Stargazers Stargaters Part 31

Two weeks after the ladies' dinner together, Isabel came down to breakfast carrying a sheaf of papers. She fixed a breakfast plate of fruit, a muffin and a cup of cohna from the buffet, set out at the side of the dining room, before coming to sit next to Daniel.

"Good morning, Daniel, Sha're; hasn't anyone else come down yet?" Isabel asked.

"Morning, Isabel." Sha're answered, while her husband smiled his hello around a mouthful of toast. "No, no one else has come down yet. Will Alex be coming soon?"

"No...he was still asleep, poor thing; he's been putting in some long hours over the past few days and was exhausted last night." Isabel answered as her two friends nodded.

"I know he's been excited about some of the technology your scientists have been showing him." Daniel agreed after swallowing his mouthful. "Are those the sketches Jacob/Selmac brought you last week?" Daniel asked, indicating the pages Isabel had placed beside her plate.

The Tok'ra had been working on gathering together pictures or sketches of all of the system lords and minor Goa'ulds they knew about. And on the back of each picture was all of the intelligence the Tok'ra had on each Goa'uld; who their allies were and which regions of space they controlled.

"Yeah, I was looking over them yesterday." Isabel answered. "And something...strange happened last night that I wanted to tell you about."

"What happened?" Daniel asked, concerned.

"I've explained to you my gift for dream-walking." Isabel reminded them and the couple both nodded. "Well, I didn't set out to dream-walk any of them when I went to sleep, but somehow I reached this guy during the night." Isabel showed them one of the sketches.

A cry squeaked out from between Sha're's lips and Daniel snatched the drawing out of Isabel's hands; an incredulous expression on his face.

"You made contact with Klorell?" Daniel asked.

"No...it was Skar'ra!" Isabel said excitedly, knowing that the host of the Goa'uld Klorell was Sha're's brother, Ska'ra.

"Ska'ra!" Sha're exclaimed as she glanced back and forth from Daniel to Isabel.

"You're sure that it was Ska'ra and not Klorell?" Daniel asked.

"Well, that was the name he gave me and he felt Human...I mean, I would imagine that a parasitic species like the Goa'uld would have a mental signature very different from Humans." Isabel explained.

"That makes sense." Daniel conceded. "So...how is he?"

"Well, we were both quite surprised when we made contact and most of our time was spent explaining who each of us were and how such communication was possible, but once he had gained some trust that I was a friend, he begged me to find a way to make contact with you and to tell you that he was holding out against the total control of Klorell's mind."

"Thank goodness!" Sha're sighed. "I know how difficult it is to fight against the mind control of a demon, a-a Goa'uld." Sha're corrected herself; remembering her time as the unwilling host to Apophis' queen, Amonette.

Daniel turned to his beloved wife and drew her to his chest with one strong arm around her shoulders as if to say; "you're safe now and I'll never let anything every happen to you again." Sha're saw her husband's unspoken words of assurance in his blue eyes and smiled up at him while rubbing a gentle hand over his chest, to reassure him that she was alright.

"We should tell Jack, Sam and Teal'c about this, but first, do you think you can do that again; contact Ska'ra...or another Goa'uld host?" Daniel asked.

"I think I could reach Ska'ra again." Isabel answered. "But I don't know if I would be able to reach different hosts. You told me that Ska'ra was only made a host a year ago, but that many Goa'uld hosts are hundreds, even thousands of years old and have been sustained by using the sarcophagus many, many times...how much of their original personalities could have survived, after all of this time?"

"Hmm, good question." Daniel replied thoughtfully. "Sha're, what do you think?"

"I think that most of the host personalities will have been broken by now and have no will of their own. But I have wondered about Lord Yu; he is more thoughtful and less blood-thirsty than most of the demons. I wonder if his host could have anything to do with that." Sha're mused.

"Or perhaps the Goa'uld parasite has slight, and I do mean slight, Tok'ra sympathies." Daniel suggested.

"I do not know, my husband." Sha're said.

"Good morning, how're you Daniel, Sha're...Izzy?" Alex entered the dining room, walked over to his soul-mate and bent down to kiss her.

"I'm fine honey...but I was hoping that you'd be able to sleep longer." Isabel replied, after being thoroughly kissed and she stroked a loving hand down Alex's cheek. "You've been working so hard lately."

"If you wanted me to sleep longer, you should have stayed in bed with me." Alex whispered into her ear, but then spoke up for everyone to hear. "I'm fine, thanks; what are you guys talking about?"

Isabel told Alex about her dream-walking and he nodded thoughtfully.

"Are you thinking about using Izzy's gift as some sort of intel-gathering tool or as a weapon of some kind?" Alex asked, concerned.

