I managed to do this chapter a lot quicker than usual, thankfully. Yey for free time! Anyway, I'll try to be a bit more reliable with chapters from now on. I want to particularly thank feb04, who has reviewed regularly throughout both stories. Thanks go to all readers and reviewers of course. I know I say that almost every chapter, but I just like to point out that I'm grateful people are reading this. Here's the next bit:
Chapter 13: Reluctant Ally
With everyone back at the SGC, the negotiations resumed. All of SG-1 joined the Washington staff in the conference room this time rather than just Sam and Jonas. Subconsciously influenced by Jack's past experiences, Einar took an instant dislike to another newcomer to the room – Kinsey. The man looked smug.
"Now, I hear from Mr. Yearlson and Mr. Cowan here that things have been going very slowly," Kinsey began.
"It seems to be a matter of trust," Hammond said. "At least, a lack of it. We can't make any assurances to Einar without something substantial to weigh his claim on…"
"… and I am unwilling to concede any ground to those who have shown me little consideration in the past," Einar cut in firmly. "Are you becoming desperate yet?"
Kinsey ignored him: "Well, this pointless staring contest called a negotiation is over."
"You refuse my terms, then?" Einar sat back, arms crossed.
"No," Kinsey corrected. "Your terms are void. A year ago, the NID was granted unlimited access to all technologies linked to the Innarim and the Hakonans. That access was never countermanded, and so is still in force. We are already entitled to you and all of your knowledge."
"Entitled?" Einar laughed disbelievingly.
"You can't be serious?" Jonas exclaimed.
"I'm very serious, Mr. Quinn," Kinsey said. "We are authorised to use force where necessary."
"I am not property to be passed around!" Einar snarled. "Not even my creators dared sink to such a base moral outlook. They respected us as noble warriors… as kindred souls!"
"Souls?" Kinsey matched Einar's dark tone. "How can you have souls? You're a weapon – a monster created in a lab. If you are classed as a weapon, then you aren't classed as a person. That means you have no rights here. You belong to us."
SG-1 shifted uncomfortably during this rant, knowing full well what effect it would have. Jack and Teal'c tried to act pre-emptively, but to no avail. Einar shot up onto the table, leaving the two to grab at air. Teeth bared, the wolf alien charged on all fours at Kinsey, knocking them both to the floor as he pounced at the chair. The SFs moved to help the senator, but the Innarim had recovered and dragged Kinsey upright. Einar held him with one clawed hand by the throat, slamming him into the wall. As SG-1 and the SFs surrounded them, Einar deftly activated one of his Vapen blades.
"You dare to insult the Einherjar – the honourable dead? The Innarim have done far greater deeds than you ever have, you weak fool!" Einar tightened his grip, ignoring the soldiers all aiming their guns at him. "If you even suggest again that my race are simply monstrous abominations, you will not survive to make the mistake a third time!"
Jack had taken a sidearm from one of the SFs as they all scrambled to stop Einar, and now he took the opportunity to vent some of his anger at the Innarim warrior in the course of his duty. In order to prevent Einar doing any further damage to Kinsey, despite his dislike of the man, he aimed low and shot at Einar's leg.
There was a crack of gunpowder igniting.
A flare of blue energy in the air.
The clinking of a bullet as it skittered across the table and dropped to the floor.
Jack backed off in disbelief, and was treated to a very contemptuous glare from Einar. It was obvious what had just happened. The bullet had been deflected by Einar's shield, giving off a short flare of light as energy was used for it. The bullet had bounced away in the other direction. Yet, Jack knew it shouldn't have happened at all. Innarim shielding technology only blocked energy weapons!
At last there was some clue as to what new technology Einar knew about.
Kinsey slipped to the ground as Einar released his grip, focusing his enraged eyes at O'Neill.
"You are lucky I am angrier at him," Einar pointed to the bruised and gasping senator being assisted by SFs.
Much to Hammond's relief, Einar had not attacked anyone else, and had gladly left to go back to his quarters. He had ordered that Einar be temporarily confined there, though he was doubtful the guards could do much if Einar decided he wasn't happy with that arrangement. Kinsey's presence would never have improved their chances of reasoning further with Einar, but the Innarim's dangerous disposition wasn't making it easy to have his terms accepted by Washington.
