Author's Note #1: Less than two months between chapter updates this time. I am making verrryyyyy slow progress.
Xuxiq, 6546 A.S. (April 2000)
Uslisgas, Asteria Galaxy
Supreme Commander Sujanha felt somewhat apprehensive for one of the rare times in her life when she was about to meet with a potential ally. She was standing before the Stargate on Uslisgas waiting for it to begin dialing Midgard. Daniel was nearby saying goodbye to Sha're and Shifu, who was growing quickly and thriving, which pleased Sujanha greatly. Around them were gathered their four bodyguards, including Ragnar, who would accompany them to Midgard.
Several weeks had passed since Sujanha had met Midgard's SG1 for the first time during a chance encounter on Teucuria. Daniel had met several more times with his former teammates both with and without the presence of one of High Councilor Kari's ambassadors as the two peoples began to become more acquainted with each other. Sujanha was unsure what to think of Midgard overall based on Daniel's stories, what she had seen of SG1, and what she knew from the Free Jaffa and the Tok'ra.
Ragnar, who had been speaking with a technician, returned to her side, rousing Sujanha from her thoughts, "We have just received word that the Valhalla has entered orbit around Midgard."
"Very good. I assume that Ulfar was extremely careful when entering their system. It would not do for the Midgardians to detect its presence." Sujanha continued to find it both puzzling and troubling that the existence of the Stargate was not public knowledge on Midgard despite the continued threats that the planet faced.
"Ulfar was careful. He dropped out of hyperspace well-beyond the confines of the system, cloaked, and traversed the rest of the distance under sublight power."
"Good. Is all prepared?"
"Yes, Commander," Ragnar said with a nod of his great head, "At your command."
"Then let us depart." Sujanha confirmed, adding in her head Before I change my mind. "Please, go and get Daniel."
Ragnar nodded and hurried off, leaving Sujanha again to her troubled thoughts. She could feel Malek lurking at the back of their shared mind. He had been unusually quiet all morning, even for him. Sujanha turned again to considering her unease, wondering at the cause. The Midgardians are valuable potential allies. Thor trusts them, and Midgard is part of the Protected Planets Treaty.
*And yet,* Malek added, *O'Neill and Carter looks at you, at us, if we were no better than Goa'uld.*
Sujanha bristled, remembering their looks, especially those of O'Neill. His prejudice and bias against the Tok'ra, valuable allies of Midgard, did not do him or his command justice and were not fitting of a soldier as high in the command structure of the SGC as he was. *Unfortunately, true. It is strange to be looked at as the monster because of the choice that I made.* She fell silent, mentally. Since O'Neill thinks of us in such a way, what will our reception be, I wonder? The SGC is willing for these talks to go ahead, so hopefully General Hammond is not so prejudiced as his second is. I am not accustomed to willingly go into such a situation where I am viewed as a potential threat. And finally Sujanha identified her unease.
Malek agreed mentally, though he was somewhat more used to dealing with the Tau'ri, having met some of them, though not SG1, before. *Agreed, but if we go into this meeting expecting trouble, we might cause a self-fulfilling prophecy, as Daniel says.*
Their conversation came to a halt, as Daniel appeared at her side, dressed in his usual Furling clothes, which looked close enough to his Midgardian BDUs as not to stick out too much. He seemed, to Sujanha, both excited and nervous. In front of them the Stargate erupted with a whoosh, casting a blue light across the room. Sujanha turned, surveying the company one last time: Daniel, at her right hand; Ragnar and Albjorn, so close in appearance they could almost be twins, in front; and Vylt, his armor whirring, and Drogvussik, his wings folded like a cloak around him, behind.
"Send the signal," Sujanha ordered one of the technicians. The party could not go through until the Iris on Midgard was lowered, or instead of establishing a treaty, Sujanha and her companions would find themselves setting sail upon the Winds of Night on their final journey home.
The wait was only a few seconds before the technician called back with the all clear. Sujanha gave the signal. Ragnar and Albjorn started forward, disappearing into the wormhole, and the rest followed.
Stargate Command, despite Daniel's description and stories, was not what Sujanha expected. The gate room was large, though after a moment Sujanha decided towering was a somewhat better word. A large observation room behind glass looked down upon them, and two large doors, one on either side of the room, would serve as bottlenecks, which could be both a help and a hindrance depending on the situation. The setup could have been much worse, but Sujanha was inclined to think that theirs on Uslisgas was better.
The Midgardians seemed to have taken Daniel's relation of Sujanha's dislike of ceremony into account, for only SG1, except for Daniel's young replacement; an older man, whose face and bearing commanded respect; and a short woman in a long, white coat were present, along with those whom Sujanha presumed were the usual guards of the Stargate.
