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Chapter 27 Part 5

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Death Dealer, Perun's new flagship

low orbit over Dakara, Milky Way galaxy

It said a lot that a thousand-year-old ship had better sensors and other technological goodies than the Ha'tak I had access to. The only thing I've flown that compared to it was Ra's yacht, which was unsurprising. However, this vessel vastly out-massed a Ha'tak. Its sheer size ensured it had a power core roughly the size of Ha'tak's central pyramid. Even if everything else was the same, that by itself would have given my aptly named Death Dealer far more power to work with. This ship would have far greater firepower and more robust shields by that account alone. However, while old, Ra built it with the best technology and know-how at his disposal, and when all was said and done, the Goa'uld as a whole had stagnated for a long while. Just like the now very dead Supreme System Lord intended.

In some regards, the advanced Cheops I had parked above Earth might contain more sophisticated technology. However, Death Dealer more than made up for it through sheer brute force. From what I recall, Ra believed this vessel could go toe to toe with Asgard motherships, which might have even been accurate at the time of its construction. However, after a thousand years, not to mention the ongoing conflict between the Asgard and Replicators, I wasn't ready to bet on that. On the other hand… from what I could vaguely recall, while the Asgard kept upgrading their vessels, most of their fleet was ancient in design and practice.

The Death Dealer might actually stand a fighting chance against a Bilskirnir-class ship.

A thought called up images of my new flagship with an Asgard mothership beside it. In practice, the Death Dealer was larger and had far more volume to work within its central section. The spherical superstructure gave it better weapon coverage and a very robust shield system of a far more complex design compared to that of a Ha'tak. The clear downside was that it was far harder to manufacture and maintain – not something that Jaffa working through ritualized procedures could deal with. Equally importantly, the size allowed ample space for a secondary shield system of a regular design, which could take over in case the primary shields were damaged or sufficiently degraded through heavy use without proper maintenance. Unfortunately, trying to maintain two shield bubbles around the ship would create a feedback loop and disrupt them.

The most important advantage the Death Dealer had compared to all known enemy vessels was its huge power core and overall design, which ensured that all ship systems could take advantage of the additional power. That was one of the issues I had with upgrading my Ha'tak – getting them more power to work with was theoretically easy. I had one experimental ship on Rajgir with repurposed holds to hold capacitors and additional naquadah reactors. However, the Ha'tak were already designed and built in such a way that they took full advantage of their power cores. A redesign giving them more power required replacing and upgrading power conduits, weapons, and shields. By its very nature, only the hyperdrive could easily absorb more power with the right setup to feed it. Doing so would give it better speed, at the price of slowly or quickly overheating, depending on how much additional power you fed into it. The hyperdrive was designed as a matter of course and safety to take full advantage of the power core without adverse reaction, making it the only thing that didn't require a direct upgrade in that regard.

The sensors were a moot point – merely putting more power into them changed nothing. The current mainstream design was already most effective at power levels far below what a Ha'tak power core could supply. The better sensors I had access to, first through the yacht and now Death Dealer, were a different matter; however, producing and installing enough of them across my fleet to matter was a moot point for the time being. I simply didn't have the industrial capacity and time for that.

I would have to launch the war without taking advantage of my new technological windfall. Initially, I hoped to have at least a few more months before I had to act. As things stood, it would take too much time, industry, and manpower to upgrade my existing ships or those under construction. I would have to fight with what I had on hand. Only the next production run of Ha'tak and Cheops on Rajgir and any industrial worlds I could capture could take advantage of the data I got from Ra's library.

Needless to say, I didn't have the people and time to reverse engineer what I had access to through Ra's yacht and this ship, even though I already started the ball rolling. Vahlen and Neurs had one of the yacht's cannons to play with, while Lyda regularly went up to the vessel to examine its systems. Nevertheless, there was insufficient time and trained personnel to make a real difference. That was what made access to the library so valuable – it contained all the necessary know-how from first principles to complete and tested designs. By now, Vahlen should have found production schematics for key equipment and had them copied and ready for distribution throughout my industrial centers. Well, Rajgir, really.

