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jedibuttercupGen; Stargate SG-1 S5 AU; 4100 words. A very belated ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
help_japan fic, for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
beckyh2112.
"Complications arose during the summit," Jacob finally said.
"Yeah, I gathered that, given your reticence on the radio and the extreme lack of Daniel accompanying you," Jack replied.
Title: the only way to win is to deny the battle
Author: Jedi Buttercup
Disclaimer: The words are mine; the worlds are not.
Spoilers: Stargate SG-1 5.15 "Summit" through 5.18 "The Warrior"
Notes: Forbeckyh2112, for the prompt: "What might have happened if Daniel had ended up as backup-host to Yu when he was playing lo'taur back in Season 5?" I've been sitting on this story for a couple of years now, but I finally decided it would be better to go ahead post what I have. Hopefully, more will grow from this seed.
P3X-042, Lord Yu's Homeworld
It was as he had predicted; the rebel Jaffa had sent a raiding party to follow up on their pathetic attempt to engender a mutiny among his loyal soldiers. They had believed him weak, in the aftermath of Osiris' cowardly attack, and sought to tear him from his roots; as though a mere change of host could suffice to erase his preparations, his knowledge of the battlefield, and his mastery of the Art of Deception.
The one thing he had not expected was the identity of the party's leader. The shol'va Teal'c lived among the Tau'ri; the host had parted from him in their seat of power only days before the summit of System Lords. What reason had he to follow the commands of one such as Kytano? Yu Huang Shang Ti frowned, linking his hands behind his back as he waited for the traitor to be brought before him, and considered the opportunity represented by the Jaffa's presence.
The so-called army of the rebels was but a thorn in his side at the moment; a miniscule irritant compared to the looming threat of Anubis or the repeated stings of the misguided ones who called themselves Tok'ra. As relevant as the uneven fit of his clothing, hastily altered to fit his new host's taller, bulkier shape while his servants commissioned an entirely new wardrobe: mattering only for appearance's sake. They represented no substantive threat.
This particular Jaffa, however, was a fulcrum point: made so by the example of his actions, by reflection of the wisdom and fame accrued to his mentor, and by the allies he had made on the First World. It had not been Yu's intention to broadcast his change of host so soon-- but a message sent through the shol'va would carry more impact than one sent by other means. Perhaps it would even afford him a chance to strike at a snake's head with an enemy's hand; already, enough of his resources were tied up in the struggle against Anubis to make it worthwhile to dispose of the one who called himself Kytano before he made himself a substantive threat.
Yu did not know what had prompted Imhotep to abandon his orders and attempt to cultivate the Jaffa in truth, but he knew his own kind. Whatever goals he had shared with his followers, his ultimate goal must be to build an empire of his own. Remove him from power, and the rebels should turn in on themselves as had Ra's lieutenants in the immediate aftermath of the Supreme System Lord's death.
Yu lowered his eyes from the ceiling as the footsteps of two of his personal guard approached. They had been enthusiastic in their efforts to ensure Teal'c would not be a threat; the shol'va appeared weary, head drooping low as they dragged him on his knees to a place at Yu's feet, arms manacled behind him and blood oozing from a cut on his face that his prim'ta had not had time to repair.
The host's futile, furious resistance spiked more strongly as Teal'c came before them; a sign that though hastily selected and under false pretenses, Yu had indeed chosen well in his new vessel. He had long known, as did all the wisest among the Goa'uld, that he was strongest in cooperation with his host, rather than constantly suppressing the mortal body's abilities; it would take time to persuade this one, perhaps time he did not have, but his knowledge would be useful in planning Yu's future strategies, and his will was nearly as strong as Yu's own. A well-forged, finely-honed weapon.
The shol'va wavered as his weight came to rest on his knees; he looked up, and rage sparked back to life in his eyes, as if in answer to the host's.
He had known of the change of host already, Yu surmised, reading the Jaffa's reactions. Perhaps that explained his folly.
"Teal'c," Yu addressed him, allowing the host's mouth to curve in a faint smile of welcome.
"Daniel Jackson," Teal'c replied, through gritted teeth.
Yu lifted his eyebrows in response. "You know better, Teal'c. And as you can see, I am not as weak as you were led to believe."
Stargate Command, Several Days Previous
"Hey, Jack."
Despite the friendly greeting, the line of Jacob's jaw was dour as he walked down the ramp from the Gate, arms folded in front of him and shoulders slightly forward like he was bracing for impact.
Jack glanced behind the former General as the event horizon evaporated behind him, leaving the Gate empty again before it could spit out any more travelers, and thought he had a pretty damn good idea why Jacob might be a little on edge. Out of contact days longer than he should have been, only a few cryptic messages sent by way of explanation, and now this.
"Hey, Jacob," he replied blandly, not bothering to shift his stance or offer an arm-clasp of welcome. "Where's Daniel?"
Jacob grimaced: and yeah, that was the sound of the other shoe dropping that Jack had been waiting for ever since Ren Au showed up with her genius Tok'ra plan to overthrow all the System Lords at once, that just so happened to require his archaeologist going undercover in Yu's ranks all by his lonesome. Jacob opened his mouth to reply-- then hesitated, taking in the look on Jack's face, and dipped his head, a sure sign that his symbiote had decided to answer the question for him. Or else that he'd wussed out, and begged Selmac to do it in his place; either way, it didn't bode well for a positive answer.
