Chapter 08

"Hello Captain."

"Hello Pre-cadet Dawn-patrol." Xander said to Dawn as she passed by. He continued walking for a moment, before it hit him. The holo-drama, the Key... Dawn.

He spun around, but she was already around the corner and gone. He slammed his com-badge.

"Harris to Lieutenant Buffy Summers."

"Buffy here." came her voice over the com-badge.

"Buffy, I just passed Dawn in the corridor."

"So?" Buffy asked, confused about why he was commenting on something like that.

"Remember the holo-drama series? The key?"

"Oh my god! Dawn!"

"Yup." Xander said.

"Arm up, and meet me in transporter room two."

"Alright, see you there." Xander took the turbolift to deck fourteen where he armed himself with a type-2 and type-3 phaser, along with a launcher for a transporter tag. Buffy joined him moments later, equipping a type-2 phaser and her Mek'leth. They met up with Ensign Levinson in transporter room two, and discussed the fact that they were going to use the transporter tag and for Levinson to be ready.

The two then beamed down to Sunnydale and headed for the hospital looking for Ben Wilkinson. He was working, so they sat on the bench outside the hospital and waited for him. Finally he left, and they followed him at a distance, hiding whenever he looked back. The man eventually turned onto an empty stretch of road.

"Now's our chance." whispered Buffy.

Xander aimed, and with a 'thwip' sound, fired what was essentially a fancy compressed-air dart gun. The dart flew straight and true, hitting Ben in the back.

"Ow!" he cried out.

Buffy tapped her com-badge. "Commander Buffy Summers to Ensign Levinson, energize!"

As the sparkling motes of light appeared over Ben, he reacted to the pain of the dart and his skin began to ripple.

"He's changing!" Xander cried.

The purple light from the teleport flickered and faded before resuming. Buffy's com-badge was still connected to Johnathan.

"The transport is pulling a lot of energy, I'm compensating." Levinson informed them.

The motes of the transporter light flickered and faded again. Ben completed his change into Glory, who quickly pulled out the dart and crushed it, before spinning around. Seeing Buffy and Xander she charged at them. Buffy punched Glory in the face, but she just rolled with the punch, then spoke.

"Oh, you're a strong one. But so am I." She pulled back and punched Buffy in the face, sending her flying backward. She then shot a perfunctory backhand at Xander, catching him in the face and dropping him to the floor. She turned and stalked toward Buffy, aiming to kill her.

Xander shook his head to clear it, then quickly aimed the air gun and fired, hitting Glory in the back with another dart. He slammed his com-badge. "Harris to Levinson! I hit her again, beam her out, now!"

"I'm trying!" Johnathan shouted as he hammered on the transporter console.

Glory turned, barely feeling the dart, but looked towards Xander. The beaming motes sparkled and faded twice as she got closer to Xander, before finally washing over her and beaming Glory away.

On board the Pheonix, alarms were ringing on the console, as Johnathan tried to compensate for the amount of energy in the transport buffer. There was a sudden explosion from the transporter just as the Ensign finalized the purging process. Johnathan released a heavy breath, glad that was over. He tapped his com-badge.

"Ensign Levinson to Captain Harris."

"Harris here." Xander said, sounding out of breath.

"Sir, the energy of Glory was so immense, it blew out the Heisenberg compensator. It's going to take some time to repair."

"Understood." Xander started, but was interrupted as Buffy threw herself into his arms and kissed him soundly, even though they were lying in the street. Eventually they broke apart and Buffy smiled widely at him.

"What was that for?" Xander asked.

"For being such a good shot."

"Um..." Johnathan's voice came from Xander's com-badge, "I'm still here, guys."

Buffy blushed deeply, going bright red. "Oops."

"Xander out." He tapped his com-badge, closing the connection. Looking at Buffy he said, "I love you, you know that, right?"

"Of course, dummy. I love you too."

Returning to the ship via transporter room one, they then headed for the Captain's quarters, where Buffy spent the night showing Xander how much she appreciated him risking his life to protect her sister.

"I've been debating what to do about the Stargate program." Xander said, later that night. He was lying in bed with a naked Buffy in his arms. "I've been thinking maybe we should pick one person high in the command chain to contact, to sound out how they would feel about us."

"That's not a bad idea. We'll have to ask Data to access their records."

"That's not the only thing I've been debating." Xander said.

"Oh?"

"Marry me."

The next day, Xander and his fiancée met up with the rest of the group along with Data in the observation lounge.

"It appears that the computers for the Stargate program are much better protected than those of the NID." Data said, "It is still nothing compared to the Phoenix's computer capabilities, but I believe it to be worth mentioning."

