(More of "Dark Tide," see next post for end and previous two posts for start.)
Spoiler:
Then a foursome of Der'kal females leap out of their gunship, two wielding the extendable, double-bladed swords they wield so well ("Divided We Fall") and two carrying medium-sized plasma carbines. Confused but not willing to waste any time, Mitchell and Eaton open fire immediately, denting the surrounding walls with bullets but not able to hit the amazingly-nimble enemies. Daniel and Vala soon follow suit, though they are similarly incapable of handing a hit, the the four aliens advance on them more and more each second, rolling and diving out of the way just in time to avoid the stream of metal. One of them notices the sole remaining Jaffa and breaks off toward him, twirling her staff around and dashing forward. The Jaffa warrior, to his credit, stands and fires off two shots, neither one landing, before his adversary is upon him, but without the melee advantage of a full-length staff weapon, he can only parry the Der'kal's sword once before it gashes into his shoulder, bringing him to the ground.
Jackson stares, horrified, and shouts that they need to pull back; they're no match for these warriors, and there's no way they can come out of this alive if the alien females get into close-combat range. Mitchell starts to protest, but upon taking another look at the vicious swords coming nearer, he gives in and orders everyone to fall back. The four humans abandon their positions and make a mad dash for the bend in the corridor, sliding around it just as the flurry of emerald energy begins slamming into the wall beside them. Daniel turns and seals the access door leading into the corridor, then smashes the control crystal, hopefully keeping the aliens from coming this way anytime soon. Almost at once, though, the sound of plasma pelting the doorway is heard, and Vala guesses that they only have a minute or so before the blasts burn through enough for their limber foes to leap through. Grimacing, Mitchell says that they need to tell Kitel what's going on, but the find that their radios no longer work, doubtless an effect of Der'kal jamming onboard the cloaked gunship. They'll need to deliver the message in person, but with the straight path to the pel'tak now blocked, they'll need to find a new route. Hoping to do so quickly, the humans run off down the new hallway, the sounds of scorching metal ever-louder behind them.
On the Der'kal command cruiser, the commander of the alien fleet is watching a video feed from the Hak'tyl; his elite squad of warriors, the Rit'na'kal, were successful in infiltrating the Free Jaffa flagship, and they engaged SG-1 immediately. Unfortunately, the humans were able to escape through an unexpected security barrier, preventing the females from giving chase. Nevertheless, they have hacked into the vessel's control grid and have disabled all inter-ship communications, which will leave their prey with no allies coming to their rescue. They have also locked down the entire level, sealing all access doors leading off of it and locking the ring platforms that the humans or Jaffa could use. Now the hunt will begin.
Meanwhile, the Tau'ri heroes are discovering that escaping their pursuers will be more difficult than they previously though. Daniel's attempts to bypass the lock on a blast door have failed, and they can't reach the armory beyond for some added firepower. Vala suggests trying to pull up a schematic of their level on a security console, and they run back down the hall to where a computer terminal sits waiting. But this, too, has been disabled, and there doesn't seem to be any way to free up the system. Watching her companions try and figure out what to do next, Eaton shakes her head, realizing that this must all be a part of the plan. They thought that they were being clever, going to the nearest weapons storage room to grab heavier firearms, and this is what happens. Had they instead ran straight to the ring room, they probably could have transported up to the pel'tak's floor and escaped.
Just then, Mitchell's head jerks up as he hears the sounds of approaching footfalls, and he orders everyone to move out. Ducking down a small hallway off to the left, he and the others vanish, putting as much distance between themselves and their old position as possible. Unfortunately for them, it wasn't the Der'kal approaching but a band of Jaffa warriors also trapped on this level. Arriving at the security terminal, the group's leader attempts to override the lockdown, but finds it impossible. He turns to his men and tells them to spread out and search for any evidence of tampering with the control systems; something isn't right here. And then he turns again, this time to peer down the adjacent hallway, and freezes at the sight of four Der'kal females staring down at him, murder clearly in their eyes. The Jaffa leader raises his staff to fire, but one of the aliens brings up her sword and catches it at just the right angle to slice it in half. Then she flips around and delivers a thrust kick that sends the man flying into a bulkhead, where he collapses. The other Jaffa fire their own weapons, but three are taken out immediately by green plasma. The two sword-wielding Der'kal dance forward, entering into a quick but brutal exchange of parries with the Jaffa, but ultimately felling them to the last man. Before the last one has hit the floor, the females are off again, tracking their quarry.
