She inclined her head ever so slightly, her long earrings set with several flawless diamonds swaying with the movement, and said in perfect but accented English, "I am Elspetha, grandmother of King Davi of the Linteri, mother-in-law to the Regent, his Grace Danyal. You are?"
Landry was looking at her, definitely bowled over by her beauty, but fighting it. Up close she was flawlessly lovely. Perhaps forty years and a few more of life had only enhanced the perfect bone structure under the smooth cameo skin. Her hair was lustrous and hung like a river down her back, a shimmering fall of black. Her figure was voluptuous enough to appeal to the inner beast in every man, but still slender enough to be consistent with the image of the perfect lady she was effortlessly projecting. Finally the general fumbled through the introductions.
She said, "You are wondering why I am here."
Cam spoke up, just as stunned by her beauty as Landry, but better at playing the game and not giving the advantage to the woman of knowing that she had him at hello. "Honestly, we were curious. Dr. Jackson did not give any indication there would be any contact prior to our trip there next week."
"His Grace, Danyal, has decided that I am to be your guide through the dangerous shoals of our world. He has sent me to prepare you for your visit so that your chances of navigating without disaster would be increased." She fixed a liquid gaze from large, deep green eyes on Landry. "Would it be presumptuous if I were to seek the accommodations of a guest for myself and the bodyguard that custom require I bring until your people travel through the circle to my world?"
"Of course not. We have only simple accommodations, but you are more than welcome, Queen Elspetha."
She tilted her head and laughed. Her laughter was musical and all the men in the vicinity were immediately ensnared in it. "If you would but call me Lady Elspetha, it would be more consistent with our custom. I have no real position but what His Grace Danyal grants me."
She reached out a hand weighted down with three large rings, exquisite despite their size, and placed it on Cam's arm. "If you would but take me to these guest quarters, kind sir, I would refresh myself. Perhaps we could then meet, all who would go to my world, later today and talk?"
Cam nodded. "It would be my pleasure, Lady Elspetha. Carter, could you arrange a conference room and so forth for a meeting at 15:00 hours?"
He saw Sam's eyes flash a little. He might be in command, but, in most respects, they functioned as peers and she didn't appreciate being treated like a secretary. He gave her a rueful look and hoped that she read it as an apology, then turned and gave Lady Elspetha the due she demanded.
The meeting at 15:00 hours was a revelation. Sam was sitting ramrod straight in her chair and Cam knew immediately she didn't like this woman. Everything about Lady Elspetha screamed out "ornament" and Sam was all about a woman being intelligent and an equal partner. Teal'c was giving nothing away, but Cam knew that he had encountered the Lady's like over and again in female system lords and others born to the aristocracy.
Lady Elspetha laid her world out for them with an economy of perfectly chosen English words. She quickly explained that she knew English because it had amused his Grace Danyal to teach her and it gave them a secret language in which they could speak in confidence. Her humor, although dry, was always present, which was all the more amazing given the nightmarish sounding world she described to SG-1. Trust was hard to come by, although your blood relations were a slightly safer bet than everyone else. King Davi had already lived longer than all in recorded history before him who had become kings as infants. She told them, "The first thing I taught His Grace Danyal was to put himself first because everyone else would. Anything else would be seen as weakness and the rest of the court was circling, looking for an opening to go for the throat. It was a hard lesson for him, but it was imperative that he learn. If he had remained as he was when he came to us as prophesied, he would be dead long ago as would my grandson. I myself would not have survived because I gave him my allegiance."
Sam said, carefully, "When we knew him, Daniel was a very caring man. It was very important to him that things be fair, that no one be used or exploited. He was our conscience."
Lady Elspetha said simply, "You cannot be a conscience if you are dead."
Cam found that he could not take his eyes off Elspetha. He had dated a couple of homecoming queens, but he had never been inches away from such total perfection. He exercised the greatest self-discipline of his life to give none of that away. By the time the day arrived to go to Linter, he had succeeded in peaking her interest. She was so obviously flirting with him that even Teal'c commented on it.
"I will show you my world, my Cameron," she said softly, "but you must promise never to relax in it. Do not trust anyone, even His Grace Danyal, even me." She brushed his face with a touch so feather light that he was almost unsure that it had happened. "You are too beautiful to waste."
