"Why don't we all just relax?" Aeneas beat his heels against the rock he was sitting on. He'd been watching Telamon and Pollux carry on a heated discussion for the last ten minutes. They were arguing about what to do next; head back to Elysium or wait at the Stargate.
"They will not come back through this way Telamon!" Pollux jabbed a finger at the Gate.
"What makes you so sure?"
"They had to have known they would have been followed. If my brother is with them they would have assumed he would be missed! What possible reason would they have to simply return?"
"The woman." Aeneas spoke to no one in particular as he inspected his fingernails.
Telamon shot the blonde man a smug look, "Precisely."
"She has been taken! By now they would have come to terms with that."
"No not be so naïve, my friend." The tall man rested against the DHD, a blade of grass in his mouth. "SG-1 will return, it is simply a matter of time."
"If that is true, then we are wasting our time being here." Pollux flared his nostrils.
"You still believe that they will find another means to come to her aide?"
Pollux stared at Telamon in disbelief, "No. I am unsure of what you are saying Telamon. Major Carter was chosen as a Significant, and, just like my brother's wife there is no return for her. What ails you that prevents you from seeing the truth? This is over. We should return to Elysium and beg Rhadamanthus for forgiveness."
Aeneas was now standing next to Pollux, hands
on his hips. Both waited for a response. Telamon suddenly realised
that he was the only one with knowledge of the true whereabouts of
their Significants. Time to change tactics.
"You are right.
Forgive my blindness. The capture of SG-1 means a lot to my father,
and to me. I was foolish to bring you both with me on such a
fruitless jaunt." The response was forced, stiff like cardboard.
Telamon had never been a good actor. "But what of your
brother?"
"My brother was a good man." Pollux turned away and made a start for home. Aeneas followed suit, his brow knit in uncertainty. Telamon breathed a sigh of relief. Nobody could be trusted anymore. He had to do the job alone, even if it meant sneaking back to the Stone Circle by himself.
Sam was seated on a short velvet-covered lounge in Ptah's huge 'playroom'. The Goa'uld had forced her to sit down while he paced in front of her, spouting off about the nature of his scientific research. Sam dug her fingers into the red material, trying to will herself not to lunge at him and choke the bastard to death. She figured that it wouldn't do her much good anyway; she was as weak as a kitten. Instead, Sam straightened her back and shaped her 'give-me-one-chance-and-I'll-rip-your-heart-out' look. Unfortunately, Ptah was too busy dictating to notice.
"Not all Significants are taken by other System Lords. Some are used for my research, which I have kept secret for countless years."
Sam hissed through her teeth, "Research into what?"
Ptah stopped pacing and smiled. Gathering his cloak behind him he snatched a plate of fruit from a small table and stole a seat next to Sam. Leaning in dangerously close, his breath hot on her face, he almost whispered, "Eternal life."
"You already have that." Sam spat angrily and scooted further up the lounge. This was getting nowhere.
"True, but I am not referring to prolonging my life, as such." Ptah's smile widened and he offered some sort of grape to Sam. As he had expected, she turned her nose up at it. Placing the sickly looking fruit back onto its plate he continued, "It is the lifespan of Zoticus that I wish to lengthen."
Sam started to ask the obvious question, 'Who the hell is Zoticus', when it struck her.
"Oh my God… you're talking about your host!"
The Goa'uld's response was a short chuckle. Sam scrunched her eyes shut and turned her head away from him. This was wrong, so wrong. Sam was slightly surprised that Ptah knew and cared about his host's name, but it didn't make the situation any less plausible. Goa'uld gene therapy… it didn't work for Nirti it wasn't going to work for Ptah but like any Goa'uld he was more than willing to test on innocent humans.
"Is it so wrong for one to become attached to their physical self?"
It was Sam's turn to laugh, "Firstly, you're not a 'one' you're a blood sucking parasite. Secondly, Zoticus does not belong to you, you invaded his body against his will."
Ptah ignored the comments, "I've grown attached to him, and as such am working on a way to ensure that I never have to-"
"Abandon ship?" Sam cut him off, her tone icy, "You're sick."
"You may think otherwise in time. You see, not only am I now working towards this goal for myself, I am doing this for you as well. Since I have waited such a long time to have your company, it is only fair that you endure as long as I do."
Ptah was delusional if he though she was going to stick around to be tested on. Pretending that the notion wasn't making her sick, Sam shot to her feet and whipped around to face Ptah, "Keep dreaming."
Ptah sighed, "Sooner or later you may want to accept the fact that you are mine. There is no escape. You may find the hospitality to be more to your liking if you come to terms with your fate."
Sam was through arguing about it. There was no way she'd ever conform to a Goa'uld's will. However, no amount of back-chatting was going to make Mr. Pig-Headed Honcho let her go. Figuring that her best option was to learn as much as she could about Ptah's research, she risked asking a question.
"I take it you're failing miserably… just like Nirti?"
