The Grand Half Dollar Tour

Posted on Thu Feb 21st, 2019 @ 10:34pm by Staff Sergeant Jeremiah Corvus

Mission: A Brand New Day
Location: Cheyenne Mountain Complex
Timeline: Day prior to current, following "Stone the Crow"

Jeremy was told there would be work involved - more training, both book and physical. He had regulations to learn and new policies to memorize and live but, he remained sitting a few minutes after the General and Major left trying to absorb everything. He couldn’t lie, a part of him - a large part of him - was still in disbelief over the whole situation. Other planets? Aliens? Ray gun? None of it made any sense but somehow, here he was. Sitting in a base and just signed up to fight aliens.

Then, there was the language. If his parents ever found out about the unit motto, he would NEVER not be in trouble! How could he proudly tell his parents about his unit, or show off his unit patches without them coming back and asking what “GTFOH” meant? Just the imagine look of horror on his mother’s face was enough to cause some anxiety. That the unit was completely top secret and the General already told him he wouldn’t be able to tell anyone what he was doing didn’t register as a defense against that impending future problem.

And, he realized as he looked up at the closed door - no one actually told him he wasn’t under arrest.

But, he was told someone would help him further. Standing he went to the door and opened it.

Bellows turned to face him. “I hear you’re good to go, Corvus.”

“Yeah,” Jeremy said, glaring at the Security Force airman.

“Well, come on, I get to start your indoctrination to the command. We’re going to go down to the security office and get your ID and begin issuing your equipment.”

Jeremy looked around, this part of the complex looked like regular office space, but he felt the weight of the mountain over his head. It felt like everything was going to come down on his head. “Is this real? I mean, what the General said? Aliens and other planets and...all of it?”

“Sure is,” Bellows said as he started walking. Jeremy caught up to him as Bellows kept talking, “...offworld myself but I’ve been there when they’ve gone and when they’ve come back.”

“From where?”

Bellows glanced sidelong at the younger airman. “From whatever gate they dialed up.”

“Gate?”

Bellows chuckled, “That’s part of the Grand Half Dollar Tour.”

“Half Dollar? My dad always called it the nickel tour,” Jeremy said, turning down the corridors just to be sure to keep following Bellows.

“Combination of inflation and government contracts raised it to a half dollar,” Bellows said. They came up on a corridor ending in a room marked “Security Forces Office”. Bellows waved his ID in front of a panel then opened the door after it clicked.

Arcadia sat at one of the desks in the large room and grinned as he looked up. “You made it, huh?” He nodded to Bellows. “Told you he would. Anybody that worries about his arresting officers getting in trouble for being nice needs to be here. Maybe it’ll counter out some of the sourness of the officers.”

“Better be careful with comments like that if you ever want to make the teams.”

“Yes, Sergeant,” Arcadia said, about the same way Jeremy answered his mother when she was in full on lecture mode. “Stand over there, Corvus, we’ll make up your ID and then get you on the way.”

“I have…” he stopped and then glared at Arcadia, “I had my military ID already. It was in my wallet which you took.”

“And I’m sure that one still is,” Arcadia said as he looked at the monitor, adjusting an imaging software. “Stand up straight, look directly ahead. Thank you.” He clicked a few more keys while nodding again to Bellows.

“Okay, Corvus,” Bellows said. Jeremy noticed that the ranks were being dropped. That was usually an indication of camaraderie and friendship. But he barely knew these people and an hour ago he considered them, among other things, kidnappers. It was sure as hell one strange day. But he went to the desk where Bellows was setting out several devices.

“We got everything you’ll need that’s not Command specific, like your gate signal transponder. That you’ll get from supply on the other side.” He pointed to the different devices, “cellphone, tablet, smart watch, MP3 player for your PT if you want. Bluetooth headphones,” he consulted a clipboard. “Wasn’t there supposed to be a GoPro?”

“That’s been switched to supply and replaced with the Axion Ten body cams,” Arcadia said as he retrieved the card from the printer.