The ramp that led to the Stargate, which was set above the floor, was not wide enough for Ragnar and Albjorn to step aside to let Sujanha and Daniel move forward. The six newcomers made their way to the bottom of the ramp, where Ragnar and Albjorn finally stepped aside, leaving Daniel and Sujanha facing the older man—who must have been Hammond—who was flanked by O'Neill and Teal'c.
Sujanha surveyed them all with a quick glance. She was simply glad to get off that ramp. Its strange construction with little gaps was painful since she wore no shoes. O'Neill does not look pleased to see us, Sujanha noted to Malek, and does a poor job of hiding it. The gate guards seemed to be eyeing all the newcomers with a mixture of shock, awe, and wariness. The presence of four hulking, very alien guards plus that of a symbiote seemed to have put them somewhat on edge.
Daniel stepped forward to do introduction. "Supreme Commander, may I introduce to you Major General George Hammond, the leader of Stargate Command." He then turned to the older man and continued, "General Hammond, may I present to you Supreme Commander Sujanha Staðfastur, High Councilor and representative of His Imperial Majesty, Ivar, High King of the Furling Empire."
Daniel had warned Sujanha, while this trip had still been in the planning stages, of American views of empires, kings, and royalty. Inherent suspicion and allergic were the two comments that had stood out to Sujanha the most, though she had neglected to ask him to explain the "allergic" comment. American views of royalty made as much sense to Sujanha as the notion of having a 'democracy' or a 'republic', despite Daniel's best attempts to explain the alleged political benefits.
Introductions were quickly concluded with the bare minimum of polite speeches and the shaking of hands, a custom Sujanha disliked, because with the curling of the hands, she had to be extremely careful not to cut the other person with her claws. She was re-introduced to SG1 and the short woman, who was the chief healer of the facility. Teal'c greeted her respectfully, mimicking the Furling salute he must have seen during the interim meetings between Daniel and the Midgardians, but O'Neill shook her hand while looking as if he were touching the innards of a freshly-killed carcass. General Hammond, a polite and distinguished man, escorted Sujanha upstairs to the observation room where there was a large table and many chairs.
A small man, named Walter, who had the look of an indispensable aid was dispatched to order refreshments, and Sujanha and the others were shown to their seats. These chairs were not made for Furlings or any one of our builds. At least I do not have wings. General Hammond took a seat at one end, with O'Neill at his right hand and the rest of the Midgardians sitting along the side of the table that faced the window. Sujanha put Daniel between Hammond and herself and sat down across from Teal'c, while her bodyguards fell into position along the wall where they were close at hand.
"I bring you greetings and complements, General Hammond," Sujanha began once all were settled, "from High King Ivar. He has heard tales of the courage and skill of your soldiers who have so unexpectedly been thrown into a galaxy-wide conflict. Your fight against the Goa'uld is worthy of great renown."
By her side, Daniel pulled out his tablet and began to make notes. All Sujanha had to do was glance down, without turning away from Hammond, and she could see what Daniel was writing, notes for himself or guidance for her.
"Thank you," General Hammond replied, "We have been very interested in meeting the Furlings since we learned of your people and the Alliance from your former meeting place on Heliopolis. We appreciate your willingness to treat with us."
Sujanha nodded, keeping her attention of the General, though she wished to sweep the room from time to time. She did not feel totally comfortable on Midgard. She was kept from having to answer immediately by the return of Walter and another soldier bearing drinks. A large pitcher of a harsh and bitter smelling beverage was parceled out to the Midgardians along with a number of small cups with tiny handles that would be quite problematic for Sujanha to hold. Walter made to hand Sujanha herself a cup better suited to her paws. Ragnar waylaid him and took the cup from him first and a few seconds later handed the cup to Sujanha, after he had time to scan the drink unobtrusively with a small device attached to his gauntlet that Sujanha had seen a healer hand him earlier that morning. Or is it afternoon on this world?
*I am capable of detecting and filtering out poisons,* Malek noted dryly, seeing from Sujanha's thoughts what Ragnar was doing.
*You are, and I am supremely grateful for your companionship and watch-care, but Ragnar would feel that he had failed in his duties if you ever had to.*
The cup, which Sujanha could easily hold even with her claws and short 'fingers', was full of what appeared to be brown water and had a small, strange bag floating along one side with its cords pinned to the outside of the cup by some strange material. Daniel, who had happily accepted a cup of that bitter beverage, typed a short message on his tablet and titled it slightly to indicate Sujanha should look.
They gave you tea. The message read. Sujanha was politely suspicious, but the drink was warm and smelled pleasant so she was willing to drink it, at least for diplomacy's sake. Malek snickered softly.
