Daughter
Chapter 48 – Not Enough Space
Jasuf placed a gentle finger beneath her chin to keep her face in place. Elda stared back with a scowl. "He merely wants to honor you for the good works that you have done," he argued.
She gripped his shirt within her fists. "I cannot be expected to represent the village if I am on SG-3!" She felt herself growing hot, but it wasn't from their hut's heater overperforming on a mild winter day. Nor was it from the military uniform she had donned, complete with SGC insignia on the patches.
"No one is demanding anything of you. I do not understand why you will not simply accept this for what it is." He found himself disappointed with her. Anyone else in her position would have been deeply honored by the title his father had bestowed upon her. And yet, Elda was afraid of it. He couldn't understand why.
"And what is it, then, hmm?"
He dropped a chaste kiss onto her lips, hoping to calm her. "Recognition."
"Somehow I can't believe that's all it is," she complained.
"Elda, my father approves of you. This is how he means to demonstrate it. Your station here among us is confirmed and secure."
"That's just it!" she squeaked. "I don't want a station!"
Jasuf stepped back from her now. His mouth formed a grim line. "I thought you were to stand beside me when I am to lead."
Elda's mouth opened as she gawked at him. Her mind now considered what other implications the made-up title of 'Lady' would have. It had not occurred to her that Jasuf wanted this for himself as much as for her. Not until he was frowning at her in disappointment. Now she just felt guilty.
"My love…" she started.
But he interrupted. He was normally patient enough to let her finish speaking. "You are human. My father is giving you the opportunity to stand with me… and for me… without question from the Jaffa."
"For you?" she repeated incredulously.
"You would not speak for me when I cannot?" It almost sounded like an accusation.
Elda contorted her face. This is exactly what she was worried about. Jasuf was their tribe's protector. She couldn't take on that responsibility all by herself if she had to replace him. She didn't want to lead. She didn't want to have the fates of so many in her hands. She didn't think she had the strength.
"Jasuf, I love you. There is no question of that. But as you have just reminded me, I am human. The Jaffa cannot be expected to follow me. Nothing I say should matter. I will not place myself above any of you."
He reached his hand out to cup her neck. "You underestimate your worth."
She huffed as she furrowed her brow at him. "All I want is to be with you. And to do my job out in the galaxy and then come home to you. I am not unwilling to help our village. But I do not think it is right for me to pretend I am anything more than a human guest. I will not overstep my place."
Jasuf regarded her with great frustration in his expression. "Your place can be at my side. Our people already accept you. But it would seem you are not ready to accept them."
"That's not it at all!" Her hands balled into fists.
A click and some static sounded off. "Baby Cakes, where you at?" It was Smith on the radio.
Elda sighed. She tilted her chin down toward the radio on her tac vest. "I'm in my hut."
"Time to get a move on," her teammate urged.
"I'll be right there." Elda looked back up at Jasuf now to find him grimacing at her. She grit her teeth briefly. "We will continue this when I return."
He nodded silently. Then he accepted her chaste kiss of goodbye and let her leave. If they weren't so aggravated with each other, he would have reached out to pull her back for a proper kiss. But he let her go without resistance. It told Elda that he was truly upset.
As she shut the door to the hut, she shook her head at herself. She didn't mean for any of this to happen. And now their argument would simmer in the background until she came back from her next mission, whatever it was. She dreaded what their conversation would be like when she returned.
She tried to walk briskly, as if she were running away from the fight.
"Uh oh," Crawford said as she approached. He had been keeping a look-out for her at the edge of the forest.
Elda simply frowned, saying nothing.
He leaned in. "What happened?" he asked quietly as they fell into step alongside each other.
"We had a fight." Her mouth twisted around. "Don't worry about it. Where are we going?" She could see Reynolds, Baker, and Smith waiting by the DHD further away.
Crawford looked at her with pity. Then he answered, "Dakara."
"What? Why?"
"SGC wants us to see if we can pull any old data still stuck in the systems there."
"It's all ruins. What could possibly still be there?"
"I dunno. I guess we're just the lucky winners."
"Oh joy," Elda deadpanned. They reached the rest of SG-3.
"Nice of you to join us," Reynolds said drily. He turned to Smith. "Dial it up."
The marine complied, entering the address for Dakara onto the DHD. The gate dutifully activated.
"Move out," Reynolds ordered.
They arrived to the planet of Dakara to find ruins as expected. No one seemed to be about. The Jaffa had long since abandoned this place since it was destroyed in a war Elda knew very little about. She just knew it had something to do with powerful foes that the SGC had already defeated. The loss of this world was meaningful to others, but not to her.
She didn't think she could muster the will to learn more about it. Her curiosity was being tamped down by her current emotional turmoil. She and Jasuf rarely fought with words. They physically sparred all the time. But actual arguments were few between them. It always made her feel unsettled inside whenever one happened. And for this one to be unfinished just made her feel worse.
Crawford could sense her tension. He laid a friendly hand on her shoulder in support. His eyes told her he was ready to listen, if she needed it.
She sent him an expression of gratitude back. But she wasn't really ready to share.
Neither of them had to say a word. He understood.
Smith took a peek back at them and observed the exchange. He slowed his pace to end up with Elda, bringing up the rear. He nodded for Crawford to move on ahead of them as they ventured toward the old and crumbling main structure.
The marine bumped shoulders with Elda affectionately. "What's goin' on, Cakes?"
