CHAPTER FOUR

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Slowly, Adisa opened her eyes and instantly the headache began to drum. Her hands shot to her face, blocking out the light. Everything seemed enhanced and it crossed her mind that the last time she had felt this bad was when she had taken too much wine at the Vinor's inauguration banquet. She rolled over onto her side and peeked from between her fingers.

"Where am I?" she muttered to herself, wishing she could turn down the brightness that was reflecting off the copious amount of gold leaf decorating the walls. Carefully she dragged herself upright on the hard metal platform that had served as her bed, stretching out stiff limbs. A memory jolted through her mind. Daniel Jackson had pushed her to the ground, out of the way of the first staff blast and she had fallen heavily before dragging herself out of sight. She remembered the sound of the staff blasts and the peppering weapons of her people as they fought alongside SG1. Jackson had managed to make it to the trees. Mitchell's voice still rang in her ears, screaming for them to all get to cover. She had stood and started to run and that is when the searing pain had ripped through her body; a staff blast catching her square in the stomach. She knew she had fallen where she stood, and she could still remember the look on Davis' face as Carter dragged him away. For a moment, she was angry; furious that they could have left her there. What was it they always said? "Never leave a man behind." She mentally shook herself. Mitchell had done the right thing. She was dead after all – or should have been.

Lifting the hem of the black shirt she wore, she placed her hand on her stomach. There was no wound, not even a scar. Her feet were cold. She hadn't noticed before, but now they felt like ice. The feeling dragged another memory from the recesses of her mind. She had been so very cold as she had lay, dying on the damp grass. A Jaffa had stood over her, his weapon primed. Had he fired? No, someone had stopped him. There had been a voice…breaking through the darkness that was washing over her…she saw nothing…but the voice…she couldn't forget that…or had she imagined it. She was struggling to distinguish anything in her jumbled mind.

"I see that you are awake," The voice was deep with a strange resonance that she immediately recognised. It was the voice of the man who had prevented her death; it was the voice of a Goa'uld.

"How did you find us?" she began, just above a whisper. She lifted her head and tried to focus her eyes. A vague sense of recognition disturbed her for a moment. He was tall, his dark hair – black or brown, she couldn't be sure under the light – was smattered with grey, and he sported a well-trimmed salt and pepper beard. Under other circumstances she could have thought him handsome, but he was an alien…a body snatching 'thing' and she was scared. "Please, I am nobody...I'm just...I can't help you."

"Nobody? Hmmm…" He waved his hand and one of the Jaffa who had accompanied him pressed a button outside the room, removing the forcefield that had sealed her in.

"Bring her," he commanded, turning away and disappearing from sight. The larger of the Jaffa placed his arm around Adisa, holding her up as they made their way from the cell.

The Goa'uld was stood with his back to the door, staring out of a window at the far end on the highly-decorated room, into the blackness of space. The Jaffa brought her before his master and released her. Immediately, her legs failed her, and she dropped to her knees, her head down.

"You show reverence before your god! That is a good beginning." he said as he spun around and looked down at her. The resonance in his voice unnerved her but his suggestion drove a renewed determination. She tried to get to her feet, to level the field, but her earlier exertion had sapped what little energy she had.

"Please believe me when I tell you that this is anything but reverence," she spat. "You are not a god. You are beneath contempt."

"You should be grateful. You were very badly injured, close to death in fact." He took a seat opposite her, spreading his arms across the back of the sumptuous sofa and crossing his leather clad legs. His eyes never left hers and the smile never left his lips.

"You saved my life only that you can torture me and kill me yourself."

"You speak very freely, and you seem to have no concern for your own safety." He sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin on steepled fingers. "Interesting. You do not recognise me. You have no idea who I am. If you did, you would hold your tongue."

"I do not care who you are. You have no right to keep me here,"

"I am Ba'al," he said, watching for her reaction. She tried hard not to let the sudden, justifiable terror show but the slight widening of her eyes and the hitch in her breathing gave her away.

"Ah, so you have heard of me. Good," he smiled.

"But I thought…You're dead."

Ba'al laughed and nodded. "Several times."

"You and all the System Lords were disposed of!"

"I am more resourceful…and more determined than the Tauri give me credit for," Ba'al replied bitterly. "You think yourselves so clever."

