LIBERTINES AND LIBERATION
WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL SITUATIONS
This is three chapters in one because of FF document restriction.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any Stargate characters, ideas or themes. As a matter of fact, Stargate can have my ideas if they want them (wouldn't that be great). All standard applicable disclaimers apply to this piece. I have tried to source any materials quoted in furtherance of this story.
Spoilers: Probably some for Season 10 and beyond
Summary: Vala and Daniel centered storyline adventure (hopefully); relationship (okay yes); angst (yup); comfort; etc.
Rating: R to NC-17 in some parts.
Author's Note: This is my first Stargate fiction. I have no betas – not even a beta fish – not even sure what a beta is in fact.
This is the first chapter in the next installment. There's more to follow, probably tomorrow.
This story will have multiple chapters.
I took inspiration from Milena D's Misappropriation of Lives and a short story called Believe by Random. I really wish those two authors would write more on those two story lines.
I hope for a few comments.
Further Negotiations
"How long is it going to take to find this ship?" Cam repeated for what seemed the hundredth time.
"It's not a simple process," the Odyssey's Communications Officer repeated again politely.
Cam felt he was ready to jump out of his skin, though Teal'c appeared to be maintaining his stoic calm.
Twenty minutes later the Odyssey's Communications Officer looked up from his station and said, "We just got a ping on Colonel Carter and Dr. Jackson's locators."
The ship's navigator asked, "Do you want me to lock them in?"
"Lock in," said Cam.
"We're being hailed by someone claiming to be a friend of Vala Mal Doran. He says Colonel Carter and Dr. Jackson are with him," the Communications Officer announced.
Cam said, "On screen," ignoring the Odyssey chain of command -- these were his people.
Re Van's handsome face appeared on screen; Sam and Daniel's more agitated and pissed off faces sat in the seats behind him. Daniel looked a little banged up, but Sam looked unharmed.
"Carter! Jackson!" Cam shouted with a big smile, relieved that Sam and Daniel were safe. "Where's Vala?" Cam asked.
"She's still on the Lucian Alliance ship," Sam said looking pointedly at Re Van, but saying no more, and then adding "We didn't expect to run into Odyssey out here. Are you tracking the Alliance ship?"
"Yes, we're trying, but we haven't got an exact fix yet." Cam said.
"Well gentlemen, I might be able to help with that," smiled Re Van. Cam saw Daniel stare daggers at Aton Re Van.
"And you are?" Cam asked suspiciously.
"Aton Re Van, at your service," Re Van grinned, "Look Ms. Mal Doran mentioned that you Tau'ri would be very rewarding to the man that returned Colonel Carter and Dr. Jackson. She didn't stretch the truth now did she?" Re Van asked, as though if she hadn't, it would be the first time.
"We can work out a reward, but we want those coordinates of that ship now." Cam said without hesitation.
"Alright, I understand your time constraints, so how about beaming Dr. Jackson, Colonel Carter and myself over and we'll chat a bit about this reward before I give you the coordinates," Re Van said amicably.
"Vala is probably being tortured as we speak, or worse," Sam said incredulous that this man who seemed to have some affection for Vala would not be more concerned.
Daniel blanched at hearing the words spoken out loud.
"Wonk is a big girl; and I know for a fact she can handle herself. I suggest we stop wasting time and strike the deal quick if you are concerned." Re Van said smiling and clapping Sam on the shoulder as if they were in perfect agreement.
"Wonk?" Cam said with a confused expression.
Re Van, Daniel and Sam were beamed over to the Odyssey; they were met by Cam, Teal'c and an Odyssey contingent.
"Welcome aboard," Colonel Walker, the Odyssey's acting Commander said.
"Thank you sir; this is Aton Re Van." Sam introduced generally; but she made no further introductions to save time, "let's hear your reward proposal Aton." Sam stated simply and calmly.
"Well gentlemen, we'll hold our formal introductions until this is worked out then; and who am I dealing with?" Re Van said casually.
"You'll deal with me, Colonel Cameron Mitchell," Cam introduced, "What's your role in today's events Mr. Re Van."
"Oh just Aton or Re Van, no need for formality," Re Van smiled. "I've been aboard Emeteo's ship for about three days on another matter. Today, Eme insists on this side trip to Danter to take Sam here aboard. Vala tells me you folks had a little run in with Eme's brother Anateo over this ship we're on. I think Eme . . . hasn't let the matter of his brother's death go quite yet. He seemed to have a grievance with Sam on that account. He was in the process of locking Sam up, when Wonk, errr . . . Ms. Mal Doran and Dr. Jackson popped up and surprised him, so Emeteo locked them up as well."
Cam let out a quick whistle upon learning the connection between Anateo and the man intent on kidnapping Samantha Carter.
Re Van continued calmly with a charming air, "Ms. Mal Doran and I are quite close, though we had lost touch recently."
Daniel raised an eyebrow to this claim; he'd seen Vala's distanced responses to this man.
"I now gather she has been with you good people," Re Van continued.
"Re Van can we cut to the bottom line here," Cam said impatiently.
"Certainly, long story short, I visited Vala, who introduced me to Colonel Carter and Dr. Jackson. Ms. Mal Doran and I agreed in our assessment that Dr. Jackson was in eminent danger since Emeteo had already issued an order to have him killed. So I faked Dr. Jackson's death and shuttled him off Emeteo's ship and onto my own.
"Yeah, I didn't really agree to that plan Re Van." Daniel said angrily.
"Dr. Jackson you were not thinking clearly. If you'd stayed you couldn't have helped Wonk, you would have only succeeded in getting yourself, and quite likely HER, killed. I think you know that Wonk will back my assessment on this don't you Dr. Jackson?" Re Van said simply.
Daniel crossed his arms, but said nothing more; Re Van was right, Vala would back him up on that point.
"I gave Vala something to pick the cell lock with, and put her in charge of extracting Colonel Carter from Emeteo's ship." Re Van continued rather grandly, "My ship picked Sam up from Eme's shuttle about an hour later." Re Van continued, "Unfortunately, Vala was detained, but as you see Colonel Carter and Dr. Jackson are both quite safe."
Daniel's insides boiled at the cavalier tone with which Re Van dismissed the importance of Vala still being trapped on Emeteo's ship.
"Now, Dr. Jackson, Colonel Carter and Ms. Mal Doran indicated that my act of generosity, which has cost me a substantial piece of business, would be appropriately rewarded."
"Yeah, what do you want?" Daniel said giving Re Van a let's hurry this up gesture and cutting Cam off as he was about to ask the question.
Re Van knew when he had the upper hand, and this was about as good as a situation gets. He quickly laid out the reward he wanted. The supply of naquedah he requested was this side of unreasonable; but he stayed within a ballpark that could be secured without hours of negotiation since he was not without affection for his Wonk.