He typed on the pad in the table top, before continuing. "The commander of the base is a man called General George Hammond.

At this, a picture appeared on the display screen of a balding, slightly overweight man in military blues.

"There appear to be multiple teams, organized by numbers. Their flag team is SG1: consisting of the leader, Colonel Johnathan O'Neill; an astrophysicist, Samantha Carter; Daniel Jackson, who appears to be a civilian archaeologist; and someone named Teal'c who according to my research is a Jaffa. Perhaps a type of alien life form."

"I'm thinking Daniel Jackson." Xander said.

"The civilian?" Buffy asked.

"Oh yeah, who better to meet with than the one who can't mobilize the military against us."

"Not a bad idea, Xander." Giles said.

"Data, access the records of Daniel Jackson. See if you can locate somewhere he lives or goes, that we can reach him when he's alone."

"Aye, sir." Data replied. "That should not take too long."

"Alright," Xander said, "Dismissed, meet back here in one hour."

An hour later, they were again sitting in the observation lounge.

"I ran a check on Doctor Daniel Jackson." Data informed them. "The most likely place to get him alone will be either in his office in the base within Cheyenne Mountain, or his apartment."

"I think we should consider plucking him out of a heavily protected military base as a last resort." Giles commented.

"You make a good point," Joyce spoke up.

"Agreed." Xander said. "Data, take periodic scans of his apartment. Let us know when there is movement inside that you believe to be Doctor Jackson."

He looked to the group. "How should we go about contacting him?"

"I think the best way would be to beam him aboard," Willow said, "Maybe directly to the Hub, where he can see he's in space before we confront him."

"Not a terrible idea." Giles said.

They sat for a bit longer, discussing what their cover story was going to be, as they couldn't exactly tell Daniel that magic gave them a space ship. Finally, after everyone agreed on a story, the meeting broke up and they all returned to their duties.

It took two days for Daniel Jackson to return to his apartment, but finally he did. Xander, Giles, and Buffy waited in The Hub, all wearing dress uniforms. Xander tapped his com-badge.

"Ensign Levinson, do you have a lock?"

"Aye sir." Johnathan replied.

"Beam him aboard."

Near the windows, there was a wash of purple motes, and a brown haired man in his thirties appeared. He seemed to Xander to be a younger version of Giles, very... bookish.

Jackson gaped out the windows, apparently amazed to see the earth from space, before spinning around, looking for some clue as to what had just happened to him.

"Welcome aboard, Daniel Jackson. I am Captain Xander Harris of the USS Phoenix. This is Lieutenant Commander Buffy Summers, my chief of Security, and Ambassador Rupert Giles."

Daniel couldn't help but notice that the security chief was armed, wearing what was obviously a weapon on her hip.

"Hello." he said, trying to ignore the fact he was unarmed, "We're in orbit around Earth?"

"Yes we are, Doctor.

"H-how long have you been here?" Daniel stammered.

"About two and a half years, ever since we came to this reality."

"Um, how is it no one on Earth has detected this ship?"

"We are cloaked. This ship is outfitted with cloaking technology that shields us from sight. No one on the planet's surface can see us, whether through your primitive telescopes or with radar telemetry. We brought you here because we felt you were the best person to contact about the Stargate program."

"How do you know about that?" Daniel asked, shocked.

"We've been monitoring Earth communications since we came here. We found out about the Stargate program and decided we would offer our services in protecting our home world."

"You're from Earth?" Daniel asked. "I assumed you were aliens."

"We are from an alternate Earth that was over five hundred years ahead of this one. Imagine our surprise when we found out that our reality is a piece of entertainment fiction here."

"Which one?" Daniel asked.

"Star Trek."

He seemed stunned for a minute, before moving on. "Well that would be great. There are dangerous enemies out there and we fight them, but having ships would be a great help."

"We need information on this enemy, along with information on your superior officers. We'd like to understand how they would react to our offer of assistance."

"I'd like to think they'd be favorable. Do you have a way I can contact you? I can return to Earth and sound out General Hammond about you."

"Of course." Xander said, handing the man a com-badge. It was just like the ones worn by the crew, the distinctive curvy hollow triangle over two vertical pointed bars. "To use this, you simply tap it and ask for us."

"Yes, yes I know." Daniel looked excitedly at the piece of technology.

"I should warn you, Doctor, it's rigged with a micro explosive. Not enough to cause anyone harm, but enough to destroy the device if you attempt to take it apart."

"Oh, um... of course, makes sense." He handled the item more delicately after that.

"Alright, Doctor, we are going to return you to your apartment, please contact us when you know more."

"I will." Daniel said, right before vanishing in a sweep of purple light.

"Well that went well." Buffy said.