"Nothing. Don't worry about it." Both of their gazes dutifully scanned the area as they walked.
"Okay," Smith said acceptingly. "But you know. I got a shoulder."
She smirked. "I'm not crying, Smitty."
"Didn't say you were. I was just stating a fact is all."
Elda chuckled a bit. She knew what he was doing, using humor to try and bring her out of her foul mood. She had to admit it was working. She tried changing the subject. "Have you ever been here before?" she asked.
"Once or twice. Not much happened whenever I was ever here."
"You've been sent to retrieve data before?"
"Eh. Don't know if was that or something else. Some of these missions just kinda blur together. Especially when they're boring ones. Not enough space in the brain to remember 'em all."
She hummed in acknowledgement of his words.
The group soon arrived to a dilapidated grouping of stones that once stood as a great hall for important Jaffa things. It was a sad ghost of its former self now.
Baker leaned over some of the rocks and brushed dust away. "Looks exactly the same," he commented.
"Wasn't expecting the maids to have come through here," Reynolds deadpanned. "Find the opening we used before."
Baker motioned for Crawford to join him as they carefully stepped along the jagged piles of rock. Elda and Smith maintained situational awareness, letting their eyes roam the surrounding area as they waited. Smith casually rested his arm along the P-90 clipped to his vest. Elda's hand hovered near her blaster.
"Found it, sir," Baker announced, piercing the silence of the planet.
Elda noticed there weren't even any local animals sounding off in the area. It would seem this place was very dead. She wondered why. She'd have to ask Daniel later for the story.
Reynolds addressed his subordinates now. "Crawford take point going in. Baker, Elda: data retrieval. Smith and I will stand guard."
"Sir," the men acknowledged.
Elda reached into Smith's vest and removed the data pad he always carried. It had come in handy before off-station. She didn't think it would hurt to bring it with her inside, even though Baker already had an SGC-issued tablet ready to extract the information they had come for.
Reynolds eyed them. This was just like that other time, when Crawford had shown extra familiarity with her. He'd kept his hands off of her since then, from what he could tell. Even made sure he stood a good few feet away whenever he could. Now here was Elda, just reaching into Smith's pockets like it was no big deal. He shook his head internally. He wondered what the hell really happened to make them get so comfortable like that. The marines swore nothing unprofessional occurred. But Reynolds still had his doubts.
He observed that Smith didn't even blink. His younger marine turned around to keep his eyes on the area like he should. Reynolds remained silent, letting Elda go on in with the others as he had ordered. He began to scan their surroundings himself.
Crawford switched on the light attached to his weapon and aimed it into the dark space. The safety was still on. There was no indication that anyone had been through here lately. The last thing they needed was for his P-90 to accidentally fire, damaging precious ruins that might still be useful. Not to mention the fit Dr. Jackson would have over it.
They came upon the nearly-destroyed command center of the Ancient super-weapon. Stone columns had fallen in just the right manner to keep the main console from being crushed. But it no longer had a device to command. It merely sat idle among the ruins.
Elda used the data pad for light. She stared in awe at the strange platform covered in Alteran symbols. She recognized the writing from things scattered about in Daniel's office. But this would be the first time she'd ever encountered actual technology from that Ancient race of gatebuilders. At least, aside from the gates themselves.
She gazed around at the crumbling ruins around them, wondering just how easy it would be for those stone columns to fail. Elda promised herself to remain away from them. She was afraid one light push would be enough to bring the entire place crashing down. Crawford seemed to be keeping clear of the stone perimeter as well.
Baker approached the control console without hesitation and opened up a drawer at the bottom. It glowed with bright light, illuminating data chips and circuitry inside. Elda watched carefully as he retrieved special cords from his vest pocket, then used them to form a direct connection between his tablet and the console. She stepped closer to see, but remained behind him.
"How often do you do this?" she asked curiously.
"Often enough. Getting set up is the easy part. Finding what we want… now that takes a bit of effort."
"Can you read any of that?"
"Not really."
"Then how are you going to find what we need?"
Baker didn't mind all of Elda's questions. He was patient with her, knowing she was still getting used to how things worked on the team. It was his unofficial job to be her main coach. "Some technician aboard the Hammond pre-programmed this tablet to run a query for us. We just need to give it some time to do the search. Then we sorta sift through the results and hope we're saving a copy of what we want."
"How long does it take?"
"Depends. This thing's pretty old. Has a lot of leftover data on it. Could be a handful of minutes."
Elda watched as the tablet ran its program. It seemed to be cycling through the data at lightning speed. Text was zipping by faster than she could blink. Every so often, the interface would show itself bookmarking a section and saving that location to another list on the side. Then it would resume its frantic search through the database.
She was impressed with her SGC colleagues. Every single one of them, whether on board a battlecruiser or attached to one of their bases, seemed to have a special skill that made them invaluable. Whoever was smart enough to program this tablet knew what they were doing. She wouldn't have been able to do any of this on her own. She counted herself lucky to be surrounded by such capable people. It made her feel like she made the right decision to join the SGC.
While they waited, Crawford kept an eye on the opening. He wasn't making much conversation. He needed to let Baker and Elda do the talking, since they were fulfilling the main objective of the mission. His role right now was to protect and get them out in a hurry, if need be.
After a good fifteen minutes, the tablet finally chimed. The program had bookmarked eight sections of interest from the database.
"Is that a lot?" Elda said, pointing at the list.
"Uhh, yeah. I don't think this tablet has enough space to save it all. We're gonna have to pick and choose."
