Flanked by a guard of
four Kull Warriors, Baal shaded his eyes with his hand as his search
party materialized in the room. Because of the increased tensions
between his clones as they jockeyed for power, he trusted no other to
ensure his personal safety. It had been a simple matter to imprint the
command into their brains that the Warriors obey his orders only. Not
even his beloved queen, Anat, could circumvent this imperative.
Experimentation had shown
Baal that the Kull Warriors could easily differentiate between himself
and his clones by means of their heightened senses. With this mission in
particular he could not afford the very real chance that a clone or even
his queen, Anat, might attempt to depose him - or copy his efforts. The
power of the Ancients was something that they would risk everything to
gain - and once Baal had it within his grasp - he did not intend to
share.
He surveyed the group
assembled in front of him; between the clone and his Jaffa, they were
all present and did not appear to have suffered any damage. Not that he
would have been concerned if any had come to harm. Such was the price
his minions paid for the honor of serving their god. In any case, any
damage would have been easily repaired by the symbiote all loyal Jaffa
carried. As for any unforeseen deaths, if they were careless enough to
be killed by the pitiful Tau'ri - they deserved to die.
Already he could discern
that the naked O'Neill was a captive - the Tau'ri's face and body were
burned upon his memory as none other could be - but one Jaffa carried a
bundled up form on his shoulders.
His clone stepped forward
with what looked to be a smile of triumph on his face. Baal immediately
became wary of the confidence that radiated from his face.
"We were successful, my
lord," the clone bowed his head, to all appearances his loyal
subject.
"But you brought two?"
Baal cocked his head in question and held up two fingers.
"Yes, my lord. We found
the Tau'ri O'Neill as you ordered," The clone smiled.
Baal frowned; the clone
was entirely too smug, a dangerous thing in an underling. The black-clad
warriors at his side shifted - no doubt they had picked up on his own
tension. For now he would do nothing - continue his role of the trusting
innocent - until he had the information he needed. Then the clone would
be disposed of.
"And the other?"
"His . . . mate, the Tau'ri Carter."
"You are certain of
this?" Baal's shaped eyebrows knitted together in question. "That
O'Neill took her as his mate?"
"The . . . evidence left no doubt of it, my lord."
Baal nodded and gestured
to the Jaffa who held O'Neill. "Bring him closer."
With their hands under
his armpits, the two Jaffa dragged the unconscious Tau'ri forward. Baal
wrapped his fingers in O'Neill's hair and peered at the up-turned face
of the man who'd had the effrontery to mock him in the past.
At long last O'Neill was
his to do with as he chose. The thought was exhilarating, and he
cautioned himself from losing control too soon. There would be time
enough in the future to recoup the previous insults.
"Excellent," he released
his hold on the Tau'ri's hair. O'Neill's head bobbed downward as a moan
escaped his slack lips.
Baal pursed his lips in
concern; that signaled an eminent return to consciousness - something he
wanted to avoid at all costs. From past experience he knew that a
conscious O'Neill could pose a threat to his plans.
The Goa'uld summoned the
other Jaffa who was laden with a sheet-wrapped figure slung across his
broad shoulders.
"Reveal her to me," ordered Baal.
"Yes, my lord, Baal,"
agreed the Jaffa who turned around; the dangling hands bounced against
his armored back.
Baal lifted the sheet and
gazed at the face of the female he had been forced to work with years
ago in their efforts to destroy the Replicators - the female Tau'ri -
Carter.
"Yes, this is a prize,"
Baal purred. He dropped the sheet so that it once again concealed the
identity of the figure within.
"You did well," Baal
smiled at the waiting clone. "You will leave them here."
"My lord?" The clone stiffened.
"You will receive your
reward," Baal assured him as he stroked his goatee. "One that is most .
. . suited to your accomplishments."
The clone narrowed his
eyes and shrugged; the Jaffa dropped the two Tau'ri onto the floor.
O'Neill sprawled face turned to one side and groaned while the female
was silent. The sound firmed Baal's resolve to settle the problem with
his clone as quickly as possible. He had other matters of importance
that needed his attention if he were to be successful in his bid to gain
the power of the Ancients.
He nodded to the warriors
at his side; they reacted instantly and as one they rained bolts of pure
energy onto those in front of him from their raised arms. The Jaffa
collapsed to the floor immediately, the clone soon followed. As Baal
watched, its eyes glowed and then flickered out, leaving behind
sightless eyes in a face that mirrored his own.
Baal smiled; a potential
problem had been eradicated by the clone's death. Now only he and his
warriors would have contact with the captive Tau'ri.
He indicated the dead
bodies on the floor, "Dispose of these in the usual manner after you
have placed the Tau'ri in separate cells," he paused and then continued,
"Remove the female immediately. Take care that she is not harmed. The
male will remain here with me."
