Where Destiny Leads
Chapter 12
Leap of Faith
Lantash’s breath caught in
his throat as he stared at Samantha, lying pale and still on the floor, next to
the obviously empty urn. He strode
swiftly across the floor, setting the urn, which he still held, down as he
knelt beside her.
/Lantash, Samantha has taken
Egeria as her symbiote. As healthy as
she is, she should not have become unconscious.
Something is wrong./ Martouf
spoke quietly, and it was obvious that he was holding himself in very tight control.
/I am aware. I do not know what has occur-/ Lantash broke
off as Sam’s eyes glowed brightly when she opened them and looked intently at
them.
She smiled for a brief
moment. Her voice a barely heard
whisper, she said, “You are our mates.”
Then she shook her head. “Forgive
me. That is a discussion for later.
Samantha took a great leap of faith by joining with me, and she wishes me to
assure you that she has given me complete and willing access to her memories
and information. As for our apparently
unconscious state, we were blending and linking our minds, transferring
information as quickly as possible. As
you know, it is accomplished more smoothly, and with less stress, when the
symbiote and host truly desire to immerse themselves within one another. She has answered my questions as well as she
can for the moment.”
“It is a shock to me that so
much time has passed and that so much has happened, however, we both realize
that while relevant to our present situation, it is not necessary that I know
every detail of the present, or the past two thousand years, at this time. Samantha will continue to feed me as much
information as she can as we go along to fill in anything important that I may
have missed. We will be switching back
and forth between us, depending on which of us will be best suited to handle
each situation as it arises. I understand that we are about to be discovered
and that it is imperative that we retreat at once.”
“Yes that is correct, my
Queen. We must leave here right away,
for our presence has been discovered.
The remainder of our team members are waiting within the escape
tunnels.”
“I understand that we are in
what once was one of Ra’s Pleasure Palaces, which now belongs to Apophis. Bah!
What a preening peacock he has always been. While I, myself, would have chosen to align
myself with Apophis to defeat Ra, he should never have fallen to Apophis alone,
and furthermore, had Ra kept himself out of every pretty boy that passed, he would
not have been so distracted that he allowed that primping, prancing, pathetic
excuse of a…never mind. As you say, we
must go.” Egeria stood as she finished
speaking, her disgust of both Apophis and Ra evident in both her face and her
words.
As Lantash turned to pick up
the urn that held Astaria, the door to the room opened, and he swung toward it,
bringing his zat up and aiming it at the person who entered. They stared at one another for a moment
before both relaxed. The young woman
swiftly completed entering the room, pushing the door shut behind her, and
smiling in welcome when she saw the man who was in the room.
“Lantash! You survived!
I am so very glad. Even though
Teal’c assured me that he believed you died in the explosion, I always felt
that he was unsure of your fate, and that something had occurred to make him
wonder.” Keeping her voice low, Ria’ta
moved quickly toward the couple standing near the fireplace. Her smile faded as she reached out and gently
touched the side of his face. “But,
Lantash, Martouf, you must leave at once, before Teal’c and the other
Lantash grasped her hands
and shook his head sadly. “No. No, Ria’ta, they did not survive, and yet,
they will appear to be here with me. It
is difficult to explain all that has happened to me, and I do not have time to
tell it all. Although it will be hard to
believe or understand, please trust me when I tell you that I no longer dwell
within your world, your - your plane of existence, your reality. I am sorry, but when we leave this time, we,
Martouf and I, will not be returning. I
wish with all my being that it could be otherwise, that there was something,
anything, that we could do, but there is not; there is nothing that we can do
to help you.”
Lantash shook his head and
smiled wryly at her, saying, “Ironically, the result of our failed mission in
this reality will probably enable the Tok’Ra to survive, defeat the Goa’uld,
and free the worlds and
Ria’ta nodded. “Though I do not understand the particulars,
I trust your word, and I do believe you.
It was not meant to be. You have
done so much for me, already. In fact,
for many in our universe. Many worlds
and their peoples are knowledgeable about what the Goa’uld are and no longer
worship them blindly, even though they may have no choice but to do so
publicly.”
“My own people, my own
family, all of them, are free to follow their own beliefs. Those who choose to be are safe, thanks to
the Tok’Ra, and for those things alone, I will give my life for you. I will do everything I can to see to it that
you finish your mission here successfully and return to wherever you must go,
Lantash. I promise you.”
