Aladdin: A Frakked-Up Fairy Tale (II)
Title: Aladdin (2/2)
Author: innibis
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 8,125(ish)
Pairing: Kara/Lee
Genre: Completely AU
Disclaimer: I am not Scheherazade. Nor am I a Disney. Heck, I’m not even RDM or any of his cohorts. I do not lay claim to BSG in any way, shape or form; especially the finale.
A/N: All Hail the Sultana, workerbee73, First of Her Name.
Part I
Aladdin
It was almost worth the genie's insufferable smugness to fly through the window of her apartment and startle the unflappable Caprica. Kara strutted off the carpet, "Captured by the palace guard, forced into the Cave of Wonders, buried alive, conjured a genie," she stretched her arms high above her head and felt the pull all the way down her back. "I think that covers the high points."
"You-what?" Caprica gaped.
"Allow me to introduce myself," the genie oozed toward Caprica, shaking back his shoulder length black hair. "My name is Gaius Baltar and I am the genie of the lamp." He took hold of Caprica's hand and kissed it. "Terribly brilliant and misunderstood, you understand," he added giving her an appreciative once over. "A slave to capricious masters until they need me no more and then banished back into a solitary existence. It's agonizing, I assure you."
Kara was slightly appalled to see Caprica's face breaking out into a rare, genuine smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you Gaius, Brilliant and Tortured Genie of the Lamp," she teased without edge. "I'm Caprica Six."
"Caprica Six. What a lovely and unusual name," the genie all but purred, inching closer, smiling wider while Kara's eyebrows rose.
"I'm a lovely and unusual woman," Caprica replied huskily.
"For the love of the gods," Kara exploded. "I'm sorry to get in the way of love at first sight, but we have a genie and we have two wishes left so put your hormones on hold while we think about this, alright?"
"Speaking of love and hormones, where's Lee?" Caprica asked pointedly.
"Not here," Kara said.
"Who's Lee?" Gaius asked.
"None of your business," Kara replied.
"Kara's lover," Caprica clarified.
"Not anymore," Kara said.
"Well he should be," Caprica said, clearly unmoved. "I never understood your deluded, Only For a Week, nonsense. Now where is he?"
"He wasn't in the cave," Gaius observed helpfully.
"He's at the palace," Kara said through gritted teeth.
"He's a prisoner?" Caprica asked, horrified.
"I wouldn’t exactly call him a prisoner," Kara said.
"Cages come in all shapes and sizes," Gaius noted, “sometimes they’re even lamp shaped.”
Kara rounded on him. "Will you shut up? We’re not talking to you."
"That was very rude," the genie said looking aggrieved. "I haven't talked to anyone in a thousand years and now you want me to sit in a corner like a good slave?"
"Kara, don't treat Gaius like a slave; you know better then that," Caprica said, frowning and putting a comforting hand on the genie's shoulder, "and what is going on with Lee?"
"After she's done with her wishes, would you like to be my new master?" the genie asked Caprica, half hopefully, half suggestively.
Kara pressed her fingers hard into her temples and breathed deeply for a full minute. The carpet, which had been idly floating where she and the genie had left it, settled on the floor and slid over to lay a tassel on her foot. "Right," she said finally, then directed her gaze to Caprica who was staring at the carpet. "Here’s the deal. . .”
* * *
“Two wishes,” Caprica mused, running her fingers lightly through the genie’s hair where he was lying with his head in her lap.
“You are so not helping my headache,” Kara told her flatly from the other side of the room-far, away from the spectacle of the genie and Caprica love fest. She turned her back to them and yanked the curtain open and just let herself consider the possibilities while looking at the palace. “You know Pythia at least as well as I do,” she started, and then stopped, not quite knowing where she was going with this. Not quite believing the wish forming in her mind in the shape of one Lee Adama.
“I do,” Caprica said, her voice directly behind her. Kara turned to look straight into her friend’s eyes. “One of the perks of being brought up in the orphanages-all those pious types teaching you religion.”
“Do you-” Kara stumbled over the words, “Do you believe that Lee has to marry a real princess, like the scriptures say?”
Caprica looked at her speculatively. “Define real princess. Pythia doesn’t say how long you have to have a kingdom or how blue your blood has to be. It wouldn’t be breaking the rules, just. . .”
“Bending them a little, yeah,” Kara said, dizzy with possibility.
“Besides,” Caprica smiled, “Lee knows who and what you are. If he doesn’t want you, it isn’t like he has to marry you.”
Kara grinned back broadly, “Oh he wants me all right,” she said with complete and utter confidence. “Hey, genie-Gaius-whatever, I wish for you to make me and Caprica princesses.”
* * *
Lee had woken up that morning on the roof with his brother drooling on his shoulder, completely hung over, and Kara dead so he figured that he could be forgiven his absolutely foul mood and, therefore, less then diplomatic response to his father’s summons to meet, not one, but two princesses applying for his hand in marriage from a tiny kingdom he had never even heard of.
He was still contemplating ignoring everyone and jumping the wall to go talk to Caprica when Zak came to his room, looking so frakking understanding that the older brother part of his psyche reasserted itself and he put on a brave face. “Coming to see the princesses from. . . somewhere?”
“Galactica,” Zak said lightly, taking Lee’s lead, “and yes. Word is they’re hot and blonde and there are two of them. Two.”
“I don’t even want to know what’s going on in your head right now.”
Zak handed over the mug he was carrying, “Drink. Chamallah tea. Perfect for princes who are too hung over to see the possibilities of two blondes in one bed.”
Lee swallowed down the bitter tea and with it the anger and resentment and grief and Kara that was pounding in his head, flowing through his veins. He closed his eyes and took a calming breath, and then another. And another. Until he was concentrating only on the way his lungs inflated and deflated. The way his chest rose and fell-one breath at a time. One heartbeat at a time. One second at a time, minute, hour, day. He opened his eyes to find Zak looking at him, all concern and that comforting, horrible grief for Lee. “I’ll be fine, Zak,” he said, setting the empty cup on a table. “Promise.”
“’Course you will,” Zak said, schooling his face into carelessness and slapping him on the shoulder. “Princesses?”
“Princesses,” Lee confirmed.
They made their way through the living quarters to the main throne room, and Lee forced himself to concentrate only on Zak’s conversation and nothing more than that. They reached their father faster then he liked, but all there was left to do was get this over with. “Son,” the sultan stepped forward and embraced Lee, rough and quick, but Lee felt the wild edge of all his emotions rising up at his father’s care.
“I’m fine, Dad.”
“Then let’s get this over with.” Lee and Zak exchanged a glance at the grim tone.
“Is there something wrong?” Lee asked.
“Other than forcing my son who is mourning the loss of a woman who was important to him to meet potential brides to fulfill his duty?” the sultan snapped. “No. Nothing.”
Lee and Zak took their places, standing on either side of Bill Adama who was seated on his throne. “It’ll be okay,” Lee said, though to whom he was speaking, he wasn’t sure.
The door opened and a man with dark hair floated into the room on what looked to be a flying carpet. Zak swore his surprise softly, but Lee knew that his father’s face was as non-reactionary as his own. The man hopped off the tightly woven fabric to bow gracefully when he reached the throne.
“My name is Gaius Baltar,” he spoke with an accent Lee couldn’t place. “It is my great privilege to present Princess Caprica and Princess Kara of Galactica.
Lee heard an oddly wounded sound come from his own lips, but couldn’t be bothered to care, with the blood rushing to his brain making him feel faint and short of breath. “Who?” He heard himself demand.
“Princess Kara and Princess Caprica, Prince Leland,” Kara’s voice rang out from the entrance to the throne room. “Weren’t you listening?” He was moving before he could register it, tripping down the marble steps of the dais, pushing past the strange man and the even stranger carpet and shouldering Caprica out of the way so that he could get to her. Then she was in his arms. Warm and real and alive. He buried his face in her neck, feeling her answering embrace, her startled, soothing words. “Okay. Okay. Me too.”
“What are you-” he started, pulling back and taking her face in the palms of his hands. “How-” She was staring up at him with startled eyes. “Kara, you were dead. He said you were dead.”
“Lee.” He ignored his father, unwilling to let go of her for even a second, sliding his hands down her smooth neck to grasp her shoulders.
“Prince Leland!” He turned them both so he could see his father and. . . guards closing in around them. “Step away from her Lee.”
“Oh frak no,” Lee said. Last time I did that she was killed,” he turned to look at her again. “Kara, Zarek killed you.”
“No,” Kara said, “no, I wasn’t dead. Zarek lied. He didn’t kill me.” She pulled free from Lee. “Sultan, this isn’t witchcraft. I wasn’t killed.” She was scanning the room and stopped pointedly on Racetrack and Skulls. “They were there when he drugged me,” she said pointing. “They know.”
“What do you know?” the Sultan asked the uncomfortable looking guards.
“Nothing, your Grace,” Skulls said. “We did see her drugged and brought her to a cell for the Advisor, but then we were dismissed. We assumed she was dead, just like you did.”
“Bring the Advisor to me at once,” the Sultan commanded. Skulls and Racetrack spun on their heels and exited with a purpose.
Lee didn’t believe either of them, but he had no proof, just Kara and talking and. . . “Princess Kara?” he asked suddenly, and suddenly Caprica was by his side.
“Lee, how wonderful to see you again,” she slid her arm through his, sliding her fingertips gently over his wrist in blatant caress. “Please introduce me to your father and brother.”
“That doesn’t work on me-” Lee started to say to Caprica with exasperation, but her grip had changed to one of warning, a strong, brief, twist of her fingers where they rested, broadly implying an ability to break his arm if she so chose. He didn’t think she would do it, but it was enough to make him pause.
“We do have a lot to catch up on,” she smiled, her eyes intent, “but let’s leave the specifics for the time being.”
“Alright,” Lee said, willing to play along for now. He reached out and caught Kara’s hand and pulled both women forward. Sultan, Prince Zachary, this is Ca-Princess Caprica Six and Princess Kara Thrace of Galactica.” He shot a puzzled look at Kara, but her eyes were straight forward and she was smiling.