"Complications arose during the summit," Jacob finally said, his voice echoing with the overtones that signified his symbiote's presence in the driver's seat.
"Yeah, I gathered that, given your reticence on the radio and the extreme lack of Daniel accompanying you," Jack said, dryly. "Care to elaborate?"
Jacob glanced past him, expression never shifting as the sound of booted feet approaching the gate room announced the arrival of General Hammond and the remaining members of SG-1. "Perhaps we should continue this conversation in the briefing room," Selmac replied, noncommittally.
Yeah, sure, youbetcha. He just didn't want all the Marines manning the gateroom listening in when he had to admit how badly he'd fucked up. Of course, given that it was a highly classified assignment.... Jack rolled his eyes and watched as man and Tok'ra exchanged brief greetings with friend, daughter, and Jaffa. He knew the drill, as much as it frustrated him sometimes.
He liked the guy, he really did; even respected the part of him that was still Jacob Carter. But he never had been easy with the rebel snakeheads that pretended to be oh-so-different from their megalomaniacal cousins; when it came right down to it, the only thing that separated a Tok'ra from a Goa'uld was politics, and with some of them, their origins were so close to the surface all it took to bring out the condescension was a mere hint of disagreement or impertinence. They said they respected their hosts, sure; and they didn't use slave labor. But that didn't mean the vast majority of them thought any more highly of regular humans than the Goa'uld did. The proof was in the pudding, which had started off bitter with Carter's unwilling possession and rarely tasted any sweeter.
Coffee was already waiting when they assembled around the table upstairs. Bless Walter; the place would probably fall apart without him. Jack wasn't much in the mood for it, but poured one anyway to have something for his hands to do. He settled carefully in a chair two down from Hammond, carefully placing his cup and glancing around as the others seated themselves, then finally looked up across the table at Jacob again.
"So. Daniel. Is where?" he asked, pointedly.
Jacob linked his hands together on the table in front of him, probably for the same reason Jack had taken a cup. He looked a little ridiculous in the patterned silk outfit with the wide gold collar he'd worn to infiltrate Yu's court, rather than the BDUs or desert robewear he usually wore to visit the SGC, but there was nothing humorous about his expression.
"Still in Yu's service-- sort of," he said grimly, his voice fully human again.
"Sort of?" General Hammond inquired before Jack could stick his foot back in. "I thought the idea was that Dr. Jackson would deploy the symbiote poison as soon as all six Goa'uld were gathered for the summit, and that you would then retrieve him. Did the poison somehow fail?"
"No," Jacob said, the lines in his face drawing deeper. It almost looked like it hurt him to say it. "In fact, by all indications, the poison was exactly as successful as advertised. It killed the other five Goa'uld just fine. The problem was with the timing-- and with the two it didn't kill."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow at that. "There was another Goa'uld in attendance?"
Jacob nodded. "As it happens, the System Lords have not only been fighting amongst themselves since the fall of Apophis, as we all thought; they've also been fighting a shadowy seventh party. In Daniel's words, he'd been causing them some pretty serious headaches-- and he was sending an envoy. I agreed that he should wait, to find out more. But the new arrival turned out to be someone who knew him."
Jack put the list of Goa'uld known to have met Daniel face to face with the implication that said arrival had caused Daniel to delay activating the poison and came up with only one possible answer. "Osiris," he said. Of all the space stations in all the galaxy, Daniel's snaked ex-girlfriend had walked onto that one. Of course she had.
Teal'c's eyes widened, and Carter gasped. "He tried to save her, didn't he," she said, following the same train of thought.
Her father nodded. "He delayed long enough to hear her announce the name of her master-- and then we had bigger concerns to worry about. Anubis is back."
From the expression on Teal'c's face, that could only mean very, very bad things. But all Jack remembered about the Egyptian deity by that name was the black-faced jackal statue from the Brendan Fraser movies. And somehow Jack didn't think the real threat here was going to be a dehydrated guy wrapped in bandages or a gigantic scorpion wearing the poorly CGI'ed head of The Rock.
"A new who?" he asked dryly, raising his eyebrows by way of asking for clarification.
Usually, this would be Daniel's cue to jump in; but as he wasn't there, Teal'c picked up the slack, sounding distinctly unsettled.
"He was a System Lord over one thousand years ago," he said. "But he was exiled from their number for crimes too foul to name. Like Sokar, he has long been thought destroyed, though dark myths remain."
"And like Sokar, the rumors of his demise were apparently exaggerated. According to Daniel's reports, Osiris didn't say what he's been up to in the intervening time-- but she did say he had a plan to take care of Earth for them if they voted him a seat among them afterward."
"Thus allowing them to get around the Protected Planets treaty," Hammond commented, pursing his lips like he'd just tasted something sour. "Well, I suppose that gives us a confirmed name to put on last week's naquadah asteroid attack."
Jacob nodded, frown deepening. "Yeah, I heard about that. Close call, there. I'm glad Jalen was able to get here in time to help out. Anyway-- I told Daniel to shut down the shield generator so I could get him out of there, especially after Osiris announced Anubis' forces were attacking Ravanna, but he wanted to try and bring her with him. He said he was going to steal Yu's tel'tak and fly them out himself."
