Stargate SG-1: Emancipation Chapter 4
Sam was the last to step out of the Stargate to find herself in the middle of a forest. Large rocks were everywhere around the gate.
"What a mess." Daniel said as she looked around the temple the Stargate was situated around.
"This temple was destroyed long ago." Teal'c observed.
"Let's get a move on before we meet somebody who remembers why." Jack said as they walked away from the temple.
"There's no sign of human life." Daniel said as she followed him, looking around.
"This could be some forbidden zone." Teal'c said as they heard a bark.
"Wait, I hear something. It sounds like...dogs." Sam said as they saw a boy running for his life and a pack of dogs chasing after him.
"Ahhh! Ahhh! Help!" The boy shouted as SG-1 ran out to rescue the boy.
"No! Help! Ahhh!" The boy shouted as the dogs caught up with him.
"Hey, get out of here!" Jack said as he fired his gun into the air twice. The dogs ran away, scared off by the noise.
Sam and Teal'c went to make sure the dogs had left, and weren't coming back as Jack and Teal'c went to the boy.
"You okay?" Jack asked the boy.
The boy didn't answer, not understanding what Jack had said. "Okay...O"
"Yes I am. Thanks be to you. But forgive me I am Abu of the Shavadai." The boy introduced himself.
"Shavadai?" Dani asked as she and Sam joined them.
Abu looked at Sam and Teal'c, and then backed up to Jack and Daniel. "They are women." He whispered.
"What did we do? do I have something growing out of my nose, or..." Sam said as she wondered what had happened.
"He looks really upset. It must be some sort of cultural thing." Daniel answered as Sam walked over to Jack.
"No! I cannot look at you." Abu said, backing up again.
"Okay, now I'm hurt." Sam said, feeling mildly hurt by his reaction.
"Well...hello! I'm Daniel Jackson." Dani said enthusiastically. He had always liked meeting new people, and didn't seem to be put off that Abu was looking away from her. "This is..."
"Jack." Jack said simply.
"Jack." Daniel said in the same tone.
"You are not from the people of the river." Abu realized.
"Uh, no." Jack said, not knowing what he was talking about.
"We are travelers from very far away." Daniel tried to explain.
"The sea of Ogada?" Abu gasped, forgetting that he wasn't supposed to be looking at either Sam or Danielle.
"S-sure." Jack agreed, figuring it would be easier than explaining everything.
"Never have we met anyone from that far away. You will be doubly welcomed in my father's camp." Abu smiled.
"This is Teal'c, and this is Dr. Carter." Daniel finished up the introductions as they saw a group of horseman approaching.
"Abu!" One of the horsemen shouted.
"You must take her. You must take them and go! Go!" Abu said in a panic, referring to Sam and Leave.
The warning came too late however as the horseman were already too close for them to run away from.
Abu ran up to the horsemen. "These people are from the sea of Ogada."
"Two are women." The horsemen realized.
"Yes." Abu replied.
"Jack, I think these people are Mongols." Daniel whispered to Jack.
"Is that good news?" Jack asked.
"Daniel, find out what we did wrong so we can fix it." Sam said as the horseman got off his horse and looked like he was about to pull something out to kill them with.
"No, no, no, let them go." Abu tried to explain.
"He's right, we'll just go." Daniel said as the horseman shoved Abu and Danni out of his way and pulled out a sword. Another Horseman did the same, and another pulled out a bow and arrow and aimed.
Teal'c got his staff ready, and everyone else got their guns ready, while Sam just looked pissed.
Jack took his gun and started firing into the air. The horses were spooked, and the men were scared as well.
Another older man came over the hill on a horse and yelled something, then came down to join his men.
"My son, when you did not return, I feared you were dead." The old man said.
"I would be in a dog's stomach now, but for these." Abu said as he pointed to SG-1.
The old man looked at SG-1 then at his men. "Is this any way to greet a stranger?"
"That one is a women." One of the horsemen said as he pointed to Sam.
"Observant bunch." Jack remarked.
"Father, they come from the sea of Ogada, they do not know our ways." Abu explained.
