Walter watched as the Stargate automatically shut down, SG-1 and the others having made it through to PXY-6249 without incident. He could feel General Landry behind him, a stony and dark presence that otherwise would've been quite typical after a bad day. Today, however, was a different story. General Landry had barely spoken a word to anyone unless it was to bark orders.
When he first arrived, he'd been furious, but at least willing to listen to what had happened. It wasn't until he went into his office, drew the curtains and spoke to the Pentagon that his mood began to change. Since then, he'd been like a brick wall. And though he hated to admit it, Walter wondered if it wasn't completely justified.
That wasn't to say that the SGC hadn't met its fair share of problems head on in the past – and had pulled through in the end. And it certainly wasn't to say that General O'Neill didn't have the capacity to make good decisions, or honest mistakes for that matter. In his year at the helm, the SGC had done just fine. Even now, General Landry was implementing the same procedures General O'Neill and Colonels Reynolds and Carter had enacted when Anubis had wreaked havoc on the base. And it would be ignorant of someone to blame him for a mistake that anyone could've made under the same circumstances. It was per the SGC's unspoken policy that refugees from other dimensions were at least given a chance. And it had been an alternate Colonel Carter, after all.
Still, judging by the state of affairs in Washington and the concern in General Landry's eye, it looked as if some people wouldn't be nearly as understanding. There was also the matter of General O'Neill and Colonel Carter's health, which had been left to Dr. Lam's discretion while fires were extinguished via telephone.
Walter hoped they'd be able to find this doppelganger's weakness soon, before two of the SGC's likeliest problem-solvers met an untimely end - and before the IOA found a way to shut down the SGC, once and for all.
"Any luck, Daniel?" Cameron asked, peeking over Daniel's hunched shoulder. Daniel refrained from rolling his eyes, settling for a sigh instead.
"Well, it's definitely Ancient," Daniel announced needlessly.
Reynolds turned around from his spot at the doorway of the large dome that housed the Stargate and shot Daniel a look. "You said that twenty minutes ago."
"I know, but look, it's beyond jumbled here," Daniel prattled. "Sentences that would normally make perfect sense are like, like… riddles." Following the words on the wall with his finger, Daniel quietly mouthed the foreign words. "'If the… with…' Hmmm." He stopped.
"Hmm?" Cameron repeated. "Hmmm, what?"
"It basically says, 'If the destruction of evil is found, treasure is near.'"
Captain Bob Meux frowned and glanced back at Colonel Reynolds. "You're right, that makes no sense."
Daniel squinted at the complexities of the wall of inscriptions, sure there was an answer there somewhere. "But see, the two words that don't make sense, given the sentence structure, are 'matreveo' – the destruction of evil – and 'ganule' – which is normally used in the context of treasure."
"Normally?"
Daniel stood back from the wall and rubbed a hand through his hair, before turning back to face the others. "Well… oddly enough, it can also be translated as 'crystal.'"
"Now that makes sense," Cameron enthused. The others nodded in agreement, not quite understanding why Daniel wasn't satisfied.
"Well, I'm glad SOMEONE'S made sense of that babble over there," a distinctly feminine voice called from the shadows. Instantly all men turned to the sound of approaching footprints from deeper within the dome with guns raised. "I was beginning to wonder if I'd been cheated."
"Come out and keep your hands where we can see them," Reynolds barked into the shadows, the source of the voice still hidden in the darkness of the abandoned arena. Daniel ignored the slight annoyance he felt at Reynold's tone, understanding the reasons behind it. The woman who'd managed to elude their discovery could've contained any number of threats. And they didn't need any more surprises.
"Alright, alright," the stranger replied loudly as she stepped out into the light, "no need to get excited. I'm here, and I'm unarmed."
"Who are you?" Teal'c responded, obviously not caring if she was armed or not.
The woman, whose face was slightly smudged but was otherwise rather attractive, refastened her long black hair into a sort of messy bun and scoffed. "I hardly see how my identity has any bearing on this chance encounter. You're obviously looking for the Ancient Emerald, and I can tell you right now that it's not here. Somebody's already come and claimed it."
"Yeah, that would be us," Cameron replied, taking a step forward. "We discovered it a few days ago."
