Three years later. 1956.
What I had been working toward for so long had begun—the culmination of all my efforts. The war between Apophis and Ra was over, each man standing his ground. Ra had demonstrated his still-powerful nature, and Apophis remembered me, the one who had humiliated him. I was even informed, out of "politeness," that I should increase my naquadah production, otherwise twenty Apophis ships would soon descend upon me to explain how wrong I had been to treat Apophis's troops so poorly. I knew how to read between the lines, especially when Perseus secretly informed me of the generous reward for my head promised by the Ashraks. It's funny how Zeus causes so much trouble for Kronos, luring away his loyal troops, stockpiling ships, resources, and agents. It seems the idea that Zeus is a useless consumer of everything that moves isn't entirely true.
A lot has happened during this time. The CIA attacked Guatemala, but I decisively rebuffed them. Using this pretext, I managed to purge CIA agents from almost all of Central America to prevent them from threatening my allies. Perhaps the most difficult thing was finding a German U-boat for Guatemala, but when you're spying on practically the entire planet (relatively speaking), that's not difficult. Yes, I have tracking devices in all the major banks, so hunting Nazis is turning into quite an exciting pastime. Incidentally, when Maine visited Albert Kesselring to teach the Field Marshal a lesson and also take him away to an unknown destination… The bastard talked too much. After kidnapping Kesselring and a number of SS officers who tried to pass themselves off as "just soldiers," it seems they began to realize that they no longer had any rights. They should have hid somewhere and prayed to the gods that Maine didn't get them. And Kesselring is now "resting" in a concentration camp—a virtual one, of course. He has never repented, so he experiences the same horrors as the survivors of real concentration camps. This served as a good practical guide for the Jaffa.
No new discoveries have emerged in these three years. Urvashi's development was progressing at breakneck speed, turning it into a technological giant. My Star Station project is still in development, despite the fact that a couple thousand new scientists have joined it, about a hundred of whom were Americans. I love McCarthy—thanks to that idiot, scientists are flocking to me. Incidentally, the Americans have noticed that "bad" scientists have begun to die under mysterious circumstances, further deepening the rift between the government and the scientific community.
New: I'm gradually saturating the troops with antigravity technology, retiring tracked vehicles to the reserve. Sufficient production capacity has emerged for such a replacement.
It's a little sad to observe how uncurious humanity is. Of those who received a basic school education that taught them how to write, count, read, and understand general laws (the so-called "Standard Free State Package"), only 15-20% acquire additional knowledge packages. Of these, only 10% acquire knowledge unrelated to their professional activities. I financed my own Star Trek to awaken people's interest in science fiction. Cinema is also developing: as a result, streaming platforms with pornographic content now pay my taxes. Sometimes I feel like humanity is doomed to repeat the same path. I even asked Brunnhilde if it was the same in Asgard, and she confirmed it. I gave people an entire galaxy, and they're interested in porn. I'm not disappointed, just a little confused.
On the other hand, exploring other planets yielded a wealth of valuable information. Unlike the SGC, which could colonize a planet in a single day, I didn't rush anyone. Let them analyze and name every tree and fish on the planet. The MIC conducted the research at its own pace. It wasn't fast, but it was extremely informative. Oppenheimer was transported to the nearest black hole, where he was given the opportunity to play with the scanning systems (at a safe distance).
The scientists liked me because I didn't demand weapons from them, and I was glad that they brought me a lot of basic information. I did have schools, but they were very specific: the teacher's job wasn't to hammer information into children's heads, but to shape their understanding and identify their interests in certain subjects. The fact that they could examine plants from other planets, conducting full-fledged scientific work, was very motivating for the children. Of course, they were provided with safe plants, but this allowed them to feel like real scientists.
You know, many ten-year-olds write scientific papers about plants or describe planets based on scanner data, or describe in detail the fish living in the waters of other planets. Formally, many scientific communities on my planet are involved in the exploration of other planets: the Tollans, Galarans, and Svorians highly valued this approach, so they also sent "safe" samples to their planets. This increased the data available to everyone by a factor of several times—20-30, to be exact. Most of this data didn't yield advanced technologies, but, for example, highly nutritious fish rich in beneficial microelements were discovered. This isn't bad either, and they're delicious. Changes accumulate gradually and are realized in leaps and bounds.