SG-1 were mulling over the meeting as well. Sam was fascinated: "He must have upgraded his shields so they work against projectile weapons too. This is amazing – if we manage to make our own version of these advanced shields, we'll have something that equals the one the Goa'uld use. In large numbers they could be used-"
"Carter!" Jack warned. "We don't have them just yet."
"I'm guessing it won't be easy to get them either," Jonas commented. "You can tell he's a warrior and not a diplomat. Attacking the senator wasn't exactly the best way to make friends."
"Attempting to fire upon Einar was ultimately an unwise action too, O'Neill. He will be equally unhappy with-"
"Teal'c!" Jack barked, irritated. "Don't forget, you guys… I might have this information too. We might not have to rely on that Vaktarv furball. The only reason Hammond hasn't kicked him through the gate is because he has knowledge for sure. We've got to worry about the Farlorans for now. We're part of the evac mission at 0800 tomorrow – get enough rest tonight."
In typical disregard of O'Neill's insistence to have a life and to actually sleep at night, Sam had spent the rest of her time that day working in her lab, and then typing up her notes at home on her computer, lost in her work. It took her a moment to snap out of her single-minded focus and realise her telephone was ringing. She looked at the clock – it was past one in the morning.
Cautiously, she answered it.
"Hello?"
"Carter, hi," Jack greeted. "Did I wake you?"
"N… no, I was just-" Sam trailed off. "You knew I'd be awake, sir. Is there an emergency?"
"I hope not," Jack replied lightly.
"Where are you, Colonel?" she quizzed.
"At home. I just wanted to ask you about something… sort of personal, I suppose."
Sam cast her mind back. When Einar had left a year ago, Jack had become far more open and social to the rest of the team. Aside from free nights spent as a team to bond and socialise, Jack had begun trying to get Sam to lighten up. He was less guarded about enjoying her company, and for a while they had both begun renting out a film once a week, alternating between their respective abodes to watch it. Though it was strictly as friends, and Hammond trusted both of his officers, a few rumours had started up on the base. However, since the activated area of his mind began to slip into dormancy and he was plagued by uncertainties, he had become more reclusive. The weekly routine slipped to fortnightly, then to monthly and then stopped completely. When Daniel had ascended, hitting the team hard, even team nights had become few and far between. It had come to the point where she no longer expected to get a phone call from him other than about work related topics. To get a personal call from him now was unheard of.
"Do you have a minute?" Jack asked, and she could hear him smiling. "After telling you all to get some rest, I can't sleep."
"Of course," Sam sat down. "What did you want to talk to me about?"
Jack sighed: "Everything's just bothering me."
There was a moment of awkward silence.
"Sir?"
"Carter…" he began indecisively. "What are your impressions of Einar, based on what you know about him since he came back?"
"Well, he's very different now, sir," Sam said. "He's obviously less naïve than before. It was obvious that he doesn't trust our government, otherwise he'd have mentioned those shields before now."
"The government I can understand, but what about the SGC… about us?" Jack implored. "He worked on the generator last time because he said he trusted the team. Why not now?"
"He saw this NID move coming. Maybe he just didn't want to risk telling anyone until he'd made a bargain."
Sam heard him sigh again.
"So he doesn't irritate you at all? You don't feel anything strange?"
"No…" Sam frowned. "What are you getting at, sir?"
"I can't explain it. When he was trapped inside my head, he did annoy me, but for some reason just being around him now, even though he isn't in my head, gets to me more. How does that work?"
"Have you taken other factors into account, sir?" Sam said. "Your situation is unique. After all, you two have been inside each other's minds, and at one point you knew everything about each other. Everyone has secrets – things we don't want anyone to know - and it'd be natural to feel uncomfortable facing someone who knew about everything in your mind."
"Strangely that reminder doesn't make me feel better…"
"Sorry, sir," Sam grimaced. "I don't think you should get too worked up about it. Keep in mind that Einar always gets edgy when he's around you. He probably has exactly the same problem."
Jack said nothing more.
"Sir, I'm sure there's a way to resolve this, for both of you, but for now we have to worry about Deimos."