"It certainly is something to think about. We were going to find Jack, Sam and Teal'c and tell them about it, but there are also a lot of questions which will need to be answered before we can do anything with her gift...that is if Isabel is willing." Daniel said hastily.

"I-I think so...I guess; as long as the person I contact can't find out where or who I am. I'd hate to draw Goa'uld attention back to Antar." Isabel answered.

"Uh oh...Isabel told Ska'ra who she was and presumably where she is..." Isabel nodded at this, her eyes huge. "Will Klorell be able to access Ska'ra's memory of their conversation?" Alex asked.

"In their arrogance, the Goa'uld believe that they can steal any memory from their host's mind, but I was able to keep many of my thoughts and memories locked away from my demon. Ska'ra is strong; he will not allow Klorell to learn of his talk with Isabel." Sha're said with conviction.

"Morning everyone." Max said from the doorway; his arm encircling Liz's shoulders.

"Hey Maxwell, you wanna keep moving? Some of us are actually hungry." Michael said sarcastically from behind.

"Sorry, Maria, Michael." Max said as he and Liz moved out of the way.

"Michael!" Maria cried out irritably and slapped his chest, hard.

"What? Ow! What was that for?" Michael whined.

"Just for being you." Maria said rolling her eyes at her dense fiancé and shrugging her shoulders to the others as if to say "what can I do with him?"

"So...what were the four of you talking about?" Liz said to change the subject as she, Maria and Max took seats at the table and Michael walked directly over to the buffet, to serve himself.

Isabel explained what she had done the night before and Daniel added his hopes for how Isabel's powers might be used.

"I don't think any of us know enough about using our powers on other species, except for Humans, to be able to answer your questions, Daniel." Max said. "But we should certainly tell Jack about this and see what he, Teal'c and Sam think."

"Teal'c will be at the training area; where he's been working most of the time, but where do you think we'll find Sam and Jack today?" Michael asked.

He and the Jaffa had been working together over the past weeks to design a proper training center, where Humans and Antarians could be trained to fight the Goa'uld.

"Jack told me he'd be at the Center today, since he's been itching to start training the new recruits, even though the facility isn't completely built yet." Daniel said.

"Sam told me the same thing, but I'm not sure whether she knows that Jack will be there." Liz said.

"Yeah...about Sam and Jack...has anyone else noticed how they seem to be keeping their distance from each other and snapping back and forth when they do have to work together?" Daniel asked frowning.

"I've noticed that too, but I wasn't sure whether that was SOP for them or not." Michael said.

"Uh, no not really...I mean, yeah Jack can get on Sam's...on all of our nerves sometimes, but Sam has always been militarily polite and proper to him, no matter how aggravated he makes her." Daniel said.

"Well, let's head on over to the training area, to tell them what's happened and maybe we can figure out what's going on between the two of them." Isabel said.

"Hey, I'm s'ill eat'n here." Michael called out around his mouthful of food.

"Oh sorry, Michael." Alex apologized and then turned to Isabel. "Sweetheart, I think your news can wait long enough for everyone to eat breakfast, don't you?"

"Well...okay; but don't take all morning, Michael." Isabel ordered Michael as Max, Liz and Maria stood up to serve themselves from the buffet.

"Maybe while they're eating, we could have a private word?" Alex suggested to his love.

"What? Oh, uh, well sure, Alex." Isabel agreed as Alex stood to pull out her chair for her and then lead her out of the dining room.

"What's up with those two?" Tess said as she and Kyle walked into the room after their two friends had brushed by them on their way to the living room.

"Mornin' Tess, Kyle." Max greeted them around a piece of fruit. "Get some breakfast for yourselves and sit down while we tell you what's been happening." And then started to brief them.

Across the hallway, in the living room, Alex closed the door before turning to face Isabel.

"What have you been doing to Jack and Sam? I thought you were going to just make them a little jealous, not lean, mean, fighting machines...towards each other!"

"Calm down, Alex; it's not as bad as all that." Isabel soothed. "And actually I haven't done anything since I set up their housing arrangements; I haven't needed to."

"What do you mean?" Alex asked, skeptically.

"I've had people watching them and a few things have happened to each of them which apparently the other has seen...but interpreted through the eyes of jealousy. I told you about Sam becoming ill from that spice which Beneck used in a recipe...well Jack saw them...their silhouettes from outside and my...um...informant even agreed that the way their shadows moved together looks provocative."

"Uh oh." Alex groaned.

"Yeah, then there was the incident at the river, when Seria sprained her ankle; Sam was downstream...and I was informed that that scene was rather...um...intimate-looking as well." Isabel finished.

"Yeah, but still...they've worked well together for almost two years." Alex argued.

"That just shows that I was correct and my plan is working! Just one incidence each and they both have turned towards Seria and Beneck, respectively; began to work with them even more closely than before. Which has only made them more jealous of each other over the past two weeks." Isabel grinned.

