Stargate Command
Hammond watched as the SG teams returned, some carrying bodies others helping the walking wounded hobble through the gate, O'Neill handed one of them off to the medical team and walked over to him.
"How bad was it Colonel?"
"Half of them were already dead by the time we got there", Jack sighed, "The rest are touch and go, we'll see"
Hammond placed his hand on O'Neill's shoulder, "You cant save everyone Colonel, be happy with those you do"
"I know", Jack watched the last of the strangers they rescued be carted off to the med bay, "We saw some advanced looking tech on them, they might be from one of the advanced civilisations"
"Did Jolinar recognise anything?"
Jack shook his head, "No, there was nothing in the area but the gate anyway, no buildings or anything"
Jack stared at the retreating form of the medics, "I did overhear one of them say something to Carter though, 'Dont help us', I hope it's not some kind of mass suicide we interrupted"
"We'll find out soon enough Colonel, I'll call you as soon as we find anything out"
Jack nodded and walked off to get a shower, the smell of sulphur was wafting off of him.
…..
A few minutes and a shower later found SG-1 in the briefing room, "You evacuated ten people from an alien planet, Colonel, Doctor Frasier says they're all human and it looks like they're going to live", Hammond was saying.
"Thank you sir", O'Neill answered him, "There's still the mystery of why they were there"
"You said there were no buildings visible in the area?"
Commander Carter spoke up now, "No sir, we don't know how far they walked, but it looked like they were trying to make it back to the Stargate"
Hammond nodded, "They could be their equivalent of an SG team, they might have gotten trapped by the volcanic activity, Commander, did you learn anything about the technology they had?"
Carter looked a bit embarrassed as she spoke, "Well, they all emit low levels of radiation indicating an operative energy source, but there's no circuitry, moving parts or chips, we've never seen anything like it"
Hammond looked to Jolinar, "Did you recognise anything, the technology or the people?"
Jolinar shook her head, "No, there are many advanced human civilisations in the galaxy, to date I have encountered only one in person, the Aschen, those people are not the Aschen of that much I am certain"
Hammond expected as much from his earlier questioning of Colonel O'Neill, he was about to ask another question when he spotted a marine enter the room, "Corporal", he nodded to the man, encouraging him to speak.
"The leader of the rescued people is awake, he'd like to speak with you", The marine said, he waved his hand to indicate SG-1, "All of you"
…..
Hammond eyed the supposed leader of these people while Frasier had walked over to him and SG-1, "He called himself Omoc, other than that he's an arrogant bastard", Hammond raised an eyebrow at Fraiser's comment.
She just shrugged in response, "You'll see when you talk to him"
Hammond nodded, "Very well, lets talk to him then", Hammond led SG-1 over to the occupied bed, the man had a thinning hairline and a blank expression, he looked to Hammond as he approached, removing an oxygen mask before he spoke.
"Who are you?", the question was nearly emotionless.
"I'm Major General Hammond, this is Colonel O'Neill and his team SG-1", Hammond said waving to the others.
Hammond watched as the rest of SG-1 introduced themselves but Omoc simply closed his eyes and ignored them before asking another question.
"Where is this place?"
Hammond took control of the conversation again and answered, "A facility in the Sol system", he waved to SG-1, "These people saved you"
Omoc simply rolled his eyes in response, "Nothing could be further from the truth"
Hammond was surprised by that, was O'Neill onto something with the suicide cult, it looked like Doctor Jackson was disturbed by the response too, he opened his mouth and questioned Omoc.
"Well, unless I missed something, you're", he paused to think of how to word his statement, "better off here than you were there"
Omoc opened his eyes and bored them into Jackson, "There was a rescue transport on the way"
Jack crossed his arms, clearly agitated with Omoc, "Well, half your people were already dead, I don't think it would have gotten there in time".
"Perhaps that's more of a problem for you than it was for us", Omoc replied and closed his eyes again.
Hammond didn't know what to make of that answer, it seemed Colonel O'Neill felt the same too when he said, "Beg your pardon" to Omoc.
"I find it unbelievable that anyone so primitive could have deciphered the Gate system", Omoc said as he looked around the room they were in.
Hammond's inner calm was being tested by this man, he could see that he was prodding at them hoping for some kind of reaction, Hammond was tempted to simply throw them back to their volcanic doom and be rid of Omoc.
"Did you say primitive?", O'Neill asked, clearly annoyed with Omoc too.
Hammond could see that Teal'c and Jolinar were about to start talking too but he beat them to the punch, "Sir, I'd like to know who you are where you are from"
"I already told my name to your blood-letter of a Doctor, I am Omoc of the Tollan"
They had heard of the Tollan from Jolinar, one of the advanced human civilisations in the galaxy, one that the Goa'uld left alone.
"We've heard of the Tollan, the Tok'ra told us about you", They didn't mention the arrogant dismissiveness of their people though he thought to himself.
Omoc raised an eyebrow, "Did they tell you we don't interact with the galaxy at large, no?, then I demand you return everything that you have taken from us and allow us to go home"
Hammond frowned, he'd send them home alright, he didn't see much use trying to be diplomatic with this Omoc.
Jackson spoke up next, "Well, it could take a while for those volcanoes to quiet down, in the meantime, I'm a bit of a culture buff, I'd like to learn about your history and customs"
Omoc was having none of it, he closed his eyes again, "I've said enough, I'll say no more"
Hammond shook his head and waved SG-1 out of the room, he turned to Jackson, "Keep trying son, the other Tollan might be more receptive", Hammond looked back into the med bay, "Commander, keep an eye on the planet they came from, as soon as it's safe the Tollan can leave"
Hammond dismissed SG-1 and headed to his office, it was time to call Earth and inform them about the new guests.
…..
A few hours found Commander Carter observing the data from the probe they had left behind, things on the planet were getting worse, the temperature and toxic gases had increased past the lethal level and a large lava flow was heading towards the gate, it would be under the molten rock in a few days time.
She was roused from her study of the probe data by the arrival of Daniel, he gave her a small wave as he entered the science lab.
"Hey Sam, I was just down in the infirmary with one of the Tollan, trying to get them to talk to us, they only ask questions, they never answer them, as a matter of fact, one of them was asking a lot of questions about you"
"Me?, I thought they weren't interested in us"
"Yeah, not us just you, General Hammond thinks maybe you'll have better luck getting some answers, I was just talking to him before I came here, he'd like to see you"
"Alright"
"He's waiting outside the med bay", Daniel called after her as she walked out the door.
Carter found the General just where Daniel had said, he was standing with a few marines and one of the Tollan, Hammond led her out of earshot of the others before talking.
"We're having a hard time getting these people to open up, this one has taken a shine to you for some reason and I was hoping he would open up to you a bit more than Doctor Jackson or myself"
Carter nodded, "I'll try my best sir"
Hammond led her over to the man, he seemed much more chipper than Omoc was, "Narim of the Tollan, do you remember rescuing him?"
"Yes, from the planet, you were a lot dirtier then", She gave him a small smile.
"Commander Carter, or is it Doctor?", he asked while returning her smile, a much more personable man than Omoc it seemed.
