We were alone. "Whew!" I sighed. "Oracle? Oracle can you hear me?"

"Yeah. They didn't build that place as well as they thought. What do they want?"

I love this jewellery. It's built the same way Black Canary's is. Transceivers and stuff built into my own superhero symbol that I wear as a necklace and earrings. Pretty cool. "We aren't entirely sure yet. It depends on who went through this gate of theirs. We're waiting for them to return with a computer and stuff and videotapes of when the gate was used and all that. We'll let you know more when we have it."

"Ok. Hey Buffy?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you excited about going through this gate?"

I chuckled. "Yeah but why did you ask me what they want?"

"Oh, I only came in when Dawn was chanting about going through the Stargate. Dinah's having a nervous breakdown in the sunny Canary Islands."

"Why? Not enough sun?"

"Not enough oiled skin or something," she laughed.

"Oh. Ok. NightStalker out. Hey Wills? What do you think is on the other side of this here shielded glass window?"

Willow glanced at the door where Tim had taken a lookout spot. He nodded and she began to speak. "It looks out onto the gate itself which is a huge ring made of some rare metal not found on earth. I guess they don't want us to see anything till they're ready to show it."

"Dawn?" Tim suddenly rushed across the room. Dawn looked up from her fingernails, which she'd been inspecting, looking confusedly at Tim, as were the rest of us, then blinked and looked all faint and scared when the General and the others returned to the room followed by a thin man in an immaculate dress uniform. He looks very unhappy and was talking very quickly.

"You can't be serious General. They're civilians and this Summers woman is a vigilante superhero."

We stand up together as he continues with his ranting.

"The President..."

"Oooh, you mean Lex?" I asked interestedly. "Can I talk to him too? I'm sure he won't have a problem letting you have your way if you'll give me just a moment on the phone with him." I can imagine the look on Lex's face. Apparantly, according to Bruce anyway, I'm the only person who actually scares him. This is not a bad thing.

The man Jack chuckled and said, "I've heard about your encounters with our President." I grin as he continues. "You're Bruce Wayne right?"

Bruce stoicly shakes the offered hand.

"Nice to meet you too Dick Grayson." Dick nods as his hand is shaken. "We're sorry to have dragged you all into this but we need to know that you won't be..."

"A hindrance?" Willow asks.

"Yeah," Jack says. I think I like Jack. I like Daniel. He's very Gilesian. Willow gives me a questioning look and I shrug. She raises her ringed hand and constructs a small green bunny.

"Cute," Jack says but seems mostly unimpressed, until Willow gives it gigantic teeth and a snarl.

"We won't get in your way," She says simply.

Jack nods. He seems to understand that we're more than we seem but he's not getting anymore information.

The thin man was identified as Major Paul Davis, liaison with the Pentagon and judging from the expressions on Daniel, Jack, Sam, Teal'c and the Generals faces, not a particularly welcome person.

"So I have to ask, is the research really necessary?"

I smile at Jack, "You sound like me. Point me in the direction of the problem and I'll beat it into submission."

He grinned.

"Yes, It's necessary," Willow and Dawn said at the same time.

Jack and I simultaneously wore identical expressions of displeasure.

"We'll need a large room where we won't be disturbed."

"You'll also need to change before coming through the gate," Sam added.

I looked down at my dress while the others did the same. "Fair enough but have you got anything that isn't green or grey?" I grin.

Two airmen place large piles of very boring looking clothing on the table. I sigh. Willow laughs. "What?" I ask as I turn on her and notice that she's used the ring to change into her costume.

"And no the male Green Lantern doesn't mind if I reveal my identity," she says as she looks over the computer equipment being brought into the room. "Are you gonna help or just stand there being useless?" she asks the military folk in the room.

"Thank you for your help," General Hammond says and retreats to his office.

"I'd better brief you on the Stargate," Daniel begins.

"Can we do the clothes changing thing first?" Dawn asks.

"Oh. Of course," he nods. "Uh, Jack, Sam? I'll go and get some things from my office." He hurries away.

"He's just a younger, American version of Giles," Dawn comments.

"Noticed that too huh?"

"I don't need to change so I'll get this sorted," Willow says making gesture at the equipment.

"I will assist WillowRosenberg," the very tall Teal'c says. Willow nods and begins directing him.

