entrapta."

Anise wasn't happy. Samantha Carter would have been able to tell even if she hadn't received advance notice of her friend's visit in a rather clipped tone. Usually, the Tok'ra scientist was looking around curiously when she entered Sam's lab - or the spacelab - and generally was smiling when she greeted her friends.

Today, she was… 'not quite frowning' would fit it best, Sam decided. "Hello, Anise."

"Hi!" Entrapta, of course, was smiling widely. "How are you doing? How is your research into the portable stealth device going?"

Anise blinked, then sighed with a slightly rueful smile before straightening. "I was forced to pause my research in order to deal with a new development that greatly concerns the High Council: Your research into synthetic symbionts."

Yes, as Sam had expected.

Entrapta frowned, looking puzzled. "But you knew about that from the start - it was hardly a new development."

"I am talking about the symbionts you are planning to create for humans."

"Oh?" Sam's friend cocked her head to the side. "Is this about recruiting hosts?" She turned to look at Sam. "We talked about that, right?"

"Yes." Sam nodded.

"So, you are aware of the effects your research will have on my people?" Anise asked.

"Kinda. But not really." Entrapta shrugged. "I mean, you only take volunteers as hosts, yes?"

"Of course!"

"But anyone who only wanted a host so they could get healed from an illness or live longer wouldn't really be volunteering, would they?" Entrapta asked in a guileless tone. "That seems more like a technically-but-not-really voluntary decision - they certainly have a choice, but if one of the choices is so much worse than the other, it's not really a choice. At least, I think so. You could kinda argue that just having the choice is good enough, but that's not really true, is it?"

Anise was taken aback. Sam had expected that as well. She felt a little ashamed for letting Entrapta take the lead, so to speak, but while the argument about choices was certainly sound - from an ethical point of view - Sam would have felt a little hypocritical making it herself. Maybe more than a little. She wasn't a ruthless follower of the idea that the ends justified the means, far from it, but Sam didn't know what she would be willing to do if humanity's existence was on the line.

"That's… true," Anise said before pressing her lips together for a moment. "But," she rallied, "sometimes - quite often, actually, as I know - a host would have volunteered without any other incentive anyway if they had known in advance what the bond was like." Her eyes flashed, and Freya spoke: "Yes. It is hard to describe the feeling to those who haven't experienced it. "She glanced at Sam and added: "Or those who have only experienced it in the most extreme circumstances."

Sam clenched her teeth as she remembered her 'experience' with Jolinar.

"But being a host to your partner…" Freya smiled, her eyes looking past Entrapta and Sam. "I would not miss it for the world. You are one half of something greater, something more intimate than you can imagine without living it."

Oh, Sam could imagine it very well. She had lived through it. To have no secrets left, to feel your most private thoughts, your entire mind, laid open to a stranger… She suppressed a shudder.

"See?" Entrapta beamed. "Our synthetic symbionts won't really change anything - you'll still get volunteers."

Freya's eyes flashed again, and Anise didn't look like she shared Entrapta's optimism. "It is already hard to convince potential hosts that we are nothing like the Goa'uld. This will not make it any easier."

"Really?" Entrpata pouted a little, "I would have thought that having more people with symbionts would make it more accepted - and not as scary. Some people really fear having a symbiont, even though the benefits are obvious."

Sam and Anise shared a brief look. "I guess we'll see," Sam said, though she didn't think Entrapta was correct. "But better public relations might improve your chances to find willing hosts significantly."

"Oh, yes! We can introduce you to Mr Brown and Julie! They're great at this - they helped us out a lot. People were scared of us as well, can you imagine?"

And they still are, Sam thought. Just not as many as before. Though the recent magical incidents might have changed that again. She didn't say that, though.

Anise still looked sceptical. "I will have to discuss this with the High Council. I was sent here mainly to get facts about this new… development. I cannot make decisions for my people."

