22

Opening Gambit

Evree stood staring at the stranger, dumfounded, until O'Neill hissed, "Evree!" reminding her of his instructions. She hastily slid her hand into her pocket, ready to slip the bracelet on.

Konaseus could feel the tension radiating from the group. Obviously he was going to have to win their trust if he were going to be able to approach the queen. He halted several feet away from them and bowed deeply.

"You, none of you need fear me," Konaseus said in soothing tones. "Most especially you, my queen." Ever alert to every nuance, he noted that one of the male's jaw muscles tightened, if ever so slightly. Perhaps his queen already had a consort? One that did not appreciate his use of possessive terminology in regards to the queen. He mentally sized up the opposition and decided that should things come to a physical confrontation between them, he was assured of an easy victory.

SG-1 regarded what was evidently their host with various reactions. Jack had gone from wary distrust to out and out paranoia with a side of intense dislike. And he didn't like the way the guy referred to Evree as 'his'. Sam and Daniel ran more to cautious curiosity, the foremost question being, what did he want with Evree? Teal'c merely stood ready to interpose himself between the stranger and Evree, should he get too close, since he had promised O'Neill that he would protect her.

Evree stared unashamedly, fingering the bracelet in her pocket like a set of worry beads. He was so large, this Konaseus. She had grown accustomed to being smaller than almost everyone else around her, but never had she felt quite so small and vulnerable as now. She was glad that O'Neill was beside her. Then, her eyes bugged out in fear when the room gained yet another occupant.

Konaseus noted the queen's anxiety and turned his head to see the cause. "Fear not, my queen," he boomed jovially. "My little pet will do you no harm." When he saw the rest of the group had almost reflexively brought arms to bear, he hastened to reassure them, as well. "Truly, there is no need for alarm. He is most well trained, and will not attack unless I give the command."

They all reluctantly re-holstered their weapons, but despite Konaseus' amiable manner, not one of them believed that Konaseus would have the slightest qualm in ordering the big cat to attack if the fancy took him.

"Come, come." Konaseus was beginning to be irked at what he considered their excessive vigilance, and was hard put to keep his irritation out of his voice. They were supposed to be warming to him, responding to his friendly words and behavior. "I have introduced myself, perhaps one of you would be so kind..," He let the sentence trail away, sure that the mere mention of their lack of manners would suffice.

It did. Jack gave himself a mental shake. He felt like he was in the middle of some kind of surreal dream. "I'm Colonel Jack O'Neill, of Stargate Command on Earth." He indicated his companions. "Major Samantha Carter, Doctor Daniel Jackson, Teal'c, and..," Something compelled him to move just a little closer to Evree. "..,Evree."

"You are all most welcome." Konaseus bowed again. Yes, this Colonel Jack O'Neill must be the queen's consort, given the way he hovered over her. "I am sure that you did not venture through the chaapa'ai merely to socialize, but surely you must wish to refresh yourselves after your journey. Please, allow me to be your most gracious host." At an unseen signal, a knee-high metallic.., thing, glided into view, its matte surface riddled with tools of indeterminable usage. "The servitor will escort you to rooms where you many repair the effects of your travels. Then, I insist that you dine with me."

O'Neill didn't like it, but short of being rude and alienating Konaseus, which should probably be avoided at all costs, there was nothing to do but comply. "Thank you," he replied, a little less than graciously, nearly choking on the words. "It's very considerate of you."

Konaseus smiled at him, or perhaps bared his teeth, it was hard to tell, and with a grand gesture, bade them to follow the mechanoid, which was already making its way across the floor.

&&&&&

The room they had been led to was spacious, airy and well lit. As far as the furnishings, the word that sprang to mind was decadent.

To Sam's intense dismay, once the mechanoid had ushered them to the room, it had immediately disappeared. She would have liked to have had the opportunity to examine it.

Jack and Teal'c were checking the room for bugs, traps, whatever. O'Neill was assuming that there would be bugs, even if he couldn't see them. He didn't trust Konaseus, and didn't think he ever would, even if the jolly giant walked on water.