"I do have a Doctorate in astrophysics but lets keep it simple, call me Samantha"
He nodded, "You may call me Narim"
Hammond watching from the side nodded to her, "Commander, Mr Narim seems very interested in our planet, I thought maybe you'd like to escort him to the library and show him more"
Narim seemed disappointed with those words, "Ah, I would have liked to see the surface myself"
Hammond and Carter shared a look, did no one tell him?
"Eh, you do know we're on a space station", Carter told him with some embarrassment in her voice.
Narims face showed his shock, "I'm sorry, I assumed this was an underground facility, I'm afraid Omoc's prejudices have influenced my opinion of you"
"Well, lets dispel those then", she led him towards the library on the station, the marines following a few steps behind.
….
"Narim explained that the native wildlife on Tollan was mostly gone, he was surprised when I showed him a few videos of birds, also he actually thanked us for saving them, the only one so far"
"Good work Commander", Hammond said from his office chair, "What about the planet we discovered them on?"
She shook her head, "The ground temperature was approaching one thousand degrees centigrade, the air wasn't far behind, no one could survive there"
"Hmm, your report mentions a lava flow heading towards the gate", Hammond said as he glanced a the computer screen.
"Yes sir, I expect the gate to be buried soon, the whole area is unstable, I've been dialing in every hour to update the probe data, it wont last much longer under these conditions"
"Did the probe see any sign of this rescue transport?"
Carter shook her head, "None but I cant be conclusive, it might have already been and left"
"We'll have to convince Omoc to give us the address for Tollan then, they cant return to that inferno", Hammond stood, "Now is as good a time as any"
They walked back to the med bay, Daniel was already there when they arrived trying to engage Omoc and the other Tollan, he watched as they moved over to talk to Omac and moved to join them.
"Mr. Omac, I have some bad news regarding the planet we found you on", Hammond began, "Unfortunately our probe detected a lava flow heading right for the gate, we expect it to be buried sometime soon"
His blank expression never changed, "Are you absolutely certain?", was all he asked.
Carter nodded, "Yes, I can show you the data if you want"
He shook his head but seemed relieved, "Then nature succeeded where we failed"
Daniel took the opportunity to join the conversation, "What, you were going to seal the Gate?"
Omoc slowly nodded his head, "Tollan is a world in cataclysm, evacuation was complete, my team stayed to", he paused, seemingly pained, "Our final task was to close the gate, so that no one could return and be harmed"
Hammond's brow creased, "That planet where we found you was Tollan?"
"Yes, but that is all I will say on that matter"
"The location you evacuated to, do you know the address, we can send you there immediately", Hammond asked him.
"The new settlement world is outside the Gate system, we'll need a ship"
The three Terrans shared a look, Hammond was the first to speak, "We might be able to help you there"
For the first time since they had met Omoc's stone faced look was broken he actually looked surprised and shocked.
"I'll need to call command and see what's available, we can discuss this further in an hour, briefing room one", Hammond quickly excused himself, this could be the in they needed.
…..
Briefing room one was packed this time, SG-1 and Hammond were sat opposite the two representative of the Tollan, Omoc and Narim.
Hammond started it off by returning the technology they had taken off the Tollan, "As an act of good faith, we're returning the devices you were wearing", he pointed to the box left on the table.
Omoc nodded but couldn't help himself from adding commentary, "They are not weapons"
"Yes, our technicians determined that much", Hammond said.
"So you had them tested?, not much of an act of good faith", Omoc replied in his even tone, even Narim frowned at Omoc's continuing disrespect.
Hammond was nearing the end of his diplomatic tether, "If strangers arrived at your world, carrying unknown technology, would you not have it tested?", Hammond tone was showing a bit of his anger.
"I think it's about time we got a little gratitude, don't you think?", O'Neill added.
Omoc remained stone faced while Narim bowed his head, he looked to Omoc and received a nod, "The nearest planet in our solar system was called Sarita, they were of a similar technology level to what we assumed you where when we introduced ourselves to them"
Omoc looked like he swallowed a lemon when he spoke, "You are still primitives, you just might not be as primitive as I assumed though that remains to be seen"
Narim continued, "We thought they were advanced enough to benefit from assistance from us, we offered them advanced energy generation technology"
Commander Carter spoke up, "So what happened?"
"In one rotation of our planet, they had destroyed theirs, they had taken our gift and turned it to the purpose of war"
"One day?", the mood in the room turned sombre, Hammond knew if something like that had happened a hundred years ago a similar fate might have befallen Earth.
Narim nodded, "The destruction shifted our planet's orbit point enough to begin a chain of events that made our world unstable, as you saw for yourselves"
"You can see why I am wary of those who have not matured enough to respect our technology, I am reticent to trust outsiders right now, the destruction of Tollan is fresh", Omoc said, looking directly at Hammond.
"You said you could help us, tell me how"
"We have ships, Mr Omoc, just tell us where you need to go"
Omoc gave a sarcastic laugh, "Based on what I've seen so far I doubt that", he paused and looked to Narim, "We'll need to see the stars to find out how far away we are, I need to go to the surface"
"Did Narim not tell you, we're on a space station", O'Neill asked him.
"A ploy to contain us and steal our technology, I don't believe it for a second"
Hammond sighed, "Colonel, take Omoc and Narim to the observation deck"
….
"Here we are, deck 1, the observation deck", O'Neill waved his arms around the large open space.
Pluto stations top deck was had more windows than the rest of the facility combined, the room was also home to a large garden area for relaxation, the stars were visible through the many large windows.
In the centre was even a small seating area and coffee and tea kiosk, several off duty crew were relaxing as SG-1 and company arrived.
"This whole deck can be sealed off in case of pressure loss or other emergency's", Carter was telling Narim as they exited the stairwell behind O'Neill and Omoc.
"Impressive", Narim said while Omoc remained silent.
Narim moved over to one of the windows, "Are we not in orbit of your world?"
"No, Pluto station was constructed to house our stargate program around a year ago, the design is modular so we can add and remove sections if we need, the newest one is over there", she pointed out the window, the exterior of Pluto station was visible, large modules connected together to form the structure.
"Its a fusion reactor we added to power the new defence systems added a few months ago"
"Pluto?", Narim asked, inwardly he was actually impressed with the level of sophistication displayed.
"Ah yes, the name of the planet we're in orbit of, its the furthest from the sun in our system, although whether it's actually a planet is up for debate"
Narim noticed Omoc staring at him, "Narim, if your done we need to calculate the distance to Tollana"
Jack and Carter watched them use one of their devices to work out the distance, by the looks on the Tollan's faces it wasn't good.
"It's too far, it would take a lifetime to get there", Omoc told them eventually.
Jack raised an eyebrow at that, he knew the Gould could cross the galaxy with their old drive in three years, were the Tollan less advanced than they were letting on?.
"Just how far is it?", he asked.
It took a few minutes to convert their measurement system to light years but the got the answer, twenty five thousand light years.
…
They had returned to Hammond and the others before they discussed anything else, Omoc was still stone faced and Narim looked depressed.
"Is this where you throw us in prison and take our technology", were Omoc's first words when he sat back down.
