Chapter 71 - Antebellum

Deep within the Tok'ra base, Sam couldn't understand the magnitude of just what the Tok'ra were. Even on a single planet, they were just a few steps away, back home. Contained, accessible, a small core of devoted followers of a single cause.

But then she looked at the digital representation of Quetesh's fleet, a hologram floating above a table in what used to be the commanders' quarters on Dorieth. Screen after screen flickered with images, ships circling planets, and the estimated number of troops within on screen. And then she looked outside her own window at the crowded streets of this town on Dorieth. Rows upon rows of Jaffa lined in neat armor and with weapons at hand. Doriens had not finished their farewells to compatriots and families, clad in the more formal garb of those who attended to the needs on Quetesh's ships.

Sam looked at them all, and knew that as soon as the gate opened they would depart deep into enemy territory. Deep in this case encompassing millions of miles, after which they would do their work in compartments that only barely kept out the unforgiving emptiness of space.

A hierarchy sat in place and they all knew it well. Martouf and Lantash now held the highest authority, but they had named the five Jaffa who answered the call to lead beneath them. Only five, but the fleet had not yet been arranged. Slaves had been offloaded to be resorted and regathered in preparation for battle, and the fleet lay around three close planets. Both Doriens and Jaffa would arrive at night on two of the planets, where their Jaffa contacts would arrange them into their teams before morning arrived. After this, each team of Jaffa and Doriens would be aboard their own ship, and would await the signs to bring the plan to conclusion.

Jolinar had looked back at the visual representation of the fleet on hologram, but she looked back to the crowds outside on the planet with a remark that wasn't Sam's. *I have never fought war like this.*

This was something they could agree upon. ~Do you like it?~

*No, not really. It is all eggs in one basket, as you say. And—and I would prefer that it all be within my control.*

~Yeah,~ Sam said. It might not have been the best, that they shared the desire to be in control of things. But it was at least comfortable. ~And given the face of Ren'al this morning, I think only the Doriens and the Jaffa are actually excited.~

*It is good that they have no bitterness,* said Jolinar as she looked down on said people, fidgeting, waiting.

"Devret!" Inchen called to her as the sun drew to its correct place, and as Sam and Jolinar made their way up to the gate. He wore the blue-grey of one of those that would be sent to Quetesh's former flagship. Sam paused and stepped a little closer to him. "We regret that there was no time to show you all of our work here," he said in a lower tone.

"The opportunity isn't gone yet," said Sam with a bit of a smile. "We can wait for our tour."

Inchen smiled, even as the anticipation gave him a tense appearance. "And if all goes well, a ship will crush the rubble of Quetesh's construction, sitting there as both defense and reminder."

"I certainly hope so," said Sam, and clasped hands with him before continuing on.

Barely after reaching the top, the gate started to rumble with approaching wormhole. Sam nodded to the Jaffa nearest, and he passed it down the road to the awaiting "army" in the village. Sam could almost hear their rising murmur like a cloud coming up from the valley, even as the gate whooshed and opened.

A Jaffa stepped through, squinting his eyes against the sudden daylight on Dorieth. He bowed to Sam, who nodded to indicate that she knew who he was. Word passed down again, and a third of the people started walking up to the hill. The Jaffa dialed back to his world as they approached.

Sam watched Bra'tac on the other side of the road leading to the gate, watching as he nodded to every one of his Free Jaffa who passed, each one putting one clasped hand to their foreheads. Soon they were all gone, but Sam and Bra'tac stood up for another moment.

*It's almost like sending family away, to you, isn't it?* Jolinar asked without warning.

~I don't know,~ Sam answered, quickly but honestly. ~But I think I hope not.~

They walked back down to make sure of the timing for the next exodus, less than an hour away, but Jolinar wasn't recalling the feelings of being a warlord sending soldiers out to be slaughtered. She wasn't recalling any feelings; these were all new. But since Sam didn't know either, it didn't fascinate her for long.

They only managed a few more short comments and conversations before it felt time again, and the gate opened just before Sam crested the hill. Another Jaffa, another shifting movement of the crowd, another destination that they were all going to. All except her, of course.

But when they were finally all gone, and Jolinar was momentarily satisfied by the error-free event, even though they couldn't know what happened on the other side, even then Sam remembered how many were left. The old, the pregnant, those who could not master their terror enough to be in disguise. A crowd of them waited in the main village square for hours after the "troops" left, some thinking of family who had gone, others realizing that now all they could do was wait.