"So now comes the hard part, huh?"
"Yep." Baker picked the first bookmark and let the tablet access that part of the database. This time, the text did not whip by. It patiently sat there on the screen, waiting for a user to swipe to the next block. Baker grimaced as he tried to pick out keywords he could recognize in Ancient Alteran and make an educated guess about what this data was about.
"One would think they would send Dr. Jackson here to do this. Since he can so easily read this writing."
"The mysteries of command," Crawford commented drily from the opening.
Baker grunted. "I have a feeling Dr. Jackson is busy."
"When is he ever not busy?" Elda asked rhetorically. "Has anyone ever considered trying to clone him?"
Her 2IC smiled. "Not sure that would be the best idea."
"Why not? We could put a copy of him on every team and get all these tasks done faster."
"You really think your sister could handle all that Jackson, Baby?" Crawford quipped.
Elda grinned. "Honestly?" She bit her lip. "I think she'd love it."
They all laughed.
Baker continued on with his attempt to sort through the data and find the most relevant information to save. He had to keep in mind his tablet's limited memory. It seemed like he had to skip a lot. There was no real guarantee that what he was choosing to copy would be what they actually wanted. Elda wondered if that meant someone would have to come back here. That seemed like an inefficient use of their time. She thought of the data pad in her vest pocket.
"Do you think this could help?" she asked, pulling it out for him to see.
Baker glanced up. "I dunno. Is it compatible with this shit?"
"No idea."
He seemed to consider it. "Eh. We'll bring it up to the techs. I don't wanna mess around with it. Don't know what'll happen. Better to let people who actually understand this stuff take a crack at it." He gestured at his device. "We're almost done anyway."
Elda nodded. She gazed at the top of the main console, seeing a series of oversized buttons there. They were each bigger than the tablet Baker was using. And they all seemed to be different, rising out of the platform at varying heights. "Anyone ever use that?" she asked curiously.
"Colonel Carter did before," Baker reported.
"She did?"
"Yep."
"For what?"
"Think it was something to do with Anubis."
"I thought it was Replicators, sir," Crawford said.
"I thought that was Replicator Carter," Baker retorted.
"Who?" Elda asked with confusion.
"I dunno, sir. I can't keep all the old missions straight."
"Neither can I, Corporal. Neither can I." He turned to Elda. "Let's just say, we've been here before. And whatever those reasons were, they're over."
"Did Dakara get destroyed because of one of these lovely visits?" Elda then wondered. She grit her teeth as she gazed around at the ruins.
Baker turned his head to look at Crawford. They seemed to be verifying with each other which villain would have been involved in the destruction of this former Jaffa stronghold. Baker looked back up at Elda hesitantly. "I think your niece might have been responsible for this one."
"My what?"
"Vala ever tell you about that baby she had?"
Elda blinked at him repeatedly. She squinted. "What baby?"
Baker pursed his lips. "Nevermind." He quickly looked back at the tablet.
Elda stepped forward and smacked his shoulder. "What baby!?" she repeated.
"Aww shit, Lieutenant. Now you've done it," Crawford chided.
Her eyes shot to Crawford demandingly. She urged him to tell her what Baker refused to say.
Crawford sighed. "Your sister had a baby, but it wasn't her choice. Some ancient cousins of the Alterans impregnated her and forced her to sneak one of their own over the border. They wanted to enslave the Milky Way."
"What!?"
"I was still kind of new at the time. I remember it being quite a thing."
"Where is this baby now?" she questioned.
"Ascended. Stuck in an endless battle with an Ancient, last I heard."
"A baby. Ascended," she repeated, not truly understanding.
"Well, she wasn't a baby anymore when it happened." Crawford gestured around at the ruins. "A baby can't destroy Dakara."
"But a really pretty Orici could," Baker muttered.
At Elda's confused look, Crawford explained, "The kid was genetically modified to grow up in like a day. Then she took over the Ori army and started causing all kinds of problems. Gave us a headache. Especially SG-1."
"You're saying: my sister Vala had a child that turned into a villain capable of destroying this Ancient place? Something that stood the test of time for tens of thousands of years?"
"Yep."
Elda's mouth dropped open. She huffed. "She never told me about this." Now she almost felt offended. She'd have to find the Vala of this timeline and ask her why her other self would have refrained from sharing that life-altering experience. She had another daughter before her, and Elda had never known.
"Sorry, Elda. I thought you knew," Baker apologized.
She shook her head, waving away the need for his apology. "Apparently there's a lot of… history… that I am unaware of."
Elda made up her mind to correct that just as soon as she could. She didn't want any more surprises.
"You can have the access, sure," Cameron said in his shared office. "But there's the matter of being able to read it."
"I'll figure it out," Elda responded. "Daniel's been helping me learn how to read and write this language."
"Yeah, I know. But a lot of it might go over your head. Just warning ya."
"Cameron, just show me how to get to them." Elda locked eyes with him. "Please?"
Mitchell quirked a smile. Her little self could turn on puppy dog eyes just like that. He wasn't surprised that the adult version had retained the ability. But he was a little more than annoyed to find that it always worked on him, regardless of age. "Alright, alright. Come here," he said, gesturing for her to step over to his side of the desk. The Colonel then showed her how to get into the computer system and access electronic mission files from SG-teams. He made it a point to only authorize her for old SG-1 and SG-3 missions.
"So I could go all the way back to the early days of SG-1?" she verified.
"Yep."