Ria’ta’s eyes were drawn to
Sam, and she glanced curiously at her as she finished speaking, but she asked
no questions. Lantash’s body language
communicated the information that whoever this woman was, she was the reason
for this mission. She, or some knowledge
she held, was what they had come to retrieve.
He would defend her at all costs, and, though his love for her was
obvious, it was apparent there was a deeper reason for his protection of
her. She was someone of importance to
the Tok’Ra. Her eyes widened, but still
she said nothing.
“Thank you, Ria’ta. It would be much appreciated, as it was the
last time you helped us, but please do not involve yourself. There is an escape tunnel on this side of the
Palace, and while your people are searching for us elsewhere, we will attempt
to make our way to it and hope we can arrive there before they return. You should not put yourself into danger for
us, however.”
Ria’ta reached out to pull him close in a brief embrace,
knowing that they would never meet again, but also knowing that she would not
leave them without helping them to escape, or dying in the attempt. The debt that her family owed them was deep,
for they were some of the lucky ones and lived on a world shunned by the
Goa’uld. Several of her siblings and cousins were actively in contact with the
Goa’uld, but their interaction was voluntary.
All were in resistance groups.
All were willing to die for their beliefs. All had been saved from slavery; many had
been freed from Goa’uld symbiotes by the Tok’Ra. In turn, all had mourned the loss as the
Tok’Ra had been hunted to extinction.
Her death would be a small price to pay for what they owed them.
She smiled at him again as she shook her head, saying, “I
will remain behind you and try to detour anyone coming upon you from
behind. If nothing else, you will hear
me talking to them and know they are behind you.”
“We thank you once
again.” Smiling at her, Lantash bent,
picked up the urn, and turned to walk across the room. He motioned toward the other door, saying
softly, “The tunnel is this way,” before turning back to the young woman who
risked so much for them. “Be well,
Ria’ta.”
Turning, they left the
room. Ria’ta slowly followed.
“We must go out of our way
to reach the tunnel from this room, but it is still closer than the others
would be. I believe that once Teal’c
realizes that we are not in the rooms we were occupying and that our belongings
are missing, he will spread the available
Egeria nodded her
understanding of their situation. “We
will do the best we can.”
Lantash nodded and indicated
they should maintain an operational silence.
As silent as shadows, they slipped from one room to the next until they
came to a doorway that opened onto a short hallway. There were two doorways
toward the opposite end and they would need to enter the second one.
He had chosen a longer and
more circuitous route; one that was less likely to be used, and so far, they had
met no one. They were now turning back
toward the grand entrance hall, which was also the area of the semi-open
hallway that they would have to traverse.
This short hallway and the rooms beyond were the last obstacles between
them and the hall and chamber that would lead them to their way out of the
Palace.
He was startled when Ria’ta
slid by him, put her finger to her lips, indicating that she would go open the
door. She walked calmly down the hall to
the door that he indicated that they needed to enter. Opening it, she looked around and then shook
her head as she looked up and down the hall.
She appeared confused as she turned and retraced her steps. Anyone watching her would believe that she
had taken a wrong turn and entered the wrong room. Passing Lantash quietly, she nodded. It was clear.
They continued to make their way toward the escape tunnel and freedom.
“You say they have been here
for five days? That, in fact, I have been here for five days?” Teal’c demanded of the most senior of the
house staff.
“I would swear it. Any of my people would swear the same. Even now, I am not sure you are not testing
us in some manner,” Peris responded firmly.
“They even mentioned that the remaining staff would probably be arriving
before the end of the seven days, which, it appears, has indeed happened.”
Teal’c frowned. Who could have known that they would arrive
early and yet still be here when they did arrive? What was their purpose for being here? They did not appear to be lying in wait for
them. Surely they were not waiting for
Apophis to arrive. An assassination
attempt? Unlikely, since they were using
such a high profile disguise. Such an
attempt would not be able to throw suspicion on him, for he had witnesses that
knew he had not been here. It could
cause some doubt in Apophis’s mind, he supposed, but even that was
unlikely. Why else would someone attempt
to pass themselves off as himself, though?
It was time to enlarge the search.
They would begin on the ground floor.
He would gather the women and make sure that they were together and
safe, and then start a room by room search.
They would gather in the grand entrance hall.
“
“Do you know why they are
here? Did they give any reason for their
visit?” Teal’c asked suddenly.