Returning to the earlier threat of discussion, Sujanha replied, "I am pleased to treat with you, as well. The Asgard as well as the Tok'ra and Free Jaffa speak well of you, and I believe this treaty will be mutually beneficial."
The short woman discretely passed a note up the table to Carter, even as Hammond answered. Sujanha had a good feeling about the Midgardian general. He seemed quite competent and had a good air about him.
"From what the information Dr. Jackson transmitted to me," the general asked, "this treaty is strictly a military treaty, correct?"
Sujanha nodded, shifting slightly in her seat. *Sit still,* Malek groused gently, *I'll deal with the backpain or other aches.* She pushed fondness and thanks in his direction, even as she replied verbally, "Yes, as Supreme Commander, I only have the power to create military treaties. All other treaties require the presence of a Furling ambassador and are usually accompanied by much more pomp and arguing."
There were multiple snorts of laughter at the table, and even Hammond's calm composure broke for a second with the appearance of a faint smirk.
Sujanha quickly continued, "And a simple military treaty will be of more use to both our peoples for the time being."
"I'm sure," Hammond agreed, "though there are many on our world who would value an exchange of culture, as well, once the danger of the Goa'uld is past."
"My people would enjoy that, as well. Our scholars have been greatly interested in the stories that Dr. Jackson has shared of your world and its many cultures, though frankly it puzzles me how one world can have so many peoples and still accomplish anything," Sujanha acknowledged. Daniel wasn't even trying to hide a grin, but any amusement that Sujanha shared fled when O'Neill made a comment under his breath about "geeks," which he probably had not meant to be heard. Sujanha did not know what a 'geek' was but was inclined to think the word was not complementary.
Hammond smiled and agreed, "It takes time and patience." The look on his face was of one who spent much time battling…oh, what does Daniel call them?... bureaucracies. He continued, "Where do we begin?" Sujanha appreciated his straightforward manner. If Hammond disliked her, as his subordinate did, because of the symbiote she had willingly chosen to bear, he at least did not show it openly.
"The process is simple and straightforward, though not always as quickly concluded as one might wish," Sujanha began, resisting the urge to shift in her seat again. She had a feeling that if the negotiations went at length, she would be quite stiff by the end. "I present terms on behalf of my people. We negotiate. You present terms on behalf of your people. We negotiate. Once the terms are finalized to our satisfactions, we discuss how they will be fulfilled and then we shake on it, as your people say."
"No written agreement?" Hammond asked, making notes with one hand while his attention and gaze were still focused on Sujanha, who was impressed with his notetaking skill. She had never managed the skill of writing while not looking.
Sujanha tilted her head slightly, an act that Daniel had once jokingly called her thinking-look, "We are not accustomed to doing so, since military treaties are, by their nature, limited in duration. The terms could be set in writing if you would prefer."
"We would. Politics."
"Of course," Sujanha replied. Hammond's request was unusual but not unheard of, and she had no wish to make his work more difficult by refusing. Daniel made a note of the request.
O'Neill made a note of something on his own pad and tilted it in Hammond's direction. Hammond looked over at his subordinate briefly before refocusing on Sujanha, who was wondering at the exchange. "What do the Furlings want from this treaty? Or should I say what does the Furling military want?" Hammond asked.
"The latter is correct, though if you want to be technical, Midgard is making a treaty with the Fleet, not the Army, though both will benefit."
One eyebrow crawled its way up Hammond's forehead. "I see," he said slowly, "And you are in command of only the fleet?"
Sujanha nodded, "Though my duties do overlap with Supreme Commander Anarr's in many situation." She had to fight to call her brother by his title. Among the Free Jaffa and Tok'ra whom she commonly had dealings with—Bra'tac and Jacob-Selmak, mostly—she was used to calling him "my brother" in most conversations. "My requests are simple. First, we need intelligence on the Goa'uld, including the major players you have encountered or killed, any minor players of note, all their numbers and tactics, worlds they currently control or once controlled, any information that can be of use to us in our war. Any information that could speed this war and reduce casualties on both sides."
"You can't get that information from the Free Jaffa or the Tok'ra?" O'Neill interjected.
"Not that fully overlaps with what I believe you could provide us, and your people might present the same data to us in ways that were different and perhaps more helpful than the others would," Sujanha replied. One valuable thing in commanding a military force that was comprised of many different races was that all the races went about war in different fashions. Races conducted military training in different ways, thought in different patterns. "You and Master Teal'c were trained differently, for example. I'm sure you think differently, and thus you probably look at military situations somewhat differently."
O'Neill made a slight face with an accompanying head tilt that Sujanha had seen enough times on Daniel to interpret as "I suppose that makes sense."