"Have you done this before? You seem to know your way around this database."
He chuckled. "Oh yeah. I've read every single one of 'em. They were all riveting."
Elda nodded. "Okay. Great. Thank you, Cameron."
"My pleasure. Hey, when you get to the ones that I was on… skip… okay?"
She smiled mischievously. "You know that only makes me want to read those first, don't you?"
Cameron just blew out a breath.
When Elda arrived to Daniel's office, it was with a tablet in her arms. Daniel and Vala were there, arguing lightly about some old parchment on the work table.
"Hi, Darling," Vala greeted. Then she turned back to Daniel while gesturing at the decaying paper. "It does not say 'rum-ta,'" she argued. "It's right there! 'Rum-taa.' Extra 'ah' on the end."
Daniel scrunched his face and leaned over the item on the table. "That would change the entire meaning of this passage," he argued.
"Doesn't mean it's wrong," she grumbled. "Just means you are."
Daniel scoffed. Then he groaned, realizing Vala might be correct. He waved his hands in the air, signaling that he now needed to work through this frustrating curveball Vala had thrown him. He promptly began to ignore her as he looked back and forth between the parchment and his notepad. His pen irritatingly scribbled out phrases he had already written.
Meanwhile, Elda took a seat on a stool nearby, distractedly gazing down at her tablet.
Vala craned her neck to see. "What are you working on?"
"Nothing. Just reading."
"In English?" Vala asked curiously. She drew closer. "That looks like a mission file."
Daniel paused and looked up. "Are you understanding any of it, Gracie?" He wondered if she came in here to ask him to help translate something.
"Sort of. There's lingo in here I don't know. But I think I'm getting the idea of what happened."
Vala gave Daniel a look of approval. "Looks like your hard work is paying off, Darling. Good on you," she complimented him.
He tilted his head. "Thanks." He returned his attention to the task before him.
"Which mission report are you reviewing?" Vala asked.
"The one where you show up on Earth with a shiny object to dangle in front of Daniel."
Her mother laughed aloud. She grinned in Daniel's direction as he simply shook his head in exasperation over the memory.
"You really were a mark, Daniel," Elda commented.
He sighed loudly. "I know," he moaned. Vala reached over to pinch his cheek.
Elda glanced at the almost imperceptible swell of her stomach underneath her tight-fitting black top. Her mother was skinny and fit. She was bound to show earlier than most. "And I think she met her objectives." She smirked up at him.
He grinned now.
Elda waved a hand at Vala's stomach. "Did you even try to put up a fight?"
Now he looked indignant. Vala just batted her eyes toward him. Daniel whined, "I tried to."
"It was a long-game, Darling," Vala helpfully explained. She lowered her voice. "He didn't stand a chance," she pretended to whisper, leaning in toward her daughter.
Elda laughed as Daniel adopted a look of consternation.
She spent the next few minutes attempting to read the rest of Cameron's report. It was one of his first ones he filed as leader of SG-1. Her mouth twisted when she saw mention of an Ancient communication device. He added an addendum to helpfully explain that they used it to make contact with the Ori. Apparently, the related report regarding that incident was locked away, written by a non-SG-team member. She'd be forced to ask the Colonel for extra permission if she wanted to see that one.
The most she could conclude is that their famed treasure hunt led to the discovery of the Ori. Elda glanced up at Daniel and Vala. They had each busied themselves with tasks now. Daniel seemed to be re-translating the parchment. Vala was doing something on the computer. Elda went back to the sentence Cameron wrote about them barely getting along.
Things certainly had changed since then.
Elda exited out of this report. Her brain was a bit tired, struggling to comprehend writing in an unfamiliar language. She'd have to give herself a break before moving on to the next file. She decided to wait before questioning Vala about her supposed missing daughter. She wanted to get context first. She didn't want to dredge up bad experiences or say the wrong thing. This could be one of those sensitive topics that her mother in the other timeline struggled to discuss. Elda knew Vala would shut down and try to avoid saying anything at all if she went about this the wrong way.
She could be patient.
Besides, something more pressing was on her mind. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure," Daniel said distractedly.
"Of course," Vala said.
"Meil'nor is calling me Lady Elda. What do you think he means to accomplish by doing that?"
Vala smiled with amusement. "Why? You don't care for the title? I think it's rather sweet, actually. It means he really likes you."
Daniel paused his work to carefully consider her.
"That's what Jasuf tried to say," Elda said quietly.
"What else did he say?" Daniel questioned.
She sighed. "That it could mean I would be allowed to stand in his place if the village needed me to." She shook her head emphatically. "I really, really never asked for that."
"It's a big responsibility," he agreed.
"Exactly! Too big. I don't think I'm up to that sort of task. I'm just me. Human. The Jaffa don't deserve to have a human lording over them again. Even if it's not a host to some Goa'uld this time." She groaned now. "And why won't anyone just call me 'Elda'? Everyone in the galaxy calls me by whatever name they choose."
"That really bugs you, huh?"
"Sometimes it does," she admitted. "Marines, Jaffa guardsmen, my own Dad? They all refer to me by something other than my actual name… at least the one I've chosen to use here."
Daniel shared a glance with Vala. "Do you want us to start calling you Elda?" he hazarded. She was still Gracie to them. But perhaps she no longer agreed.
She furrowed her brow. "No," she said hesitantly. "I'm not really complaining about that. I like that you know who I used to be. I need the reminders from time to time. And maybe I don't really mind the other nicknames I've been given. I know that they're somehow displays of affection. But, I don't like it when a pet name turns into something with expectations attached."