"Law is law. What manner of weapon is that?" The old man said as he pointed to their guns.
"It's a firearm, it shoots like your bow shoots an arrow." Sam explained.
"She speaks, she dies." The old man said.
"No! No! She saved my life." Abu stopped them.
"A woman saved a life. Hers cannot be taken. Now, you're my guest, if you will travel this country, you must learn our ways." The old man explained.
"I'm thinking we should just go back while we're ahead." Sam pointed out.
"If we learn their customs we will be okay. It's an incredible opportunity to study an ancient culture up close." Daniel said, unable to contain heexcitement.
A while later Sg1 and the horsemen walked and rid into the village.
Some of the villagers yelled happily. "They found Abu!" "Abu, Abu!"
A woman came out, in a dress, with her face covered by silk. She hugged Abu, and then a bunch of other women come out from behind curtains to greet Abu.
Everyone was cheering. Two of the women grabbed Sam, taking them into a large curtained room with Teal'c and Jack following them.
"This is unbelievable. Uh, the Mongols who settled on the Persian China adapted to the local customs. But there was one tribe the Chagatai that kept the traditional life of the steppe-nomad. Maybe these Shavadai are their descendents. I mean this camp could literally belong to belong to Genghis Khan. It's a living exhibit of a way of life that's been extinct for 900 years." Daniel explained as the old man walked in.
"Ah. Please sit, now we may talk." The old man offered.
"Uh, good, cause I still don't understand what happened out there." Sam replied, a little confused.
"Among our people, it is death for a woman to show her face in public." The old man explained.
"Or to wear the clothes of a man." Abu added.
"The old laws weight heavily, it is well you saved Abu from the dogs. It gave me a way to prevent your death." The old man continued.
"Uh, thank you for that." Sam thanked him awkwardly.
"Soon, the old laws, and the old ways will no longer serve us. Trade will one day replace war, this is the future. We have the strongest, fastest horses and camels. The finest wool..." The old man started to say.
"And medicines. Drugs of unheard of power." Abu continued.
"Oh, we have some pretty swell drugs of our own." Jack said, not believing that they had much to offer.
"Colonel, a lot of breakthrough in medicines are coming out of the mountains, and the jungles, we should really see what he's got." Sam said.
"I will show you, follow me." Abu said as Sam started to get up to follow them.
"I'm afraid you cannot go until properly attired." The old man stopped her.
"Properly attired?" Sam inquired.
"We should probably do what they want. Um, anthropologists do it all the time. They dress and live like the people they're studying." Daniel said.
"Well, I'm not an anthropologist." Sam pointed out
Jack had a big smile on his face. "You are today."
Sam didn't look happy as Teal'c and Jack left the tent as a woman took Sam behind the curtains.
Abu showed Jack and Teal'c a man with a bad looking wound on his chest. "I used the medicine on the wound from a fire arrow, in a recent skirmish. His shoulder was badly burned. From the moment I began treatment, there was no pain."
"This could be an antistatic we haven't seen before." Jack said. "We should take some back to test it."
The SG-1 men walked into a tent, to be reunited with the women of their team.
"Colonel, find me an anthropologist that dresses like this and I will eat this head dress." Sam said as soon as Jack and Teal'c walked in.
Sam took a breath to say something else before stopping, looking at Danielle and then pinching the bride of her nose. "Shut up Dani."
Daniel wisely chose to keep quiet, but couldn't keep the amusement off her face.
Jack and Teal'c just stood there with their mouths hanging open, and Jack with a smile on his face.
Sam has on a blue and white dress, with a beaded headdress on, and a white, silk face mask hanging to the side.
"You are...the most beautiful women I have ever seen." Abu said before he walked out.
"Uh, I guess the kid doesn't get out much. Look uh, I will not wear this thing over my face." She said as she picked up the silk face cover. "I don't care how much embroidery it has on it. And this dress, or whatever it's called, I mean I can't move, I can't walk." Sam complained.
Jack still had that smile on his face. "I don't know, It...It kind of works for me."
