Snakes and
Spots
Anunnaki Part 22
By
Michele
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Thanatos gives a
brief summary in snake history, Sam and Ninurta have new toys, Shara
helps Jack write a contract, someone is after Nate, and Daniel has
spots.
Note: Thank you to Alexi for ruminating over Goa'uld origins with me. I have seen the Tok'ra queen's name spelled Egiria on the 'net, but until I see something that is official Sci-Fi SG-1 spelling it that way, like an actual script, I'm spelling it Aegiria. I'm a language freak, and this spelling makes more sense.
Note 2: Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a very serious thing, usually associated with men. It is a highly abusive nature, not necessarily physical but mental and emotional. There are several good sites, but I like this one best: Mental also has a good site: If you feel you may be living with a narcissist, please seek help from a mental health care professional.
"Thanatos, the Greek god of death," Daniel told him over the phone. "Natural death, not the disease and destruction kind. His sisters took care of that part. He was ruthless but never savage about it, he was a gentleman, doing a job. Everyone has to die at some point, and when the Fates cut a life cord off the web of life, Thanatos was there to take the person away from their mortal pain and deliver them to the afterlife in Hades. He's actually there?"
"Well, a Goa'uld claiming to be him is here," Jack said. "Says he's the eldest son of Zimrah. Whatever that means."
"Wow, Jack, if he is, it means he's probably older than Anubis. Where's he been?"
"Don't know where. I wanted to check in with you before proceeding. Get a rundown of his persona. I'll fill you in later."
When Jack called up to the Heaven's Bow and told Camulus who was calling on them, Camulus was actually speechless.
"I cannot vouch for him," Camulus said. "I never knew him, and I don't know where he's been or what he's been doing. But if he has come alone, unarmed, I would take that to mean he's interested in negotiating."
Jack had requested that Ereshkigal be brought in on the proceedings but she wasn't on the ship; she was on Abydos with Enki, doing something Inanna didn't want to discuss. Daniel posited that if Enki was setting the life cycle of the planet, Ereshkigal was setting the death cycle. Jack didn't get it, but it made sense to Daniel. He set himself a mental reminder to ask Daniel exactly what Enki was doing with the barren planet.
"Soooo…how've you been?" Jack asked when he returned to the room. "Where've you been? What's new?"
Thanatos gave a soft smile. "I have been in a neighboring galaxy," he said. "Several of us live there. We have intelligence within this galaxy, and when we heard that you were looking for us, and after learning what has been happening here, we decided to contact you. We have no interest in ruling here, we have plenty of worlds at home."
"No sibling rivalries?" Jack asked. "No 'he who dies with the most slaves wins?'"
"No," Thanatos chuckled. "We argue once in a while, but we are not as hot headed as Mirin's children. We did bring a few Tau'ri with us when we left, but most of our people are non-human. Maybe 5 billion in our galaxy are human. Less than the current population of your planet. As for slaves, we do have slaves and they serve us willingly. An unwilling slave is not much fun. My control issue is not all-consuming."
Jack raised an eyebrow. The god of death has a sense of humor.
"Camulus is on Inanna's ship," he told the Goa'uld. "Says he's also a child of Zimrah."
"I never met him but I have heard of him; he is many generations after mine," Thanatos said. "I would be happy to meet him when we are done. O'Neill, we are impressed with how you have dealt with Mirin's children. They have been a burden to your galaxy, to be sure. It was my decision to leave this galaxy; if any of us had thought your people would come so far, we would have stayed and fought for you. On behalf of my brothers and sisters, I offer you my sincerest apologies for the pain you have endured."
Jack looked around the table. All his people were as nonplused as he was. The Goa'uld actually sounded sincere.
"I will send word out to our brethren here, and tell them it is time to come forward and…."
"Aaah!" Jack shuddered. Reynolds and Bosco shuddered, too. "Use another phrase, please."
"Ask Thor," Inanna spoke with him. She smirked at him. "Thanatos, are you going to help get rid of Baal?"
"Do you need help, Ningal?" he asked, cocking his head. "The Tau'ri have come so far on their own, defeated Anubis and Ra, among others. Baal is the cleverest of those remaining, which is the only reason he has lived so long, but he was never the strongest."
"Well, he's strong now," Jack said. "He has Anubis' toy-box and he's up to something."
"Yes, rumor has it he's after Enlil," Thanatos commented. "I'm not sure why, however. No offence, Ningal, but Enlil was never the brightest of your line." Jack raised an eyebrow at the strange phrase.
"Thanatos, are you aware of our own recent history?" Ninurta asked. He gave Thanatos a brief summary. "We've been trying to figure out an anomaly; how did our two ships get stuck out of phase and how did a quarter mile of land get caught with us? I don't suppose you'd have a clue? Not even the Asgard have figured it out."
