Summary: When even the best you can do seems like it isn't enough, it might be time to try something completely different. Of course, you may find you need a little encouragement, but once you take the chance, it can set you on the road to achieving a goal you may not even have dreamed of.
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Season: Pre-series
Episode Spoilers/Tags: The Tok'ra, Parts I & II, though in only the most general of ways; that is to say, details about the Tok'ra and the way they live.
Category: Gen. Adventure, mostly, and the development of a character used in a later fic.
Disclaimer: Standard. Stargate SG-1, its characters and all related entities are property of Stargate SG-1 Productions (II) Inc., MGM Worldwide Television Productions Inc., Double Secret Productions, Gekko Film Corp and Showtime Networks Inc / The SciFi Channel. No copyright infringement is intended. I am in no way affiliated with any of the foregoing entities; these are not my characters... well, wait. In this case, many of them are! But not all of them. Also, I'm not making any money from this, etc. (In fact, if I did own the Stargate franchise, at least one group of aliens would have been a little less hardassed. Also, Seasons 8, 9 and 10 would have been very different. Well... Ahem. Anyway.)
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Author's note: Yes, I am still writing All That We Leave Behind. In fact, the vast majority of it is written, including the ending. I'm just tying chapters together over there and editing the finished product as I do so, which is why it's on a (mostly) weekly update schedule. However, a few readers have asked me about Sabar, indicating that they're curious to know more about him as a character. I love writing him, and have decided that his story deserves telling. You don't have to have read ATWLB to grasp or follow Sabar's Tale, as it takes place prior to ATWLB. But reading Sabar's Tale may make you want to read ATWLB, if you aren't reading it already. Either way, I get to have lots of fun with Tok'ra in this one! Hope you enjoy it!
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Sabar peered up and down the dimly-lit corridor as he stepped out of his quarters and secured the door behind him. It was late and the passageway was deserted, despite the fact that many of the Goa'uld who made up Vayu's court and inner circle of functionaries and sycophants tended to be nearly as active at night as during the day. The winding-down of the Rin-tora gathering was most likely responsible for the palace's uncharacteristic quietude tonight.
The past three days had been busy, what with Vayu's receiving visits from a number of client lords and the choosing of hosts for the latest crop of newly-matured offspring. Vayu's queen Bharati produced neither large nor particularly frequent broods, but she did spawn with enough regularity to keep Vayu's Jaffa in prim'ta and thus bound to their lord. As the larvae matured they were implanted into hosts to be sent off and fostered through re'ka, the brief period corresponding loosely to adolescence in a human, during which the young Goa'uld were both groomed for future responsibilities and observed as to their capabilities and attitudes. Genetic memory and the innate cultural underpinnings that came with it were one thing, but individual personality and temperament might be quite another — as Sabar's own mother could attest — and there was simply no easy way to judge these qualities in a symbiote prior to its maturation and implantation into a host.
Those offspring who exhibited the characteristics that Vayu deemed appropriate to a place in his empire — neither indolent nor too ambitious, capable but fully loyal to their parent and their fosterers who were likewise loyal — would continue on to positions of responsibility and modest power in Vayu's slowly expanding sphere of influence. The competent but largely unambitious would go on to take up places in the middle strata of Goa'uld society, such as it was. As engineers or scientists, overseers of work gangs or manufacturing facilities, and in any of numerous other generally invisible roles, they formed the backbone of the imperial machine and made it function.
As for those among Vayu and Bharati's offspring who proved both competent and too ambitious… Sabar pushed aside the thought. Goa'uld they surely were and therefore the enemy, but their end, generally at Vayu's decree, was not always as swift as might be, and occasionally gruesome. If only more Goa'uld had seen fit to follow Egeria's philosophy, rather than Ra's, Sabar was certain they could have built a healthy culture in which parents need not fear their own offspring's designs. He felt sadness for the loss of the hosts as well. They'd never deserved their fate — neither to be taken against their will, nor to have been forced to die for the actions or potential actions of the Goa'uld possessing their bodies. He supposed that their deaths might well be seen as release after such possession, but the thought did nothing to alleviate his sorrow or the anger it fueled. Though shorter by several orders of magnitude, human lives were no less valuable than anyone else's, he felt privately, and deserved preservation.