"Considering the risks that I have taken; the services and information I have provided and the business opportunity that has been lost by helping you people, I believe my request is quite fair." Re Van had said, not adding that after Emeteo's irrational behavior he thought he was well out of that deal.
Re Van thought with surprise that his salesmanship on his figure had not been needed, and secretly kicked himself for not asking more, when Dr. Jackson said almost before Re Van had stopped talking, "Fine! What are the coordinates?"
Cam gave Jackson an annoyed look, but backed her up with a nod. Re Van wondered again what connection Wonk's had to this man, though he had and idea or two.
Re Van smiled, "Yes alright, but there is the matter of a good faith down payment."
Daniel rolled his eyes.
"We have a case of refined naquedah in our hold; we can beam that to your ship. But unless I have those coordinates in the next 30 seconds, I might just start letting the big guy," gesturing to Teal'c, "take a crack at you." Cam said impatiently.
Re Van recognized the Jaffa, as the Shol'va, Teal'c. There were not many among his ilk who had not heard of Teal'c, though most would not know to identify him by his gold first prime seal of Apophis. Re Van was again surprised by the company Vala was keeping.
"Well I think we've established trust, so a case of refined naquedah will be a fine down payment." Re Van smiled and took a small handheld computer out of his coat and handed it to Sam. "The last coordinates to Emeteo's ship."
Sam handed the coordinates the navigator and said, "Set a course at maximum speed." Sam had already narrowed the coordinates as much as possible based on a malfunctioning sensor array on the shuttle pod she had used in her escape. She wondered if Re Van had sabotaged the array so that he would be the only one with Emeteo's coordinates. With the exact coordinates, the Odyssey, the faster ship, would close the gap quickly. Sam breathed a sigh of relief.
"I estimate twenty minutes to intercept," the Odyssey's navigator said.
"For this price Re Van, you're coming with us to help with Vala's rescue," Cam stated authoritatively, "And you can start by diagramming Emeteo's ship."
Re Van shrugged thinking that Dr. Jackson and the equally bossy look alike Tau'ri must be brothers. He communicated with his ship to follow the Odyssey. He'd planned on coming along anyway; the Tau'ri had saved him the trouble of following in stealth.
As SG-1, augmented by a contingent of Odyssey crew, were readying their gear for the rescue mission onto Emeteo's ship, Sam was giving a quick run down of her kidnapping; Vala and Daniel's pursuit and further detailing Re Van's assistance.
"Wow, Princess can be resourceful," Cam said.
"Indeed." Teal'c replied.
Re Van wondered if this Tau'ri brother and Jaffa were also in love with his Wonk. Ah, hard to resist a sex goddess, as he well knew.
"Gentlemen, Ms. Mal Doran was certainly helpful, but I was really the key to this rescue wasn't I?" Re Van reminded them; it wouldn't do for these Tau'ri to forget his value before he had been fully paid.
As Dr. Jackson gave Re Van a hard stare, Sam relayed more details on the circumstances that resulted in Vala being left behind. We lost the element of surprise when Daniel and Re Van left the ship Sam said. At this all the Tau'ri men had given Re Van a hard look.
Re Van's eyes returned the stare with their own hardened look as he stated with a tone of authority, "I myself taught Ms. Mal Doran her skills with locks, and I felt confident she was in no immediate danger."
At this bit of information, Daniel did a double take. This is the man that taught Vala to be a thief! That figured, Daniel thought with curiosity and bitterness, what had he said to Vala about her not being able to get over being a good girl?
Re Van continued, "I can tell you she would not have wanted me to risk Colonel Carter or Dr. Jackson's freedom to come after her." Re Van felt confident that Vala would say put the money first. It was the code he had taught her.
Re Van noted with a sly smile that Dr. Jackson seemed to examine him a little closer when he announced his superior knowledge of Wonk.
Daniel itched to ask this slick man exactly what his connection to Vala was, but he thought they should remain focused.
Re Van thought he would add a little fuel and see what burned. "You know the Vala Mal Doran that I KNOW would never have missed that clumsy fool Emeteo's trap. She must be slipping," he said with a slight laugh that was delivered with calculated charm.
From the guilty looks that flew between the four identified as SG-1, Re Van surmised, that this mistake was not his Wonk's, but rather one made by these Tau'ri. What was Wonk doing with these people? Aton wondered again.
"If you have retained Vala Mal Doran, I recommend that you heed her counsel on such matters. I have always found her quite skilled in recognizing deception – too skilled for her own good; I suppose a good practitioner is the best detector." Re Van offered smoothly.
"And what exactly is your connection to Vala?" Cam Mitchell finally asked Re Van.
Re Van just laughed and said, "Well I guess if Ms. Mal Doran hasn't seen fit to fill you all in on her life, it really isn't MY place."
Daniel went to recheck his gear in preparation for the green light to extract Vala. He couldn't stomach looking at Re Van.
Daniel was appalled at Re Van – a man who had twice prevented Vala's teammates from helping her get off Emeteo's ship. Daniel had rarely felt a stronger curiosity than he did about the power Vala held over this dangerous pirate, who was clearly governed by self interest. The man had ruined an alliance with Emeteo in order to help Vala, and he'd based it only on a promise from Vala, VALA, of a reward. Daniel felt repulsed at the thought that Vala could have any kind of connection to Re Van.
Daniel had set sail on a sea of emotions. He knew that Re Van had a point. Vala was RIGHT about this mission. Her skills, connections and quick wits had saved Sam from torture, rape and a slow death. She'd saved Daniel from certain death today. And now she's paying the price AGAIN because we didn't listen to her. Because I didn't listen to her, Daniel thought morosely.
Daniel knew that at one time or another each SG-1 member had risked life and limb to save a teammate's life; but today it was Vala. He did not even know if Vala was alive; he shuddered to think what could be happening to her right now on that ship. These thoughts and questions hit Daniel hard. Best not to think about it he told himself.
What was happening to Vala on that ship? Daniel felt like his head was going to explode; he wanted to get to Vala and it was taking forever. Just focus on bringing Vala home Daniel thought.
"Okay people, we go in 5 minutes," Cam told the rescue team. "Based on Re Van's information, we'll be beaming into the point where Vala and Sam were last held. I want you all looking sharp." Cam concluded.
LIBERTINES AND LIBERATION
WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL SITUATIONS
The Price She Pays
Emeteo's ship was still in an uproar looking for Aton Re Van and the two missing prisoners, including the Tau'ri Samantha Carter. They knew that two shuttle craft were missing.