"What do you think Meil'nor expects you to do?" Vala asked.
"I don't really know. That's what I'm trying to figure out. Jasuf swears I'm not being asked to do anything. But then he points out his father is giving me the authority to lead if I have to. How does that make any sense?" She threw her hands up into the air in frustration, tablet going with them.
"Darling, maybe the title is simply honorary."
Elda looked pointedly at her mother. "It's Meil'nor. There's always something behind what he does. Ishta, too." She scrunched her face. "They've already had us do so many things in the name of their grand plans."
"What do you mean?" Vala asked suspiciously.
Oops. Maybe she shouldn't have brought that complaint up. But in the presence of people who were willing to listen and had an idea of what she was talking about, she'd lost her discipline. "Just different tasks that help them advance their objectives. Things they believe benefit the tribes." She waved her hands in the air dismissively.
Vala's curiosity was quirked, however. She wasn't ready to let it go. "Like what?"
Elda quickly neutralized her expression. "Like… the sparring match they made me and Jasuf engage in. The one you saw," she said, quickly thinking of something.
"Yes, and what was the point of that?" Vala asked, glancing at Daniel.
She let out a breath. "To demonstrate to the people that our tribes could work together."
"That whole 'unity for strength' bit your Jaffa sister was going on about?"
"Something like that."
This seemed to satisfy her mother. For now. Elda felt relieved. If there was anyone else she struggled to hide things from besides the Jaffa, it was her. She was very sure she didn't want Vala to know that Ishta ordered her to move to the other village. She ended up in the same hut as Jasuf, thereby accelerating progress in their relationship. Elda guessed they might not have become intimate as quickly had things been allowed to progress more naturally between them.
Now she suspiciously wondered what Ishta's other angle might be. She must have known that his village had no extra accommodations for her. Did that sneaky female Jaffa actually intend for her to sleep with him?
It made her head spin trying to figure out either of the Jaffa leaders' cunning plans.
This was why she didn't feel fit to lead Jaffa. Because every example of leadership they'd set involved manipulation in the name of achieving obscure long-term objectives. She wanted no part of it. And somehow, she was still being sucked in like a ship opening a hyperspace window.
Daniel could see her frustration. He didn't know what advice he could offer her, either. This seemed to be an issue between her and her boyfriend's powerful father. He wouldn't suggest she approach him directly. He knew that would be too awkward for her. And as a Jaffa tribe leader, he could take offense. That might make things worse. "What if you just focus your time and energy on SG-3 for now? You're home. Worry about the Jaffa when you're on Tek'ron," he suggested.
Elda squinted at him. "Just forget about it then?"
"No, not completely. Just put it on the back burner."
She scrunched her face.
"Sorry." He shook his head. "Don't think about it for now. Deal with it later," he translated. "Who knows, you might come up with a compromise that satisfies everybody in the meantime. Sometimes ideas just come to me out of the blue when I'm not actively trying to think of them."
Vala perked up. "Same here. A step away from the problem might do you some good."
Elda sighed. "Okay. I'll try that."
SG-3 was called for a meeting with General Landry and the Chief Medical Officer. They now sat in the briefing room together.
"Doctor Lam," Hank prompted.
Carolyn leaned forward to address SG-3. "Thank you for going all the way to Dakara to retrieve that data," she started. "I know you all would have preferred to go straight home from Tek'ron. But when I was told Dakara was the supposed birthplace of the Jaffa, I thought the data there might help with those refugees."
"No problem, Doc," Reynolds responded. "You get anything out of it?"
She glanced at her father, then back to the team leader. "Oh. I think I did." She pushed a report toward him. He opened it up, with Baker leaning over to also see. "That Ancient device on Dakara can seed life. It's how the Goa'uld created the Jaffa. They left records behind of how they did it. That thing was essentially a genetic manipulation tool."
"I thought it was a weapon," Smith retorted.
"It could be turned into a weapon, yes. Clearly, we saw it abused that way," Carolyn agreed. "But from what I learned, the Jaffa were evolved from humans. The records you found show they were gradually brought into the form they have now in stages."
"How did the Goa'uld even figure out how to use that device?" Elda wondered.
Hank answered, "They're a pretty smart bunch. You know the last Goa'uld to control Dakara was Ba'al?"
She gasped. She remembered now that it was Ba'al's host who had helped her come to this time. His former master was smart enough to build the time machine he used to do it. "Really?"
"Yes. He was as smart as they come."
Elda wondered where his host was now. He knew Ba'al was gone in this time. Perhaps she should look up Omeir and find out how he's doing. Not that the man would even know who she was in this timeline.
Landry gestured for his daughter to continue.
"The reason I wanted to look at those reports from Dakara is because I think they could give us some insight into how to help the Jaffa refugees you rescued from that moon."
Elda's eyes widened. Now things were making more sense. SG-3 had been chosen to retrieve that data because they were the ones who first discovered the experiments. They were already close to this problem.
"From what I could gather, there was a way to revert the modified humans back to the previous stage they were in. I'm thinking, we might be able to mimic that and revert the refugees in much the same way."
"But the device on Dakara no longer works," Elda pointed out.
"No… you're right. It doesn't. But, we could see what that Furling space station has to offer. You were guessing the lead scientist down on that moon was from there, right?" Carolyn asked, looking straight at the two marine Corporals.