She frowned in thought and shook her head, clearly bemused. Finally, she swallowed and raised a solitary finger in the air. "How much?"
Major Alex Shue nearly choked on a chuckle. "What?"
"It's a simple question," she answered haughtily. "How much for the emerald? Surely you have a price?"
"As much as we'd love to haggle," Cameron drawled, "we can't name a price, because we don't have it."
The woman opened her mouth as if to reply, and then soundly closed it again. "But… I thought you just said that you discovered it a few days ago?"
"We did," Reynolds responded, shooting a glare at Cameron, "but it's since… gone missing."
"You mean somebody stole it."
It wasn't a question. Yet nobody answered.
Slowly a smile came to the strange woman's face as she surveyed the group of people, her eyes finally landing on Daniel. "You. You read Ancient."
Again with the non-question. Daniel nodded.
"And other languages, too?"
Daniel stared at her for a moment, attempting to read her as he often did strangers off-world, but came up empty. Behind those laughing eyes was a solid wall. "Yes."
She nodded succinctly then, and chuckled lightly to herself as she took another step forward, her hands still in the air. Finally, she let her hands fall to her sides. The men who'd grown lax with their weapons, brought them up to eye level once more.
"I tell you what," she said, her eyes focused solely on Daniel, "I let the rest of your people go through the Chappa'ai in exchange for you."
Reynolds looked at his gun, turned around and glanced at the others, before laughing slightly at the woman. The others followed in suit, clearly amused. "You'll let us go? Ma'am, I mean no disrespect, but you're not really in the position to be making any decisions right now."
"Oh?" she asked, tapping a discreet bracelet on her wrist. "You'd be surprised."
Immediately, a wave of energy washed over the men, taking their weapons with it and slamming them into the walls behind them. Those who were fast enough to go for their sidearms found them effortlessly slapped away, and received a shock for good measure. Before they could respond, they were all on the ground, crushed by the same force that had left them defenseless in the first place.
The woman sighed then, obviously troubled as she looked at the helpless men on the ground. "I'm sorry. I really hate to do that, but I'm not all that fond of big, projectile weapons to begin with. They're just a bit extreme, don't you think? In fact, one word comes to mind: Overcompensation."
Quickly she walked over to a clear spot between Reynolds and Teal'c, and hunkered down to their level. She didn't miss the brief look of fear pass over Reynolds' face, nor the lingering murderous glare of Teal'c's from several feet away. "Since you're obviously the leader, I'm going to give you your options: You and your people can go back through the Chappa'ai in exchange for the language specialist." She paused then and grinningly caught the eye of Teal'c. "And Muscles here." Turning back to Reynolds, she continued, her eyes no longer shining with any sort of humor. "Or, I can keep you here, under the Burden, for the rest of your undoubtedly short lives. Tell me, what will it be, kind sir?"
Reynolds swallowed and glanced at his men. If he thought his presence would mean anything to the woman, he'd gladly take both Dr. Jackson and Teal'c's place. But it seemed she had her own agenda, one she'd been cultivating for a while now. And he really wasn't in the position to be making any bargains.
He closed his eyes in acceptance, and immediately felt the weight – the Burden, she'd called it – lift off of his lungs, giving him a chance to breathe properly.
"Do not attempt to use your weapons until you're through the Chappa'ai," she warned. "They will have no effect on me, and will only result in your death."
Once everyone else was unburdened, so to speak, the woman tapped her bracelet again.
Bracing themselves for another attack, they nearly missed the opportunity to catch their weapons as they went skittering back across the ground. After gathering all of the loose weapons sans Daniel's and Teal'c's (Reynolds and Cameron grabbed them upon the woman's order), the men headed back to the other side of the dome, where the Stargate stood in the distance. Daniel and Teal'c were instructed to hang back several feet in front of the woman, while the others led the way up ahead.
Reynolds could feel Cameron staring at him, wondering if this was all leading up to some grandiose, last-ditch effort to save Daniel and Teal'c. Minutely he shook his head, sorry to admit that he had no viable plan. This was the kind of decision they prepared soldiers for in basic training. The sacrifice of the few for the good of the many. It wasn't always as clear and concise as they made it sound, but it somehow made sense nevertheless.