“Your Grace,” Racetrack said, running into the room, “the Advisor is gone. He’s vanished from the palace.”
The sultan rose to his feet, anger painting his craggy features. “Find him!” he snapped. “Turn the city inside out-I want him in front of me ten minutes ago.”
Racetrack saluted, jerked her head at some of the other guards and sprinted out of the throne room, leaving a stunned silence and the sultan practically vibrating with rage.
“Sultan,” Caprica interjected smoothly. “I know that this is a disturbing situation, but there isn’t much that you can do at the moment. Why don’t you tell us more about your city? My cousin and I had heard great things about your home and Prince Leland, but we find that no one knows the true measure of a leader until they have spoken to their people. We were trying to get the lay of the land when we ran into your son and spent the week with him.” Just as well she was doing the talking, Lee thought as Caprica and the odd Gaius Baltar kept up a steady stream of soothing conversation, she was a better liar than Kara was, and whatever was going on, it sure as hell wasn’t the story they were spinning. He thought that he might be some sort of blind idiot to be letting this farce continue, but Kara’s hand was in his and, when he turned to look at her, she mouthed the word “later.”
The sultan was still looking decidedly skeptical by the time Caprica and Baltar had finished talking, but had been forced to concede a little in the face of the various deeds and information about the kingdom of Galactica so he called for refreshments. Lee sat between Kara and Zak at the round table, Kara with her hand firmly on Lee’s leg. She and the sultan were getting along well, so he turned to watch Caprica sitting between and flirting with Baltar and Zak indiscriminately, not that either were complaining. Lee laughed to himself a little as Zak took a date from Baltar’s hand, his finger deliberately brushing the other man’s lips before pulling it away from his mouth to feed it to Caprica. So maybe not two blondes for his little brother but. . . Kara’s hand inched up his thigh. Definitely not two blondes.
“You’re quiet,” Kara said softly.
“Just thinking,” he said, taking a sip of wine.
“I owe you a story,” she said, squeezing his thigh.
“That you do,” Lee said, settling his hand on top of hers. “Tonight?”
“Want to go for a ride?” she asked. “We can take the carpet out for a spin.”
“Sounds great,” he smiled.
* * *
Kara felt a sort of proprietary satisfaction that Lee and the flying carpet seemed to be equally delighted with each other, the carpet even going so far as to roll itself up and flip itself vertical to lean into Lee’s shoulder affectionately, petting his head with a tassel as he laughed and practically hugged the thing. Then they had climbed on and cloud surfed for awhile until the carpet decided on straight and level. She hadn’t kissed him yet-she wanted to, but it hadn’t felt right. Not without explaining things when he’d been so completely accepting of her presence without even knowing the story. She had even summoned Baltar, pulling the lamp off her belt and rubbing it in front of a bemused Lee’s nose as a demonstration before sending the genie back to do whatever it was he was doing.
“So, you’re a princess by wish?” Lee asked finally, dazed, but seeming to take everything as truth-having the genie appear in mid-air while flying on a carpet in the moonlight had been a pretty effective demonstration.
“Yeah," Kara said. "It’s a tiny little place-not much land or much of a population, but it’s on the shore of a sea and the people seem happy enough as fishers-as much as I could tell in our very short visit this morning anyway. Our palace is nowhere near as big as yours, but I like it.”
“How does that work, exactly?” Lee asked.
Kara shrugged, enjoying the breeze. She stretched out on her back next to Lee’s cross-legged figure. “Magic?” she ventured “I have no good explanation, I’m just glad it happened.”
Lee reclined back on his elbows, looking straight up at the stars. “Me too,” he took a deep breath. “So now that you’re a princess, and you’ve effectively made a claim at my hand in marriage. . . ” he trailed off expectantly.
“Yeah about that,” Kara said, trying to sound stern but smiling hard. “I did all that work. I became a princess for you, Lee. Sacrifices were made and you haven’t even bothered to declare your intent.”
“Yeah, becoming a princess with Caprica was an enormous sacrifice, I can tell.” She opened her mouth to reply, but Lee knelt up. Back straight and arms outstretched he shouted into the rushing air, “My name is Lee Adama, and I love Kara Thrace!” His heart was wide open, and he was beautiful in his joy. Sheer happiness bubbled up and out of her into loud peals of helpless laughter. He grinned back at her, “I love Kara Thrace! And I don’t care who frakking knows it!”
“Get down, get down,” she giggled, tugging at his arm. “You’re going to fall off.” He tumbled back into her, over her. His mouth was on hers suddenly, hot in the cool night, and infinitely preferable to talking. She stretched her arms about her head and just gave herself over to flying with him.
The silk of the carpet’s tassels against her wrist teased Kara into another cackling laugh against Lee’s mouth and she willingly extended her hand farther out along the ancient weave, feeling the strands wind strongly around, anchoring her to the corner even as they slid through the liberty of the sky. She broke lip contact just far enough to catch his eye and tilted her head in the direction of her captured hand.
His grin turned positively feral as he brought her free hand to the other side of the carpet so that her shoulders and back were flattened against the thin fabric, arms stretched out, suddenly feeling tethered to the stars by the flimsy bits of string wrapping around her pulse points and Lee’s warm body.
“Better hang on tight Lee,” she smiled, and he moved over her, stretching out until he was locked to her, fingers entwined, lips connected, her legs holding him close while the carpet continued to fly across an unending sea of sand.
* * *
Kara had decided to show a modicum of restraint and not only kiss her post-coital and windblown fiancé goodnight as opposed to climb into his bed like he had offered, but she had also decided to walk into the palace to her guest room as opposed to fly through the doors-couldn’t go around pissing off the in-laws quite yet, although they seemed startlingly easy to talk to for royals, or at least for her perception of royals since it wasn’t like she had been in the habit of talking to kings and kings’ sons before a week ago.
The carpet came to a stop and Kara stepped off, laughing as it rolled itself up and tucked itself under her arm.
She didn’t see her attackers coming until it was too late.
* * *
“This looks familiar,” Gata said to Zarek as they looked down at the unconscious body of Kara Thrace, slumped on a narrow cot in a dark room.
“It’s completely different,” Zarek said, staring down at the lamp in his hands. “The Harbinger of Death has served her purpose after all.” He slid his fingers lingeringly over the lamp’s battered surface, and then began to rub in earnest.
* * *
“Frak!” Baltar swore, and Caprica looked on in alarm as he started fading out of sight, clearly struggling as opposed to simply popping out of existence to do Kara’s bidding. “Someone else has the lamp,” he said urgently. “Someone else has the-” He disappeared.
Caprica dressed hastily, sliding her seven knives into various pockets, boots, sliding one into her bra between her breasts. Kara had told her where Zarek had kept her captive, pointing out the stairs leading down to the lower levels. It was the logical first place to look. Caprica might not know exactly where she was going but the palace wasn’t nearly as big as it looked from the outside.
She pulled her hair back from her face and ran out of the room to go find her friend.
* * *
Zak nearly tripped on his way to his rooms as the foundations of the castle began to shake. He broke into a run, colliding with his brother and falling on his ass. “What’s going on?”
“The palace is rising!” Lee said.
“What?” Zak lurched over to the nearest window ands looked down. The palace was indeed rising, being pulled from the ground like an errant weed. “What the hell is going on here?”
Lee shook his head grimly, “I think I know, but it’ll take too long to explain. We have to find Kara.”
“Not so fast.” They whirled to see Racetrack, Skulls and three other guards surrounding them in a half circle with their swords drawn and pointing at their chests.
“What the hell is going on here,” Lee barked, and Zak had to admire his attempt to pretend that he was in control of the situation. Skulls moved in and unceremoniously pulled Zak against him, holding his sword across Zak’s chest.
“We don’t answer to you anymore, Adama,” sneered Racetrack. She pushed the sword point into the hollow of Lee’s throat, the sharp point drawing blood, the skin denting in, flesh beginning to rend, Lee’s back against the stone wall.
“No,” Zak choked, struggling against Skulls’ hold, feeling the bite of the blade just under his collar bone. He didn’t have Lee’s ice water drenched veins. He felt the haze of panic set in, the belief that he was going to watch his brother die in front of him, when suddenly, the restraining arm was gone and blood was spurting down his shoulders. He looked over his shoulder to see Caprica wiping a short, steel knife on her shirt, Skulls’ body at her feet, throat slit ear to ear.
“Skulls!” shouted Racetrack with such despair that Zak could have almost felt sorry for her if she wasn’t about to murder his brother. A knife whizzed by his air, embedding itself into a different guard’s chest. The guard collapsed on the floor.
“Just evening things up a little,” Caprica said. The remaining two nameless guards faced her warily as she pulled a knife out of her cleavage and used it to casually file a thumb nail.
“Your prince is going to die!” snarled Racetrack. Zak’s eyes widened as he saw Kara appear around the corner, silent as the grave and sword in hand. “I am going to separate his head from his body and we are going to play pyramid with it in the market square.”
“His head’s much too big to fit in the goal,” Kara said conversationally, and then swung sharply, taking Racetrack’s head clean off her shoulders.
After a silent pause, the two remaining guards fled.
“Forget something?” Kara asked Caprica, sounding annoyed as she pulled the sword out of Racetrack’s dead hands and offered it to Lee, hilt first.
“I was on my way to find you,” Caprica said defensively, in turn handing Skulls’ sword to Zak. She paused to kiss him hotly and then addressed Kara, “I ran into these two instead.”
“Good thing you did,” Kara said, lightly touching the cut on Lee’s throat. “Hi,” she added, addressing Lee, “are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Lee said softly, curling his fingers around her wrist. “What’s the situation?” and Zak suddenly noticed that the palace wasn’t shaking anymore.
Zak moved to the window again. “We appear to be floating,” he reported. “I don’t think we’re moving anymore; just sort of . . . sitting in mid air.”
“I take it Zarek has the lamp?” Lee asked Kara.
“Probably,” Kara said, tugging at Lee’s shirt collar up and holding it against the cut dribbling blood. “I didn’t actually see anything, just woke up alone in that same room I did the first time he kidnapped me.” She frowned. “That’s twice he’s done that.”