They nodded.
"So, it stands to reason that they'll have similar knowhow available to revert the Jaffa you rescued back to their previous genetic states. The ones they were born with."
"They might not have to suffer anymore," Elda said quietly.
"Mmm hmm. That's the goal. Right now, we can only treat the symptoms. For a few of them, it's manageable. But for most, the pain is too high and the disabilities too great for them to lead the rest of their lives with dignity. And I think we all understand that their expected lifespans are long. Very long."
Elda's heart died a little inside to be reminded of their suffering. She had checked in on the refugees shortly before she left. They seemed grateful and deferential to her when she visited with them. But they were unable to hide the pain they were experiencing, despite their best efforts and their pride.
"Doctor, what do you need SG-3 to do?" Reynolds asked, hoping to get to the heart of the matter.
"Escort me to the space station. Introduce me to the people you befriended there so we can exchange ideas and get started on a solution for the Jaffa."
Elda sat up straighter. She looked right at the General. "When do we leave?"
He held up a hand to pause her. "Hold on there, Miss Mal Doran."
Smith looked back and forth between them eagerly.
"Doctor Lam, I thought we discussed this," Landry chided.
She looked pointedly at her father. "I don't want to wait for SG-1."
Hank grit his teeth as he regarded her. She stared back at him meaningfully, silently stamping her foot at him with her expression. His daughter was usually very compliant and followed his orders while here on base. He appreciated that about her. But for this, things seemed personal. She was asserting her privilege as his daughter. He knew she was disturbed by the things she saw done to those Jaffa test subjects. Her reports bothered him, too.
"We can have SG-1 ready to leave in just a handful of days. You can hang on until then," he started.
"The Jaffa are suffering now. The sooner we do this, the sooner I can find them a solution."
Landry quietly exchanged a look with Reynolds, father to father. The team leader quirked a smile and simply nodded his head encouragingly. His expression seemed to remind him to 'pick his battles.' The General sighed internally. By the look on his daughter's face, he would be in for a nice, big argument and maybe even some silent treatment if he refused her demand. And they had Gracie's birthday party tomorrow. That would make things awkward.
He coughed. "SG-3, you will escort Dr. Lam to the space station," he acquiesced. He turned to look at Elda now to answer her previous question. "You can leave after the birthday party."
"Whose birthday is it?" Smith wondered aloud. Baker kicked his foot under the table. Crawford shook his head at him.
Landry was gracious enough to reply, "Gracie O'Neill. Colonel Carter's daughter."
"Aww, how old is she gonna be?"
"Four," Elda replied with a smile. She could handle waiting until that event was over. Her parents would be livid if she missed it.
"Colonel, I trust that will allow you plenty of time to plan out the mission. You'll have to settle for using the Firefly, as the Hammond is not yet available to provide escort."
"Sir, what if we run into pirates on the way there, like SG-1 reportedly did?"
Hank glanced over at Elda. "I assume you have some tricks up your sleeve for that scenario?"
She glanced left and right, then pursed her lips in a tentative smile. "I might know a few things," she said cryptically.
The General shook with silent laughter. He turned to his daughter. "Knowing the danger, you sure you want to do this?"
Carolyn did not hesitate. "Yes."
"No!" Cameron yelled.
"Cam, I'm going!" she shouted back determinedly in his quarters on base.
"Carolyn, can't you just wait a few more days? I almost have things ready to go. I'm just waiting on the Hammond to get back to me."
"The Jaffa cannot wait. The only reason we aren't leaving already is because of Gracie. The little one."
He groaned loudly.
"Don't worry! You'll catch up to me eventually. Reynolds will be there in the meantime."
Mitchell pointed a finger at her. "The last time Reynolds was your escort it blew up in his face," he reminded.
"Oh come off it, Cam. That was a one-time thing."
He crossed his arms, still not convinced he should let her go. As if he had any choice in the matter. "I thought we agreed you were coming with me."
"Changed my mind."
He threw his hands up in the air and turned around.
Carolyn reached out to force him to face her. She grabbed his hands and made him come close. "I promise, I won't do anything stupid."
He glowered at her. "It's not you who I'm worried about doing something stupid."
"Honey, that space station is SG-3's turf. Gracie and her little marine friends spent all that time there. They know it. They're the perfect guides. They can get me introduced to someone who probably knows better than me how to help those Jaffa."
"And what about money? Huh? Far as I could tell you need their cash to do anything over there."
"SG-3 is already taking care of that detail."
"Where are you going to bunk? I can't imagine you'd get what you need done inside of a day. You gotta sleep somewhere."
"The marines and Elda say they know where we can stay if we have enough money."
"You aren't bunking with marines," he warned, wagging another finger at her.
"Of course not. Gracie will probably be my roommate." She laid two hands on his strong chest. "Cameron," she said with extra emphasis, "we will be fine. I will be fine."
He shook his head at her, apprehension written all over his expression.
Jasuf looked up at the door when it opened. He was aware enough to notice the footsteps approaching outside. He knew she was there.
Elda came in and hung her jacket on the hook near the door.
He reached his arms out to her, inviting her to his spot at the end of the bed. He uncrossed his legs and adopted a sitting position. He'd been trying to kel'no'reem with little success. Perhaps her presence could now quiet his mind.
As long as they could resolve their previous quarrel.
She didn't hesitate to inhabit the space between his legs and wrap her arms around his neck. She remained standing and leaned down to kiss him chastely. Jasuf felt relief from this. He worried she'd still be too angry to touch him.