Vala had had better days, though she was pleased that Daniel and Sam were safe off Emeteo's ship. She'd been working on finding her own way off the ship when she'd felt a tingle and everything had gone black. Apparently one of Emeteo's men had managed to maneuver himself into her hiding place.
Vala had awakened in the cell room. She didn't know how long she'd been unconscious. She had been stood up against the bars of her cell. Her arms and hands had been threaded through the bars; Chains had been wrapped around her arms and hands, which were then secured with a lock.
"Oh, this is just great," Vala said trying to shake the fuzziness off. She shuddered internally; she knew what was coming next. She took stock of her situation. They'd taken her boots and coat again. She felt for the clip that Aton had given her and cheered considerably when she found it nestled up one of her shirt sleeves. She carefully removed it and maneuvered it down to the lock behind her back that secured the chains around her wrists. She was still dizzy as she carefully began picking the lock. The lock was proving tougher than she expected.
Time had just run out. Emeteo walked into the cell with barely contained rage as he regarded Vala with disdain. He had been intent on exacting revenge against the Tau'ri woman Samantha Carter – vengeance for the death of his brother Anateo. He had bribed a Tok'ra to spread word of suspicious energy readings. As he suspected, this information drew in the naïve Tau'ri. Samantha Carter came into his hands with relative ease; her kidnapping had gone off with barely a hitch. He had been pleased; he would have the pleasure of slowly torturing Samantha Carter to death and his stature as a potential leader of the Lucian Alliance would grow stronger.
Vala Mal Doran, she had literally dropped into his lap – a windfall. He delighted that he would settle that old score too. He had never imagined that Vala would persuade Aton Re Van to assist in Samantha Carter's escape. It was unheard of for Re Van to put a woman above money, Re Van had too many women to care for any particular one – especially this woman who had left Re Van for Anateo years ago. Then the bitch had left Anateo too! Emeteo thought resentfully. Anateo had once told him that Vala was rumored to have played host for a Goa'uld sex goddess. The powers of persuasion she demonstrated today seemed to confirm it.
Now Emeteo would have to wait for another chance to exact revenge against Samantha Carter. A chance that might not come. And if word got out about Re Van and the Tau'ri's escape, the other factions of the Lucian Alliance would surely start attacking his interests with a fierce vengeance. He was seething with rage over these turns of events.
For today Vala Mal Doran would have to do. She was going to pay for everything that happened today and for dumping Anateo. Emeteo had always HATED the way Vala Mal Doran manipulated Anateo. It was an affront to their family name regardless of whether Anateo saw it that way or not. Anateo had been willing to deal with Vala as an occasional partner in stealing a ship and let her live. When Anateo was done with a woman; he was done. There's always a more interesting one waiting he would say. He couldn't be bothered with revenge against a woman. Besides, Anateo found old lovers useful at times. Not so Emeteo.
Vala had never bothered to give Emeteo a second glance. And she'd s pay for that today too. When he was done with her, no other man would find her beautiful.
Emeteo looked very much like Anateo, except that where Anateo had a modicum of charm, Emeteo was all malice and ugliness. It surprised Vala how such a similar visage could result in two completely different effects on these brothers. Vala looked into Emeteo's eyes and saw exactly what she had expected to see, cold brutality. She thought to herself, you've been through this before; he won't even hold a light to Qetesh on one of her lazy days. She pep talked to herself with a bungled American slang. Keep him talking; keep working on the lock; and find a way to fight. She was barefoot but her legs had not been restrained, big mistake Emeteo.
Vala grinned widely at Emeteo, "we seemed to have gotten off on the wrong foot today Eme."
Emeteo took a long knife out of the side of his boot and held it up to Vala's throat.
"Vala you're a magnet for disaster– you always have been. Anateo never understood that. Still I have to say it was impressive of you to talk Re Van into helping."
"Actually, Eme, I had nothing to do with that." Vala lied.
"Oh, I think you had a lot to do with it." Emeteo said as he casually trailed the knife down to Vala's white shirt. He took the shirt in both of his hands and ripped it violently from her body. Vala heard the fabric rip; she felt the burn at the back of her neck where the fabric had made a futile last stand before giving way. She nearly lost the clip she was using to pick the lock, but she caught it in a panic. The sound of the fabric ripping made her stomach lurch sickeningly.
"You could have just asked me, Emeteo," Vala said with a false purr.
The front of her shirt had ripped completely away from her body exposing a white lace bra underneath. The back of her shirt had fallen down but was still tucked into her pants. Emeteo took the knife and sliced the bra off Vala's body. She felt her stomach turn cold as fear gave her goose bumps and made her nipples harden. Forcing down the panic, Vala kept working at the lock behind her back. She thought she was about half way through the lock. Why was this lock proving so difficult?
"I'll be the last man to see you looking so beautiful. I'm afraid no one will want you after I'm done." Eme said coldly running his knife over her breasts.
Vala knew that if she attacked Emeteo with her hands still chained and locked, her chances of a successful escape were significantly reduced. If she was going to strike with her hands tied, the strike would have to knock him out and give her time to finish. So far Emeteo had not provided an opportunity for such a strike. She had to bide her time until she was free or she could do some serious damage with a blow from her knees. She knew he wasn't looking to kill her; he'd plan to torture and rape her for days before his mind would turn to murder. She had time; it wouldn't be pleasant, but she had time.
Vala calculated the angles and decided the best way to stall would be to further piss Emeteo off. You need to piss him off so he drops that knife in favor of a hand or fist. Mustering all her former sex goddess hauteur, Vala smirked, "Well Eme I see that you never recovered from Anateo preferring to be in my bed to yours."
Emeteo grabbed at her breasts roughly before slapping her viciously several times. "Always the greatest gift to all men Vala," Emeteo mocked and began to make cuts on Vala's back, arms and breasts. Vala tried not to react other than telling herself, Damn, that didn't work. She thought she was two thirds there on the lock. She prayed that the blood running down her arms would not slick her fingers making picking the lock even more difficult. Blood was flowing from the cuts in slow trickles down her stomach. She wasn't sure she had time to finish unlocking her hands before things got any uglier. He won't kill you yet, stay calm she told herself. You have time.
Vala remained quiet while Emeteo's knife slit open the lacings on her leather pants. The knife continued down one of Vala's legs and then the other until the front of her pants was in shreds. Better the pants than me, thought Vala even though Emeteo had not bothered to use care. He'd left Vala's stomach and legs with several severe bleeding gouges from the knife.
Vala felt her hands shaking and the bile rise in her throat as Emeteo's hand touched the lips that were just under the cloth of her panties. Emeteo looked up and sneered at her. She felt him pull her underwear away from her body. She felt him place his knife between her flesh and her panties and cut them away exposing her body to the air of the room.