"We are also interested," Sujanha continued, "in information about the Stargate Network in this galaxy. Before we began this war, it had been ages since we last had dealings in this land, and except for the help of a handful of our previous allies who have not faded from the world and for our new allies, we have little comprehension of worlds with potential allies, with those peoples who must be protected, and those world that are best for all to avoid. Our work since our war with the Goa'uld began last year has only given us a limited knowledge of the Stargate system in this galaxy."
Hammond nodded and made a few more notes.
"Aside from such intelligence, we are also interested in limited medical supplies."
That statement caused quite a ruckus with several outcries of near disbelief thrown in, especially from the Chief Healer. After a moment, Hammond shushed them all, saying, "I was under the belief, Commander, that we would be negotiating for medical supplies from you."
"Which we would be happy to provide. We are only interested in …" Sujanha's voice trailed off as an exasperated look filled her eyes, "I fear I have forgotten the word in English. Ekosh, Dr. Jackson, what is the word in English?" Learning technical terms in multiple languages is always the hardest part.
Daniel looked up from his tablet, squinted slightly in thought, and then replied after a moment, "Antibiotics."
At a signal from Hammond, the Midgaridan Chief Healer spoke, "What kind of antibiotics? To deal with what types of problems?"
Sujanha twisted in her chair to face the other woman. I wish Mus or Kaja were here. I'm not a healer. I'm basically parroting what they told me. Such a strange Midgardian-phrase, that is. I would like to see a parrot some time. "Unlike in this galaxy, asheit … humans, rather, make up the minority of peoples in our galaxy. The majority are non-human races like my people or others," she gestured to her bodyguards behind her, "Our healers have struggled, at times, to treat the disease that trouble humans most of all, though also the weaker among us. Many diseases we have found cures for, but there are two that bear similarities to Midgard diseases that we have not found cures for yet."
"By diseases, do you mean illnesses or infections?"
Sujanha gave her a blank look, "I am a soldier, not a healer. For this conversation, I am only the vessel of what I was told by the healers who serve me."
"Continue, then, please, Commander."
"For these two diseases, for lack of the proper terminology in English, which I do not know, there are certain …"
"strains," Daniel interjected.
"strains," Sujanha continued, "which our healers can treat, and other strains for which our treatments have proved largely ineffective, and our healing devices, like those of the Goa'uld, are more effective against afflictions of flesh and bone than afflictions of the blood."
Carter made a sound of interest and began to write notes at speed on a pad of paper. Apparently, I am making some sense in English after all. *You worry too much.* Malek declared.
Daniel titled his tablet again. He had apparently noted Sujanha's struggle with the technical terminology of the healing field and had written down the equivalents of the two plagues that were periodic afflictions for those struck down and the healers trying to aid them.
Winter's Chill, the closest equivalents on earth, from the descriptions the healers gave, is a frightful combination of the flu, pneumonia, and bronchitis sometimes with pulmonary edema.
Blood Fire, the closest equivalent on earth mimics sepsis or blood poisoning.
Glancing back down several times at Daniel's tablet, "The disease called Winter's Chill, Dr. Jackson says from the descriptions our healers gave, is most closely equivalent to a severe combination of the Midgard diseases called the flu, pneumonia, and bronchitis sometimes with pulmonary edema."
All the Midgardians winced and gulped at that description. The healer, however, had a look that was a combination of horrific fascination and severe concern. "The flu is caused by a virus, not a bacteria, and cannot be treated with antibiotics, but pneumonia and bronchitis are infections and can be treated with antibiotics unless they are antibiotic-resistant strains. The treatment of pulmonary edema depends on the cause, but antibiotics probably would not help."
Dr. Frasier's specialty is rare and exotic diseases.
"The other disease is called Blood Fire, in our tongue, mimics … sepsis … or blood poisoning and usually follows certain types of injuries."
The Chief Healer made a few notes and then looked up the table at Hammond and at Sujanha, "I would need to talk to their healers, sir, to get more information about these 'diseases,' but we should be able to help."
Some discussion followed, and then Hammond called for a break. Sujanha gratefully rose from her uncomfortable seat and stepped away from the table back toward her bodyguards, while Daniel remained at the table, talking quietly with his own companions.
"Is there anything I need to know?" Sujanha asked, switching from English into Furling.
*I greatly dislike English,* she noted internally to Malek at the same time, *the imprecision is horrifying, and so are the technical terms.*
*Be grateful you don't have to speak Goa'uld on a regular basis,* was her symbiote's only reply. Sujanha gave an internal snort of agreement.
Ragnar shook his head, "No, Commander. Nothing to report from the Valhalla, the rest of the fleet, or your brother."
When the discussion behind her turned to food and the midday meal, Sujanha stopped intentionally trying to tune them out for politeness' sake. Hammond was saying something about "rooms prepared" and "having food sent up."