It's important for more people to look at the galaxy with curiosity. And I'll deal with the Goa'uld somehow. They're flying towards me right now; the tracking station has detected them. Twenty Huttaks are coming to kill me and destroy everything I've built. I have sixteen ships available, but I'm ready, and they're not. Their scanners haven't yet determined who they'll be fighting. I want to see the commanding officer's surprise when he discovers Khasar Station and sixteen Huttaks ready to attack. Not to mention over three hundred Alkesh. I don't envy him. Skipping through my system and then returning would be a fatal mistake. Apophis will kill him immediately. The scanners will notify him of this five to ten minutes before exiting.
The volume of data will be colossal, and the commander will have to make a decision very quickly. And I doubt he'll be able to do it. A punitive operation involving the shooting of four ships and a battle of twenty against sixteen, taking into account orbital defenses and Khasar Station, are completely different tactical objectives. Ankhnur should have been sent for that. And even then, he would likely have preferred to retreat. The Goa'uld are not stupid, they're simply accustomed to certain patterns. No fool would rush to attack a Lord on his own territory, especially given orbital defenses.
McVay was preparing for battle as my admiral, while I sat at the station's command post, getting on the nerves of the local women. They hadn't even considered the prospect of fighting, but now all forces were on alert, ready for an attack.
"My troops! Apophis sent his forces to conquer our home, counting on our weakness and weakness. But I did not prepare you for this. You are strong and will crush any enemy. I expect only victory, for you are strong, and he is weak. You have been trained, trained well, and perhaps even cruelly, but this is your final exam. The ground forces have proven their strength, now it is your turn. Listen to your commander, and let each one fulfill his duty."
A simple speech that had the desired effect on the people. I, meanwhile, watched the system hologram. Our forces were divided into five units. Each squadron commander had three Khattaks and sixty Alkesh. The Alkesh, in turn, were divided into their own units. According to the latest tactical maneuvers developed by McVay, the Alkesh were to break enemy lines, encircle the enemy, blocking their escape routes, and also carry landing forces to capture the ships.
The gliders were to destroy the enemy ships' weapons (with their shields down) and protect the Alkesh from enemy MLAs. Each had their own objectives, and this had been practiced numerous times. Now was McVay's finest hour. It would be worth seeing how he could realize his potential, or if he could at all. Warlords are a rare commodity that must be cultivated. I have begun to do so, just like McVay. After all the exercises, a memoir exchange took place, which significantly improved fleet coordination. And I already have five squadron commanders.
Developing a competent squadron commander is no easy task, far more difficult than a competent infantry officer. It's no wonder the fleet has always and everywhere been considered elite, purely for practical reasons: how long does it take to train crews and officers? Currently, the fleet has one vice admiral (McVay) and five commanders (naturally, the titles are different, more in keeping with the specifics of the Goa'uld). All those who distinguish themselves are promised promotions and transfers to more prestigious positions. For alkesh commanders or alkesh units, the most prestigious position is that of captain of a khattak.
For a captain of a khattak, it's the chance to become a commander themselves, commanding their own fleet. Only the most distinguished and competent military commanders achieve this rank. Fortunately, I have a predictable ship replenishment schedule: five ships every three years. For a Jaffa, this is a ridiculous length of time, especially now that they can live for three hundred years.
The defense plan I've approved calls not only for repelling the attack but also for capturing enemy ships to reinforce our fleet. Each squadron will concentrate its fire, removing the shields of the enemy vessel, after which drop pods will be launched. Fighters, using their low-power weapons, will focus on destroying the enemy's weapons and their fighters. The Alkesh, penetrating the enemy's formation, will act as electronic warfare systems, air defense platforms, and strike bombers, capable of delivering pinpoint strikes on critical enemy systems. They must also prevent ships from escaping into hyperspace.
The orbital defense system is on full alert and ready to unleash the full force of plasma fire on any ships that dare approach the planet. I suspect the enemy commander won't dare do such a thing, as breaching orbital defenses has always been associated with enormous losses. Orbital cannons are usually defeated by gliders, and with my number of gliders, such a scenario is impossible. Therefore, the most sensible course of action for him would be to retreat.
However, as mentioned, he won't be able to leave without inflicting at least minimal damage on us. Engaging in combat, for example, at Urvashi's moon, where 20 of our ships would face 16 enemy ones, might seem like a sensible idea to him. He's unaware of our recent ship upgrades. Essentially, he'll give me the opportunity to claim Apophis destroyed my fleet—that way, he'll return with at least some victory.
Khasar Station's scanners have detected the Apophis fleet at a distance of 3.6 light years. This means there's only an hour left until the collision. In an hour, the decisive military action will begin.