Emeteo's fingers were attempting to roughly enter her, to violate her. But Vala had changed the position of her legs giving Emeteo only brief initial success before being blocked. As Emeteo looked down to Vala's crotch to make another attempt, she brought her knee up. There was a loud crack, the sound of Emeteo's nose breaking. He staggered back. Keeping her eyes on Emeteo, who still appeared dazed, Vala finished picking the lock that bound her hands. But her hands were entwined in the chains.
As she struggled with the chains around her hands, Vala saw Emeteo approach. He was unaware that Vala was seconds away from freeing her hands. Vala kicked with her legs out to keep Emeteo away; but he swerved and avoided the kick using his body to pin her legs to the cell bars. Then he shoved one hand between her legs and inside of her.
Vala had finally freed a hand. She was bringing her hands and elbows forward about to force Emeteo back. Unable to contain her rage at the violation of his hand, she screamed, "No! I'm going to kill you!" She knew if she didn't escape him, it would only make the attack more brutal, but she couldn't help it. Her motions were awkward because one hand still had chain coiled around it. Then she heard the buzzing sounds of zats being fired. Emeteo's hand slipped from her and he fell back onto the floor.
As he fell, Vala looked up and saw Daniel standing with a zat in his hand pointing at the space where Emeteo had just stood. Daniel's eyes held oceans of rage. Vala had never seen Daniel with such a look in his eyes.
Daniel's expression turned to one of concern as he registered Vala's look. His own eyes never left her face, as he moved towards her swiftly and removed his long leather coat. He silently helped Vala put the coat on. He looked at her for permission to touch her; she gave it by leaning into him and putting her arms on his chest. Then he put his arms around her and drew her close placing his cheek so that it touched the hair on the top of her head.
Daniel was horrified by what he'd seen. That pig's hand was inside of Vala. Vala's clothes were in shreds and her body was bleeding. He had heard her scream; he'd seen her fighting to remove Emeteo's hand from between her legs. She'd managed to break his nose and free her hands, one of which still had a chain around it. He shuddered to think what the next few minutes might have wrought for Vala if he hadn't been here.
"Vala," Daniel murmured afraid to say more.
Vala didn't answer. She was mortified by what Daniel and the others had witnessed, this degradation – her degradation. She was on the verge of hysteria and she knew it. And, she had to maintain control.
"Vala are you hurt?" Daniel asked stupidly.
She heard a sob wrench from her body as she leaned on Daniel, and felt all the shame at this weakness. Daniel tightened his embrace in response and began to rub her back. Feeling him wrap around her and smelling his scent somehow fortified Vala. She put her arms around Daniel and held on tentatively at first; then her grasp on him tightened.
Daniel felt Vala tighten her hold on him; she clearly wanted his comfort. Then she suddenly released him. Daniel watched as he saw her eyes fix on the others present in the room, especially Aton Re Van. Re Van was watching Vala from near the door.
Daniel saw Vala's back straighten like she had been braced suddenly by icy water. Without looking down, Vala began buttoning the remaining buttons on Daniel's coat. She turned to face the wall and shucked the shredded leather pants off. Then she moved towards her boots which were sitting in the corner of the room. She sat abruptly on the floor and pulled the boots on. Daniel's coat was swimming on Vala. It fully covered her, except that when she walked the coat split to reveal her milky white legs which were now encased with the leather of her boots. Her hair was wild, her eyes wide and a bit red. But her skin was paler than Daniel could remember; he thought she might be suffering from the shock of the ordeal.
Daniel could see that Vala was plastering her persona back on. His heart broke a little at the thought that she felt the need for such an act. He wasn't surprised to see a smile back on her face when she looked up. "Thanks guys," Vala said.
Aton tossed Vala a Goa'uld healing device and gave her a devilish grin, "Wonk you're getting soft among these Tau'ri; Emeteo barely has a scratch on him."
Daniel was taken aback by Re Van's callous critique of Vala's defense. She'd been tortured, repeatedly sliced with Emeteo's knife, violated and nearly brutally raped. Daniel openly scowled at the man.
Daniel watched as Vala's face became a regal mask as she smirked and nodded her head, "You didn't let me finish; I was getting the upper hand!"
"Oh you think so?" mocked Aton with a big grin and a casualness that evidenced how routine and expected such critique was between them, "I'd say Emeteo had the UPPER HAND Wonk."
Daniel intensified his glare at the man's crude reference to where they had all witnessed Emeteo's hand as they had entered the room. Daniel started to move towards Vala, but Re Van got there first and grabbed Vala by both shoulders.
Aton continued, "Don't use that thing yet. I want you functioning to reroute those rings to bring my men onto the ship." Re Van's tone was commanding and said that he was used to giving Vala orders that were obeyed without question.
Daniel stepped around Re Van and closer to Vala. Vala surprised Re Van by looking at Cameron Mitchell.
"Cameron, are we planning on taking the ship?" Vala asked.
"Wasn't planning on it Princess." Cam said authoritatively, but not looking directly at Vala.
Re Van looked incredulous, "You leave this ship intact and Emeteo will be going after your women again gentlemen. Better to leave the ship in my hands." He said with a dangerous look.
Vala took Daniel's arm and walked with him over to the rest of SG-1. Looking at Cam, she said, "Aton has a point. We were very lucky not to lose Sam today. Emeteo intends to kill her. I think at this point, he'll expand his hit list to all of us. He has a sick little mind, and we cannot allow him to get his hands on Samantha again."
Vala stopped for a moment to collect her emotions, she sucked in a long breath and continued, "Sam I know you're a capable woman; but trust me this is a threat you don't want hanging over your head. It isn't going away until Emeteo is neutralized. This is our opportunity to eliminate that threat. Lock Emeteo up, because if you leave him on board Aton will kill him, but let Aton take this ship. Let Aton eliminate Emeteo's Alliance faction. It's the only way."
Daniel looked at Vala, realizing he wanted Emeteo dead and marveling at the humanity in Vala that she would consider his safety and include the information to save his life in her evaluation after what he had just done.
Sam looked at Vala and said hoarsely, "She's right."
"I concur." Teal'c added.
Daniel and Cam nodded, though they clearly did not like a plan that gave Aton Re Van further advantage.
"Right then" Vala said still looking at Sam, "Samantha, I think I've earned the right today to ask you for something. I want you off this ship NOW."
Sam started to argue the point, but looking into Vala's tired eyes, she paused. She could see Vala's thoughts spinning in her head; what did I go through all this for today if Sam isn't even off the ship? But something in her couldn't comply without at least a gentle protest. She took Vala's arm, "That's not how this team works Vala."