"And I'm guessing that's when things went a little-- sideways," Jack commented, feeling pretty sour himself. It really didn't make him feel any better to hear that Daniel had got himself caught while playing the hero, rather than due to someone else's failures; it never did, with him.
Jacob nodded. "I had one last transmission from him about his plan, and the next thing I knew an escape pod was blasting off the station. I figured something had gone wrong, that he'd had to bail out, and went to pick him up-- but it turned out to be Osiris instead. She caught me off guard, got the drop on me as soon as I cracked it open, and I dared not fight too much while she had me at knifepoint. If she'd known I was Tok'ra, she would have killed me, rather than just locking me up in her place and saying a lot of uncomplimentary things about my 'master'. As it was, as soon as she got near another Goa'uld occupied world she kicked me off the ship, claimed it as compensation for the traitorous behavior of Yu's lo'taur, and gave me a message to take back to him."
"So that's why you never made it back to Ravanna," Carter said, looking pained. "All the effort we went to in order to change the message beacon, and all we did was lose the only Tok'ra who'd managed to escape the tunnels with us. We had to hide in the woods for days evading Zipacna's forces before a cloaked Tok'ra ship snuck in to look for survivors."
And a few days after that had been the asteroid thing. They'd barely escaped a global extinction event by the skin of their teeth, and the extremely grudging eleventh hour assistance of an ally who'd demanded recompense for his fried hyperdrive afterward. It had been an unpleasant couple of weeks all around.
"Yeah, well, let's not dwell," he said briskly. "At least it doesn't sound like she figured out Yu's lo'taur was actually Daniel," Jack said, making a jabbing motion with his hand to emulate the drugged ring Daniel had worn to make Yu think he was his servant in the first place. He must've used it on her, too.
"Yeah, well, I'm sure she'll figure it out soon enough," Jacob said, heavily. "Reading between the lines of what she said-- Yu walked in on Daniel's attempt to kidnap her, and inadvertently freed her; she pulled her illegally concealed blade and tried to gut him with it; then she scuffled with Daniel, trying to prevent him from reaching the escape pod. She stumbled in herself in the attempt, and Yu hit the release before she could do anything to stop him. Once I got word to the Tok'ra that I was still alive, and found out about the status of the base, I returned to Yu's forces to gather more intel. And I'm afraid the news isn't good. Yu hasn't taken a single audience since he returned from the summit, and the Royal Guard have put out the word he's been forced to take a new host."
A rock sank in Jack's gut at the implication and he closed his eyes, tightening his grip on the edge of the table. "Damn it, Daniel," he heard himself say, voice almost unrecognizably hoarse.
"But you don't-- you don't know for sure that it was Daniel, right?" Carter said, sounding stricken.
"No, but given the situation-- the only other alternative is that he killed Daniel, and took one of the other System Lords' slaves as a host."
"No System Lord would willingly offer his lo'taur to another," Teal'c said tonelessly-- almost as though he couldn't decide which alternative would be better.
Jack knew. After Sha'uri, after Ska'ara, after Shifu? Yeah, he knew what Daniel's choice would be.
"And I'm afraid there is other evidence pointing to that conclusion," Jacob said next, voice dropping back into Selmac's reverberating echo. "Yu's army is in full mobilization, awaiting their Lord's return to the field-- it is common rumor among his Jaffa that the domains of the other System Lords are in turmoil, ripe for the picking while their subordinates fight for supremacy amongst themselves."
"He found the poison on Dr. Jackson-- and thanks to his knowledge, found a way to use it without also taking himself out of the equation," Hammond concluded.
"And now the only two System Lords remaining are Anubis and Yu," Selmac agreed. "Best case scenario at this point is that they raze each other to the ground fighting out their old feud, and deprive the minor Goa'uld of resources in the process. Worst case-- well, I'm not sure which it would be. Anubis winning, with his proven track record of evil; or Yu, with all of Daniel's knowledge to draw on."
Jack scrubbed a hand over his face and finally looked up, burying his currently-numb emotions deep where they weren't likely to shatter and cut him until he had time to either properly cleanse the wound with alcohol-- or get Daniel back, and skip the need for it in the first place. "T, you're scheduled to visit Bra'tac tomorrow and check out that Sanctuary world, right? I bet there's been an influx of newcomers to the rebellion, if Selmac's intel is accurate. You ought to be able to get confirmation, either way."
Teal'c nodded gravely. "I will do so," he said. "I hope that I may return with better news."
Jack wasn't sure what better news there could possibly be, other than waking up to find he'd dreamed the entire conversation. Taking Daniel back from Yu, if he was alive, would not be easy; the ancient Goa'uld was a ruler of worlds, not a minor dependent like Klorel, and it had taken them four years and the help of the now-destroyed Tollan to successfully free Ska'ara from that one's control. And as for the other possibility-- Jack hardly considered that a positive outcome, either.
"I hope so, too, Teal'c," Hammond said, speaking for them all. "I hope so, too."
P3X-042, Present
It was Teal'c: Teal'c kneeling before him, wearing the armor of his former oppressors. Teal'c, glaring at him with all the hatred usually reserved for a Goa'uld.
Well, that was fair; Daniel could hardly claim to be otherwise, could he? He pushed against the intimate grip of the other mind encasing his own, trying to remember anything, anything helpful that Sam might have passed on about her experience with Jolinar, and was met only by a wave of-- amusement?