Evree was inspecting the rooms furnishings, and finding them very much to her taste. She wasn't sure about Konaseus, and just the fact that he had gone to so much trouble to bring her here did not bode well, but.., She liked the room. It reminded her of the one she had had before Ahriman had taken over her planet. She opened a door off to the side and found a luxurious bath laid on, with the tub set in the floor and large enough to actually swim a couple of strokes in. Especially for Evree. She unconsciously let out a delighted squeal.

O'Neill went to investigate whatever it was that had caused Evree to make that noise. It didn't sound bad, but he hadn't heard her make that particular sound before. When he saw the bath, he let out a semi-disgusted sigh. "No," he declared, before she could ask what he knew she was going to ask.

"But, O'Neill." She looked up at him pleadingly, and saw nothing but resolution in his features.

"But nothing," Jack replied. Then, seeing how disappointed she was, decided that it wouldn't hurt to take the time to explain, this time. "Suppose something goes wrong and we have to get out of here in a hurry. It might be a little difficult, or a lot embarrassing if you were taking one of your two hour baths."

"Yes, O'Neill," she answered a little sadly. She could see the wisdom in his words, but that beautiful bath.., She had seen nothing like it on Earth. She gave the bath one last wistful glance and went back into the main room.

"Anybody got anything?" Jack asked as they reassembled.

"No surveillance devices that we can detect," Teal'c reported. "Which may only mean that they are of a design that we are unfamiliar with."

O'Neill nodded. "I'd say that the safest bet would be to assume that we're being monitored the whole time we're here," he commented. "Anything else turn up?"

"Yes." Carter was coming back from the room's main door with a bundle of fabric in her hands. "This was just delivered by another of those little robots. I think we've been given a change of clothes."

Evree immediately relieved Sam of the burden and started sorting through the clothing. When she came to some raiment whose size proclaimed that it was meant for her, she once again turned to look at Jack.

"Not unless you have a way to analyze every thread in those clothes," O'Neill said firmly. He avoided adding that he didn't like the thought of her accepting clothing from another man. "Evree, this is a mission, not a pleasure trip. Please try to get that through your head. And I personally don't trust Konaseus any farther than I can throw him."

"Yes, O'Neill," Evree answered with a sigh. This was not turning out to be the exciting adventure that she had been anticipating. If she didn't know better, she could almost suspect O'Neill of engineering the whole thing just to keep her back on Earth without complaint in the future.

&&&&&&

Konaseus frowned as he watched the monitor that pictured his guests leaving their room to be escorted to the dining hall. Not a single one of them had accepted his generosity by replacing the drab garments they had arrived in with the colorful, stylish garb he had had made for them. Admitted, it had cost him only the effort that it took to give the servitors the orders, but still. He did not understand why they adamantly refused to unbend. Had he not been a model host so far? Had he not done everything he could to supply all their wants and needs? And yet, they spurned his gifts, and carried arms under his roof.

More direct measures would possibly have to be taken if they did not begin to thaw to him soon. He had waited so long, that he cared not to wait further. Just seeing the queen within his own walls fanned the flames of his avarice. He had been patient long enough.

&&&&&&

"I'm not too keen on eating with this guy," Jack grumbled, even though he recognized the diplomatic necessity of it. "God only knows what he could have put in the food."

"If he were trying to kill us," Teal'c replied. "Then he could have done so a dozen times over without even showing his face. I do not believe after all those missed opportunities he would attempt to poison us."

"Poison is just one possibility," Sam pointed out. "How about something along the lines of mind controlling drugs? And the only way we have of knowing that they're there is..,"

"To try the food," Daniel finished. "Maybe one of us should guinea pig the food first, and everyone else holds back until they see it's all right."

"That might work," O'Neill admitted. "But how do we manage that without offending him? He's bound to notice that only one person is eating, he doesn't strike me as being dumb."

"Maybe we could cover with conversation," Sam suggested. "You know, everyone, except our guinea pig gets too wrapped up in the discussion to eat."