*It would be more informative to eat in the mess hall as is your custom among your own people,* Malek noted, *then to eat privately. Considering O'Neill's opinion of us, it would be good to judge what the majority think.*
*Agreed.*
At Sujanha's nod of ascent, Daniel, having guessed her thoughts, interjected, "We would prefer to eat in the commissary if that's alright."
Hammond was surprised but assented, and SG1 escorted Sujanha, Daniel, and her bodyguards down a labyrinth of hallways, a horrible contraption called an elevator that set her teeth on edge, and then more hallways. The base's food hall was mostly empty as they entered. Daniel whispered that it was because it wasn't quite time for the usual "lunch rush" yet, which made Sujanha wish for a time piece that followed Midgardian time. Daniel had stopped wearing his Midgard watch some months earlier and had not remembered to pick it up that morning. What SGC soldiers were there looked at the newcomers with some mixture of wariness, unease, curiosity, or surprise. Those with the look of scholars about them seemed more interested in the arrival of the Furlings than wary.
The Furlings and Daniel claimed a large 8-person table along one wall. Sujanha gratefully took a seat with her back to the wall, while Daniel went off to see what was being served. He returned a few minutes later. "Meatloaf's the meat dish today."
Sujanha gave him a blank-look. Sometimes Daniel forgot to explain things. "Which is…."
Daniel winced, "Oh, sorry. Meatloaf is made up of ground up meat, combined with vegetables, egg, and breadcrumbs, and formed into a loaf shape and then topped with tomato sauce."
I'm not sure I know anything more than I did before he explained.
With Ragnar's help carrying, Daniel returned a few minutes later carrying trays and drinks for all of them. Once Sujanha and the others were settled with food and drink, he departed with his own tray to eat with his old teammates. While keeping an eye on what was going on around them and on Daniel, Ragnar, Albjorn, and Drogvussik set to eating, leaving Sujanha to her thoughts.
On her tray was a plate of meatloaf, a red thing that Daniel had called an apple, and another mug of tea-that-was-not-actually-tea. Sujanha picked up one of the eating utensils and gingerly poked the brownish mass of food with the eating end.
*You're supposed to eat it, not poke it,* Her symbiote interjected gently. Gentle was not exactly a common mental tone out of her sometimes temperamental and often opinionated symbiote, which meant he was worried about her.
*I'm not really hungry,* Sujanha replied, allowing the mantle of Supreme Commander to slip from her shoulders for a short time. Despite Malek's best efforts to the contrary, her body ached from the effects of little sleep and hours spent sitting in an uncomfortable chair.
*You need to eat,* Malek prodded, *You barely ate anything this morning except for that blue fruit you always eat and your tea.* Sujanha, her symbiote had come to quickly realize after she had become his host, rarely felt hungry even on the best of days, as a consequence of the chronic pain she suffered and the medicines she took. Food, she had once said, had never tasted the same since she had been poisoned, and she often drank more of her calories than she ate, and getting her to eat often required copious amounts of either gentle prodding and not-so-gentle bugging.
Somewhat reluctantly, Sujanha picked up her eating utensil and slowly ate several bites of meatloaf. Several bites were all she could stomach. This is disgusting. The texture was extremely strange, and the use of spices awful. Her stomach rolled, and she pushed the plate away.
*If it were anything else, I'd offer to eat it for us,* Malek offered. There were some foods that Sujanha, while in control, could not stomach, but if Malek were in control, she did not really taste the food as much.
If they disliked the food, Ragnar and Albjorn showed no outward side of it and were cheerfully demolishing two large plates of the meatloaf with accompanying side dishes, while discussing … something. Sujanha nudged her plate in their direction, confident that one of them would finish it off. She picked up the 'apple' and carefully gnawed off a piece with one long canine. Its texture was more pleasant, though it was somewhat sweet for her tastes.
"Perhaps, we should offer to provide the people of Midgard food as well as other supplies," Drogvussik said in the rumbling language of his own people a few minutes later. From the expression on his face, he was less fond of his food than Ragnar and Albjorn, the former of whom was well known for his willingness to eat anything that would not poison him.
Drogvussik was still eating, nonetheless. While the Dovahkiin had suffered no outright attacks during the Great War due to the inhospitable conditions of their world, they had been forced to bury their Stargate and had suffered a blockade on multiple occasions, leading to years of want. Unless the food would make them ill, no Dovahkiin would refuse the food put in front of them.
Sujanha gave a small snort. Vylt extended one armored hand, scanning Sujanah's abandoned lunch with one hand-mounted sensor, tilting his head in such a way to make the Commander wonder what he was thinking behind his expressionless mask. "Should I be glad that I cannot consume the same food as your species?" He asked.
"That would depend on which of us you ask," Sujanha replied in Furling, glancing away for a moment to check on Daniel.