Peace, the other mind now sharing his body commanded, in a voice surprisingly similar to his own. Inside his skull, there were no traces of the usual reverberations, or even any trace of an accent; just-- himself, a much more difficult target for Daniel to brace himself against. I have no intentions of killing the shol'va.
Instantly, visions of fates worse than death appeared before his mind's eye... only to be met by another wave of smug amusement from the invader. Had Amaunet taunted Sha'uri that way? Or Klorel, Ska'ara? Daniel couldn't stand the thought; between the memories of each time he'd faced a loved one with glowing eyes, the blood on Teal'c's face, and the first hints of sarcophagus-induced irritation influencing his mood, he was decidedly unwilling to listen.
You will see, the Goa'uld insisted. It is Anubis who wishes to destroy your world; I have only ever sought to protect it.
Daniel replied, indignantly, with a memory of Yu demanding that Earth's Stargates be removed during the treaty negotiations on Earth two years before; Yu replied in turn with much older memories, dulled by time and... was that the touch of another personality? He saw a vast flood bearing down on a strangely familiar land, thwarted by the efforts of Yu's own hands, followed by memories of four men-- four human men-- wearing the mark of Yu's servants and speaking to him as to a beloved leader.
While Daniel was still processing that, reminded uncomfortably of his own words to Jack-- it should be noted that Yu did account for a number of notable, positive influences-- Yu took that opportunity to open his mouth and greet his guest.
"Teal'c," he said, with Daniel's own vocal cords, naked of the usual Goa'uld echo, daring to face Daniel's teammate with a smile.
Teal'c snarled his name in response-- his name, not Lord Yu's-- and Yu responded with the same pleasant tones, ignoring the stiff anger on the faces of his guards. "You know better, Teal'c. And as you can see, I am not as weak as you were led to believe."
Teal'c fought against the grip on his shoulders, attempting to rise, but his injuries were too much for him; he sank back to his knees, glaring at his captor. "Weak enough to breach the defenses surrounding your Stargate," he growled, staring up at Yu. "I am only the first. You will pay for what you have done."
Yu stared down at him condescendingly, hands linked behind his back in a parody of the Jaffa's bindings. "My Jaffa have brought you before me because I wanted it so," he insisted, then addressed the topic of his presence in that uniform. "Kytano has sent you to kill me."
Daniel only vaguely remembered that name; it had been associated with the rebel forces Bra'tac had made contact with, a group the SGC had been keeping an eye on for future possibilities. Yu couldn't have plucked the knowledge of Teal'c's mission from his memories; which meant he still wielded more power than the SGC had suspected. Or even Daniel, when Osiris had effortlessly dominated the summit in Anubis' name.
He who is prudent and lies in wait for an enemy who is not will be victorious, Doctor Jackson, the Goa'uld replied to his thoughts, with overtones of satisfaction. All warfare is based on deception.
Before them, Teal'c inclined his head, acknowledging the obvious truth; in response, Yu shook his head mildly, like a disappointed father. "Your faith is not blind, Teal'c. I know this of you. And thus I am going to offer you your life. I will even allow you to return to your 'rebel army.' But first, there is something you must know. Kytano has betrayed your people. The ha'tak you wait for brings doom, not salvation."
"You lie," Teal'c spat, but Daniel could read the dawning horror in his eyes.
One of the guards reared back to strike Teal'c on the side of the head, and Yu did not stop him.
"Your insolence will not change what is," Yu scolded him. "The mutiny has failed. My First Prime knows the location of Cal Mah, and the number of your men, and seeks even now to crush them in one all-out attack. But Kytano has betrayed me as well, and may yet escape to take advantage of the unrest in the realms of fallen System Lords."
"So you would use me against him," Teal'c snarled. "I serve no false god."
"Then you will lose all your people; and he will target the Tau'ri," Yu replied, eyes flashing at the insult the Jaffa offered. "Either way, the disorder serves me. Do as you will."
He raised one hand to gesture at his guards, the gold sleeve slipping back along his arm, exposing squarer wrists and more callused hands than the Goa'uld was used to; he quickly moved it back behind him to join the other. "Take him to the Chappa'ai," he commanded.
The guards nodded to him, before turning to obey. The servant at the back of the room stepped forward as they dragged Teal'c away, almost hovering, the silver insignia on his forehead shining in the torchlight. He'd watched Daniel-- Yu-- very carefully since the blending.
Daniel would have found the departure from known custom fascinating-- if he'd had the ability to do anything but exist, against the hope that one day something would disrupt Yu's control and give him a few seconds to act. To make a difference, in the only way left.
Even after all you have experienced, you do not truly understand the Goa'uld, Yu chided him.
After all I have experienced, I hope you'll understand that I have little desire to, Daniel replied, bitterly. He hadn't been able to save Sha'uri; he'd failed to save Sarah. For every Goa'uld he'd helped to eliminate, another one had taken its place-- this time, in the most literal of ways. Nothing he'd ever done seemed to have changed anything for the better, in the long run. What other hope did he have?
You will see, Doctor Jackson. You will see.
(x-posted at AO3)
help_japan fic, for beckyh2112."Complications arose during the summit," Jacob finally said.
"Yeah, I gathered that, given your reticence on the radio and the extreme lack of Daniel accompanying you," Jack replied.