Thanatos shook his head thoughtfully. "It almost sounds like a power surge back-lashed and then looped in on itself."
Ninurta looked at Inanna and hit a crystal on his controls. He beamed out.
"Sooo…why exactly are you paying us a visit if you're not here to help with the Baal problem?" Jack asked.
"I didn't say we weren't going to help," Thanatos said. "I asked if you needed help. After seeing what you have accomplished for yourselves, I don't think you need anyone's help. You have ships, you have Asgard technology, and you have strong allies. I understand why the Asgard have been nurturing the Tau'ri, I know you are targeted as the possible Fifth Race, and upon learning of the devastation you have brought upon the Goa'uld over the past few years, I agree with the Asgard. I will not assist you in your growth, but I offer myself as an ally. I have brought naquadah as an offering of good will. Enough to build three more ships."
Tau'ri looked at each other. A certain blond colonel was going to go into raptures. Jack and Daniel would never see her.
"And what do you want in return?" Jack asked.
"Nothing," Thanatos said. "We have established our own lives and we are content. We do have a plague happening on one of our planets, perhaps one of your scientists can look at the data. Millions of lives have been lost over the past year, and we are most saddened by it; I admit that the people of that world are among my favorites, the Ras. They are of equine descent with a few differences from Tau'ri horses. My personal steward at home is a Ras, they are most pleasant company. I miss the seafood here, Jack; maybe we can harvest some specimens and get them established on one of our water worlds. Coffee, Jack, I miss coffee."
Jack called the commissary, ordered lobster for lunch and send a 302 to Alaska if they needed to, and a large carafe of coffee to be delivered immediately. He then pressed the intercom to the control booth and told Walter to call Thor. And Malek. This had to be the strangest meeting he had ever had with a snake.
"Tell me something," Jack said. "Why are the children of Mirin so different from you and Aegiria's kids?"
"Aegiria? Is she still around?" Thanatos asked, startled.
"No, she's dead, but a few of her off-spring are around."
"What do you know about our queens?" Thanatos asked, leaning forward and steepling his fingers.
"Not much."
Thanatos nodded. "Our race name is…was…unpronounceable in most spoken languages, but it translates as 'ripple in the water.' 'Asura' is about as close as you'll get. The name 'Goa'uld' is Mirin's chosen family name. Aegiria didn't have much of an imagination, she changed her house name to Tok'ra after Mirin established herself in Egypt. She really hated Ra. Zimrah called us Masharu.
"From the beginning: On our home world, between disease and warfare, barely a fraction of the race was still alive. Hosts were sometimes taken from the land inhabitants who were barely sentient, and when the chaapai was used by an unknown race coming in to explore, the six main houses gathered escorts and each sent one queen off-world using the unknown race as hosts. When the race discovered the 'infestation,' there was a battle for possession. Aegiria and Zimrah reasoned with their hosts, gave their hosts control of the body, if only they could come along and find a new home. Two queens, Eiley and Neysa, died at the hands of the host race.
"One of the worlds that the Asura explored through their new hosts contained an ancient outpost from an unknown race obviously technologically advanced. Of course, we now know of them as the Ancients. A hidden compound was discovered under the outpost, containing ships. Vigdiss learned to use the ships while Mirin gated to a world that contained a few million inhabitants. This world. Inanna's people weren't noticed until Vigdiss arrived with the ships. I don't know how the ships got in under Inanna's attention, but they apparently did."
"I think that was when we were busy with nomadic invasions from the East and North," Inanna commented. "I refused to allow the locals to use our technology, so we were doing things the hard way. We weren't expecting ships, so we weren't watching for them. My bad."
Thanatos puzzled that one for a moment and then gave a nod.
"Once the landing sites began to go up, Mirin and Vigdiss' troops took slaves back through the chaapai to Dakkara, where the spawning vats were, and made hosts of chosen slaves. The First Primes were born. They came back to Tau'ri, and the new hosts were put in charge of the populous.
"One of the toys found on Dakkara was a device that was probably meant for healing. I think it was meant to be an experimental device that was abandoned because the side-effects of the thing were very bad. The inventors should have destroyed it. Telchak took it, though, and played around with it. He managed to rig it to a sarcophagus and Asura began using it. He was a healer; he did have the good of the person in mind, he didn't know this thing was going to have a negative effect. Anubis was greedy, though, and tried to take the original device. Telchak hid it somewhere.
"The physical renewals of Asura convinced the slaves that the Asura were indeed gods. Neither Zimrah nor Aegiria liked what they saw happening, however, and used it sparingly. When they could, they each took a compliment of slaves and went to find another home on the Northern continent, where Asura had not yet gone. There were a few tribes there, very primitive, so Zimrah and Aegiria were seen as gods. We stayed on that continent almost a thousand years before Ra went overboard and his slaves began their rebellion. We left and Zimrah headed up and out of this galaxy. I'm not sure where Aegiria ended up. I only know what Zimrah told us, I don't know any further history from here except what comes to us. I have learned that a few of Ra's siblings stayed on this world, hidden."
