“Go,” Jack said, waving a hand. She ran out of the house.
“Did you understand any of that?” Michael asked dubiously.
“I understood that she understands it,” Jack said. “That’s good enough for me.”
“What arch?” Michael asked.
“What arch?” Jack responded, giving his brother a blank stare.
Michael shook his head and finished his beer. “You remember playing king of the mountain when we were kids? I think you took it a little too seriously.”
After Michael left, Jack tossed himself onto the couch, groaning and covering his eyes with an arm.
“Jack.”
“What.”
“I need to go to the SGC,” Daniel said. “Ronnie and Nyan need me to see something.”
Jack reached out and found a hairy wrist. He gave it a tug. Daniel eased himself down on top of Jack. He settled into the holding, helping Jack to calm and center. Jack put his arms around Daniel, flattening his palms against the strong muscles of Daniel’s back and breathing in the familiar scent of the man.
“Okay?” Daniel asked quietly after a few moments.
“Mmmmm.” Jack found his face and kissed him. “Love you,” he said as he nuzzled the side of Daniel’s neck. “Even if Sam is prettier than you.”
Daniel chuckled and lifted his head. They spent several minutes kissing and petting each other.
“Can’t they video conference you?” Jack asked against Daniel’s mouth. Daniel gave Jack’s chest a rub and nuzzled a nipple.
“I suppose so,” Daniel said. “But it’s easier to show me things if I’m there. They’ve come up with a few oddities. You did ask her to look for weird stuff, Jack. They have something coming up in South America and they’re ready to bring me in on it.”
Jack frowned. “Just don’t get taken hostage by those Nicaraguan rebels again, please? Or whoever they were?”
Daniel kissed him again and promised. Once was enough.
The house was empty except for Katie, and Jack assumed she was on the phone to someone or emailing out a thousand miffed notes. He couldn’t believe some stupid kid tried to mess with his little girl. He smiled to himself, picturing her smacking the kid in the face with a roundhouse kick. A reach told him she was a little shaken and disappointed, but also surprised and enlightened. Jack laughed to himself; she busted a testicle. Ouch, he winced, feeling sympathy pain, kid’s going to need an operation for that one. Damned if he was going to pay for it, though; the kid should have been a gentleman and taken NO for an answer. Jack hoped Megan was watching.
“She’s a good girl, Megs,” Jack said quietly. “They’re all good kids. You did a good job.”
He was still trying to process all the sensations that had overcome him while he had scanned the planet. Enki may have shut off the over-load, but he still had all the images, thoughts, and feelings running through his head. His planet wasn’t as bad as the news made it out to be; sure, there were people who needed to be taken out of the gene-pool, but most of them were good people who were simply trying to make it day by day. They were scared, for the most part, scared of all the changes that were happening. A lot of them hadn’t believed the news of aliens, much less an evolutionary leap, but after seeing their own kids learning beyond their years, and a few adults starting to do strange things, a quiet belief was taking hold. Some of the tribal areas bothered him; the people there didn’t have the media and were bothered by their children. Some tribes took the changes to be good and others took them to be bad. He was beginning to understand when Enki said that some people wouldn’t make it. It was a harsh reality that Jack needed to harden part of himself to whether he liked it or not.
Jack got up and went to his computer.
“To my fellow Tau’ri,” he typed.
“Some amazing things have been happening over the past few years, as most of you have determined already. We are not alone, indeed we are blessed with friends who have accepted us despite our faults. I address you as Tau’ri because that is who we are. We are not American, or British, or Russian, or any other national origin. We are Tau’ri, the inhabitants of the First World. The first human world, that is.
“You will have noticed some strange things happening with the kids. It’s okay, this is supposed to be happening. Our children will be smarter than we ever were, so don’t be afraid of them or afraid of what is happening. No, they won’t be changing their appearance or leaping tall buildings or using x-ray vision on us. They are just getting a little smarter, nothing more. Some adults are also undergoing a few changes; actually this isn’t anything new, the changes are simply things that already existed and are now being amplified. These are good things. Don’t be afraid of them, encourage them to happen.