“Okay,” Lee said. “Those guards are going to the raise the alarm that we’re armed and together. We need to get that lamp back.”
“What lamp?” Zak demanded finally, confused.
“Long story,” Caprica, Lee and Kara answered him at the same time. He scowled at them.
“They’ll tell you on the way,” Lee said.
“Where?” Zak asked sharply.
“They?” Kara asked, even more sharply.
“I have to go find Dad,” Lee said. “You guys need to get the genie back on our side.”
“Genie.” Zak said flatly.
“Gaius,” Caprica said. Zak paused, that did sort of make sense.
“I’m still stuck on the whole we’ll go one way and you’ll go another,” Kara said, leaning into Lee, ignoring Caprica and Zak. “You don’t do so well on your own. I’ve had you rescue twice this week.”
Lee kissed her. “I can’t leave my dad,” he said. “The priority is to secure the lamp, but I have to save him if I can.” Kara nodded and they rested their foreheads together for a long moment before Kara stepped away from him.
“Alright, littlest Adama,” she said to Zak, “show us the sneakiest way to the throne room.” Zak wordlessly reached out to clasp Lee’s hand.
“Be safe,” Lee said, “All of you.”
“Good hunting,” Kara returned. “Let’s go.”
Kara and Caprica moved out without further backward glances. Zak held Lee’s gaze for a moment longer. “Keep him safe.”
Lee nodded, “I will.”
“Little Adama!” Kara barked.
Zak grinned at his brother, “Coming, Princess,” he called back, sketched a salute to Lee and chased after them.
* * *
Felix forced himself to keep standing even as his leg throbbed its protest, it appeared that he had traded one king for another and this one didn’t have Adama’s sense of humor.
Zarek had ensconced himself on the throne, idly fingering the lamp that had brought about his powers, the genie standing behind him with dead eyes, waiting for his next command. Honestly, Felix had no idea what else Zarek could want from the magical creature, having been granted the wish to be the most powerful sorcerer in the world. As far as he could tell, Zarek could do whatever the hell he wanted to on his own now.
“Advisors,” Zarek said with a pomposity that was so thick it was nearly edible, “Today we begin the new world order-one free from the shackles of sultans and princes.” He paused and Felix wondered if it was for applause that did not come. “I have removed us from the city so that we may start our new social contract with no outside distractions.” Felix straightened suddenly. From his position slightly behind and to the left of the throne, he saw the movement of the guards loyal to Zarek, the only guards left free in the palace, coming closer to the gathering of the eleven other advisors. Pain came hot and sharp at his sudden motion, but he ignored it, a sense of foreboding rising.
“What is the meaning of this, Zarek?” one of the advisors asked, irritation dripping from his voice.
“The meaning, Advisor Tigh, is that you’ve become obsolete.” He nodded and eleven guards came swiftly forward and ran the eleven advisors through with their swords.
Felix’s breath came out in harsh bursts as he watched the massacre before him, the blood smearing pink stains into white marble. He had never intended this. Never meant for this to happen.
Zarek’s eyes were on him. “Felix, you knew all along that sacrifices had to be made. I don’t take any joy from this.” His eyes gave lie to those words, manic with power and conviction. “Keep it together,” he advised. ‘We still have the small matter of the sultan to attend to. I believe that I’ll make it a public trial-let the people enjoy our triumph.”
Not knowing what else to do, Felix nodded and addressed the nearest guard. “Bring us the sultan,” he said, noting the swiftness at which he was obeyed. Though the methods of the coup were grating on his conscience, the sultan still had a lot to answer for with his leadership through platitudes and playing favorites and barely concealed contempt for the working class. Felix wrapped himself in his anger and hardened his heart, turning his head from the suddenly inquisitive gaze of the genie.
* * *
Lee was astonished to find that, not only was his father still in his rooms, but that the door was guarded by a single person who Lee was able to dispatch rather easily. He shook his head as he relieved the body of its sword-it had been beyond foolish to leave the sultan so lightly guarded.
He opened the door and walked in, only to be caught in a strangle hold, an arm crushing his windpipe from behind. “Dad,” he croaked out and felt the arm loosen immediately. He was turned around and wrapped in a hug.
“They told me they were going to kill you,” his father gasped into his shoulder. “I thought you and your brother were dead.”
Lee moved his hand soothingly down his father’s back, keeping both swords well clear with the other. “Zak and I are fine dad. Kara and Caprica made sure of it.”
Adama pulled back. “Thank the gods,” he said. “Is that for me?’ he asked, reaching for a sword.
“I can’t believe you hadn’t gotten out of this by yourself-one guard?” Lee said speaking quietly as he stuck his head slowly out into the hall, checking. “It’s clear,” he added.
The Sultan followed him out into the hall. “I didn’t know what was happening,” he said, as they paused to peer around another corner. Shit. More guards. Lee jerked his head in the other direction and they hurried away. “I didn’t want to walk into anything blind. Gaeta and Zarek burst in here and declared the beginning of the new order. He made us. . . fly somehow and said he had sent Racetrack and Skulls to execute you boys and hit me on the head-I had just regained conscious when you came in.”
“Like I said,” Lee continued. “We’re fine. Kara and Caprica to the rescue.” The way ahead was clear and they kept moving in the direction of the throne room. His father wasn’t asking questions, the warrior in him showing strong as he followed the lead of the person with the most knowledge of the situation-not asking unnecessary, time consuming questions.
“Please tell me you’re not so stubbornly hung up on the unfairness of Pythia that you won’t marry Kara,” the Sultan groused.
Lee sighed inwardly, “Is this really the time, Dad?” he asked. They had come to a quick stop in an empty solarium and Lee wedged his sword point into a crack in the floor. The sultan added his sword and leverage to the effort and soon they were looking down into one of the many entrances to the ancient tunnels under the palace. No one knew who had built them; only that they had always been there. It was a secret kept by members of the royal family.
The sultan dropped into the hole, ignoring the stairs, and looked up, scowling as Lee as the lights rose up around him, like a sunrise, illuminating the tunnels with rosy warmth. “You will answer me, Leland.”
Lee landed with a thump. “Of course I’m going to marry her. We’re going to the throne room now, by the way, if you want to worry about the more pressing issue of a coup.” He was halted by his father’s hand on his arm.
“Zarek said that the people wanted this. That it was time for a government that stood for everyone. You’ve said this to me before. Many times.”
“I have said that, and I mean it,” Lee said, steadily meeting his father’s direct gaze, “but not this way.”
The Sultan nodded once and then started moving toward the throne room again. “Now fill me in on what the frak is going on in my palace.”
* * *
The tunnels beneath the palace reminded Kara strongly of the Cave of Wonders. Zak had said they spread for miles and that no one had ever found the end of them. It made her wonder, but it was something to be wondered about at later. Just like she would sleep again later, not just lie unconscious in the dungeons, just like she was going to worry about Lee’s safety later. There was a time and place for everything.
She took a deep breath and nodded to Zak who climbed the stone steps in front of him. This was not a bad plan. It just wasn’t a very good one either. “Zak,” she hissed suddenly, halting him feeling like she should say something sister-like. “Be safe out there.”
Zak shook his head at her, smiling. “Good hunting,” and pulled the lever to open one of four underground entrances to the throne room and then stepped out, with swagger she noted. She glanced over at Caprica who was halfway to the next entrance, waiting to see if they had just exposed themselves needlessly. “Advisor Zarek,” Zak’s voice rang out, “Keeping my father’s chair warm?” and Caprica sprinted the rest of the way down the tunnel. Kara saw her start climbing the stairs before she in turn ran to the trap door she would be entering from, a minute after Caprica, three minutes after Zak.
She kept her count steady in her head, too far from either of the open entrances to hear what was going on, but trusting in Caprica. Trusting in Zak. Her internal clock ran down and she took a deep breath and pulled the lever.
It slid open silently and she could suddenly hear the noise in the room above her. Caprica always did make an entrance. She inched her head out of the hole behind the throne, keeping it on a pivot, her heart pounding in her ears. She couldn’t really see anything, being behind the throne, and she decided that it was a good thing, going with the old, if she couldn’t see them, they couldn’t see her theory.
Then she saw feet coming around the dais and the noise faded away. Those feet probably would notice her very soon. She looked straight up into Felix Gaeta’s astonished eyes. She stayed silent, trying to stare him down to submission, firmly holding a knife in one hand and a sword in the other.
Amazingly, and she would be thanking every god and goddess on bended knee later, he turned his back to her and stared resolutely out onto the chaos. Kara didn’t pause to consider her good luck, she wasn’t one to refuse a gift from the gods in a situation as dire as this, so she just climbed out of the trap door quickly and quietly.
She waited in a crouch behind the throne. Her heart slowed down and she could make out Caprica’s low pitched taunts and Zak’s less restrained mockery and-just what the hell were they doing out there? But she refocused on the mission at hand, shuffling over to the side of the throne not blocked by Gaeta to peer out.
Caprica was surrounded by guards and Zak was lost in the crowd, but she could still hear him. Zarek was standing right in front of the throne, lamp grasped loosely in his hand, the genie kneeling at his side. Kara felt sick-no wonder Baltar was so screwed up, every three wishes he was subjected entirely to the whims of another. That Kara had let him wander around was probably an unprecedented freedom-or at least something he didn’t see very often.
Kara rose as high as she could behind the throne without being exposed to the room and slid the knife into her boot. She was only going to get one shot at this. She watched as Zarek held up a hand and Zak suddenly rose from the crowd, spinning slowly on display.
She broke her cover and swung hard and sure.
Zarek screamed in pain and blood gushed.
Kara dropped to her knees, sliding on the bloody surface and grabbed Zarek’s severed hand, pulling the dead fingers from the lamp.
She was suddenly hit with an enormous force and tossed down the stairs, into a pile of corpses that were in the center of the confusion of the throne room. She maintained her grip on the lamp, and pulled the last of Zarek’s fingers off it, leaving it completely in her possession.
Zarek shot a lightening bolt into the crowd, setting people on fire. It had been a good guess, but he couldn’t see where she was exactly-throwing her into the crowd had been a pain fuelled mistake.