Drogvussik stopped eating long enough to take one the bags that hung on his rope belt off his belt. "Asgard rations," he rumbled, "help yourself."
Asgardian rations were cheap, easy-to-make, mass-produced nutrition tablets in various flavors. Opinions about them usually fell along species lines. Sujanha was ambivalent about most of the flavors but liked the blue ones, especially. She gave Drogvussik a nod of thanks and took several of the blue ones to nibble on.
*Do you want me to take over?* Malek asked. A biochemist and data analyst by trade and training, he had been going back and forth all day between paying attention to the treaty negotiations and mentally studying some experiment he was working on. Sujanha had had two labs built for her symbiote, one on Uslisgas and one off the healer's wing on the Valhalla, and he worked on research projects for the Tok'ra or for his own interest whenever Sujanha was not needed elsewhere and had work she could do mentally while he controlled the body.
*Please. That will give me a chance to rest.*
By now, switching control had become quite easy. Sujanha took a mental step backwards and to the side, and Malek slipped seamlessly into control. When their body language changed, Ragnar and the others glanced over, long enough to indicate that they had noticed the switch, but then went right back to what they were doing. In the back of her and Malek's shared mind, Sujanha wove a dreamscape about herself and settled down to rest.
When Sujanha roused again, some time had passed. They were still at the table in the food hall, but Daniel had returned to their table, and Malek was discussing something bio-chemical related with Vylt, surprisingly. He was not using the dual-flanged voice and was keeping his voice quiet as a result. In a private discussion, Sujanha did not see a problem with his choice.
Malek paused his conversation when he realized Sujanha had roused. *Do you want control back?*
*No, not yet. Just scan the room, please.*
Malek did so, *As you wish. Daniel think the talks will restart soon.*
Her symbiote returned to his conversation, and Sujanha settled back down, listening to bits of the surrounding conversations and relishing the rare opportunity to do nothing. Save for the forced years of inactivity when she had trod upon the shores of the Winds of Night, work, work, work had been her constant companion for centuries.
A short time later a Midgardian soldier returned, and Sujanha and Daniel and the others were escorted back to the 'conference room' where they had been previously. As they walked, Malek relinquished control back to Sujanha.
Everything was going well until they reached the 'conference room' overlooking the Stargate. Then, as Daniel sometimes said, things went sideways. O'Neill was speaking with Hammond in quick, curt tones, and their faces was grave. Carter was hovering by her commander's shoulders, and Teal'c was sitting calmly in his chair. The tension in the room was thick, and Sujanha immediately tensed, her bodyguards doing the same. Daniel just looked confused.
"Is there a problem?" Sujanha asked, drawing the calm and composure of her position over herself like a cloak.
O'Neill quieted, and Hammond turned to face her. "To whom am I speaking?" The general asked.
Sujanha drew herself up, puzzled and somewhat offended both, "Supreme Commander Sujanha, of course. Who else?" Beside her and hidden behind Ragnar's bulk, Daniel winced. Outside of introductions, Sujanha only identified herself as "Supreme Commander" or insisted upon being called by her full title if she (a) really did not like someone or (b) was angry.
"You tell us." O'Neill replied, his tone full of the accusations Hammond's had lacked, "One of your guards," pointing a finger at Vylt, who bristled at the gesture, which was an insult among his own people, "was overheard talking to your symbiote, who was not using the creepy voice."
*Someone passed close enough to hear you," Sujanha said silently. *Or," Malek added, *someone was spying on us.*
Sujanha placed a calming paw on Vylt's shoulder, replying to Hammond, "And that is a crime? Malek was having a private discussion in low voices in a loud room, making me surprised that our voices carried." The implication behind her words unspoken was clear. Her voice was calm, but anyone who knew her well would have known that she was not happy in the slightest.
O'Neill opened his mouth, but Hammond shook his head, which pleased Sujanha, who was quickly losing patience with Hammond's subordinate. Daniel was quite fond of O'Neill from all the stories, but SG1's commander had not made a good impression on the Supreme Commander so far.
"No," the general replied, "it is simply unusual. Most of the Tok'ra make more of an effort to distinguish whether host or symbiote is in control."
"Such measures are not necessary among our own people across our empire," Sujanha countered, her tone going even firmer and more cuttingly polite, "Dr. Jackson introduced me to you when we arrived, and there was no change of control during our negotiations. He can vouch for that, and I am sure you would trust his word. I am not the only host among my people, either. If you are to have dealings with us, you must be careful. Unfounded accusations will not win you any favor among the peoples of the Empire."