“Be kind to each other. Be tolerant of the differences in others. Be accepting of those differences. Open your heart and mind to your neighbor. Be patient during these changes; ethics, morals, and basic social rules will need to change in order to accommodate the new world vision. The borders of our various countries are all man-made borders, not things of nature. A flag should not rule our lives. Church and State should not assume the position of lord and master. Sure, rules are needed for a society to function; we have worked too long and too hard for chaos to claim us. I have seen worlds where government truly puts its people first. Such worlds work and thrive. The citizens, from the leadership to the most humble farmer, all work together, none relying on another for their needs out of laziness. If they have the ability to work, they work. They are kind to each other.
“I am a soldier. I bear arms on a daily basis. I have killed and I will do so again, in order to keep my family safe. This planet is my family. I hope there is a day when war will no longer be a concern and my gun can begin to collect dust. My contract may say that I work for the United States Air Force, and I am more than willing to collect my paycheck from them, but I have begun to consider myself as Tau’ri. I work for the people of this planet. Propaganda will say that I am writing this to gain the support of the world for the USA. That isn’t so. I am writing this in my position as a fellow Tau’ri, as the Chief of HomeWorld Security, and as a representative of the Unified Worlds.
“A good soldier on any planet does not like war. I hope I’ve been a good soldier.
“As I watch my own children experience their changes, as I watch my wife and my husband awaken to their true selves, I know I am blessed. We are our own higher power. Please. I beg of everyone. Put down weapons, put down fists. Hug your family. Shake your neighbor’s hand. Hold your arms out wide and embrace the life you have been given. In a few short years of practicing this, my life has never been richer.
“My youngest son is eleven; he sees only the good in people. It is his gift. I have recently had reason to see this world with different eyes, and I see a lot of good people. Good people who are scared. I think the phrase, “the meek shall inherit the earth,” is misread. It is the tolerant and accepting that shall inherit the earth. If I could give the people of this world one gift, it would be the eyes and heart to see the true heart of your neighbor. It took this soldier a long time to learn that lesson, and I’m still learning it. It will be our children who practice it. Let’s help them get started on the right foot by showing them the way.”
Jack sat back and considered the ramifications. He emailed it and then picked up the phone.
“Cass, I just emailed you something. Please get it translated and sent out to every news agency you can find. No, don’t run it by anyone, I’ll take responsibility for it. Just send it. Thanks, honey.”
He emailed and dialed again.
“Gabriel, it’s Jack. Very good, thanks. Listen, I just emailed you with a letter that’s about to hit the papers. I’d like it to somehow be translated into languages of people who don’t have access to newspapers or TV. Yeah, tribes and stuff. I appreciate it, thanks.”
Jack hung up and winced.
“Daniel is going to smack me upside the head for this one,” h
e told himself.
Chapter 44
When Jack’s letter hit the night-time news that evening, the entire letter was read on air. Instead of being smacked, Jack was kissed by his surprised partners. Davy gave him a shy hug, self-conscious about being mentioned on air.
“Permission to hug, sir?” Jerrie asked, her voice slightly husky.
“Granted,” Jack said and gave her a hug, too.
Five minutes after the airing, there was a knock at the door. Katie opened it.
“Nanna, it’s past your bedtime,” she said, opening the door.
“This couldn’t wait,” Maggie said. She found her son and kissed him. “You do have a heart,” she said. “I always knew you did.”
Jack wasn’t sure what was worse: the attention from his family or the fact that they were surprised he could write something from the heart.
“Guys, I’m not a complete bas… idiot,” he declared, minding the small ears that were still awake. “I just…..” He threw his arms in the air and headed to his bedroom.
He stripped and went into the shower. He didn’t know what had come over him, writing that note and sending it to the press, but it was too late to recall it. If the night-time news was taking it so seriously, he didn’t want to think about the morning newspapers. When he got out of the shower, he found his partners waiting for him in the bed.
