“Well done,” Daniel said.
“I don’t think I did it.”
“As long as it’s open, last person to touch it gets the credit.”
Sam decided they had spent the past week jumping from one place to the next to find the pedestal, so maybe the universe decided they were owed a little luck. She stood up, twisted the wire back into place, and held her veil rather than putting it back on. She and Daniel stepped into the room, and he swept his palm over a half-globe embedded in the wall. The room slowly filled with light, revealing its contents. Five rows of shelves were loaded with various Goa’uld weaponry, including ribbon devices and pain sticks. Racks of staff weapons stood along the wall like rigid plant stalks growing from the floor.
“Holy Hannah,” Sam whispered.
Daniel moved closer to one of the shelves and opened a box. He picked up a small circular object Sam recognized as a tak energy weapon. “I suppose this could just be… excess? In order to get the treasure, Wyrrick decided to take the weapons that were lying around as well?”
Sam shook her head. “He calls this his armory for a reason. This is a deliberate accumulation of weapons.”
“So Wyrrick isn’t just an eccentric rich man…”
“He’s an eccentric rich man who is putting together his own private army.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Jack wondered if whoever claimed history didn’t repeat itself ever got the sound kick in the pants they deserved. He stood in his office after dismissing Morello, having been briefed on her conversation with Kali, and he couldn’t believe he was in the same position Hammond had been in almost four years earlier. Nirrti had been a guest of their establishment, and she too offered to help them in return for her immediate release. At the time, a child’s life had been at stake and Jack hadn’t seen the point of debating. His stance was that Cassandra’s life overshadowed any benefit they might get from keeping a Goa’uld in a cage.
It should be just as easy now. Kali was offering her help to save every Jaffa in the galaxy. When she was captured, she’d been hiding in the defunct temple of an associate System Lord. She was a homeless wretch without any real power, and she was at best a few years away from being captured and killed anyway. Jack didn’t see any downside to agreeing with her terms.
But it wasn’t always as simple as yes or no. At the time, Teal’c had been against letting Nirrti go. The life of one person didn’t compare to the countless lives at stake with a Goa’uld running free. Would Teal’c feel differently now that his people were the ones under the sword? And if so, could Jack take his vote as unbiased and unaffected by emotion? And as it turned out, Teal’c had been right about Nirrti being a threat. Less than a year later she had turned up again, back to her old tricks, and her genetic meddling had nearly destroyed an entire village of people.
He had General Hammond’s number. He could call, run the situation by him, see what advice he had. But no. The second he did that, he would be doing it for every decision he had to make.
Whatever he decided about Kali, he would have to justify it to the people upstairs. He not only had to decide what he thought was right, he had to make a decision he was willing to fight for and defend. When he boiled it down to that, the decision was pretty much made for him. He left his office and discovered Morello was leaning against the wall across from his door. She straightened up when he appeared, but he waved at her to relax.
“Captain. What are you doing loitering out here?”
She clasped her hands behind her back and focused wide, unblinking eyes on him. “I wanted to hear your decision as soon as possible, sir. Not that… I’m rushing you or anything. Oh, God. I didn’t mean…”
“Stand down, Morello,” Jack said. “I’ve made my decision. And since you’re the one who negotiated it, you should be the one to break the news to her.”
Morello wet her lips and swallowed, all but bouncing on the balls of her feet. “The news, sir?”
“Tell Kali we have a deal. If SG-1 gets back with the pedestal, we’ll let her go in exchange for shutting down the machine.”
She smiled. “Excellent decision, sir!” Her eyes widened. “I mean, I’m sure whatever decision you made would be the right one, even if I didn’t happen to agree with it.” She furrowed her brow. “Oh, God.”
“Relax, Morello.” He patted her shoulder gingerly. “Just relax. You might want to take a moment before you go visit Kali. We don’t like the Goa’uld to see us giddy.”
“Of course not, sir.” She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Thank you, General.”