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSs
The Linteri stargate turned out in a walled enclosure near Daniel's palace. There were guards in turrets at each corner and huge guns trained on the gate from every direction. Nothing could have come through unscathed unless the Linteri has permitted it.
They were conducted to Daniel's audience chamber by an armed guard of beautiful men. They all had dark brown hair and eyes and regular features. They were built like Greek gods and very close to the same height. Lady Elspetha saw Sam looking at them appreciatively and chuckled. "This is the first day guard. The guard tomorrow is all blonde. The next day, they are dark skinned and black haired and so on. Have I named a preference of yours yet?" Sam was revolted. She was a soldier. The thought of turning soldiers into eye candy was not appealing.
They moved through a few acres of beautifully landscaped grounds before entering the palace proper and then through what seemed like acres of palace to reach the audience chamber. Immediately before they entered, Lady Elspetha said, "His Grace Danyal wishes you to be respected. It will diminish his consequence since he treats with you if you are not. Do not apologize, do not look down before anyone but him. Do not allow anyone to treat you as inferior. It is within your right to strike someone if they insult you, but not to use a weapon. Do not hesitate to strike out if required. You will not be understood otherwise." Before they had left Earth, she had tried to make them see that Daniel could treat them as near equals which would go a long way to keeping them safe, but he did not have the option of treating them as the true equals they felt themselves to be. Someone would likely to want to see them dead for the insult, not to Daniel, but to the throne, the symbol of what they were as a people.
The audience chamber was long and narrow with huge windows along one side stretching from the floor to the two storey tall ceiling. A wide balcony, entered from doors on the floor above, ran along the wall opposite the windows. A few chairs were arranged there, but the balcony was empty. The courtiers in the chamber all stood; the only seat of any kind was the gold-inlaid throne at the far end where Daniel sat, apparently relaxed.
They moved down the hall at the stately pace set by Lady Elspetha. Like her, they did not look at the people they passed, but kept their eyes fixed ahead to the throne. Reaching it, they bowed to the small degree she had taught them. Daniel smiled warmly at them and said, "Greetings worthy representatives of the Tauri. Do you bring me a new offer from your government?"
Cam told the handsome leather case from under his arm and held it out to Daniel. There was an intake of breath behind them. Cam flushed and pulled it back. Daniel said, in an even voice that was not unkind but could have been construed as slightly patronizing, "You are new to the court and cannot be expected to know all the rules. I know that you are all quite intelligent. I am confident that you will learn them quickly."
Cam bowed slightly at the left-handed compliment. A body guard emerged from the shadows a few feet away and took the case. He returned two minutes later, bowed deeply, and handed it to Daniel. Daniel opened it and scanned the contents in a matter of seconds. He closed it, extended it, and immediately a courtier appeared to take charge of it.
"Thank you for the offer. I will consider it and we can discuss it in due time. We would like you to join us for dinner tonight," he said. "There is much I would like to hear of the Tauri and your lives. Appropriate clothing will be provided for you although it will be difficult to find anything that is worthy of beauty like yours, Sam." He looked at her approvingly. It wasn't a leer, but it was definitely a look of genuine appreciation. There was a very faint murmur behind them. Others had noticed his interest in her. "I will look forward to your company with pleasure."
None of them had spoken a word, but their audience was over. Daniel said to Elspetha in English, "I have need of you. Please join me after you have conducted our guests to their accommodations."
She bowed, the picture of grace, and a small smile passed between them. Then she turned and led them out of the audience hall.
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Sam stood on a small balcony outside her exquisitely appointed room looking down on a sparkling sea. The palace stretched an impossible distance on either side of her and there were four stories below her. Daniel's palace had hundreds of rooms. He didn't know how many and seemed to find it amusing that she was even curious. "I have all the rooms I need. What else care I?" he asked her as they all sat at the state banquet on their first evening, the night before.
Cam came out behind her and said softly. "It's too beautiful to be real, isn't it?"
"It isn't real, Cameron," she said. "It's a façade. These people are only physically beautiful. It seems to be all they care about. It almost seems like the main driver for the biotechnology they have developed was beauty. Even health is only important because it contributes to beauty. Their physical setting is beautiful, their clothing is magnificent, but they're hollow people."