Title: the only way to win is to deny the battle
Author: Jedi Buttercup
Disclaimer: The words are mine; the worlds are not.
Spoilers: Stargate SG-1 5.15 "Summit" through 5.18 "The Warrior"
Notes: For
beckyh2112, for the prompt: "What might have happened if Daniel had ended up as backup-host to Yu when he was playing lo'taur back in Season 5?" I've been sitting on this story for a couple of years now, but I finally decided it would be better to go ahead post what I have. Hopefully, more will grow from this seed.P3X-042, Lord Yu's Homeworld
It was as he had predicted; the rebel Jaffa had sent a raiding party to follow up on their pathetic attempt to engender a mutiny among his loyal soldiers. They had believed him weak, in the aftermath of Osiris' cowardly attack, and sought to tear him from his roots; as though a mere change of host could suffice to erase his preparations, his knowledge of the battlefield, and his mastery of the Art of Deception.
The one thing he had not expected was the identity of the party's leader. The shol'va Teal'c lived among the Tau'ri; the host had parted from him in their seat of power only days before the summit of System Lords. What reason had he to follow the commands of one such as Kytano? Yu Huang Shang Ti frowned, linking his hands behind his back as he waited for the traitor to be brought before him, and considered the opportunity represented by the Jaffa's presence.
The so-called army of the rebels was but a thorn in his side at the moment; a miniscule irritant compared to the looming threat of Anubis or the repeated stings of the misguided ones who called themselves Tok'ra. As relevant as the uneven fit of his clothing, hastily altered to fit his new host's taller, bulkier shape while his servants commissioned an entirely new wardrobe: mattering only for appearance's sake. They represented no substantive threat.
This particular Jaffa, however, was a fulcrum point: made so by the example of his actions, by reflection of the wisdom and fame accrued to his mentor, and by the allies he had made on the First World. It had not been Yu's intention to broadcast his change of host so soon-- but a message sent through the shol'va would carry more impact than one sent by other means. Perhaps it would even afford him a chance to strike at a snake's head with an enemy's hand; already, enough of his resources were tied up in the struggle against Anubis to make it worthwhile to dispose of the one who called himself Kytano before he made himself a substantive threat.
Yu did not know what had prompted Imhotep to abandon his orders and attempt to cultivate the Jaffa in truth, but he knew his own kind. Whatever goals he had shared with his followers, his ultimate goal must be to build an empire of his own. Remove him from power, and the rebels should turn in on themselves as had Ra's lieutenants in the immediate aftermath of the Supreme System Lord's death.
Yu lowered his eyes from the ceiling as the footsteps of two of his personal guard approached. They had been enthusiastic in their efforts to ensure Teal'c would not be a threat; the shol'va appeared weary, head drooping low as they dragged him on his knees to a place at Yu's feet, arms manacled behind him and blood oozing from a cut on his face that his prim'ta had not had time to repair.
The host's futile, furious resistance spiked more strongly as Teal'c came before them; a sign that though hastily selected and under false pretenses, Yu had indeed chosen well in his new vessel. He had long known, as did all the wisest among the Goa'uld, that he was strongest in cooperation with his host, rather than constantly suppressing the mortal body's abilities; it would take time to persuade this one, perhaps time he did not have, but his knowledge would be useful in planning Yu's future strategies, and his will was nearly as strong as Yu's own. A well-forged, finely-honed weapon.
The shol'va wavered as his weight came to rest on his knees; he looked up, and rage sparked back to life in his eyes, as if in answer to the host's.
He had known of the change of host already, Yu surmised, reading the Jaffa's reactions. Perhaps that explained his folly.
"Teal'c," Yu addressed him, allowing the host's mouth to curve in a faint smile of welcome.
"Daniel Jackson," Teal'c replied, through gritted teeth.
Yu lifted his eyebrows in response. "You know better, Teal'c. And as you can see, I am not as weak as you were led to believe."
Stargate Command, Several Days Previous
"Hey, Jack."
Despite the friendly greeting, the line of Jacob's jaw was dour as he walked down the ramp from the Gate, arms folded in front of him and shoulders slightly forward like he was bracing for impact.
Jack glanced behind the former General as the event horizon evaporated behind him, leaving the Gate empty again before it could spit out any more travelers, and thought he had a pretty damn good idea why Jacob might be a little on edge. Out of contact days longer than he should have been, only a few cryptic messages sent by way of explanation, and now this.
"Hey, Jacob," he replied blandly, not bothering to shift his stance or offer an arm-clasp of welcome. "Where's Daniel?"
Jacob grimaced: and yeah, that was the sound of the other shoe dropping that Jack had been waiting for ever since Ren Au showed up with her genius Tok'ra plan to overthrow all the System Lords at once, that just so happened to require his archaeologist going undercover in Yu's ranks all by his lonesome. Jacob opened his mouth to reply-- then hesitated, taking in the look on Jack's face, and dipped his head, a sure sign that his symbiote had decided to answer the question for him. Or else that he'd wussed out, and begged Selmac to do it in his place; either way, it didn't bode well for a positive answer.
"Complications arose during the summit," Jacob finally said, his voice echoing with the overtones that signified his symbiote's presence in the driver's seat.
"Yeah, I gathered that, given your reticence on the radio and the extreme lack of Daniel accompanying you," Jack said, dryly. "Care to elaborate?"