And Sam and Jolinar felt it perhaps most keenly of them all, as the light faded and they had nowhere to be.

None of the leaders sent back news of any failure, which in the code they had set up meant that all was going well. How well was unsure, but Sam felt that she was the only one to care about that much detail; her and Jolinar. Even Selmak seemed unconcerned or worried about anything.

Vala did not cling to them as soon as they got back. Sam barely saw her the rest of that day and most of the next. They spent hours with Selmak, too, so there should have been opportunity.

"She is like Sha're," said Larys when Sam asked if he'd seen her. "Roaming."

Sam wondered at the truth of that, but found her mind much more interested in calming and waiting for the next news. And the day after that, it came. The recon of the other Goa'uld had been successful at last, and had discovered Ba'al's central location around a fairly small planet called Selenis. "They are taking minimum time to think over it; they plan to attack Ba'al personally within three days."

Jolinar thought upon hearing that, *How has our speed infected the universe?*

~They're just making sure he doesn't disappear before they arrive.~

Three days, though. And if somehow their plan could work, the fourth day would see Quetesh's entire empire without leadership, all her ships and worlds in the hands of free nations. And their only regret would be not seeing it in the moment.

ooooooo

"Well what am I supposed to do with this?" Daniel asked, frowning as he bounced Shifu on his knee.

"Don't act like an idiot, Jackson," Mckay said. "You weren't ever going to raise that kid here his whole life."

Daniel stared at the government release form. "Where are we supposed to go? Sha're hates cars and airplane noise, and Shifu sleeps badly enough. At least on base things are comfortable."

"And dangerous," Mckay said, tone loud as if he thought Daniel didn't hear him. "Good god, didn't you hear what that amoeba Felger did?"

"No, actually," said Daniel, finding Mckay's insults to his coworkers difficult to ascribe.

"Nearly released an alien organism into the ventilation system, that's all," said Mckay, snorting. "I'd like to know who told him he was a biologist. But the point is—kids are resilient, sure, but they don't belong here."

Daniel looked back down at the paper, shifting Shifu to his other knee. "That's probably the point; after that ship explosion caused all the cover story fuss, they're trying to get back to the formal military rules that we started with."

"You think that?" Mckay asked, suddenly intrigued.

"It makes sense," Daniel said. "All the government fuss about everything else is just leading towards that direction any way."

"Who's our government liaison?" Mckay asked. "An egghead, or someone in their pocket?"

Daniel paused. "I don't know. It didn't really matter, the last time he came."

"Well, someone had better put it through his head that messing with a system that works is the very definition of stupidity, which may be the government's trademark, but I don't think they'll admit it," said Mckay with a little agitation, a little heat.

Shrugging, Daniel inwardly found it rather endearing how close Mckay had become to his job, that had barely been his half a year. Then, however, he sighed and realized he'd have to discuss this with Sha're. He'd gotten close to this too, in a more literal sense. And he liked being able to sleep in his office and still have his son within hearing. But if all this change was a storm cloud in the distance, it might also be good to do what he could to alleviate things.

oooooooo

It seemed like only hours after Sam and Jolinar heard about the planned attack on Ba'al at Selenis, that a small sphere was delivered to them. A Goa'uld communicator, usually, but the Tok'ra sometimes used them. And when Jolinar held it in her hand, the opaque color rippled and became a video screen. Sam was impressed.

"Lantash?" Jolinar asked upon seeing the face on the screen.

"Jolinar, my beloved," he answered with easy seriousness. "How are you doing?"

"Nothing to say," Jolinar answered.

"That is good," said Lantash. "For Martouf and I have a request, that will involve some action on your part."

Jolinar couldn't hide that her eyebrow perked up at this point.

"I have spoken to the Council, and they agree with us that given the haste of this plan, too much is at risk." Lantash paused only a second. "Not too much that it should be called off, but too much to be without a secondary plan."

Jolinar nodded. Sam wasn't sure, though, what more back-up there could be than the couple hundred or so allies aboard all the ships.

"It is our request that you, and a few Jaffa from Dorieth, take the cargo ship that you adapted to cloak and covertly join the fleet when we go to attack Ba'al," said Lantash. "In that case, you may stay hidden if all goes well, but will be a trustworthy leader if needed."