Dawn and I follow Sam, carrying the clothing she said was for us. "I hope you don't mind using a supply room. It's unused at the moment."

"No. Anywhere private is fine. Thank you. I'm sorry about being rude earlier Major Carter."

"It's ok Dawn. Really and please call me Sam." She opens a door and ushers us in. "I'll wait out here."

"Thanks," I say and close the door after finding the light switch. We change clothes quickly and quietly, fold our own clothes and wander out. "Is there anywhere we could put our clothes?"

We stash our clothes in Sams locker and follow her back to the conference room where Willow is ordering the men-folk around.

"Can't we do without the research?" I ask.

Jack nods his agreement with my sentiment. "I ask that every time and I'm always told no."

"And you aren't going to get any other answer this time. The image doesn't match anything in the database and first contact with the planet they went to only happened last week... uh while we were elsewhere. Nothing hostile there and the environment is friendly."

"We're ready to take you to the gate," General Hammond announced coming to stand at the head of the table where we were researching. I catch Jack's look of relief.

"Let's roll," I said with mock enthusiasm as I stood.

It's a good thing no one here seems to really read the society pages. Bruce is all Bat and no one seems to think it's odd. Maybe they do but just think he's worried about us or his hair or something and that's why he's so grumpy. I *did* notice Sam's not-so-subtle perusal of Bruce's bod earlier. I'll have to suggest he further that relationship, even if it's just as friends. They both have jobs they can't talk about to anyone without the appropriate clearance, and Sam is blonde. Shame she has a brain.

I can see the wheels spinning furiously in Bruces brain... not literally cause that would be gross but I can tell that's what's going on in his head by the slight crease of his brow and thin set of his lips. I can see the almost crinkle around Tim's eyes that indicate he's doing the same thing though not with the same single-minded, stubborn determination that Bruce is. Tim is more focused on Dawn who is carefully noting each and every security device we pass. As for my sweetie, he's passively regarding each hall and door we pass with the seeming wonder and disinterest of a reluctant tourist that belies the mental cataloguing I'm sure he's doing.

Willow is talking with Sam asking what sound like simple questions to me but I know Willow. She's getting more from the answers than Sam thinks. Daniel is also part of that conversation though he is discussing the archaeology and theories of society instead of astrological science. Jack is doing a Xander and thinking about something completely unrelated. He has that blank, anywhere-but-here look on his face and Teal'c... if he gets any stiffer or more pompous looking I may need to re-categorise him as a Watcher and start calling him Wesley Wyndham-Price. He's regarding us the same way I'm regarding them. I study him a little more closely and wonder at his discipline and his weapon, but mostly I wonder about the gold disc on his forehead.

"Teal'c?"

He swings his unerring gaze on me. "BuffySummers?"

"I don't mean to be rude but why do you have the symbol of the leo star-sign embossed on a gold disc on your forehead?" Hand me a saucer of milk and call me kitty.

"I was first prime of Apophis."

"What's an Apophis?"

"A false god."

"Oh."

"He's not very chatty," Jack said grimly.

I nodded. "What is a 'First Prime'?"

"Head of the armed forces."

"Wow. That sounds very important. Lots of honour..."

"There is no honour in serving a false god."

"Perhaps but there is also no honour in not fighting for what is right."

He nodded is agreement and went back to being stoic.

We entered what Sam called the embarkation room and what Jack called the gate room. Willow was breathless with geeker joy. "A real event horizon. It's incredible. How does it work?"

"We don't have time," Jack and I say quickly.

"Well, in brief," Sam said with a glare in our direction, "Each planet that has a stargate has a six part code. The parts are constellations which act as markers..." I phased out and came back in as she was saying, "So we enter a series of six digits plus the digit for earth and that usually gets us to a planet."

"So basically it's a giant intergalactic telephone," I summarised.

"Exactly! See you didn't need to go into all that detail," he beamed at Sam, "I could have explained it. Can we go now?"

"When you're ready Colonel," General Hammond grinned.

"You'll feel a bit disoriented and cold when you come through the gate at the other end. Throwing up isn't uncommon."

"I'll keep that in mind thanks Sam," Dawn said as she boldly followed Jack and Teal'c up the ramp to the circle of wateryblue.