Sabar shook off his musings. Now was not the time for reflection, given to it though he was. He had a job to do.
He had infiltrated Vayu's court in the guise of one of those capable-but-not-too-ambitious Goa'uld from an outlying world, the control of which Vayu had recently wrested from a minor system lord whose territory bordered his own. After publicly declaring his allegiance to Vayu, Sabar — or Karatha, as he was known by his cover name — had taken his place as a minor functionary charged with overseeing the integration of the newly-acquired territory into Vayu's existing domain. As intended, his skill at organization combined with his ability to wrestle even tense situations into bearing positive fruit had quickly set him on an upward path within the hierarchy, and he was now a member of Vayu's diplomatic corps. This put him in a position to gather a great deal of intelligence, not only on affairs within Vayu's domain but also regarding other Goa'uld lords both major and minor, in the course of his work. All of this was funneled back to the Tok'ra High Council, at whose behest Sabar had been sent on this mission. It had been several years now and he was quite ready to move on, but there were still things he needed to accomplish here first.
The message requesting that he attend Vayu at this late hour had come as something of a surprise. Normally, the System Lord was not one to conduct business in the middle of the night when he could be either sleeping or indulging other appetites.
Could something mentioned in passing by one of the client lords have set him to worrying? asked Langen. Sabar's host was an old hand at covert operations by now, considering they'd been together for nearly a century and a half.
{It's certainly possible,} Sabar replied. He fought back the niggling fear that perhaps their identity had been discovered. If that were the case, it was unlikely that Vayu would have summoned them at all. Simply sending a squad of Jaffa to eliminate them would be far more his style. {We'll find out soon enough what he wants.}
Their exchange took place via the silent mindspeech used between symbiote and host. To any passing observer, there would have been no outward sign that Sabar was in a communication of equals with the being whose body he wore as his outward form. The observer would have seen only a tall, distinguished figure striding purposefully along the corridor toward the Royal Wing and an audience with his Lord.
When asked on one occasion by another of Vayu's diplomatic workers why he did not avail himself of the sarcophagus to render his host perpetually youthful, Sabar had replied that on Dalgan, the world where he had served prior to entering Vayu's employ and for some time afterward, the local human population expected their masculine gods and the emissaries of those gods to display a certain physical maturity, and so he had gone along by allowing his host's outward appearance to progress to middle age. It garnered more respect, he said, which allowed for the use of less overt force in controlling the populace and led to higher productivity from his former lord's slaves. Besides, he'd reminded his colleague, sarcophagus time in his previous lord's domain was limited to only the highest echelons of Goa'uld society; the prevailing philosophy was that lesser members could always simply take new hosts from among the enslaved population as needed or desired, since humans bred like flies.
It was, of course, a lie to cover up the fact that as a Tok'ra, Sabar did not use the sarcophagus at all and in fact suspected that the device's frequent use by high-level Goa'uld was one direct cause of the ill-tempered megalomania that plagued so many of them. Not its only cause, perhaps, but a definite contributor. He and Langen relied instead on Sabar's native ability to maintain Langen's health and vitality as well as his own. Langen's age was one hundred and seventy-five as counted in the years of his own people, which according to Sabar's knowledge were of similar length to those of the planet on which their ancestors had originated millennia ago, before the Goa'uld had arrived to enslave them and carry them offworld. He gave the physical impression of being somewhere between a quarter and a third of that age, and had served as Sabar's host since he was thirty.