“I don’t wanna hear it,” he said. He got into bed and turned his back to them.
“Jack, you must have known this would get you attention,” Daniel said. “You did a beautiful thing and it was completely out of left field. Come on, turn over.”
Jack turned and pulled the covers over with him.
“Oh, that’s mature,” Sam said and tugged at the sheet. “Jack, we don’t need to talk about it, if you don’t want to, we just want you to know that we love you and we admire what you did.”
“No more discussion about it,” Jack warned. Sam climbed over Daniel and pushed Jack into the middle. Jack quickly crumbled under her kisses. She hovered over him, touching his face with gentle fingers.
“We love you,” she told him. “It isn’t too often you get mushy but when you do, it’s a beautiful thing and it’s okay to let us in to see it. So, do you wanna do the nasty with us or not?”
Jack reluctantly smiled at her. “Is it Jack-in-the-middle night?” he asked, drawing circles on her back with a fingertip.
“It’s a whatever-Jack-wants night,” Daniel told him.
Jack got whatever he wanted as he was loved up one side and down the other. When they first figured out the three-way technique, the men were afraid that both of them on top of Sam would be too much weight for her, but she assured them that if they both made use of knees and hands and elbows, she wouldn’t suffocate.
Knowing that they never had serious orgasms when all three were connected, it usually turned into a feel-good session, Jack allowed part of his mind to tune out. He reached out to Daniel, opening up and encouraging Daniel to enter his heart. They had managed it a couple of times since Jack came back from the Baal war. Daniel nuzzled Jack’s back as their hearts mingled. Jack led Daniel toward Sam and she was abruptly with them. Startled at the sudden sensation of not being alone in her experience, she choked and held on. This time, Jack held her face and forced eye-contact. Both he and Daniel mingled their spirits with hers, showing her how much they loved her, knowing that the heart cannot lie as it speaks more without words than it can with words.
Daniel slid off to the side and curled up to them, sharing kisses as they calmed.
“Oh, my God,” Sam whispered, wiping her face on the sheet. “Is that….? What was that?”
Jack kissed her face and down her neck as he stroked her soft hair. “I knew you could do it,” he said.
“But it…. scientifically…..”
The men chuckled and Jack rolled off. “Just because we don’t know the science behind it doesn’t mean there isn’t a theory for it,” Daniel told her. “Sam, forget science for once and just accept.”
She hugged both to her chest. “Is that what happens when you two…. do it?”
“Yes, it is,” they nodded. “Honey, I don’t know why you weren’t automatically brought in before,” Jack said. “Ninurta thinks it has something to do with my Ancient stuff and Daniel’s Ascended stuff. It just took you a little longer, that’s all.”
She wiped another tear from her cheek and sniffled. “I felt…. loved,” she whispered. “More than I ever thought possible. I mean, I felt something close to it through Jolinar for Martouf, but this was love for me.”
Jack took a fistful of blond hair and gently shook it. “Will you stop analyzing something for two minutes, please?”
Sam sniffled and nodded before getting up and heading to the shower.
“I’ll go,” Daniel said, after five minutes of holding each other. Jack nodded and Daniel slipped from the bed.
Sam was leaning against the tile as the water cascaded over her shoulders and back. Daniel got in, took the puff, and gently washed her back.
“If it’s too much, we won’t bring you in like that again,” he said quietly. She sniffed and shook her head.
“I was so jealous of that,” she said. “You and Jack being like that, sensing each other. I couldn’t understand why I was left out. You love me. Different, but as strong as you love Jack, you love me.”
Daniel turned her around and held her face. “Sam, all three of us are connected. We belong together. Sure, I love Jack differently than I love you; you’re two different people. It’s just as strong, though, and you’ll get used to opening up so fully that we can become One when we are together. Sometimes, I can even sense Jack when he’s far away. Especially if he’s very upset about something. You and I can do that, too.”