It would better suit his
purpose if the female were absent as it would add to the male's
suffering if he did not know her condition or whereabouts. Anything that
added to the mental and physical torture of O'Neill would only enhance
Baal's efforts to subdue him - and the pleasure the Goa'uld gained from
the process.
The Warriors nodded, and
split into pairs to take the captives in hand; each pair hoisted their
chosen captive under their arms. The two with Carter dragged her out of
the room. Baal turned his attention to the male Tau'ri.
O'Neill groaned and he
lifted his head. Baal stepped in front of the Warriors; he wanted to
ensure that the Tau'ri saw him only. His fingers closed around the man's
chin and turned it from side to side, examining him for alertness. From
the glazed look in his eyes, he could tell that O'Neill could not yet
focus clearly.
"Baal?" O'Neill mumbled, his words slurred.
"Your master, foolish Tau'ri."
O'Neill blinked his eyes
and squinted, as if to better concentrate on the face in front of
him.
"Slime-Baal," he muttered.
Baal tightened his grip on O'Neill's chin and the man grimaced.
"Carter?" he mumbled around the grip Baal had on his jaw.
"Is not your concern."
"Yes, she is," the man
jerked his chin out of the Goa'uld's grasp and tried to stand, but his
feet could not seem to bear his weight. "Where is she?"
"You are mine to do with
as I wish," the Goa'uld snarled, "Bow before your god, foolish
Tau'ri."
"No," O'Neill muttered and shook his head as if to clear it.
The Goa'uld noticed the
tags that dangled from a chain around the human's neck. "What are
these?" He asked as he picked them up.
O'Neill glared and said nothing.
The Goa'uld yanked them
loose and peered at the incised writing on the two tags. "O'Neill,
Jonathon J.?" He read and then looked at the man with a smile, "Symbols
of a life you no longer lead."
Baal closed his fist
around them and they pinged under the pressure. He smiled, opened his
fist and let the crushed metal ball drop to the floor.
"You have no use for them now."
"Destruction of Air Force
property is against regulations." O'Neill tried to shrug out of the
grasp of the Warriors who stood on either side. "You gonna get me new
ones?"
"Insolent fool!"
Baal's eyes glowed as he
raised his hand device and its red jewel pulsated; then a golden beam
shot from his palm to center on O'Neill's forehead. The Tau'ri moaned
and his eyes grew unfocused. When the light vanished, he slumped
forward, unconscious.
"Secure him in his cell."
The Goa'uld watched as
his warriors dragged him away. Now that the troublesome Tau'ri was
safely unconscious, he could concentrate his energies where they were
needed.
***
To say that Thor was
upset would be an understatement. The message from Stargate Command that
informed him of O'Neill's and Colonel Carter's capture by Baal had taken
him by surprise. If it had been O'Neill alone - that he would have
expected - but Carter too? Fortunately, he was in the position to do
something about it.
However, he had other
business to conduct first - a holographic visit to the human he had
entrusted with O'Neill's safety - President Henry Hayes.
The Supreme Commander of
the Asgard Fleet fingered the controls on his command chair and watched
as the image of Hayes appeared in front of him. Though he seemed
appeared startled, he seemed to recover quickly.
"Thor? I figured I'd be
hearing from you."
The man smiled and sipped
from his cup. Knowing the humans as he did, Thor surmised it was coffee
- a beverage to which many, including his friend, O'Neill - were
addicted. Though he had sampled it - at O'Neill's insistence - its
bitter taste left him wondering why others seemed to enjoy it so
much.
"Then you know the reason
for my concern."
"Baal's capture of Jack
O'Neill and Samantha Carter," Hayes was prompt in his reply.
At least the human did
not mince words. Thor would have abhorred that.
"Yes, and you are the one
I entrusted with O'Neill's safety." Thor blinked and pointed one digit
at the man, "Did you not assure me that steps would be taken?"
Hayes squirmed in his
seat and sat down his cup. "Yes, I did, Thor. I seem to have screwed
that up, haven't I?"
Thor nodded. "Yes, you have. Have you nothing else to say?"
Thor stared at the human
in front of him. His words reminded him of O'Neill and his heart lurched
in his chest as his concern for his absent friend grew, as did his anger
toward Hayes.
As Thor's vessel
continued to accelerate away from Earth, the image of Hayes flickered,
"I could give you a whole bunch of excuses, but that won't get Jack
back," the human sighed and moved around the cup on the saucer. "We
implanted him with a radioactive isotope to enable us to track him
anywhere on Earth," he paused. "What we didn't take into account was
Baal taking him off world or that he would strike so quickly. We - no -
I, should have taken those factors into account. I didn't and now Jack
and Samantha are paying the price for my mistake."