"You need to can the attitude Omoc, we said we'd help, let us", Jack turned to Carter, "Tell him how long it would take us to get to their planet"
"Twenty five thousand light years, around a quarter of the diameter of the galaxy", she scrunched her eyes for a bit doing the mental calculations, "Just a hair over fifty days with our newest drives"
The time dropped like a bomb on Omoc, he spluttered in disbelief, "Fifty days, our fastest hyperdrives would take decades"
"For all your arrogance that is much slower than the drives of the Goa'uld", Jolinar spoke up.
Omoc calmed down a bit but seemed defensive, "We never needed fast drives, we keep to ourselves, the one time we didn't we got Serita, take a ship to our world Tok'ra and find out what happens"
"Enough", Hammond nearly shouted, he turned to Omoc, "We've treated you with the utmost respect, even in the face of your disrespect, if you want our help you better start to appreciate it"
Omoc went silent, Narim spoke instead, "I apologise, I thank you on behalf of the Tollan for the help we have received"
"Right, I'll call command and find out if they can spare a ship, is that acceptable?"
Omoc simply nodded, staying silent.
Union Council Chambers
The real power players in the Union were looking over everything known about the Tollan, deciding if it was worth it to provide help.
"This Omoc is very abrasive from these reports, are all the Tollan of similar personality?", One of the Councillors asked.
"No, while the others interacted little this Narim seemed personable, I can understand that loosing a world could cause them to be like Omoc, he needs to put the blame on other people and we're a convenient target", Another replied.
"I read the reports we received from the Tok'ra Jolinar on what she remembered about the Tollan, their powerful enough that the Goa'uld leave them alone", The third one said.
"Access to whatever technology they have is enough to make it worth the effort, if it keeps the Goa'uld away", The fourth one added.
"Alright, it's decided, we'll help the Tollan return to their planet, we can send an ambassador along too, see if they can open some doors for us, now we just need to pick a suitable ship", The chairman said.
"I'd almost say send that Colonial freighter we have, it's faster than our own ships right now, but that would give the wrong impression, we need to send one of our own", Councillor one said.
"How about the destroyer Hermes, she's a few months old and has the newest jump drive tech", Councillor three proposed.
The chairman raised an eyebrow, "Isn't that the one with the experimental battery tech?"
Number three nodded, "Integrating a lithium-fusion battery into a Colonial style jump drive, the ability to jump twice in quick succession, the Hermes has performed phenomenally so far"
"And if it breaks half way there?"
"It wont be an issue, they can simply disconnect the battery, the drive should work as normal"
The chairman nodded, "Alright, lets do a quick vote", he looked around the room getting nods of consent for the Hermes, "The ayes have it, we're sending the Hermes"
Stargate Command
They were in the observation deck watching as the destroyer docked to the station, it had only taken a two days to arrange everything for the Tollan's trip to Tollana.
"There's your ride home", Carter told Narim, he seemed sad when she said those words.
"Yes, I will be leaving, however, I will go reluctantly"
Carter seemed surprised, "Why?"
"Because, as of tonight, we will never meet again"
She smiled hearing that, "Oh, come on, you'll forget about me in a heartbeat"
"I thought you might feel that way, that is why I brought this", He pulled out a small device with three triangular symbols on it.
Carter looked at it with curiosity, "What is it?"
"An emotion recorder, I have worn it each time we were together it contains my feelings for you"
"How does it work?"
"Push this button", he pointed to one of the triangles.
"Oh", she said shocked, clearly feeling something from the device.
….
Daniel arrived a few minutes later to find Carter and Narim embracing, "Uh, their waiting for you"
Embarrassed they disentangled, "Until we meet again Samantha", Narim bowed and followed Daniel down to the docking bay.
Hammond was waiting with the rest of the Tollan and two men, "Ah Narim, this is Captain Chau of the Hermes, he'll be taking you to Tollana and Ambassador Batten"
Narim bowed, "Captain, Ambassador", he moved to stand beside Omoc.
Hammond extended his hand to Omoc, "I wont say its been a pleasure but good luck"
Omoc returned the gesture, "I understand my comportment has been subpar, I offer my apologies for any offence I caused"
"Think nothing of it, I hope at least we have proven we are not as primitive as you thought"
"No, I foolishly believed only technology showed how advanced one was, I mistakenly let that cloud my judgment of you, who helped us regardless"
Hammond smiled, "If you ever get a stargate you know our address"
Omoc bowed and returned to the rest of the Tollan, O'Neill walked over to stand beside Hammond as the Tollan boarded the ship, "Cant say I'm sad to see them go"
"I feel the same Colonel, lets just hope it was worth it"
A few minutes later the Hermes undocked and disappeared in a flash.
Picon Fleet HQ
17th July 2065
Peter Corman waked into the small private office, inside waiting for him were Admirals Ferore and Greenhill, he nodded to the two men as he took his seat in front of Ferore's desk.
"Lets begin", Ferore started, "Have you seen Adama's report Peter?"
"No, I only just arrived back, I've been stuck overseeing the trade route mapping past Kobol"
"Here, read it when were done, I'll summarise for now", Ferore leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers.
"Greenhills idea worked", he nodded to Geenhill, "Saul Tigh and Ellen Tigh regained their memories upon arrival at the Thirteenths Earth"
"That's good, did we learn anything useful?"
"Yes, we know why the war ended as it did, these Earthers came from their own Cylon war, one that resulted in the complete destruction of their planet, they hoped to stop a similar thing happening here so they trade their technology to the Cylons in exchange for ending the war"
"Ok", Corman nodded, "Why did they never show up to the armistice station after the war?"
"According to Tigh, things were going well for the first few years, the Cylons were content to ignore us and concentrate on themselves, things changed when they created their biological replicants"
"The Tigh's told us their first creation managed to usurp control of the Cylons and banish the Earthers to the Colonies, erasing their memories too, apparently he hates us and them, his name is Cavil"
Corman sighed, "I assume this Cavil is going to be trouble?"
"Intelligence believes so", Greenhill spoke, "We're still testing people and working on ways to expand that to the civilian population, but so far we haven't discovered any infiltrators"
"None?", Corman asked.
"No, but there are some people who vanished when testing began, we have their pictures out there but nothing so far"
"We might be looking at a war soon despite the lack of evidence of infiltration", Ferore added, "But the president is insisting we try diplomacy first, the Earthers could be instrumental in deposing Cavil and bringing in a more friendly leadership there"
Corman looked horrified, "Really, diplomacy with the toasters after thirty years of silence?"
"I know, fortunately the president saw some sense, he approved a spending package to increase the fleets numbers in addition to reinstating some of our mothballed escort ships"
"Why those and not the old battlestars?"
"Trade, we need a secure trade route to the Terrans, they'll be used to escort merchant convoys and patrolling, there's even plans to build some stations at locations along the planned route"
"Regarding the Cylons", Greenhill spoke up again, "We know Ragnar works on the replicants, Galen Tyrol came down with flu like symptoms after several hours aboard, we moved him off the station before he declined too far and he recovered quickly enough"
"We're keeping our most secure research on Ragnar, the gas giants effect on the Cylons makes it the best defence against espionage we have", Ferore added, "We're already making great strides in manufacturing our own laser weapons there"
That intrigued Corman, "When will the fleet see those weapons?"