“Genie, I wish that Advisor Zarek be stripped of all his wishes!” she shouted, hoping that Baltar could hear her.
Zarek screamed at the same time that the Sultan’s voice boomed across the throne room. She had no idea what he said, but it made the noise stop. Even Zarek fell silent.
“I took the liberty of silencing and freezing everyone but us,” Baltar explained, “I also put the palace back down where it belonged.” He waded into the crowd to help Kara to her feet. “My sincere thanks,” he said, bowing over her hand.
“I wish I had another wish,” she blurted. “No, not like a wish, wish. I just wish that I had another wish to free you.”
“I appreciate the sentiment,” the genie smiled, releasing her hand.
One by one, he touched Caprica, Zak, Lee and the Sultan, releasing them from their invisible bonds while everyone else looked on with varying degrees of dismay. The carpet sped into the room, over their heads, flying loops of relief.
The sultan moved among the bodies of his advisors, sadly straightening clothing and closing eyes. “They were good people,” he said gruffly. “They deserved better than this.” He addressed the genie, “do you happen to know where the people loyal to me were kept? Or were they all slaughtered as well?”
“I believe there are quite a few people in the dungeon,” Baltar answered. Kara watched Zak run out of the room, presumably to free the prisoners, seeming no worse for the where. She gingerly stepped her way over to Lee who was frowning at the members of the rebellion.
“Hey, you made it,” Kara said.
“Not in time,” Lee replied bitterly, watching his father tend to the bodies.
“It’s not you fault, Lee,” she said.
“No?” he asked. "Then whose is it?” he shook his head sharply. “Ignore me,” he said and she watched the burden settle onto his shoulders with an uncompromising thud. “Thank you for saving the day, yet again.”
“It’s kind of what I do,” she said. “Although it wasn’t remotely just me.”
“Zak and Caprica,” he nodded.
“And Felix Gaeta.”
“What? He was a conspirator.”
“I also wouldn’t have been able to get to the lamp if he had sounded the alarm when he saw me,” Kara said. “Guy’s a creep, but he did help.” Lee nodded slowly, starting to come into himself. He suddenly felt touchable again, and she wasn’t one to deny herself. “It’ll be okay,” she said, reaching out a hand, and just like every other time, he reached back.
* * *
Bodies were cleared out and were being prepared for burial. The guards who had revolted, The Revolting Guards Kara called them, were cooling their heels in the dungeon, waiting for trials, and Lee wanted to sleep for a week. He couldn’t imagine how Kara was still standing at this point, but here they were-still milling around the throne room.
“We have one more thing that will be addressed this moment,” William Adama in full Sultan voice. Lee stifled a sigh and exchanged a glance with Zak. Their father was sitting on his throne. “Bring the co-conspirators forward.”
A guard pushed a badly limping Gaeta forward while another dragged the passed out body of Tom Zarek to slump in front of the sultan. He hadn’t regained consciousness since the genie had stripped him of his wishes. “In accordance with the rules of our land, handed down from Pythia, the prophet of our gods, I sentence Thomas Zarek and Felix Gaeta to death by exposure. They shall be staked in the desert and left until dead.”
“Exposure isn’t appropriate for both of them,” Lee protested automatically, the injustice of it burning past his desire to see this all over with. “We wouldn’t have been able to gain the upper hand if it weren’t for Gaeta.”
“Pythia is very clear,” Adama said, “Treason is treason, no matter what his later actions were.”
“Dad-” Lee started, looking over to Gaeta who remained standing silently, unmoved, unsurprised.
“Enough,” Adama snapped. “We are all aware of your feelings on Pythia. Zarek and Gaeta are sentenced to execution by exposure. If the gods want to strike them down between now and then, they are welcome to it, but no one under my rule will raise a hand in mercy.”
Lee opened and closed his mouth silently, knowing there was nothing else he could say to his father, who was practically radiating anger at. . . the situation, at himself, at his mouthy son, Lee wasn’t certain.
“Lee,” Kara said, the softly spoken word cutting through his haze of helpless frustration. He turned his head to look at her, to give himself a measure of comfort. She was dusty and tired and sweaty and sympathetic. And she was holding the lamp.
“Kara,” Lee said holding out his hand. “May I borrow your lamp?” The left side of Kara’s mouth curved up.
“Sure,” she said, walking over to stand directly in front of him and putting the lamp in his hands. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
“Thank you,” he said, kissing her cheek.
“I wish that Felix Gaeta will die painlessly,” he stated clearly.
“Just drop it,” his father said wearily, unthinkingly, as the genie moved away from Caprica’s side, pausing to gaze appraisingly at Lee before nodding. Kara’s fingers laced through his, but all of Lee’s attention was on Baltar.
“Felix Gaeta,” the genie said gently. He put his hands on Gaeta’s shoulders and leaned in closely, kissing the troubled young man on the brow and pulling back slightly.
Gaeta blinked slowly. “It doesn’t hurt anymore,” he said, a tentative smile stretching across his features.
“Sleep,” Baltar said running his thumb along Gaeta’s cheekbone, and then kissing him on the lips. When he pulled away, Felix Gaeta dropped to the floor, dead.
The sultan stared at the body before turning his glare to Lee. “You always have to push it, don’t you, son?”
Zak, blessed, sunny, peacemaker Zak, slung an arm around their father. “Well at least we can foist him off on Kara now,” he said cheerfully, turning his father away from the guards who came forward at his sharp nod to remove Gaeta’s body and tote an unconscious Zarek out to be staked to the desert sand.
Kara, taking her cue, chimed in, “It’s a thankless job, your Grace, but between the three of us, we can probably keep him out of trouble,” and Lee was slapped with the amazing reality that Kara was going to be his wife. And that she and Zak were probably going to gang up on him at every opportunity.
The sultan shook his head at all of them. “Princess Caprica, we may be the only sensible people in this room.”
“I couldn’t agree more, Your Grace,” she smiled. “You should go relax for the rest of the day. I know that I’m planning on taking advantage of that wonderful hot spring room of yours that I have heard so much about. Would you care to join me?”
Lee was startled to hear his father laugh loud and long, “You’d tempt a saint, young lady, but I think that I am going to go to bed. Princess,” he inclined his head courteously, “I will see you and the rest of your motley crew tomorrow morning.” The sultan squeezed Zak’s shoulders briefly before ambling out, his royal guard trailing sleepily in his wake.
“The Sultan has the right idea,” Kara said, stifling a jaw cracking yawn in Lee’s shoulder.
“Just one more thing first,” Lee said, remembering her wish.
* * *
Kara groaned into Lee’s shoulder. She was going to have to have a little chat with him on the concept of time off. “Tomorrow,” she said firmly, or as firmly as she could through another yawn. “Sleeeeeeeeep.”
“Just one more minute, I promise,” he said.
She sighed and pulled away. “You have sixty seconds. I’m counting.”
Lee smiled briefly at her before turning his attention to Gaius Baltar. “Genie, I wish for your freedom.” The lamp crumpled into sand and poured through Lee’s fingers into a heap on the floor. He looked at Baltar, who was looking exactly the same, if completely shocked. “Was that it?”
Baltar made a pained face and shut his eyes. “I’m trying to float. Am I floating?”
“You are definitely not floating,” Zak said, moving toward Baltar, who still had his eyes closed. Caprica sidled up behind the former gene and laughed lightly into his ear.
“You can open your eyes now, Gaius,” she said. Kara sighed, but did manage to refrain from rolling her eyes, at the sultry undertone, but then grew very, very still as Zak moved in entirely too close to Baltar for Kara’s peace of mind.
“Do you think everything still works the same?” Zak asked, smiling as Baltar opened his eyes to see the younger Adama prince inches from his face.
Lee muffled a laughing “Very smooth, Zak,” somewhere behind Kara’s back. She would have turned to glare at him, but she was too busy being rooted to her spot in shocked dismay.
“I hear there’s a lovely hot spring room,” Baltar said, leaning back into Caprica and smiling lazily at Zak. “Would you be so kind as to show it to us?”
Zak stepped back and made a sweeping gesture to the door. “After you.” He glanced over his shoulder and shot a truly dirty smile at his brother before loping after the swiftly exiting pair.
“Did that just happen?” Kara demanded, whirling to face Lee who was shaking his head in obvious amusement.
“Oh yeah,” he said grinning.
“And you’re just . . . fine with this?” she asked, thinking that maybe Lee had somehow missed the point. “It’s totally cool for your brother to be seduced like that?”
Lee laughed, hooked an arm around her neck, reeled her in close and placed a smacking, affectionate kiss on her forehead. “Who do you think was seducing whom in this scenario?”
Kara opened her mouth, but an unbidden vision popped into her mind of steam rising around Caprica’s long, elegant fingers stroking through Zak Adama’s dark hair, kissing the nape of his neck as Zak leaned forward to bite the ex-genie’s collarbone. She shook her head violently, opened her mouth to speak and then closed it abruptly. There were really no words to communicate the horror.
“Stop picturing it,” Lee said, his voice relaxed and drenched in humor as dry and warm as a desert breeze.
“Yeah,” Kara answered, pulling away from the bad, bad thoughts. “Yeah, okay.” She slumped into Lee’s solid body and let him hold her up, the exhaustion finally settling in, bone deep, she could feel the dust in her pores and the dried sweat tightening her skin. “Just give me a minute.”
“No hurry.” Lee’s arms were around her, his pulse a constant drumming in her ear, the heat of the day pulling her down further and further and further.
* * *
Lee felt the second Kara slipped over the edge and fell asleep on her feet, face pressed against the side of his neck. He held her steady and watched the magic carpet perform a large, lazy loop, ending inches from their knees.
Looking around at the now empty throne room, checking for witnesses, then back to the expectant carpet, “Okay,” he said.
It circled behind and underneath and, without quite understanding how they ended up that way, Lee found himself scooped up, lying flat on his back with Kara tucked into his side, completely undisturbed.
The magic carpet paused, floating in mid-air. “Wherever you want to take us,” Lee told it, nosing sleepily at Kara’s hair. “We have nowhere we need to be right now.”