It wouldn't be too much longer, they both knew, before the unfortunate effects of aging began to catch up with Langen in noticeable ways despite Sabar's best efforts. When that occurred, they would look to retire from active field assignment for the remainder of Langen's life, taking duty at one of the Tok'ra bases instead and working behind the scenes. Going undercover among the Goa'uld wasn't really an option for anyone who looked significantly older than the average Goa'uld was likely to allow their host to appear, as it was almost certain to draw attention and suspicion. After all, most Goa'uld either utilized sarcophagi to keep themselves and their hosts youthful or simply discarded aging hosts for younger ones, neither of which a Tok'ra would ever consider doing.
They were passing through the main atrium of Vayu's palace now, across a mosaic-tiled floor that carried various scenes from the life of the mythical Vayu, one of several ancient deities revered by a Tau'ri culture that inhabited a hot subcontinent not terribly far from the land where Ra had founded an empire and taken his first human host. Like Ra, the System Lord who had appropriated Vayu's name and identity made use of the original deity's imagery and mythology to engender and maintain the loyalty and worship of his Jaffa and his human slaves. The workmanship of the floor was brilliant, and the colors nothing short of captivating — if one had time to be captivated. Sabar hurried through the atrium, largely ignoring the artwork tonight, reflecting only briefly how disappointing it was that such beauty and craftsmanship should be relegated to the service of an evil tyrant rather than existing for the sake of their own intrinsic value.
He paused before the entry to the broad corridor that led to the royal residence. Four massive Jaffa stood guard, their polished armor gleaming in the lamplight, with antelope-headed helmets opened to reveal the swarthy faces within. The guard captain's forbidding expression eased slightly as he recognized the diplomat he knew as Sri Karatha, a fellow-servant of Vayu.
Sabar spoke aloud. {"Good evening to you, Kapa Abhi. I have been summoned to attend our Lord this hour."}
Abhi inclined his head slightly, the tattoo of stylized antelope horns in the center of his forehead moving from light into shadow and back. "Good evening, Sri Karatha. You may pass." He and the other three Jaffa moved aside, allowing Sabar entrance to the corridor.
As he made his way toward Vayu's chambers, Sabar reflected on the existence of Jaffa. They were yet another legacy of Ra and his system of human enslavement. Genetically-engineered many centuries ago from human beings to serve as incubators for Goa'uld larvae and as warriors and guards for Goa'uld rulers, Jaffa also represented an advancement in the ability of Goa'uld symbiotes to meld successfully with human hosts. Larvae who had not been incubated within a Jaffa's pouch had only about a fifty-fifty chance of surviving implantation without suffering rejection by their hosts, while those who had spent their early years in Jaffa had a nearly one hundred percent chance of survival. It seemed that incubation in Jaffa altered the symbiote's own protein structure slightly as well as acclimating the symbiote to human physical systems in ways that improved its ability to fend off rejection by a host's immune system without causing damage to the host itself, despite the fact that Jaffa had no immune systems of their own. The Tok'ra, of course, had neither larvae nor Jaffa in whom to incubate them, but if Egeria or another Tok'ra queen were ever found, some other method would have to be devised for duplicating the effects of Jaffa caretakers upon future Tok'ra larvae. Even now, he knew, some of the best minds among Tok'ra scientists were working on the problem while hoping against hope that their work would one day be needed.
Should the Tok'ra eventually manage to eliminate the Goa'uld, however, what would become of the Jaffa? Sabar knew that many if not most Tok'ra cared little for Jaffa. For every Tok'ra death, there was generally a Jaffa — or several — to blame, so there was no love lost between them. He saw things differently, though. In Sabar's estimation, the Jaffa were not truly to blame for their actions, at least on the macro scale. The Goa'uld had made them what they were and the Jaffa were bound to their creators for life, literally so. They depended upon Goa'uld larvae for survival, as their own immune systems atrophied at puberty, requiring the continued presence of a series of larval Goa'uld to protect them against disease. They received enhanced healing and long lifespans into the bargain, but at the cost of their freedom. No, as far as he was concerned, the Jaffa as a species were mere pawns of their Goa'uld masters, and something would have to be done for them as well in the event the Tok'ra achieved their ultimate goal.