Frustration emanated from Ferore and Greenhill, "Not for some time, we still need to solve the power issues on our current fleet", Ferore looked to Greenhill, "Doctor Baltar is having some success refitting old Adamant frigates, the solution of adding more reactors is too expensive in both cost and internal space for use with our battlestars"
"Another option has become available though, while you were away we managed to sign a trade agreement with the Terrans and sort out some currency exchange rates, we'll have the option to purchase their reactors and weapons soon", Greenhill told Corman.
Ferore nodded to Greenhill, "We also signed a mutual defence treaty, if the Cylons attack or the Goa'uld we can expect help, the same goes for us, we'll send the Terrans help if they're attacked"
"That's reassuring, what exactly are we buying from the, though?", Corman asked.
Ferore produced a document from his desk, "We'll start small for now, here's the plans for the new Viper mark VII, it's been changed from the original specs"
Corman took the paper from Ferore and began to read, the ship would keep the same external shape but after that things changed drastically, fusion thrusters and laser weapons procured from Terran manufacturers, at least until their own could make the parts, the proposed three cannons would be replaced by medium lasers.
Ferore watched Corman read, "We're already in contact with manufactures on Terra and have permission to purchase the weapons and engines, as soon as the factories are ready in the Colonies we'll start production"
"How long?"
"A month at most, we're also looking into options for upgrade kits for the old Vipers and Raptors, we're still waiting on the diplomats regarding access to the Terrans armour technology though"
Corman handed the page back to Ferore, "No capital ship weapons?"
"Not yet, the quorum is still on the fence regarding the cost of refitting the fleet, it might have to wait until a new ship class is designed, or Baltars little experiment bears fruit, the Terrans are open to selling them to us regardless"
Corman sighed, why is it that the politicians never fully understand the danger of a renewed Cylon war, you'd think the existence of the Goa'uld would matter too. "Hopefully with the new Trade with the Terrans the economy will grow enough for them to spend the money", that or a war kicking off which was looking more of a possibility lately.
Ferore scoffed, "I wish", he shook his head, "They already balked at the price of the new satellite communications relay system proposed by the Terrans, those HPG things they have"
The satellites were expensive enough on their own, but most of the money would be spent on maintenance and building outposts in deep space to house the repair crews, even then the economic benefits would massively out weigh the price thought Corman.
"Aren't the Terrans footing half the bill?, it's worth the price anyway"
"I know, tell the politicians that though, still it was approved in the end"
"Will wonders never cease", Corman mused, "So what happened to the stargate?"
Greenhill spoke up, "We moved it to a base on Pallas, we're currently in the process of setting up our own exploration efforts, the Terrans offered us a list of addresses to look at"
"Oh, that was quick, who's running it?", Corman racked his brain to remember Pallas, wasn't that the one with the unbreathable atmosphere in Helios beta?
"General Mintz, veteran of the Tauron campaign, he's still getting people in to form up the teams"
Ferore spoke again, "It should be up and running soon enough but we're going to be exercising the same caution in regards to the Goa'uld as the Terrans, it's better if they don't know we exist"
"Since we're on that subject, the announcement is tomorrow night", Greenhill spoke.
Ferore nodded and pulled out two folders, "The fleet deployment plans for tomorrow, once the president is finished we expect some rioting and other disruptions, especially on Gemenon"
Corman opened the folder, "Peter, you're handling Helios Gamma, we don't expect much from Scorpia or Libran but Sagittaron, that's another matter"
"Zarek?"
Greenhill nodded, "There's a high chance of a terrorist attack after the president reveals the Goa'uld, it will be a good opportunity with everyone dealing with the likely unrest"
"Keep an eye out for suspicious traffic, otherwise the police and army will deal with things on the ground, we don't need Zarek's lot stealing a civilian transport ship or any thing of that sort", Ferore rumbled from his chair.
Corman was about to ask more when Ferore's phone rang.
Ferore picked up the handset, "Yes", a pause as whoever was on the other end talked, "Right, sent it in then", with that Ferore hung up.
"Apparently Baltar has a proposal for getting around our energy issues on the battlestars", he told the two other men, a knock was heard on hos door a few seconds later and an Ensign entered and delivered a folder to Ferore, he saluted and exited after.
"Lets see", Ferore opened the folder and read for a few moments, "Hmm", another few seconds passed, "Cheaper too", Corman and Greenhill watched in anticipation as Ferore kept reading, finally he tossed the document to Greenhill.
"Well?", Corman asked.
"Baltar has access to the upgrade plans for the Viper, the president I'm betting gave him access, anyway he proposed to use the small reactors to power individual weapons"
"But wouldn't they be too small for that?"
"Here", Greenhill showed him the document, "A small fusion reactor connected to a capacitor bank to power one or two naval laser weapons, instead of refitting the whole ship with new reactors and power systems"
"Hmm, 2 to 3 shots before the capacitor is drained, recharge time of ninety seconds?"
"If we moderate the rate of fire and alternate weapons it wont matter much, there's enough room in a battlestar replace our main batteries with the lasers and the power setup" Ferore told him.
"And it's far cheaper than a full refit would be, right now that's not even an option anyway", Greenhill looked to Ferore, "Unless we can buy large scale reactors from the Terrans?"
Ferore shook his head, "The quorum wont allocate enough money for that, this however might just be possible"
Ferore stood, "Very well gentlemen, I'll pass along this proposal to the president", he checked his calender on the wall, "We'll have our next meeting the day after tomorrow"
Greenhill and Corman both stood and gave their goodbyes, Ferore had a president to meet.
Cylon Colony
The mood on the colony had been abysmal for the past few weeks, it had really started to go bad when the resurrection ship had vanished and they still had no idea where Cavil had gone, the supposed leaders of the Cylons were running around like chickens with their heads cut off.
Leoben was partially to blame himself, in retrospect he realised that spending his time navel-gazing instead of being productive didn't help to fix the problems they had, he came to the realisation that God had abandoned the Cylons, any future they had would need to be grasped by themselves.
Of course that was only after things had gotten worse, after the resurrection ship had disappeared several other baseships had followed suit, twenty of them had just up and vanished with no one returning to explain anything, the resurrection network was quiet.
That was enough to get the other models to sit down and work things out, Cavils authority had been rescinded, even the other Ones had agreed when they found out how their ships were being stolen, priority orders from Cavil then the ships being disconnected from the network in deep space.
It was an education to realise just how much power Cavil actually had, even the Ones were shocked when they saw, it led to some changes afterwards, now all power was shared equally in truth across all the models.
Leoben's sleuthing had discovered other irregularities, the missing model 005 Centurions had led him to investigating all the old war leftovers, masses of old Raiders and even several still functional old double disk basestars had vanished from the storage yards.
Someone, Cavil or whoever had him, was stealing the Cylons ships, now they just had to find out who or what.
Right now the ruling council was awaiting news from the Colonies, their stealth probes on the border had been scanning Colonial news media so they knew the president was about to drop something big live on TV.
"A raider just jumped in, receiving data burst", Doral called out in the small command room, everyone moved over to place their hands on the bio conductive gel.
President Garret Rand's face appeared on the wall, "My fellow Colonials…"
"This better not be some political thing, I got enough of that working for those shills at Colonial News Network", Biers the Three moaned, she had calmed down a lot lately, Leoben thought.