There was an awkward, tense silence for several long moments, as Sujanha starred down the Midgard officers. She had backed them into a verbal corner by calling on Daniel as a witness, relying on the belief that General Hammond and even the mistrustful O'Neill would not want to deny the trustworthiness of one of their own men in public. While she hoped that would be enough to silence the issue, she began to mentally run through the beginnings of a few contingency plans in her mind. She had not survived assassinations plots and a millennia-long war by being unprepared.
"Any concerns we might have had have been resolved," Hammond said placatingly after a glance at Daniel who nodded, "Please, sit."
Sujanha did so with Daniel a half-beat behind, and Ragnar and the others retook their place along the back wall, yet if the bodyguards were now less at ease, only Sujanha and Daniel would have noticed.
"Where were we?"
Sujanha wondered at the question, as she thought it unlikely that Hammond would truly have forgotten, and surmised it must be a Midgardian or turn of phrase she did not understand. "We were ready to discuss what Midgard wants in return for our requested intelligence and medical supplies."
"Of course. What types of supplies are you willing to offer us in return?"
Sujanha was silent for a long moment, considering the question. It was one she had been pondering for days and not one with an answer that she would allow to be influenced by her current mood. "What do your people need?" She countered, "There are some types of goods I am not authorized to offer, but I am willing to listen."
"Medical supplies," the SGC's Chief Healer spoke first, "The Jaffa can barely hit the broad side of a barn some days, but their staff weapons can almost cut holes through our soldiers. I have soldiers dying on my table, and I can't do a thing to save them, except make them comfortable. Don't get me started on Zats. We've had multiple alien epidemics… I don't have the equipment or the know-how to treat most aliens…"
The Chief Healer was the quintessential picture of a healer thrown into an unexpected situation (the deep end of the pool, as Daniel would say) and doing her best to keep body-and-soul together of herself and her patients both.
"The alien diseases, my people can do little to help you with that. Before the last decade, we had little to no contact with this galaxy for many millennia," Sujanha paused, listening to the mental voice of her symbiote, "Malek says, however, that the Tok'ra might be able to help with those diseases that appear throughout the galaxy, though not with planet-specific diseases. We can help you to some extent with information on treating some specific species with which we have had dealings before, like the Nox, the Asgard, the Oannes," that got her surprised looks but no interruptions, "and, of course, on helping Jaffa and symbiotes."
There was furious scribbling but no ready questions, so Sujanha continued, "As to your first statement, I am authorized to offer at least one healing pod and multiple healing devices and one or two healers to assist and teach you how to use our technology."
"Are your healing devices similar to the Goa'uld ones?" Carter asked.
"Extremely, considering the Goa'uld stole that technology and most all else from us in ages past," Sujanha replied. She ignored the resulting kerfluffle—Daniel had used the word once and the Commander found it most amusing—of noise and continued speaking over the top, "Ours, however, are not about thirty thousand years out of date and do not require the presence of naquadah in the controller to function."
The next few minutes of conversation were quite jumbled with overlapping threads of discussion covering everything from how the Furlings had been careless enough to allow the Goa'uld to steal their technology and why they were only know doing something about it—a question that made Sujanha grind her teeth, since now was not the time to even start explaining those events—to Carter's expression of her belief that she already knew how to operate a healing device and could show the others, since the Furling ones were so similar to the Goa'uld ones.
"Captain Carter," Sujanha asked when the room had finally quieted, "do you have training as a healer?"
Carter blinked, seemingly surprised at being addressed directly. Sujanha had mainly been speaking to General Hammond or to Healer Frasier.
"No, not beyond the basics," the soldier-scientist-second of SG1 replied.
Sujanha cocked her head, "And yet you believe you already know how to use a healing device?" Such a conversation was not one she liked having, but there was a point behind her questions. A healing device could make as much havoc as it did good in the hands of an inexperienced user.
"I've used it successfully," Carter bristled.
"How many times?"
"Once."
Sujanha shook her head, "Then I can assure you that any success you had was more from luck or blessings from on high than skill. In the hands of an inexperienced user, a healing device can just as easily kill someone as bring them back from the foot of the pyre. A healing device accelerates a body's healing beyond all normal measures, even beyond a symbiote's capacity to heal swiftly. One needs to have a skilled knowledge of the body and its processes, since it is just as possible to set a broken bone in the wrong position or reattach damaged innards to the wrong organ as actually heal a person."
Carter paled and went, as the Midgardians would say, a little green, seeming to get the message quite clearly.
"We will be happy to provide medical supplies," Sujanha said, turning back to Hammond, "What else are you interested in?"
"Big, honkin' space guns."
Daniel had warned me, and yet I'm still surprised. Does O'Neill not consider how impractical his desire even is? Sujanha also knew that the issue of more advanced races not sharing their technology was a touchy subject on earth and at the SGC.