"How are you faring?" she asked.
"It would be a lie to say I am well," he admitted. He prompted her to sit on his lap. "It is better now that you are here."
Elda sighed. Time away from him and their previous argument had given her the space to reflect. Daniel and Vala were right. It did help to step away from the problem, which when she thought about it, didn't actually have to be a problem at all. Her fears and her self-doubt were the real issues. She realized now that those things didn't have to get in the way. She could overcome them if she had help.
She cupped his face with a gentle hand. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean to dishonor you with my hesitation."
He leaned his mouth up to hers to capture it in a strong kiss. "I apologize as well. I did not intend for you to feel pressured."
"I'll do it," she declared. "I'll accept this title and stand at your side."
"What has changed your mind?"
"I don't know, really. I was advised that time away from the issue would serve me well. I think my mind was given time to finally catch up with the truth."
"What truth do you speak of?"
"That you are worth everything to me. And that supporting you is the least I can do for you." She offered him a soft smile. "You've been supporting me and my new work. I should give as much as I take." She leaned her forehead into his. "You have my heart. It's only fair."
"And you have mine," he replied. His hand reached up to stroke her jawline. "Your words please me, Elda. I promise not to allow this role to interfere with your duties for Earth."
She sighed in relief at that. She closed her eyes and nodded. "Thank you."
"We will regard this title as honorary for now. I will not rise to power yet. No burden will be placed upon you in the coming days."
"Jasuf," she said, "you will never be a burden to me. Nor will our tribe."
He smiled, remembering himself telling her the same many months ago, just before she moved in with him. He had no idea then how much he would end up needing her now. And he loved that she was so naturally referring to his people as hers. "Are you able to stay the night?"
She kissed him chastely. "I was planning on it."
"And what are your plans for the next day? How long will I have with you before you must depart?"
Her hand unconsciously played with the strings of his tunic. "Tomorrow morning I will go back. We will celebrate my sister's fourth year of life." She sucked in a breath. "And then my brothers and I will escort Dr. Lam to the space station, where she means to discover additional ways to help the Jaffa refugees."
Jasuf's eyes widened. "I understand that to be quite far. How long will you be gone?"
She shrugged. "Not sure yet. But we know better now about how things work. We don't intend to be caught in another time dilation bubble thing. And we'll be going there with the backing of the SGC. We should be well funded and more comfortable this time."
"You will not be destitute."
"No. Dr. Lam is the daughter of General Landry. He will ensure that we have what we need."
"You say she is the lead healer among your people?"
"On the base, yes."
"I suspect she is setting aside many duties for this venture." He inclined his head to Elda, hoping to convey his respect to her aunt through her. "She honors the Jaffa with her dedication."
Elda hummed. "She defies her mate and her father with this." She grinned mischievously. "Colonel Mitchell is so mad."
"For what reason?"
"He didn't want her to go in the first place. He fears for her safety. And now? She is leaving without him, before his team is prepared to serve as her escort."
"Perhaps I would be upset as well."
Elda raised her brow at him playfully. "What would you do if I ran off without you on some adventure?"
"My love, you already do that."
She froze for a second. "Oh. Yeah."
They shared a laugh. It seemed to be the sign that their argument was truly resolved now. Relief colored their laughter.
"Well, I mean, what would you do if I defied you like she does now with her own mate?"
"I would follow you to the depths of Sokar, if I must, to pull you out of the fire." He smirked when she blinked at him. "Then I would bring you here and lock you in this hut for your disobedience," he joked.
She grinned. "You'd lock yourself in here with me, right?"
"Yes. You would be punished," he replied naughtily.
Elda bit her lip, recognizing the heat in his tone. She shifted her body on his lap so she could face him. Her arms wrapped around his neck while his hands found their usual places on her hips. "Maybe I should defy you sooner rather than later."
"Try it. You shall see what happens."
Elda squealed in delight when he pulled her back with him onto the bed.
"I don't know why, but I'm pretty excited for this party," Elda commented the next day as she perused the candle choices in the baking aisle.
Vala fingered one of the options. It was a bright pink candle shaped into a large number four. It resembled sugary icing on a cake. She pulled the package up off the hook and threw it into their shopping cart.
Elda pointed at it. "That almost looks good enough to eat."
"It will go perfectly on her cake. But no, don't eat it."
"Right." To anyone listening in, their exchange might have sounded odd. But Vala was surreptitiously bringing Elda up to speed with how things worked on Earth, at least based on what she knew so far. Vala could blend in pretty well now with other natives. Knowing the little things helped.
That's why Daniel stopped minding when she ventured out by herself. He was less worried about her causing some sort of incident that would bring heat down upon the SGC… and by extension, him. She even learned how to drive his car so she'd stop bugging him to take her everywhere. He acquiesced to that demand a few years ago already.
Vala was essentially independent on Earth. Now it was Elda's turn to follow.
The young blonde continued to trail her mother around the grocery store as she picked out last-minute items for the party. The decorating had been delegated to the boys of SG-1. The house was now covered in pink. Teal'c picked up the balloons. Mitchell and Daniel were assigned to hang up streamers and other décor. Sam, meanwhile, was busy picking up Jack and Gracie from the airport.
Vala had plans to keep all of the decor and reuse it if their baby turned out to be a girl.
Elda glanced down at her watch. "They ought to be there by now."
Her mother pulled her cell phone from her pocket to see the time as well. "Yeah. I think we're done. Let's go."