Daniel saw the determination set in Vala's jaw, and stifled a grin at her spirit, "That's how this team is working for the next hour Samantha," Vala said with a determined tone. They all realized Vala was fighting a battle to control her emotions so that she could complete the tasks Re Van had requested. As if Vala read their thoughts, she confirmed, "I just need to be able to concentrate."
"You know I could do it instead." Sam said gently and was surprised by Vala's fierce, "No!"
"You could coordinate from the Odyssey Sam," Cam suggested wanting to move this takeover along so they could get Vala off this ship.
Sam nodded her head, ashamed that she hadn't immediately acquiesced.
Cam took out his radio to signal Odyssey, "Odyssey requesting you lock onto Colonel Carter's locator and beam her to Odyssey. She'll be coordinating from there."
Vala gave Sam a relieved smile as a white light beamed Sam away.
"Sorry to insist on that boys, but I worked pretty hard to get her off this ship, it was a bit disturbing to see her back here." Looking at Daniel, Vala smiled and added, "I suppose I should make Daniel leave too."
"Yeah, that's going to happen," Daniel told her in gentle sarcasm.
Then Vala turned to Aton and winked, "Wonk a word please." Vala's use of this little pet nickname did not escape Daniel's notice.
Re Van joined the remaining SG-1 members.
Daniel watched as Vala turned on her seductive persuasion, which was fully operational in spite of her wild hair, pale complexion and swollen lips. "Wonk you've been an angel today." She patted him on the chest, "And I'm seriously thinking about doing your little favor for you."
"Well good news." Aton smiled as if he was not used to Vala denying him much.
"Just a couple of tiny conditions . . ." Vala said as she looked up with wide innocent eyes.
Daniel watched as Re Van brought his hand up and tweaked Vala's chin, making her wince, "You've become quite the negotiator my sweet."
Vala grinned, "Don't be nasty Wonk. I'll reset your little rings, but you have to agree that Eme's crew won't be harmed. I'm sure they'd all be quite comfortable on Danter."
"I'm surprised you would care after the day they've put you through." Aton said, "Well you never did like harming people did you Wonk? I guess some things don't change."
Knowing Aton was not giving her a complement, Vala ignored him and continued, "And we'll be taking Emeteo into Tau'ri custody."
"Seems a bit foolish, but I can live with it," Aton agreed.
Aton placed a hand on Vala's arm and she had to stifle a wince, "We have a deal, come with me."
But Daniel placed a hand on Vala's shoulder and said, "We'll be handling the rings Re Van. We'll signal you when you have a go."
Re Van smiled at this overtly possessive act and said, "Of course Dr. Jackson." Then Aton turned to Vala and picked up her hand and gave it a seductive, lingering and sensual kiss before tossing her a communication device for his ship, "Contact me when it's done," Aton commanded.
Vala nodded, but took a step closer to Daniel, seeming to need the reassurance that she was still a part of his world. Daniel still had hold of her shoulders and gripped a bit tighter.
Then Vala motioned to Cam, "How would you like me to handle this?"
Cam gave Vala a brief double take. Was she asking him for instructions? He suspected that Princess was running on nerves and adrenaline. He definitely didn't want her roaming around alone in this state. "Okay, why don't I come with you in case of trouble?"
Vala shrugged, she didn't think it was necessary, but she didn't argue, "Fine."
"I'm not leaving her." Daniel stated firmly looking at Mitchell.
Cam gave Daniel a searing look, but then thought better of challenging him. "Alright, Vala, Daniel and Teal'c, you handle the rings." Cam ordered.
"I'll coordinate Odyssey personnel from here," Cam added.
"Vala Mal Doran, do you not think you should use the healing device before attempting to reroute the rings?" Teal'c spoke to Vala for the first time, with obvious, but calm, concern. As he spoke, his eyes focused on a dark stain appearing on Daniel's coat near Vala's thigh. Daniel let out an involuntary wince as he saw Teal'c's focus.
Vala looked down, unbuttoned Daniel's coat and examined the bleeding cut. She moved over to the remains of her blouse which were lying near the cell. She ripped the blouse into field bandages and tied it around her leg. Then she walked back over to her teammates.
Vala looked at Teal'c, "The healing device takes quite a bit of concentration. I don't want to use it until we're done."
"Vala, why don't you let Sam realign the ring crystals?" Daniel asked softly.
"No!" Vala hissed, before softening her voice and composing herself, "Believe me, I've done this realignment in a lot worse shape. I'm fine." Vala looked up with a giant grin on her face, as she grabbed for Daniel's arm.
"Let's go boys!" Vala said with a smile.
Forty five minutes later Emeteo's ship was in Re Van's hands. Cam had helped coordinate scrambling Emeteo's communications with Sam on the Odyssey. Vala, Daniel and Teal'c realigned the rings so that Re Van's crew could ring aboard Eme's ship and take over. At Vala's insistence, the Odyssey had followed Re Van's two ships back to Danter City where Emeteo's crew was allowed to disembark.
The Odyssey was preparing to move away from the two pirate ships as soon as Re Van disembarked Odyssey. All of SG-1 was now on board the Odyssey. Vala could feel her skin sticking with dried blood to the inside of Daniel's coat. She felt exhausted, exposed, defiled and confused. She wanted Daniel to hold her, and yet she didn't want anyone to touch her. She was desperate to remove the marks of Emeteo's attack with the healing device.
"You okay Princess?" Cam asked swallowing hard as he read some of Vala's trauma in her eyes.
"Fine." Vala said as if she couldn't understand why anyone would be worried about her.
"You should go to the infirmary." Cam ordered.
The thought of being examined by the Odyssey's unfamiliar male doctor was repugnant to Vala.
"I think I'll shower and make a go with the healing device if it's all the same." Vala said.
Re Van, Daniel and Teal'c had overheard the conversation.
Aton was looking at Vala, "Wonk, you'd better let me go with you." To the others he explained, "She tends to pass out when she's healing herself."
"Re Van is right, someone else needs to be there to make sure you don't pass out." Cam said.
Vala rolled her eyes. She had to admit that passing out was a possibility; Aton of all the men on hand was the most familiar with her body and the healing device. She was considering giving in and allowing Aton to accompany her, when Daniel put his hand on her shoulder.
"Oh, I think we'll be able to help Vala with that. And it looks like it's about time for us to part ways." Daniel pointed to the Odyssey Commander.
Re Van bowed slightly. He turned to his Wonk and handed her the lock she had been restrained with in Emeteo's cell. "This lock is the latest in pick proof locks, you'll be seeing it more and more; it's becoming quite standard Wonk. And, it's nearly a year old. You're not keeping up, and it nearly got you killed today." He tweaked her chin, but Daniel could see his eyes were serious. Aton bent his head towards Vala's and gave her a light kiss on the uninjured side of her mouth. "Well Wonk, I guess this is goodbye – unless you'd like to come with me?" Aton laughed.