Jack was glad there were cameras recording all over the base, because he knew he'd want to hear that monologue again.
"Hathor, Isis, Osiris, Set, and Horus were around for a while," Jack said. "They're all dead, now. Set was the only one actually up and about, the others were canned. Hathor and Osiris were freed a few years ago, since killed, the others died in stasis."
Thanatos sat forward, frowning as he thought. "Really. Two queens, two kings, and the chief watchdog were left here in hiding. Interesting. Hathor was Mirin and Isis was Vigdiss. I must be missing something in the history."
"Don't know about that, but Hathor tried to take over this base," Jack said. "Tried to make a friend of mine her new king, and then took me. I'm not too happy with snakes."
"I am sorry," Thanatos said, sounding truly apologetic. "I was wondering why you were so phobic about us. Other than the raiding, killing, and taking of slaves part. Well, you've certainly done your part in the snake extermination process."
Thor came in almost the same time Malek did. Thor confirmed the identity of Thanatos and what little he knew of the Goa'uld history. He was astonished that there were Masharu still alive. Malek was almost in tears after he listened to the tape of Thanatos' story. He requested a copy so that he could spread it to all Tok'ra. Jack nodded and Landry ordered a copy ready by the time Malek left. A copy was also sent to Teal'c on Dakkara.
"The children of Aegiria need not stay here, little brother," Thanatos told Malek. "You would be welcome in our home."
Malek told him he would make the offer to his people, but could not make the decision for them.
"Hold it." Jack scrubbed at his eyes. "I am having a hard time understanding that you guys and Baal and Anubis and Ra are all from the same race."
"Jack, you and Jack the Ripper are from the same race," Inanna told him. "You and Hitler are from the same race. You and John Lennon are from the same race."
"Maybe I should send a copy of Brother John's greatest hits to Baal?" Jack suggested. "Look, you guys need to give us a little time to digest all this. This may be ancient history for you, but it's all new to us. At the moment, my insides are telling me that a conspiracy is in the works and it all comes down to snakes. Because of you guys, I have a problem when I see a snake on my lawn, and now there's a family reunion happening on a galactic scale. Try looking at this from my point of view. Try the Jaffa point of view."
"Jack." He looked at the new voice coming from Thanatos. The dual tones had disappeared and everyone looked at each other, surprised; was a System Lord allowing the host to speak?? "I am Etan, host to Thanatos. I am his host of my own free will. I was in service to him during the last days with Reda, his Ras host before me. I know from the mind of Thanatos of the horrors you have had at the hands of the Goa'uld, but we have not had those experiences. The Masharu have been welcome among us. They have helped us to evolve, to grow, they have encouraged us to gain wisdom just as a good parent would. If there is a process you use to establish trust and relations with a potential ally, please see past the ugliness and face that which you fear. Shedding light upon the shadows will banish the shadows."
"We've had Goa'uld try and fool us with the voice before," Jack stated.
"Then I don't know how to convince you except with time, experience, and patience," Etan said. "I am not Goa'uld any more than Malek is. We have different queens. You are blaming an entire species for the crimes of a few. The naquadah is yours, whatever you choose. Since you have discovered a way to lock your gate, we will transfer the naquadah to Inanna's ship with her permission."
"Wait," Inanna said, holding up a hand. She looked at Jack. "There may be a translation problem. I think you may be using the word 'queen' in two different ways. Jack, you know the word to mean a female leader of a country. The Queen of England. She has no real power, however, she is a figurehead; it is her people who rule and act. I am a queen only because my people allow me to rule. If I were doing a bad job, they could rebel and take me down. When Thanatos and Malek use the word, they are referring to a physical matriarch. Their genetic mothers. Symbiotes, Asura, pardon me, are born with the genetic memories that their queen wishes them to have. Neither Thanatos nor Malek have the genetic memories of each other's queen or Baal's queen. Except times their queens spent together.
"Mirin gave certain behaviors to Baal, and Zimrah and Aegiria gave certain behaviors to Malek and Thanatos. Baal, because his queen was already feeling the effects of the sarcophagus by the time he was spawned, has a few loose wires. Is Zimrah or Aegiria responsible for Baal's behavior? Is Sam's mother responsible for your behaviors?"
Jack laughed and slapped the table, startling everyone.