"Nirti's experiments were child's play compared to what I am to achieve. I won't be simply making the human body live longer, I will be preserving it. Almost like stopping time itself. When it works for you, you will remain as beautiful and youthful as you are now, for eternity. To my credit, I have developed a drug that works. However, once it is absorbed into the blood stream the effects no longer exist. It is therefore necessary to continue to administer the drug at regular intervals…"
"But?" Sam folded her arms.
"But, after mere months, the drug consumes the human body. Despite my efforts to keep the subjects alive, the sarcophagus does nothing to bring them out of a painful demise… and I am forced to start again."
"This drug is made from what? Cordial?" The wise-crack fell on deaf ears.
"The soil."
"What?"
"Elysian soil. Or more correctly, a mineral found within it. When mixed with a trace amount of Naquadah the mixture gains regenerative properties beyond my initial expectations. Unfortunately I have not yet mastered the dosage nor a means to keep it within the bloodstream."
Sam was shocked, 'The Colonel's sparkly dirt? No, it couldn't be.' Daniel and herself had already worked out the mineral's potential as a means to generate power, but this… this was insane!
When he received no response from Sam, Ptah added his final comment, "But, I am confident that I will find a way to make it work, now that I have you…"
'Oh, so not going there!'
"Sorry, you lucked out. I'm an astrophysicist not a doctor. Wouldn't help you anyway even if it wasn't the case…" Sam turned her back to the seated Goa'uld and folded her arms. She felt slightly better not having to stare at him. The Naquadah in her blood felt like it was boiling. Right now she wished she was back in her dark, cold cell. At the very least she wouldn't have to suffer the ongoing presence of the Goa'uld symbiote. The prospect of what she was hearing was interesting, she couldn't help her scientific mind from walking all over the possibilities. But now wasn't the time nor place to be intrigued damn it!
"As I mentioned, Samantha, we have plenty of time. I will bend you to conform to my every whim before we find the answer. I want your full and utter loyalty, lest you decide to reverse my hard work."
Sam shuddered. Although she wasn't giving in if she had anything to say about it, Sam wasn't sure just how much 'conforming' she could endure before she broke. As if to reinforce her thoughts, she was suddenly engulfed by Ptah's strong grip around her torso, pinning her arms by her sides. Her feet left the floor, and the Goa'uld brought his head inches from hers and drew in her sent like some wild animal, his nose brushing her neck.
'Sam! You should know better than to turn your back on a Goa'uld!' But chastising herself wasn't going to help the fact that she could hardly move and could do nothing to stop the nausea from creeping into her depths. Sam clenched her teeth shut and attempted to wriggle free; an impossible task given that she had no leverage. Ptah sniggered in her ear and let her go. No sooner than her feet had hit the ground again, Sam was five paces away and ready to kick his teeth in.
Ptah placed his hands on his hips and curled one side of his mouth up, clearly amused by her defensive stance.
"It may take much discipline but in time Samantha, you will learn."
'What? To love you? Hardly.' Sam tugged her caftan back down.
"Now, you are going to eat something." Ptah picked up his plate again and tipped it in Sam's direction, "I shall even let you choose."
Sam's stomach growled, and she almost reached out to take the goods from him, but her fingers snapped back just as Ptah handed her the assortment. As if in slow motion, the plate fell to the ground. As it smashed, multi-coloured fruit smashed along with it, creating gooey splodges on Ptah's nice mosaic flooring. The shards of the plate stuck into the food in haphazard places, making the fruit look like tiny hedgehogs. Sam bit back a snort of amusement. By the look on Ptah's face, this was no laughing matter.
"Have it your way." Ptah's eyes flashed menacingly, and in a heartbeat he had Sam in his grip again, a new-found fury coating his actions.
"Let go!" A fat load of good it was going to do her, but it seemed like the appropriate response, all things considered. It's only food after all, how much of an overreaction can one make? Clearly, Ptah either cherished his chinaware, or was furious over the fact that Sam had - once again - disobeyed him. She knew which was true.
"You leave me no choice Samantha. I had hoped to spare you from this." With one arm now around her waste, Ptah grabbed a fistful of his long sleeve and clamped his hand over Sam's mouth and nose.
'Oh God, he's going to suffocate me… over a few grapes!' Her body's natural reaction was to hold in her last breath as she struggled against him, fingers clawing at his wrist. Ptah's grip on her tightened slowly forcing the precious air from her lungs. Sam tried desperately to breathe but the cloth had plugged up any tiny gaps between Ptah's fingers. Her vision swam before her bringing that all-too-familiar nausea with it once again.
Ptah spoke softly in her ear, almost as if he was trying to comfort her, "This is what happens when we don't do as we are told. So, when you wake up, we shall try this again. Perhaps you might feel like dining with me then Samantha…"
The burning in Sam's lungs turned into a numbing sensation as she felt the life drain from her limbs. Against her will her body gave into the inevitable. After several agonisingly slow seconds, her arms dropped to her sides, her head lolled forward… and her eyelids fluttered shut.
Ptah sighed heavily and let Sam's lifeless body crumple to the floor, "This is just the beginning Samantha…"
