Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Star Wars, or Stargate movies, TV shows, games, books, or comics. They belong to their respective copyright owners. This story is not for sale or rent.

Chapter 10:Rising storm

=SBS=

Part 7

=SBS=

Varanasai
Perun's domain
Milky Way galaxy

Ahsoka slowly walked into the temple in the village near his family's estate. Two of his sons and a handful of the men who married into the clan walked behind him. Thus, they displayed proper deference to his status as both an elder and a warrior who lived long enough to retire from serving their goddess in war. Their wives, sisters, and daughters followed, corralling children of all ages.

Like it or not, it simply wouldn't do to miss the first sermons of the new priests. No one in their right mind angered the gods, especially if they had as much to lose as one of the more influential clans on the planet. Despite that, Ahsoka couldn't help it and felt uneasy. The past days brought joy and worry in equal amounts. He was happy his sons returned intact, and the same was true for the boys he found worthy of marrying into the family.

Yet, the worry of the lower castes, especially the slaves getting up to no good, only increased after Perun's servants arrived. The way they treated anyone who wasn't a proper warrior was concerning, to say the least. As befitting an elder, Ahsoka kept his eyes and ears open. He listened to what his extended kin had to say about the changes, and they sat ill with him for now.

Perun's people made tall promises to the lower castes, contracts that would elevate them above their stations. Promises of better tools to ease their work, promises of new homes, and a better future for their children. Those could have been empty words, though that hope didn't last long.

Workers began arriving through the Chappa'ai, who didn't act as their station demanded! Even worse, they started drawing groups from the lower castes to teach them different crafts above their station! They were already laying the foundations of new buildings and busy laying down paved roads starting from the Chappa'ai!

It was as if Perun was ready, perhaps even eager, to uproot an eternity of traditions!

As they approached the village, Ahsoka and his kin saw more and more Jaffa coming from their nearby estates. Some were distant kin, and others belonged to clans with holdings close to the Chappa'ai. They all looked as uneasy as the elder felt.

There was a tent camp near the village, holding Perun's Jaffa and the workers he brought to rile up the lower castes. They had to pass by it, and it stung that the workers there failed to show proper deference. All they did was look curiously at their betters!

As if that wasn't bad enough, Ahsoka could hear them banter with Perun's Jaffa like they were almost equal! The sheer indignity of it! He could hear grumbling from the proper Jaffa, so it wasn't just his old imagination playing tricks on him!

The unwelcome changes didn't end there! From the outside, the temple might have looked the same, but inside!? There was no trace of Lady Kali's iconography! Just two rolls of simple benches led to a plain stone altar with a bust that had to be crafted in Perun's image. While Ahsoka knew this would be the case, seeing it for himself was still a shock that further stroked his indignation.

That wasn't enough, oh no! The back wall leading into the priest's quarters where they performed arcane rituals to earn Lady Kali's favor was gone! There was nothing but mostly empty space with a few wooden chairs near the walls.

"Take a seat!" A deep voice boomed.

Ahsoka and everyone turned around to see a large Jaffa walk into the temple. He wore bulky armor covered with a wide blue robe.

"I am Mar'Tok, First Warrior Priest of our god Perun!" The voice boomed again. "Sit, brothers and sisters! Sit, and listen to divine wisdom!"

After a lifetime of obeying priests and overseers, Ahsoka followed the command without thinking. The younger Jaffa followed suit, and soon they packed the benches.

"I can feel your unease! Obviously, you all dislike the changes our gods wrought upon you." Mar'Tok gave them an understanding smile. "It's all right. We're all servants of the gods. Sometimes their whims might seem strange, but that is only because we don't understand their purpose. I'm here to enlighten you! I will bring you in Perun's light and share His wisdom! I will tell you of the Resol'nare!"

The Warrior Priest smiled benevolently before passionately explaining the Six Sacred Actions laid down by their new god.

The sermon left Ahsoka divided and even more uneasy than before. He could hardly disagree with any of the six tenets their new god required. They all made sense and fit the Jaffa's nature as warrior people. At the same time, the Resol'nare clashed directly with the caste system put down by Lady Kali's priests. How could mere farmers and artisans become worthy warriors? How could they ever become equal to Jaffa in any way that mattered?

Perun's path appeared both enticing and dangerous. Even worse, it was unnecessarily disruptive! The caste system had worked for countless generations! It ensured everyone knew their place in society!

It also ensured the Jaffa were in charge, standing right below the gods and their priests. These changes were going to be dangerous. They might undermine the warrior clans and all they stood for, all they earned and built in the course of generations!

As befitting an elder, Ahsoka kept his thoughts to himself. He observed, learned, and pondered. It was not yet the time to speak and guide his clan. This certainly wasn't the time and place to voice his thoughts.