"Quicker then I expected." Xander stated.

"Well, be glad," Giles commented, "He could have had a panic attack and ended up in the infirmary."

Back on Earth, Daniel Jackson hurriedly gathered his jacket and base ID before rushing out of his apartment. He made record time returning to Cheyenne mountain and sighed as he had to take his time going through all the security checkpoints to get to Stargate Command, but finally he got to level 27, and to General Hammond's office.

"Enter." Hammond called after Daniel knocked.

"Sir," Daniel said, "We need to call an emergency meeting of SG1."

"Is everything alright, Doctor?" The General asked.

"Yes sir, it's just that something happened after I returned home that you all need to know about."

"Alright, I'll call Jack and get the others here."

"Thank you, Sir."

Ten minutes later, SG1 and General Hammond were sitting around the conference table in the SGC briefing room.

"So what's going on, Danny boy?" Jack O'Neill asked.

"Well, Jack, I had just returned home when I was teleported out of my apartment, and found myself on a craft in orbit of the Earth."

"Seriously?" Jack asked.

"Oh yes. The captain of the ship was there waiting for me, with a security officer and an Ambassador. They claimed to have come to this reality from an alternate Earth where Star Trek was real."

Jack scoffed openly.

"I'm serious, Jack. They said that since the Earth was their home, they wanted to help us protect it."

"Well alright. Finally, someone with tech we can use." Jack turned to General Hammond, "Sir, we need to make a treaty with these people."

"They gave me this to contact them." Daniel said, handing over the com-badge. Sam's eyes lit up at the thought of an advanced piece of technology. "I wouldn't get any ideas Sam. They said it contains a micro-explosive; not enough to hurt anyone, but enough to destroy the communicator if you try to take it apart.

Captain Carter harrumphed slightly, crossing her arms in resignation. They went over and over everything, looking for holes in what Captain Harris said. Finally, General Hammond declared that he needed to call the President with this information. SG1 waited while he was on the red phone, and it took a while. Eventually he returned and spoke to them.

"The President wants us to get as much information on them as we can, before making a decision." Hammond informed them, "Captain Harris said they were in orbit for over two years, the President wants to know what they were doing all that time. Doctor Jackson, you already have a rapport with them, so you will be our go-between. I'd like you to ask to return to their ship, and request that you bring Colonel O'Neill, Captain Carter and Teal'c with you."

"Yes sir."

"Captain, I want a report on their level of technology and capabilities."

"Yes sir." Carter said.

"Teal'c, I want you to go with them and get your opinion of how they would fare in a confrontation with the Goa'uld.

"Yes, General Hammond." Teal'c agreed.

"Alright, here we go." Daniel said, before pressing the com-badge on the table top. "Daniel Jackson to the Phoenix."

"Go ahead, Doctor." Came a voice from the badge.

"Ah yes, well... there are some associates of mine who would like to meet you and see your ship."

"I will have to get approval from the Captain." The voice said.

"I'm sorry, but who is this?" Daniel asked.

"I am Commander Data."

"Data, like the android?" Jack questioned.

"That is correct."

"Amazing." Sam commented.

A moment later the voice spoke again. "I have gotten approval for your party to come aboard. How many will be beaming up?"

"Um... four." Daniel said.

"Please stand and stay mostly stationary." The four stood from their chairs, and waited. A moment later, they vanished in a flash of purple light and sparkling motes.

The four members of SG1 reappeared on a transport pad on board the Starship Phoenix. There was a party waiting for them: Captain Xander Harris, Lieutenant Buffy Summers and Ambassador Rupert Giles, along with two other armed people, a man and a woman.

"Welcome aboard." Xander spoke up. "Pleased to meet you. Hope the transport didn't rattle you too much?"

"Well, it was certainly an interesting experience. However, I can't help but notice your people have guns." Jack said.

"Yes, it's a safety precaution, you understand. We couldn't be sure that you weren't here with intentions to take over."

"Well it's not like we could, right?" Jack asked, "You gotta have quite a crew on a ship like this. How many does this baby carry? A thousand?"

Xander grinned, "You're thinking about the Starship Enterprise. Her crew capacity is a thousand. The Phoenix crews ten thousand."

"Wow." Sam muttered, while still drooling over the transporter.

"Anyway," Daniel said, "This is Colonel Jack O'Neill, Captain Samantha Carter, and Teal'c."

"A pleasure." Xander said, "Come, let's begin the tour."

He led them out of the transporter room and to the hypertrain, which they rode to main engineering. Along the way, Daniel explained about the Goa'uld, the Stargate and the state of the galaxy.

Upon their arrival in engineering, they found Willow busy re-calibrating the Zero-point modules.