“They stated that Apophis
was called away suddenly and wished for them to be entertained. They are great art collectors and they have
spent every day examining the works of art from the paintings to the
tapestries. Every piece of art in the
Palace, in fact.”
Teal’c looked grim. “Then perhaps we have found their reason for
being here. No doubt they are
thieves. Have they done nothing to cause
you to become suspicious?”
“To my knowledge, objects of
value have been little more than moved.
I have seen them do no more than pick something up to examine it and
then replace it, though they have looked at and admired many objects in the
chambers. I will ask the others, but I
am sure there is nothing of any value missing.
Any item of value is guarded by an alarm system which has not been
breached. The system has only been
triggered twice since they arrived. Once
was by one of my own people while cleaning, and the other was as one of the
visitors was examining a statue, which they replaced after looking at it more
closely. I truly do not believe that
they are here to steal anything. They
could have attempted to do so long before today, if that was their
purpose.” Peris sighed as he gave his
information. This Teal’c was not going
to like his tidy reason for the odd situation not holding up anymore than the
other Teal’c would have appreciated him rebutting his statements. He watched as a muscle in the larger man’s
jaw jerked. No, he was not happy at
all. He listened from his position in
the demi-hall as they entered the grand entrance hall and Teal’c began to give
orders.
“We will do a complete and
thorough search, starting with the chambers down here. Do your best to take them alive. I wish to find out what plot is underway
here, and if it is part of a larger conspiracy of some kind. If you cannot take them alive, then stop them
any way that you can. I want at least
four of you here in the grand entrance hall, should they attempt to escape this
way. Go now.” So saying, Teal’c turned to talk to the women
that he cared for most and realized that Ria’ta was missing.
“Where is Ria’ta?”
Looking up from where they
had been sitting, the women stared at Teal’c.
“I do not know, Teal’c. We
discussed the art on the ceiling, and talked a little about where we should
start on the redecorating, but our information is too limited yet to plan
much. She was here not long ago,” Nal’ka
said softly, trying to ease Teal’c’s tenseness.
“I did not sleep well last night and dozed off as we waited, so I
imagine she became bored and decided to inspect some of the closer chambers. I noticed her look toward the door nearest to
us several times, and you know how curious she is. She will return soon, and she will be
careful, I am sure.” She watched as his
shoulders relaxed slightly.
Teal’c nodded, but walked
over and opened the door to peer inside the chamber, just the same. The room was empty, but he thought that he
could smell the scent that she used, so he left the door open, in case she was
nearby and needed help. If she called,
he wanted to be able to hear her. He
decided that Nal’ka was probably correct.
Ria’ta was likely to be using this time to begin planning what must be
done to the Palace to ready it before Apophis arrived. He would give her a while before he became
too concerned.
“I thought that I smelled
her scent, Nal’ka. I am sure that you
are right and she is exploring the rooms and making plans. I hope that she does not encounter any of
these intruders. If you hear her, or
anything else that sounds suspicious, call one of us at once. These imposters must know by now that we have
arrived. They will be attempting to
escape, so they should be avoiding this part of the Palace, but we do not yet
know why they are here, and we must assume that they are dangerous until we
find out otherwise. I will be sending
you to your chambers shortly.”
“Ria’ta will be safe,
Teal’c. I am sure she is amusing
herself, looking around, and redecorating in her head,” she replied as she
smiled at him. “Even if these people
came into this area for some reason and came upon her, they would probably
ignore her, assuming she is a servant.
Please, do not worry so.”
“You could be correct, but I
have yet to see a female servant here. I
believe Ra’s preferences ran in the other direction.”
“True, but Ria’ta will be
careful, Teal’c. You must trust her.”
Teal’c nodded and walked towards
a few of his
“You will watch the doorways
and entrances to the rooms, rather than the ceiling. I do not believe that those we are searching
and watching for will be found there.
Keep yourselves concealed behind the pillars and the bases of some of
the statues. You are leaving yourselves
open to attack if there are enemies here.”
Teal’c watched them as they made their way to places of cover around the
room before turning to the servants that had accompanied them.
Peris was standing to the
side of the room, near a long semi-open hallway that led between one of the
antechambers and the back of the room, where it led to another chamber and
hall. Teal’c watched him walk toward
them as he obeyed his summons. He
believed that the young man knew nothing more about the imposters than he had
already revealed.