"Oh! Yes, you'll need our data!" Entrapta turned around, hair flying over the keyboard of Sam's secondary computer. "We haven't made too much progress yet - but we found that the base symbiont design should be able to work for both humans and Jaffa, though we'll have to make some changes to allow it to adapt to a human immune system without the Jaffa modifications. You'd think it would be easier to have it work with an actual immune system, but it's not quite as easy since the human immune system wasn't designed for a symbiont."

It's a very good thing, Sam thought, that this is an Etherian research project.

Her superiors, especially her government, would not be happy at all about such data being shared so easily.

Oh.

She closed her eyes for a moment. Some of them - like the Secretary of Defense - who were counting on getting a symbiont themselves to extend their lives might even see sharing data about symbionts with aliens as a threat to their own safety. Like giving out medical data about potential vulnerabilities for biological warfare or whatever else they could come up with.

Well, that was their problem. No one would be forcing them to get a symbiont. In fact, it might be a good thing if this would make some of them hesitate at least a little.

Alliance Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, November 6th, 1999

"...and amidst unconfirmed reports of magical assaults across Europe, and dangerous 'cryptids' sightings across the world, the Alliance blindly focuses on the war against the Goa'uld - aliens that have supposedly been forced off Earth by our ancient ancestors with swords and spears yet should be seen as a dire threat to our world! How much longer will this travesty be allowed to go on while people…"

Catra rolled her eyes and muted the channel. You were supposed to keep tabs on your enemies, but she could only stomach watching American media so far. "So much for the Freedom of the Press," she muttered as she leaned back in her seat in the meeting room. A few more minutes until the meeting would begin. "Freedom to lie, more likely."

"That's just a nutcase they interviewed," Adora pointed out, finishing the soda she had grabbed on the way. "The news doesn't actually say that."

Catra shrugged. "If they put him on air, they spread his lies. It works out the same." She glanced at the screen. The politician on air had been replaced by another person being interviewed - if you could call asking them for a quote an interview.

"Not exactly," Daniel objected. "Showing such interviews and contrasting them with facts exposes the claims of those people as false and undermines their reputation and following."

"Really?" Catra scoffed and pressed unmute on the remote on the table.

"...and now the perfidy of the aliens has been exposed! Fell sorcery has been revealed as the evil that it always was! They have deceived those with weak hearts, fooled them with false promises, to lure them astray and corrupt them with magic and false gods! But there is only one saviour, and we know his words as true! It's only by following him that we shall be saved - and he told us to reject both false gods and magic! Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live! He helped our ancestors to drive away alien invaders, and he will help us to do the same if only we have faith! Do not…"

She raised her eyebrows as she muted the television again.

Daniel winced for a moment. "Well, most people will be repelled by such rhetoric."

"And how many people will believe it?" Catra scoffed again. "It's not as if everyone cares about facts in the first place." Some of those lunatics were calling Adora the 'anti-Christ'!

Daniel frowned at that. "We - the Alliance - have been examining those claims and reports. We haven't found any confirmed sightings of such 'cryptids' after Halloween. And most of the magical assaults were rather questionable, to say the least. It seems comparable to the kind of mass hysteria that we saw happen in the past, such as the reports of Japanese attacks on the West Coast following Pearl Harbour in World War II that turned out to be imaginary." He perked up. "But that passed, and this will pass as well."

Catra didn't think it would. Those people were clinging to their delusions no matter the facts. They knew that the only one who could be their 'anti-Christ' was actually a Goa'uld, Sokar, yet refused to consider the implications of that.

"Let's hope so," Adora said with a deep frown.

"It is difficult to make people change their faith even with clear evidence that they are worshipping false gods unworthy of devotion," Teal'c spoke up. "But we shall persevere."

The door opened, and O'Neill stepped inside, followed by Sam and Entrapta. "Sorry for being late," he said with a grin. "We had to get more coffee for Daniel."

"What?" Daniel frowned at him. "I didn't… you don't have any coffee!" he added with a pout.

"It was so good, we drank it on the way." O'Neill shrugged.

"Our shuttle was late," Sam clarified with a slight sigh that Catra's ears picked up.