"Hello, Commander." Xander said.

"Captain." She stated with a nod, while arms deep in one of the honeycomb towers in the center of the room.

"What are these?" Carter asked.

"These are multiple zero-point reactors." Willow explained, "We call them honeycombs because of the way they resemble a bee hive. Each 'comb' as it were, contains a zero-point reactor. The ship is powered by thirty of them. We have a total of sixty, but the other thirty only get used when we activate the Quantum Slipstream Drive on longer flights."

"That's amazing." Sam commented, "We've only theorized about zero-point energy."

"This is Borg technology." Willow said, "Designed by Seven of Nine."

"Borg?" Jack asked, shocked. "It's not going to start assimilating things, is it?"

"No, of course not." Willow answered, exasperated, "There's no nanoprobes involved."

"Oh good."

The group continued the tour. At one point, they were walking down a corridor when Jack signaled for the members of SG1 to fall back a bit, so they could talk.

"At the next stop I want you guys to distract them, ask a lot of questions."

They quickly caught up with the leader of their escort, the Captain of the the ship, and continued on their way. They were looking at the shield emitters per Sam's request, when she struck up a conversation about the facts of their immigration.

"I'm intrigued about how you arrived here."

"I'm not a hundred percent on that myself," Xander replied, before giving the agreed upon story. "We were studying a spacial anomaly, when a gravitational distortion pushed us into the event horizon and we ended up here."

Are you looking for a way to return?" Carter asked.

"We can't." Xander replied. "After coming here, we did a scan that showed our quantum signature matched that of this reality."

"I don't understand."

"Well, Starfleet has done quite an extensive bit of research on multiple realities, and discovered that nothing can exist in parallel universes for long, without suffering from entropic cascade failure. This causes the total destruction of both living and inanimate objects."

"So you are stuck here."

"Yes, I'm afraid so." Xander replied.

"I'm sorry." Sam said.

At the same time, Teal'c struck up a conversation with the security officers.

"I am interested in your choice of weapons. How do they work?"

"Oh," Buffy said, "They fire a beam of nadion particles.

"What are nadion particles?" Teal'c asked.

"Well, my understanding of it is that they are artificially created radiation."

At the same time, while the security officers were distracted, Jack edged toward the door before slipping out and going to explore on his own.

He didn't get very far, before crossing paths with a young girl who couldn't have been more than thirteen.

"Well hello there." Jack said to her, crouching to be on her level, "What's your name?"

"I'm Dawn." The girl said.

"I'm Jack. I bet you like living aboard a space ship, huh?"

"Yeah, it's really cool!" Dawn exclaimed, "I can't wait to go to the Academy to learn to be an officer!"

"And what academy is that?"

"The Enterprise Space Aeronautics Academy, or ESAA, of course." she recited from memory. "Mom says I can go when I'm fifteen."

"Ah, of course." Jack agreed.

"Dawn!" Cried a voice from down the corridor, coming from a blonde woman in her early forties. "What have I told you about wandering off?"

"Not to." Dawn grumbled, before turning away from Jack, and heading to the woman's side. The woman proceeded to glare at him.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, Colonel, wheedling information out of a young girl."

She shook her head, before gently pushing the girl in front of her and walking away. Jack was about to continue his exploration, when the two security officers walked down the corridor.

"Colonel, perhaps you shouldn't wander off." One of them said. They escorted him back to the others. The tour continued, showing off some of the technological wonders aboard the ship, including one of the holodecks, and ending with the bridge before returning them to the transporter room.

"Thank you for the tour." Sam said, "It really was quite educational."

SG1 returned to Earth, appearing in the conference room.

"I see you're back." General Hammond observed, as he was busy doing paperwork at the table.

"Yes sir, and we learned a lot." O'Neill said.

First, the group explained about the technology they'd witnessed, including energy weapons, shields and interactive holograms. Jack then disclosed what had happened when he'd wandered off.

"You sure it was ESAA?" Sam asked.

"Definitely, Carter, that's what she said: the ESAA."

"Well ESAA technologies is the company that made my cell phone. They produced ultra-thin phones while everyone else was still producing those large, heavy things. They also created the exhaust filtration system for cars that's become mainstream to the point it's on almost every car in the world."

"Are we sure we're talking about the same thing?" Jack asked. "I mean, when the girl mentioned ESAA, she was talking about a school. The Enterprise Space Aeronautics Academy, I believe was the name."

"That's a pretty big coincidence, two separate organizations with advanced technology, both with the same initials." Daniel pointed out.

"Indeed." Teal'c agreed.

"Does this mean that they are recruiting people from Earth to man their ship?"

"It seems that way," Hammond said, "The question now is, what do we do about it?"