“Don’t thank me. You’re the one who did all the heavy lifting.”
Morello smiled again and turned, trying to keep a measured walking pace on her way to the elevator. Jack’s amusement at her eagerness faded as soon as she was out of sight. All he had done was agree to release a narcissistic maniac in the hopes she would help them prevent a genocide. It may have been the best option, but it would be a long time before he convinced himself it was a good one.
Vala let Wyrrick spirit her away from the party, fervently trying to deflect his wandering hands without appearing violent. As they got farther away from the sounds of the crowd, the more determined his explorations became. They were ostensibly on another tour of the house, this time one that would take her to the ‘more private corners’ of Wyrrick’s little kingdom. Vala hoped it would provide opportunities to get rid of him without causing undue attention to herself, but those hopes were becoming slimmer with each passing second.
She was near panic when she realized they were on a path that would end at his bedroom. She’d certainly done more distasteful things for the purpose of a job, but the thought of going behind closed doors with Wyrrick made her stomach twist. She looked for anything, any possible escape from his pawing mitts, and her chances were dwindling when she spotted what appeared to be a large, complex art piece in one of the rooms down the hall from his bedchambers.
“Ooh, this looks fascinating.” She squirmed out of his reach and trotted into the room, forcing him to follow. “What is this?”
“That is my tranquility grotto. You turn on the light and…”
He used a remote control to activate it, and a stream of shimmering light washed over the shape of the statue, then shot up toward the ceiling in a solid stream. It flooded across every available surface until Vala felt submerged by the glow. Far from tranquility, however, she felt a surge of panic. She knew a part of Qetesh had been left behind, some trace element that allowed her to use Goa’uld technology, and she had faith that would be enough to keep her from suffering any ill effects from the light. But she couldn’t help but think about the guests, not to mention Tanis.
“This room, um… is… shielded. Correct?”
“Yes.” Wyrrick’s voice was already distant, his head tilted back to watch the flow. “The builders insisted upon it, although they… I… took pains to make sure it… wasn’t addictive. Why do you… ask?” He chuckled. “Why what? Wait. Did you say something…?”
Vala had seen the light matrix holograms before. Goa’uld used them, but didn’t feel the effects of its radiation thanks to their symbiotes. Any human exposed to it for even a short amount of time quickly became addicted to the buzz. Hopefully the room was shielded well enough that she and Tanis wouldn’t have to worry about it when they left. It seemed like the sort of thing a host should mention before inviting someone to spend the night.
“I mean honestly,” Vala muttered, “who has a light matrix just lying around?”
Wyrrick said, “Honest…”
Vala leaned in close to his face, squinted, and said, “Wyrrick, I believe you are about to be robbed. What do you think you should do about that?”
Wyrrick blinked dumbly, never taking his focus off the light.
“Huh. Okay… Wyrrick, darling… where exactly is your security shut-off?”
“In the bedroom. Nightstand. By the window.”
She grinned. “Fantastic. Enjoy t
he light show.” She took the remote from his limp fingers and, after a moment, figured out how to turn it up. The light became thick and nearly solid, and Wyrrick made a guttural sound of approval in his throat. His eyes widened and he swayed on his feet as Vala left the room. She hurried down the hallway to his bedroom, the very place she had moments earlier been fighting tooth and nail to avoid. It was odd how priorities shifted…
She crouched next to the bed and found the security master panel. She turned it on and took a moment to familiarize herself with its functions. Tanis was really more of the tech genius, and Vala couldn’t figure out how to pinpoint a single door to disable its locks. She scrolled through the options and discovered a way that she could simply shut down all the locks on every door in the building. Well, that was fine. Never knew when a locked door would stand between victory and defeat. She deactivated the locks and almost immediately a room on the second floor lit up with an unauthorized entrance.