"But don't you think we should tell them the truth before they try to kill each other...or Seria and Beneck?" Alex asked.

"That's why I've had them watched, to make sure they don't. But you're right, I think the whole situation is about to come to a head and we'd all better get over to the training area before it does." Isabel agreed.

They returned to the dining room to find their friends finishing up their breakfasts.

"Have you explained everything to them, Max?" Alex asked his friend.

"Yeah and we're all ready to go...that is if it's okay with you, Michael?" Max asked his friend who had risen from his seat, with his eyes on the buffet again.

"Huh? Oh all right." Michael answered grudgingly; seeing his third helping slipping through his fingers and turned to Maria. "I'm going to have to bring a sandwich with me to bed if we keep burning up so many calories each night." He teased softly, but everyone heard him anyway and began to laugh at the couple.

"Michael!" Maria exclaimed, slapping her lover on the side of his arm.

"What? Hey, I didn't tell them what we were burning up calories doing...their assumptions come from their own dirty, little minds." Michael argued.

"You mean you weren't making all-out, passionate, multi-orgasmic love to Maria every night as she's been boasting about for weeks?" Tess asked innocently.

"You've been boastin' about my lovin'?" Michael asked Maria smugly; confirming Tess' question and setting off another round of laughter from their friends.

"Michael!" Maria groaned as she hid her red face in is chest and held onto his shirt with her fists.

"Hey, when you got it, you got it...and I've got you, pixy-girl." Michael said; equal parts self-satisfaction and gentleness.

"Um...okay let's go find Jack and Sam." Daniel said, trying to control his grin at the younger couple's antics and holding Sha're close to his side.

Finally, the entire group of friends left the Manor and walked over to the part of town where the training center was in the process of being built.

"There they are." Michael pointed out. "Looks like Jack is still trying to show the Antarian trainees Earth-style hand-to-hand combat." Michael shook his head despondently.

"What's wrong with that? Jack is an excellent training officer and holds top marks in hand-to-hand." Daniel asked.

"I didn't mean to say anything against Jack; it's jut that Antarian combat techniques are so totally different from yours that the trainees are having trouble grasping the concept. Their own training keeps getting in the way." Michael explained.

"Hmm, I see what you mean." Max said, surveying the group as once again Jack and Sam put out hands to help their partners, Seria and Beneck, respectively, up off of the mat. "I wonder if our people could better understand Earth martial-arts if they saw it properly demonstrated."

"Yeah, I was going to suggest that, after seeing the first training session yesterday." Michael agreed.

Out on the mats, Jack and Sam were having much the same thoughts as they surreptitiously watched each other help their training partners up from the ground.

'Look at how tenderly Jack helps Seria up from the mat; I thought she was supposed to be a warrior. Jack's hardly ever helps me up from the ground when I've fallen; certainly not without making some sort of smart-alec remark.' Sam groused to herself, silently. 'Does he throw her down onto his bed the same way, before he...has sex with her?'

Sam's imagination took off, fueled by memories of seeing them working so closely...and happily together for the last two weeks.

'Look at Sam help that wuss, Beneck up off of the ground...again. Man, that guy is worse than Daniel for finding ways to fall down...so Sam will help him up and ask all gentle-like if he's okay. She acts so much more...feminine around Beneck while with us she always acts as if she's one of the guys. Not that I've ever considered her one, to me, whether she's wearing camouflage fatigues or her class A uniform, Sam's all woman in my eyes. But does Sam need a...weaker man to make her feel needed and...wanted? Does her femininity only come out when she's in her care-giver mode? For crying out loud, I'll never get her that way; I need a woman who can be my equal, who's strong enough to fight with me, not be my nurse-maid.'

Jack finished thinking sourly, if silently to himself; his thoughts following a similar jealous path to those of Sam's.

"Colonel, Major; how's it going?" Max called out as the group of friends moved towards them.

"Well...everyone's really...trying...very hard to learn the combat skills we're teaching them, but I think that we have a translation problem her." Jack answered, quickly snapping out of his dark thoughts.

"I was wondering if we could demonstrate our techniques to the Antarians." Sam suggested, interrupting her commanding officer. "If they can see the moves performed correctly while we explain the tradition and theory behind them, I think our Antarian trainees might get a truer picture of what we are trying to teach them."

"That does sound like a sensible plan." Max agreed. "Which of you want to come forward and demonstrate these techniques?" Max asked, looking around at the members of SG-1 and the other training officers nearby.

"I'd like to." Sam volunteered. "My participation can show the women that even a larger, stronger opponent can be brought down using these techniques."

"Very well, Major. Who would like to partner her?" Michael asked with a sinking feeling in his gut, about who was going to volunteer.

"I will." Colonel O'Neill all but growled.