"It is with some trepidation I must inform you….."
"Ha, did he get caught screwing the secretary", Biers seemed to dislike this Rand character.
"Quiet Biers, Doral repeat that bit", The Six told Doral.
"The existence of sapient alien life, a species known as the Goa'uld"
The Cylons watched in mounting horror as Rand explained the Goa'uld, an alien empire that controlled most of the galaxy, enslaving billions or possibly trillions of humans, an empire that totally outclassed anything the Colonies or Cylons had.
"Is this a joke?", the One finally asked.
Leoben shook his head, lately he had been lacking in certainty, as if his destiny had been cast adrift, but he knew deep in his soul that what they just heard was the truth, but he felt not the whole truth.
"It's real", he nearly whispered, "These Goa'uld must be what the Terrans were afraid of, what little sources I have left were implying they had their own enemies"
"Just great, first our missing ships and now this", Biers moaned, "I blame Cavil for this too"
"You don't think these Goa'uld have anything to do with that?", the Eight asked.
The Six shook her head, "We have no way of knowing, but why bother steal our ships if theirs are superior", she glanced over to the One, "We just have to face the fact that Cavil has gone rogue"
Leoben spoke up, "The plan is over, I suggest we recall all of our infiltrators, Cavil was the one who pushed it the most"
The others' eyes bored into him, "Weren't you the one saying it was gods plan all the time", Simon asked.
"God has abandoned us, his children, just like he abandoned the Colonials"
The others wore varied expressions of shock, the thought of abandoning their plan somehow unthinkable up to that point, "He's right", a lone voice called out.
Eyes turned to the model who spoke, Biers.
"Something changed that day when I saw the Terrans, I was hysterical at first but now I know, whatever god we prayed to no longer cares for us, I felt it leave that day"
Leoben could see the other models weren't swayed by his words, or Biers', but then another voice spoke.
"The plan is dead, it's been dead since those Terrans showed up", the Six spoke, "Leaving aside religion, we have no access to the Colonial military or their contractors any more, the security has gotten too tight"
The Six looked at the other models, "They know we infiltrated their worlds, it'll only be a matter of time before they find one of us, we need to withdraw and reassess"
The Eight spoke up, "With our ships missing we're in no position to fight the Colonials right now, even excluding the new laser weapons or direct help from the Terrans, we concur with the Sixes"
"Alright we'll call a vote", the One finally added, at four to three the motion passed, they would withdraw their spies from the Colonies for now.
Leoben wandered back to his quarters afterwards, a hand on his shoulder stopped him in his tracks a few corridors over.
"Leoben, just what are you up to?", The lead Six asked, he turned to look at her.
He raised his eyebrow questioningly but stayed silent.
"I know you were in Cavils room a few weeks ago, I checked the logs"
"Not very trusting, what have we come to, I assume you searched his room too?", he asked.
"Yes, and I found nothing but you found something, didn't you?"
Leoben sighed, Six would probably be his best avenue here, the other models just weren't up to par.
"Alright, follow me"
A short walk later found them inside his quarters, "Here, I found this data drive", he handed it over.
She held it up to her eye, "What's on it?"
"Cavil had been sending raiders out searching random star systems, it looked like he was searching for something"
"And, did he find that something?"
"Here", he placed the drive on a holder in the room, they placed their hands on the bio gel and entered the virtual space, two looming shapes appeared as seen from the raider.
"An old basestar and battlestar, Cavil stopped sending the raiders after this, then he disappeared several days later"
Six moved closer to the basestar in the virtual world, "You didn't research the war much did you Leoben, because that isn't any design of basestar I know of", she walked over to the battlestar, it was scaled to the size of a person.
"This isn't a Colonial battlestar either", she leaned closer to the name, "Ancient Kobolian, the Pegasus"
"So, they're not known ships and Ancient Kobolian?, did the Colonials name their ships in a dead language?"
"No, and the Pegasus was a Jupiter, the old one anyway, this looks similar to an Artemis class but still very different" she walked back over to the baseship, "Again similar to a type A but different enough, more guns for a start"
"So Cavil found these ships, then a few days later hops on a baseship and jumps somewhere, possibly there?"
Six nodded, "Lets keep this to us for now, I'll arrange to have a raider jump into that system and see what's happening"
Stargate Command
Hammond was sitting in his office getting caught up on paperwork when someone rapped on the door, "Enter"
He looked up as the door opened to see Jolinar walk inside, "Ah Jolinar, is there something I can help you with?"
"General", she nodded, "I just received a communique from the Tok'ra high council, regarding Hathor, they want to send a representative"
Hammond expressed mild surprise, "So soon?, when do they want this to happen?"
"Right now General"
….
Twenty minutes later and he was sitting across from Selmac, "General, I'm sorry about the abrupt nature of this but anything regarding our queen is a priority"
"I understand, I take it then that you were successful in getting Hathor to talk?"
"Eventually", he said with some bitterness in his voice, "We had pt pay a price for that information though, the continued existence of Hathor, as our prisoner of course but alive nonetheless"
Selmac looked to Hammond, "Understand, the Tok'ra take our word seriously, as long as Hathor behaves she will live, she might even be worth trading to another Goa'uld in the future, the Tok'ra could do a lot with a Ha'tak"
"As long as Earth is safe", Hammond said back.
"Of course General, she has no idea about your planet, as far as she knows it was the Tok'ra who took her from the sarcophagus"
"Very well, so what did she tell you?"
Selmac pulled out a Goa'uld data pad, "This address, this is where she is imprisoned"
Hammond nodded, "I see, did you recover her then?"
"Ah, this is where the issue is, we sent a Tel'tak to the planet, it was felt that scouting from space was the best approach", he paused, "The planet is inhabited"
"I see, did you ask the inhabitants about her?"
Selmac shook his head, "It is an industrial society, the Tok'ra are ill equipped to search the whole planet for her under these circumstances, and we as a rule do not engage in diplomacy with developed human cultures"
Hammond nodded, "So you want us to go instead?"
"I understand that you are searching for allies out there, this is a developed world, surely that has some value to you, we would also consider this a big favour"
"We consider the Tok'ra our friends, of course we'll help, will you be going too?"
Selmac nodded, "If Egeria is alive she might require medical assistance, I wish to accompany whoever you send"
"I don't see any issues with that", Hammond picked up his phone, "Tell Colonel O'Neill to come to my office and get a probe prepared"
Stargate Command
The next day
Hammond looked at the people in the briefing room, SG-1, Selmac and one other man wearing a smart looking suit, Ambassador Faxon, he was the ambassador at large for the Union, on hand to conduct initial negotiations with foreign civilisations.
"We managed to contact the natives on the planet via our probe, they call it Pangar, we arranged to meet with a representative at the gate, apparently it's an archaeological dig site"
"Hmm, there could be information there related to Egeria", Dr Jackson mused, "I'd love to have a look"
"Do so Doctor, Ambassador Faxon will deal with the Pangarians, technologically they look to be around where we were in world war one, if there are other nations we don't yet know"
Hammond looked to O'Neill, "You job will be to investigate the whereabouts of Egeria and protect the ambassador, the Pangarians seem open to talking with us so it should go smoothly"
"It shouldn't need to be said but forming a good relationship with the Pangarians is a priority of the Council, try not to antagonise then Colonel"
O'Neill smiled, "You know me General, I'll cross my t's and dot my i's, don't you worry"
Hammond nodded, "I had to rearrange some SG team deployments for this, Major Kawalsky will be handling your upcoming mission to P3X-989, I expect dealing with the Pangarians will take some time, even excluding the whole Egeria situation"
"Charlie can handle it, SG-2 is a fine team", O'Neill nodded.