Sam looked like she wanted to kill Jack.
"Uh, uh the good news is, uh you were right. One of Abu's plants seems to work as an anesthetic. We're taking some home to get it, uh, a-analyzed." Jack said, noticing the look on Sam's face.
"All things considered, Samantha, if we have to come back here, it might be a better idea to bring an all male team. No offence." Jack said.
"But Jack…" Daniel said, trying to change his mind. "Think of all the things we could learn. As long as we have an escort and dress like this we won't have any problems."
"Well, in view of the fact that they get to go to the party tonight" Sam said as she pointed to Jack and Teal'c. "And we get to stay in the yurt, that smalls like rancid yak butter. I won't be coming back. I'll just get a good night sleep, and hope for better luck next time." Sam said as Teal'c and Jack started to walk out,
"You going to be alright?" Jack stopped right before he got to the tent flap.
"Still doubting us? I'm sure we can scare off the boogey man by ourselves." Sam said as Jack smiled.
"You look great." Jack said before he walked out to join Teal'c.
Sam was lying asleep still in their full dresses in the tent. A man took a knife out of its holder, and then held it to Sam's head, waking her head up with a gasp as she snapped awake.
Sam woke up quickly, She reached for her gun but seeing the knife against her throat she stopped.
The man quickly tied Sam's hands together, making sure to keep an eye on Sam as well as he gagged her, then did the same to Sam.
The next morning Daniel was standing outside the tent. "Samantha Carter, we are ready to leave."
When there was no answer Daniel walked in shielding his eyes. "Dr. Cater? He trailed off noticing the mess and that Sam's gun was still there even though she was not. "No."
In the woods, far away from the camp Sam was sitting down with their facemasks on. They were wide-awake as a Abu finally took the gags off.
"Here, you may eat and drink." Abu said as he handed them some water and food.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Sam demanded.
"There is something I want more than life itself. Until yesterday I thought it was impossible. And then I saw you the two of you, dressed like that. And I knew, your beauty would buy it for me." Abu explained.
"What do you mean buy?" Sam asked.
"I will trade you." Abu said as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
"You can't do that." Sam denied.
"I can." Abu disagreed.
"We are human being, not property." Sam said angrily.
"What will happen to us?" Sam asked.
"Your life will be difficult, but you will manage." Abu replied. He hadn't really thought about what would happen to them.
"So you don't care what happens to us as long as you get what you want?"
Abu did not reply. He had already made his decision last night.
"Our people are coming for us." Sam told Abu. "They probably already know we're missing.
"Where we are going, the men aren't as tolerant as my father. Be warned." Was the only thing that Abu said as they started moving again.
"Any signs?" Jack asked.
"No, no one has seen either of them since last night." Teal'c answered.
"Alright get geared up and ready to move out in 15 minutes." Jack ordered.
"Perhaps we should speak with Mughal first. This may be another cultural misunderstanding that Danielle Jackson spoke of." Teal'c offered.
"To hell with culture, half the members of my team have been neutralized. That's a hostile act." Jack retorted.
"My son is missing, as well as his horse." Mughal said as he walked into the tent as well. "One of the hoofs of his horse is splayed. He will be easy to track."
"Okay what's going on here?" Jack asked.
"I am as ignorant as you." Mughal replied.
"I don't think so. Now he took Captain Carter, I want to know why." Jack denied.
"Among the Shavadai, women are valued highly for trade. Foreign women, most of all." Mughal guessed.
"Can you help me track them?" Jack asked as he turned to Teal'c.
"Now that I know what to look for, I believe so." Teal'c answered.
"I will give you horses, and guide you myself. My son has betrayed me as well as you." Mughal offered.
Abu, and Sam were riding on two horses. Sam was sitting on the first horse with her hands lashed to the saddle, with Abu sitting behind her holding the reigns with one hand and leading Sam's horse with the other.
When they finally come to another village everything was very dull, everyone was wearing dark, mainly brown colors.
Sam obviously stuck out like sore thumbs in their bright dresses. The men stopped to look, and then continue on with their work.
