Chapter 164

Pentagon

In the outer ring of the Pentagon known as the E ring, lay the meeting place for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Called the Gold Room by some but referred to as the tank by others; this room represented the pinnacle of military power on Earth. Resting amongst the golden colored curtains and carpet was a teak conference table. Seated at this table were the combined Joint Chiefs.

The men who made up the Joint Chiefs came from all branches of the United States military. The Chairman, General Francis Maynard, came from the Army. The Vice Chairman, General Oliver Sikes, came from the Air Force. Also represented at this table were the flag officers in overall command of their branches of service; The Chief of Staff of the Army, The Chief of Staff of the Air Force, The Commandant of the Marine Corps, and the Chief of Naval Operations. Under their command were the men and women who made up the body of American military forces.

Intelligence gathered during the raid on Dar Eshkalon would have made this meeting inevitable, but the attack on Earth had greatly accelerated the time table upon which is would have occurred. At Presidential directive, a task force comprised of analysts from the CIA, DIA, and several other agencies had poured over the captured computers. Many questions had been answered, but these questions simply raised others in their place. The attack on Earth necessitated dissemination of the intelligence gathered among the nations of NATO. That this information was not yet in the hands of Progressive Jaffa forces was due to the suspicion of a mole within their ranks.

"As we all know, the raid on Dar Eshkalon brought to light certain key pieces of information. Traditionalist Jaffa forces are gathering significant strength. Using the planet of Goronak as a staging ground, a sizeable land force is being formed." Admiral Dunleavy, the Chief of Naval Operations explained.

"A flyby of the Kitty Hawk confirmed that finding. Sensor data puts the number of Jaffa at forty thousand and climbing." General Roper, Chief of Staff of the Air Force added.

"Using the temple area of the late Goa'uld Moloc, intensive training is being conducted. This temple complex is also the basing area for the bulk of the Traditionalist fleet." Admiral Dunleavy stated.

"Making use of several of our off world contacts, the SGC has managed to add a few key pieces to the puzzle." General Roper explained.

"Such as?" General Maynard asked.

"A female Jaffa we've had dealings with in the past was used to gather this data. Ishta, leader of the Hak'tyl sect of Jaffa whom Teal'c has close ties to, traveled to Goronak via Tel'tak. Using her ability to freely walk around the base camp, she learned that the driving forces behind this situation are former members of Moloc's Imperial Guard force of Jaffa, who were fiercely loyal to him. Their leader is a Jaffa known as Rel'dar, former First Prime of the Goa'uld Zipacna. His second in command is the man who brought the other half of the Traditionalist forces to the table. Da'vir is the former second in command to the Jaffa named Arkad. After Arkad's death at the hands of Teal'c, Da'vir assumed the mantle. His group call themselves the Illac Renin, which translates from Ancient to mean the kingdom of the path. In addition to the force on Goronak, a secondary and much smaller force is being assembled on Cor'ak, which was Arkad's home world and also one Teal'c conquered while First Prime of Apophis." General Roper explained.

"From what I read in the report, this secondary force on Cor'ak is well within the ability of Progressive Jaffa forces to handle. Am I correct in that assessment?" General Shane Matko, Commandant of the Marine Corps asked.

"That's a fair assessment General Matko." General Maynard replied.

"Then while we deal with the big fish, we'll let them handle matters on our flank." Matko stated.

Gentlemen, I've given you several orders in the last twenty four hours that came to me by Presidential directive. I think it's high time you all knew exactly what is going on. We'll start first with the Army." General Maynard directed.

'Twenty four hours ago emergency deployment orders went out to the Eighteenth Airborne Corp. As the enemy we face lacks any type of ground vehicle born threat and the terrain of Goronak is mountainous, we're sending in light infantry forces and accompanying units. The Tenth Mountain Division, The One hundred and First Air Assault division, and the Eighty Second Airborne are standing to. Third Brigade of the one oh one is already in route to Goronak to secure a landing zone for follow on forces. NATO assistance was requested and granted. Princes Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Brigade, the German Army's Gebirsjager mountain infantry brigade, and the British Third Commando Brigade of the Royal Marines will also be deploying. That gives us just under forty thousand sets of boots on the ground. They are going in under orders to set up secure and defensible positions in the mountains surrounding the enemy encampment." General Keller, Army Chief of Staff explained.

"Next we'll hear from the Air Force." Maynard ordered.

"Part of our effort to refit Air Force units came just in time it seems. The 366th Fighter Wing out of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base recently replaced their Strike Eagle's with the new FB-302 fighter bomber. After work ups in Nevada, they are ready and deploying in support of ground forces. This will allow for a bombing campaign more in tune with what we're accustomed to. Supporting this will be the 7th and 8th Fighter Squadrons out of Holloman Air Force Base. Their fighter model 302's along with those from the sh.i.p.s we will put in orbit around the planet should provide more than ample airframes to achieve rapid air superiority. Joining the fleet will be the Videum which is recently out of construction." General Roper informed the group.

"Gentlemen, we're surging the bulk of our fleet in the Milky Way to move the amount of men and equipment we have committed. The President wants our forces in the field ASAP. We're calling this one Operation Belligerent Pretense. All of you have much to do with your respective field commanders, so I'll let you get to it." Maynard stated.

"I can't say I like going in to this with no armored forces. Given the terrain I understand though." Matko fumed.

"For armor the terrain is all wrong. We saw what 3rd Cavalry did to the Genii, and they were far more organized than the Jaffa. Our boys can handle this, don't worry." Maynard conceded.