The End
Author: innibis
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 8,125(ish)
Pairing: Kara/Lee
Genre: Completely AU
Disclaimer: I am not Scheherazade. Nor am I a Disney. Heck, I’m not even RDM or any of his cohorts. I do not lay claim to BSG in any way, shape or form; especially the finale.
A/N: All Hail the Sultana, workerbee73, First of Her Name.
Part I
Aladdin
It was almost worth the genie's insufferable smugness to fly through the window of her apartment and startle the unflappable Caprica. Kara strutted off the carpet, "Captured by the palace guard, forced into the Cave of Wonders, buried alive, conjured a genie," she stretched her arms high above her head and felt the pull all the way down her back. "I think that covers the high points."
"You-what?" Caprica gaped.
"Allow me to introduce myself," the genie oozed toward Caprica, shaking back his shoulder length black hair. "My name is Gaius Baltar and I am the genie of the lamp." He took hold of Caprica's hand and kissed it. "Terribly brilliant and misunderstood, you understand," he added giving her an appreciative once over. "A slave to capricious masters until they need me no more and then banished back into a solitary existence. It's agonizing, I assure you."
Kara was slightly appalled to see Caprica's face breaking out into a rare, genuine smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you Gaius, Brilliant and Tortured Genie of the Lamp," she teased without edge. "I'm Caprica Six."
"Caprica Six. What a lovely and unusual name," the genie all but purred, inching closer, smiling wider while Kara's eyebrows rose.
"I'm a lovely and unusual woman," Caprica replied huskily.
"For the love of the gods," Kara exploded. "I'm sorry to get in the way of love at first sight, but we have a genie and we have two wishes left so put your hormones on hold while we think about this, alright?"
"Speaking of love and hormones, where's Lee?" Caprica asked pointedly.
"Not here," Kara said.
"Who's Lee?" Gaius asked.
"None of your business," Kara replied.
"Kara's lover," Caprica clarified.
"Not anymore," Kara said.
"Well he should be," Caprica said, clearly unmoved. "I never understood your deluded, Only For a Week, nonsense. Now where is he?"
"He wasn't in the cave," Gaius observed helpfully.
"He's at the palace," Kara said through gritted teeth.
"He's a prisoner?" Caprica asked, horrified.
"I wouldn’t exactly call him a prisoner," Kara said.
"Cages come in all shapes and sizes," Gaius noted, “sometimes they’re even lamp shaped.”
Kara rounded on him. "Will you shut up? We’re not talking to you."
"That was very rude," the genie said looking aggrieved. "I haven't talked to anyone in a thousand years and now you want me to sit in a corner like a good slave?"
"Kara, don't treat Gaius like a slave; you know better then that," Caprica said, frowning and putting a comforting hand on the genie's shoulder, "and what is going on with Lee?"
"After she's done with her wishes, would you like to be my new master?" the genie asked Caprica, half hopefully, half suggestively.
Kara pressed her fingers hard into her temples and breathed deeply for a full minute. The carpet, which had been idly floating where she and the genie had left it, settled on the floor and slid over to lay a tassel on her foot. "Right," she said finally, then directed her gaze to Caprica who was staring at the carpet. "Here’s the deal. . .”
* * *
“Two wishes,” Caprica mused, running her fingers lightly through the genie’s hair where he was lying with his head in her lap.
“You are so not helping my headache,” Kara told her flatly from the other side of the room-far, away from the spectacle of the genie and Caprica love fest. She turned her back to them and yanked the curtain open and just let herself consider the possibilities while looking at the palace. “You know Pythia at least as well as I do,” she started, and then stopped, not quite knowing where she was going with this. Not quite believing the wish forming in her mind in the shape of one Lee Adama.
“I do,” Caprica said, her voice directly behind her. Kara turned to look straight into her friend’s eyes. “One of the perks of being brought up in the orphanages-all those pious types teaching you religion.”
“Do you-” Kara stumbled over the words, “Do you believe that Lee has to marry a real princess, like the scriptures say?”
Caprica looked at her speculatively. “Define real princess. Pythia doesn’t say how long you have to have a kingdom or how blue your blood has to be. It wouldn’t be breaking the rules, just. . .”
“Bending them a little, yeah,” Kara said, dizzy with possibility.
“Besides,” Caprica smiled, “Lee knows who and what you are. If he doesn’t want you, it isn’t like he has to marry you.”
Kara grinned back broadly, “Oh he wants me all right,” she said with complete and utter confidence. “Hey, genie-Gaius-whatever, I wish for you to make me and Caprica princesses.”
* * *
Lee had woken up that morning on the roof with his brother drooling on his shoulder, completely hung over, and Kara dead so he figured that he could be forgiven his absolutely foul mood and, therefore, less then diplomatic response to his father’s summons to meet, not one, but two princesses applying for his hand in marriage from a tiny kingdom he had never even heard of.
He was still contemplating ignoring everyone and jumping the wall to go talk to Caprica when Zak came to his room, looking so frakking understanding that the older brother part of his psyche reasserted itself and he put on a brave face. “Coming to see the princesses from. . . somewhere?”
“Galactica,” Zak said lightly, taking Lee’s lead, “and yes. Word is they’re hot and blonde and there are two of them. Two.”
“I don’t even want to know what’s going on in your head right now.”
Zak handed over the mug he was carrying, “Drink. Chamallah tea. Perfect for princes who are too hung over to see the possibilities of two blondes in one bed.”
Lee swallowed down the bitter tea and with it the anger and resentment and grief and Kara that was pounding in his head, flowing through his veins. He closed his eyes and took a calming breath, and then another. And another. Until he was concentrating only on the way his lungs inflated and deflated. The way his chest rose and fell-one breath at a time. One heartbeat at a time. One second at a time, minute, hour, day. He opened his eyes to find Zak looking at him, all concern and that comforting, horrible grief for Lee. “I’ll be fine, Zak,” he said, setting the empty cup on a table. “Promise.”
“’Course you will,” Zak said, schooling his face into carelessness and slapping him on the shoulder. “Princesses?”
“Princesses,” Lee confirmed.
They made their way through the living quarters to the main throne room, and Lee forced himself to concentrate only on Zak’s conversation and nothing more than that. They reached their father faster then he liked, but all there was left to do was get this over with. “Son,” the sultan stepped forward and embraced Lee, rough and quick, but Lee felt the wild edge of all his emotions rising up at his father’s care.
“I’m fine, Dad.”
“Then let’s get this over with.” Lee and Zak exchanged a glance at the grim tone.
“Is there something wrong?” Lee asked.
“Other than forcing my son who is mourning the loss of a woman who was important to him to meet potential brides to fulfill his duty?” the sultan snapped. “No. Nothing.”
Lee and Zak took their places, standing on either side of Bill Adama who was seated on his throne. “It’ll be okay,” Lee said, though to whom he was speaking, he wasn’t sure.
The door opened and a man with dark hair floated into the room on what looked to be a flying carpet. Zak swore his surprise softly, but Lee knew that his father’s face was as non-reactionary as his own. The man hopped off the tightly woven fabric to bow gracefully when he reached the throne.
“My name is Gaius Baltar,” he spoke with an accent Lee couldn’t place. “It is my great privilege to present Princess Caprica and Princess Kara of Galactica.
Lee heard an oddly wounded sound come from his own lips, but couldn’t be bothered to care, with the blood rushing to his brain making him feel faint and short of breath. “Who?” He heard himself demand.
“Princess Kara and Princess Caprica, Prince Leland,” Kara’s voice rang out from the entrance to the throne room. “Weren’t you listening?” He was moving before he could register it, tripping down the marble steps of the dais, pushing past the strange man and the even stranger carpet and shouldering Caprica out of the way so that he could get to her. Then she was in his arms. Warm and real and alive. He buried his face in her neck, feeling her answering embrace, her startled, soothing words. “Okay. Okay. Me too.”
“What are you-” he started, pulling back and taking her face in the palms of his hands. “How-” She was staring up at him with startled eyes. “Kara, you were dead. He said you were dead.”
“Lee.” He ignored his father, unwilling to let go of her for even a second, sliding his hands down her smooth neck to grasp her shoulders.
“Prince Leland!” He turned them both so he could see his father and. . . guards closing in around them. “Step away from her Lee.”
“Oh frak no,” Lee said. Last time I did that she was killed,” he turned to look at her again. “Kara, Zarek killed you.”
“No,” Kara said, “no, I wasn’t dead. Zarek lied. He didn’t kill me.” She pulled free from Lee. “Sultan, this isn’t witchcraft. I wasn’t killed.” She was scanning the room and stopped pointedly on Racetrack and Skulls. “They were there when he drugged me,” she said pointing. “They know.”
“What do you know?” the Sultan asked the uncomfortable looking guards.
“Nothing, your Grace,” Skulls said. “We did see her drugged and brought her to a cell for the Advisor, but then we were dismissed. We assumed she was dead, just like you did.”
“Bring the Advisor to me at once,” the Sultan commanded. Skulls and Racetrack spun on their heels and exited with a purpose.
Lee didn’t believe either of them, but he had no proof, just Kara and talking and. . . “Princess Kara?” he asked suddenly, and suddenly Caprica was by his side.
“Lee, how wonderful to see you again,” she slid her arm through his, sliding her fingertips gently over his wrist in blatant caress. “Please introduce me to your father and brother.”
“That doesn’t work on me-” Lee started to say to Caprica with exasperation, but her grip had changed to one of warning, a strong, brief, twist of her fingers where they rested, broadly implying an ability to break his arm if she so chose. He didn’t think she would do it, but it was enough to make him pause.
“We do have a lot to catch up on,” she smiled, her eyes intent, “but let’s leave the specifics for the time being.”
“Alright,” Lee said, willing to play along for now. He reached out and caught Kara’s hand and pulled both women forward. Sultan, Prince Zachary, this is Ca-Princess Caprica Six and Princess Kara Thrace of Galactica.” He shot a puzzled look at Kara, but her eyes were straight forward and she was smiling.
“Your Grace,” Racetrack said, running into the room, “the Advisor is gone. He’s vanished from the palace.”