Jolinar blinked, then quickly went into her head. *We may be part of the plan after all?*

~We aren't going to say no, are we?~ Sam asked urgently.

Jolinar's answer served for both of them. "Was there any doubt that we would accept?"

Lantash smiled a little there, and it was nice even through the small screen on the communication sphere. "It will give us much comfort to know that your skills will be within our grasp should emergency strike."

Jolinar huffed a little. "And we are more interested in not being required to sit and cool our heels to wait for news."

Lantash nodded. "Very well. Assemble your ship and your team, and I have already sent the coordinates of where we are gathering. And—it will be good to have both of you on board, regardless of skills."

"Likewise," Jolinar answered with a small smile of her own.

~I certainly hope Anise hasn't fussed too much with that cloaking device,~ Sam thought.

Neither Anise nor Freya were currently on base, so Sam had to check for herself what the cloaking device could still do. Jolinar felt suspicious, but only for a second. Then, they watched the ship shimmer out of sight with the remote activator now provided, all feelings other than a subdued kind of glee left them. ~Not bad for a shoddy one time impulse job.~

*Samantha, have you always brought innovations wherever you go?*

That question was rhetorical, but mostly because Jolinar could see Sam's mind on everything but random questions. The cloak worked well now, but the power supply might not be fully stable for a whole journey. Two days still lay between their arrival in the fleet, and the fleet's attack at Selenis on Ba'al; two days in which continued cloaking would be essential.

*We cannot control that,* Jolinar decided. *Come, we must assemble our team.*

Sam smiled a little, a wistful smile, and Jolinar caught her tone of thought; Sam had taught her the value of teamwork, somehow, over these past six months. But then Jolinar just shrugged, and began heading towards the gate.

For the first time, quiet enveloped Dorieth when Sam and Jolinar traveled through the gate. Neither the hurry of slavery, nor the bustle of rebellion, just waiting and steady working. Sam and Jolinar both had not given thought to the survival of the planet once supplies ceased arriving as per Quetesh's orders. Had they guessed beforehand, they would not have assumed that a slave population could reorganize, even with the Abydonians' help. Now, though, it seemed obvious to assume that the people who spent their lives running the systems of this world could begin to understand them without orders.

And so they did, and Jolinar walked through them in silence. She wore simple Tok'ra brown today, and didn't impress on any of them by sight. Most of the Dorien Jaffa now worked among their human counterparts. Not all of them looked pleased about it, but no resentment lay in their eyes either. Jolinar knew that the ones who bore that burden would still be incarcerated on the planet. Not many, thankfully.

~I don't think it would have worked if the Doriens had not been in charge,~ Sam commented. ~Left on their own, the Jaffa might have sought a new master, or waited for one. But the Doriens forced them to at least think of freedom, and what slave when given that option will not choose to think a little more?~

Jolinar stopped for a second, standing on the road that she and Sam had brought to this planet, still a work in progress moving forward. She recognized this one. "Corrifin," she said.

The Jaffa looked up, hoe in his hand where he had been crushing gravel into the road bed. His eyes widened, but he did not stand to attention. "Am I to refer to you as Devret?" he asked cautiously.

Sam didn't know why they still kept their name hidden, but Jolinar was quick to nod. "That will do well. How go you?"

Corrifin said nothing. He had never been one of the more vocal Jaffa, though granted those were few in any case. "I wish to return to my family in safety," he said, his dark eyes meeting hers with an ease, and yet it would have been considered boldness, of someone who is learning what freedom feels like. "And since I may no longer doing that by serving my god, I am holding on to the hope that they may be freed as well with this action. I am not certain on it."

Jolinar nodded. "But you are satisfied on this planet, waiting?"

The look on Corrifin's burnt umber face told the emphatic 'no' better than the word itself.

Jolinar nodded again, swifter. "Come then, and you may join me in a covert mission. It can only help."

Corrifin's eyebrows rose. "You would give your trust so far?"

Jolinar eyed him from under an eyebrow. "I would hardly give you a weapon and myself go without, but yes, as far as the mission goes, I would trust you."

"And I should hardly say no to a chance at honor and victory," Corrifin said, straightening.

"Neither should I," Jolinar said with a slight quirk of her lips. She tipped her head towards him. "Gather your things, then. We depart in but a few hours."