Daniel gave Re Van a double take at his audacity. He felt a slight trickle of fear that Vala could say yes.
Vala laughed at Aton, raised tired, but flirting eyes towards the ceiling and shrugged her shoulders, "Not that I haven't enjoyed our little reunion, but I'm quite happy here."
Aton smiled with seduction in his eyes as he kissed Vala's forehead and said, "The offer is always open."
Much to Daniel's chagrin, Vala nodded and said in her alien drawl, "Oh, I know."
Cam, Teal'c and Sam all looked awkwardly towards the scene. No one chanced a look at Daniel.
"Try to take better care of her will you Dr. Jackson?" Re Van said with a charming smile that did not reach his eyes.
"I can take care of myself," Vala pouted in reply and saved Daniel an uncomfortable reply.
"It's been a pleasure." Re Van said smiling and then he signaled to Colonel Walker.
"Oh Wonk, there is the matter of Eme's kassa." Aton added looking back at Vala.
"Vala's given me that information Re Van," Sam told him.
Re Van nodded as he left the bridge with Sam and Walker.
LIBERTINES AND LIBERATION
WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL SITUATIONS
Wounds
After Re Van departed, Cam looked at Vala and said, "You can use cabin G-5 if you want to clean up; but go to the infirmary first." Cam could see that the dark stain on the thigh of Daniel's coat had grown. There were other stains on the coat now.
"Thanks," Vala said not bothering to ask for help. She turned away from her teammates.
"Princess, I don't want you using that healing device until Sam gets back to help you." Cam commanded with concern in his voice.
Vala turned back and looked Cam squarely in the eye, as she said in a low voice that she hoped Daniel and Teal'c would not hear, "Cameron do NOT send Samantha to my room for this; understand?" Vala hadn't gone through that degrading scene on the ship to have Sam exposed to this bloody aftermath. She'd been pissed when she'd seen Sam back on the ship again. It felt like she'd gone through hell for nothing,
"Vala, Sam's the only other woman on board. Who do you want me to send to help you, the doctor?" Cam asked matching her lowered tone.
Vala shook her head, "No . . . Look, I'll be fine I can handle it myself . . . leave it alone Cameron."
"Vala!" Cam started to say something else, but he thought better of it; he could see that Vala was on the edge no matter how much she smiled. He let her turn and walk away. Cam turned to Daniel and Teal'c and shook his head.
Vala entered the cabin, grabbed a stack of clothing from the bed that she assumed Sam had rounded up for her and headed for the shower. As she took Daniel's coat off, she could feel the dried blood slowly sheering away from the knife cuts that Emeteo had made. She winced in pain, but kept going.
Vala felt sick to her stomach, but forced herself to assess the injuries in the bathroom mirror anyway. She'd looked worse; she knew it and she found that reassuring. "Oh, it's not that bad," Vala said aloud like a mantra.
She suspected that the shower would open up some of Emeteo's handiwork, but she didn't care. She had to cleanse Emeteo's touch from her body. Besides she needed to see what she was working with before she used the healing device. Then she looked at the bruising on her breasts and thighs. "Eme you son of a bitch, you got your wish, I definitely can't call myself beautiful right now." Vala said fighting back tears, she told herself, "Aton's right, I have gotten soft among the Tau'ri," she snorted loudly.
She suddenly flashed on Emeteo's hands forcing their way inside her and felt vomit rising into her throat. She reached the toilet and began to heave violently what little she had in her stomach.
As she lifted her head, she heard a knock on the bathroom door and froze.
"Vala are you alright?" It was Daniel's voice. "I'm sorry, but you didn't answer your door." He said apologetically.
"I'm fine darling." Vala called weakly getting up from the floor where she lay by the toilet, "Did you just get here?"
"Not long ago," Daniel lied, and Vala knew he'd heard her insane chatter.
Daniel had entered the room less than ten minutes after Vala. He'd understood that Vala would not want Sam's help with the healing device. She seemed fiercely protective of Sam today. He'd stopped only to get Vala a tray of food before knocking at her door. When Vala hadn't answered, he'd asked for the access code and entered. He'd sat the tray of food on the table, and meant to announce his presence, but then he'd heard Vala's little pep talk to herself and he just couldn't bring himself to interrupt until he'd heard her become ill. He had to marvel at her resilience.
Vala was lying too; she didn't feel fine. She was dizzy and nauseous. She laid her head weakly on the mirror by the sink.
"Daniel?"
"Yes?'
"Would you mind staying while I take a shower?" Vala asked tentatively.
"Vala, I wasn't planning on going anywhere." Daniel said reassuringly, "Are you alright? Do you need help?"
"I'm fine, darling, I just felt like a chat." Vala tried for her flirty voice, but knew she didn't quite achieve.
She took a long shower, which as she suspected, caused some of her wounds to bleed more profusely. The soap hitting the cuts made them sting and increased the pain she was feeling, but she kept scrubbing anyway.
She turned the water off and wrapped herself in a towel; she didn't have any spare clothes, so she thought she should heal herself before dressing. She didn't feel any of the wounds were life threatening and wanted to rest before using the device. So she grabbed the gauze that someone had put in the bathroom and placed large swaths of it over the worst of her wounds. She was still bleeding and seeping from some of them, but it was a lot better. She wrapped herself in the huge bathrobe and grabbed a few fresh bath towels. Blood was already seeping through the cloth of the robe on her back and under her arm, but she didn't notice.
Vala opened the door to the bathroom. She looked drained, and Daniel immediately stood up to help her.
Vala smiled at him and growled half heartedly.
Daniel just rolled his eyes and grinned weakly. He started to take Vala by the arm, but she shook her head, "I'm fine Daniel."
So he pointed at a tray on the little table where he'd been sitting, "I thought you might be hungry." Daniel said. He watched Vala's wobbly, independent progress over to the little table. Daniel held back his own concern that she was going to take a header onto the floor. He breathed a sigh of relief when she made it to the chair.
"Thanks, I'm starving."
As Vala had walked past Daniel, he'd noticed the oozing blood now staining several places on the stark white robe Vala was wearing.
"Haven't done anything about those wounds?" Daniel asked softly, secretly glad he had talked himself into coming into her room. He didn't like the look of her right now.
"They look worse than they are." Vala said reassuringly.
"Uh, huh," Daniel said in a slow voice he usually used when he wanted her to know he wasn't sure he believed her.
Vala sat with her knees tucked so that her head rested on them. She shrugged, "Thought I'd rest a bit first. I didn't realize how hungry I was Daniel." Vala said as she picked up half the turkey sandwich Daniel had brought for her and took a bite.