The sultan rose to his feet, anger painting his craggy features. “Find him!” he snapped. “Turn the city inside out-I want him in front of me ten minutes ago.”
Racetrack saluted, jerked her head at some of the other guards and sprinted out of the throne room, leaving a stunned silence and the sultan practically vibrating with rage.
“Sultan,” Caprica interjected smoothly. “I know that this is a disturbing situation, but there isn’t much that you can do at the moment. Why don’t you tell us more about your city? My cousin and I had heard great things about your home and Prince Leland, but we find that no one knows the true measure of a leader until they have spoken to their people. We were trying to get the lay of the land when we ran into your son and spent the week with him.” Just as well she was doing the talking, Lee thought as Caprica and the odd Gaius Baltar kept up a steady stream of soothing conversation, she was a better liar than Kara was, and whatever was going on, it sure as hell wasn’t the story they were spinning. He thought that he might be some sort of blind idiot to be letting this farce continue, but Kara’s hand was in his and, when he turned to look at her, she mouthed the word “later.”
The sultan was still looking decidedly skeptical by the time Caprica and Baltar had finished talking, but had been forced to concede a little in the face of the various deeds and information about the kingdom of Galactica so he called for refreshments. Lee sat between Kara and Zak at the round table, Kara with her hand firmly on Lee’s leg. She and the sultan were getting along well, so he turned to watch Caprica sitting between and flirting with Baltar and Zak indiscriminately, not that either were complaining. Lee laughed to himself a little as Zak took a date from Baltar’s hand, his finger deliberately brushing the other man’s lips before pulling it away from his mouth to feed it to Caprica. So maybe not two blondes for his little brother but. . . Kara’s hand inched up his thigh. Definitely not two blondes.
“You’re quiet,” Kara said softly.
“Just thinking,” he said, taking a sip of wine.
“I owe you a story,” she said, squeezing his thigh.
“That you do,” Lee said, settling his hand on top of hers. “Tonight?”
“Want to go for a ride?” she asked. “We can take the carpet out for a spin.”
“Sounds great,” he smiled.
* * *
Kara felt a sort of proprietary satisfaction that Lee and the flying carpet seemed to be equally delighted with each other, the carpet even going so far as to roll itself up and flip itself vertical to lean into Lee’s shoulder affectionately, petting his head with a tassel as he laughed and practically hugged the thing. Then they had climbed on and cloud surfed for awhile until the carpet decided on straight and level. She hadn’t kissed him yet-she wanted to, but it hadn’t felt right. Not without explaining things when he’d been so completely accepting of her presence without even knowing the story. She had even summoned Baltar, pulling the lamp off her belt and rubbing it in front of a bemused Lee’s nose as a demonstration before sending the genie back to do whatever it was he was doing.
“So, you’re a princess by wish?” Lee asked finally, dazed, but seeming to take everything as truth-having the genie appear in mid-air while flying on a carpet in the moonlight had been a pretty effective demonstration.
“Yeah," Kara said. "It’s a tiny little place-not much land or much of a population, but it’s on the shore of a sea and the people seem happy enough as fishers-as much as I could tell in our very short visit this morning anyway. Our palace is nowhere near as big as yours, but I like it.”
“How does that work, exactly?” Lee asked.
Kara shrugged, enjoying the breeze. She stretched out on her back next to Lee’s cross-legged figure. “Magic?” she ventured “I have no good explanation, I’m just glad it happened.”
Lee reclined back on his elbows, looking straight up at the stars. “Me too,” he took a deep breath. “So now that you’re a princess, and you’ve effectively made a claim at my hand in marriage. . . ” he trailed off expectantly.
“Yeah about that,” Kara said, trying to sound stern but smiling hard. “I did all that work. I became a princess for you, Lee. Sacrifices were made and you haven’t even bothered to declare your intent.”
“Yeah, becoming a princess with Caprica was an enormous sacrifice, I can tell.” She opened her mouth to reply, but Lee knelt up. Back straight and arms outstretched he shouted into the rushing air, “My name is Lee Adama, and I love Kara Thrace!” His heart was wide open, and he was beautiful in his joy. Sheer happiness bubbled up and out of her into loud peals of helpless laughter. He grinned back at her, “I love Kara Thrace! And I don’t care who frakking knows it!”
“Get down, get down,” she giggled, tugging at his arm. “You’re going to fall off.” He tumbled back into her, over her. His mouth was on hers suddenly, hot in the cool night, and infinitely preferable to talking. She stretched her arms about her head and just gave herself over to flying with him.
The silk of the carpet’s tassels against her wrist teased Kara into another cackling laugh against Lee’s mouth and she willingly extended her hand farther out along the ancient weave, feeling the strands wind strongly around, anchoring her to the corner even as they slid through the liberty of the sky. She broke lip contact just far enough to catch his eye and tilted her head in the direction of her captured hand.
His grin turned positively feral as he brought her free hand to the other side of the carpet so that her shoulders and back were flattened against the thin fabric, arms stretched out, suddenly feeling tethered to the stars by the flimsy bits of string wrapping around her pulse points and Lee’s warm body.
“Better hang on tight Lee,” she smiled, and he moved over her, stretching out until he was locked to her, fingers entwined, lips connected, her legs holding him close while the carpet continued to fly across an unending sea of sand.
* * *
Kara had decided to show a modicum of restraint and not only kiss her post-coital and windblown fiancé goodnight as opposed to climb into his bed like he had offered, but she had also decided to walk into the palace to her guest room as opposed to fly through the doors-couldn’t go around pissing off the in-laws quite yet, although they seemed startlingly easy to talk to for royals, or at least for her perception of royals since it wasn’t like she had been in the habit of talking to kings and kings’ sons before a week ago.
The carpet came to a stop and Kara stepped off, laughing as it rolled itself up and tucked itself under her arm.
She didn’t see her attackers coming until it was too late.
* * *
“This looks familiar,” Gata said to Zarek as they looked down at the unconscious body of Kara Thrace, slumped on a narrow cot in a dark room.
“It’s completely different,” Zarek said, staring down at the lamp in his hands. “The Harbinger of Death has served her purpose after all.” He slid his fingers lingeringly over the lamp’s battered surface, and then began to rub in earnest.
* * *
“Frak!” Baltar swore, and Caprica looked on in alarm as he started fading out of sight, clearly struggling as opposed to simply popping out of existence to do Kara’s bidding. “Someone else has the lamp,” he said urgently. “Someone else has the-” He disappeared.
Caprica dressed hastily, sliding her seven knives into various pockets, boots, sliding one into her bra between her breasts. Kara had told her where Zarek had kept her captive, pointing out the stairs leading down to the lower levels. It was the logical first place to look. Caprica might not know exactly where she was going but the palace wasn’t nearly as big as it looked from the outside.
She pulled her hair back from her face and ran out of the room to go find her friend.
* * *
Zak nearly tripped on his way to his rooms as the foundations of the castle began to shake. He broke into a run, colliding with his brother and falling on his ass. “What’s going on?”
“The palace is rising!” Lee said.
“What?” Zak lurched over to the nearest window ands looked down. The palace was indeed rising, being pulled from the ground like an errant weed. “What the hell is going on here?”
Lee shook his head grimly, “I think I know, but it’ll take too long to explain. We have to find Kara.”
“Not so fast.” They whirled to see Racetrack, Skulls and three other guards surrounding them in a half circle with their swords drawn and pointing at their chests.
“What the hell is going on here,” Lee barked, and Zak had to admire his attempt to pretend that he was in control of the situation. Skulls moved in and unceremoniously pulled Zak against him, holding his sword across Zak’s chest.
“We don’t answer to you anymore, Adama,” sneered Racetrack. She pushed the sword point into the hollow of Lee’s throat, the sharp point drawing blood, the skin denting in, flesh beginning to rend, Lee’s back against the stone wall.
“No,” Zak choked, struggling against Skulls’ hold, feeling the bite of the blade just under his collar bone. He didn’t have Lee’s ice water drenched veins. He felt the haze of panic set in, the belief that he was going to watch his brother die in front of him, when suddenly, the restraining arm was gone and blood was spurting down his shoulders. He looked over his shoulder to see Caprica wiping a short, steel knife on her shirt, Skulls’ body at her feet, throat slit ear to ear.
“Skulls!” shouted Racetrack with such despair that Zak could have almost felt sorry for her if she wasn’t about to murder his brother. A knife whizzed by his air, embedding itself into a different guard’s chest. The guard collapsed on the floor.
“Just evening things up a little,” Caprica said. The remaining two nameless guards faced her warily as she pulled a knife out of her cleavage and used it to casually file a thumb nail.
“Your prince is going to die!” snarled Racetrack. Zak’s eyes widened as he saw Kara appear around the corner, silent as the grave and sword in hand. “I am going to separate his head from his body and we are going to play pyramid with it in the market square.”
“His head’s much too big to fit in the goal,” Kara said conversationally, and then swung sharply, taking Racetrack’s head clean off her shoulders.
After a silent pause, the two remaining guards fled.
“Forget something?” Kara asked Caprica, sounding annoyed as she pulled the sword out of Racetrack’s dead hands and offered it to Lee, hilt first.
“I was on my way to find you,” Caprica said defensively, in turn handing Skulls’ sword to Zak. She paused to kiss him hotly and then addressed Kara, “I ran into these two instead.”
“Good thing you did,” Kara said, lightly touching the cut on Lee’s throat. “Hi,” she added, addressing Lee, “are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Lee said softly, curling his fingers around her wrist. “What’s the situation?” and Zak suddenly noticed that the palace wasn’t shaking anymore.
Zak moved to the window again. “We appear to be floating,” he reported. “I don’t think we’re moving anymore; just sort of . . . sitting in mid air.”
“I take it Zarek has the lamp?” Lee asked Kara.
“Probably,” Kara said, tugging at Lee’s shirt collar up and holding it against the cut dribbling blood. “I didn’t actually see anything, just woke up alone in that same room I did the first time he kidnapped me.” She frowned. “That’s twice he’s done that.”