As Peris drew near to them,
he ordered, “Take Nal’ka, the other women, and the servants and get them
settled into their chambers. I doubt
that these intruders will bother them there.”
He turned to address them. “Be
sure to lock your chamber doors, and do not come out until you are called. Remember to contact one of us at once if you
hear or see anything suspicious.”
“I will see to them at
once.” Peris bowed to them before
turning and leading them toward the servant’s chambers.
Teal’c watched them
leave. Now, if he could only find Ria’ta
and dispense with these intruders as easily, he could get on with the business
that he had come to accomplish for Apophis.
And after that, he could
spend the night wrapped in Ria’ta’s arms.
Their time together was almost over, gone. Soon, Apophis would come, and then they would
be parted, perhaps forever. They needed
to enjoy what little time they had left.
He needed to convince himself that he would permanently give Ria’ta up
to Apophis and take a woman of Apophis’ choice as his own wife. Indeed, he needed, he must convince himself
that he could give Ria’ta up to
Apophis. That he could take a wife other than Ria’ta unto himself.
But, most of all, it was
imperative that he convince himself that he would, that he could, stand by, attend, and assist Apophis to take Ria’ta as his
own. He must be loyal to his Lord. He must, he would, and he could, allow Apophis to make her his
Queen. Of course, he could. He simply had to remind himself that he was
Apophis’s strong, capable, and loyal First Prime. There was no question. He could give her up.
Lantash talked quietly into
his radio, “Selmak, I hope our preparations are proving to have been
sufficient. Samantha and I are at the point
where we must decide which direction to go.
We must try to go to the newly found escape tunnel, which means going
through the open section of hall, or we must make our way to the other side of
the Palace. There are
“It will be too risky for
you to find your way to the other side of the Palace. There are either servants or
Lantash was quiet for a
moment. “Are you sure that is the best
way, Selmak? Do you not think we could
make it to the other tunnel?”
“Possibly, but they have the
house servants watching as well as the
“We will wait here.” Lantash released his radio connection and
looked behind them as they crouched behind a large folding screen, much like
the one in the chamber where Egeria had been found. Leaning toward her, he whispered, “I am going
to tell Ria’ta to return to the others.
I shall return shortly, my Queen.”
Sam smiled. “You can call me Samantha, Lantash, or
Egeria. My Queen is a little formal,
don’t you think?” She teased softly as
she leaned forward and kissed him gently before her eyes glowed and Egeria
returned. “She is correct, my mate. You must not be so formal. There may be situations that require you to
be so at some future time, but these things will be discussed and decided upon
later. For now, let us be close.”
Lantash leaned forward,
sharing a deep, slow kiss with her, and wanting, not for the first time, to lay
her down beneath him and love her, long and hard. Ending the kiss with a sigh, he stepped
reluctantly away, saying, “It will be as you wish, my mate.” He smiled before standing and going to find
Ria’ta.
He found her in the next
room, seemingly engrossed in studying a painting. His voice low, he murmured, “You should
return before they come to search for you, Ria’ta. Do not let trouble come to you because of us,
please.”
Following his example, her
tone no more than the ghostly breath that only a symbiote could hear her, she
responded to him, “I will not, Lantash.
Do not worry for me. I am sure
that Teal’c thinks I have simply begun planning my redecorating and wandered
off. Do not distress yourself for me, as
it is not necessary, I assure you. I
will leave shortly, I promise.” She
thrust him back toward the doorway.
“There is a guard coming, and I must steer him away from you. Go back, and stay behind the screen, until
you can accomplish your mission by escaping.
Please.”
“Thank you, Ria’ta. You will long be remembered and honored by
the Tok’Ra. We wish you well.”
Ria’ta nodded and turned to
intercept the
Lantash returned to the
screen and his mate. Their teammates
would be in position soon. They were
close, so close, to succeeding. Crouching
down next to Sam, he placed his arm around her as she sat on a low stool and
held the urn. “Soon. Soon we will know what fate holds in store
for us. We have done all that we can,
our very best. Now, we will see if what
we have done is enough.”
Hearing voices in the other
room, they sat quietly, barely breathing.
Lantash now completely severed his radio connection. No one could contact either of them. Sam had severed hers before they began their
trip to the escape tunnel.
Time seemed to stand still as
they listened to the conversation in the next room.
