61
How Does Your Garden Grow?
When they had entered their room, Jack and Teal'c watched in amazement as Evree calmly went about the business of putting her flower in water, completely unaware, or uncaring, that she was the object of some consternation.
Finally, seeing that Evree wasn't going to volunteer anything, O'Neill spoke up.
"What exactly do you think you're doing?" He fought to keep the annoyance out of his voice, but it was a struggle. But if it turned out that she'd interrupted their plans just for that damned flower, there was going to be a shouting match.
"What?" Evree seemed to be surprised by the question, and had to do some mental gymnastics to figure out what O'Neill was getting at. "Oh. Konaseus was right. I am tired." She gave O'Neill a stern, if still affectionate look. "You made me walk very fast this morning. And, I had to carry things back. Surely seeing the rest of the empty rooms in this place can wait another day."
"The idea," Jack said, with forced patience. "Was to try to see the whole place. And ask Konaseus about any parts he wouldn't show us in your presence, since he might be just a teensy bit more honest with you than the rest of us. And today would have been nice. The longer this takes, the longer you're stuck here, staying under the same roof as Konaseus."
"He really does have very nice eyes," Evree mused. "And he has been most kind to us. I think we may have been doing him a disservice, O'Neill, being so mistrusting."
At that pronouncement, O'Neill's jaw nearly hit the floor. This was coming from the woman who said she would rather die than be left alone with Konaseus? He looked at Teal'c and saw concern on the Jaffa's face, confirming that he wasn't just imagining things. Something was wrong here. Very, very wrong. And Evree herself was blissfully unaware of the fact. Time for a serious conference. Minus Evree.
"If you're so tired," Jack said carefully. "Why don't you take a little nap? We'll get along without you for a couple of hours."
"That is very considerate of you, O'Neill." Evree delicately tried to hide a very indelicate yawn. "I do believe that a nap would be most welcome."
And without further ado, she curled up where she had slept the night before and promptly fell asleep.
Jack nodded towards the door, and Teal'c followed him to stand just outside.
"This is damn strange," O'Neill remarked, the moment the door had closed behind him. "Evree is, or was, terrified of Konaseus. And now she's sticking up for the creep?"
"Indeed," Teal'c agreed. "Her behavior is most atypical. Am I correct in assuming that you believe that Konaseus has tampered with her in some way?"
"I don't just believe it," Jack growled. "I know it. Some way, somehow, he's gotten to her. I just can't figure out how or when."
"Nor can I," the Jaffa admitted. "She has never been where one of us could not observe her until this very moment. But I also, do not believe that this sudden change of heart came about naturally."
"We need to let Carter and Daniel in on this," O'Neill mused. He looked at the closed door. Whatever Konaseus had in mind for Evree was obviously already in motion, but since he didn't know what the big man's ultimate plan was, he still didn't want Evree left unprotected.
Teal'c saw O'Neill mulling over the situation and rightly guessed what was on his mind. "You already know what I think, O'Neill," he pointed out gently. "Go speak to Major Carter and Daniel Jackson. I shall remain here and guard Evree."
"Thank you." O'Neill looked immensely relieved. "Look, I don't think it's that serious yet, but if things look like they're getting too out of hand, don't wait for us. Get Evree to the gate and back to Earth as soon as possible."
"I understand." Teal'c planted himself directly in front of the door and folded his arms across his chest, looking as though he dared anyone to try to get by him.
Feeling in a slightly better frame of mind, O'Neill set out to find the rest of the team.
&&&&&&
Konaseus monitored them all most carefully. As was his custom, he did not listen, but he watched. Watched as Evree was left alone, sleeping. True, the Jaffa guarded the door, but he was not physically present in the same room as the slumbering queen. It meant that he would be able to accelerate things. Konaseus' fingers deftly flicked a few buttons, and a small vent opened in the wall near to where Evree slept. Another button, and a faint mist could be seen emerging from the vent. A very concentrated dose of the chemical Evree had inhaled from the flower. Not in and of itself particularly dangerous, it just made her extremely suggestible and well-disposed to everyone, and the more of it she got in her system, the more these traits would come to the fore. Her companions might notice, especially the way she would begin to thaw towards him. But he doubted they would guess how open to suggestion she was until he had already made use of it.