=SBS=

At the same time, a young lad from the farmer's caste couldn't believe his luck. Rao had always dreamed of adventure, yet deep down knew that his fate was a mundane one. His birth ensured he would work in his father's fields. If he were lucky, he would oversee slaves who would do the worst of the backbreaking work. If not, it would be up to him and his family to do it all by themselves.

He didn't dare hope for a change when news of their new god came and Lady Kali's priests left. Yet, when Perun's Jaffa and workers came, Rao saw his only chance to escape life as a farmer. He was among the first to volunteer to join their ranks and learn a new trade. While this wasn't the kind of adventure Rao craved, it was still better than the dull existence his family had known since the dawn of time.

Learning to read and write was challenging, yet Perun's workers all insisted that it was vital if he wanted to be more than a mere beast of burden one day. During the days, Rao worked harder than almost any time in his life. One day he helped lay the foundations for buildings while listening to artisans who explained how and why they did everything. The next, Rao was busy lifting stones with the work party building a road from the Chappa'ai to the Crossroads Village near his family's farms. Then he was back in the village, laying the foundations of a school.

In the evenings, after a hearty meal, Rao sat alongside men and women who learned how to read and write.

The changes were all exciting, despite all the heavy work. Rao hadn't felt better and happier in his life!

There were yet better things to come. They arrived in the form of a large, heavy armored Jaffa, who was a Warrior-Priest of Perun - another novel concept in itself. Rao wouldn't forget Mar'Tok's words to his dying day.

"We Jaffa are blessed by the gods. We're stronger and tougher than humans. We can march farther and faster, carrying more than any of you could manage. The gods made us better warriors." Mar'Tok smiled kindly. "Yet, in his wisdom, Lord Perun sees potential in every one of us, Humans and Jaffa. With your skills and determination alone, you can change your lot in life! You can better serve your families and our Lord Perun. Learn the Resol'nare! Take the sacred path to heart, and you will go far!"

Perhaps he was foolish, or maybe he was bold. Rao still didn't know. He dared speak up to the Warrior-Priest!

"We have no weapons, no armor to take care of!" He had exclaimed.

Mar'Tok had laughed then, and it wasn't malicious. It took Rao endless heartbeats to understand the Jaffa wasn't laughing at him either.

"Not yet, youngster. Not yet. Prove yourself worthy of the honor; one day, you might walk the sacred path fully, as our brother."

Those surprising words gave Rao a new purpose in life! He would prove himself worthy of Perun's sacred path! It was more than any other god ever offered him or his family.

=SBS=

"The caste system Lady Kali implemented on many of her worlds would prove more of an obstacle than all active sabotage efforts we faced in consolidating control upon Lord Perun's expanded domain. The changes Lord Perun decreed to improve subjects' lives would win the loyalty of much of the Human population of the new worlds. It would help unite many smaller Jaffa clans and individual families under his banner. At the same time, those changes would ensure the ire of some of the powerful Jaffa clans who controlled the two Jaffa worlds in question."

Mar'Tok, First Warrior Priest of Perun

=SBS=

Part 8

=SBS=

Rajgir
Perun's domain
Milky Way galaxy

My first impressions of my new industrial world were positive, to say the least.

First, the Stargate was on a remote island, protected by a garrison of Jaffa, guard towers with staff cannons, and even automated defenses. It was easy to recognize those – they were turrets from Al'kesh set up on large metal mounts.

There was an air base behind a nearby mountain range, holding Al'kesh and Death Gliders for additional defense of the gate. It also held a large number of Tel'tak to transport people and resources to the industrial centers of the planet. Needless to say, I approved of the defenses. Barring an energy shield, a backup mechanical system to block the gate if needed, and a few bunkers for the Jaffa, there were no recommendations I could give the garrison.

Speaking about the Jaffa, they soon presented themselves for inspection, while a small group of Ra's guards watched the show. Most of my new warriors had staff rifles, though many of them still wore the old chain and plate armor that could at best allow them to survive a glancing hit from a staff weapon.

"Jaffa, I won't disrespect your intelligence, or loyalty to Lady Kali. So let me make a few things absolutely clear to you all, my new warriors." I nodded to my Custodes and they moved away, revealing several Horus guard and the pain in the ass Ra saddled me with. Now, he was going to be very useful little parasite. "This here is Che'Nub!" I announced happily. "He is one of Lord Ra's best scientists, and he is going to run this world in my name. We will be producing and testing weapons for Lord Ra himself. Any acts of sabotage or failure of people to do their gods damned jobs thus will be a slight against the Supreme System Lord, and the greatest god of them all. And he would love to blame it all on your Lady Kali because she right now Lord Ra doesn't hold her in high esteem. In that regard, be free to fuck up to your hearts' content. I would be happy to deliver you to Lord Ra to make an example of you all in that case. On the other hand, if you decide to serve loyalty, I will see that you and your families are rewarded."