It took the better part of two days to guide and accommodate most of the Farlorans. SG-1 along with half a dozen other teams assisted the convoys of people, supplies and belongings through the gate back to Earth. Despite Sam's words about Einar being in the same situation, Jack was still unhappy about Einar showing up on a mission again. The wolf was helping out, at times carrying nervous youngsters or helping other SG personnel with the elderly to ensure they didn't fall behind.
Yet, Einar's presence was different this time. Furious at Kinsey's claims and insults in the negotiations, the Innarim had pulled out of bargaining completely.
Einar's race didn't conceal their emotions or instincts, and pride was apparently no exception. He demanded that he be allowed to leave through the gate at the earliest opportunity – that had turned out to be with the first teams heading back to Farlor for the other fleeing natives. Hammond and some of the others had tried to convince him to reconsider, but had been met with stubbornness.
Jonas was unsettled by the alien from the recent incident with Kinsey, but he still lacked the deeper experience the others had with him and so was the one less troubled by the Innraim's drastic change of attitude since the whole body-transfer mess a year ago.
"I'm going to talk to him again," Jonas decided out loud.
Teal'c spoke before Jonas could jog away: "Jonas Quinn, you have tried three times today already. I am concerned persistence would anger him further. You could be harmed."
"It just doesn't seem right, though… leaving thing as they are…"
"You seem strongly compelled to act," Teal'c commented, inclining his head. "Do you still seek to redeem yourself in the eyes of Colonel O'Neill?"
Jonas grimaced: "Nothing I've done so far seems to have made up for Daniel, and I get myself into trouble but I'm not very good at getting myself out of it."
"It would be best to let your mind rest from such matters, Jonas Quinn," Teal'c gave a benign smile. "Colonel O'Neill simply does not find scientists to be approachable at first – even Major Carter and Daniel Jackson had initial difficulties."
"Really?"
"Indeed, and Colonel O'Neill would not have assigned you to SG-1 if he did not believe you were capable of the position."
Jonas considered this, his mood lightening.
"Thanks, Teal'c, but I'm still going to give Einar another try."
The Kelownan spotted the wolven creature wandering along a ridge, looking outwards from the gate. Einar didn't turn to acknowledge him as Jonas clambered up to join him. Jonas had become used to Einar being able to hear him coming from much further away than humans typically could, and so abandoned his original topic of discussion as he realised Einar wasn't paying any attention to him. With ears twitching, the Innarim was seemingly looking for something… something his own senses couldn't detect.
"What is it?" Jonas asked immediately.
"You cannot hear that yet?" Einar asked in return, his previous bad mood lost.
"No, what is it?"
Einar instinctively activated his Vapen blades with deft flicks of his arms, and turned to the people trekking towards and through the gate. The Innarim's gaze zeroed in on Jack, the one in charge of these evac missions.
"O'Neill!" he bellowed, causing everyone to look up. "Hurry. Gliders… not more than a minute away!"
Though important, those words were enough to cause panic. The Farlorans began to stampede for the gate, the danger evident from warning and the tense reactions from the SG personnel. The soldiers tried to maintain some order, but in the end the natives willingness to hurry along despite leaving behind the hand-drawn wooden carts full of their belongings was advantageous. The SG teams then focused on helping along the very young and very old who couldn't run as well as the others, while SG-1 and SG-3 joined Jonas and Einar on the ridge to cover the Farloran's escape. With the high ground, they would have the advantage.
Following Jack's commands, they all ducked down just behind the summit of the ridge. Two deathgliders swooped overhead. Though at first they could see nothing, that first pass over the stargate had basically given the pilots a clear view of proceedings. They had no reason to hold back on their next pass over the ridge, and defending the gate against the gliders would prove harder than against the inevitable troop of Jaffa soldiers that would follow in their wake. The mission plan had opted against bringing any heavy weaponry such as grenade- or rocket-launchers that would prove more effective against gliders – they needed speed rather than strength to get everyone safely to Earth.
Below, the foliage by the treeline rustled, but the gliders returned before any targets had emerged. Glowing bolts of energy pounded into the ridge. The very ground shook with the force. Dirt and gravel was flung into the air. The two teams fired at the aircraft, hoping to at least put them off.