He looked in the monitor again and saw Evree turn restlessly in her sleep. He frowned. She should be more deeply unconscious than that. Perhaps as a queen she had a higher tolerance to the drug. He gave her another carefully controlled dose, then smiled. She was tied firmly to him now, no matter what the Tau'ri said or did. By giving her the drug in its nearly pure form, he had also addicted her to it, and even without its mellowing effects on her personality, he was sure that she would do or say whatever he wished just so long as he fed her addiction.
&&&&&&
As O'Neill started down the next corridor, one of those pain in the butt robots showed up. He knew the route to the workshop where they'd left Carter, but he had also come to realize that the little mechanoid would be under foot until he gave it an order. "Take me to Major Carter," he commanded. With all the bells and whistles in the place, he was pretty certain that the machines had all been given some kind of recognition code for each member of the party.
The little machine obediently hummed away, but after a few turns, O'Neill realized that the place the robot was taking him was not the workshop where Carter had been working. He wondered if Sam had moved, although he found that difficult to fathom when she had a new toy to play with, or if it was another of Konaseus' little games. Intrigued, he continued to follow the machine. But he kept his ears and eyes wide open, just in case it was some kind of trap and Evree wasn't the only one that Konaseus had plans for.
As soon as he went in the door that the mechanoid stopped in front of, and heard the voices, he knew that the 'bot hadn't been leading him astray. Carter had joined Daniel in the library. Well, it would save him a few steps. And he wouldn't have to repeat himself since he could fill them both in at once.
Daniel just happened to glance up and see him enter. "Jack, I'm glad you're here. We've got a lot of stuff to play show and tell with."
"Later," O'Neill said. Wouldn't you just know it. Finally find something good, and from the enthusiasm in Daniel's voice it was good, but suddenly it wasn't the priority it had been.
"But, sir, this is an incredible find," Sam protested. Then, she looked at the expression on his face. "What's happened?"
"Konaseus has managed to do something to Evree," O'Neill stated bluntly. "I don't know how he managed it, Teal'c and I were keeping an eye on her the entire time. But suddenly she starts changing our plans and defending Konaseus."
"But she's afraid of Konaseus," Daniel pointed out. "Why would she be defending him?"
"Is there any way he could have drugged her?" Carter didn't waste time with questions that they didn't really have any answers to yet.
"I don't see how," O'Neill replied. "She hasn't had anything to eat or drink since we left this morning. Unless it's something very slow acting."
"If it were that, then we'd all be showing the effects," Daniel remarked. "It had to be something that only Evree was exposed to. But how?"
"Drugs don't necessarily have to be ingested," Sam said pointedly. "And I think we can rule out any sort of injection. Evree would have noticed and said something. What about inhalation?"
O'Neill's expression was a sight as he realized how Konaseus had put one over on them. "Could it be delivered through smelling a flower?"
"Sure," Carter answered. "A lot of drugs have botanical bases. And some of them don't even have to be processed in any way. I'd like to get a sample of that flower back to the lab for analysis."
"That stupid flower seems to be her prize possession at the moment," Jack mused. "I don't think you'd be able to get it away from her. She's not particularly rational at the moment. Or, at least, less rational than usual."
"What about the plant where she got the flower?" Sam suggested. "Did it have more than one open bloom?"
"Oh, only hundreds," O'Neill answered. "There's a tree in the middle of Konaseus' roof garden. Covered with blooms. But if just one has done that to Evree..,"
"But you and Teal'c were there with her," Daniel said. "And I can't see that it's had any effect on you. I'm assuming that you'd have mentioned it if Teal'c was acting strangely too."
"It didn't seem to bother either of us," O'Neill muttered. "But then, we didn't have our faces buried in the thing. Do you think it requires that close contact?"
"Maybe," Sam murmured. "But the only way to be sure is to get a sample and thoroughly analyze it. And Konaseus probably isn't going to be as likely to let me pick his flowers as he was Evree."
"Then again, he might," Daniel put in. "He was leering at you almost as much as he was at Evree at dinner last night."
"We'll see," O'Neill said, putting the plan on hold before it was put into words. "It does explain why Konaseus was so eager to get Evree up to his garden. And why he made sure that she got a chance to smell a flower that she couldn't even reach."
"I'm assuming that you've left Teal'c to guard her?" Sam inquired. "She really shouldn't be left alone for a moment, now more so than ever, until we understand the full effects of whatever he's used to drug her."
