The 21st day of the Month of Horus, LY 54 (Liberation Year)
Tau'ri Date: March 19, 2059 AD / 48 PD (Post-Disclosure)
The Jaffa Nation had once spanned over half of Ko'rai, the galaxy called 'The Milky Way' by the Tau'ri; with thousands of ships at their disposal, and millions of star systems under their control. Now, they were a backwater nation. Reduced to a mere fifth of their former territory, and with less than a thousand Captial Ships in their fleet. Ravaged by the Ori, Aschen, Adnihilo, and a bloody Civil War; the Jaffa had fallen prey to other nations and pirate groups, until they had come to this.
These thoughts were in Sha'vel's mind as he gazed out the viewport of his ship into the swirling patterns of hyperspace. The
We'amel was a Ha'tak'ko Class (nicknamed 'Uber'taks' by their Tau'ri allies) warship.
'But that,' he reminded himself with a tight smile,
'is about to change.'
He and his crew were returning to Ko'rai after a twelve year stint in the galaxy the humans called 'Pegasus', with the two keys that would return the Jaffa to their rightful place, and unlock their future.
The first key was a document. A treaty with the Asgard-Lantian alliance, giving the Jaffa advanced shields and hyperdrives, as well as nothing less than a fully operational Asgard Beam-Based Construction Facility.
Yes, this was a great aid. But the Jaffa needed more than ships and technology. They needed a leader who could unite not only the people, but the squabbling Senate as well. A leader who could bring the Jaffa back, and restore them as the power they knew they were. A leader much like the man who was in the private quarters two decks beneath him; the first Jaffa to be promoted to Fleet Admiral and graduate
magna cum laude from the Richardson Academy of Tactical Planning in New London.
Admiral Kitel of the Jaffa National Starfleet, son of Ma'ric of the Plateaus.
After the Civil War, the Jaffa military had begun to take examples from the Tau'ri warriors. They had emulated aspects of their command structure that allowed for better cohesiveness of their armed forces. Many of the finest Jaffa chosen to be officers in the new command structure had trained under the Tau'ri.
Kitel was, simply put; the best.
Admiral Richardson himself had personally congratulated Kitel upon his graduation from the Academy, and had even attended the ceremony when Kitel had been promoted to the relatively new rank of Fleet Admiral; a position formerly held only by their Goa'uld masters.
Out of the corner of his eye Sha'vel saw the officer at the sensor/comm station stand and approach him. The backup officer slid smoothly into place as he left, leaving no break in the monitoring of the equipment. The first officer stood, waiting silently for permission to report.
Sha'vel smiled. Not long ago, the officer would have simply shouted whatever information he had across the bridge for all to hear. Yes, they had indeed learned much from the Tau'ri. He turned to the officer. "Report."
"Sir," the officer said, "We've detected a slight flutter in the hyperdrive. If it gets too big we'll be forcibly ejected from hyperspace."
"Have you checked -" Sha'vel began, but was suddenly hit by a wave of force that almost knocked him off his feet. He staggered, and when he regained his balance he turned to the forward viewport.
Instead of the mottled sky of hyperspace, he now had an edge on view of Ko'rai from one of the outer arms. He turned to the sensor station. "What happened!"
The officer looked up and said, "The hyperdrive automatically shut down. We're detecting an unidentified Ha'tak and five modified Tel'tak in the area; possibly pirates."
"What caused the drive to shut down?" Sha'vel demanded.
"I should think that would be obvious, Captain," a soft voice said from behind him. Sha'vel spun around to see Admiral Kitel standing at the bridge entrance. The deck officer belatedly said the ritual call, "Or'Ko'onac, Kree Pel'tak!"
"You see, Captain," Kitel continued, sitting in the chair at the center of the bridge, "Our antagonists out there have somehow managed to acquire a working Adnihilo Hyperspace Disrupter."
"How?" Sha'vel queried.
"Does it matter?" Kiter returned, then turned toward the sensor station. "Did our Al'kesh escort also fall out of hyperspace?"
"Yes, Admiral," the officer said, "Sir, the unidentified Tel'tak are moving into weapons range."
"Excellent," Kitel said, steepling his fingers, "Have the Al'kesh take up position directly beneath us, and launch a squadron of gliders. Have them strafe the enemy Ha'tak."
"Yes, sir," the officer said, clealy puzzled.
The gliders sped from the
We'amel's hangar, speeding past the Tel'tak as they began opening fire on the
We'amel. The Ha'tak rapidly grew larger in their sights, and they opened fire as they came into weapons range. As golden flashes of plasma splashed it's shields, the Ha'tak opened fire on them, but the gliders easily evaded the larger ship's fire.
"Sir," the sensor officer said, "The gliders report no damage to the enemy Ha'tak, and - Wait, the Tel'tak are falling back to defend the Ha'tak!"
"Why in the stars are they doing that!" Shav'el wondered out loud, "Surely the enemy captain knows those gliders have no chance of harming him!"
"Yes captain," Kitel agreed, "I'm sure he does. However; you see, the captain of that ship is a Teenub. And Teenub are cowards. He know the gliders could not harm him under normal circumstances, but he fears deception, and races to save his own skin."
He turned back to the sensor officer. "Launch the rest of the gliders, and have them fly at the Ha'tak in parade-ground formation. Order the Al'kesh to take up position just behind them. When they are within weapons range, have them break and perform a tel'pac'rai maneuver. When they do, order the Al'kesh to break and engage the Tel'tak. On my mark, bring us in towards the Ha'tak"
The gliders flew out of the hangar in perfect parade-ground formation, and the Al'kesh quietly slipped in behind them. When they got within rang of the Ha'tak, the gliders scattered.
Like a meteor entering an atmosphere, the gliders broke into small groups, swinging wide of the Ha'tak and then pulling around hard to engage its flanks from multiple angles.
The Al'kesh, which had been masked by their sensor profiles, engaged the Tel'taks like one of the avenging demons of Sokar. It decimated them, blowing them out of the sky before they even saw it.
"Very good helmsman," Kitel said with a smile, "Bring us in."
Forty minutes later, it was all over.