"No," Sujanha replied, "for two reasons. First, you have no ships to mount ship-to-ship weaponry on, and I am not authorized to provide you with ships. Second, unless you have only recently revealed the existence of the Stargate to the inhabitants of your world, you could not conceal the use of ground-to-ship weaponry. Further, I do not know if I or Supreme Commander Anarr have any weapons officers to spare who could teach you the use of such weaponry."
As the Furlings saw it, it was the height of foolishness to simply give a less advanced race great technological advancement if they had no conception of how to operate, troubleshoot, or repair that technology. Misused healing technology could kill a few people before the mistake was discovered. The misuse of weaponry or generators could kill thousands or thousands upon thousands or even destroy a world.
"We would, however," Sujanha continued, "be willing to offer staff weapons and stunners that are not grievously out of date. Our staff weapons are much more accurate than the Goa'uld abominations with a much greater range and rate of fire. They are more than weapons of intimidation for a force who by in large are extremely poor marksmen."
There was a light in Teal'c eyes that matched the one in Sat'a's whenever there were new weapons system to test on the Valhalla or otherwise.
"The Jaffa should audition to play stormtroopers," someone muttered, a comment which made Daniel snicker, obviously catching a reference that Sujanha did not understand.
"Are the personal shields in the Goa'uld hara-kesh your invention?" Carter asked.
"Yes, we created both, though the latter has especially been corrupted," Sujanha replied, noting the dark look that entered O'Neill's eyes at the mention of the hara-kesh. She tugged the sleeve of her dark tunic up to reveal the gauntlet on her left arm. "The hara-kesh are a much corrupted version of these. There is no good translation in your language, but I believe Dr. Jackson simply calls them 'gauntlets.' They include personal shields, which do not have the weaknesses of the Goa'uld versions." Turning back to Hammond, she continued, "we would be willing to share personal shields for a limited number of your teams."
"By weaknesses, do you mean their vulnerability to objects with low kinetic energy?" Carter had a look in her eyes that promised many questions and much research to follow.
Unfortunately, Sujanha did not follow. She glanced at Daniel, a puzzled look in her eyes. Her aid and expert on all things Midgard nodded that the answer was yes.
"Yes," Sujanha replied, trusting Daniel's better knowledge of English.
Carter bent over her pad and began to scribble furiously for several long moments, before Hammond cleared his throat, bringing her attention back to the matter at hand.
"We would be very happy to have personal shields for our front-line teams, especially," Hammond said, "The Jaffa are not usually good shots, but we have lost a lot of good men to them and other incidents off-world."
"The loss of good men is greatly mourned for the sake of their comrades and their kin. Weaponry can be easily replaced, but good men not so."
The faces of all around the table were somber. All had lost good men, good friends, even family to wars across the ages.
"The other piece of technology we are willing to offer," Sujanha began, after letting the moment of silence linger for a few moments, "is an Early Warning System, a small satellite with long range sensors and its own dedicated shield. Dr. Jackson tells me your system for detecting ships in your solar system … has its weaknesses, and since we do our best to send military support to our allies when they are in need, it would be helpful to know of threats before they are at your gates."
"Earth is part of the Protected Planets Treaty," Hammond noted.
"Which is good, but there are threats that the Asgard cannot protect you from," Sujanha countered.
"Like…." O'Neill drawled.
Sujanha shook her head and leaned back in her chair that had not grown any more comfortable as the day wore on, "These are matters I cannot speak of further."
"Can't or won't?"
"Colonel," Hammond snapped, and O'Neill quieted.
"All you are offering in return for the intelligence and antibiotics sounds more than reasonable and very useful. Thank you, Commander," Hammond continued.
The meeting concluded with a somewhat lengthy discussion of how each party's conditions were to be met. Sujanha believed that the satellite and the others good could be gathered and brought within a week at most. She handed over several Stargate addresses to which intelligence could be sent to be passed on to her and, as she had done for the Free Jaffa and Tok'ra, provided several other addresses where hard-pressed SG teams unable to return to earth could find assistance.
Hammond promised to send the proposed conditions of the treaty to his superiors and said he would send word to Sujanha as soon as possible when the terms were agreed to by the Midgardian bureaucracy.
Sujanha was glad to depart. As pleased as she was with the alliance with Midgard—the SGC's intelligence would likely be of great use—she found their base uncomfortable in multiple respects and was glad to return home. She was also glad to be able to release the Valhalla from "babysitting duty," as Daniel put it.
"Come," she said to Daniel, as they waited at the base of the ramp for the Stargate to finish dialing, "Today has been a profitable day, but there is more to be done."
Next Time on Ripples in the Deep:
Interlude V: The Cost of War
Interlude VI: The Prisoners
Chapter 20: Homecoming and Miscellaneous Adventures