He finished washing her and made love to her under the shower. He wasn’t as good at it as Jack was becoming, but he managed to send a sonar ping which seemed to reassure her that their previous experience really did happen.
When Jack got to work in the morning, everyone seemed to be looking at him, which really wasn’t a surprise since his stupid note made the front pages of what seemed like every newspaper in the world. “Good mornings” echoed around him as he made his way to his office, and voices seemed warmer than usual. Even Cassie put a sweet kiss on his cheek when he went in.
“You’re getting soft in your old age, General,” she informed him.
“Thank you; I’ll take it under advisement,” he told her.
Not five minutes after sitting down, Davis knocked and went in. He stood before Jack’s desk, looking at him.
“Oh, not you, too,” Jack groaned.
“Nope, not me,” Paul said. “I always knew you had it in you. I just wanted to update you on the Chinese.”
“Thank God,” Jack said fervently to the ceiling. “Update me. Please tell me I can go out and hurt someone.”
“Not this time,” Paul said. “Sorry to disappoint you. Your bigger stick impressed them. Feudal society, remember, sir?” Jack tilted his head back to its correct position and looked at his assistant. “Not that big stick, sir. I talked most of the night with Ambassador Fleury and President Tien, and got them to agree that maybe part of the problem is in communications and cultural differences. With your permission, I’d like to invite Lord Atis in on the peace talks. Daniel has agreed to sit in as mediator.”
“Won’t the Chinese think he’s on my side?” Jack asked pointedly.
“No, sir,” Paul shook his head. “They are fully aware that he doesn’t hesitate to disagree with you, when he needs to. They have read not only the chief’s book, but also quite a few of the SGC files. Sir, the files were opened to them when they were briefed a few years ago.”
It took Jack a moment. “Oh, right. Kinsey, Thor, Hammond. Right. Yes, you can ask Atis to join in the fun and games.”
“Thank you, sir. And I organized your emails,” Paul said, glancing at the computer. “Your inbox was overflowing. I prioritized the me
ssages.”
“Of course you did, Colonel,” Jack nodded. “And I appreciate those little sweet-nothings. I haven’t heard from Hayes yet this morning.”
“He sent flowers, sir.”
“He what?”
Davis jerked a finger in the direction of the outer office. “Those flowers on Cassie’s desk are yours, not hers. She confiscated them.”
Jack went out and plucked the card from the basket, glaring at Cassie as she grinned at him.
“Impudence,” he declared and went back into his office.
“Jack, stop being selfish and share those meds. H.H.”
“Very funny, Henry,” Jack said, tossing the card on the desk.
“Something else, sir.” Jack waved for him to continue. “Something odd coming out of Africa. Rwanda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Sudan, most of the countries that top the human rights' watch lists -new rumors, sir. Apparently some kind of ghost or spirit has come out of the earth and is warning the people about false gods. And the 'spirit' isn't Christian or Muslim. A couple of rebel armies have even woken up to find all their weapons gone.”
Jack slowly turned his chair to face Davis. “Anyone coming forward on that?”
“No, sir. Compound videos are blank, no one has claimed to have seen anything out of the ordinary. Other than this ghost walking through the bush and nighttime savannahs wearing a gray cloak and hood.”
“Huh.” Jack scratched an ear. “Strange. Alright, keep a watch on that one.”
After Paul left, Jack turned his computer on.
“Good morning, Jaaaack,” it said in a Nicholson voice.
“Davis!”
By noon, Jack had responded to most of his emails and took a few phone calls. The latest informed him that the Heaven’s Bow had rung the doorbell. Jack gave permission for them to enter. At least they didn’t automatically beam themselves in. Whoever it was more than likely knew the way to his office, so he continued to answer the emails while refusing calls from the press. He was somewhat surprised when Ninurta walked into his office.
The Anunnaki Unification, Book 3: A Stargate SG-1 Fan Fiction Story Page 13