“Not my problem,” Vala muttered as she closed the control panel and stood up. She hurried from the room, glancing into the tranquility grotto as she hurried past. Wyrrick hadn’t moved from where she’d left him. “Dysmas? Dear? Still… yeah, you’re still… okay.” She continued down the hallway.
She wasn’t sure how wide their window was, but she was fairly certain it would start closing before she was ready.
Teal’c kept to the corners of the ballroom, scanning the crowd with apparent disinterest. He had seen the horned mask Daniel Jackson indicated, and he had been tracking the woman through the crowd. There was something vaguely familiar about her, the way she moved and the square of her shoulders touched on a memory, but he couldn’t bring it to the fore. He had a feeling he had seen this woman somewhere before, somewhere outdoors and hot. He had no doubt that if their previous encounter mattered, it would come to him in time. For now he followed Colonel Carter’s orders and slipped through the crowd as nonchalantly as possible, keeping the thief at the very edge of his sight line. She made a show of mingling, pausing to eavesdrop on conversations or to examine a snack tray, but Teal’c quickly determined she was making her way toward the treasure rooms.
The big Jaffa was tracking her. Tanis pretended to peruse an offering of sliced meat snacks before waving it off. She couldn’t see the Jaffa’s emblem because of his mask, but she couldn’t shake the feeling she’d seen him before. Given the attention he was affording her, he recognized her as well. She tried to think of all the Jaffa she had lied to, scammed, or otherwise left with a grudge, but none of them matched the hulk eyeing her like she was his prey. She kept her face turned away despite her mask, eager to escape his gaze so she could get the job underway. The quicker she and Vala were away from this party, the better.
She stepped out into the corridor and saw Vala at the other end of the hall. They signaled to each other with quick, furtive motions of their hands.
Someone recognizes me was a sideways cut of her hand, then flashing her fingers in front of her face.
Great going was two raised index fingers with a sarcastic grin.
Tanis gestured something less than kind, then Where’s your date?
Vala rolled her head back on her shoulders, eyes closed and tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth. Whether that meant dead or, for some reason, asleep at his own party, Tanis didn’t care.
Moving now.
Too early!
Too bad!
Vala harrumphed. Okay. Move it.
Tanis ran to the treasure room and, after a quick glance into the ballroom, Vala followed her.
Daniel followed Sam downstairs, and they paused at the threshold of the party. “This is supposed to be neutral ground, right? Leave your grievances at the door, we’re all just here to have a good time?”
“That was the gist of the invitation, yes.”
He nodded and gestured at her collar. Sam grimaced and activated the voice modulator again. Daniel started across the floor and she followed. They had just crossed paths with a redheaded woman with fins glued to the side of her face when Sam was startled by Daniel suddenly turning to face her. He kept his head down and his eyes averted as would befit someone of his supposed station.
“Milady, I do not wish to speak out of turn, but surely this is cause for some alarm.”
Sam tried to think of the best response, finally baring her teeth and leaning in close. “We will not speak of it here!”
“But if Wyrrick lured us here under false pretenses, we cannot remain another moment! Your life may be at risk.”
The redheaded woman had turned toward them.
“I am certain he has a reasonable explanation for what we saw.”
“What exactly did you see?” the other Goa’uld said. She sidled closer, lips lifted in a forced expression of disinterest.
Daniel looked at her and then quickly away. “Lady Morrigan. I was speaking with my mistress.”
“In a public forum,” Morrigan said, “and on a topic that could affect everyone here. You say Wyrrick’s intentions may be less than honorable?”
Sam said, “My lo’taur believes he has leave to speak freely. I shall disabuse him of this notion at once.”
Morrigan held up a hand. “Let the man speak. What did you see?”
Daniel saw that they had gathered a small crowd. “I-I am unsure and I do not wish to besmirch a man so clearly revered as Master Wyrrick.”
Morrigan looked at Sam. “Your man’s loyalty is impressive. Order him to tell us what he knows or I shall teach him a lesson myself.”