“Okay,” Lee said. “Those guards are going to the raise the alarm that we’re armed and together. We need to get that lamp back.”
“What lamp?” Zak demanded finally, confused.
“Long story,” Caprica, Lee and Kara answered him at the same time. He scowled at them.
“They’ll tell you on the way,” Lee said.
“Where?” Zak asked sharply.
“They?” Kara asked, even more sharply.
“I have to go find Dad,” Lee said. “You guys need to get the genie back on our side.”
“Genie.” Zak said flatly.
“Gaius,” Caprica said. Zak paused, that did sort of make sense.
“I’m still stuck on the whole we’ll go one way and you’ll go another,” Kara said, leaning into Lee, ignoring Caprica and Zak. “You don’t do so well on your own. I’ve had you rescue twice this week.”
Lee kissed her. “I can’t leave my dad,” he said. “The priority is to secure the lamp, but I have to save him if I can.” Kara nodded and they rested their foreheads together for a long moment before Kara stepped away from him.
“Alright, littlest Adama,” she said to Zak, “show us the sneakiest way to the throne room.” Zak wordlessly reached out to clasp Lee’s hand.
“Be safe,” Lee said, “All of you.”
“Good hunting,” Kara returned. “Let’s go.”
Kara and Caprica moved out without further backward glances. Zak held Lee’s gaze for a moment longer. “Keep him safe.”
Lee nodded, “I will.”
“Little Adama!” Kara barked.
Zak grinned at his brother, “Coming, Princess,” he called back, sketched a salute to Lee and chased after them.
* * *
Felix forced himself to keep standing even as his leg throbbed its protest, it appeared that he had traded one king for another and this one didn’t have Adama’s sense of humor.
Zarek had ensconced himself on the throne, idly fingering the lamp that had brought about his powers, the genie standing behind him with dead eyes, waiting for his next command. Honestly, Felix had no idea what else Zarek could want from the magical creature, having been granted the wish to be the most powerful sorcerer in the world. As far as he could tell, Zarek could do whatever the hell he wanted to on his own now.
“Advisors,” Zarek said with a pomposity that was so thick it was nearly edible, “Today we begin the new world order-one free from the shackles of sultans and princes.” He paused and Felix wondered if it was for applause that did not come. “I have removed us from the city so that we may start our new social contract with no outside distractions.” Felix straightened suddenly. From his position slightly behind and to the left of the throne, he saw the movement of the guards loyal to Zarek, the only guards left free in the palace, coming closer to the gathering of the eleven other advisors. Pain came hot and sharp at his sudden motion, but he ignored it, a sense of foreboding rising.
“What is the meaning of this, Zarek?” one of the advisors asked, irritation dripping from his voice.
“The meaning, Advisor Tigh, is that you’ve become obsolete.” He nodded and eleven guards came swiftly forward and ran the eleven advisors through with their swords.
Felix’s breath came out in harsh bursts as he watched the massacre before him, the blood smearing pink stains into white marble. He had never intended this. Never meant for this to happen.
Zarek’s eyes were on him. “Felix, you knew all along that sacrifices had to be made. I don’t take any joy from this.” His eyes gave lie to those words, manic with power and conviction. “Keep it together,” he advised. ‘We still have the small matter of the sultan to attend to. I believe that I’ll make it a public trial-let the people enjoy our triumph.”
Not knowing what else to do, Felix nodded and addressed the nearest guard. “Bring us the sultan,” he said, noting the swiftness at which he was obeyed. Though the methods of the coup were grating on his conscience, the sultan still had a lot to answer for with his leadership through platitudes and playing favorites and barely concealed contempt for the working class. Felix wrapped himself in his anger and hardened his heart, turning his head from the suddenly inquisitive gaze of the genie.
* * *
Lee was astonished to find that, not only was his father still in his rooms, but that the door was guarded by a single person who Lee was able to dispatch rather easily. He shook his head as he relieved the body of its sword-it had been beyond foolish to leave the sultan so lightly guarded.
He opened the door and walked in, only to be caught in a strangle hold, an arm crushing his windpipe from behind. “Dad,” he croaked out and felt the arm loosen immediately. He was turned around and wrapped in a hug.
“They told me they were going to kill you,” his father gasped into his shoulder. “I thought you and your brother were dead.”
Lee moved his hand soothingly down his father’s back, keeping both swords well clear with the other. “Zak and I are fine dad. Kara and Caprica made sure of it.”
Adama pulled back. “Thank the gods,” he said. “Is that for me?’ he asked, reaching for a sword.
“I can’t believe you hadn’t gotten out of this by yourself-one guard?” Lee said speaking quietly as he stuck his head slowly out into the hall, checking. “It’s clear,” he added.
The Sultan followed him out into the hall. “I didn’t know what was happening,” he said, as they paused to peer around another corner. Shit. More guards. Lee jerked his head in the other direction and they hurried away. “I didn’t want to walk into anything blind. Gaeta and Zarek burst in here and declared the beginning of the new order. He made us. . . fly somehow and said he had sent Racetrack and Skulls to execute you boys and hit me on the head-I had just regained conscious when you came in.”
“Like I said,” Lee continued. “We’re fine. Kara and Caprica to the rescue.” The way ahead was clear and they kept moving in the direction of the throne room. His father wasn’t asking questions, the warrior in him showing strong as he followed the lead of the person with the most knowledge of the situation-not asking unnecessary, time consuming questions.
“Please tell me you’re not so stubbornly hung up on the unfairness of Pythia that you won’t marry Kara,” the Sultan groused.
Lee sighed inwardly, “Is this really the time, Dad?” he asked. They had come to a quick stop in an empty solarium and Lee wedged his sword point into a crack in the floor. The sultan added his sword and leverage to the effort and soon they were looking down into one of the many entrances to the ancient tunnels under the palace. No one knew who had built them; only that they had always been there. It was a secret kept by members of the royal family.
The sultan dropped into the hole, ignoring the stairs, and looked up, scowling as Lee as the lights rose up around him, like a sunrise, illuminating the tunnels with rosy warmth. “You will answer me, Leland.”
Lee landed with a thump. “Of course I’m going to marry her. We’re going to the throne room now, by the way, if you want to worry about the more pressing issue of a coup.” He was halted by his father’s hand on his arm.
“Zarek said that the people wanted this. That it was time for a government that stood for everyone. You’ve said this to me before. Many times.”
“I have said that, and I mean it,” Lee said, steadily meeting his father’s direct gaze, “but not this way.”
The Sultan nodded once and then started moving toward the throne room again. “Now fill me in on what the frak is going on in my palace.”
* * *
The tunnels beneath the palace reminded Kara strongly of the Cave of Wonders. Zak had said they spread for miles and that no one had ever found the end of them. It made her wonder, but it was something to be wondered about at later. Just like she would sleep again later, not just lie unconscious in the dungeons, just like she was going to worry about Lee’s safety later. There was a time and place for everything.
She took a deep breath and nodded to Zak who climbed the stone steps in front of him. This was not a bad plan. It just wasn’t a very good one either. “Zak,” she hissed suddenly, halting him feeling like she should say something sister-like. “Be safe out there.”
Zak shook his head at her, smiling. “Good hunting,” and pulled the lever to open one of four underground entrances to the throne room and then stepped out, with swagger she noted. She glanced over at Caprica who was halfway to the next entrance, waiting to see if they had just exposed themselves needlessly. “Advisor Zarek,” Zak’s voice rang out, “Keeping my father’s chair warm?” and Caprica sprinted the rest of the way down the tunnel. Kara saw her start climbing the stairs before she in turn ran to the trap door she would be entering from, a minute after Caprica, three minutes after Zak.
She kept her count steady in her head, too far from either of the open entrances to hear what was going on, but trusting in Caprica. Trusting in Zak. Her internal clock ran down and she took a deep breath and pulled the lever.
It slid open silently and she could suddenly hear the noise in the room above her. Caprica always did make an entrance. She inched her head out of the hole behind the throne, keeping it on a pivot, her heart pounding in her ears. She couldn’t really see anything, being behind the throne, and she decided that it was a good thing, going with the old, if she couldn’t see them, they couldn’t see her theory.
Then she saw feet coming around the dais and the noise faded away. Those feet probably would notice her very soon. She looked straight up into Felix Gaeta’s astonished eyes. She stayed silent, trying to stare him down to submission, firmly holding a knife in one hand and a sword in the other.
Amazingly, and she would be thanking every god and goddess on bended knee later, he turned his back to her and stared resolutely out onto the chaos. Kara didn’t pause to consider her good luck, she wasn’t one to refuse a gift from the gods in a situation as dire as this, so she just climbed out of the trap door quickly and quietly.
She waited in a crouch behind the throne. Her heart slowed down and she could make out Caprica’s low pitched taunts and Zak’s less restrained mockery and-just what the hell were they doing out there? But she refocused on the mission at hand, shuffling over to the side of the throne not blocked by Gaeta to peer out.
Caprica was surrounded by guards and Zak was lost in the crowd, but she could still hear him. Zarek was standing right in front of the throne, lamp grasped loosely in his hand, the genie kneeling at his side. Kara felt sick-no wonder Baltar was so screwed up, every three wishes he was subjected entirely to the whims of another. That Kara had let him wander around was probably an unprecedented freedom-or at least something he didn’t see very often.
Kara rose as high as she could behind the throne without being exposed to the room and slid the knife into her boot. She was only going to get one shot at this. She watched as Zarek held up a hand and Zak suddenly rose from the crowd, spinning slowly on display.
She broke her cover and swung hard and sure.
Zarek screamed in pain and blood gushed.
Kara dropped to her knees, sliding on the bloody surface and grabbed Zarek’s severed hand, pulling the dead fingers from the lamp.
She was suddenly hit with an enormous force and tossed down the stairs, into a pile of corpses that were in the center of the confusion of the throne room. She maintained her grip on the lamp, and pulled the last of Zarek’s fingers off it, leaving it completely in her possession.
Zarek shot a lightening bolt into the crowd, setting people on fire. It had been a good guess, but he couldn’t see where she was exactly-throwing her into the crowd had been a pain fuelled mistake.