"Good", Hammond waved to Selmac, "Selmac has agreed to follow your lead on the planet, but handling Egeria will be completely at his discretion"
Selmac bowed his head to O'Neill, "I trust the Colonels leadership, Quinta is quite a vociferous about it"
"Right, everything is settled then, you leave in one hour", Hammond spoke and stood.
Pangar
Two men stood before the gate awaiting the delegation from the Terran Union, First Minister Dollen and Commander Tegar, Tegar shifted around uncomfortably, behind them were several other people, including some soldiers guarding the two men.
"Calm yourself Commander", Dollen spoke to Tegar while keeping his eyes on the gate, only yesterday it was simply an archaeological curiosity, now they knew it was a transport device able to send people across the galaxy.
Tegar straightened his back and clasped his hands behind it, "We are about to meet an alien race in person for the first time, if you are correct, they are more advanced than us and capable of being a significant threat, that gives me good reason to be on the highest alert"
Dollen looked to the small sphere that came through the gate yesterday, able to transmit images back to its controllers on the other side of the gate and allow full voice communications, it was beyond anything they had.
Dollen sighed and looked to Tegar, "Since the discovery of the temple ruins, we have had reason to believe that there are other inhabited planets in the galaxy and now, finally, we have our proof, I for one am relieved, the very first contact we have made is with a race of humans that seem to be very much like us"
Left unsaid was the possibility of gaining that advanced technology for themselves, or fixing the other big glaring issue that was upcoming.
The commander was still agitated and suspicious, "Maybe you trust them without suspicion, but I cannot"
Dollen shook his head and picked an errant piece of lint of his jacket, "Nevertheless, Commander, we must proceed"
Tegar opened his mouth to rebut when the gate started to rumble, the inner ring began to spin and the chevrons lit up, soon a woosh was heard as the wormhole connected, a blue shimmering surface was now visibly contained by the gate.
"Amazing, to think such a machine was simply sitting here unbeknownst to us", Dollen said as he gazed at the active gate.
"A gateway that bypasses all our defences, I advised we should increase security here, we are woefully unprepared if these Terrans prove hostile", Tegars eyes narrowed, Dollen had insisted they come unarmed to meet the Terrans.
"A calculated risk Commander, we need to put our best foot forward even if it means a little exposure"
Seven figures exited the gate then, most in green fatigues but one wearing a style of suit that Dollen was unfamiliar with and the last was wearing a tan coloured outfit.
"Howdy folks", he assumed the leader spoke, the two parties closed the distance and shook hands, "Greetings and welcome to Pangar, I am First Minister Dollen and this is Commander Tegar, my military advisor and head of security"
The suit wearing man stepped forward, "Ambassador Faxon of the Terran Union", he waved to the others, "Our premier stargate exploration team, SG-1 and the esteemed representative of the Tok'ra, Selmac"
A short round of introductions followed, "Please, let us move to a more comfortable location", Dollen spoke, he led the Terrans to the awaiting vehicles.
"Looks like it'd be right at home next to a model T", The Colonel, O'Neill, commented when he saw the cars.
Dollen kept up his smile, "I'm sure you have more advanced methods of transport at home, Colonel?"
"Advanced, yeah, not this charming though", the Colonel had an easy smile as he spoke, a quite likeable person Dollen felt.
They loaded up into the two cars and made their way to the nearest city, Tretari, the capital of Pangar, it was only a short ten minute drive through fertile farmland.
"Wow, an actual zepplin", Dollen heard the Doctor Jackson exclaim, in the sky over the city was the oceanic express dirigible coming in from Kendri city.
"Do you not have dirigibles on your world", He asked curiously.
"Not any more no, they fell out of style in the 1930's, after the Hindenburg accident, we use fixed wing aircraft and sub orbital craft for ground side travel nowadays"
"Oh", Dollen processed his words, sub orbital craft?, they had still yet to crack heavier than air flight, "How long ago was that, I am unfamiliar with your calendar"
"Around a hundred and thirty years", Jackson replied, "They became mostly a gimmick after that"
"I see", they had arrived at the outskirts of the city now, he heard the Terrans make several impressed sounding comments but he couldn't be sure they were only humouring him.
Eventually they got through the morning traffic and arrived at the federal district, a small side building had been quickly prepared overnight to hold any talks.
Soon they entered the meeting room, tastefully decorated to engender a feeling of calm and peace in the occupants, he heard Jackson comment as they entered, "Nearly Japanese in style"
"Please, sit", Dollen waved to the table, a solid rectangle of smooth native wood, it was a bit messy squashing the seven chairs on the other side though.
Dollen and Tegar took the two chairs on the other side at the Terrans arranged themselves, "Nice digs", Colonel O'Neill commented as the Terrans sat.
"Thank you, Colonel?", Dollen had no idea what the phrase meant, he pressed on regardless, "We would be happy to take you on a full tour of our city, but first we would like to spend a little time talking about our mutual interests"
He received a round of nods, "I'd like to get a look at the dig site near the gate", Doctor Jackson spoke.
"Are you perhaps an archaeologist?"
Jackson nodded, "I figured out how to solve the stargate back home"
"Fascinating", He nodded to Jackson, "To be honest, we are still trying to adjust to the fact that our, uh", he paused tasting the word in his mind, "Stargate, as you call it, is no longer a mere relic of a bygone era"
Tegar beside him nodded, "We were quite shocked when your device came through yesterday"
Faxon spoke up, "It's natural to be alarmed, but the Union hopes only for peaceful relations with the people of Pangar"
"It is our wish too Ambassador"
Tegar spoke next, "From our study of the ancient temple, we have been able to deduce the Stargate was an interplanetary transportation device", he looked to Dollen, "Unfortunately we were never able to make it work"
Dollen nodded, "We found writing in the temple beside the gate, we managed to translate much of it, telling tales of worlds beyond our own, but never any addresses"
Ambassador Faxon nodded, "I'm sure we can arrange something in regards to that, once we fully understand each other"
"Good, good, we have already arranged to allow you access to our citizenry, our history and our culture"
Faxon smiled, "I'll endeavour to return the gesture First Minister"
Dollen nodded and waved his hand to one of the attendants at the far end of the room, "We also want to make it clear that we intend to offer all that we can in trade for any knowledge or technology that you are willing to share"
The attendant approached carrying a tray with several glass bottle on top, he delivered them to the Terran delegation.
Faxon reached over and plucked a bottle, a clear liquid was contained inside, "What's this?"
"We call it Tretonin, Ambassador, it is our greatest scientific discovery"
Faxon raised his eyebrow at Dollen, "Tell me Ambassador, do you have sickness on your world, disease?", Dollen asked him.