A tall man stepped out of his tent and took out a knife as Abu walked up to him with Sam and Danielle.
"Turghan you may wish to bid me welcome. I have come to trade." Abu said as the man looked at Sam.
"Then come Shavadai," Turghan beckoned as he stepped back into his tent. Sam, and Abu followed. Sam still had their hands tied in front of them, and their face covers were still on.
"See the son of my enemy, how he pales in my presence. You risk your head coming here. For what, you think this interest me?" Turghan said for the benefit of the people in the tent with him.
"Yes." Abu said as he took the facemasks off Sam.
"We don't belong to this man. We were abducted against our will." Sam informed them.
"Where are they from?" Turghan ignored her.
"The sea of Ogada." Abu answered
"Our friends will come after us, they have weapons more powerful then you can imagine and they won't hesitate..." Sam started to say.
"Silence or I will have you beaten." Turghan interrupted.
"You may do whatever you wish with them, when they are yours." Abu stated.
"Then I would see them." Turghan replied.
Abu took off the headdresses. "Turn around," he whispered to Sam.
"No." Sam said as Turghan jumped up and placed a knife against Sam's neck.
"Slowly." Turghan threatened Sam as she slowly turned around.
Turghan then held the knife to Sam's neck, ordering her to turn around. "Your skin is very fair. Look at me!" He said when Sam wouldn't meet his eyes. "Her eyes are the color of green river stones." Turghan said as Sam met his eyes and he took the knife away. "Sit." He ordered then got back in his chair.
Sam sat down on one of the cushions as Abu tried to get Sam to sit but she refused. Abu finally gave up and sat down, leaving Sam standing. "Are you satisfied?"
"Name your price." Turghan said as a girl walked in and sat down beside Turghan. The girl took her facemask off, a hopeful look in her eyes.
"Why do you hesitate? Name it, gold, horses, weapons. I have the finest metal craftsmen in the mountains." Turghan asked.
"No," Abu answered.
"Well, what then." Turghan wondered.
"Nya," Abu answered as they both looked at the girl on the floor.
"You would trade one woman, for two other women?" Turghan asked incredulously. He had never heard anything so ridiculous.
"Nya is not just another woman." Abu denied.
"No she is my daughter." Turghan agreed as Nya smiled at Abu. "She will marry a chieftain. The desert warlord Chimakka."
"Father, please." Nya begged.
"It is done! Chimakka will come on the next moon." Turghan denied.
"That's three days." Nya said.
"How can you do that to your own daughter?" Sam demanded.
"Your beauty will not soften my anger much longer." Turghan warned Sam "The offer for the women is 650 weights of gold. Take it or die, either way the women are mine." He said as he handed the gold to Abu.
"Done." Abu said sadly as he left and Nya started to cry. Another woman came to her and hugged her as Turghan backhanded Sam.
"You would do well to learn from my other woman." Turghan said as he turned to look at Sam. "Here, a woman does not speak, unless she is spoken to."
In the woods the remaining members of SG-1 and Mughal were beside a river as Teal'c and Jack looked in the dirt.
"They stopped here." Teal'c pointed out.
"To rest the horses, and so must we. For two marks. If we do not find them, I will pay whatever you ask for the loss of Carter and Jackson." Mughal offered.
"We don't own our women." Jack said, slightly offended.
"Truly?" Mughal asked in surprise.
"Yeah, why do you treat them like that anyway, and make them cover themselves up?" Jack asked.
"Shhh, we do not speak of it. The laws for women were made to protect and hide them from the demons, which brought us to this place." Mughal said in a hushed tone.
"Demons?" Teal'c asked with a raised eyebrow.
"It is only legend, and long time ago, the dawn of our time." Mughal answered.
"If the demons are gone, why have not the laws been changed?" Teal'c wondered.
"Some say they will return. I say it is an excuse for my men to have their way. Among the Shavadai, even the lowest man is chief among his women." Mughal replied.
Inside Turghan's camp Abu was hiding behind a tree. When no one was looking he snuck up to the women. When no one was looking he whistled like a bird, getting Nya's attention.