"I'm sorry," he got out, wiping his eyes. "Baal. Spawned. Ok, I understand what you're saying, but you'll need to give us time to get beyond the whole good snake bad snake concept. Our relationship with the Tok'ra hasn't exactly been stellar and now the Jaffa are wigging out on a power trip. My xenophobia is acting up a little. Malek, I have a couple of applicants requesting to be hosts. Don't ask me why, but I promised them a hearing with you. Or someone. Thanatos, I'm assuming you have a ship nearby? Hang for a while, and I'll get back to you. If you can remember more details of your past, we'd be interested. And thank you for the naquadah. Hank, can we talk? Everyone else is dismissed."
Jack and Landry went to Landry's office.
"You're new to all this, Hank, you don't have my bias. What's your take?" Jack asked, falling into the chair in front of the desk as Landry sat behind the desk and relaxed back in the chair.
"Well, I've watched the tapes of Goa'uld and Tok'ra interactions, and I honestly cannot tell when one of them is lying," he said. "This guy sounds like he's telling the truth. He even stated instances when he was unsure of his facts. And how many other Goa'ulds have been so forthcoming with their history? Thor already confirmed this guy's identity. Of course, I'm not ready to hand him the keys to my truck or let him date my daughter, but I think he deserves a fair hearing, just as any other potential ally."
Jack nodded thoughtfully. "Alright. I'd like a copy of the entire meeting emailed to Daniel. Let him nit-pick it. Oh, and Hank? Sam and I are 'handfasting' Daniel officially as our consort. Soon, hopefully. Just so you are aware that there may be fallout when it hits the fan."
Landry shook his head in disbelief. "How long have we known each other? Almost 30 years? I still don't quite believe you are sleeping with a man, much less marrying one. Polygamy is illegal, Jack."
"I know," Jack said. "That's why it's a handfasting. The government has nothing to do with this union. It was Daniel's idea. It was OUR idea to marry him; his part of the idea was the handfasting."
"Jack." He looked around and then down at his comm..
"Sam? We can talk directly to each other on these things?"
"Yeah, I didn't know, either," she said. "Ninurta just told me. Hey, we have new toys. The Iraqis may be complaining about a big hole in their sandbox, but we refilled it as best we could. We had a little problem with the river."
Jack and Landry hustled to the control room and brought up the satellite imaging. The Euphrates had a new, slightly deviated course. A one mile deviation.
"Sam, what happened to the Euphrates?" Jack asked.
"We hit the water table," she said. "Think they'll notice?"
"I'll tell 'em it was an oops," he said. "Practicing with a new toy. They've signed the HomeSec contract, we don't need their permission to practice out in the middle of nowhere. I take it you figured out how the Sua scoop was formed?"
"Actually, that new Goa'uld did it," she said, sounding puzzled. "When Ninurta said to check on a backlash AND a loop, we worked it out. You remember that red glass from the mountain? The dirt on that mountain has properties which when combined with…."
"Sam."
"I know, later. Jack, you do know that you are the only one around who can test the chair."
"Ok, where are you, on Heaven's Bow? Beam me up, Scottie."
The new toys were sitting in a cargo bay drying out. They were none the worse for wear, having been stuck in a fault line for thousands of years; a little dinged up from earthquakes, but still workable.
"Jack!" Sam came over to him, holding something. "Look at my new toy," she held out the small box.
"What is it?" he asked, taking it.
"It's a hand-held MRI," she said. She hit a button on it and the screen lit up. Jack waved it around and Sam's ribs came into view.
"Cool," he said. "And you are snake-free."
"I tested it on Camulus AND those two in the brig," she said. "Snakes were clear to see. Now. How do we test THIS baby?" She pulled a cylindrical object from her belt.
"Honey, here?"
Sam swiped at his arm and flushed, looking around for ears.
"Is that the snake-eraser? Just try it on one of the prisoners," he said with a smile as he continued to MRI people's insides. He held it down and MRI'd his foot.
"Not our prisoners," she said. Jack hit his comm..
"Inanna, can Sam use one of your prisoners to try out this snake wand thing?"
"I'll be right there," she said.
They met her in the brig. Jack was still pointing and shooting the MRI. The insides of the Sua were interesting. M'Net pointed to his tail and told Jack to inspect THAT. Jack laughed and congratulated him on picking up Earth humor. He showed the box to Inanna when she came in and pointed it at Camulus. Inanna was impressed.
"Aba will be jealous he missed out on that invention," she warned Sam.
"Does this thing hurt?" Jack asked, gesturing toward the wand.
"No," Inanna shook her head. "We used it several times, and none of the hosts exhibited pain. It disintegrates the symbiote and the remains are absorbed by the host body."
Sam looked at Jack. "When Jolinar disintegrated inside of me, I didn't feel it," she told him. "And the only pain Dad had when Selmak died, was the pain from his own body."
Jack nodded. "Ok, let's give this a try," he said.