A mental nudge caught my attention. The Al'kesh from the garrison and those from this ship's compliment were returning, escorted by the base's Death Gliders.

"My Lord," a call from Vasil followed a few seconds later. "We've recovered everything useful from the base and are pulling out."

A thought focused Death Dealer's sensors on the region around the Chapa'ai. I could detect my people moving toward the Stargate in an orderly fashion. Here and there, I could detect scattered life signs designating survivors who evaded the purge. That was why I had my Jaffa place naquadah bombs in case we couldn't steal this ship. I couldn't detect anyone in the temple, though that wasn't saying much. I knew an Ancient super-weapon was inside, yet I couldn't detect it, which was understandable. If that thing lacked impressive shielding, the Goa'uld would have found it long ago.

"Understood. Good work, Prime Vasil. I will cover our tracks as soon as the last of you leaves the planet. Proceed as instructed, I'll be in contact soon."

Speaking about bombardment, it was inconvenient that Ra built the hangar around this ship. The Rationale there was clear – if he had to run with it, then Dakara was no longer a suitable hiding place, so there was no need to make things more complicated. However, this meant there was a large hole in the mountains, with an obvious hangar big enough for this ship. Leaving that behind would point straight at me as the one who raided Dakara the moment I revealed Death Dealer. That was less than ideal.

I targeted everything around the Chapa'ai and the temple when my people left. Until then, I kept an eye on the few life signs belonging to locals who evaded my Jaffa. They remained in their hiding holes, which under most circumstances would have been a wise decision.

A sensor image of the region in question flashed at the forefront of my mind, overlayed with expected damage spread from orbital strikes using shots equivalent to standard Ha'tak cannons in bombardment mode. While the DHD would be destroyed and the Chapa'ai uprooted, I overlapped the firing pattern so it wouldn't directly strike at the gate or destroy the temple before firing. A single barrage did the trick, and before it hit, I already guided the ship to get closer to its hangar.

Slower and more powerful than usual, plasma bolts burned through the air, creating trails of fire as they rained down like lances of fire. Lower-yield orbital strikes didn't have the sheer power to create such a light show for a simple reason – the magnetic field containing the plasma could do a much better job of insulating it. In contrast, at bombardment strength, the sheer magnitude of energized particles it had to contain was simply too much, leaking enough heat to leave behind a burning trail in the sky. Strictly speaking, that was more wasteful than shots with lighter yield. They were also better if the target was either shielded or buried underground. However, there was no better and cheaper substitute for widespread devastation than plasma cannons set on bombardment mode.

I watched as the bolts hit the ground, at which point the magnetic containment was at the point of failure. Highly charged plasma unleashed its fury into a brief yet deadly burst of energy. It created shallow glassed craters, unleashing overlapping waves of thermal radiation deadly enough to incinerate almost everything in the vicinity of the strikes. Within seconds, a firestorm engulfed the whole affected area. If that was a city, anything but hardened bunkers cut off from the world at large would become crematoriums for the population, even if the buildings themselves were tough enough to survive the fires.

Needless to say, the civilizations that built their cities that tough, as a matter of course, were few and far between. If needed, more focused and sustained bombardment could do the trick, which is precisely what I did with the mountain range. It took some time to reduce mountains into boiling pools of magma, which soon enough filled what was left of the hangar after I focused my attention on it.

Anyone scanning the area would conclude that there was a secret base in there, which parties unknown destroyed with extreme prejudice. Hells, I might go with the narrative that Tok'ra or someone else killed Ra here by blowing him up along with a secret research facility.

With my job here complete, I guided the ship away from Dakara. I had to think of my destination through the neural interface, and the computer core did the rest. It quickly calculated the route, showing me a trajectory through a real space map, crossing much of Ra's domain and skirting Lord Yu's before plunging into Kali's.

A regular Ha'tak would take many months to cover this distance. Ra's yacht could do it in days.

This ship could cross a large chunk of the galaxy in weeks. I wasn't sure how much of that was due to the hyperdrive's sophistication and how much was the sheer power it was built to handle.