Jacob glanced past him, expression never shifting as the sound of booted feet approaching the gate room announced the arrival of General Hammond and the remaining members of SG-1. "Perhaps we should continue this conversation in the briefing room," Selmac replied, noncommittally.
Yeah, sure, youbetcha. He just didn't want all the Marines manning the gateroom listening in when he had to admit how badly he'd fucked up. Of course, given that it was a highly classified assignment.... Jack rolled his eyes and watched as man and Tok'ra exchanged brief greetings with friend, daughter, and Jaffa. He knew the drill, as much as it frustrated him sometimes.
He liked the guy, he really did; even respected the part of him that was still Jacob Carter. But he never had been easy with the rebel snakeheads that pretended to be oh-so-different from their megalomaniacal cousins; when it came right down to it, the only thing that separated a Tok'ra from a Goa'uld was politics, and with some of them, their origins were so close to the surface all it took to bring out the condescension was a mere hint of disagreement or impertinence. They said they respected their hosts, sure; and they didn't use slave labor. But that didn't mean the vast majority of them thought any more highly of regular humans than the Goa'uld did. The proof was in the pudding, which had started off bitter with Carter's unwilling possession and rarely tasted any sweeter.
Coffee was already waiting when they assembled around the table upstairs. Bless Walter; the place would probably fall apart without him. Jack wasn't much in the mood for it, but poured one anyway to have something for his hands to do. He settled carefully in a chair two down from Hammond, carefully placing his cup and glancing around as the others seated themselves, then finally looked up across the table at Jacob again.
"So. Daniel. Is where?" he asked, pointedly.
Jacob linked his hands together on the table in front of him, probably for the same reason Jack had taken a cup. He looked a little ridiculous in the patterned silk outfit with the wide gold collar he'd worn to infiltrate Yu's court, rather than the BDUs or desert robewear he usually wore to visit the SGC, but there was nothing humorous about his expression.
"Still in Yu's service-- sort of," he said grimly, his voice fully human again.
"Sort of?" General Hammond inquired before Jack could stick his foot back in. "I thought the idea was that Dr. Jackson would deploy the symbiote poison as soon as all six Goa'uld were gathered for the summit, and that you would then retrieve him. Did the poison somehow fail?"
"No," Jacob said, the lines in his face drawing deeper. It almost looked like it hurt him to say it. "In fact, by all indications, the poison was exactly as successful as advertised. It killed the other five Goa'uld just fine. The problem was with the timing-- and with the two it didn't kill."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow at that. "There was another Goa'uld in attendance?"
Jacob nodded. "As it happens, the System Lords have not only been fighting amongst themselves since the fall of Apophis, as we all thought; they've also been fighting a shadowy seventh party. In Daniel's words, he'd been causing them some pretty serious headaches-- and he was sending an envoy. I agreed that he should wait, to find out more. But the new arrival turned out to be someone who knew him."
Jack put the list of Goa'uld known to have met Daniel face to face with the implication that said arrival had caused Daniel to delay activating the poison and came up with only one possible answer. "Osiris," he said. Of all the space stations in all the galaxy, Daniel's snaked ex-girlfriend had walked onto that one. Of course she had.
Teal'c's eyes widened, and Carter gasped. "He tried to save her, didn't he," she said, following the same train of thought.
Her father nodded. "He delayed long enough to hear her announce the name of her master-- and then we had bigger concerns to worry about. Anubis is back."
From the expression on Teal'c's face, that could only mean very, very bad things. But all Jack remembered about the Egyptian deity by that name was the black-faced jackal statue from the Brendan Fraser movies. And somehow Jack didn't think the real threat here was going to be a dehydrated guy wrapped in bandages or a gigantic scorpion wearing the poorly CGI'ed head of The Rock.
"A new who?" he asked dryly, raising his eyebrows by way of asking for clarification.
Usually, this would be Daniel's cue to jump in; but as he wasn't there, Teal'c picked up the slack, sounding distinctly unsettled.
"He was a System Lord over one thousand years ago," he said. "But he was exiled from their number for crimes too foul to name. Like Sokar, he has long been thought destroyed, though dark myths remain."
"And like Sokar, the rumors of his demise were apparently exaggerated. According to Daniel's reports, Osiris didn't say what he's been up to in the intervening time-- but she did say he had a plan to take care of Earth for them if they voted him a seat among them afterward."
"Thus allowing them to get around the Protected Planets treaty," Hammond commented, pursing his lips like he'd just tasted something sour. "Well, I suppose that gives us a confirmed name to put on last week's naquadah asteroid attack."
Jacob nodded, frown deepening. "Yeah, I heard about that. Close call, there. I'm glad Jalen was able to get here in time to help out. Anyway-- I told Daniel to shut down the shield generator so I could get him out of there, especially after Osiris announced Anubis' forces were attacking Ravanna, but he wanted to try and bring her with him. He said he was going to steal Yu's tel'tak and fly them out himself."
"And I'm guessing that's when things went a little-- sideways," Jack commented, feeling pretty sour himself. It really didn't make him feel any better to hear that Daniel had got himself caught while playing the hero, rather than due to someone else's failures; it never did, with him.