Both Jaffa backed up as far as they could, protesting vehemently. Sam held the MRI and watched as Jack pointed the wand and pressed in the spot Inanna showed them. The symbiote inside the Jaffa slowly began to disappear. When Jack lowered the wand at Sam's nod, the Jaffa cried out and thrust his hand inside the belly pouch. He felt around and then slapped at the back of his neck, a look of horror on his face when he realized his symbiote was gone.
"YES!" Jack pumped a fist.
Camulus looked at the wand and then at Jack. Apophis was the only Goa'uld Jack had ever seen scared. Until now.
"I beg of you, O'Neill, I am worth more to you as I am," Camulus told him after swallowing hard. "I have held this host for too long, he would never survive if you took me from him."
"Can we duplicate this thing?" Jack asked the ladies. They both shook their heads.
"Not without taking it apart and seeing how it's made," Sam said. "If we do that, we won't have even one, if we can't put it back together."
Jack got a gleam in his eyes. "I need to talk with little buddy," he said. "In a minute." He pointed the wand at the other Jaffa and fired. Within a minute, they were snake-free except for Camulus. He glared at the ex-System Lord.
"Behave," Jack warned. He then looked at the two despondent Jaffa in the cells. "You two have a choice –die from the lack of an immune system, take the tretonin and live, or negotiate with Inanna to drop you off at the nearest snake pit. Or whatever else she feels like doing with you."
They trooped back to the cargo hold where a team was dismantling a sarcophagus. Jack looked at the chair before sitting in it. Nothing happened.
"Power gone?" he asked. Sam looked around, poking and prodding at the chair.
"Looks like it," she said from somewhere behind him. "Hey, guys? Is there a power unit in that?" she called over to the sarcophagus team.
"Yes, ma'am," one of them said. He held up a ZPM. "There's a little energy left in it." He brought it over and Sam exchanged it for the dead battery in the chair. The chair lit up. Jack concentrated and the ball that was nearby began to hover in the air. He set it back down.
"Ok, let's get all this stuff sent down to Sam's lab," he said. He remembered where he was when Sam cocked her head at the Queen. Sovereign territory.
"If that's alright with you?" he asked her.
"Yes, of course," she said with an arched eyebrow and a quirk of her mouth.
Jack looked at the MRI and the wand.
"Can I have these?" he asked Sam. Jack really wasn't the only person who could use it, there were others who had the touch, but Jack wasn't ready to let that one out. They seemed to be coming up with a few Ancient toys that only Jack could use, while other people, those with the touch, could use more of the toys. Those devices that were for general usage could be used by anyone. There seemed to be a security level programmed into the devices.
When he returned to the SGC, Daniel was there in deep conversation with Thanatos, Malek and Teal'c.
"Hey, T," Jack greeted him. He held up the MRI and wand. "I have toys, wanna play?"
He showed them off and Malek took a step back from the wand, looking apprehensively at Jack. Thanatos stiffed slightly.
"Oh, chill, Mal," Jack said.
"Any more MRI's in the works?" Daniel asked, looking it over.
"More than likely," Jack said. "Why, you want one?"
"No, I'm thinking about mass production. For medical personnel," Daniel said. "A lot of time and lives could be saved, if these things were standard equipment on emergency vehicles and in the pockets of doctors."
Jack stared at him. "I'm thinking military applications, and you're thinking civilian. That's ok, that's why I'm a little bit fond of you."
"Couch, Jack, pillow and couch."
"What? I already kissed you in the gateroom, what more do you want? Never mind, you're getting that, too."
Teal'c's eyes began to glaze shut as they rolled back.
"TMI," he declared.
"Hey, T, Daniel's going to marry us!" Jack told him. "You'll be there, right?"
Teal'c looked from one to the other. He held his hand out, took the MRI, and aimed it at Daniel, scouring him from head to foot.
"This is normal," Malek told Thanatos.
Malek stayed on base for a couple of days while Jack had his applicants brought in. With Jack's permission, and Landry's, Malek called in a couple of Tok'ra from the high council to talk with Thanatos. Pretty soon, there were several more. Jack walked around muttering about a snake convention.
Stacy was thrilled that Jack and Sam were going to make an honest man of her father. Her only problem was that she didn't know how to dance and she needed to learn because all daughters danced with their fathers at weddings. Daniel spent an afternoon teaching his daughter how to dance.
Jack was despondent that Thor didn't know how to make more wands. It was an Ancient's device, not Asgard technology. Jack called Atlantis. No, they hadn't found anything like it there. Jack had been looking forward to attaching them to the hulls of ships and sending them through the galaxy zapping symbiotes by the thousands. At the moment, he'd settle for one snake in particular. He called Baal.
"Too late!" Jack declared when Baal's holo appeared. He waved the wand. "My toy, you can't have it. If you'd like to touch it, I'll let you come on through."
