Fic, Stargate SG-1, Invasion, NC-17, 18/21
18. Mission to Cheyenne Mountain
"Dammit! The hatch has been welded shut!" Sam complained.
They had made it to the location of the access shaft leading down into Stargate Command. There had been only one near miss, when guards almost saw them, but after waiting for about ten minutes with their hearts beating like crazy, the guards had disappeared.
"That is not a problem, Samantha," Martouf said. "We have brought a weapon which can be used for cutting through the metal."
"Making it more likely someone discovers something is amiss," O'Neill grumbled.
"I can presumably also weld it shut again," Martouf told him. "But the damage will not be invisible if they look at it closely." He took off his backpack and put it on the ground.
"Why would they? I doubt anyone checks this out very often. They have, after all, made reasonably sure no one uses that entrance," Sam said.
"Go ahead," Jacob told them.
Martouf pulled out a small, ring-like device, which he put around a finger. He was about to activate it when O'Neill suddenly reacted.
"Whoa! What the..." He stopped himself, and shook his head.
"What?" Martouf wondered.
Sam swallowed, and took a deep breath. "Zatarcs aren't real." She smiled at Martouf. "Fortunately."
He nodded. "Yes, you told me I used an Aut'kesh when I, ah, attempted to kill your president - in your hallucination." He gave her a smile. "I, too, am most pleased it was not reality."
O'Neill rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, We're all happy. Come on, we don't have the whole night!"
Martouf did not comment on that, but merely set to work. He took a magnet with a line attached, and placed the magnet on the metal hatch. He then tied the line to his belt, and activated the Aut'kesh, cutting a small disk out of the hatch with the red beam. The disk slid into the hole, but fell only some centimeters before it was stopped by the line.
He pulled out the disk, and now started cutting a much larger hole around it, one large enough for a person to fit through. When he had almost cut an entire circle, he stuck his hand through the hole and held the disk in place while cutting the last part, then pulled up the piece of metal.
"Wow, nice," Sam said, smiling.
He nodded. "Thank you." He lighted a flashlight and shone it through the hole.
"There's a long way down!" O'Neill remarked.
"Yeah, I remember the climb!" Sam shuddered.
"I will do it this time," Martouf said, matter of factly.
"No, I've done it before. I can do it again," Sam insisted.
Martouf shook his head. "It does not make sense for either you, O'Neill, or Daniel to make the climb. You are all still weakened from your ordeal at the alien facility. I am the logical choice."
"Listen, we don't have time to stand around arguing," O'Neill said, throwing a quick glance around. "You go, Marty."
Martouf threw him a look that made it clear he did not like the nickname, but he merely nodded. "Hand me the backpack when I am through."
"Be careful!" Sam urged.
He smiled at her. "Always, Samantha."
"Everything in order?" O'Neill asked, giving Martouf a hand getting out of the access shaft.
He nodded. "Yes. I placed one of the disruptor-combos on each level. They are fastened to the entry hatches, and directed so that as much as possible of each level will be covered."
"Great!" O'Neill smiled. He checked his watch. "The timers are set so they go off in exactly two days from now, correct?"
"They are, yes," Martouf said.
Teal'c held the metal disk they had cut from the hatch in place while Martouf welded it back on, then did the same to the small disk.
"All right. Time to hit the rest of Colorado Springs!" O'Neill said. "Who got the list of places we're going to put the devices?"
"Dixon?" O'Neill asked, surprised.
"Colonel?" Dixon said, just as surprised. "I thought you'd been kidnapped?"
"Ah..." O'Neill looked past Dixon, towards the rest of SG-1 and the Tok'ra. Martouf held up one of the disruption devices, nodding to indicate it was active. O'Neill relaxed. "Don't believe everything you hear, ah, Major. Uh, can we talk somewhere? In private?"
"Sure..." Dixon threw the others a worried glance. "Wait, that's..."
"Yes, yes - as I said, don't believe all you hear."
Dixon nodded, clearly unsettled, but he lead O'Neill and the others to his house nearby.
"Be careful what you tell him," Jacob warned in a low voice, before they went inside.
"Of course - but he's human, and if he can be trusted we may have the first of those we need to help us take down the aliens," he whispered. Loudly, he said, "So, what are you doing out of uniform, Dixon? You on leave?"
"No, sir." He looked embarrassed. "It's a long story, but I'm not at the SGC any longer."
"Let's hear it - maybe we've got something to tell you too," O'Neill said, sitting down.
Jacob sat down as well, making sure he had a good view of the entire room, including the door.
Meanwhile, Sam, Daniel, Teal'c, Martouf/Lantash, Aldwin, and Malek went to place the disruption devices across Colorado Springs.
Several hours later, O'Neill and Jacob/Selmak met up with their friends on the road back to the forest where they had landed their teltac.
"Did you get everything set up?" Jacob asked.
"We did," Teal'c said.
"What about you guys? What did Dixon say?" Daniel wondered, curiously.
"He had become suspicious, and realized something was wrong, already months ago. To begin with he tried to wait it out, see what was going on, but then he happened to see some of his friends being captured by the aliens and realized what was going on. He left the SGC, but stayed here in Colorado Springs, trying to find others he could trust. They're 19 in their group right now."
"What were they going to do?" Sam asked.
"Keep an eye on the aliens and gather weapons. They were trying to organize a resistance."
"Dixon took us to meet a couple of the others," Jacob added.
"And you are absolutely certain they can be trusted?" Martouf asked.
"99%. I didn't tell them about our plan, though, only that they should be ready to act. I think we can trust them," O'Neill said.
"I agree," Jacob said.
"That's great!" Sam smiled. "I'm beginning to think we can win this!"
The Sun had started to colour the eastern sky when they reached the teltac after a long and exhausting night.
Teal'c sat down in the pilot's seat, while everyone else tiredly sat down on the floor, eager for the few moments of rest they could get during the flight back to the cabin in Idaho.
Martouf put his arm around Sam, and she smiled and leaned against him.
Soon they would be back in the cabin, to get something to eat, and then some sleep. When night fell, it would be time to hit the other four alien bases, working in groups of two.
Next chapter >>