To put things into perspective, the Ha'tak most Goa'uld had access to could traverse hyperspace at a velocity of no more than 500 light-years per day. Death Dealer's systems claimed a maximum hyperspace speed of 6000 light years per day.

This was an order-of-magnitude jump in strategic speed in a ship that had the defenses and firepower to take on a small fleet by itself. Death Dealer was precisely the kind of game-changer I needed… and something that was going to make me a target. Before jumping Kali, I might need to make the time to go meet Lord Yu and make him an offer he would be foolish to refuse.

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Chapter 27 Part 6

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War is imminent! Lord Perun informed the SAT that the Goa'uld civil war would begin within the week!

Associated Press

Transport of military equipment and supplies through the Stargate intensifies in preparation for conflict. Experts claim that Lord Perun is building up stockpiles for his combat forces.

CNN

Anonymous Pentagon officials spoke of Lord Perun 'requesting' direct Earth's military assistance in the coming war. He allegedly expects Earth to deploy special forces to raid lightly defended rival outposts. The White House so far refuses to comment.

Washington Post

Peace activists are busy arranging protests against the war in many cities worldwide. Government response is expected to be harsh. Political experts warn that Lord Perun will not tolerate disruptions that affect the delivery of essential war supplies. The repercussions for Earth might be catastrophic.

BBC World News

FBI agents arrested five men and two women on suspicion of planning the assassination of Lady Lyda, Lord Perun's representative on Earth. In response, President Roberts ordered additional National Guard units to Colorado Springs.

USA Today


Fires continue to burn in a warehouse complex on the outskirts of Houston, Texas after unidentified perpetrators set fire to multiple buildings. The warehouses allegedly hold military equipment slated for delivery to Lord Perun's forces.

CNN

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Jade Palace, Second Heaven,
Lord Yu's throne world, Milky Way galaxy

Usually, a minor Goa'uld didn't just request an audience with the likes of Lord Yu and get it granted without jumping through many loops and waiting for everyone, more importantly, to meet the System Lord.

With Ra out of contact for some time and news about someone scorching Dakara, the situation dramatically changed. As a precaution, Lord Yu ordered his armies and fleets to be mobilized. However, he explicitly ordered his Prime to keep the military in a strictly defensive posture. He wouldn't put it past Ra for this to be some kind of bait to see if there was another particularly mad dog like Moloc among the System Lords. Or this was a stratagem to let the Tok'ra expose some of their operatives.

Either way, everyone knew Perun worked closely with Lord Ra as of late, so he had likely met the Supreme System Lord recently and might possess invaluable insight. Besides, a meeting could help glean details on the innovations Perun was working on for Ra.

Instead of waiting for days or weeks, Lord Ra received his visitor late in the evening after the younger Goa'uld arrived. After he held court to judge how his subordinates were faring in these interesting times, Yu retreated to the garden along with his First Prime, Shin Kun. Guards discretely flooded the area before a trusted retainer brought Perun in.

Lord Yu made himself comfortable, waited for servants to serve fresh tea, and looked pointedly at his guest. While Perun wore sleek armor, he was clearly unarmed. Otherwise, the Jaffa responsible for Palace security wouldn't have let the Goa'uld anywhere near their Lord.

"I am afraid I bring ill tidings, Lord Yu," Perun declared after offering an appropriate deep bow befitting the difference of their stations. "May I presume you've heard of the events on Dakara?"

"Everyone has heard of Dakara," young Shin answered for his liege after Yu gave him a subtle signal.

"Lord Ra was there working in a research facility hidden below one of the planet's mountain ranges," Perun admitted.

Only countless centuries of experience with courtly intrigues, and worse, the other System Lords, allowed Yu to maintain his composure. The implication of Perun's words would mean a war at a scale few alive had ever seen. Yu remembered the titanic conflicts against Anubis and Sokar, which paled in comparison to the Asgard wars. Beside his Lord, Kun twitched before regaining his composure. The youngster was both talented and competent. At least in theory, he had an idea of what Ra's death would mean.