Faxon nodded, "We made major strides in medicine but yes, we still suffer from disease"
Dollen nodded, "Tretonin makes our immune systems impervious to any ailment, we live in perfect health"
A murmur of surprise was heard from the Terrans, all except Selmac and Jolinar.
"It sounds very similar to what a symbiote provides its host", Selmac voiced to the room.
Faxon nodded, "How is this Tretonin manufactured?"
Dollen internally cringed, he would rather avoid that discussion at the moment, "Ambassador", he began, trying to shift the subject, "Why did you rush this diplomatic meeting, I imagine that normally we would spend several weeks talking beforehand"
Faxon sighed, "Normally, you'd be right, but I didn't hear any objections from your side about it, nonetheless, our friends the Tok'ra believe that one of their own was imprisoned on your world"
Dollen nodded, "I'm afraid I don't know any Tok'ra on the world"
Selmac spoke up, "The Tok'ra are an off shoot of the Goa'uld, we oppose them in every way and fight for freedom against the system lords, our queen, Egeria was imprisoned here by Ra, we wish to search for her"
Dollen could feel the complications coming, he turned to Tegar, "We will need to discuss some things in private before we continue", he turned back to the Terrans, "A recess for a few hours?"
Faxon nodded, "That would be fine", he lifted a bottle of Tretonin, "Do you mind if we have this analysed in the meantime"
"Oh yes, I will arrange transport back to the stargate", Dollen answered but Tegar spoke up too, "Of course, we will need something in return from you, as a measure of good faith"
Faxon nodded, "You were asking about getting your gate operational", he pulled a small square device with lit up with information, Faxon showed the screen to the Pangarans, Dollen was amazed at the technology on display, "You can have these ten addresses"
Tegar nodded, pulling out a notepad and jotting the symbols down, Dollen however needed to get some specific information, "Well, this is a very generous offer, Ambassador, very generous, however, based on our own studies of the writings in the temple, we have compiled a list of the names of the worlds that we would like to visit"
Faxon nodded, taking the list from Dollen, he turned to Colonel O'Neill and Jolinar, "Do you recognise these?"
O'Neill shook his head but Jolinar laughed, "These are the System Lords throne worlds and that one is the world that spawned the Goa'uld"
Selmac leaned over to look too, "Foolish, if you were to go to any of those worlds you would be destroyed"
Tegar was getting worked up at the attitude from the Tok'ra, "We know that the Goa'uld are a hostile race that once rule this planet centuries ago"
Selmac leaned back in his seat and spoke, "If you were to travel to a System Lords capital, you would be captured, implanted with a symbiote, they would know where you came from, in a few days there would be a Ha'tak in orbit raining destruction down upon your world"
Jolinar nodded, "You fail to understand the difference in power between you and the Goa'uld, you have no defence against them if you are discovered, even the Terrans here are cautious when dealing with the Goa'uld"
Dollen was feeling some trepidation now, was their plan doomed, Colonel O'Neill spoke up too, "Look, even with our whole fleet, we don't expect to be able to stop more than a few Gould ships, you don't even have that, our best defence is them not knowing we exist"
Dollen nodded, "You have given us much to contemplate, let us proceed with the recess now"
…..
Several minutes later Hammond watched Commander Carter walk down the stargate ramp, "Commander, you're back early, did something happen?"
"You could say that, their First minister was getting a bit cagey near the end", she removed a small glass bottle from her pocket, "Anyway, they claim this is some kind of miracle cure, we need to get it tested"
Hammond eyed the bottle, "I'll tell Doctor Fraiser you're on the way", he waved her on and walked over to the wall mounted intercom.
Two hours later found him in his office facing Doctor Fraiser and Commander Carter, "Well?"
"They left out a major deficit with the drug", Carter told him.
"Major is putting it lightly", Fraiser said animatedly, "General, while Tretonin does appear to cure most diseases, it ultimately creates far bigger problems than it solves"
"How much of a problem?", he asked.
"The drug acts like a symbiote in many ways, upon entering the user's bloodstream, it immediately takes over, completely suppressing the normal human immune system", she threw a notebook onto his desk, the test results, "The result is a powerful resistance to disease"
"I see, what's the issue then?"
"The healing effect is not permanent and the user's own immune system remains suppressed"
Doctor Fraiser sighed and plopped herself down in the office chair, "Basically, you have to keep taking the drug for it to work"
Hammond nodded, "We'd be dependant on the Pangarians for our supply, not something the Council would go for I imagine", he steepled his hands in thought, Commander Carter interrupted those when she mumbled something.
"Sorry Commander could you repeat that"
"I said, they're called Pangarans, Sir"
Hammond suppressed a small laugh, "Doctor, could we fix that problem with the drug?"
Fraiser shrugged, "It's possible, I can ask some experts and the doctors from the Star League might have some ideas, it's not something I'm qualified to do myself"
"Right now I'd be more worried about the Pangarans, as far as I can tell, there's no way to reverse the damage to the immune system, especially with their technology, if production of the drug is affected anyone on it will be facing death", With that Fraiser stood.
"Very well, Commander, you can return to Pangar, Doctor call those experts"
…..
Hours later the members of SG-1 had met back up, they were given a small room to themselves for the duration of their stay.
"Daniel, did you get a good look at the dig site?", Jack asked him.
Daniel and Teal'c had spent hours looking around there after the meeting, he was hoping they found something juicy.
"Yes, we did learn some of the history of the world, it was run by the system lord Shak'ran, apparently it was his capital world, before that Ra ran the place then it was conquered by Apophis some time later"
Jack nodded, "Anything useful?"
Daniel nodded, "We found Egeria's tomb"
Jack sighed, "Why didn't you start with that"
"Because it was empty, not even dust"
Jack hmm'd, "Something stinks here, it's about time we got some answers"
…
Half an hour later and everyone had returned to the meeting room, Dollen and Tegar seemed a little paler, perhaps the Tok'ra's warning had hit home, he'd find out soon enough.
Dollen was the first to speak, "We felt in light of the information you provided to be forthright", He looked to Faxon, "Did your scientists discover anything about Tretonin?"
Jack decided to answer for him, "Yeah, the fact that'd you need to take it for the rest of your life or die, kind of a big deal"
Dollen grimaced, "It was not our intent to deceive, over twenty percent of the Pangaran population is on Tretonin, we understand the problems it creates"
Dollen sighed, "Tretonin is created from Goa'uld symbiotes"
"Ugh, you're telling me the miracle drug is Gould juice?", Jack definitely wasn't taking any of that poison.
A similar level of disgust passed over the rest of SG-1, apart from the two Tok'ra who looked angry, Jack had a feeling he knew where the symbiotes were coming from, and he suspected the Tok'ra did too.
Selmac simply asked, "Explain where these symbiotes come from"
Dollen nodded, "Fifty five years ago, our archaeologists discovered a secret chamber beneath the temple, we found a sealed canopic jar containing a living female symbiote, perfectly preserved in stasis"
"Egeria", Selmac stated.
Dollen bowed his head, "We didn't know it's identity", he sighed, "We'll take you to her after this"
Tegar took over as Dollen went silent, "Through our study of the temple, we knew the Goa'uld never suffered from illness or disease, we saw this discovery as an opportunity to learn why"
"Tretonin?", Faxon asked, he received a nod.