"She was taking a nap when I left," Jack informed them. "That was weird too. She just laid down and was out almost the second her head hit the pillow. I don't think I've ever seen anyone fall asleep that fast."
"It might have something to do with the effects of the drug," Sam commented. "Sir, maybe we won't have to ask Konaseus for permission. Except for that one wing that Teal'c couldn't get into, there hasn't been anywhere in the place those robots wouldn't guide us to. Why don't I just go up to the garden and get one? I could take it to the gate and have it at the lab and still be back before dinner time."
"You wouldn't be able to reach it, Carter," O'Neill stated. "Konaseus lifted Evree at his full arm's length so that she could reach the lowest one. I know you're taller than she is, but not by that much. And I'm not too sure I want you actually touching one until we know exactly what it's doing to Evree."
"If I can get up there, sir, I know I can get a sample and get it safely," Carter argued respectfully. "If whatever kind of chemical is in those flowers is dangerous, then Evree's life could depend on how quickly we can analyze it."
"How do you plan to get it?" Jack inquired. He wasn't about to okay the plan unless he knew that the danger to Sam was minimal, even with the possible danger to Evree.
"Konaseus has robots designed for all kinds of specific chores," Sam replied. "I'm sure he must have some specifically for working in the garden. Even ones tall enough to reach those blossoms, since they'd have to be able to trim the plants, no matter what size. I just find one and have it pick a flower for me. I'll put it in plastic the instant I get it. I'll never actually have physical contact with it, and I won't go sniffing it either."
"What if you don't find the right kind of robot?" Jack asked. The plan was sounding good as far as it went, he was just afraid that it might not go far enough. He also realized that he was breaking out in a cold sweat of fear for Evree.
"Then I'll come right back and we'll work out a different plan," she promised. "Let me try, sir. Evree might not have time for us to come up with something better."
"Go," O'Neill agreed. "But if it looks like you're going to be in danger, cut and run, Carter." It cost him to say those words, but he said them anyway. He couldn't deliberately endanger one member of the team to save another. Even when that other was Evree.
"Yes, sir." Sam disappeared.
"I'm still not sure why he wants a Goa'uld queen," Daniel mused. "He has just about everything that every other Goa'uld has, and has even improved on just about all the technology they use. The only thing he doesn't have is..," He stopped, looking shocked. "He doesn't have a symbiote. But why would he want one? Doesn't he realize that the symbiote would have total control of him?"
"I don't think humility is on Konaseus' list of good qualities," Jack remarked. "He probably thinks he could control it. I still can't think why he'd want one though. To prolong his life?"
"I don't think so," Daniel responded. "He's made improvements on the sarcophagus that would make you nearly immortal with regular use. According to what I've been able to find out, he's over fifteen hundred years old. I'm not sure how many years over. Every reason I can think of why he might want to be a host, he could do himself, and without giving up control of his own body, with the technology he's improved on or developed. He's an engineering genius."
"I think I may have it." O'Neill looked thoughtful. "What do people on most of the planets the Goa'uld control think of them?"
"Well, they think that they're gods," Daniel replied automatically, then his expression became one of stunned incredulity. "You think? I mean, someone as intelligent and educated as Konaseus obviously is, do you think he could still believe that Goa'uld are gods?"
"It would explain everything," Jack said grimly. "Including why he wants Evree. He wants her to breed him a symbiote."
"Maybe even a very special symbiote," Daniel hypothesized. "If he really does know that much about the Goa'uld, he may want one with some very specific genetic details. One that would make him even more powerful than most Goa'uld."
"A god among gods," O'Neill commented. He sighed. "Why did I have to be right about him?"
&&&&&&
Teal'c opened the door a crack and peeked within. Evree still slept. She slumbered so soundly in fact, that she hadn't moved at all since the last time he'd looked in on her. He observed even more closely, until he could detect the slight movement of her chest from the effects of respiration. When he was assured that she was still alive, he carefully shut the door again and resumed his task. Watching and waiting.
&&&&&
Sam stepped out into the open air of the garden and gasped in awe. The place was beautiful, and she wouldn't mind taking a break up here. But she wasn't here to take it easy or sight see. And if that one flower had had that effect on Evree, then heaven only knew what sort of properties the other plants had. Best to just do what she came to do as quickly and unobtrusively as possible.