Baal's eyes narrowed and he gave a low chuckle. "Oh, I think I can see it fine from here," he said. "Thank you for the invitation, though." He inclined his head. "What is the expression? Ah, yes…. Check." He disappeared.
"Ass-wipe," Jack muttered. "Check-mate."
The control room crew whistled and applauded. Jack curtsied.
Jack went to find Daniel. He was in his office going over some documents.
"Jack, what do you think the Ancients made that thing for?" he asked, pushing his glasses up.
"For the snakes," Jack said.
"The snakes weren't a problem when the Ancients were around," Daniel told him.
Jack frowned. "Don't tell me things like that," he said. "What do YOU think it was made for?"
"I don't know," Daniel admitted. "But if not for symbiotes, originally –what? And why a control chair and satellite? We have no evidence that they were precognitive, so –why?"
"Maybe for a race that is no longer in existence," Jack suggested.
"Let's hope," Daniel said.
Jack headed East to show off the new toys to the Joint Chiefs and the President, while Malek took his new Tok'ra to their base to be blended. Thanatos went with Malek to speak with the entire high council. General Vidrine was reluctantly pleased with the new MRI, semi-forgiving Jack for stealing Davis. Jack got a call from his Mom telling him that, everything is ok, but Megan was on bed rest. Jack flew to Minnesota.
"I'm fine," Megan insisted from her bed. "I've been having contractions, so I'm on potassium and bed rest."
Jack sat on the edge of the bed and leaned over to press his mouth to her belly.
"She's as stubborn as you are, Jonathan," Mom informed him from the doorway.
"Grammy, no one is as stubborn as he is," Megan said.
"I'm not stubborn," Jack said, smoothing the covers. "I'm dedicated."
Maggie snorted.
"I am," Jack insisted. "Oh, hey, want to see my new toy? Sam invented it." He took the MRI out of his jacket pocket and told them what it was. He turned it on and held it over Megan's belly. His mother leaned over his shoulder to look. Tiny bones came into view.
"She's sucking her thumb!" Maggie said, entranced. Jack moved up and positioned the MRI so that Megan could see her baby. She stared for a while and then hugged Jack hard.
"Thank you," she said huskily, wiping at her face.
Jack stayed for the night, played with the kids, was amazed that David was suddenly able to eat a few foods he had been allergic too all his life, and, unknown to Megan, he paid a few overdue bills he found sitting on the kitchen table. He called Michael, wanting to know the terms of the divorce, because it didn't look to him as though Andrew was sending any money for the support of his children. In fact, it didn't look like there was much money at all coming in. A straight talk with Katie told him that they ate with the grandparents quite often. She was a little embarrassed but she needed a few girl things from the store. Jack and Katie went to the store, stocked up the cupboards and whatever else was needed, and he made sure the kids had lunch money for the month. Michael had no idea things were so bad, and promised to do what he could to help. He was an ass about his own daughter while in a fog of grief, but he refused to allow his grandchildren to suffer. Jack collected all the bills and split them with Michael, keeping the larger share, the rent, for himself to deal with, knowing Michael's stipend wasn't much; whatever Jack needed to do, Megan and the kids would not be on welfare.
Daniel and Sam were incredulous that Andrew hadn't even sent child support. A few phone calls told Jack that Andrew couldn't be found. Daniel told him that it was typical NPD behavior; narcissists didn't like kids, could hide it well, fake it well, but didn't like kids. They felt kids were the narcissists and hated them for it. They also couldn't deal with females because of the higher emotional quotient. NPDs couldn't deal with emotions. Andrew probably felt he was not responsible for the kids. Both Sam and Daniel insisted on taking a greater share of their own household bills so that Jack could concentrate on Megan and the kids. Jack called cousin Joey and had him find a couple of female cousins to play house-helper at Megan's. Joey would make sure Megan and the kids were taken care of. He complained that Megan took after Jack; she never lets anyone know when she needs help.
Things were quiet and back to normal for a couple of weeks until Daniel was called to school.
"Dr. Jackson, thank you for coming in."
Principal Herbert greeted him as he entered the office.
"Good afternoon," he said. "What's wrong?"
"Stacy is fine," she assured him, ushering him into her office. "A 6th grade boy… well… exposed himself to Stacy. We've called his mother, he's been suspended, but you do need to know about it."
"And Stacy is alright?" he asked, ready to run out and find her.
"She's fine, in fact….she gave the boy a pretty good slug," he was told. "Technically, I'm suppose to suspend her, too, for fighting."
"For defending herself?!" Daniel questioned. "Where is she?"
Principal Herbert had Stacy brought into her office. She glared defiantly at the principal as she took Daniel's hand.
"I didn't do anything wrong," she insisted.
"I know, baby, just tell me what happened," Daniel said, sitting down.