As he so often did, Sabar had left his musings open to examination by Langen. Being stuck as little more than a silent passenger in his or her own body for the bulk of the time a Tok'ra pair spent on assignment among the Goa'uld was difficult for any host, he knew, so he always took care to include Langen as a full and active partner in whatever mental and intellectual activities he engaged in. It was a practice he'd begun centuries ago with an earlier host, and Sabar had found that the diversion made missions far more bearable for both his host and himself.
I agree with you regarding the Jaffa, opined Langen silently. Mind you, I've no particular fondness for most of the ones we've met, although Abhi's actually not a bad fellow, all told. But the Jaffa are as human as I am, despite Goa'uld tinkering, and you're right; they didn't ask to be slaves, especially not in terms of their biology.
{You, me, Kaldin and Maro. I wish I could find a few more of us who agreed on that.} Kaldin was Sabar's best friend, and Maro his current host. Sabar wondered how they were faring on their own assignment at the court of Montu.
They put further conversation aside as they approached Vayu's private quarters. The System Lord's First Prime, Balistha himself, stood guard outside. "State your identity and your business," he intoned.
{"Karatha, of the diplomatic corps. Our Lord has requested my presence."} He allowed a small note of disdain to creep into his voice, suitable for a Goa'uld official addressing a mere Jaffa, even if that Jaffa were the First Prime of Vayu. {"In fact, I was roused from my bed by his messenger, so I assume there is some urgency to the summons. If no one has instructed you _"}
He was cut off by a voice from within the chamber. {"Balistha, if that is Sri Karatha, you may admit him. I did indeed send for him."}
Balistha stood aside, his face impassive as Sabar entered Vayu's private sanctum. Inside, the Goa'uld System Lord reclined among cushions, a cup of madhu in his hand. An ornate decanter and a second cup rested on a low table beside him, and additional cushions occupied the floor, although no one else was present.
{"Welcome, Sri Karatha,"} said Vayu. {"Please, take a seat and enjoy some refreshment. Consider it my apology for disturbing your night."}
Sabar hesitated, wondering again whether they had been discovered and if this might be a trap. He shook off the suspicion a second later, reminding himself that it would be unlike Vayu to handle the situation that way, even if they had been compromised. Besides, they'd been inordinately careful during their time here…
With a mental shrug, he moved to a cushion and sat, reaching for the decanter and the cup. {"My lord Vayu, I am honored. How may I be of service to you?"}
Vayu extended his cup as Sabar finished filling his own. {"I have a mission for you, Karatha. One of my loyal vassals has received overtures from a very minor System Lord called Belatucadros, seeking trade relations and an eventual alliance. Cirayu, my vassal, knows little about this Belatucadros — who I am to understand often calls himself simply Bel — and I would find out more. I am authorizing you to visit this Belatucadros and bring greetings in my name, in order to learn more about him and his domain."}
And for this, he woke us in the middle of the night? Langen's mental tone was peevish.
Sabar ignored his host's comment and bowed his head in Vayu's direction. {"My Lord,"} he acknowledged.
Vayu sipped his beverage, then set the cup on the table, folding his hands and nodding at Sabar. "{"You will take with you two of my Jaffa, as befits an emissary of a great System Lord to a lesser. Abhi and Devang, I think."}
Sabar took a sip from his own cup, the sweet honey-wine slipping smoothly down his — and Langen's — throat, wetting it before he responded. {"When am I to leave?"}
{"The day after tomorrow. You are to find out what you can, and if Belatucadros has anything to offer in trade that we can use, you may open negotiations. I know you have lists of what we will trade for and what we will offer; consider this a standard negotiation and work from them accordingly. Under no circumstances, however, will we pursue a military alliance of any sort until we have a far better idea of his intentions and his domain in general, so if he presses for that, make it clear that I am not open to such a relationship at this time."}
Sabar bowed again. {"Understood, my Lord."}