"What do you want with me?" she asked with a confidence she did not feel.

"Information," he answered simply.

"I don't know how many more times I have to tell you. I know nothing?"

"You know more than you are telling me. For instance, why were SG1 on a planet that has not been accessible through the Chaapa'ai for centuries? Did those people invite you? We're you planning to mine the naquadah deposits, depleted as they are?"

"What?" She frowned.

"You were planning an alliance of some form, perhaps?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she replied, suddenly realising that he assumed her to be a traveller from Earth. She supressed a smile. "I can't answer your questions."

"Oh, I'm sure I can get what I need…one way or another. Your co-operation is not...essential." He stood, towering over her, and outstretched his arm, uncurling gold tipped fingers. A red crystal glowed in the centre of the device that covered his palm and snaked up his arm.

"We are taught to endure torture," she hissed at him. "You will not break me."

"The Kara Kesh can inflict suffering, the like of which you cannot imagine and will not be able to 'endure'. You will tell me everything I wish to know…before you die and believe me when I tell you that you can do that numerous times before I'm finished with you."

He lowered his hand until his palm was mere centimetres from her face and then the pain began; terrifying and relentless. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she fought against it.

"Who contacted the Tau'ri?"

"I cannot say," she mouthed through the pain.

"Give me a name and I will let you go."

Slowly she shook her head.

"How are those people still alive?" he yelled.

"My people defied you," she whispered, a slight smile on her lips.

"Your people?" he snapped.

She pressed her lips together and for several long seconds the only sound she could hear was that of her own voice as she begged him to stop – aloud or just in her mind, she could not tell.

"Your mind is stronger than I had anticipated," he smiled, lowering his arm as she collapsed onto the floor. "But I don't have time to play games with you." He removed the Kara kesh, placing it on a table nearby and opened a small black box. "Jaffa, secure our guest." The guard obeyed, dragging Adisa to her feet and pushing her into a carved wooden chair before securing the metal restraints around her wrists and ankles. Ba'al approached again, a small white disc in his fingers.

"We shall take a more direct approach." Grabbing her by her hair, he pushed her head to expose her right temple and pressed the disc into place. Adisa cried out but the pain was short lived. Picking up another, he placed it on his own temple, a slight flicker of his brow his only concession to the discomfort.

"Now, shall we see what you have buried in that feeble Tau'ri mind?"

She could feel him walking among her memories, further and further back into her own history. Even as she relived conflicts and watched as her friends died, he stood, impassive. Suddenly his eyes widened, and he took a step back from her, ripping his disc free. He stared at her for a moment and then began calling out in a language she did not understand but she did not need to speak Goa'uld to know that whatever he had seen had disturbed him.

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The Goa'uld had left the planet's surface as quickly as they had arrived, but the sensors confirmed that the ship was still in orbit. Vinor Erlend stood at the head of the table in the conference room talking to a collection of military leaders and government officials.

"We must retaliate. We cannot allow them to think that we will be invaded and not fight back," the head of the armed forces argued.

"We have only one missile that is capable of reaching the atmosphere...and you know what happened in testing. The defence grid had failed. We must remain in the city…remain cloaked and we must active the phase shift. We have supplies enough that we can wait it out for many months if necessary and they will not locate us here," another man objected.

"Where is my daughter?" Erlend asked as he looked around at the faces of the men at the table.

"This is not the time to worry about your own family, Vinor. You must think of the entire population. If you cannot do that…if you cannot remain professional, then I will be forced to invoke section thirty-four." Supreme Commander Brynjar cried.

A young dark-haired man stood. "Let us keep our heads. We do not need military intervention in the council. I am sure that the Vinor is just concerned for Adisa, as are we all."

"Vinor?"

Jackson stepped forward and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry Vinor Erlend. Adisa was shot by a Jaffa. I saw her fall. I'm afraid…she's dead."

Erlend stared blankly at him then shook his head. "No, you are mistaken. Why would she have been…"

"She came to warn us, and she didn't have time to…she wasn't wearing any armour. The blast…"

Mitchell glanced at Carter as the Vinor dropped into his seat, his lips moving but no words were forthcoming.