Jacob nodded. "I had one last transmission from him about his plan, and the next thing I knew an escape pod was blasting off the station. I figured something had gone wrong, that he'd had to bail out, and went to pick him up-- but it turned out to be Osiris instead. She caught me off guard, got the drop on me as soon as I cracked it open, and I dared not fight too much while she had me at knifepoint. If she'd known I was Tok'ra, she would have killed me, rather than just locking me up in her place and saying a lot of uncomplimentary things about my 'master'. As it was, as soon as she got near another Goa'uld occupied world she kicked me off the ship, claimed it as compensation for the traitorous behavior of Yu's lo'taur, and gave me a message to take back to him."
"So that's why you never made it back to Ravanna," Carter said, looking pained. "All the effort we went to in order to change the message beacon, and all we did was lose the only Tok'ra who'd managed to escape the tunnels with us. We had to hide in the woods for days evading Zipacna's forces before a cloaked Tok'ra ship snuck in to look for survivors."
And a few days after that had been the asteroid thing. They'd barely escaped a global extinction event by the skin of their teeth, and the extremely grudging eleventh hour assistance of an ally who'd demanded recompense for his fried hyperdrive afterward. It had been an unpleasant couple of weeks all around.
"Yeah, well, let's not dwell," he said briskly. "At least it doesn't sound like she figured out Yu's lo'taur was actually Daniel," Jack said, making a jabbing motion with his hand to emulate the drugged ring Daniel had worn to make Yu think he was his servant in the first place. He must've used it on her, too.
"Yeah, well, I'm sure she'll figure it out soon enough," Jacob said, heavily. "Reading between the lines of what she said-- Yu walked in on Daniel's attempt to kidnap her, and inadvertently freed her; she pulled her illegally concealed blade and tried to gut him with it; then she scuffled with Daniel, trying to prevent him from reaching the escape pod. She stumbled in herself in the attempt, and Yu hit the release before she could do anything to stop him. Once I got word to the Tok'ra that I was still alive, and found out about the status of the base, I returned to Yu's forces to gather more intel. And I'm afraid the news isn't good. Yu hasn't taken a single audience since he returned from the summit, and the Royal Guard have put out the word he's been forced to take a new host."
A rock sank in Jack's gut at the implication and he closed his eyes, tightening his grip on the edge of the table. "Damn it, Daniel," he heard himself say, voice almost unrecognizably hoarse.
"But you don't-- you don't know for sure that it was Daniel, right?" Carter said, sounding stricken.
"No, but given the situation-- the only other alternative is that he killed Daniel, and took one of the other System Lords' slaves as a host."
"No System Lord would willingly offer his lo'taur to another," Teal'c said tonelessly-- almost as though he couldn't decide which alternative would be better.
Jack knew. After Sha'uri, after Ska'ara, after Shifu? Yeah, he knew what Daniel's choice would be.
"And I'm afraid there is other evidence pointing to that conclusion," Jacob said next, voice dropping back into Selmac's reverberating echo. "Yu's army is in full mobilization, awaiting their Lord's return to the field-- it is common rumor among his Jaffa that the domains of the other System Lords are in turmoil, ripe for the picking while their subordinates fight for supremacy amongst themselves."
"He found the poison on Dr. Jackson-- and thanks to his knowledge, found a way to use it without also taking himself out of the equation," Hammond concluded.
"And now the only two System Lords remaining are Anubis and Yu," Selmac agreed. "Best case scenario at this point is that they raze each other to the ground fighting out their old feud, and deprive the minor Goa'uld of resources in the process. Worst case-- well, I'm not sure which it would be. Anubis winning, with his proven track record of evil; or Yu, with all of Daniel's knowledge to draw on."
Jack scrubbed a hand over his face and finally looked up, burying his currently-numb emotions deep where they weren't likely to shatter and cut him until he had time to either properly cleanse the wound with alcohol-- or get Daniel back, and skip the need for it in the first place. "T, you're scheduled to visit Bra'tac tomorrow and check out that Sanctuary world, right? I bet there's been an influx of newcomers to the rebellion, if Selmac's intel is accurate. You ought to be able to get confirmation, either way."
Teal'c nodded gravely. "I will do so," he said. "I hope that I may return with better news."
Jack wasn't sure what better news there could possibly be, other than waking up to find he'd dreamed the entire conversation. Taking Daniel back from Yu, if he was alive, would not be easy; the ancient Goa'uld was a ruler of worlds, not a minor dependent like Klorel, and it had taken them four years and the help of the now-destroyed Tollan to successfully free Ska'ara from that one's control. And as for the other possibility-- Jack hardly considered that a positive outcome, either.
"I hope so, too, Teal'c," Hammond said, speaking for them all. "I hope so, too."
P3X-042, Present
It was Teal'c: Teal'c kneeling before him, wearing the armor of his former oppressors. Teal'c, glaring at him with all the hatred usually reserved for a Goa'uld.
Well, that was fair; Daniel could hardly claim to be otherwise, could he? He pushed against the intimate grip of the other mind encasing his own, trying to remember anything, anything helpful that Sam might have passed on about her experience with Jolinar, and was met only by a wave of-- amusement?
Peace, the other mind now sharing his body commanded, in a voice surprisingly similar to his own. Inside his skull, there were no traces of the usual reverberations, or even any trace of an accent; just-- himself, a much more difficult target for Daniel to brace himself against. I have no intentions of killing the shol'va.