Still racing down the hall, Daniel can't help but wince at the sounds of the screaming Jaffa as they are mercilessly cut down, but there's no time for sympathy now, and they all know it. Seeing the access door to the ring room sealed up ahead, Mitchell curses, then starts pulling C4 out of his vest's pouch. Glancing over, Eaton asks what in the world he thinks he's doing, considering how close to the outer hull they are. One bad crack and they could have another vent out into space, this time without a Der'kal gunship to block it up. But Cameron argues that they don't have time to debate this, and they need to keep moving; it's worth the risk. He slams two packs of explosive onto the door, sticks a remote detonator on top, then pulls Rebbecca around the corner as Daniel and Vala follow. With one final glance around, Mitchell flips the trigger, and an ear-splitting explosion rocks the area.
On the pel'tak, an internal sensor suddenly blares, registering a detonation on the hanger deck. Stepping away from the viewscreen where he has been discussing tactics with another commander, Admiral Kitel glances at the display with a puzzled look on his face, unsure as to how a simple doorway suddenly exploded. He turns to the ship's head of security and orders a detachment of soldier sent down to the hanger deck's ring room to investigate what just happened, then steps back toward the window to finish this battle and rout the enemy fleet.
Down a few levels, Vala is staring, dumbstruck, at the still-standing blast door to the ring room. Remembering too late that Earth had opened up its trinium refineries to the Jaffa before its fall ("Star By Star"), it seems that Admiral Kitel put those resources to good use reinforcing crucial interior barriers such as blast doors, and even C4 is having a difficult time breaking through. Mitchell remarks that he'd give an arm and a leg to have Sam here to figure out some sort of hack-through, to which Vala indignantly shoves him out of the way and begins prying apart at the control console. Suppressing a chuckle, Daniel looks on, but his humor is cut short when he hears a soft whisper behind him. He and Eaton turn simultaneously to see the four Der'kal females only a few meters away, advancing slowly and quietly with their weapons drawn. Pulling up his gun and shouting to move, Jackson shoves Rebbecca into Cameron, the three of them all trying to get into firing positions as quickly as possible.
The lead female fires off a quick burst of plasma, one of the blasts catching Vala's leg and knocking her to the ground in the process. Separated from the other three, she can only wildly grab for her P90 as the alien approaches, clearly moving in for the kill. Daniel screams her name, desperately trying to do something to help, but Mitchell pulls him back, knowing that if they fall apart now, the tense cease-fire ensuing between the two groups will fail and they'll be forced into a shoot out. As long as the three of them keep their rifles trained on the three other Der'kal, they have a chance. Helpless, Jackson stares into Vala's eyes, silently pleading that this moment not be their last. The lead alien snarls coldly, then draws a sick-looking blade and draws back her arm to strike—
—and suddenly a flurry of golden plasma blasts her into the wall , leaving deep gashes in her light armor. Everyone turns to see the blast door to the ring room open, a squad of heavily-armed-and-armored Jaffa warriors standing their with their staff weapons raised. They inform their Tau'ri guests that Admiral Kitel asked them to determine why there was an explosion in this corridor, and they believe they have just found their answer. Furious at this sudden turn of events, the three other Der'kal turn and sprint down the hallway, leaving their fallen comrade behind and quickly pulling around a bend in the hallway, preventing anyone from gunning them down while they escape.
As soon as the remaining enemies are out of sight, Daniel rips out of Mitchell's grasp and runs over to Vala, pulling a field med kit out of his pocket and dressing her wound. To her credit, the smuggler tries to insist that she's fine, but she eventually relents and lets Jackson do as he pleases. Stepping out from the corner they were forced into, Major Eaton thanks the Jaffa squad for their timely intervention, glad for the assistance. The squad's leader says that they were only doing their job, then glances up and nods toward the plasma-ridden Der'kal lying against the opposite wall, saying that they should probably do something about her. Mitchell agrees, pulling out his zat and training it on the prone figure as he slowly approaches.