The pilots didn't waver, and they managed to take a shot each at the fleeing natives as they cleared the ridge. The blasts tore through the wooden carts, and both SG soldiers and Farlorans were thrown aside by the impacts.
"Go and help them out," Jack ordered to SG-3. "We'll hold off the Jaffa."
They obeyed, skidding down the slope and helping the others to carry the wounded to the gate.
By the time the gilders had returned for a third sweep, the Jaffa heading towards them on foot were visible. SG-1 began firing down on the grey-armoured soldiers. In return, they ducked down themselves, and aimed their staffs at them at the top of the ridge.
Einar was still on the ridge with them. Armed with his Vapen blades and his Cimmeran sword, he wasn't being much help. The alien regretted turning down the offer of a P-90. After all, he was leaving and so a weapon with finite shots wouldn't be much use for long. Unable to sit by uselessly any longer, he hurled himself over the ridge with a simple barked instruction to the others.
"Keep firing!"
Jack didn't even flinch, and kept aiming down at the Jaffa. Einar's shields would protect him from any friendly fire. The others hesitated slightly, but followed Jack's example as they all clicked on to the same reasoning.
Below, the Jaffa seemed bewildered to see an intact Innarim heading for them, but they soon began firing at Einar in their attempt to stop him. The advanced shields rendered him safe from it all. From his vantage point, Jack could see the melee that followed.
Einar swung at the Jaffa with his Vapenvulv, and they began to fall in succession, clutching at their burns from the energy blades. As the wavering Jaffa realised staff weapons were of no use, they began to draw on their knives. Practically surrounding Einar, they looked as if they would inevitably win, but though they managed to get in a few stabs and slices at the warrior wolf, none of them were eager to jump forward.
SG-1 kept picking off Jaffa, trying to help out Einar fighting below. One of the Jaffa, finding strength in the hope that he would be glorified for being the one to defeat the Innarim, boldly raised his knife at Einar as the creature was distracted by Jaffa from the opposite direction.
His head was thrown to the side, and he slumped bodily to the ground with a gunshot wound to the head. On the ridge, Jack grimly picked another target.
Einar sliced his glowing blue blade through another Jaffa, and with his rage boiling over, he swung in a wide arc to ward off any counterattacks. Their numbers dwindling, and faced with Einar, the Jaffa decided discretion to be the better part of valour and began to retreat back to the treeline.
And Einar, unable to resist the untamed hunting instincts of his lupine heritage, picked out one and gave chase.
Jack ordered the team to fall back to the gate and dial Earth, but Sam hesitated, her eyes glued to the scene below. The Innarim pounced at the back of the doomed Jaffa warrior, flooring him in seconds, and plunged a Vapen blade into his back.
And held it there.
The terror and pain-filled cry of the Jaffa cut through her. Einar was supposed to be an noble Innarim warrior, but there was nothing noble about this. The Jaffa were retreating, and it gave them the chance they all needed to leave. This was cruel and unnecessary.
Jack grabbed her arm to tug her away from the ridge as the gliders passed over once more. She caught a glimpse of Einar beginning to head back up the ridge just as she and Jack began to slide down their side of it to the gate.
Sam remembered what the alien had said to her.
Do you realise what his mind gave to me?
… Darkness
As the gate established a link, Jack ordered the team through. Jonas and Teal'c needed no further urging, and Jack darted through after them, believing that Sam was immediately behind him.
However, Sam stopped. She looked back at Einar as he reached the DHD and crouched down for safety from the gliders circling overhead. As the gliders passed, he made no move. He was waiting for her to leave, Sam realised, so he could dial out to somewhere else.
Sam crouched too, but looked at him wordlessly. Her face betrayed horror at what she'd seen Einar do, but Sam also was looking imploringly at him. The SGC needed his help, and she now believed that he needed help.
As the sound of the gliders temporarily faded, Einar looked thoughtfully at the blood-spatter on the ground around the gate, no doubt aware that some of it belonged to SGC personnel. He then looked back at Sam, judging her expression, her unspoken request…
"You are right," he admitted gravely. "I can no more leave the Tauri to die than I could the Farlorans, can I?"
Grabbing his arm, Sam motioned for Einar to follow through the gate. When the gliders returned, they were long gone.