“Ria’ta, Teal’c is looking
for you. He is concerned. These intruders seem to have
disappeared. Have you seen or heard
anything?”
“I have been looking through
some of the rooms and getting ideas for what we have to do before Lord Apophis
arrives. I wandered around several of
the chambers and have neither heard nor seen anything unusual. You are the first person that I have seen
since I began looking around. Please
tell Teal’c that I will return shortly.
I want to finish this room, and the next one. It would seem to be a logical stopping
place.”
“I will do so after I check
this next room. It will be the last one
in this section of the bottom floor on this side of the Palace.”
Lantash and Sam heard them
enter the room. Ria’ta walked slowly,
but nonchalantly, toward the corner where the screen stood and looked up at a
painting that graced the wall above and to the left of it. She stepped almost completely behind it,
turning back to watch the
The couple left the shelter
of the screen and quietly made their way forward. The next chamber was empty. It was time to resume radio contact with
their team, to see if they were in place and ready to implement the escape
plan. If they were, then it was time for
them to leave and head back to their own reality and Earth.
Lantash keyed his radio and
waited to see if there was a response.
It came in the form of information from Selmak. “Our people are ready. When you hear the explosion, enter the open
hallway. There is another, more enclosed
hallway at the end of it, and we will be covering you and waiting for you
there.”
“We are ready, Selmak.”
Lantash turned to Sam. “We love you.”
“I know. We love you too.” She smiled at him, and then turned serious
again. “Which of us should attempt the
hallway first? Should we attempt it
together?”
Lantash frowned, thinking
through the different scenarios.
Sighing, he finally suggested, “I think that I should be the first to
go. They may not start laying down cover
fire quickly enough. If one of us is
going to be hit by staff weapons fire, it should be me. You and Egeria must survive, Samantha.” He placed his fingers over her lips when she
would have spoken and no doubt protested his statement. “No.
Do not say it. You are the future
of the Tok’Ra. You are the last hope of
our people. You must survive at all
costs, my love.”
Sam drew a deep breath
before nodding and smiling tremulously.
“I know you’re right, Lantash, but I don’t have to be happy about it, or
agree with it in my heart.”
“I know. We simply have to believe that we will both
make it through this. We will, no matter
what it takes. We must believe that.”
“Of course. And I have Egeria to help me now as
well. We’ll do alright. Her added strength will allow me…”
The explosion on the other
side of the Palace was their signal to go.
With one last look at Sam, Lantash sprinted from the enclosed portion of
the hallway. Egeria would take control
from Samantha and start out as soon as the cover fire was thick, and Lantash
was well along the hallway. If they were
very lucky, the
Fifteen feet along the open
section of hallway a staff blast missed Lantash by inches, and all hell broke
loose. P-90 fire erupted from between
the pillars at the end of the grand entrance hall, and it was being answered by
staff weapons blasts, but not all of the
He turned in time to see Sam
take a direct staff blast hit and go down partway behind a pillar. She pulled herself slowly forward until she
was completely behind it, but it was obvious that she had collapsed and was no
longer able to move. Selmak and Sgt. Richards
tackled him as he lunged to begin the run back to her side. It would be suicide for him to go back for
her right now as the
Jacob swore. /Damn it, Sel, she’s closer to the other end
of the hallway than she is to this one, but if we can get to her, we can take
her to the sarcophagus that’s on this floor.
It’s the one that Ra made available for his visitors to use. Reaching her and getting her to it will be
difficult, but not impossible./
/Jacob, we do not use the
sarcophagus./
/Selmak, I agree that using
the sarcophagus on a daily basis drained the good from the Goa’uld. But using it once on my daughter is not going
to turn her into an evil, selfish, raving egomaniac. I’m not leaving her here. Not when there is another alternative./
/All right. I’ll talk to Lantash and we’ll put together a
– wait. What the...? What is that woman doing? Who is that?/
Selmak turned to Lantash,
asking him the same question aloud, “Who is that?” at the same time they heard
the other Teal’c order his
“It is Ria’ta,” Lantash
whispered, “the young woman that helped us to escape when we were captured by
Apophis.”
“What is she doing?” Selmak
whispered, watching her as she ran toward Sam and crouched down behind the
pillar with her, not trusting that the shooting had stopped, at least for the
moment.
“I do not know, but I believe
that she will try to get Samantha and pull her to safety. If she is successful, we must keep the
“What? What are you saying?”