"Which would only leave the question," Teal'c observed. "Who is to be the 'guinea pig' as you put it. I volunteer."

"And if junior was still along for the ride, I'd say yes," Jack answered. "But the tretonin doesn't do all the things your symbiote did. If things get sticky, I want you ready to kick some ass, not passed out on the floor."

"Then it would seem that if you need someone who is expendable," Evree mused. "Which would seem to make me the logical choice, since I would be near to useless in a fight."

"If you were expendable," O'Neill shot back with an exaggerated show of patience. "Then it wouldn't have taken so much to get you here in the first place. You are not going to be the official food taster."

"But if the food is tainted in some way," Evree pointed out, not yet ready to back down. "Then I am the only one equipped to deal with it, since, as you say, the Jaffa no longer has his symbiote."

"She's got a point, Jack," Daniel agreed grudgingly. "None of the rest of us have any way to counteract the effects of whatever might be in the food."

"And unless it is a really nasty poison, which we've pretty much ruled out," Sam put in. "Then no matter what it is, Evree is probably in no real danger. Which is not something that you could say for any of the rest of us."

Jack was starting to feel boxed in, and he hated it. He hated it even worse that they were right. There was only one way that it wouldn't scan. He couldn't give Evree a direct order to risk her life since she was not technically under his command. Since she had brought it up, though, he didn't think she would take the out. "Are you sure that you want to do this?" he asked her. "When all is said and done, it's still a risk, and it's your life."

"You and Daniel risked your lives to rescue me from Anubis' ship," Evree replied. "The least I can do is eat a little food to ensure your safety."

Daniel had a thought that was, despite the gravity of the situation, bringing an amused grin to his lips. "You do know that that means that you're going to have to taste everything on the table, don't you?" he inquired. Evree's picky eating habits had become a running joke in the mess hall.

"You are a cruel man, Dr. Jackson," Evree remarked sternly. "If it were only your safety involved, I might not do it just for that remark."

A beeping sound outside the door announced the arrival of the mechanioid, or possibly a different one, it was anybody's guess, to escort them to dinner.

"Well, I guess that dinner is served," Jack commented, working to push his qualms aside. The universe wasn't going to change the way things were for him.., again. Time to put his best foot forward and deal. He offered his arm to Evree. "Shall we?"

&&&&&

Konaseus noted the queen's arrival on the arm of the one called O'Neill. He liked it not, but considered the fact that O'Neill was the queen's consort to be a minor obstacle. He would have been more concerned if she had been dallying with the Jaffa.

He gave thought to the possibilities, and decided ruefully that his best course of action was to continue with his attempts to win the whole of the queen's retinue over before he concentrated on the queen herself. The queen. Evree. The name was almost as unimposing as the body she wore. Of great beauty, to be sure, but he was truly astounded that she hadn't chosen something a little more impressive.

Evree, oddly enough, was thinking on similar lines, if from a different angle, as it were. At least to the extent that she might not have felt so uncomfortable around Konaseus if she were a bit larger. She peeked up at him once more, and amended it to a lot larger, and clung even more tightly to O'Neill's arm.

"It gives me a nice warm glow in a macho sort of way to know that you trust me to protect you, Evree." Jack bent to whisper in her ear. "But a little circulation would be a good thing too."

Evree loosened her grip slightly with an apologetic glance. "He's just so.., so.., large," she murmured back. "Or is it that I am so small?"

O'Neill was about to say that it was six of one and half a dozen of the other, but halted himself. For a Goa'uld, Evree could be awfully insecure sometimes. No sense in adding to it. "There's nothing wrong with your size," he informed her softly, and was rewarded with a warm smile that promised better things to come when they had the leisure for it.

As they approached the banquet-sized table, Kronaseus stood to greet them. He had discarded his crimson attire in favor of a nearly identical garment in peacock blue. He was studying the group as if they were bugs under a microscope.

"Did not the garments I provided please you?" He seemingly addressed the whole team, but O'Neill noted that his eyes were on Evree. "If they displeased you, all you needed to do was to speak to the servitor. Something more suitable would have been provided."