"Rotted sepulchers," he said.
"Whatever. I asked Daniel why he had kept the scar on this face. No one, I mean no one else here, has a scar."
"That was nervy," he said, a little concerned. He was in charge of the mission and he'd never, before this, ever had to worry about Sam as a loose cannon.
"You're thinking I should have kept my mouth shut?"
"Now that you ask. Sam, our mission here is first and foremost to get the treaty concluded. Finding the real Daniel Jackson comes second. He was my friend too, you know that, but he's also a grown man who made a very deliberate decision to be where he is today, literally sitting on top of the world."
They both looked down at the breathtaking view from Daniel's palace, built at the top of the highest point in its capital city. There was one story above them and all of it belonged exclusively to Daniel, his son, and a handful of those who served him the most closely. Lady Elspetha's rooms were up there.
"Do you want to hear what he said?" she asked. He nodded. "He said that he had the scar because he can do anything he wants. He cares only about pleasing the King and the King would be upset if his father's face suddenly changed."
Cam turned and leaned against the balustrade. "Any other intel you haven't shared with me yet?"
"Not really intel, but I have a theory," she said. He cocked her head. "I think he's already made up his mind about our offer. He just can't give us an immediate decision because it would make him look weak somehow."
"I have a theory too or, actually, it's Teal'c's theory, and Jonas and I agree. He thinks Daniel has plans for you and he's going to keep us here until he's executed them."
"Based on what?" she asked, both exasperated and irritated. "He's not a Goa'uld system lord. He may have picked up this 'look at me' persona but I don't think he's turned into some sort of monster. Teal'c is basing all this on Daniel telling me I'm beautiful, something he wasn't even there to hear."
"I was and there's also that remark in the audience chamber. I give it even odds," Cam said, very seriously, "even though I agree that's he's no monster. He's the best thing that's ever happened to them from what I've been able to pick up. Think Peter the Great of Russia. He can't just turn them overnight into a democracy. He can only move as fast as they can handle it and as far as he retains the power he needs to make the changes stick and preserve the option to make more of them. But I'm not done with our original topic yet. As I told you before we came, figure out how you're going to play it if he does make a move. You won't have time to dither about it then."
"Dither," she said. She raised an eyebrow, thinking that Cam had overstepped his bounds, going from her CO to something else.
"Sam, I'm going to make a personal comment and you're going to listen. All I have seen from you as far as men are concerned is dithering. Why do you think Daniel went to Atlantis in the first place?" Her glare was impressive but he continued. "He got sick and tired of your on, again mating dance with Jack."
She raised a hand to stop him mid-flow, "For your information, there is no more mating dance with Jack."
Cam looked sympathetic but only for a moment. "I'm sorry Sam that it didn't work out, but that actually only makes you more vulnerable now if you're on the rebound. I think Daniel had a thing for you and he just gave up and went to Atlantis. So, Lt. Colonel, think about it. The man has all the power in this world and if he decided to close the gate to us, it would be no easy task for anyone to come here and do anything about it. I don't think he's become cruel, but he may have bought into the local myths about him."
Cam got in her face at this point. "I've intel too. Did you know that the law is that every woman on this planet belongs to Daniel, if he wants to claim her, with the sole exception of blood kin closer than second cousins. It doesn't matter if she's married and it doesn't matter how old she is. Elspetha was 17 and had just been married to a nice young man when the King saw her. He had her brought to this palace and never let her leave. He didn't marry her and she wasn't the only woman he appropriated. She was just the only one to bear him a viable heir that survived infancy."
Sam felt sick. "That's rape. Has Daniel … ever … I mean?"
"I know what you mean. If he has, Elspetha didn't mention it. Damn his eyes, sometimes I think he's got something going on with her."
Sam was irritated enough with him for his personal comments to her that she snapped, "Maybe your whole problem with Daniel is just plain old jealousy. Your tongue has been hanging so far out of your mouth around Elspetha she's been using it as a leash."
Cam shook his head slightly, granting her the right to get in a sally of her own. "Think about it, Lt. Colonel. That's an order."