"Is Lord Ra still alive?" Yu finally asked when it was clear Perun wouldn't continue without a prompt.

"I was in contact with Lord Ra when someone attacked the planet. I don't believe he had an opportunity to flee. All I know for certain is that Lord Ra believed an old enemy wasn't as dead as we all thought. He had been investigating the possibility and preparing for a possible conflict. That was why he authorized unprecedented weapon development among the System Lords," Perun carefully explained. "One of the things we were discussing was offering military technologies to select System Lords in exchange for concessions."

More divide and conquer games, Yu decided. That sounded precisely like Ra. Such things were the Supreme System Lord's favorite pastime in court. However, there were more important things to worry about. While Ra might have survived, Yu wouldn't put it past the old Goa'uld to slither from certain doom again, that wasn't something he could rely on. There was the possibility that this was an elaborate trap of some kind, but that didn't really matter. If Ra had been setting him up and using Perun to facilitate such a strategy, Lord Yu would have had to act to improve his military position no matter what. And if Ra was dead, then the same was true. Whoever moved first would have the best possible advantage.

"Who were you investigating?" Yu demanded.

"Lord Ra looked at possible collusion between the Tok'ra and either Anubis or Sokar. Some of his spies had discovered traces of military buildup unrelated to the System Lords. Unfortunately, I am not privy to the information that made Lord Ra begin his investigation or whatever results his agents uncovered."

"Dakara would point at the threat being real. It is deep within Ra's domain," Sun Kun suggested. "While we can't detect a fleet in hyperspace, anything more substantial than a handful of ships missing for months should have raised the alarm."

"Lord Ra didn't have the time and inclination to explain precisely what kind of fleet attacked Dakara. However, I can confirm that he was surprised by both the attack and the size of the hostile fleet. Lord Ra was also surprised that the fleet apparently left hyperspace above the mountain range containing his facility. All things considered, I don't believe that was luck."

"Tok'ra or other traitors in his court could explain it. The recent purge missed at least one high-placed spy," Lord Yu concluded. "You want patronage and protection against Lady Kali in the wars to come," the System Lord looked at Perun. "Right now, I can offer you the option to join my court as one of my scholars or even commanders if you wish. However, dedicating assets and effort to defend your holdings from Lady Kali or the other System Lords would require a substantial commitment of forces. I need a tangible reason to justify risking my soldiers and assets in such a way."

Doing so would be hard and would have steep opportunity costs. No matter the truth of the situation, Lord Yu would need to focus his efforts against Ra's realm. He needed to take or deny as much of the now likely dead Supreme System Lord's industry and forces for his own or deny their use to hostile Goa'uld.

"When the attack on Dakara began, I was in a different research facility, studying the advanced naval technologies Lord Ra incorporates in his warships to see if I could further improve them," Perun admitted. "More powerful weapons and tougher shields. Sophisticated hyperdrives and enhanced power cores make it all possible. It took me time to secure that data and ensure the facility won't fall into the wrong hands," the minor Goa'uld smiled. "May I?" he asked for permission and looked at one of the concealed guards nearby.

Lord Yu slowly nodded and watched Perun retrieve a data crystal from a pouch attached to his belt.

"This contains data on enhanced power cores, providing thirty to forty percent more power depending on size. The increase is smaller for the Cheop's variant and more substantial for the Ha'tak one," Deliberately slowly, Perun put the data crystal on the table between them. "It contains everything from first principles to production methods and working designs."

Lord Yu stared at the crystal. In some regards, this was among the most valuable of the technologies Perun spoke of because, without it, the other advancements would work less efficiently due to lack of power. However, simply replacing a power core with a better one would only improve a ship's strategic speed – which was very valuable by itself. Many things would need to be upgraded for a vessel to take full advantage of the additional power the new cores could provide. That meant additional upgrades would be needed anyway, and if that was the case, why not enhance a ship for all it was worth with more new technology?

Perun wasn't merely offering a handy gift in good faith. He was incentivizing the System Lord to bargain for the rest of the technology.

"Most of my peers would seize and torture you for everything you promised. Why bargain when they could simply take?" Lord Yu reasonably pointed out. He knew how most of his kind were in general and the System Lords in particular.