"My father will kill you." Nya said as she ran up to Abu.
"Come away with me. Tonight," Abu asked.
"You know I cannot, now go before they find you here." Nya denied.
"I have listened to the wind, you will come. I will wait for you by the tem tree." Abu said as he left.
Meanwhile in another tent within the camp Turghan was talking to Sam.
"Now you are Tugai women of the forest. What can you do? Can you cook? Spin weave, make dyes?" Turghan asked them both.
"I'm a lousy cook, and I couldn't spin weave or die if my life depended on it. You made yourself a bad deal." Sam replied.
"Where you come from, you must have done something." Turghan said.
"In our world I study languages and cultures, the histories of different peoples and the way that they live their lives." Sam spoke for the first time since they arrived in the camp.
"I am a warrior and a scholar. I do the work of men." Sam said as Turghan dropped his things and stomped over to Carter.
"A warrior. Let me tell you what I do. I raid and burn the tents of my enemies. I slaughter the men and trade the women and children. For this, I am feared. And because of that fear, I have the allegiance of 22 tribes." Turghan boasted.
"But you have to sell your own daughter to make it 23?" Sam asked.
"How would you like to be hung upside down, with dust filled rags stuffed in your mouth and nostrils? A slow death from suffocation." Turghan threatened.
"I'm sorry, I'm sure you know what's best for her." Sam backed down.
"The spirits have brought you here to teach you, how to be women." Turghan said as he left.
"Sam? Are you okay?" Sam asked. She had been wondering for a while what was wrong with her. She had hardly said a thing.
"What you're doing is dangerous." Dani pointed out.
"What are you talking about?" Sam asked. "He's treating us like we're objects."
"To him we are object's Sam." "Making him angry isn't going to help us,"
"Well what should we do then?" Sam asked.
"I've studied cultures like this before, back on earth. They're like the early Mongols of the 1200's, only the Mongols treated their women with respect, as equals, although most of the history books seem to downplay the roles of Mongol women. Some people believe it was actually the…"
"Dani," Sam interrupted. "Not that all of that isn't great, but how does it help us."
"Well it doesn't, not yet anyway." Dani replied. "But if we can find out more about their culture there might be a way we can get out of this."
Sam was sitting by a fire with a large plate of food in front of them. They were cutting the food up when Nya came up with an arm full of cotton. She accidentally dropped it in front of the lady and started to cry.
All the women got up and took her away to comfort her, giving Sam an opportunity to hide a knife in her dress. She the put the face mask over her face and snuck off to some horses with Danielle.
They didn't even have a chance to get on the horses before two of the guards spotted them. One of the guards whistled as Sam tried to mount the horse, and the horse jumped onto its hind legs and knock Carter down.
"You belong to Turghan!" The other guard said as he grabbed Sam.
"Get your hands off me, let me go!" Sam demanded as they were dragged to Turghan's hut and the guard gave the knife Sam had to Turghan.
"What kind of women are you? Do you respect nothing? Care for no one but yourself? You will both be punished for this." Turghan said as he took out a whip.
"No! It was my fault. Sam had nothing to do with this. If you need to beat a woman to feel like a man, try me." Sam said.
"I value spirit in my horses, not my women." Turghan said as he grabbed Sam by her hair. "You belong to me, you will learn your place, and be obedient. You will suffer far worse than a beating." Turghan warned.
Turghan stopped to look over at Sam. "What do you speak of?"
"We don't come from the Sea of Ogada." Daniel replied.
"It does not matter, from where you came. You belong to me now." Turghan said.
"It does, my husband, my master. He is a demon, the same demon that brought you to this world." Daniel said. "You must have legends, stories that speak of them."
"We do not speak of them." Turghan said as his face paled slightly. "They have not returned in a long time."
"If they find us harmed you and your entire tribe will be in danger." Daniel said, selling the story further by making her lips quiver and starting to shake.
"If this is true, what are you doing here? Where is your escort? Why do you have a woman as a bodyguard?" Turghan questioned as he started to believe Daniel.