"We were all playing outside for recess, and he pulled the front of his shorts down," she told him. "I punched him."
Daniel wanted to applaud.
"Yes, but what did you say first?" Herbert prompted her. "You said something to him, he responded, and then you punched him. Fill in the blanks, Stacy."
"Oh. I told him not to worry, it'll get bigger some day, and then he tried to hit me so I hit him first."
Daniel fought hard to hold back his laughter. Playing with Teal'c and the Anunnaki children was beginning to show; those kids didn't hold back when it came to expressing themselves, and the warriors only egged them on. Daniel had been concerned that the children weren't being socialized properly, so he had long since suggested sending them down for play dates with SGC children. The children were a bit wild and, in many ways, emotionally stunted, not from any negligence or abuse on the part of the warriors, but the mere fact that they were stuck on a ship without a proper social growth outlet, to say nothing of the shock of finding themselves a thousand or so years ahead in time from where they were and their families all dead.
"Mrs. Herbert, if you suspend my daughter, I will bring it to the board," he warned her. "If she is still suspended, I'll be calling my lawyer. The appropriate punishment goes to that boy, along with counseling. Seems to me, Stacy was defending herself and she shouldn't be punished for that. That boy has a few issues, if he's exposing himself to 10 year old girls, and if I were you, I'd be wanting to know where it's coming from."
"Honey, if anything like that happens again, just walk away and tell an adult," he told Stacy. "Hitting is a very last resort."
"Ok, Daddy."
Sam was home and couldn't believe it.
"Did she break his nose?" she asked hopefully.
Daniel had to go off-world for a couple of days. Jack scowled, Stacy pouted, and Sam kept burying her face in his pillow. Enki showed up at Jack's office and didn't say anything as he poked at Jack's head, looking intently at him. Enki gave an approving nod of satisfaction, patted Jack's cheek, and beamed out. Mrs. Clark looked at Jack.
"Don't ask," he said wearily. She nodded.
Shara was in Cassie's office picking through the applicants with her to choose 50 to invite to the cotillion. Once the warriors understood that it was a party, they were all for it. It seemed that the Anunnaki loved a good party. Cassie had to explain to them that it was for socializing and getting to know the young ladies and for them to get to know the warriors. No romping on the lawn, no getting shit-faced. The children would be at a children's party with several Kid Tree parents, so the warriors didn't need to worry about the kids. The warriors felt that the humans were a little uptight about the 'no romping on the lawn' rule.
Jack and Sam thought they had their contract idea down when Shara found Jack writing his at his desk.
"That isn't what Daniel was talking about," he told Jack. "These are more like modern vows, not a consort contract."
"I'm marrying him, not buying him," Jack said.
"You need to state physical things," Shara insisted. "You are bringing to the union all of yourself, whatever properties you grant him, like your house and your land, if you grant him access to your monies, his position if there are children with Sam, inheritance, you promise to take care of his health and well-being. Things like that."
"That's a little cold," Jack told him.
"It's a contract; warm him up latter," Shara smiled. He sat with Jack and helped him write the contract. When they were done, Jack emailed it to Sam. She called, surprised that it wasn't what she thought, which was writing vows, but she'd make hers along the same lines.
"Rings," Jack said thoughtfully. "I don't think Daniel would like something modern, so where do I get ancient or old looking rings?"
"Here," Shara said. He pulled a small pouch from his waist band. "Daniel was admiring these." He spilled several rings, jewels, and other decorations onto the blotter on Jack's desk. He picked out several rings. "These especially he was admiring. He kept putting this one on his own finger." He handed Jack a ring he pulled from the small pile. "If you'd like, I offer freely three rings. Or one, if that's all you are using."
"Shara, these look expensive," Jack protested.
"Maybe to you; to me, they are merely trinkets," Shara assured him. Jack called Sam, turned on the video feed on his monitor, and showed her the various rings. They'll take the one Daniel liked. Did they want to wear a second ring? Sam said she did, they could use their right hand, too, so Jack and Sam looked through the bands until they each found one they liked. Jack hung up and looked at Shara.
"I can't just take these," he said. "What can I offer for them?"
"Jack, you are helping us to find mothers for our race; there is no greater thing you can offer us."
Daniel approved of their contracts when he returned to the planet. Jack was hoping the green spots would leave Daniel's body by the time the ceremony came around. Dr. Lam assured him Daniel was not contagious when Jack and Sam went to the infirmary to visit him. Daniel had an allergic reaction to a bug bite, they were told. No eggs had been laid, she was only keeping him because of unknowns but so far, Daniel was doing well and the spots were fading.
The next day at Jack's office, he heard his admin giggling like no grandmother type woman should be giggling. He stuck his head out the door.