“I have not had time to tell
you, and we did not wish to discuss it over the radio. The seal broke on Egeria’s stasis jar when I
attempted to remove it from the mantle upon which it was set. Samantha took her, so that she would not
die. She did it before Martouf or I
could stop her, but there really was no other way, if we wished to take her
back with us to our reality. Even if we
could have reached you, either Anise or Jorlin would have had to give their
lives for her, and chances are good that she would not have survived long
enough for us to reach you, anyway. It
was a voluntary blending, I assure you.”
“I believe you. I know that you would not force Samantha to
do anything that wasn’t a free choice, Lantash.” Suddenly, he aimed and fired his P-90 at a
From the shadows, SG1’s Teal’c
watched his alternate reality twin Teal’c command his
Teal’c glanced at the place
where Ria’ta had disappeared, and then turned back to return fire on the one
that seemed to be targeting him, although he could not see him clearly in the
shadows.
He rejoined the fight. Ria’ta would be all right. The woman, whoever she was, was probably
dead, and therefore, she could cause no injury to his Ria’ta. He would see to her after he had dispensed
with these rebels, or whatever they were.
Weapons fire barely missed his head.
He had a battle to tend to. He
would take care of the body and find out what Ria’ta was up to and scold her
for it later.
Sam realized that she hurt
even though Egeria was trying to shield her from the pain. She could tell that they would not survive
the injury that they had received. It
was much too serious. Egeria was holding
death at bay for the moment, but they could not last for long. /I am sorry,
Samantha, but there is nothing that I can do.
The injury is too severe and the blood loss too great./
/It’s alright. It’s a chance that we take every time we
leave on a mission. We know that the
odds are against us going into these things.
Sometimes, people don’t return. That’s just how it is./ Sam paused, and
then said, /Egeria, we’re being dragged
somewhere, aren’t we?/
/I believe so, although, I
have not yet been able to ascertain by whom, or where we are being taken./
/Can you get me conscious
enough to let the person know to stop?
To let them know that we won’t make it, and that continuing to drag us
is pointless?/
/Yes, I will be able to keep
us alive and conscious for a time, Samantha.
It is simply that I will not be able to allow us to survive./
/Then we need to take what
little time that we have left to try to find you a new host. Your survival is crucial to the survival of
the Tok’Ra as a species. Even if you
must take a male for a short time until you can find a willing female, if there
is a chance, we must take it./
/We will see. For now, we must find out what is
happening. I need to work at keeping us
alive, for the moment. For now, you must
speak to the person moving us./
/I will./
Sam heard a moan, realized
it was herself, and then managed to get her eyes open. She could tell that someone had a hold of her
under her arms, and that they were attempting to drag her across a floor. She tried to get their attention. “S-s-st-stop.
Stop.” She managed to get the
word out, her voice barely above a whisper, but the person dragging her heard
her.
“I cannot stop yet. I must get you to the sarcophagus before the
fighting ends. I believe that it is in
the next room. Only a little farther to
go, I swear to you. Please, please, you
must trust me. I will not allow you to
die, or remain dead. You must return
with Lantash and help him to continue to fight the Goa’uld wherever destiny now
leads him. I will not fail him or you.”
“R-Ria’ta?” Sam cleared her
throat and tried again with better results.
“You must stop. The Tok’Ra, they
don’t use the sarcopha...”
“I know. But, this time you will do so. I do not know who you are, but Lantash would
not have risked his life to come for you the first time, nor would he have come
back this time, if it was not important, if you were not important. You must live, and from what I have seen of
your wound, you will not do so without the help of the sarcophagus. So no matter what, this one time, you will
use it. It is my will that you live, and
I am stronger than you at this time. You
can berate me or kill me later, if you wish to,” she panted, as she again
strained to pull the slightly larger, heavier woman closer to the sarcophagus,
“for it will be worth my death or every word of your anger, if you survive to
fight against the Goa’uld.”
Sam’s lips quirked upwards,
a travesty of a small smile. “Egeria
says - that since you feel so strongly about it, we will - do our best - but,
Ria’ta,” Sam paused, to rest, gain breath and some strength before continuing,
“There is an alternative…to using the sarcophagus. We could find her another host.”