"My husband ordered me to be brought to his new palace, the vessel that brought us was damaged and we landed here." Daniel explained. "Abu was supposed to be our guide. He was to lead us to an iron circle, it will take us home, but he drugged my escort and brought us to you."
"What of this woman?" Turghan asked as he pointed to Sam, not sure what to believe.
"She is one of my bodyguards." Daniel replied. "No man would ever suspect her."
"If we lead you to this iron circle the demons will not return?" Turghan asked.
"Yes," Daniel replied. "If I am returned to him no harm will come to your people."
"Then we will leave tomorrow first light." Turghan promised as he walked out of the tent.
As soon as Sam was sure that Turghan. "That was incredible." She said in shock. "I even started to believe you. Where did you learn to lie like that?"
"I was a teenager when I was on those digs all over the world. It wasn't always the safest place for young women.". "So I had to learn to lie pretty convincingly."
A few hours later, just outside of Turghan's village Teal'c, Jack, and Mughal had finally arrived.
"The tracks lead directly there." Teal'c said as he pointed to the main tent.
"Who owns the place?" Jack asked.
"An enemy. A man who kills for pleasure. This is very bad." Mughal replied.
"Well then we will go and get her tonight." Jack suggested.
"If we attack, there will be war. Turghan is allied with 22 clans. When he fights, he takes no prisoners." Mughal explained.
"If you will wait until morning, I will go, and request a trade, he cannot refuse." Mughal offered.
"But what will happen to Captain Carter tonight if we wait?" Teal'c asked.
"Turghan will partake in his newest purchases." Mughal explained.
"Oh, there's not a chance in hell, where we come from if a man wants a women, she can say no." Jack replied.
"No one refuses, Turghan, and lives." Mughal said, slightly fearful.
"Then we go now." Jack said as they all started for the village.
"Stop!" A guard shouted as soon as he spotted her. "Turghan!" He shouted when he recognized the people in front of him. They must have been the escort for the woman.
Turghan ran up to them, his eyes settling on Mughal immediately. "I will kill your entire tribe for what your son has done! He nearly brought down the wrath of the demons that brought us here!"
Jack and Teal'c looked between each other wondering what the hell was going on. What was he talking about?
"…Where are they?" Jack finally said, hoping that they would know what was going on.
"Yes of course," Turghan replied as he lead them to his tent.
Jack, Teal'c, Daniel Turghan, and Mughal walked into the tent to find Sam sitting on a pile of cushions, snacking on some fruit.
"Turghan, would you please excuse us?" Sam.
"Yes, of course." Turghan said. The further away he was from them the better he felt.
"We came… to rescue you." Jack said, confused by what he found.
"What took you so long sir?" Sam asked as she stood up.
"We really need to leave right now." Sam said as she stood up quickly.
"Wait, what's going on? Shouldn't you be… oh I don't know… their PRISONER." Jack yelled.
"I tricked them into thinking that the 'demons' that brought them to this world would come back if we didn't go back through the Stargate, and I don't know how much longer that they're going to believe that, so can we please leave?" Sam.
When they all went outside again Turghan was outside waiting for them. "I paid 650 weights of gold for them. I expect to have it returned to me."Turghan demanded Mughal.
"Is that a lot?" Dani asked the question that she had been wondering for a while.
"Enough to buy thirty women." Mughal answered.
"You will bring another 350 weights of gold here in two days Mughal with the 650 for the women or I will have your entire tribe killed." Turghan threatened.
Back in the woods Sam had changed back into their SGC uniforms.
"What a relief, I have never been so happy to see you guys." Sam said.
"Oh I don't know about that. You two seemed to be doing okay on your own." Jack pointed out.
"We got lucky Jack." Sam pointed out.
"We won't get into that now. Mughal, I want to thank you for your help. I don't blame you for what Abu did."
"He is suffering the madness, as I did when I was young." Mughal said, leaving Sam looking confused.
"It's what they call love." Daniel added.