“I already have most of those,” Jeremy said. He’d heard of the Axion Ten and from the reviews they were sweet pieces of personal video recorders. Small, lightweight but able to record in 4K with a host of onboard video features, it was almost enough to get him to salivate over the idea of giving one a test on some of the slopes around here. The polar vortex had dumped enough snow that he heard the ski resorts might actually remain open until the 4th of July. “Again, you took them.”

Bellows chuckled. “You did, but these are SGC specific. They’re hacked to connect only to certain servers which will be sure to scrub your social media, galleries and other uploads clear of any photos, mentions or other discussions of anything to do with SGC, the Stargate, aliens, or anything else deemed sensitive. It also flags the attempts to command for review. If you try to reveal anything about this place, what you’re doing, your assignment or any other top sensitive information, you could be court martialed.”

“Thrown in prison over a Facebook post?”

“Prison,” Bellows said, handing him the clipboard for a signature, “Is one method. Another is, they’ve found a few barely hospitable planets where the gates don’t function on the other side. We’ve found that to be an excellent deterrent to those who would otherwise talk about what they should not.”

“You’re kidding me,” Jeremy said looking from one to the other. Both merely shrugged and continued with their work. “You mean, they’d be stranded on a strange planet? Just for telling people about this place?”

“It’s so secret the fact that it’s a secret is secret,” Bellows said. “So, you might want to remember that as you’re ‘Instagraming’ stuff.” He picked up all the items and put them back into a carry sack, handing the sack to Jeremy as he took the clipboard back.

“All yours, Sergeant,” Bellows said. “I’d start with the Gate itself, he’s still not convinced we’re on the level here.”

“Sounds good!” Arcadia said, standing and donning his cover. Jeremy noticed that he was armed. He wasn’t previously, not when he picked him up, but now he was? And he seemed happy to do a tour. That was mostly unusual considering Security Forces usually walked their patrols so much they became boring.

Bellows handed off a tablet and Arcadia indicated Jeremy should follow him. “Most of the history of the base you’ll find in your onboarding packet, as well as the usual: chow times, mess hall location, general duty assignments - looks like they have you on as the team’s medic so you’ll pull infirmary hours as well. Your quarters are in the back section, that’s good, it’s where Bellows and I are located. Stays nice there, never gets too cold or too warm. One advantage of living under a mountain, right?”

Arcadia kept up the running commentary as he took them back toward the main passage and then followed a side door which he opened with Jeremy’s new ID card, “just to make sure it works” he said. They went down a short corridor that was sparse and barren. It left Jeremy feeling as if he’d walked back on a battleship for a moment.

They exited into what appeared to be a large locker room. “This is the staging area,” Arcadia said, consulting his tablet and walking down the second aisle. It was wide, with a single plank bench running down the center. He stopped at one of the lockers, entered a code and then opened the door. “In here, you’ll keep your typical Air Force uniforms, to change into as necessary before you leave Command.” He pointed to a safe built into the locker. “Firearm goes in there, with a separate code for additional security. When you come back to Command, you change here into SGC uniforms, and make sure to retrieve your firearm.”

“Firearm?” Jeremy asked.

“Yes, as a member of SG-1, regulations authorize you to carry a sidearm at all times inside Command, as additional emergency response. While that authorization carries throughout this assignment, it’s generally not a good idea to wear it outside of command. Might raise too many questions, but since you were once Security Force, that could be okay. If you’re wearing the proper uniform. The code for the locker is in your onboarding packet. Let’s move on, I want to take you to the Gate room. I think everything will make more sense after that.”

Along the way, Arcadia continued talking. He informed Jeremy there would be more tests upcoming, physicals, weapons, DTs, he’d have a lot of studying to do to catch up on what was known about the Stargate and beyond. Arcadia said it was going to be a lot of work, but completely worth it. As the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened, Arcadia led the way out.