Ria’ta stopped for a
moment. “Egeria? The Tok’Ra Queen? Now, I know why it was so important for them
to come for you, and I am even more determined that you will survive. You must see that you must live for
them. As Egeria, you cannot allow your
children to perish from the universe, which they will, if you die. As their Tok’Ra and human mate, you must live
for their love of you and yours of them.
There is no time to find another host.
And, it would be foolish to try when the means to survive is here and
available,” she chided softly, before placing her flat on the floor beside the
sarcophagus. Sam could hear her moving
around, and before long, she heard the slow grinding of the sarcophagus top
opening. When it stopped, the young
woman returned to her and once again grasped her under the arms to pull her
closer to it, uncaring of the blood that was becoming smeared on her body and
clothing.
As she dragged her up the
steps of the sarcophagus, Egeria came forward to speak to her, and Sam’s eyes
glowed brightly as she looked up at the young woman. Her voice was stronger, and full of
determination. “You must listen to me,
Ria’ta. I have things which I must tell
you. You, and you alone, will be the
keeper of the secrets of the Tok’Ra in your universe. Their future will depend on you. You must hold these secrets until you feel
the time has come when they can be put to good use. Until then, you must tell no one. The information should be passed to the next
generation, should you be unable to make use of it. However, I believe that you would make an
admirable host yourself, so if you have a strong and brave consort, one that
you can trust and depend upon, you should, perhaps, attempt once again to
overthrow the System Lords. You will
know best who could accomplish the most against them. But, only you will know when the time is
right. I must have from you an oath that
you will tell no one my secrets, until that time arrives, and that you will
seek death rather than betray them.”
Ria’ta stared at the Tok’Ra
Queen. She somehow knew what she was
about to be told. It would be a great
challenge, a great responsibility, but it could set her people free. It could change the worlds as they knew
them. Perhaps not today, or even
tomorrow, but someday. She knew that she
would give her oath to this Queen. And
she would keep her word regardless of the cost to her personally. “You have it.
I will hold my own counsel until I feel the time to act has come, and
rather than betray your words, I will still my own tongue forever. This I promise you.”
Egeria closed her eyes. It was obvious that the effort it was taking
to talk was draining her badly. Feeling
alarmed, Ria’ta spoke urgently, “You should wait to tell me until after you are
healed. I need to place you within the
sarcophagus.” She watched her closely,
seeing the life force slowly leaving her.
Egeria shook her head. “No.
There is every chance that someone will come before I arise. You must have the information first. If your people get to me before mine, I may
never get the chance to tell you. Listen
carefully and remember what I say, for I will have the strength to say it only
once.”
Sam’s bright blue eyes
closed for a moment before Egeria once again gathered the strength to continue
speaking. “When the time is right, you
must go to a world called Azurat. In my
time, before I was captured by Ra, it was unpopulated. There were very small deposits of Naquadah
that had been mined out, so the waters were rich with it. And they teemed with food. The world was mostly water, another reason it
was not populated.”
“You must go there and walk
straight from the Chaappa’ai to the edge of the large body of water that will
lie directly ahead some short distance away.
If you will sit at the edge of the water and call to her, Anasharya, my
daughter, will come to you. Place your
hands into the water, side by side, with your palms up. She will swim to you and first touch each of
your finger tips. If she feels that you will be compatible, she will then swim
onto your palms and allow you to lift her from the waters. Place her in a shallow chamber or on
someone’s chest and lie on your side facing her or them. Close your eyes, then
open your mouth, and she will blend with you.”
“If she no longer lives,
then her clutch mates should come. They
will touch only the fingers of your left hand.
There should be several thousand adult Tok’Ra on this world, Ria’ta. Enough to begin another assault against the
Goa’uld once you have found hosts.”
“If I survive, then I must
leave you and go with Lantash to help his new family. Their Egeria was captured before she could
travel to Azurat to give birth to more Tok’Ra, and those alive today in their
reality are the last of their race. Though I cannot remain with you, I leave
you with these secrets and thus this hope for your reality’s future.”
“I think you would make a
good, strong Queen, Ria’ta. In you, our
race would have a loyal and determined leader, something that they would need
to allow them to become a viable, formidable force against the Goa’uld. They had mentors among the humans who helped
our kind find hosts before; this time they may or may not have that help, and
so it will be up to you. I believe that
you would know where to find those who would become such mentors and wise ones
for them.”