After a frustratingly long wait in the check-out area, the pair finally left the store and headed back to the house. The driveway and street were already full of cars. As they walked in with the grocery bags, Little Gracie greeted them enthusiastically.
She hopped up and down, blocking their way. "Elda! Elda!"
Her big sister grinned at her. "What? What?"
"It's my birthday party today!" she announced, as if no one would know unless she declared it loudly. Vala scooted around her, lifting the bags in her hand higher so she didn't bump Gracie's head.
"Yaaaaaay!" Elda cheered for her sister. She matched her younger self's enthusiasm.
"Here, let me get those," Jack offered. He appeared out of nowhere to grab the bags from her hands. He dropped a kiss on Elda's cheek before turning around to bring the groceries to the kitchen.
She decided to sit on the couch, inviting Gracie to join her. "So. What will we do to have fun at your party?"
"I wanna play frisbee."
"Oooh okay. What's that?"
"I'll teach you! Come on!" The little girl hopped right back up and began pulling on her hand.
"Oh no, you don't," Sam warned. "You're going to get your dress all dirty and the party hasn't even started yet." She placed a hand atop the girl's head and spun her around. "Show Elda your new doll first."
The child ran to where she knew her toy was and brought it back to show her. Her excitement was infectious. She showed her big sister how to comb the doll's hair with the little plastic hairbrush it came with. Then she pointed out features of the spare outfit that was included in the box. Elda grinned, getting a kick out of the little girl's happiness. She felt blessed to be able to personally witness the life she was meant to have. So many questions from her youth were being answered as she watched her sister here.
Soon the doorbell was ringing and more guests were being let in. Elda was more than surprised when a couple of marines happened to walk into the living room.
"Aww look, she's playin' with dolls," Smith teased.
"Ain't that nice," Baker said drily.
"Just what are you two doing here?"
Little Gracie glanced at her sister curiously. She saw the little smile on her face. It told her that these big men walking into her uncle's house must be friends. They towered over them both. She continued to brush her doll's hair.
"Colonel Carter invited us," Smith reported.
Elda raised a brow. "Are the others coming, too?" Her gaze followed as they each took seats in opposing arm chairs.
Baker answered, "Should be." He looked over at the little girl among them. "Happy Birthday, Kid."
"Yeah, Happy Birthday, Gracie."
The child smiled at them both. "Thank you!" her little voice politely replied.
The marines grinned. "Sorry, we didn't bring a gift," Baker said. "We didn't know about this until last minute."
"What are you talking about, sir? Our presence is the gift," Smith pretended to argue.
Elda rolled her eyes. She turned to him. "Is he going to bring her?"
He shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe."
They shared a conspiratorial smile. Then their eyes locked as they began to have a silent conversation.
Baker looked between them, feeling left out. He pointed at them. "You two freak me out with that wordless communication sh…" He caught himself, realizing a small child was in the room. "…stuff."
Smith and Elda started laughing at his sudden verbal correction.
Gracie patted her hand. "Why you laughing?"
"See that big man over there? He wants to play with dolls, too. But he's too afraid to ask."
Baker scowled at Elda while Smith cracked up.
Little Gracie lit up. "Oh! Okay. I can share." She turned around to show Baker her doll. "Look!"
The second-in-command of SG-3 shot his subordinates a glare, but then politely leaned down to listen as Gracie pointed out features of her doll.
It was then that Jack stepped into the room. "Baker, never pegged you for a doll man," he teased.
The Lieutenant sat up. "General."
Jack waved him and Smith off, stopping them from trying to stand at attention. "Relax. We're off duty." He looked at his elder daughter now. "Elda, your sister's looking for you." She stood. Jack regarded the marines with a smile. "Watch the kid, huh?"
Then both he and Elda left them in the room.
Baker and Smith shared a look of trepidation. Little Gracie pushed her doll into Baker's hands. "Here, I share with you. I go get another one!"
Smith pointed and laughed at his 2IC. His laughter subsided when Gracie appeared with a second doll for him. She forced him to take it.
"Uhhh…"
"Let's have a tea party! I go get the juice!"
"Juice?" Smith asked.
But the girl had already run away. She returned with a small basket. It was filled to the brim with miniature plastic treats and dishware.
"You bring all this with you from your house?"
"No," she replied. "These are Uncle Danny's toys. I borrow them."
The marines laughed. The child set up the coffee table with small tea cups. She pretended to pour juice into each one. "Here!" Each marine was given a cup. "Drink it!"
Baker and Smith scrunched their faces. They tried holding the tea cups toward the mouths of the dolls.
"No!" she screamed and pointed at them both. "You drink my tea-juice!"
The men shared a look of exasperation. This was her party. She could demand if she wanted to. They hesitantly held the little cups up to their mouths. They looked ridiculous with teeny-tiny cups in their giant, full-grown hands.
This was the scene Reynolds walked into, gift in hand. He cracked a smile at his subordinates. His youngest daughter stood next to him.
There was a flash and a click.
Smith and Baker turned to look.
Crawford had just taken a photo of them with his phone. The grin on his face was undeniable. "Check it out, sir," he said, with an arm wrapped around a woman beside him. "Marines having a tea party."
"How dainty."
A/N: Thank you, everyone, for continuing to tune in to this piece. I enjoy reading the reviews that get dropped. They encourage me to keep going. Update: I'm way past Ch. 60 and still going strong. This is a beast!