Sam looked at Daniel. “Tell them.”
“A room,” Daniel said without hesitation. “At the top of the stairs, there is a room filled with weapons. It makes me question why he gathered us all here, under one roof, under the auspices of peace while he has a stockpile just waiting to be utilized for violent purposes.” He grabbed Sam’s wrist. “Please, milady, we must leave at once.”
Morrigan eyed the rest of the crowd, then looked toward the stairs. “Yes. We should all leave at once. It is only pertinent…” She stepped away from them. Sam watched as she hurried from the ballroom, most likely seeking another way upstairs.
Sam hooked her arm around Daniel’s and pulled him away. “Tell me you didn’t do what I think you did.”
“I have no idea what Wyrrick originally planned for those weapons, but I think in this case distribution of wealth would be a much better situation. Besides, if everyone starts scrambling for weapons, we’ll have enough of a distraction to get away with the pedestal.”
Sam didn’t like it, but the wheels were already in motion. She could almost see the rumor spreading through the crowd like a game of Telephone. Teal’c made his way through the suddenly-lively crowd. “Colonel Carter, Daniel Jackson. The thief and her accomplice have made their move. Moments ago I witnessed them loading a cart onto their tel’tak. They are currently in the treasure room gathering more spoils. I believe the pedestal was indeed one of the items they removed.”
Daniel said, “This could be our only chance to grab it before all hell breaks loose.”
Sam nodded. It was better to get out before the fireworks started. “The thieves are still in the Kali treasure room?”
“Indeed,” Teal’c said, looking back to make sure they hadn’t slipped out in the past few seconds.
“Okay. Come on.” She fished into her bag for her zat, pulling it out as they reached the treasure room. She caught a glimpse of two brunette women inside as the door clicked shut, and she stepped back to aim her weapon at the lock. She had gotten familiar enough with the mechanism upstairs to know that two blasts would be enough to twist the tumblers so the door would be extremely difficult to open. She nodded to Daniel and Teal’c and they led the way out the side door.
Teal’c ran to where the tel’tak was cloaked, its side entrance coming into view as if by magic as they rounded the far end. Sam looked back to make sure they weren’t being followed. The glass windows of the ballroom were lit with random flashes she identi
fied as staff blasts, and she winced at the havoc they were leaving in their wake. She didn’t have room to feel guilty, however, as she dashed inside and hit the control panel to shut the door.
The cart from Kali’s treasure room had been left near the back wall of the cockpit, and Daniel had pulled back the tarp to confirm the pedestal was still there. He looked at her and nodded once.
“We got it.”
The pressure around Sam’s chest suddenly relaxed and she took her first deep breath of the past few days. “Thank God.” She looked at Teal’c and said, “Get us out of here. Lucia is relatively close. We can be there in a few hours, drop the ship off there, and then gate back to the SGC with the pedestal.”
She walked to the copilot seat as Teal’c lifted off. Below, one of the large glass panes blew out of Wyrrick’s front room and shattered on the lawn. Whatever was going on down there, it was no longer SG-1’s problem. The pedestal was in their possession, and she had faith that they could figure out how to make it work even if Kali didn’t cooperate. She looked back at Daniel, who was slumped against the back wall, and they shared a smile. It had been a long, exhausting road, but they were finally going home victorious.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Jack came into the gate room with Captain Morello in tow as the iris retracted and his team came through. He knew every team was technically his now, that he was the leader of everyone who walked through the gate, but SG-1 would always be close to his heart. Carter led the way, all of them still dressed for the party and looking none the worse for wear. Daniel and Teal’c had doffed their masks, and Sam had gotten rid of her veil. Jack’s attention was more focused on what the men were carrying.
“Let me guess. Wyrrick had swag bags.”
“Not that we saw, sir,” Sam said. “We had to take something from one of his displays as a souvenir. Know anyone in the market for a golden pedestal?”
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