And Sam simply sat in the back of her head, pleased. Jolinar knew that she would not have done something like this a year ago, certainly not with Jaffa. But it was Sam who acknowledged it in the open, as Jolinar continued her search. Two more Jaffa, Or'on and Hemshet, also appeared open to Jolinar's request, and finished off the team she assembled.

After a quick stop back at the Tok'ra base to gather some supplies and to change uniforms, Sam and Jolinar returned to Dorieth to find their small team waiting. It was strange, and they all acknowledged it with odd looks that they tried to hide. But Jolinar nodded firmly, and the other three nodded back, and they were all ready for the fight to come.

Sam took the controls once they boarded the cloakable tel'tac, and punched in the coordinates that Martouf and Lantash had set. A whoosh of stars and purple hyperspace clouds, and then they popped out into regular space again. They had arrived on the border of the system where Quetesh's fleet was gathering. Sam cloaked, gave the ship a few moments just in case, and then started flying the ship in.

"And now we wait?" asked Corrifin, taking the copilot's seat.

Jolinar nodded slowly. "We may communicate with Tirnin through Tok'ra communications, but even he would not and cannot increase the speed."

"This ship," said Or'on, glancing around as he stood between the two seats. "Will we receive this technology once the battle is won?"

Jolinar hesitated, leaving Sam to take control. "That's not an easy question," Sam said. "I assume you mean the cloaking, and that's not fully trustworthy yet."

Or'on gave her a look, sharp blue eyes not quite fearful but almost.

"We don't consider it a risk at the moment," Sam continued, looking him in the eye even as she maneuvered to the edge of the system. "But it needs more testing before it's ready to do anything with."

But that answer was enough, and all four of the motley crew now became distracted, as Sam rotated the ship to face the fleet. Sam thought of the power of this mass, just as soon as their operatives could take control; Jolinar thought of the danger to Ba'al if they met delays for even a second. When Sam glanced back at the Jaffa, though, she saw in their eyes the awe of imagining that all these ships might be theirs. The price of freedom might be worth the cost if it came with this.

Sam glanced at the timing, seeing that it was in the timeframe where they could make contact. She flicked the switches on the console, finding the Tok'ra frequency. "The teltac is now in place," she said, keeping it simple.

"Excellent news," came Lantash's voice back after a few seconds.

"What do you expect of this battle?" she asked again, eyes still on the fleet, relishing the sense of a plan going well.

"I trust in the plan," Lantash said, "but nonetheless there are variables. I do not think that these Goa'uld leaders know enough of Ba'al's tactics to properly fight him. And yet, he will be expecting Quetesh's personal touch; the news of her death has not spread yet."

"How fast do you think our people will be able to take control of the ships?" Sam asked.

"Idle questioning, is it not?" Lantash offered, the wryness in his voice slightly weary.

"Maybe, yes," Sam answered, her mouth twisting in half a smile. "Idle speculation is all there is to do right now."

"True. It is not to be discouraged, either, as long as you don't create conclusions from speculation."

Jolinar took control for the moment, a little dark hum in the back of her throat. "We are well aware with the fact that it will be necessary to improvise."

"Yes, that is something you excel at—it is why you are here, remember?"

"Then we will speculate, idly, until we are needed," said Jolinar. A slight acknowledgment from the other side, and then she ended the connection.

They all four sat or stood still for the next few minutes. Sam wanted to ask questions of the Jaffa, something more personal than their willingness to join a Tok'ra spy mission. Jolinar caught her before she attempted it, though, her own thoughts certain that it wouldn't be a good idea. Jaffa culture did not tend to conversation, and certainly not before a battle. Sam, too, would probably be better if she thought of this as war times.

~It's the last war, in a sense. We did this all backwards, taking out Quetesh first, but it's the two things we needed.~

*With this done, we can finally accomplish our goal.*

~The only one we ever had.~

*And then all we have left is to gather the pieces.*

—

Author's Note: This upcoming battle is actually drawn from canon, where Ba'al grumps that Quetesh destroyed much of his fleet at the Battle of Selenis. One of the first changes to this AU, leading Ba'al and then Quetesh to Abydos, sped up the timeline on Quetesh being able to attack Ba'al, but I've tried to follow the canon of their interactions (as little as it is).