The human looked down and
then straight at Thor. "Can you help us?"
At his words, some of
Thor's anger subsided; he was very unlike Kinsey, whom the Asgard had
grown to abhor.
"Yes. It is fortunate
that I remained nearby. My equipment detected O'Neill's departure and
even now provides me with the knowledge of his location." Thor paused
and skewered the human with a glare. "I am very . . . displeased with
your performance."
"I can't say as I blame
you. I'm not happy with it either," Hayes admitted.
"It is well that you did
not blame your subordinates for your failure. If you had, I would have
been forced to take action that would not benefit you - or your
world."
Hayes' eyes widened and
his eyebrows rose to his hairline, a gesture that Thor had learned in
his experience with humans meant surprise or fear.
"Okay, if you're pissed
at me - go ahead and bawl me out," Hayes gestured with his hand, "Or
whatever you want . . . it's not as if I could stop you anyway. Just
don't take it out on my people - or my world. The important thing right
now is to get him away from that Goa'uld before it's too late."
"Too late?" Thor leaned
forward in his chair. "What are you not telling me?"
Hayes blew out a breath
and leaned forward in his chair. "We believe Baal plans to use Jack's
DNA to gain access to the Ancients gene."
"It would be . . .
unfortunate if Baal were able to accomplish this," Thor paused. "Is
O'Neill aware of this?"
"Yes, he is. That's why
we met with him last night in my office - and why we implanted him with
a way to monitor his whereabouts. We'd come to the conclusion that Baal
could find him no matter where he was hidden. Jack was quite forceful
when he made that point. In fact at one point he insisted that we
contact you so in the hopes that you could remove this gene from his
body."
Hayes sighed and shook
his head, "We told him that wasn't possible," he paused. "Is it?"
"No, it is not. Nor would we agree to such a thing."
Hayes nodded. "That's
pretty much what we told him. I'm pretty sure that Jack understands
that, much as he dislikes it, he is a man of honor and knows it is his
duty to use his unique abilities to protect his world."
"I wish you had contacted
me earlier," Thor admitted with a sigh. "I might have found a solution
and avoided this latest problem. Perhaps I could have transported him up
to the Daniel Jackson, or at least talked to him."
"You, of all . . .
people, should know how much Jack hates being penned up, Thor. In fact,
he became quite upset when he thought Colonel Carter wanted him to 'run
away and hide'," Hayes hooked quotes around the last words with his
fingers.
"Yes, that has been both strength and a weakness to O'Neill's
character."
"We believe that Carter's
abduction was more of an accident. Since she was there when they seized
Jack, they took her too."
"Why was Colonel Carter
allowed to remain with O'Neill unguarded? Were you not aware of the
possible danger?"
Hayes grimaced and
crossed his legs, "That was a sore spot with Jack. I wanted a guard
present with him at all times, but he wouldn't hear of it. He wanted
some private time with Carter. Hindsight being what it is - I know now
that I should've had one posted there anyway."
"Throughout my
acquaintance with O'Neill, I have learned that he can be irrational when
it comes to his own importance and safety."
"You can say that again," Hayes nodded.
Thor cocked his head, "You wish me to repeat myself?"
"No, it's a metaphor," the human smiled.
"I see," Thor blinked and
added it to his growing file of irrational human forms of speech.
O'Neill had been quite instructive in this area.
"It is at times like
these that I am thankful that we use cloning to reproduce. It is a more
-rational method than yours."
Hayes snorted, "Thanks
anyway, but we're happy with things the way they are."
"I see," Thor had
expected that answer. Humans were notoriously irrational when it came to
that subject.
"What will you do when you've rescued them?"
"I confess I do not know,
Hayes. It will depend upon their condition - both physical and mental.
However, I will inform you of my findings."
"Thank you, Thor. I can't
ask for any more than that," Hayes said. The welcoming smile was gone;
worry had taken its place.
Thor severed the
connection. He had a job to tend to and needed no further distractions.
He was glad now that he had the foresight to implant a tracking device
within O'Neill. Though he had allowed the humans to supervise the
security for his friend, he had maintained an unobtrusive watch.
His ship's sensors had
shown him that a second human had been taken aboard Baal's vessel along
with O'Neill but he had not known the identity until Stargate Command
had informed him of Colonel Carter's absence. Unfortunately, he had not
been able to mount an immediate rescue before the Goa'uld al-kesh had
left orbit as he had not been aware of the vessel's presence. While the
vessel maintained its shields at full capacity, he was not able to use
his transporter either.
As for the news of Baal's
plan to gain access to the power of the Ancients through O'Neill's
genetic material, that was a concern. The Asgard's previous intervention
that made it impossible to successfully clone his human friend was
proving advantageous.