"Hey! That wasn't my fault!" O'Neill protested. "I was at the spacelab on time. I recall a pair of scientists taking their time boarding their ride."

"We had to finish an experiment," Entrapta explained as she sat down at the table. "Are Glimmer and Bow not coming?"

"Something came up at Bright Moon," Catra said. "So, Sparkles has to smooth ruffled feathers or something, and Bow stayed with her so she won't lose her temper and teleport some idiot into the sea or something."

"Catra!" Adora scolded her. "Micah called for Glimmer to settle an issue between Bright Moon and the Crimson Waste," she told the others. "Anyway, it won't affect our planning session. Entrapta, Sam, you have the latest intel from the spy bots?"

"Oh, yes!" Entrapta nodded and used a tool to project a picture on the wall behind her. "We've mapped the entire planet in greater detail now - it took a while since they have Death Gliders patrolling the orbitals, so the bots had to avoid them, but it wasn't too difficult since there are just a few patrols, not enough to completely cover the planet. You just have to be careful - we could sneak a stealth shuttle through without a problem, according to their search patterns. And speaking of stealth, we have the stealth bots ready for the Stargate. All we need now is the Tok'ra's cover. And Anise said she'd get us that, even though they're probably still unhappy about the symbionts. But as soon as we have a cover for the gate activation, we can send the bots through and look for an ambush."

And once that was dealt with, they could go through themselves. Catra grinned, flashing her fangs. It had been a bit too long since their last time in the field. This should be good.

Gate Area, PZ-1151, November 8th, 1999 (Earth Time)

Jack O'Neill stepped around one of the new stealth bots hovering to the side of the Stargate without the stealth mode engaged on his way to where Carter and Entrapta had set up their computers in one of the new Alliance Standard Mobile Buildings around the D.H.D. - the soldiers were still trying to come up with a decent nickname for the things. Jack was partial to 'Asbies', but generals didn't get to decide that, alas.

Two of the large combat bots - the improved versions capable of anti-air work - were standing guards on each side of the building, with another next to the shield generator in the back. Between those three, the nine others forming a perimeter around the gate and the twelve more standing ready to be deployed, even a few squadrons of Death Gliders would not last long should they get in range. At least according to testing - the bots hadn't seen combat yet.

But the platoon of Jack's 'Snake Hunters' waiting to the side of the Stargate included a few Stinger teams, just in case. And Isa with her blaster cannon.

And there was Emily, standing guard in front of the building. The bot beeped a greeting at Jack, her definitely not-standard blaster cannon and other things Jack was pretty sure he hadn't seen before pointed at the gate.

He nodded back and entered the building.

"There's Jack!" Entrapta called out from where she was standing behind a computer console next to the D.H.D. with Carter. "We're about ready here!"

He looked at Carter, who nodded. "The temporary field base is operational, sir."

A big name for a building and a few fences, but technically correct. Though Jack felt a sudden bout of nostalgia for Stargate Command. Just a bit, though.

"We're only waiting for your troops," Catra added. She was sitting - or lounging - on a seat in the back, next to the main screen.

"We're ready as well," Jack said. "We were waiting for you," he added with a grin.

"Sure you were." Catra smirked.

Adora cleared her throat. "With the temporary field base operational and the forces ready… Start the mission."

"Yes!" Entrapta turned, and her hair fanned out, flying over the keyboards.

"Dialing to Chulak," Carter reported as she turned the D.H.D.

The main screen in front of her changed from showing the various parts of the base's perimeter to the view from the stealth bot, just in time to catch the wormhole stabilising.

"Go, Stealth Bot-7!" Entrapta called out.

Jack could see the bot vanish from sight on the cameras watching it before he focused on the feed from the bot. There, the wormhole grew larger as the bot flew over, then was interrupted for a moment as it entered the gate.

And then they were looking at the deserted area around Chulak's Stargate.

"Scanning… scanning…" Entrapta reported.

Various numbers and data flickered over the side screens, too fast for Jack to catch them.