"No offense intended," Daniel replied soothingly. "We just feel..., less ill at ease in our own clothes."

Konaseus nodded understandingly, swallowing his disappointment. He had eagerly anticipated seeing the queen in raiment befitting her station. Ah well, time enough for that later. Time for everything.

Their plan regarding food-tasting worked out better than they had anticipated, due to the fact that each dish that was brought out was offered to Evree first, giving her opportunity to sample everything without the least hint that anything might be amiss. At least from a chemical viewpoint. It was plain enough from Evree's face that some of the comestibles fell far short of pleasing her very particular palate.

The entire lavish feast was served by more of the mechaniods. Different from their earlier escort, larger, with arms that utilized nearly human movements to place the food on the table and remove the remnants of the previous course.

"You seem to have quite a few of those robots, Konaseus," Same remarked between bites. "Do they do all the work around here?"

Konaseus gave her a genuinely warm smile. It wasn't much, true, but it was a foundation upon which to build his guest's good will. "Indeed they do, Major Samantha Carter," he replied genially. "Do you like my little toys?"

"I'd like to have the opportunity to examine one, if I may," Carter answered. "The appear to be a pretty advanced design."

"You are much too kind." Konaseus was positively beaming now. "But as you seem to appreciate my poor efforts, what can I do but grant what you desire? One, or a hundred, as many as you wish."

Sam was momentarily taken aback at the effusiveness of his reply. "Um, just one will do," she half-mumbled. "Just something to show me the basic operating systems."

One down, thought Konaseus. But how to beguile the others? Perhaps if he could persuade them to confide why they had entered his domain, it might give him a clue. "But what can I do for the rest of you, my new friends?" he inquired innocently. "For surely you had a purpose for coming here."

"Indeed," Teal'c rumbled, having carried on a silent conference with O'Neill before breaking the silence. "We have reason to believe that a Goa'uld named Anubis intends to attack the Earth. We seek a means of defense."

"Pardon me for being rude," Konaseus said, looking mystified. "But if your technology is such that you admire a pack of menial robots, then why would Lord Anubis bother..," His voice trailed off and his features lit up with comprehension. "Ah, of course. The queen."

"Amongst other things," Jack drawled. He'd been watching Konaseus all evening, and the big man hadn't made a single slip. Not, that is, until the word 'Lord' had passed his lips. At least now, they knew where they stood. Sort of.

&&&&&&

"Well, that was fun." O'Neill's face as he uttered those words suggested that the evening had been fun only if your definition of fun was having a root canal. Without anesthetic. They were now back in the room they had been shown before dinner. They had been offered, and politely declined, separate rooms.

"Hey, Evree, what exactly did Konaseus have to say to you when Colonel O'Neill had to leave the room?" Sam inquired. Jack had had a call of nature, and Konaseus had practically pounced on Evree the moment his back was turned.

O'Neill's eyebrows shot up as he regarded Evree. She hadn't mentioned the conversation, and she'd been talking to Daniel when he got back from the can.

"He wanted to show me his garden on the roof by moonlight," Evree responded matter-of-factly. She did wonder, though, why O'Neill was looking at her like that.

"And what did you tell him?" The words burst out of O'Neill's mouth before he could think of a way not to sound like a jealous boyfriend.

Something about Jack's reaction seemed to amuse, or please, Evree. She smiled sweetly at him, and replied, just as sweetly, "Why, I told him that, subject to your approval, I was sure that we would all be delighted to see his garden."

Daniel and Sam snickered, and even Teal'c was smiling broadly.

O'Neill relaxed visibly, and even began to look amused himself. "Surely he didn't just let it lie there, did he?"

"Actually," Evree answered thoughtfully. "He seemed to be unable to speak. I took the opportunity to excuse myself and go join Daniel." Her expression suddenly became more serious. "I do not like the thought of being alone with him. He has a hunger in his eyes that never goes away."

"Don't worry, Evree." Sam put an arm around her shoulders and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "We won't leave you alone with him."

"Damn straight, we won't," O'Neill agreed.