"What are you doing?" he asked. Nate was leaning across Mrs. Clark's desk, holding a rose out to her.
"Trying to bribe my way into God's office," he told Jack.
Mrs. Clark took the rose. "And I was just about to accept his bribe," she informed her boss.
"Get in here," Jack told him, holding the door open. Nate really didn't need to bribe Mrs. Clark; he was wearing a top level security clearance badge that had a code on it notifying anyone who checked him to contact O'Neill's office directly if there were any questions. Nate could get into the White House, if he needed to. President Hayes did actually want to meet him. Jack was keeping as many government types as possible away from his clone.
"What's up?" Jack asked when he shut the door. "Aren't you supposed to be in class?"
Nate reached into his pocket and took something out, tossing it onto the desk. Jack picked it up. It was a dart enclosed in a sealed zip-lock bag.
"Someone shot that at me," Nate told him. Jack looked quickly at him and touched his intercom.
"Major, would you come in here?" Jack sat down, looking at the bag. "One time is coincidence, twice is not," he told Nate. His younger self nodded, not happy with the situation. Davis came in and paused, seeing Nate. Jack gestured toward the bag and told him what was going on. Davis took the bag and would carry it himself down to the labs.
"Any other unusual happenings I should know about?" Jack asked. Nate handed him a CD.
"That was my first thought, so I tried to remember everything over the past two weeks," he told Jack. "That's as complete a report as I can get right down to pee breaks. If I remember anything else, I'll update it. I'm not remembering anything out of the ordinary, though."
"Ok; is your jeep here?" Jack asked. Nate nodded and told him the parking space number. Jack called security and told them to take the jeep to the garage and have forensics go over it with a fine toothed comb. He called Cassie in. She was surprised to see Nate.
"Honey, where's your car?" Jack asked her. She told him and he had security take her car, also. Nate told her what happened. Jack questioned her but she didn't feel as though there had been anything unusual happening around her lately, either. Jack called Nick. Yes, he was in town and would go over to Nate and Cassie's house. Davis has recently complained that Jack was turning his boyfriend into an honest citizen. Nate puffed and slumped into a chair.
"Don't get comfy," Jack told him. "I want you both to the infirmary for a complete work-up and I want your clothing checked." He called security again and had someone come up to his office as an escort. More forensics would meet them in the infirmary. Both Cassie and Nate's ID warranted the 'special' forensics team which was cleared for a Level 8 ID. No one wanted to know what warranted a Level 8 ID, considering the General was the only person who issued a Level 8.
Four hours later, Jack was told they were clean. Cassie's car was cleared, but Nate's jeep had several locators attached. If one dropped off or was found, whoever put them there was hoping that the others would still be in place. The assumption was that Nate was the target, since nothing was found with Cassandra.
Nate refused to be sent off-world; if someone was after him, they should draw the person out, not hide. Jack reluctantly agreed.
Daniel was home a week later, all cleared of spots. He kissed his daughter, took a long, hot shower, thankful for the hot pounding water on his sore muscles, and shuffled tiredly into the bedroom. He hated lying around in the infirmary. He fluffed his hair with the towel, dried off, made one more bodily inspection for stray spots, and dragged his pajamas on before collapsing into bed. Jack was staring at him.
"What?" Daniel grunted into the pillow.
"Nothing," Jack shrugged. "I just can't get over the fact that I find a man beautiful."
Daniel opened one eye and peered at him for a moment.
"Not," Daniel muttered.
"Are," Jack said.
"Jack, you need your glasses checked."
Jack took his glasses off, put the book down, and turned toward Daniel, pressing his mouth to the back of the damp neck as he ran a hand across the strong, tanned back and over Daniel's ass.
"Daniel, you turn me on," Jack told him. "I can't get enough of watching you. All you have to do is walk and I stop and stare. You taste good, you look good, you smell good. You make my mouth water." He pulled the sheet up. "Look, I get a hard-on just looking at you."
Daniel peered into the sheet, amused. "How many times did you and Sam have sex while I was gone?"
"That isn't the point," Jack said primly, folding the sheet into place.
Daniel chuckled and leaned over, brushing Jack's mouth with his.
"Your skinny ass turns me on, too," he told Jack.
"Skinny?" Jack pulled back.
"Yes, skinny, all arms and legs," Daniel told him, moving to take possession. "Buried in that tight ass and those mile-long legs wrapped around me."
"Oh, like this?" Jack asked, wrapping his legs around Daniel's waist as Daniel covered him.
"Exactly like that," Daniel said. He stripped them both, shoved Jack's legs up into his chest, and rimmed Jack until he was quivering and gritting his teeth to keep from screaming the house down. Daniel took him deep, spreading Jack wide, splitting him open, and moving slowly in and out, making sure Jack felt every inch.
In the morning, Jack was polka-dot green.