"First, the Sarcophagus hasn't driven you properly insane yet, my Lord. You aren't like your peers," Perun offered a small bow in respect. "Further, who is to say who will receive a copy of the data I retrieved if I don't return soon?"

"You will still be in my clutches, en route to my interrogators to work you over," Lord Yu found that he was enjoying this negotiation far more than he should. "I must point out that despite it should have, the Sarcophagus hasn't affected you too much either."

Lord Yu pointedly didn't mention that he wasn't affected more by the Sarcophagus because he hadn't used it in a while. Even before that, he used that device sparsely instead of regularly resting in it, like most Goa'uld. He had been in this host far longer than anyone, but Ra had inhabited a single human. He was found of the man who earned the privilege of being his first and only human host so long ago. For a long time, they've blended in such a way that Lord Yu didn't really know when one began and the other ended. That partnership and unity was what allowed him to retain a firmer grasp over his sanity compared to most other Goa'uld. However, there was an unexpected consequence. The Sarcophagus no longer worked as well as before due to its age, and worse, Lord Yu knew he was too weak and accustomed to this host to take another. Sooner rather than later, he was likely to die along with the human he inhabited.

Perun stared at Lord Yu for endless seconds, and the System Lord fell like the younger Goa'uld was looking straight through his facade.

"May we dispense with the pretenses, my Lord You? I can see you," Perun's eyes glowed, unlike those of a Goa'uld.

Ah, so he was finally revealing his true nature. This was going to be fascinating.

"Lord Ra's death and the threat that revealed itself at Dakara changed my calculus," Perun continued.

Meanwhile, Sun Kun and the guards coiled, ready to defend their liege.

"Originally, I would have made this offer later when my position was better. Like I said, I can see you, my Lord. You've got about a decade or so before your deterioration becomes severe enough to reliably impair you," Perun continued.

At those words, Sun Kun went pale with sheer outrage. The First Prime vibrated in place, barely holding himself back. Lord Yu knew the guards who could hear them were in no better state. They were all loyal and devoted, and how could it be any other way? Lord Yu raised them like his own sons and saw to the welfare of their families. Many of those families served him for centuries, often millennia.

"You understand that what you just said gives me more incentive to detain you indefinitely if not give you to my interrogators?" Lord Yu inquired, wondering what exactly Perun was up to. Still, it was interesting to deal with a Goa'uld without suffering the usual grandstanding or groveling if those he met were sufficiently below his station.

"I am taking a chance and trusting in your character, my Lord," something that might have a genuine smile graced Perun's face. "While everyone has been entertaining the charade, anyone with two brain cells left to rub together is aware that I am not the Perun they knew. Due to my achievements, that doesn't really matter, and my people don't care. I've earned their allegiance and faith."

That was true enough, Lord Yu allowed.

"Who, or what are you?" the System Lord inquired. He was genuinely curious. He knew there were a few bets making their rounds through court and among his Jaffa. Most of them focused on divining, whose spawn replaced the incompetent hedonist Perun used to be before making their mark on the galaxy while still being a minor Goa'uld with seemingly no consequence.

"Does it really matter, my Lord? What can I offer you in exchange for your patronage and protection is the better question," Perun countered, seemingly feeling at ease.

Lord Yu had to admit that his guest wouldn't act this way in the court of any other Goa'uld except Ba'al. While that one was more treacherous than most, he was among the saner and most competent among the System Lords.

"You already offered me an unprecedented military advantage only Ra enjoyed. While my scholars could grant me the same eventually, it would take time to capture some of Ra's ships so they could divine how their technology works," Lord Yu noted.

Instead, Perun was offering a head start that could make all the difference in the galaxy.

"That is correct. You have another path to gain the technologies I came to bargain with," Perun happily admitted. His eyes became pools of molten mental. "Tell me, Lord Yu, who else can offer to heal you?"

Now, Yu-huang Shang Ti didn't see this coming. He barely noticed how a ripple of shock and hope went through his guards and Sun Kun.