At the United Nations complex, Talbot has barricaded herself inside the long-range communications room, establishing a direct subspace link to the Beta Site and asking Colonel Taylor for some advice. The outpost's commander has had a hectic past few days, dealing with a population of refugees who are all yearning to go home and the inability to grant their wishes until the remaining Der'kal have been cleared from Earth's surface. Nevertheless, he's finding that just knowing that the homeworld is free again seems to be having a real impact on the refugees; the sound of laughter echoes around the settlement, and the old and young alike seem genuinely happy for the first time in these two long years. But he guesses that this isn't about him and asks what he can do for Danielle, despite the long distance. She replies that the results for the new FPE election will be in within a few minutes, and if it turns out the way she thinks it will, she'll need him ready. For what, though, she doesn't say, and leaves Taylor somewhat lost as she cuts the connection.
Jackson stares, horrified, and shouts that they need to pull back; they're no match for these warriors, and there's no way they can come out of this alive if the alien females get into close-combat range. Mitchell starts to protest, but upon taking another look at the vicious swords coming nearer, he gives in and orders everyone to fall back. The four humans abandon their positions and make a mad dash for the bend in the corridor, sliding around it just as the flurry of emerald energy begins slamming into the wall beside them. Daniel turns and seals the access door leading into the corridor, then smashes the control crystal, hopefully keeping the aliens from coming this way anytime soon. Almost at once, though, the sound of plasma pelting the doorway is heard, and Vala guesses that they only have a minute or so before the blasts burn through enough for their limber foes to leap through. Grimacing, Mitchell says that they need to tell Kitel what's going on, but the find that their radios no longer work, doubtless an effect of Der'kal jamming onboard the cloaked gunship. They'll need to deliver the message in person, but with the straight path to the pel'tak now blocked, they'll need to find a new route. Hoping to do so quickly, the humans run off down the new hallway, the sounds of scorching metal ever-louder behind them.
On the Der'kal command cruiser, the commander of the alien fleet is watching a video feed from the Hak'tyl; his elite squad of warriors, the Rit'na'kal, were successful in infiltrating the Free Jaffa flagship, and they engaged SG-1 immediately. Unfortunately, the humans were able to escape through an unexpected security barrier, preventing the females from giving chase. Nevertheless, they have hacked into the vessel's control grid and have disabled all inter-ship communications, which will leave their prey with no allies coming to their rescue. They have also locked down the entire level, sealing all access doors leading off of it and locking the ring platforms that the humans or Jaffa could use. Now the hunt will begin.
Meanwhile, the Tau'ri heroes are discovering that escaping their pursuers will be more difficult than they previously though. Daniel's attempts to bypass the lock on a blast door have failed, and they can't reach the armory beyond for some added firepower. Vala suggests trying to pull up a schematic of their level on a security console, and they run back down the hall to where a computer terminal sits waiting. But this, too, has been disabled, and there doesn't seem to be any way to free up the system. Watching her companions try and figure out what to do next, Eaton shakes her head, realizing that this must all be a part of the plan. They thought that they were being clever, going to the nearest weapons storage room to grab heavier firearms, and this is what happens. Had they instead ran straight to the ring room, they probably could have transported up to the pel'tak's floor and escaped.
Just then, Mitchell's head jerks up as he hears the sounds of approaching footfalls, and he orders everyone to move out. Ducking down a small hallway off to the left, he and the others vanish, putting as much distance between themselves and their old position as possible. Unfortunately for them, it wasn't the Der'kal approaching but a band of Jaffa warriors also trapped on this level. Arriving at the security terminal, the group's leader attempts to override the lockdown, but finds it impossible. He turns to his men and tells them to spread out and search for any evidence of tampering with the control systems; something isn't right here. And then he turns again, this time to peer down the adjacent hallway, and freezes at the sight of four Der'kal females staring down at him, murder clearly in their eyes. The Jaffa leader raises his staff to fire, but one of the aliens brings up her sword and catches it at just the right angle to slice it in half. Then she flips around and delivers a thrust kick that sends the man flying into a bulkhead, where he collapses. The other Jaffa fire their own weapons, but three are taken out immediately by green plasma. The two sword-wielding Der'kal dance forward, entering into a quick but brutal exchange of parries with the Jaffa, but ultimately felling them to the last man. Before the last one has hit the floor, the females are off again, tracking their quarry.
Still racing down the hall, Daniel can't help but wince at the sounds of the screaming Jaffa as they are mercilessly cut down, but there's no time for sympathy now, and they all know it. Seeing the access door to the ring room sealed up ahead, Mitchell curses, then starts pulling C4 out of his vest's pouch. Glancing over, Eaton asks what in the world he thinks he's doing, considering how close to the outer hull they are. One bad crack and they could have another vent out into space, this time without a Der'kal gunship to block it up. But Cameron argues that they don't have time to debate this, and they need to keep moving; it's worth the risk. He slams two packs of explosive onto the door, sticks a remote detonator on top, then pulls Rebbecca around the corner as Daniel and Vala follow. With one final glance around, Mitchell flips the trigger, and an ear-splitting explosion rocks the area.