"No sign of any bombs," Carter announced. "Or any high-power device in the area. Trace amounts of Naquadah are at expected levels. Biological and chemical scans continue."

"Oh! There's a Naquada device buried in the sand! Take a closer scan!"

The picture zoomed in, then switched to a sort of x-ray view of a…

"It's a broken zat." Entrapta sounded disappointed. "No power left in its cell."

"No sign of a chemical or biological agent," Carter reported.

"Good. So, the gate area should be safe," Adora said.

"Relatively safe," Catra said. "Someone's bound to be watching for new arrivals. Even on a backwater planet like this."

"Catra!" Adora frowned at her. "It's Teal'c's home!"

"I am not offended, Commander Adora," Teal'c said. "Chulak is a rather neglected part of Apophis's realm. Although…" He tilted his head and stared at the feed from the bot. "Those tracks there seem unusual."

"Tracks? Where?" Entrapta asked.

But Teal'c was right. There was something. Jack took a closer look at the picture on the screen. "Fly closer to the area near the bush there," he said. "And zoom in."

They did. It looked like a typical dirt road linking the Stargate with the planetary capital, but the grass to both sides of it…"

"A formation marched through there. Recently," Teal'c stated. "Four warriors wide."

If Teal'c said so, it was true. And four warriors wide… that meant a lot of Jaffa.

"That's unusual," Catra commented.

"Indeed."

"We have no records from orbital surveillance of such a troop movement," Carter reported. "But our coverage has been spotty until a few days ago."

"Well, did they arrive - or did they leave?" Jack asked.

"I would have to take a closer look in person to tell," Teal'c said. "Your technology is superb, Entrapta, Sam Carter, Bow, but certain things can't be done remotely."

"Well, folks, time to don our disguises," Jack said. "And look like smugglers."

Catra snorted as she got up from her seat. "They're just cloaks. Ratty cloaks."

"Exactly!" Jack grinned.

"Most of the people plying that trade in the false god's realms do dress like that," Teal'c said. "We will not stand out - at least from a distance."

"And it's a cover the Tok'ra have used a lot," Glimmer said.

"Let's hope the Goa'uld haven't wised up, then," Catra said.

"Well, we'll find out," Jack said with a little more confidence than he felt. They had enough firepower waiting here to deal with pretty much everything that Apophis was supposed to have on Chulak and then some, and their spy bots hadn't detected anything from orbit, but… a planet was damn large, and Apophis wasn't stupid. Still, between the bots - each with the firepower of a main battle tank - Jack's platoon of the best of his command and She-Ra and her friends, they should be able to outfight any Jaffa infantry force long enough to retreat through the gate. As long as they didn't have dozens of Death Gliders or a few Al'keshs. And none of their surveillance had showed such forces. If they were hidden on Chulak… well, they should have enough warning to retreat anyway.

He slipped his own cloak on, adjusting it so he could get his carbine out without getting it tangled up. It felt more than a bit like being back on a covert op in certain African regions.

As he and the others approached the Stargate, he saw his platoon get up as well - and pull their own cloaks on. Eager for their first mission, but they'd have to wait for the clear from Jack. Smugglers didn't come in platoon-sized groups.

Jack nodded at them, then went up the ramp and stepped through the Stargate. General or not, he led from the front.

A moment that felt longer than it was later, he was on Chulak. He glanced around, hand on his gun, as the rest arrived, but there was nothing nearby.

Or so it seemed.

Teal'c went straight to the tracks he had spotted, kneeling down. "They went through the gate," he said. "And they came from the capital."

"So… more recruits for Apophis's army?" Daniel speculated. "Marched off to join his main focus?"

That was one possible explanation. And it would fit the rest of their information - mainly the lack of any footage of those troops.

"I do not think so."

Jack turned to look at Teal'c. His friend had sounded… not nearly as stoic as usual in such situations. Almost tense, actually.

Teal'c was holding up a broken necklace which must have been half-buried in the sand, judging by the amount of dirt on it. And he was staring at it with such an intense expression…

"This was Drey'auc's."