STARGATE: DISCORDIA

CHAPTER 1


"At ease," said General Landry as he took his seat at the head of the briefing table. "I hope you're all ready to get back to work, because it seems we have something of a situation developing."

"Really?" said Mitchell, taken aback. "Everything's been so quiet lately, I thought we were about ready to close up shop here."

"So did I, until about 12 hours ago when we received an urgent message from a Goa'uld scientist who asked to see us. She claims to have information concerning a plot to restore the Goa'uld to their former power."

Daniel adjusted his glasses. "Well to be fair, with the Ori out of the picture and the Lucian Alliance falling apart, there aren't a whole lot of groups left in this galaxy that could put up much of a fight. It's pretty much just us now."

Mitchell remained sceptical. "I don't buy it. Are there even any Goa'uld left out there that aren't just small time try-hards?"

"A few," said Vala. She took a sip of water. "I know for a fact that Zipacna and Amaterasu are still around somewhere. Plus the Goa'uld do have an extremely annoying habit of coming back from the dead. You must admit, Apophis, Anubis, and Ba'al bounced back more than a few times before we finally got rid of them for good."

"Couldn't hurt to hear what she has to say," Sam conceded. "If the threat sounds genuine, we should at least check it out. Do we know anything about this particular Goa'uld scientist?"

"You tell me," said Landry. "She calls herself Eris. Can't say I've ever heard of her before."

Vala and Teal'c exchanged a knowing look, prompting Mitchell to ask; "Ring any bells?"

"Eris is a minor Goa'uld that was once in service to Sokar," said Teal'c. "Like Nerus and Thoth, she is known for being more innovative than most Goa'uld."

Sam nodded slowly. "I think the Tok'ra have had dealings with her in the past. Apparently she doesn't use the sarcophagus technology, so she's a bit less ... evil than the norm."

"The question is, can she be trusted?" said Landry. "Or is it silly of me to even ask?"

Vala winced. "Honestly, trusting her isn't really the problem."

"Then what is?"

Teal'c and Vala both shifted uncomfortably.

"Eris can be very ... annoying," said Teal'c finally.

"Annoying?"

"And creepy," Vala added.

There was an awkward silence around the briefing room before Landry spoke again.

"That's it? You mean to tell me that after dealing with all sorts of genocidal megalomaniacs, the only problem you have with this particular Goa'uld is that she's ... annoying?"

"And creepy," said Vala, "Don't forget that." She looked around at everyone. "What? Scoff if you will, I guarantee you that after spending five minutes with her you'll wish we never let her set foot on this planet. Eris may be one of the more trustworthy Goa'uld, but she's also ... slimey."

General Landry stood up. "I'll take that under advisement. Send word, we're willing to meet and hear what she has to say."

As everyone else stood, Teal'c had a look of irritation on his normally taciturn face, whilst Vala audibly groaned.

"Will you two relax?" said Mitchell. "How bad can one minor Goa'uld be?"

Vala pointed sharply at him. "Just you wait. You'll see."


"Offworld activation!"

The vortex surged out of the Stargate before settling into the usual calm, shimmering ripple of the event horizon. Moments later the members of SG-17 stepped through, led by Colonel Ferretti. He was carrying a young girl in his arms, who appeared to be unconscious, prompting a questioning expression from General Landry.

"She's just sleeping, sir," he explained as he reached the bottom of the ramp. "She said she hadn't slept in over a week, and then dozed off on the way back to the Gate. I thought I better bring her back with us all the same."

"Very well, Colonel, take her to the infirmary and have them run some tests. We might as well check to make sure she isn't carrying any bioweapons or naquadah bombs inside of her before she wakes up."

"Yes, sir."

As Landry watched SG-17 leave the Gateroom, he stood beside Vala and did his best to avoid smirking.

"I see what you mean," he said, with more than a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "She is very creepy and annoying, isn't she?"

Vala opened and shut her mouth, not quite knowing what to say.


A few hours later Daniel, Vala, and General Landry joined Doctor Lam in the infirmary in order to hear the report on their Goa'uld visitor. As the doctor flipped through the latest test results, Daniel regarded the slumbering scientist.

"Interesting choice of host," he remarked, noting that Eris' host body was that of a dark-haired girl of around eleven or twelve.

"Creepy, am I right?" said Vala. "I mean as bad as the Goa'uld are, they don't usually take literal children as their hosts."