"Did you eat?" Vala asked him.
"Umm, I'll eat later." Daniel said absently.
Vala held the plate with the other half of her sandwich up to Daniel. He hesitated a moment and then took it.
They ate in silence.
"No dessert?" Vala asked with a pout.
Daniel grinned before reaching into his pocket and pulling out two chocolate chip cookies that he'd gotten in the ship's mess. He handed Vala one of the cookies.
"Chocolate!" Vala smiled as they munched their cookies.
Then Daniel pointed to a bottle of whiskey on the table.
Vala raised an eyebrow and teased, "I thought you didn't approve of me drinking Daniel Jackson."
"No, no, no, never said that Vala." He opened the whiskey and poured a generous shot in a glass for her.
Vala took the drink, downed it quickly pirate style with a smile, "Thanks, but you know this stuff barely affects me my Daniel. It makes my stomach warm though."
Daniel grinned, "Then it affects you."
He hesitated for a moment before pouring another shot of whiskey. Daniel drank half the shot this time before handing the glass to Vala.
Vala gave him another raised eyebrow, "Rough day darling?" and then quickly drank the other half of the shot.
Daniel snorted in appreciation of her quip; his own face bore the signs of Emeteo's blow.
"I think we need to deal with those wounds now. They're looking pretty bad." Daniel said quietly.
"Oh Daniel, he barely touched me." Vala winked unconvincingly. Daniel saw the flashes of revulsion in Vala's eyes as she made the reference to Emeteo who was currently several floors below in the Odyssey's brig.
"You should have seen me after the Tok'ra's valiant rescue of Qetesh. I don't think there was any pink left on my skin – all black and blue – and that healed up beautifully." Vala said with a pirate swagger of toughness resurrected in honor of her head on collision today with her pirating past. Daniel had a feeling that Vala had just given him a fairly accurate description of her injuries from the torture she had suffered at the hands of Qetesh's rebel human slaves. He wondered if this swagger was part of her process of dealing with the violence that kept falling into her life.
"Why don't you let me help you?" Daniel said tentatively, "Or I could get Sam if you prefer, but you seemed so adamant earlier about keeping her away from . . ." Daniel's voice trailed off. "Something told me you were trying to keep her out of this stuff as much as possible."
"Smart man; but that doesn't mean I want you dealing with this either." Vala said firmly.
"You know Vala you'd be surprised what I can handle." Daniel told her, "Hathor remember?"
"Ahh," Vala said looking up a little surprised and understanding that Daniel had just told her that he thought of his drugged out time with Hathor as coerced sexual contact, rape. And he was right of course.
Vala stood up, much steadier on her feet, and smacked Daniel on the leg, "This process involves naked flesh Daniel; we all know how you feel about that." Vala rolled her eyes at him.
"Well, I think I've seen just about everything you have to show," Daniel smirked and looked at her.
"You said you kept your eyes closed on the Prometheus!" Vala reminded him with a smile.
"Quotan," Daniel said simply.
"Right," Vala nodded, "forgot about that."
"You're not going to whine about this later?" Vala asked suspiciously.
"I'll be on my best behavior," Daniel nodded looking a bit like a schoolboy.
"Hmmm . . . We have the oddest conversations my Daniel . . . so you finally want me to take my clothes off and I'm a mess." Vala shook her head at the irony.
"Vala quit stalling; you're bleeding all over that chair." Daniel scolded.
Vala got out of the chair, and walked to the side of the bed where she laid out a couple of towels to protect the bedding. Then she sat down on the bed's edge and put the healing device on her hand. She opened the robe to expose the seeping knife wound wrapped in bloody gauze.
Daniel walked to the edge of the bed and knelt by Vala. She was beginning to unwrap the bloody gauze from her leg.
Daniel produced a pair of small medical scissors that Vala wasn't sure where he'd found. He gently began to cut the gauze away revealing the bleeding knife wound and the blooming bruises from Emeteo's assault that sat high on her inner thigh. Daniel reached over and flipped on a bedside light so he could see the wound. Surprise showed on his face at the depth and extent of this cut.
Vala didn't look at him as she raised the healing device over the wound and it began to glow. After several minutes, Vala's wound appeared completely healed. The device stopped glowing; Vala covered her leg back with the robe and lay back on the bed to rest with her feet still dangling over the side.
"You okay?" Daniel, now standing over her, asked.
"Hmmm," Vala said with her eyes closed; she couldn't look at Daniel.
Daniel sat down on the bed, picked up her hand and felt her pulse.
"I'm fine darling. Just resting a minute," Vala said. Vala began to sit back up and winced when she put weight on her wounded arm. She was sitting a bit unsteadily.
"Daniel hand me a towel will you?" Vala asked.
Daniel reached over to the pile of towels that sat beside him on the bed and handed one to Vala.
Without saying a word, Vala sat got up from the bed. She held a hand to her head for a moment, got her bearings and moved towards the bathroom.
"What are you doing?" Daniel asked with concern in his voice.
I'm going to finish this in the bathroom, better light." Vala lied; she'd seen Daniel's eyes when he'd looked at her leg. She didn't think she wanted to see his eyes when she revealed her other injuries.
"Vala, I don't think that's a good idea. You're pretty shaky." Daniel said firmly. "Didn't Re Van say you tend to pass out when you heal yourself?" Daniel grudgingly used Re Van's name to persuade Vala.
"I'll tell you what darling I'll sit on the edge of the bathtub and I'll leave the door cracked open a bit so you can hear if I need you." She said in a voice that said the matter was decided.
Daniel didn't want to waste Vala's energy arguing so he sat watching Vala's shadow in the bathroom.
Vala untied the belt of the robe and removed it. She planned to tackle the wound on her right arm next. She used the bathroom mirror to inspect the wound as best she could. The long piece of gauze she had applied earlier was now bloody. The gauze started under her right breast, snaked under her arm and continued onto her back ending on her right shoulder blade. Vala planned to peel the gauze back in sections to minimize bleeding.
She started peeling back a section at the shoulder blade. Fresh blood ran down her back when the gauze came off the wound. Vala had to stand in order to see the injured right shoulder blade in the bathroom mirror. She had her back to the mirror, her head and arm craned around to reach the injury. It was an awkward movement to position the device for the healing process. When she felt she had the best position, the healing device began to glow.
Daniel heard a loud crash coming from the bathroom. Without thinking he ran to the door and opened it. Vala was sprawled on the floor, completely naked and the healing device had skidded across the floor and was spinning in the corner.