The servitor that had guided her here had come to a halt at the entrance to the garden. Evidently the mechanoids were extremely literal in obeying orders. She had told it to take her to the gardens, and it had done just that, nothing more, nothing less. Now, she needed to find one that worked among the greenery, and, more to the point, could reach the flowers that were seemingly the cause of their problems.
She wandered a bit, looking to see if she could spot a robot going about its tasks, but wasn't getting lucky on that score. She did find the tree, though, and could readily understand why Evree wanted to smell the flowers. They were beautiful. Entrancing, really. Surely something that beautiful couldn't be harmful. Sam gave herself a stern mental shake at the direction her thoughts were taking. Maybe even if she couldn't smell it from here, the tree sent out some sort of hypnotic scent to draw a victim closer. She'd have to be very careful.
Finally, Sam found what she was looking for. A robot that looked like it was a cross between Edward Scissorhands and a stepladder was pruning some shrubbery along the roofs' edge. "Cut me a bloom off of that tree," she ordered, and hoped that it didn't have orders forbidding it to do so.
It evidently didn't, for it immediately turned and moved towards the tree on caterpillar treads rather than wheels, and came to a halt in front of the tree and waited.
At first, Sam wondered what it was waiting for, why it just didn't finish obeying the command. Then, she decided that maybe it was waiting to see if there was one particular bloom she wanted out of many hundreds. "Just get the nearest one," she instructed it, and the machine complied, and turned to her, holding out the potentially dangerous.., flower. Somehow, it seemed to be a contradiction of terms.
Sam thought quickly. Back in the room, she had sterile plastic bags for collecting biological samples, and she'd fully intended to use one to transport the flower. But she hadn't detoured to the room to get one, and even if Jack hadn't given her an order to that effect, she didn't think she'd be wanting to touch it with her bare hands. Just in case. On a sudden inspiration, she dug her cap out of her pocket and held it out, upside down. "Put it in here," she demanded.
The mechanoid dropped the blossom into her hat and then whirred away, and went back to its pruning as though its routine had never been interrupted.
Holding her hat with its uncertain burden like they were both radioactive, Sam made her way to the room.
&&&&&&
Jack had brought a reluctant Daniel along with him back to the room. He felt that the treasure trove of knowledge aside, they needed a conference with all of them present. He didn't want to talk in front of Evree, since in her current condition she could conceivably blurt out everything to Konaseus, but he couldn't take a chance on leaving her alone, either. He figured they could be careful and talk around Evree, so to speak, so that she wouldn't understand what they were talking about. And if needs be, he didn't have the slightest compunction about lying to her. Not if her life was at stake.
Since Daniel had insisted on bringing along everything he had copied to date, they actually only beat Carter back to the room by mere minutes. For all the longer it had seemed to Sam, she really hadn't been up on the roof that long.
Sam went immediately to her pack and pulled out one of the specimen bags and put hat and all inside it. If the drug were airborne, then there wasn't any real risk in touching it, but until she knew for sure, better safe than sorry.
O'Neill snatched a silk wall hanging from its place and laid it flat. "Bring your paperwork here, Daniel," he instructed. "If something happens to us, then at least it won't have been for nothing."
As Daniel piled all his copies on the fabric and began tying it up, Evree suddenly sat bolt upright and let out an ear-piercing scream.
"Oh crap." O'Neill was across the room in an instant, pulling Evree into his arms. "It's all right now. I'm here to take care of you."
Evree struggled feebly for a moment, then, her already open eyes began to focus. "O'Neill? What are you doing?"
"You had a bad dream, hon," Jack replied, not even noticing the 'unprofessional' slip of the lip. "Don't you remember?"
Evree shook her head, but snuggled into his arms despite that. "I don't remember anything at all since I laid down here," she responded. "Are you sure that I had a nightmare?"
"You were screaming again." Jack held her close, stroked her hair. She might not remember the dream, but her body obviously did, she was shaking like a leaf. "Do you need me to get you anything?"
"Just you," Evree answered. "Why does Major Carter look like she is getting ready to leave?"
"Why indeed?" The voice came from the door, which with one thing and another, they hadn't heard open. "Forgive the intrusion, but I was nearby and I heard a scream and came to see that all was well." Konaseus stood squarely in the doorway now, looking like he wasn't about to budge until he got an answer.