"Actually I suspect the symbiote did that for much the same reason Orlin did when he retook human form," said Doctor Lam. "To take advantage of the neuroplasticity of an adolescent brain. That might also explain why she avoids using the sarcophagus technology."

Daniel nodded slightly. "Right, because of the long term negative effect it has on the mind. Not exactly ideal for a scientist that needs to think clearly."

"Or ... she's just a creepy parasite that likes to take over little girls," said Vala, determined to see her opinion proven correct. General Landry sighed.

"The important thing is, are we in any danger?"

Lam shook her head. "Not that I can see. There's no indication of any kind of concealed weaponry. In fact my examination confirms what Colonel Ferretti said – the host body is physically exhausted and likely collapsed from a combination of fatigue, lack of sleep, and hunger."

"Hunger?" Daniel repeated, incredulous. Lam gave him a half-shrug.

"All signs suggest she's been pushing herself so hard, even the symbiote was unable to keep going. They can do a lot of things, but perpetual motion is clearly not one of them."

Daniel smiled faintly. "You know it's funny in a way; a few years ago having a helpless Goa'uld scientist in our hands would have been an incredibly valuable prize. Now, not so much. We've really come a long way."

"Keep us posted," said Landry, "And let me know when she's awake enough to tell us about why she wanted to see us. In the meantime I'll get in touch with some of our allies, find out if they know anything about a Goa'uld plot..."

Vala made exasperated sounds and gestures as he departed, before rounding on Daniel and Lam. "Doesn't anyone care that there's a little girl lying there who's had her body stolen by that Goa'uld? Shouldn't we be extracting Eris rather than waiting to hear whatever tale she has to spin?"

"We still might," replied Daniel. "It just seems prudent to try and find out if there really is a plot by the surviving Goa'uld to rebuild their empire. At the risk of sounding callous, there are bigger concerns here."

Vala jabbed him. "Daniel, I am ashamed of you! If that girl was someone you knew, you'd be singing a very different tune."

He rolled his eyes at her. "Vala, this is not a zero sum game. There is every chance we can learn what we need and save the host afterwards. I think you're letting your personal feelings about this particular Goa'uld get to you."

Doctor Lam cleared her throat. "Do you two mind? I have an exhausted patient who needs rest, which she isn't going to get as long as you stand there arguing with each other."

"It's fine," Daniel said as he grabbed Vala, "We were just leaving."

They left, Vala protesting the whole way, and once they were gone Lam went over to check on Eris. It was then that she noticed her patient was indeed awake.

"Sorry about that, I was afraid they might wake you. How are you feeling?"

Eris sat upright in bed and stared at her. "How am I feeling?" She gaped for a moment. "No one has ever asked me that before."

Lam double-checked the readouts on the equipment. "Well it's my job to be concerned for the patients under my care."

"Even if they happen to be an evil Goa'uld?"

"Even then, yes," Lam assured her. Eris seemed at a loss for words, which the doctor found amusing. "So, how are you feeling?"

"Hungry."

"Well that's not surprising. I'll have them bring you something to eat. It might not be up to your usual standard-"

"That's fine, thank you," Eris said. "Do you have any apples? I like apples."

"I'm sure we do." Lam noticed that Eris was not using the usual Goa'uld voice when she spoke, and wondered at that. "You should really try to get some more rest."

She chortled weakly. "I would, but I'm not sure how much time there is to spare. To be honest I'm a little amazed I didn't awaken to find myself in restraints, or a cell."

Lam watched her carefully. "Will either of those be necessary?"

"Not unless you're into that sort of thing," she teased. "You're very pretty. Can I ask your name?"

"Sure. I'm Doctor Carolyn Lam." She hesitated before continuing. "Can I ask the name of your host?"

"She doesn't have a name. I grew her in a lab. She has no mind or will of her own."

"Really?"

"Really. I don't like having to fight to subdue my host, it distracts me from my work." Eris smirked. "And besides, creating my own host means that I can make myself as cute as I want. Don't you think I'm cute, Carolyn?"

"Ah." Lam tilted her head to one side. "I think I'm beginning to get what Vala was saying now. I'm going to see about finding you something to eat. Try not to do anything evil while I'm gone."

"No promises."

Eris watched Doctor Lam go and sighed wistfully. She wished the situation wasn't quite so dire. Earth seemed like such a nice place to visit.