"It took decades but we finally managed to produce Tretonin using the offspring of the Goa'uld"
"And what of the dependency on the drug, surely one queen isn't enough to support your population"
"We were confident that we could solve the problems, we limited the use, but ultimately we didn't see why we shouldn't reap the benefits while working to overcome the downside", Dollen spoke.
"So you want to expand production, is that why your looking at those worlds?", Jack asked.
Dollen sighed again, "No Colonel, the queen is very old, we expect she only has a few years to live, if we don't get a replacement millions will die"
"Stop using the stuff then, did you research that?"
"Our scientists have been trying for years to find a way to reverse its effects, we've made very little progress, we need more time"
Selmac spoke, "Give us Egeria, in return we will help you"
Tretonin Production Facility
Jack stared at the creature in the tank, it was a lot bigger than he was expecting, he looked over to the side where the other Tok'ra were working away, the medical team that Selmac had on standby, they were busy waving scanning devices over the queen.
The female, Kelmaa, was examining one of the spawn from the large tanks in the other room, something to do with curing the Tretonin, "There is something unusual about the genetic structure of the symbiotes, beyond their lack of knowledge", she was telling Carter.
"Knowledge?", Carter asked.
"Yes, usually a queen passes down information through genetics, Egeria did not pass anything on to these symbiotes, they are essentially blank"
Jack wandered over to where Selmac and the other Tok'ra were standing, one Jack had met before, Malek, "Hows Egeria", he asked.
The two Tok'ra turned to him, "Old and tired is the best description, but she still lives and will for some time", Selmac said.
"We are awaiting the arrival of a volunteer host, they will be here soon", Malek turned to Jack, "I understand you have in your possession a sarcophagus?"
"Yeah, the one we found Hathor in"
"Malek, sarcophagi are forbidden"
"Would you let our queen die before our eyes, using it once will do no harm"
Selmac sighed, "We shall ask Egeria herself"
Jack decided to remove himself from the two High council members but he'd let Hammond know the Tok'ra night want to borrow the big golden box.
Jack spent his time wandering around the room, eventually the guest of honour arrived, a rather unassuming looking woman, she had bigger balls than him he decided, because there was no way in hell he'd let a snake in his head.
They left the room for her privacy and returned a few hours later when she awoke, the three Tok'ra were crowing her on the bed, waving scanners over her like it was a star trek sickbay, Malek had the right temperament to be McCoy he thought.
"Rise Malek, Selmac, I will live for now", She spoke.
"My queen, you are still weak, please let us attend to you", Selmac begged from the bedside.
"I am old and tired but I still have some energy left, I will see my children one more"
"My queen, the Tau'ri have a sarcophagi, please use it to restore yourself"
"Malek", she sighed, "You know the effect it causes", she looked to the Tok'ra around her, concern written on their faces, and sighed, "Perhaps you are right, I am not as healthy as I let on".
Jack coughed to get their attention, "The Tau'ri, they have allied themselves to us", Malek whispered to her.
"I know Malek, I have access to my hosts memories, please come closer", she waved Jack over.
"Ma'am", he nodded to her, "Colonel Jack O'Neill"
"Hmm, quite handsome aren't you", Jack was pole-axed, what the hell was that, "You seek the cure for the Pangarans, despite the pain they inflicted on me?"
"Would you care if it was a Gould?"
"No, I would not, I see your point Colonel, my children were having trouble finding a solution, because of my actions"
Jack raised an eyebrow, "How so?"
"I passed on the flawed gene that gave the drug its weakness, you were unable to construct an antidote because of the manner in which I sabotaged my young", she nodded to Kelmaa,
Egeria sighed, "I did it in the hope that they would ultimately prove useless to the Pangarans, I wanted to force them to abandon their research once the drug proved untenable, Instead, they continued to make it in ever increasing quantities"
"And now they can't live without it", Carter spoke from over his shoulder, nearly causing Jack to jump, just how sneaky was she.
Egeria gave a sad smile, "It is not what I intended"
Malek butted in then, he actually saw Egeria frown when he did, "Their fate is their own doing, not yours, you merely tried to free yourself the only way you could"
"They do not deserve this end, not when it can be prevented", She told Malek, Jack just might be adding another snake to the good list, once he had a shower, that handsome comment was making him sweaty.
Carter had moved to stand beside him, "You created the flaw, you can create the antidote that will save them"
"I will tell you what you need to know"
The First Minister nearly ran over then, giving his thanks, "Thank you, on behalf of our people, please, forgive us for what we have done to you, had we known, we would never have subjected you to our experiments"
"Please First Minster", she raised her hand, "I understand the allure of what you discovered, but forgiveness will take some time, perhaps in the future things might change, the Tok'ra will need willing hosts"
Dollen bowed his head and retreated, Egeria turned to him again, "Colonel, I understand that Ra died by your hand, will you tell me the tale?"
Stargate Command
The Next Day
"Egeria is currently recuperating in the sarcophagus on the station, the Tok'ra expect it will add a couple of hundred years to her life, the damage from her captivity did reduce it significantly I'm told", Hammond was explaining to the other person in the office.
Colonel O'Neill nodded, "Glad it worked out for them, too bad that Tretonin was useless"
"Don't count your chickens just yet Colonel, I was also told that the Tok'ra are looking into improving the drug, they claim they can manufacture it without using symbiotes"
"Artificial Gould juice, I'd prefer the organic variety"
Hammond narrowed his eyes, "Our own scientists are also looking into producing our own, we'll have to see how it fares without access to symbiotes"
"Yeah, all we have is the stuff the Pangarans gave us, probably best to just wait for the Tok'ra to do it"
"That's a problem for the future", Hammond pulled out a folder, "The Council was pleased with how things with the Pangarans went, aside from the Tretonin, they're already readying diplomats to begin trade negotiations"
"Really?, apart from their drug they have nothing we want"
Hammond shook his head, "Colonel, nearly every planet inhabited by humans had been bronze age at best, Pangar is an industrial society, the Council wants allies, useful allies"
"Oh, I see where this is going, we're dumping our old crap on them I suppose?"
Hammond glared at O'Neill, "Spare the moralising Colonel, the Pangarans are at as much risk of Goa'uld invasion as us, wouldn't you like someone to come along and give us the weapons to fight?"
O'Neill closed his mouth, still frowning, finally he spoke, "Fine, but what exactly are we trading?"
"Fighter jets, automatic rifles, things like that, the Council will bring them up to a level where they wont be completely useless", Hammond said, "They'll send along teachers too", he added as an after thought.
"Wont do much against the Gould"
"The jets will be for training purposes Colonel, do you think the Pangarans could handle space craft right now?"
"No"
"We'll build them up to the point they can, the Council is planning something big, an alliance of planets opposed to the Goa'uld"
"What, space NATO?"
"In essence, that's why I have new orders for you, with the Colonials and now the Pangarans the Council feels it's time to contact the other advanced civilisations we are aware of, your next mission will be to initiate contact with the Aschen, talk to Jolinar and try and find out as much as you can"
"What about the Tollan?"
"I'm sure they'll be invited too but it will be months before the Hermes could return"
"Right, if that's all General?"
Colonel O'Neill stood, "Very well, you have a few days before the next mission, dismissed Colonel"