For Jeremy, it was like stepping into a whole new world. Everything about the room said it sprang from Earth except for the Stargate itself. Even from the balcony he could tell it would easily dwarf him in size, and was easily the width of four or five people. A large silver concentric screen was shut in front of it, giving it a menacing and baleful look, somewhat reminiscent of Sauron from Lord of the Rings. It was a large, lidless eye wreathed in flame, but it still had that look of menace. According to Arcadia, he would have a transponder that sent a signal through the gate. That signal would open the ‘Iris’ and get him safely through. If he tried to get through to earth without the transponder signal, he’d become only so much goo on the back of the Iris.

Beyond it was the wormhole that was connected to numerous other gates, all of which were accessed by the symbols around the outer ring.

Beyond it was everything the General and Major said was true. Of course it was dormant at the moment but, just seeing it made it all believable. He was going to be one of a select few humans who have gone of the planet and walked on other worlds! Something about that was calling to him, drawing him down to the Gate itself.

“Can I…” he swallowed the lump in his throat. “Can we go down there and see it?” he asked, going as close to the glass as he could get. Around him, analysts and technicians monitored the Gate from keeping watch on videos centered on the seven chevrons that locked the gate into position to telemetry data. Others worked on collating and compiling the collected data from offworld missions. Jeremy looked at the screens, or at least what he could see from his vantage point and the privacy screens, but had no hope of understanding any of it.

“Not right now,” Arcadia said after a quick discussion with one of the analysts. “But it’s magnificent isn’t it? And think about it, a portal to another world.” He shook his head as he took a deep reverential breath. “We have to move on, gotta show you around and get you geared up.”

Reluctantly, and with a lot of ‘last looks’ over his shoulder, Jeremy followed.

“What’s it like?” Jeremy asked, “going to another planet?”

Arcadia gave a sad smile, “I hear it’s a bit tingling, a bit of a rush and then you show up on the other side and...some of the places are so much like home that you think you just stepped outside the main gate. Others are a bit weirder but I don’t know for sure. I want to be on a team, but I haven’t been selected yet. If I ever do.” He gave another half smile and shrugged.

“Just down this way to supply,” he said, leading Jeremy to another large area. Several long shelves were visible behind a series of two counters. One person was on duty and when Jeremy handed over his new ID, the airman only nodded and went to the back. He came out lugging a pack that appeared stuffed, a gear bag, a duffle and then another duffle.

“Wait a moment,” the supply clerk said after he checked the computer and then returned with a bigger ruck. “Did see at first you’re medical, gotta give you the big bag. Lading list is in the duffel for the first set, another in the big ruck for the second, gonna need you to sign here and if there’s something missing off the list or you feel you need for mission readiness, come on back and I’ll give you the form SGC-15-1048 to fill out. Though, I gotta tell you, it may be worth your sanity to just go to town and get what ya need from Dick’s or Gearonimo’s, I’d check there first, the staff is better.”

A big, overstuffed ruck was, at least, something Jeremy was used to. But what was the rest of all this?

“Mission gear, mostly,” Arcadia answered as he helped to carry it toward Jeremy’s quarters. “SGC uniforms and tactical gear, your GDO should be in here, that’s the device that’s going to open the Iris that you saw on the Gate. That’s not open when you come back and it’s a pretty nasty mess. I’m never envious of maintenance when that happens. Gets everywhere!”

“What does?” Jeremy asked, wishing he’d taken the time to work out the straps on the ruck before he put it on. It would be something he’d need to do sooner rather than later.

“Whoever tried to come through the Gate without opening the Iris first.”
“Oh, fiddles,” Jeremy muttered.

They were going back into areas that appeared to be a cross between the bare stone of dug through tunnels and the normal drywall Jeremy was accustomed to seeing in military apartments or hotel corridors. The row of doors completed the image. “Here ya go,” Arcadia said after consulting with his tablet again. “Hey, I’m just four doors down, that’s pretty awesome.”