Instantly, visions of fates worse than death appeared before his mind's eye... only to be met by another wave of smug amusement from the invader. Had Amaunet taunted Sha'uri that way? Or Klorel, Ska'ara? Daniel couldn't stand the thought; between the memories of each time he'd faced a loved one with glowing eyes, the blood on Teal'c's face, and the first hints of sarcophagus-induced irritation influencing his mood, he was decidedly unwilling to listen.
You will see, the Goa'uld insisted. It is Anubis who wishes to destroy your world; I have only ever sought to protect it.
Daniel replied, indignantly, with a memory of Yu demanding that Earth's Stargates be removed during the treaty negotiations on Earth two years before; Yu replied in turn with much older memories, dulled by time and... was that the touch of another personality? He saw a vast flood bearing down on a strangely familiar land, thwarted by the efforts of Yu's own hands, followed by memories of four men-- four human men-- wearing the mark of Yu's servants and speaking to him as to a beloved leader.
While Daniel was still processing that, reminded uncomfortably of his own words to Jack-- it should be noted that Yu did account for a number of notable, positive influences-- Yu took that opportunity to open his mouth and greet his guest.
"Teal'c," he said, with Daniel's own vocal cords, naked of the usual Goa'uld echo, daring to face Daniel's teammate with a smile.
Teal'c snarled his name in response-- his name, not Lord Yu's-- and Yu responded with the same pleasant tones, ignoring the stiff anger on the faces of his guards. "You know better, Teal'c. And as you can see, I am not as weak as you were led to believe."
Teal'c fought against the grip on his shoulders, attempting to rise, but his injuries were too much for him; he sank back to his knees, glaring at his captor. "Weak enough to breach the defenses surrounding your Stargate," he growled, staring up at Yu. "I am only the first. You will pay for what you have done."
Yu stared down at him condescendingly, hands linked behind his back in a parody of the Jaffa's bindings. "My Jaffa have brought you before me because I wanted it so," he insisted, then addressed the topic of his presence in that uniform. "Kytano has sent you to kill me."
Daniel only vaguely remembered that name; it had been associated with the rebel forces Bra'tac had made contact with, a group the SGC had been keeping an eye on for future possibilities. Yu couldn't have plucked the knowledge of Teal'c's mission from his memories; which meant he still wielded more power than the SGC had suspected. Or even Daniel, when Osiris had effortlessly dominated the summit in Anubis' name.
He who is prudent and lies in wait for an enemy who is not will be victorious, Doctor Jackson, the Goa'uld replied to his thoughts, with overtones of satisfaction. All warfare is based on deception.
Before them, Teal'c inclined his head, acknowledging the obvious truth; in response, Yu shook his head mildly, like a disappointed father. "Your faith is not blind, Teal'c. I know this of you. And thus I am going to offer you your life. I will even allow you to return to your 'rebel army.' But first, there is something you must know. Kytano has betrayed your people. The ha'tak you wait for brings doom, not salvation."
"You lie," Teal'c spat, but Daniel could read the dawning horror in his eyes.
One of the guards reared back to strike Teal'c on the side of the head, and Yu did not stop him.
"Your insolence will not change what is," Yu scolded him. "The mutiny has failed. My First Prime knows the location of Cal Mah, and the number of your men, and seeks even now to crush them in one all-out attack. But Kytano has betrayed me as well, and may yet escape to take advantage of the unrest in the realms of fallen System Lords."
"So you would use me against him," Teal'c snarled. "I serve no false god."
"Then you will lose all your people; and he will target the Tau'ri," Yu replied, eyes flashing at the insult the Jaffa offered. "Either way, the disorder serves me. Do as you will."
He raised one hand to gesture at his guards, the gold sleeve slipping back along his arm, exposing squarer wrists and more callused hands than the Goa'uld was used to; he quickly moved it back behind him to join the other. "Take him to the Chappa'ai," he commanded.
The guards nodded to him, before turning to obey. The servant at the back of the room stepped forward as they dragged Teal'c away, almost hovering, the silver insignia on his forehead shining in the torchlight. He'd watched Daniel-- Yu-- very carefully since the blending.
Daniel would have found the departure from known custom fascinating-- if he'd had the ability to do anything but exist, against the hope that one day something would disrupt Yu's control and give him a few seconds to act. To make a difference, in the only way left.
Even after all you have experienced, you do not truly understand the Goa'uld, Yu chided him.
After all I have experienced, I hope you'll understand that I have little desire to, Daniel replied, bitterly. He hadn't been able to save Sha'uri; he'd failed to save Sarah. For every Goa'uld he'd helped to eliminate, another one had taken its place-- this time, in the most literal of ways. Nothing he'd ever done seemed to have changed anything for the better, in the long run. What other hope did he have?
You will see, Doctor Jackson. You will see.
(x-posted at AO3)
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Date: 2013-09-29 10:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-10-08 09:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-10-01 06:01 pm (UTC)I do hope you'll write more of this, since this alternative timeline offers so many intriguing (and yes, horrifying) possibilities.
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Date: 2013-10-08 09:39 pm (UTC)One of these days, the next time I get a chance to watch a chunk of season 6 (which I'll have to do anyway, to get back to that Wes at the SGC storyline), I'll have to poke at this some more. :)
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Date: 2013-10-05 05:07 pm (UTC)This outcome seems at least as likely as the canon one.
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Date: 2013-10-08 09:41 pm (UTC)Thanks for reviewing!