Ria’ta listened as Egeria’s
voice became no more than a whisper as she gave her the Chaappa’ai address of
the world sheltering her children, her daughter, indeed the last hope of the
Tok’Ra in this universe. Her eyes
closed as her breathing ceased, and Ria’ta knew that it was time to place her
into the sarcophagus.
She stood back and watched
as the top closed. She hoped that no one
came looking for her, but knew that the longer she was here, the more likely it
would be that it happened. She could not
allow anything to happen to the Queen.
She could not be permitted to fall into the hands of Apophis.
Though it was not cold,
Ria’ta shivered as she stood watching and waiting for the sarcophagus to
perform its miracle of healing. Where
was Lantash? Surely, they saw her pull Egeria away, and
knew that she would take her to be healed?
Martouf would reassure Lantash, if needed. Why did they not come for her? Had they been injured? Killed?
Captured trying to reach them?
She refused to believe that had happened. They were still alive and on their way to
rescue their mate and their Queen. She
could still faintly hear sporadic weapons fire, though it did not sound so
constant as before.
All she could do was hope
that Lantash found them before Teal’c did.
She knew that Teal’c loved her, but she did not know if he loved her
enough to turn his back and pretend that he did not see what she was
doing.
Though it was a subject that
was never spoken of aloud, she knew that he would like nothing better than to
see the System Lords overthrown, defeated, or removed. She also knew that he did not believe it was
possible for it to ever happen. He felt
helpless to ever do anything to gain them their freedom. He did the best he could to protect them all
and by being sure that they all protected one another. She hoped he would continue to protect her in
this.
If what Lantash and Egeria said
was true, then when they left, they would be leaving completely. They would not only be leaving this world but
this universe and this reality. They
would be living their lives in a different reality. Surely Teal’c would not care as long as they
were gone from here. She loved Teal’c,
but she would not allow him to stand in the way of freedom for the peoples of
the worlds from the tyranny of the System Lords. She could not allow him to stop her. If only he loved her enough to leave his
place with Apophis. They could do so
much together. But she was afraid that
the chances of that happening were slim to none. She could not let her feelings for him sway
her from her duty. She would not betray
her fellow rebels, her family, her commitments, or her mission.
She sighed. It would take time for the sarcophagus to
revive and heal Egeria and her host. She
turned her back and slowly lowered herself until she was leaning against the
sarc’s golden side. For the moment, all
she could do was wait.
And think. Definitely think. Egeria had placed the means to help the
resistance, her world, and the universe directly into her hands, if only she
was wise enough, and brave enough, to use it.
But it all rested on her shoulders.
Fear blossomed in her, but underneath the fear, she felt the stirrings
of excitement and the rising of a new hope, and a new dream. All it would take was determination, luck,
and finding the right people to work with, many of whom she already knew. It would take a huge leap of faith to become
a host to a newly discovered symbiote, but she could do it. She would do it. As she had realized earlier, she knew that it
would not be today or tomorrow, but someday before very long. Yes.
Someday soon, she would go to Azurat, and if Anasharya accepted her,
then she would accept the responsibility of becoming the host of the Queen.
Soon, she would see the
culmination of the mission she had been sent to accomplish in the household of
Apophis. She had discovered all of the
information she had been sent to find, and she knew, without a doubt, that
given enough time, they would have succeeded in their quest. But, time was at a premium, and they no
longer had any left to wait upon.
Now, only destiny could lead
them forward, and they could do no better than to follow where it led. It was hurtling them all at a frightening
pace, though time seemed to stand still at the moment. It was an odd sensation to be both streaking
toward the future and yet be standing still, stopped at a moment in time, as if
waiting for the stage to be set for the next act to begin. Waiting for the threads to be woven into
place in the tapestry of the universe by the fates, and the words to be written
down and recorded, and so to be known for all time.
Her decision made, Ria’ta
leaned her head back against the sarcophagus to await the rising of the Queen,
her Queen, and the arrival of her rescuers…as well as the arrival of the man
that she loved. The man that she would
face with the zat held firmly in her hand, pointed steadily at him, never
flinching, never wavering, ready to do what she had to do, if the need arose.
She wiped a tear from her
cheek as she picked up the zat’ni’ktel that she had taken from Egeria and
settled in to watch the doorways, waiting for their destiny to arrive, and thus set them firmly onto the paths
their futures were about to take.
TBC
Chapter Eleven Home Chapter
Thirteen