Cameron, despite his feelings to the contrary, agreed that the best bet would be to head back through the Stargate so they could check in with the general and get reinforcements. He glanced at Daniel and Teal'c. Teal'c looked beyond angry, most likely at the prospect of not being able to check on Carter and General O'Neill's progress, and Daniel looked about ready to formulate an argument of some kind – most likely to that end.
Really, though, neither man said a word. He pondered that for a moment, remembering that this wasn't exactly new to either of them. Both had been at this game for a long time.
The woman hadn't said a word since Reynold's acquiescence, either. As Cameron studied her features, committing them to memory, he couldn't help but think that she looked rather regretful. Almost sad, even.
It certainly wasn't the face of a cold-hearted killer. Cameron made sure to file that bit of information away for future reference, before he glanced ahead as Captain Meux dialed home.
Though he was concerned for Daniel and Teal'c's safety, that unguarded insight into the woman's state of mind kept Cameron at mild ease. For the moment. Now all he worried about was what would happen once they got back to the SGC.
Landry was going to be pissed.
She turned to Daniel and Teal'c as the rest of their men walked through the Chappa'ai, one in particular hanging back for but a fraction of a moment. She could understand their concern, really she could. But she'd already made up her mind. She would need the two of them to enact her plan, and they'd just have to deal with it.
"If we're going to be helping you, shouldn't we at least know your name?" Daniel inquired.
She frowned at his continued insolence. "What?"
"Your name," Daniel repeated, his patience waning. "I'm Daniel Jackson, and this is Teal'c."
She gasped before she could stifle it, and took a step away from Teal'c. Yes, she'd heard of "The Sholva," as her own personal hell had called him. Deep down, she'd always reveled in the way his name evoked such subtle terror within the hearts of the spineless Goa'uld. He represented their greatest fears, and his following had multiplied a hundred-fold since she'd first heard of him so long ago. She admired him and his cause immensely.
Daniel glanced between her awestruck stare and Teal'c's impatient glare. "Uh… I take it you've heard of him?"
She simply nodded, before returning her heavy gaze to Daniel's expectant one. "My name is Vala Mal Doran. And, with any luck, our alliance will be very brief." With that, she walked passed the two men.
Teal'c growled as she barely brushed by him, nearly causing her to misstep. Even Daniel was a bit surprised. "Teal'c" he asked. "Something wrong?"
"She is a Goa'uld," Teal'c spat. "So our 'alliance' indeed shall be very brief."
Eyes widening in shock, and despite his better judgment, Daniel hurried after Vala. She did not move, her eyes looked quite pained. He stopped short of barraging her, but only just. "What exactly are your plans for us?"
Vala sighed and shrugged. "I need your help – both of you – but you're going to have to trust me."
"Trust you?" Daniel almost laughed. "You used a weapon on us that could've killed us, after pretending like you were unarmed. Then you sent our friends home without us, after threatening them with their lives. It also turns out you're a Goa'uld. And you want us to trust you?"
"Yes," Vala answered flatly, nonplussed by his passionate rant and deliberately ignoring his comment about her being a Goa'uld. "And, in return, I'll do my best to make it all worthwhile for you. I promise you that."
Daniel glanced once more at Teal'c, as if gaining silent insight from the menacing man. Vala found herself entranced by this wordless communication between them. She wondered if this would become a serious problem later.
After finally nodding to Daniel, Teal'c turned back to their captor. "What are your plans?"
She found herself grinning again, tipping her hand a bit to let them see just how much they were needed. And they were definitely needed.
She'd been without company for so long, their presence would be a welcome respite from her rather torturous solitude. Maybe, in time, she'd be given the opportunity to make it up to them. Maybe even become their friends.
"Follow me." Leading the way back to the wall where they'd first met, confident in her shield and the men's inability to harm her, Vala smirked at her own naivete. Of course they'd never truly trust her, let alone befriend her. She'd just have to enjoy their company while it lasted.
In the meantime, she would allow the language man a few more hours at the wall, before heading out.
Judging by the resolute way each man marched behind her, they would do all they could to hasten her plans.
Or, perhaps, to foil them.