“Genie, I wish that Advisor Zarek be stripped of all his wishes!” she shouted, hoping that Baltar could hear her.
Zarek screamed at the same time that the Sultan’s voice boomed across the throne room. She had no idea what he said, but it made the noise stop. Even Zarek fell silent.
“I took the liberty of silencing and freezing everyone but us,” Baltar explained, “I also put the palace back down where it belonged.” He waded into the crowd to help Kara to her feet. “My sincere thanks,” he said, bowing over her hand.
“I wish I had another wish,” she blurted. “No, not like a wish, wish. I just wish that I had another wish to free you.”
“I appreciate the sentiment,” the genie smiled, releasing her hand.
One by one, he touched Caprica, Zak, Lee and the Sultan, releasing them from their invisible bonds while everyone else looked on with varying degrees of dismay. The carpet sped into the room, over their heads, flying loops of relief.
The sultan moved among the bodies of his advisors, sadly straightening clothing and closing eyes. “They were good people,” he said gruffly. “They deserved better than this.” He addressed the genie, “do you happen to know where the people loyal to me were kept? Or were they all slaughtered as well?”
“I believe there are quite a few people in the dungeon,” Baltar answered. Kara watched Zak run out of the room, presumably to free the prisoners, seeming no worse for the where. She gingerly stepped her way over to Lee who was frowning at the members of the rebellion.
“Hey, you made it,” Kara said.
“Not in time,” Lee replied bitterly, watching his father tend to the bodies.
“It’s not you fault, Lee,” she said.
“No?” he asked. "Then whose is it?” he shook his head sharply. “Ignore me,” he said and she watched the burden settle onto his shoulders with an uncompromising thud. “Thank you for saving the day, yet again.”
“It’s kind of what I do,” she said. “Although it wasn’t remotely just me.”
“Zak and Caprica,” he nodded.
“And Felix Gaeta.”
“What? He was a conspirator.”
“I also wouldn’t have been able to get to the lamp if he had sounded the alarm when he saw me,” Kara said. “Guy’s a creep, but he did help.” Lee nodded slowly, starting to come into himself. He suddenly felt touchable again, and she wasn’t one to deny herself. “It’ll be okay,” she said, reaching out a hand, and just like every other time, he reached back.
* * *
Bodies were cleared out and were being prepared for burial. The guards who had revolted, The Revolting Guards Kara called them, were cooling their heels in the dungeon, waiting for trials, and Lee wanted to sleep for a week. He couldn’t imagine how Kara was still standing at this point, but here they were-still milling around the throne room.
“We have one more thing that will be addressed this moment,” William Adama in full Sultan voice. Lee stifled a sigh and exchanged a glance with Zak. Their father was sitting on his throne. “Bring the co-conspirators forward.”
A guard pushed a badly limping Gaeta forward while another dragged the passed out body of Tom Zarek to slump in front of the sultan. He hadn’t regained consciousness since the genie had stripped him of his wishes. “In accordance with the rules of our land, handed down from Pythia, the prophet of our gods, I sentence Thomas Zarek and Felix Gaeta to death by exposure. They shall be staked in the desert and left until dead.”
“Exposure isn’t appropriate for both of them,” Lee protested automatically, the injustice of it burning past his desire to see this all over with. “We wouldn’t have been able to gain the upper hand if it weren’t for Gaeta.”
“Pythia is very clear,” Adama said, “Treason is treason, no matter what his later actions were.”
“Dad-” Lee started, looking over to Gaeta who remained standing silently, unmoved, unsurprised.
“Enough,” Adama snapped. “We are all aware of your feelings on Pythia. Zarek and Gaeta are sentenced to execution by exposure. If the gods want to strike them down between now and then, they are welcome to it, but no one under my rule will raise a hand in mercy.”
Lee opened and closed his mouth silently, knowing there was nothing else he could say to his father, who was practically radiating anger at. . . the situation, at himself, at his mouthy son, Lee wasn’t certain.
“Lee,” Kara said, the softly spoken word cutting through his haze of helpless frustration. He turned his head to look at her, to give himself a measure of comfort. She was dusty and tired and sweaty and sympathetic. And she was holding the lamp.
“Kara,” Lee said holding out his hand. “May I borrow your lamp?” The left side of Kara’s mouth curved up.
“Sure,” she said, walking over to stand directly in front of him and putting the lamp in his hands. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
“Thank you,” he said, kissing her cheek.
“I wish that Felix Gaeta will die painlessly,” he stated clearly.
“Just drop it,” his father said wearily, unthinkingly, as the genie moved away from Caprica’s side, pausing to gaze appraisingly at Lee before nodding. Kara’s fingers laced through his, but all of Lee’s attention was on Baltar.
“Felix Gaeta,” the genie said gently. He put his hands on Gaeta’s shoulders and leaned in closely, kissing the troubled young man on the brow and pulling back slightly.
Gaeta blinked slowly. “It doesn’t hurt anymore,” he said, a tentative smile stretching across his features.
“Sleep,” Baltar said running his thumb along Gaeta’s cheekbone, and then kissing him on the lips. When he pulled away, Felix Gaeta dropped to the floor, dead.
The sultan stared at the body before turning his glare to Lee. “You always have to push it, don’t you, son?”
Zak, blessed, sunny, peacemaker Zak, slung an arm around their father. “Well at least we can foist him off on Kara now,” he said cheerfully, turning his father away from the guards who came forward at his sharp nod to remove Gaeta’s body and tote an unconscious Zarek out to be staked to the desert sand.
Kara, taking her cue, chimed in, “It’s a thankless job, your Grace, but between the three of us, we can probably keep him out of trouble,” and Lee was slapped with the amazing reality that Kara was going to be his wife. And that she and Zak were probably going to gang up on him at every opportunity.
The sultan shook his head at all of them. “Princess Caprica, we may be the only sensible people in this room.”
“I couldn’t agree more, Your Grace,” she smiled. “You should go relax for the rest of the day. I know that I’m planning on taking advantage of that wonderful hot spring room of yours that I have heard so much about. Would you care to join me?”
Lee was startled to hear his father laugh loud and long, “You’d tempt a saint, young lady, but I think that I am going to go to bed. Princess,” he inclined his head courteously, “I will see you and the rest of your motley crew tomorrow morning.” The sultan squeezed Zak’s shoulders briefly before ambling out, his royal guard trailing sleepily in his wake.
“The Sultan has the right idea,” Kara said, stifling a jaw cracking yawn in Lee’s shoulder.
“Just one more thing first,” Lee said, remembering her wish.
* * *
Kara groaned into Lee’s shoulder. She was going to have to have a little chat with him on the concept of time off. “Tomorrow,” she said firmly, or as firmly as she could through another yawn. “Sleeeeeeeeep.”
“Just one more minute, I promise,” he said.
She sighed and pulled away. “You have sixty seconds. I’m counting.”
Lee smiled briefly at her before turning his attention to Gaius Baltar. “Genie, I wish for your freedom.” The lamp crumpled into sand and poured through Lee’s fingers into a heap on the floor. He looked at Baltar, who was looking exactly the same, if completely shocked. “Was that it?”
Baltar made a pained face and shut his eyes. “I’m trying to float. Am I floating?”
“You are definitely not floating,” Zak said, moving toward Baltar, who still had his eyes closed. Caprica sidled up behind the former gene and laughed lightly into his ear.
“You can open your eyes now, Gaius,” she said. Kara sighed, but did manage to refrain from rolling her eyes, at the sultry undertone, but then grew very, very still as Zak moved in entirely too close to Baltar for Kara’s peace of mind.
“Do you think everything still works the same?” Zak asked, smiling as Baltar opened his eyes to see the younger Adama prince inches from his face.
Lee muffled a laughing “Very smooth, Zak,” somewhere behind Kara’s back. She would have turned to glare at him, but she was too busy being rooted to her spot in shocked dismay.
“I hear there’s a lovely hot spring room,” Baltar said, leaning back into Caprica and smiling lazily at Zak. “Would you be so kind as to show it to us?”
Zak stepped back and made a sweeping gesture to the door. “After you.” He glanced over his shoulder and shot a truly dirty smile at his brother before loping after the swiftly exiting pair.
“Did that just happen?” Kara demanded, whirling to face Lee who was shaking his head in obvious amusement.
“Oh yeah,” he said grinning.
“And you’re just . . . fine with this?” she asked, thinking that maybe Lee had somehow missed the point. “It’s totally cool for your brother to be seduced like that?”
Lee laughed, hooked an arm around her neck, reeled her in close and placed a smacking, affectionate kiss on her forehead. “Who do you think was seducing whom in this scenario?”
Kara opened her mouth, but an unbidden vision popped into her mind of steam rising around Caprica’s long, elegant fingers stroking through Zak Adama’s dark hair, kissing the nape of his neck as Zak leaned forward to bite the ex-genie’s collarbone. She shook her head violently, opened her mouth to speak and then closed it abruptly. There were really no words to communicate the horror.
“Stop picturing it,” Lee said, his voice relaxed and drenched in humor as dry and warm as a desert breeze.
“Yeah,” Kara answered, pulling away from the bad, bad thoughts. “Yeah, okay.” She slumped into Lee’s solid body and let him hold her up, the exhaustion finally settling in, bone deep, she could feel the dust in her pores and the dried sweat tightening her skin. “Just give me a minute.”
“No hurry.” Lee’s arms were around her, his pulse a constant drumming in her ear, the heat of the day pulling her down further and further and further.
* * *
Lee felt the second Kara slipped over the edge and fell asleep on her feet, face pressed against the side of his neck. He held her steady and watched the magic carpet perform a large, lazy loop, ending inches from their knees.
Looking around at the now empty throne room, checking for witnesses, then back to the expectant carpet, “Okay,” he said.
It circled behind and underneath and, without quite understanding how they ended up that way, Lee found himself scooped up, lying flat on his back with Kara tucked into his side, completely undisturbed.
The magic carpet paused, floating in mid-air. “Wherever you want to take us,” Lee told it, nosing sleepily at Kara’s hair. “We have nowhere we need to be right now.”
The End