The next morning Teal'c was on watch while everyone else was asleep. A horse could be heard coming from the distance, waking everyone up. They were standing up in instant, weapons ready before they realized it was Abu.
"Please, you must help me." Abu said as he rode up to them.
"Help you?" Same demanded angrily as she literally pulled Abu off his horse, to the ground, and holding her military knife to his throat. "I should kill you for what you tried to do."
"Stand down Captain," Jack ordered, knowing how Sam felt about the situation. "We don't have time for this."
Sam reluctantly and angrily shoved Abu to the ground before moving back.
"Why?" Sam asked simply as she walked up to him. "We saved you from those dogs, and you sold us to Turghan. Why?"
Abu looked down, feeling ashamed at his actions. "I love Nya so much. I thought that if I gave you to him we could be together."
"What about us?" Sam asked softly. "What would have happened to us? You knew that we weren't from your world, that we didn't understand your customs."
Abu didn't say anything he couldn't look at them, either of them.
"They would have hurt me." Sam said, seeing that Abu wasn't going to answer her. "Since we didn't know anything about your culture they were going to keep hurting us because we would keep making mistakes."
A look of horror flashed across Abu's face. He was so busy thinking about Nya that he hadn't even thought about what would happen to anyone else. "I am sorry… so sorry. I am suffering the madness." Abu tried to explain.
"No." Sam said simply. "You weren't suffering anything. You made a choice, a choice that hurt us, hurt your father, and your entire tribe."
"If we do not give Turghan a thousand weights of gold by tomorrow he will destroy our tribe." Mughal said.
"But even with the 650 weights of gold he paid me it will wipe out our entire treasury. Our tribe will have nothing!" Abu said in shock.
"Be glad that is all he asked for. It could very well have been your life on top of everything else." Mughal replied.
"Nya was to meet me lat night, but her father caught her. She is to be stoned to death today, better to have left her to marry Chimakka." Abu said sadly. He had lost everything because of his foolishness.
"I would not see anything I cared for go to Chimakka." Mughal said.
"Can I get a little clarification here? Her own father ordered her stoned to death, is that right?" Jack asked disbelievingly.
"Because she broke the law of the land." Abu replied.
"Turghan is compelled to uphold the law, even more if it applies to his own. He must rule by example." Mughal explained.
"We have to go back, now!" Sam said. She wasn't too fond of Abu right now, but she didn't want to see anything happen to Nya.
"Negative." Jack stated.
"She can't be more then 16 or 17! Sam isn't much older than her," Sam asked trying to get some kind of reaction.
Jack glared at Sam. "Captain, if we go in there and try to get that little girl out, we could be starting a war on this planet."
"Since when are you a politician, Colonel." Sam demanded.
"Easy, Captain." Jack warned.
"De Opresso Liber. To free from oppression, special forces motto." Sam quoted.
"I know what it is. That's our world, this is there's." Jack snapped.
"Sam if we do this Turghan is going to know that we lied to him. A lot of other people could get hurt." Danielle pointed out. She wanted to help Nya as much as Sam did, but there was a chance that a lot of other people could get killed in the process.
"Maybe you guy aren't getting this, but they're about to kill this teenage girl! Simply because she fell in love with this boy!" Sam said as she pointed to Abu.
"Please, use your weapons, and free her." Abu pleaded.
"The Colonel is right. It would mean war, Abu. My son, you must choose, between one woman, and your people." Mughal said, hating the fact that his son had to make this choice.
"I cannot." Abu broke down.
"Neither can I, Nya broke a law that because it was unfair, we can't leave her to die because of that."
"But if it is one life, or many." Teal'c pointed out.
"Wait. Now there has to be another way. Mughal, what about the old laws? Isn't there something that we can..." Daniel started to ask.
"Yes, yes. If we fight with law, Turghan cannot make war. Father, please, think, remember, there must be a law." Abu pleaded.
"There is one." Mughal said reluctantly.
Back in Turghan's village, Turghan's men had stones in their hands as they made Nya sit against a pole.
"Father, forgive me." Nya cried as Turghan walked up to her.
