Found - part 20
Because I'm still feeling really guilty for having kept you waiting so long between chapters, I decided to write another one today, and here it is, with a waiting period of . . . (drum roll please) . . . one day! You mustn't get used to this kind of treatment! Thanks for the reviews, and please keep them coming! It encourages me so much.
Enjoy!
On a far off planet called Hemel, people were digging. Two suns chased each other across the sky as the days wore on, always returning at dawn to find the people still in the dirt trenches, busy with their shovels and spades. There was only one person who never joined the digging. She patrolled the edge of the dig site, issuing orders, bringing fresh water to the workers, and smiling broadly all the time. It was here, she could feel it.
Down in one of the dug out ditches, a teenage boy stood his shovel in the mud, and wiped the sweat from his brow with an old cloth, squinting up against the harsh sunlight to see the woman who'd brought him there.
"Are you gonna help at all, Vala, or just watch?" Luke asked irritably.
"I am helping darling." She responded happily. "I'm supervising."
Luke's eyebrows rose a couple of notches. "I can't believe these people are just letting you use them as slaves to dig up their own land." He commented.
Vala sighed impatiently and sat down at the edge of the trench, her legs swinging. "Slaves don't get paid."
"Neither do these people."
She cocked her head to one side, her face becoming a mask of innocence. "Are you suggesting I won't honor my promise?"
"To pay them half of the treasure you find? The tablet might not lead to treasure. And we've been digging for six days; it might not even be here."
Vala huffed irritably. "Look, I have it on good authority that the tablet is here, and it is a treasure map. And once we find it, all we have to do is take it to the Tau'ri and they won't be able to resist letting us through their gate to get a good look at it. Trust me, I am intimately acquainted with one Dr Daniel Jackson, and he simply can't refuse the chance to translate anything written by aliens thousands of years ago. Plus, he'll no doubt fall victim to my ravishing good looks once again and I'll be able to wrap him round my little finger and get him to do anything I want." She said with a smirk, waggling the aforementioned finger.
Luke looked skeptical. "And then you think they'll let you take the treasure that the tablet supposedly says is hidden on Earth?"
Vala smiled slyly. "Oh, don't you worry about that. I have that all taken care of."
The young boy narrowed his eyes as he regarded the raven-haired woman. "What are you going to do, Vala?" He asked suspiciously.
She grinned at him. "Nothing, darling. Now, less talk, more digging." With that she jumped to her feet and continued her patrol around the dig site. Luke laughed and shook his head. He knew Vala had nefarious intentions, but there was little he could do about it. At least he'd talked her out of pretending to be a God to get the locals to help dig. Now all he had to do was ensure she honored her agreement and paid them – with or without Earth's little treasure trove, he knew she had the means to pay them what they deserved.
His main concern though, was getting back to Earth himself. Vala assured him that his parents' friends, Daniel Jackson and Teal'c, were still alive and working at the SGC, and he knew they'd take him in. He was even harboring a faint hope that they might send one of the Tau'ri ships to Amdra to take him home, although given the state of affairs in the galaxy as he'd learnt them from Vala, he knew that was unlikely. Vala's plan though, was likely the only way he'd get the SGC to let him through their Stargate. She'd assured him she knew the address, but the Tau'ri were cautious – they didn't let strangers in without good reason. Once Vala's good reason had got them in, then he could tell them who he was.
That was the plan, anyway.
He was pulled from his little reverie when a shout echoed across the muddy ditches. He vaulted out of his own trench and hurried over to the source of the outburst, and peeked through the crowd that had gathered to see two men brushing dusty mud away from something wrapped in cloth.
"Out of the way." He heard Vala's commanding voice ring out over the crowd, which obediently parted to let her through to the trench. "Have you found it?" She asked excitedly. The two men finished unburying the object, and held it up to her. She took it, and peeled the cloth away, squealing in delight when she saw the contents.