Daniel was horrified to see the extent of injuries Emeteo had inflicted on Vala. Emeteo had made many knife cuts on her pale, full breasts; the areola and nipple of Vala's left breast were surrounded with a dark, brutal bloom of severe bruises where she was grabbed brutally; she had deep knife gouges on her stomach and abdomen. But the worst injury was the cut that dug into the bottom of her right breast and followed a jagged path under her arm and deep onto her back.
Daniel winced at the sight of Vala before he could stop himself. He hadn't imagined that her injuries were this extensive. He couldn't help thinking about what Vala wasn't saying about Emeteo's attack. He felt his stomach lurch wildly with anger. But he caught himself, realizing none of those emotions were any help to Vala right now. That was the important thing right now; help Vala.
Vala saw Daniel's face at the sight of her. "You know that's not quite the reaction I would have hoped to get from you in this state," she continued with a catch in her voice that Daniel didn't miss; it was much harder stuffing down her hurt, anger and pain with Daniel here to witness it. Daniel put Vala's robe over her and let her rest for a moment.
Daniel had seen Vala in all states of undress both voluntarily and involuntary. Even on Quotan, she'd seemed confident. But watching her hold her robe to cover her body, Daniel felt flushed by the sight of Vala in such an intimate, vulnerable state of undress. Given the circumstances of their day, this wasn't sexual, but it was intimate. He could see that Vala didn't necessarily like it, but she was letting him see her wounded.
Sitting up a bit more, Vala asked, "Did I damage the device when I dropped it?"
Daniel picked it up and examined it, "I don't think it's damaged."
"Good. I'm going to finish this." She said dismissing him from the bathroom.
"No, you're going to rest and then we're going to have the Doctor suture this cut." Daniel said firmly.
"No! I'm using this device until every last mark from today is erased!" Vala said with a hitch in her voice; she was close to losing control and balling her head off. "You can either help me or you can get out." Vala said tears starting to fall down her face, and she felt herself hating Daniel a little for seeing them.
Daniel wanted to argue with her, but didn't have the heart to push her any closer to the emotional brink than he already had. "I'll give this back and you can finish, but I stay in the bathroom and help. Agreed?" Daniel said firmly.
"I don't have enough hands to hold this robe on while I heal this Daniel," Vala said with an angry tone as she tossed the robe off regally. "I don't want you thinking I'm taking advantage of you and violating all your precious boundaries." Vala goaded him further.
"Vala we're passed all that." Daniel said a little irritated at being treated like a school boy, before realizing she was trying to piss him off because she felt so vulnerable. His irritation melted.
"Oh we are?" Vala said, "News to me."
"Can we just get on with this?" Daniel said as he took the towel off the side of the sink and dabbed a trail of blood that was running down her side after escaping from underneath the gauze on her wound. Not waiting for instructions, Daniel began removing the rest of the bloody gauze off the wound. Daniel thought Vala looked a little paler.
"Vala, are you doing alright?" He said with concern.
She ignored the question, "Help me up."
Daniel got her on her feet; she turned to face him and craned to look at her back in the mirror again. She had a little more work to do on that part of the wound. Daniel watched as she stretched to reach the cut. He didn't offer to help further. When she took her hand down, he saw there was still an area she had missed. "Here," Daniel said quietly and guided Vala's hand to a position where the healing device could heal the missing spot.
When her back was done, she turned to the side so she could see under her arm as she directed the healing device. Once that was done, Vala faced the mirror and healed the cut under the right breast. Daniel was standing behind her to make sure she didn't fall. He could see her become more wobbly with each repair. She began to shiver.
Daniel picked up her robe from the floor and wrapped it around her. Then he put an arm around her and leaned her back into him. She wanted to let him comfort her, but she couldn't do it. It just made the whole day; this moment; what they were doing together here too real, too painful. His eyes and embrace were undoing all the work she had done to deal with what had happened today.
She stayed leaning against him as she opened the robe and finished healing her breasts, stomach and abdomen. She looked pristine except for the bruising and cut on her lips. Without looking at him, she said, "I'm going to change now."
Daniel left the bathroom and moved back to sit in the small leather upholstered chair by the window. He felt drained after all he had seen. He knew Vala was strong, resilient. Now he thought he knew a little about what it cost her when she plastered that brilliant smile on her face.
Vala emerged from the bathroom dressed in a pair of boxer shorts and a tank t shirt. She had a green BDU shirt over the top of her new ensemble. She'd healed the bruises and cut on her lip by herself. She looked tired, but pristine and beautiful. Her anger seemed to have dissipated and she seemed relieved and happy to see that he was still there.
Daniel poured both of them another whiskey. He motioned to her with the glass.
Vala took it and drank it standing over him, "Thank you Daniel."
Without saying a word, Vala took a seat in Daniel's lap. He looked surprised but said nothing to discourage her. She still had the healing device and she was putting it back on her hand. She took her other hand and examined Daniel's injured face, running a finger along his nose and jaw. She seemed to be taking note of what caused him pain.
"Vala, you don't need to do that now." Daniel said blocking her hand as she began to raise it to his face.
"Yes I do Daniel. I NEED to do this." She'd given him a look that told him she wanted all signs of today gone. He nodded his permission and she healed his injuries.
As the device stopped glowing, Vala examined her work and said, "There, my Daniel you're as beautiful as ever." She smiled and leaned back against his chest apparently spent and exhausted.
"Vala I'm so sorry." Daniel said putting his arm across her legs to wrap her in an embrace.
"Why?" Vala asked with tired curiosity.
"We should have listened to you." Daniel's voice caught in his throat.
"Welll, you should always listen to me." Vala nodded. "But we'll have no guilt about today. I can't have you taking on the blame for what happened to me today. If you blame yourself for this, then I have to blame myself for the Lucian Alliance having a problem with your people in the first place, which really led to all this anyway." Vala said in a tired voice.
"I think we would have eventually clashed with the Lucian Alliance with or without you Vala." Daniel said letting her off the hook.
Vala said in a whisper, "I could have told Cameron and Samantha why I was concerned about Danter, but I didn't, wouldn't . . . couldn't . . . I got careless and Sam nearly paid."
"Vala this isn't your fault!" Daniel said with a force of compassion that surprised Vala, "Emeteo would probably be giving Sam the same treatment he gave you today if you hadn't intervened. We're to blame for what happened to YOU today; not the other way around."
Vala sat up and looked Daniel in the eye. "Daniel why assign blame, it happened. Besides it isn't true, Daniel. I can't have you think that. You met my past today Daniel. It's not like you to let me off the hook so completely."
"Yeah, well, I want to talk to you about the past I met today." Daniel said pulling her back against his chest, "but we don't have to do it now."
Vala let Daniel pull her back against him. They were both exhausted. They sat silently for awhile until Daniel felt Vala relax into sleep. And then he fell asleep too.