//------------------------------// // 12 - Prologue // Story: Stargate - Rise of the Sun God // by Arvaus //------------------------------// Three years earlier. A dozen Jaffa galloped through the forest. Distant horns echoed across the valley, guiding them to their destination at the top of the ridge, but there was no need; everypony for miles around must have heard the explosions. At the back of the squad, Koresh followed closely on the others' heels. He heard the leader's voice from up ahead, but he wasn't listening. All he could think was that it was great to finally see some excitement. He'd been stationed on this planet, guarding a tiny, insignificant outpost, for an agonisingly long three years now, and he had been beginning to wonder if he was ever going to get a chance to make a name for himself. He wondered what the commotion was. Was somepony actually attacking the outpost? His mind raced at the thought of capturing a spy or saboteur and presenting them before Zipacna himself. That would definitely earn him some recognition. Suddenly the group turned, joining a forest path that headed up to the ridge. Koresh almost missed the turn, skidding round on the mossy floor and running to catch up with the others, but matching their pace was hard going on the steep gradient. Realising he hadn't been concentrating, he looked round as he ran and tried to get his bearings. They were a long way from the compound now, which lay down in the valley a good twenty minutes' run from there. He could see plumes of smoke rising into the air ahead, clearly silhouetted against the bright blue sky, and he could hear shouts coming from all directions as patrols converged on the location. The rest of the squad pushed further ahead, no doubt also eager to get their own piece of the action before others arrived. But Koresh found himself slowing down instead. As he thought about it, he realise that it didn't make sense. Up ahead of them, apart from the plumes of smoke, there was absolutely nothing. There was no power generator, no guard outpost, no anything. It wasn't even a well-used path; the Chappa'ai was all the way down at the bottom of the valley, and the compound itself was in the other direction. He'd been up here a few times on patrols, and the only thing of note that he could think of was that you could see almost the entire valley from up there. He skidded to a halt, his eyes wide in realisation. The spot could be seen from the entire valley. It was the perfect place to set up a distraction. They weren't going to find the intruders up there. This was meant to draw their attention away from the real target, and he knew where that had to be. His team were too far ahead to warn now. Making a snap decision, he turned and galloped back down into the valley, toward the Chappa'ai. He could still hear the trampling of hooves in the distance, Jaffa approaching from all sides, all going in the wrong direction. He hoped some others would realise as well; there would have been at least two Jaffa watching the Chappa'ai, and if they couldn't protect it he wasn't sure that he'd be able to do any better alone. But he was committed now; if he turned back or delayed too long, his allowing the intruders to escape would receive a worse punishment than if he had tried and failed. He knew what he needed to do. He needed to face these intruders, and to win. "I will not die today," he grunted. He cleared the treeline, approaching the edge of the sunken clearing where the Chappa'ai stood. It was active; the guards must have already been defeated. He couldn't hear or see any other Jaffa approaching, but he could see four ponies gathered around the dialling device. As he drew closer they started running for the Gate. I'm losing them, he thought. He only had one chance to do this, and no time to prepare, so he ignored his cautionary instincts and dove straight over the edge, sliding down the scree slope into the clearing and stumbling to a halt at the bottom. He went for his weapon, but as he looked up he found the barrel of a gun staring back at him. Three of the intruders had already fled through the Chappa'ai, but one hung back – a forest green pegasus in matching green uniform, a strange black weapon readied at his side. Koresh had heard the stories, and recognised him immediately. The intruders were SG-1, of Earth, and this was Colonel O'Neill, their leader. This was the team who had defeated Apophis, mere moments before the destruction of their own planet, and this was the very pony who had killed the supreme system lord Osiris just two years before that. A prize like this would get him any posting he wanted. The colonel was staring back at him, eyes glancing repeatedly down at the staff weapon strapped to his side. Koresh cursed his impatience; he hadn't armed his staff before descending, and now, in the time it would take him to draw and aim it, the colonel could easily have killed him with his own