Somehow, her eyes found his in the crowd. "This is it!" She turned the package towards him, to reveal, wrapped in a dirty, cream colored rag, two halves of an Ancient tablet. "We found it."
Basaan Rhyn was teeming with people, jaffa and human alike. Teal'c, Jack, Sam and Jase stuck close together for fear of losing each other, fingering the holsters which held their zats nervously as fights broke out sporadically around them. As far as the eye could see, streets were lined with shops and canvas covered stalls, selling everything from knives, to engine parts, to perfumes. The group was following Teal'c, who seemed to have some idea of where he was going.
It seemed he did, because eventually they emerged from the crowds and found a quiet spot at the top of a bridge to have a good look around. "It appears that the entire East side is devoted to the weapons market." Teal'c observed. "The Southern streets nearest the Stargate are a farmers' market, selling agricultural goods and livestock. On the other side of the river towards the North, are mechanical and technological items, and to the West we will find the market for fine gems, precious metals, elixirs, perfume, medicine …"
"Etcetera …?" Jack guessed. Teal'c bowed his head in agreement.
"So where will Vala have needed to go?" Jase asked.
"Well, Durka said she was most famous for trading the more expensive fare." Sam noted. "So I'm guessing weapons, precious metals …"
"Alright, we'll split up." Jack decided. "Teal'c, Sam, head West to the fancy jewels department. Jase and I will check out the arms dealers."
"Are you sure it's a good idea to separate?" Sam asked nervously. "I mean, this place seems pretty dangerous, and Tally and I will not be best pleased if you two go and get yourselves killed by asking arms dealers awkward questions and then not buying anything."
Teal'c regarded Jack and Jase apprehensively. "I must concur with Samantha. We should remain together."
Jack sighed, and shrugged. "Alright. Let's all head West first, and then we'll go back to the weaponry section if we have to." He headed off across the bridge, the other three right behind him.
They quickly discovered in their enquiries that most of the traders had heard of Vala – with varying opinions of her, from friend to thief – but none knew where she might be found. It seemed she was something of a free spirit. They were just heading back to the bridge, when a group of large jaffa surrounded them, all touting weapons that looked like a terrifying cross between a P90 and a staff weapon.
"Boys." Jack greeted them conversationally. "What can we do for you?"
One of them stepped towards him menacingly. "We hear you're making enquiries about Vala Mal Doran."
Sam's fingers travelled down into her pocket slowly, the cold casing of her zat reassuringly close.
"Really? Funny how rumors start, isn't it?" Jack replied easily. Teal'c glared at him.
"We do not know her. We only wish to retrieve something from her which belongs to us." Teal'c assured them, trying to get them out of the hole Jack was digging.
"Yes. Your son." The jaffa said with a smirk, his finger waggling between Sam and Jack. "You must miss him very much." He taunted them.
Sam and Jack exchanged uneasy looks.
"We do not wish to cause any trouble." Teal'c tried again.
"That's good. We don't want to hurt anybody either." Their large companions said not entirely convincingly. "We all want the same thing here. We want something from Vala. We're going to help each other out here." It was phrased as an instruction.
"Well, I guess if we find her we could mention you're looking for her …" Jack offered with a fake smile. "This has been a nice little chat, but we really have to be on our way now."
Quicker than they could blink, the jaffa attacked. The fight was fast and furious, but the group of four stood little chance against the group of huge jaffa, and eventually even Teal'c had been relieved of his weapons and forced to the ground.
"You're going to help us, whether you like it or not." The ring-leader told them. "We know that your boy is with Vala willingly. When they hear that we have you as hostages, he'll convince her to come and buy your freedom. We will get back what she owes us."
Jack and Sam looked at each other tiredly.
What else could possibly go wrong?
So, for the first time, we have seen Luke ... also, in my weird and wonderful timeline, the events of 'Prometheus Unbound' still took place, so Vala knows Daniel.
Thanks for reading! Review me!
Beka :-P