"I forgive you." Turghan whispered into her ear as he stood up. "Stone her!" He said, dashing away any hope that Nya had.
The men raised their hands to through the stones.
"Do not!" Mughal said as he walked into the village, as the men dropped their stones and pulled out their swords.
"You have no say here, Shavadai…" Turghan began to say before he saw Daniel. "Are you mad Mughal? You were to bring the girl to the iron circle, you have dammed us all!"
"You aren't in danger from them." Daniel said as she looked him in the eyes. "We lied to you, we tricked you."
"NO!" Turghan said, his face red with rage as he stormed up to them, sword in hand.
"I don't think so." Jack said as fired at the ground in front of Mughal bringing him to a dead stop.
"You will pay for this Mughal, and so will you." Turghan swore as he looked at Sam and Dani. "This I promise you."
"Stoning, and tribal disputes may be challenged by another chieftain." Abu said
"There is no such law." Turghan denied.
"There is. In the song of Arkhan-tyr, the sprits will strengthen the hand of the just." Mughal replied.
"I will not fight a cripple." Turghan said in disgust.
"You must." Mughal pointed out.
"You insult my honor by implying that I would engage in such a slaughter. You will lose and my daughter will still die. So unless there is another chieftain who will challenge my decision…" Turghan said as Sam stepped up.
"I challenge it." Sam said.
"You? You plague me." Turghan said.
"Then fight, here's your chance to shut me up once and for all." Sam goaded him.
"I will abide by the wisdom of the spirits. Let them decide justly." Turghan finally replied.
"So when your backs up against the wall and there's no tomorrow, just take one day at a time, and remember the bigger they are, etcetera." Jack half coached, half joked.
"You don't think I can win." Sam realized.
"Sure I do. I assume you have at least some basic hand-to hand training." Jack replied.
"Yeah, level three, advanced." Sam replied.
"You'll do fine." Jack said as Sam went out onto the fighting area and stood in a fighting position as Jack walked over to Mughal, "Just out of curiosity, how do the sprits determine who wins?"
"It is a fight, to the death." Mughal said as he looked at the fighting area.
"Death?" Jack said as Sam and Turghan began to fight.
Jack watched as Turghan pulled out a large knife. "Hey, no one said anything about..."
Turghan's men pulled knives out and held them against SG-1 and Mughal and Daniel necks.
"Knifes." Sam said as she pulled out a comparatively speaking very small knife from her uniform.
Turghan swung his knife at Sam who ducked and rolled out of the way. Turghan kept the momentum going, keeping Sam on the defensive.
Sam finally managed to stab Turghan in the stomach, a shallow cut that didn't keep him down for long.
Jack was standing at the ready, his finger on the trigger of his gun.
Seeing the blood on Sam's knife, his blood sent Turghan into a rage. Turghan wanted Sam worse than ever now and came at her with full force. He knocked her down sending her head crashing down on a log.
Turghan swung his knife down but Sam rolled out of the way at the last moment and he ended up cutting the log in half.
Before Turghan could get his knife out of the tree Sam kicked him, seeing her moment. Sam quickly had the knife out of Turghan's hand and had him pinned on the ground, with her knife at his throat.
"Carter, please do not kill him." Nya said as she ran up, her hands still tied behind her back.
"I do not want to." Sam said.
"You have won, I am free to go with Abu." Nya said.
"I want to hear it from you." Sam said to Turghan.
"She's free to go." Turghan said.
"And the Shavadai?" Sam continued.
"By law, there can be no war between us." Turghan agreed.
"And me?" Sam asked.
"You have won. You are also free to go." Turghan said as Sam took her knife away from his neck and stood up.
Back in Mughal's village all of SG-1 was standing together smiling.
"You will not stay for the wedding?" Mughal asked.
"Aw, a six day wedding, you know we really should get back." Jack said.
"It is a joyous time!" Abu added.
"But we all wish you and Nya many years of happiness." Sam said as they left.
"All Shavadai, be free!" Mughal said as the women suddenly came down and stood in public for the first time in many years without their facemasks on.