weapon. O'Neill tilted his head, puzzled. Koresh could barely breathe. He had been stupid; he'd jumped into battle unprepared, and now he was as good as dead. He could hear the blood pumping in his ears, and started to panic as all his training failed him. He didn't know what to do. If he made a move, he'd be killed; if he didn't… The colonel wasn't firing, though. He had a shot, but wasn't taking it. Koresh had no idea what he was waiting for, but in that moment he didn't care. All thoughts duty, of glory and honour, began to melt away, and he was left with the simple desire to survive. Slowly, being careful not to make any sudden moves, he took a step back. Then he knelt to the ground, raising his firing hoof in surrender. The colonel raised an eyebrow and stood, watching him in silence for a moment. Then, with a shrug, he turned and ran straight for the Chappa'ai. Koresh watched him leave, his heart racing. Then as the colonel got close to the Chappa'ai his training kicked in again; he jumped up, activated his weapon and aimed it at the colonel— But the colonel was already gone. The Chappa'ai shut down, and Koresh was suddenly alone in the clearing. The silence was torture, and he reared up and screamed at the sky in frustration. He'd failed. He let them get away. His masters would punish him for this when they found out. He collapsed to his knees, pounding at the dirt with his hoof. He considered just running back into the trees and hoping nopony realised he had been there, but he felt ashamed that he was even considering such cowardly options. There was no choice now but to wait and accept his fate. Then, out of nowhere, he felt a hoof on his shoulder. He froze, and when he looked round he saw Ro'shur, one of the Jaffa masters from the compound, standing over him, looking inquisitively at him. "Stand up, colt," he said. Koresh jumped to his hooves and stood to attention, his knees trembling. The old pegasus walked a circle round him, looking him over. "Why are you here?" he said. "Was your group not patrolling under the northern ridge?" "Yes, Master," Koresh replied, nodding. "We were called to the explosions, but they were a distraction. The intruders were—" "Intruders?" Ro'shur said, looking round the empty clearing. "And where are they now, hm?" Koresh swallowed. "Gone," he said. "Escaped." "I see," Ro'shur said. "You let them go?" Koresh nodded, bowing his head in fear of the response this would get. Ro'shur remained silent for a while, then said, "Yes, I saw what happened as I approached the tree-line. You had your enemy in clear view, and you did not fire. Why not?" "I…" Koresh said, "I wasn't prepared. I failed to ready my weapon, and if I had tried to fire I would have been too slow." "A foolish mistake," Ro'shur replied, "and it nearly killed you. Tell me, do you think you would have won if you had been more prepared?" Koresh didn't answer. His ego felt irreparably bruised, and he honestly wasn't sure he knew. "Master," he said, kneeling down and staring at the ground, "I accept full responsibility for their escape. If you wish to punish me—" Ro'shur laughed. "Punish you?" he said. "Whatever for?" Koresh looked up again, surprised. "Master, they escaped! I—" "Listen to me," Ro'shur said, raising a hoof to silence him. "You were apparently the only Jaffa in this entire valley who realised it was a diversion! I should be promoting you!" "But Mater!" Koresh protested, surprising himself with the loudness of his own voice. "I failed! I… I surrendered!" Ro'shur chuckled. "I have lived a long life," he said, "and seen a great many battles. Tell me, do you truly believe that I must have won all of them to be alive today?" Koresh just stood, stunned. "There is wisdom in accepting defeat from a superior enemy," Ro'shur went on, "as long as you do so knowing that you will do everything in your power to make sure it doesn't happen again the next time." Koresh couldn't believe his ears. He had fully expected that he would die that day, and now he was being offered a second chance. He had made a mistake, but if there was a way he could make up for it, he would definitely do whatever it took to make sure it didn't happen again. "I think you have potential," Ro'shur said. "There is wisdom in you. You could be a great warrior one day, but you lack the experience. I have been looking for a new student; if you will let me, I will teach you what you need to know. We can make sure that, if you meet these intruders again, next time you will be the superior." Koresh nodded, eager to accept anything that would save him from punishment. His mind filled with visions of the future he thought he'd lost. He imagined finding SG-1 again one day, defeating them, bringing them before his god... But his curiosity got the better of him still, and he said, "Why? Why would you do this for me?" Ro'shur raised an eyebrow. "I just have a feeling," he said. "I think you are destined for great things."