Thor consulted the
locator beacon that indicated O'Neill's position and extrapolated a
possible destination. If Baal's ship maintained present speed and course
. . . he would arrive at Tartarus in two days.
Thor's fingers punched in
a query about that world and watched as the information appeared on his
monitor. He blinked slowly, according to this, it was highly probable
that this world was Baal's destination because of its laboratory
facilities - a leftover from Anubis and his Kull Warrior constructs.
The sensors arrayed
around the planet would make it difficult to approach without detection
- difficult but not impossible.
***
"I wish to view the
Tau'ri," Anat pouted and crossed her shapely legs.
She thrust her chest
forward, a move calculated to accent her breasts that threatened to
spill from her skimpy gown. Since their al-kesh had rendezvoused with
the mother ship, her mate, Baal, had resisted her attempts to inspect
the captives. In fact he had been unusually secretive about them. She
knew this must not continue for they were mated and thus must share -
everything.
"Why?" Baal asked; as she
had planned, his eyes were drawn in her direction and they widened with
desire. "They are not worth your bother, my queen - while I can think of
much better things to occupy our time," he leered and joined her on
their bed.
She smiled and leaned
into his body, "After I have inspected our captives, my pet." Her finger
traced his jaw and ended at his mouth where she touched his lips.
Baal's mouth captured her
finger, sucked on it and moaned, "Not now, my queen," his voice grew
husky with his need.
"I wish it," Anat removed
her finger from his mouth. "As you well know their pitiful bodies . . .
excite me." Her tongue lingered on her upper lip and she leaned forward
to nibble on Baal's ear.
"Truly?" he leaned forward to kiss her and she pulled away.
"First the captives - I
do not wish to spoil my appetite for . . . finer things," she admonished
with a sensuous smile.
"Of course, my queen,"
Baal huffed and stood, one hand grasped in hers as she rose from their
bed.
She snuggled against him,
her arm through his as they strolled toward the prison cells. "It is
true that you captured O'Neill and a female?"
"Yes, it appears that the
male Tau'ri has taken a mate; the female - Carter."
"I remember her," Anat
nodded. "And you say O'Neill has taken her as his mate?"
"That is what the evidence suggests, though the male denies it."
They paused in front of
the cell that housed the male; a Kull Warrior stood guard before the
force field that shimmered across its door.
She peered inside and
noted the male slumped on the floor with his hands and legs in shackles.
"You need so much for one such as he?" She paused, "Is he that important
to you?"
"He has proved . . .
unusually cunning in the past, and I will not risk losing him simply
because I lacked the foresight to take the necessary precautions," Baal
explained with a smile as he covered her hand with his.
She pursed her lips and
then reached for the button that would shut off the force field. "I wish
to inspect your prize more closely."
Baal nodded, "As you wish."
Anat studied the
interaction between her mate and the Warrior. She noted it had not
relaxed its guard against all comers, her included, until Baal had
nodded. So - the Warriors would prevent her from a private visit. That
was useful information, but it distressed her that her chosen mate did
not trust her with his plans.
She glided into the room
and bent over the unconscious male Tau'ri. "He has no clothing?"
Baal shrugged, "He was
found thus, and I deemed clothing . . . unnecessary for his purpose."
"He bears the scars of a
warrior," she tapped her jaw with a finger and imagined what her capable
hands could do to one such as he. "And the silver hair is unusual," she
murmured softly, "But suits him."
"Do not be fooled, he is
most dangerous," Baal spoke in a tone of reproach. "This Tau'ri is
responsible for the deaths of many System Lords."
She continued to run her
eyes possessively over the Tau'ri's naked body, memorizing the details
of the lean and muscular male that lay curled on his side on the floor.
The gentle rise and fall of his chest mesmerized her to the point where
her hand reached out to touch him - then with an effort - she stopped
and shivered with suppressed delight.
She looked up at Baal, "And your purpose for him?"
Baal looked
uncomfortable, "I desire his seed for the powers of the Ancients."
"Yes, that is a purpose I
can understand," she smiled and moved back to Baal's side, swaying her
hips in a way that she knew would excite her mate. "Perhaps I could . .
. obtain his seed for your use?"
"No, I will not share you
with anyone, especially an inferior Tau'ri such as he," Baal's eyes
flashed golden and he raised her hand to his lips and kissed it.
"And the power of the Ancients?" she asked as a test.
"I share all I have with
you, my queen," Baal's lips curved in a smile.
"And this power of the
Ancients is to be shared," she made the question a statement of her
expectations. Though she did not yet trust him, she would make her
expectations of him clear. In the meantime, he would bear watching.
"Of course, my queen,"
Baal embraced her and his mouth lingered on hers. "Let us retire, he
sighed against her lips, "This talk has overtired me."
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