I was sure that I might get hoarse repeating the same speech while on this world. At any rate, this was the best way to mitigate issues from Kali's loyalists – to make it crystal clear that their god will be the one paying the price for such stunts.

A pair of Tel'tak with Death Glider escort soon arrived to take us to Rajgir's administrative center. I examined them through the Force, feeling no apparent danger. The presence of Ra's personal guard to oversee things for the time being might have had something to do with that. We got on board, and I made my way to the cockpit. It was both a precaution and a way to see some of my new world while we traveled.

"Lord?" The Jaffa pilot exclaimed when he saw me.

"Just fly." I said and sat in the empty co-pilot's seat.

The Jaffa nodded, radiating apprehension and made sure that the Tel'tak lifted smoothly and accelerated slow enough to avoid turbulence. We flew over a mountain range and the headed over an ocean taking a sub-orbital course.

Eventually we descended, breaking through a light cloud cover. A large metropolis spread below us. Ten pyramids surrounded its center. There was enough space for large avenues lined with what appeared to be warehouses between each two of them. A grand palace complex rose in the city's center, yet it was dwarfed by the ten Ha'tak in various stages of construction. Two were almost complete, while another three had only the base of their central pyramid complete. All the rest were somewhere in between.

I could see no less that four square airfields where Tel'tak landed and lifted off. To the west, a long airstrip stretched the length of the city. Hangars and smaller buildings surrounded it. More importantly, I could see dozens, if not a few hundred Death Gliders parked down there. The hangars looked like they could hold a few hundred more.

For a moment I wondered why Kali didn't appropriate those like I heard she did with taxes and weapons of the Jaffa armies from the other two worlds I now owned. The answer was, or at least should be simple after I thought about it. Kali had most of her fleets deployed to meet another incursion from Ba'al, or on the way to protect her new worlds. The small garrison that should be in orbit was supposed to be mine, and this made transporting hundreds of Death Gliders a dubious proposition.

Of course, there might be another reason why Kali didn't go out of the way to fuck with this world. She might expect to get back this industrial center, and in that case, she might prefer not to have to rebuild it. If that was the case, I might expect more obstruction, industrial espionage and assassination attempts than outright sabotage. At least from Kali's corner. Anyone who wanted to see her humbled, would be sending agents here to cause trouble.

My obvious issue was that I couldn't take such assumptions for granted and had to expect the worst. That was why I was going to throw Che'Nub to the wolves and would watch who would try to kriff him over by the numbers.

We landed on a small plaza in front of the palace complex. Unsurprisingly, there were just a few people there to meet us, alongside a Jaffa honor guard. So Kali kept with the obvious fuckery – she had pulled out most of her overseers. I would bet she left just enough to ensure that her industrial world wouldn't be on fire, but not enough to ensure anything like smooth production.

The meeting committee consisted of two Goa'uld in rich gold-embroidered robes, a Jaffa with silver Prime's tattoo on his head and a human in a simple clothes that were of relatively high quality.

"Welcome Lord Perun!" One of the Goa'uld tried to sound happy at my arrival. Instead, he wanted to be anywhere but here.

I had the sneaking suspicion that he was now in charge of this world and he didn't like what I would do to him when he explained how exactly Kali decided to make my life more difficult.

"Greetings." Before saying anything else, I repeated the speech I gave the garrison at the Stargate. By the time I was done, the four worthies in front of me looked and felt positively sick. "Now do explain, how exactly Lady Kali decided to cripple production." I ordered with a cold smile on my face.

=SBS=

"That upstart bitch knew exactly what she was doing! There are barely enough overseers left to ensure this whole scarp-heap doesn't catch fire around us! What am I supposed to do now? There are not enough overseers in your whole realm to full the bare minimum of positions we need to ensure the industry runs properly! I would be surprised if we can run this place at more than ten to fifteen percent of standard output, and that is if there isn't actual physical sabotage!"

"Find the brightest human workers and slaves, train them, and rise the best of them as overseers, while improving the living conditions of their families as a reward. They're less likely to sabotage our efforts in the long run anyway."

"Are you mad?! Those are dumb Humans!"

Lord Perun and Che'Nub, Ra's scientists currently serving Perun discussing the lack of Overseers issue

=SBB=

If you want to support my writing or discuss this story, google the following places:

Pat re on: Delkatar's writing corner

the space battles forums - this is where most discussion over my stories takes place

the sufficient velocity forums

archive of our own

the alternative history forums