"Tell us how we can help," Jackson said gently. Slowly, Vinor Erlend turned to face Jackson, his eyes full of hate.

"You have brought this on us. You and your friends. Nobody had come through the Fornfara for centuries. We had remained safe, hidden here and then you arrived and bring with you this Goa'uld scourge." He pulled himself to his feet and nodded to his Elite guard who immediately apprehended the visitors.

"You said you'd never heard of the Goa'uld," Jackson pointed out.

"Did I?"

"Yeah, you did," Mitchell replied, "And I'm pretty sure none of us mentioned them."

"Keep them secure until this is over," Erlend yelled as the team were forcibly removed.

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JAFFA KREE!" His voice echoed through the room. Within moments, two Jaffa guards appeared holding a large glass bowl between them. Ba'al rolled up the sleeve of his ornate robe and dipped his hand into the bowl, withdrawing a hideous snake-like creature.

"Ready her!" he commanded as he approached. The creature in his hand squirmed and squealed. The Jaffa guard grabbed Adisa's head, twisting her until the back of her neck was exposed.

"You are wasting your time," she screamed as she felt the symbiote touch her flesh and begin to burrow into her body. "We will not succumb."

"If I am correct, you will succumb long enough for me to find what I need."

Ba'al stood back, watching as her torment continued until finally her eyes rolled back and her head slumped forward. He folded his arms across his chest and began to circle the chair, tapping his lips impatiently with his forefinger.

With a sudden intake of breath, Adisa sat bolt upright in the chair again. Her eyes snapped open and began to dart about the room until they settled on Ba'al.

"My Lord Ba'al," she smiled, the strange Goa'uld reverberation in her voice and the white flash of her eyes confirming the implant had been successful.

"Satet, it has been too long,"

"It is an honour to serve you again, my Lord,"

"I am sure that it is," Ba'al smiled. "I need some information that I believe is buried in the mind of your new host."

"Anything I can do to help you, my Lord Ba'al."

"Who is she?"

"She is...a…Tau'ri." Satet hesitated.

"Almost but not quite!" Ba'al replied irritably. "There is something more. Something hidden. FIND IT!"

Satet was silent for a moment and then stared at Ba'al, eyes wide in terror.

"She is Hok'taur my Lord Ba'al but…no…she is…she is…Goa'uld." Satet could not disguise the panic that gripped her as she fought against the restrains, the metal cutting into her arms.

"Impossible!" Ba'al roared. "There was no symbiote."

"I speak the truth. Please, my lord, you must understand what this means. She is the one they spoke of."

"No! I would have recognised her…sensed her," Ba'al argued. He placed his hands on the arms of the chair to which Satet remained secured and leaned in towards her. "Does she know?" he asked, his breath moving the stray curls over her eyes.

"No, my lord. Her conscious mind is…she is still unaware. The truth is hidden well but she is awakening. She has sensed me…" She stopped, and her face contorted with pain. Ba'al frowned as she saw the muscles of her jaw contract and twitch as she clenched her teeth and cried out. "Forgive me, my Lord," she screamed as he watched on, impassive. "She will not…her mind is strong…stronger than…"

"This is more than mere coincidence. That gate had not been active for generations," he mumbled to himself. "How could she be alive?"

"My lord Ba'al, she will kill me," Satet cried out as Ba'al made his way to the door.

"Not for some time. Until then you can provide me with the information that I require. Continue to co-operate and I may free you. Remember, your survival is extraneous and is entirely in my hands."

"My lord." The first prime called to his master as he removed his fingers from Adisa's wrist. "The host is failing."

"Weaker than I thought," Ba'al said to himself. "Return her to the sarcophagus. I still have business with Commander Thoril."

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The accommodation SG1 were escorted to was not the prison cell they had expected but they were quite clearly not free to move around. Each of them was assigned a guard who remained in the same room at all times. Davis had not spoken since being dragged away from the battle field and now sat on the edge of a bed, staring out of the window at nothing. Carter took a seat beside him and lowered her head.

"I'm sorry, Major," she said softly. He simply nodded.

"She isn't dead, Colonel Carter," Davis replied. "But what she could suffer at the hands of…" He paused and turned to meet Carters eye. "You saw the Jaffa. You know which system lord they are allied to?"