On the pel'tak, an internal sensor suddenly blares, registering a detonation on the hanger deck. Stepping away from the viewscreen where he has been discussing tactics with another commander, Admiral Kitel glances at the display with a puzzled look on his face, unsure as to how a simple doorway suddenly exploded. He turns to the ship's head of security and orders a detachment of soldier sent down to the hanger deck's ring room to investigate what just happened, then steps back toward the window to finish this battle and rout the enemy fleet.
Down a few levels, Vala is staring, dumbstruck, at the still-standing blast door to the ring room. Remembering too late that Earth had opened up its trinium refineries to the Jaffa before its fall ("Star By Star"), it seems that Admiral Kitel put those resources to good use reinforcing crucial interior barriers such as blast doors, and even C4 is having a difficult time breaking through. Mitchell remarks that he'd give an arm and a leg to have Sam here to figure out some sort of hack-through, to which Vala indignantly shoves him out of the way and begins prying apart at the control console. Suppressing a chuckle, Daniel looks on, but his humor is cut short when he hears a soft whisper behind him. He and Eaton turn simultaneously to see the four Der'kal females only a few meters away, advancing slowly and quietly with their weapons drawn. Pulling up his gun and shouting to move, Jackson shoves Rebbecca into Cameron, the three of them all trying to get into firing positions as quickly as possible.
The lead female fires off a quick burst of plasma, one of the blasts catching Vala's leg and knocking her to the ground in the process. Separated from the other three, she can only wildly grab for her P90 as the alien approaches, clearly moving in for the kill. Daniel screams her name, desperately trying to do something to help, but Mitchell pulls him back, knowing that if they fall apart now, the tense cease-fire ensuing between the two groups will fail and they'll be forced into a shoot out. As long as the three of them keep their rifles trained on the three other Der'kal, they have a chance. Helpless, Jackson stares into Vala's eyes, silently pleading that this moment not be their last. The lead alien snarls coldly, then draws a sick-looking blade and draws back her arm to strike—
—and suddenly a flurry of golden plasma blasts her into the wall , leaving deep gashes in her light armor. Everyone turns to see the blast door to the ring room open, a squad of heavily-armed-and-armored Jaffa warriors standing their with their staff weapons raised. They inform their Tau'ri guests that Admiral Kitel asked them to determine why there was an explosion in this corridor, and they believe they have just found their answer. Furious at this sudden turn of events, the three other Der'kal turn and sprint down the hallway, leaving their fallen comrade behind and quickly pulling around a bend in the hallway, preventing anyone from gunning them down while they escape.
As soon as the remaining enemies are out of sight, Daniel rips out of Mitchell's grasp and runs over to Vala, pulling a field med kit out of his pocket and dressing her wound. To her credit, the smuggler tries to insist that she's fine, but she eventually relents and lets Jackson do as he pleases. Stepping out from the corner they were forced into, Major Eaton thanks the Jaffa squad for their timely intervention, glad for the assistance. The squad's leader says that they were only doing their job, then glances up and nods toward the plasma-ridden Der'kal lying against the opposite wall, saying that they should probably do something about her. Mitchell agrees, pulling out his zat and training it on the prone figure as he slowly approaches.
At the United Nations complex, Talbot has barricaded herself inside the long-range communications room, establishing a direct subspace link to the Beta Site and asking Colonel Taylor for some advice. The outpost's commander has had a hectic past few days, dealing with a population of refugees who are all yearning to go home and the inability to grant their wishes until the remaining Der'kal have been cleared from Earth's surface. Nevertheless, he's finding that just knowing that the homeworld is free again seems to be having a real impact on the refugees; the sound of laughter echoes around the settlement, and the old and young alike seem genuinely happy for the first time in these two long years. But he guesses that this isn't about him and asks what he can do for Danielle, despite the long distance. She replies that the results for the new FPE election will be in within a few minutes, and if it turns out the way she thinks it will, she'll need him ready. For what, though, she doesn't say, and leaves Taylor somewhat lost as she cuts the connection.
You are a writing genius. 
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