Once again he entered a code into a keypad and the door clicked, indicating it was open. Arcadia opened the door, one of many identical doors except for small, discreet numbers on each door.

Jeremy followed Acadia inside to what appeared to be simple barracks housing with one not insignificant difference. “These are mine?” Jeremy asked, dropping the bags he carried onto the sparse bed. Little bit larger than a twin, but not quite a full, it appeared to be made to accommodate people of a larger body build. There was a desk against the wall that could also serve as a bedside table, a wardrobe with a single full length door covered in a mirror and two large drawers underneath. Three more drawers completed the storage of the wardrobe, the remainder of the right side left open. A small shelf was over the lower portion of the bed, allowing for more storage and then, as he turned around, he saw a monitor hanging on the back wall, behind the door.

And, it was set up for single occupancy. “Just me?” he asked, almost as excited as when he first saw the Gate. He hadn’t had his own space since he arrived for the first day at basic training.

“For now, most of us have single occupancy, but they’re designed to be flipped up to double if we fill up quickly. Showers and head are just down the hall and here,” he tapped what appeared to be just a counter, but the lid clicked and a part of it came up. Arcadia lifted the lid to reveal a small but serviceable sink underneath with another mirror under the lid. “For personal hygiene, beverages, what have you. I got my coffee pot on the corner cause I can’t go in the morning without that first bit of coffee.”

Jeremy looked around again. The blankets and pillow were what he’d expected from military supply - serviceable and uniform, nothing extravagant or pretty, but they’d suffice, especially if there weren’t a lot of temperature extremes. The desk looked newly built, but of large department store stock, the chair was on rollers and looked comfortable. “The computer was supposed to be installed already, but that’s probably coming.” Arcadia said, then opened the wardrobe and indicated Jeremy’s previous duffle and ruck.

“Your clothes are at the laundry and will be returned when they’re done. The dog we used for the initial search, btw, had to be medically retired. He goes into fits whenever he sees a duffle now.” Arcadia chuckled.

“Yeah, you try doing laundry in the desert and then get five minutes to pack,” Jeremy muttered.

“Okay, just a few more things to show you then we’ll finish with the most important part,” Arcadia said.

It took about another hour to go through the complex, it was deceptively larger than Jeremy assumed. There were the briefing rooms, the infirmary (where he was told he’d pick up time as a medical officer), the indoor gun range which had a lane that could handle up to the .50 calibre heavy weapons, the gym and, finally at the end was the Dining Facility.

“Just in time for chow,” Arcadia said, noticing the number of people entering into the facility.

“Is this enlisted or officer’s mess?” Jeremy asked, looking around, but his stomach giving away how hungry he was. Fatigue was starting to set in as well, but he realized he still had a full schedule for the rest of the day.

“Both, they wanted to save room where they could, so they just made the one for enlisted, officers and civvies. There’s pretty much unwritten rules regarding fraternization among the three but it’s selectively enforced. Mostly by the civvies. They’re still a little shy about so many people running around with ‘big scary guns’.” Arcadia indicated the beginning of the serving line.

“Who are the dark uniformed people?” Jeremy asked, looking at a small group of enlisted - two men and a woman. They seemed to know each other pretty well as they joked with each other. But, Jeremy noted because he did the same thing, they were constantly scanning the room.

“Those?” Arcadia said, a bit of wistfulness in his voice. “Those are SGC personnel. Tomorrow, that’s the uniform you start wearing.”

“Oh,” Jeremy said, not sure he liked the idea of transitioning out of his ABUs. He was proud of his service and didn’t mind others knowing it.

“C’mon,” Arcadia said, leading away from the SGC table and finding one in the back that had more of the ABU clad personnel. Many of which, Jeremy noted, were Security Forces. Arcadia selected a table next to SF airmen, setting his tray down and then giving some quick greetings. But, it also sat next to two officers.

There was certainly a lot to get used to here, Jeremy thought to himself as he sat to his lunch and looked around the room.