"Ba'al." Carter said simply. "It may be that they were his Jaffa and are now working for another Goa'uld."

"No, you know that's not the case," Davis replied. "And now we're stuck in here and can't even try to rescue her."

"Major, you have to understand that it would not have been a priority even if we could be sure that she is still alive. We both saw her fall. I'm sorry, but…she can't have survived."

"I can't accept that. I'd know."

Sam took a deep breath and stood up. "You need to get yourself together, Major."

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Swinging her legs from the bed, Adisa wobbled as she stood, grabbing at the wall to steady herself. It wasn't a cell this time but just the same, she realised there was nowhere to go. She was no longer wearing the black trousers and shirt she had been on her capture. It had been replaced by an embroidered black tunic that was a couple of sizes too large and a pair of loose-fitting trousers that felt much like her pyjamas. For a moment, she wondered who had dressed her but didn't have long to worry about it before she realised that she was not alone.

"Commander Adisa Thoril." Ba'al addressed her directly. "Did you sleep well?"

"How do you know my name?" she asked, trying to match his stare.

He held up the small white disc between his fingers momentarily before returning it to its box. "I did tell you I didn't need your co-operation."

"So why are you keeping me here?"

"You are my guest," he replied.

"I am your prisoner!" she objected. "I don't know what makes you think you can treat me in this way."

"Do you really think that I would keep my prisoners in such comfort?" Ba'al interjected, chuckling. "And I fail to see how you can object to your treatment. I have saved your life, given you comfortable accommodation and will continue to offer my hospitality…unless you do anything that will make that…difficult."

"Torture is not my idea of hospitality," Adisa yelled.

Ba'al nodded slowly, the left corner of his mouth twisting in to half a smile. He rose from his seat and approached her.

"I wonder…do you have any understanding of who you are?"

"I do not think I'm the one with identity issues. You claim to be a god!" she exclaimed with a sardonic grin, surprising herself as well as her host.

He smiled and shook his head. "The people thought we were gods. We simply perpetuated that belief. I admit that some among our number began to believe their own propaganda in the end."

"You are a delusional egotist!" Adisa laughed, almost unable to believe what she was hearing.

He smiled. "I know things about you that you don't even know about yourself. For example, you are not Tau'ri."

"What does that even mean? What is a Tau'ri?" she cried.

He disregarded her question. "You are Hok'taur."

"Well, I don't speak Goa'uld, but I assume that's offensive."

"I am telling you that you are not a true human."

His cockiness was starting to irritate her. "Of course not. I am from Kvenla and you are insane!"

"Possibly," he chuckled. "But that doesn't make what I'm telling you any less true. You are not the same as the rest of your people."

"I have no idea what you're talking about?" Her voice was raised now, and she was stood toe to toe with him. "I am the daughter of Erlend, Vinor of Kvenla. My blood is red, the same as all my people."

Ba'al picked up a glass from the table, smashing it against the surface and running the razor-like edge across his hand, holding it out to her. "That proves nothing," he grinned. "You, however, are something of a legend among the Goa'uld. Stories of you persisted. It has been over a hundred years since I have heard from the Kvenla." He reached out and gently stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. "And then you of all people literally fall at my feet."

"Over a hundred years old?" she scoffed. "Well, you're looking good on it. How many hosts have you been through in that time?"

"Let me help you to learn who you really are," he said. The strange resonance was no longer in his voice making him sound softer, gentler.

"I just want to go home. I can't help you and even if I am this…Hok'taur that you are suggesting, I don't care. If you are going to kill me then go ahead and get it…" Her words were halted as he moved towards her. Only centimetres from her face, she could feel his breath against her cheek.

"Kill you? I have other plans for you, assuming you do not force my hand."

"Then let me go," she demanded. A sudden pain ripped through her body and she collapsed into the chair. "What have you done to me?"

"Try to remain calm and it will be less painful."

"The symbiote. It is still…I can feel her inside my mind. GET IT OUT!" she screamed, pulling herself to her feet and lunging towards him.

Ba'al stepped aside and smiled. "Now that I know who you are, there really is no need."

She called out after him, demanding explanations but he did not answer or look back. Dropping back into her chair she put her head in her hands as the door slid closed, slowly slipping into unconsciousness as the pain overwhelmed her.