[200 Fic Challenge: #175 and #077]
TITLE: Heeding the Call
AUTHOR: starfics
FANDOM(S): Stargate SG-1
CHARACTER(S): Ra, Ba'al
PROMPT: 175. All I Ask
RECIPIENT: wayward_muses
RATING: PG
WARNINGS: Goa'uld being themselves. Threatening and melodramatic and so on.
SPOILERS?: n/a
PREVIEW/SUMMARY: Everone heeds the call of the Supreme System Lord.
WORD COUNT: 706
Ba’al strode down the long, brazier-lit corridor in the ha’tak, the heavily embroidered and beaded hem of his coat whispering along the floor. Behind and flanking, two Horus guards escorted him to the throne room; he could see the glow of sunlight from where the hull had opened to allow it in. Ra was nothing if not theatrical, he thought, even though the fact that there was a place for the seal between space and pressurized interior to rupture during spaceflight was impractical.
The two Jaffa broke to either side, taking up positions by the door, and Ba’al continued forward to stand, boldly alone before the throne. Ra was not there, however; he stood by one of the openings, the sunlight glinting off the sun disc and the horns of Hathor behind his head. Curious he still wore them, despite having imprisoned Hathor herself. Ba’al had not been there, but he had the genetic memory of it. The queen that had spawned the prim’ta that had eventually become him had seen the banishment, seen Ra’s hand device glow painfully bright and watched Jaffa carry the body of a goddess away, to be imprisoned in a remote place for eternity.
Ba’al saw it as though he had been there. And as he stepped forward, not kneeling but standing defiantly upright, he was quite aware it could be him next.
“Why do you continue to defy me?” Ra asked. Ba’al kept his face carefully neutral, though the Supreme System Lord sounded annoyed. Not that that was too uncommon an occurrence, but it was better to tread carefully when Ra was in a mood.
“My lord, I do not know what you refer to.” That was a lie; Ba’al had a very good idea what Ra was talking about, but it was never good to give away more of one’s hand than was necessary, particularly when dealing with others among the System Lords.
“You insist on pulling back from the Tau’ri which I gave you to control.”
“The Tau’ri are a threat,” Ba’al began, about to go into a carefully thought-out speech. “I merely propose we--”
He stopped; Ra had held up a hand, the one with his kara’kesh on it, and the jewel was beginning to glimmer with a faint light. Ba’al (or rather his host) had been on the receiving end of a hand device once, and it was not a thing that either of them wished to repeat.
“All I ask,” Ra said, his voice low and dangerous, “Is obedience from those who serve me. Who was it who gave you life?”
“It was--”
“Who was it who found you a more than suitable host? Who provided you with Jaffa, ships, human slaves, territory both here on Earth and among the stars?” Ra’s eyes flashed golden. “Who made you what you are as you stand unworthy before me?”
Ba’al clenched his jaw, but bowed his head, showing what he thought to be the proper amount of obeisance. “I do not forget those who help me,” Ba’al said. “But I cannot ignore a threat - for all that the Tau’ri are an unevolved, unenlightened species they have strength in numbers. I am saying it is no longer expedient--”
“I will tell you what is and is not in your best interests!” Ra thundered, and Ba’al braced himself for the blast from the kara’kesh that never materialized. When he glanced up again, Ra had brought his hand back, fist clenched, and was lowering it. Ba’al allowed himself to relax slightly; whenever Ra caught himself it was a good sign, as he usually simply acted.
“You will go back to your territory and you will bring the Tau’ri under control,” Ra said at last. “You will not question my wisdom in this matter.”
Ba’al paused a moment before bowing. “As you wish,” he said, and with the Horus guard flanking him, he left.
Back on his al’kesh, Ba’al crooked a finger and his First Prime appeared at his side. “What is it, my lord?”
“Instruct those Jaffa loyal to me to board the vessels currently at Ashkelon and Ashdod,” he said, aware of the weight his words carried and the consequences of his actions. “Prepare for departure from Earth.”
TITLE: Phone Call
AUTHOR: starfics
FANDOM(S): Stargate SG-1 [HAMPTONS AU]
CHARACTER(S): Ba'al, Osiris (Ba'al/Sam if you think about it)
PROMPT: 077. Phone Call
RECIPIENT: wayward_muses
RATING: PG
WARNINGS: Goa'uld.
SPOILERS?: n/a
PREVIEW/SUMMARY: Ba'al's in charge of things posing as a wealthy human businessman. Osiris likes to be a pain in the tootie.
WORD COUNT: 566
“Yes, be sure that this information reaches the appropriate ears,” Ba’al said, leaning back in his luxurious office chair as he wrapped up a conference call with one of his executive officers. “Acquiring that company will be a great boon for us.” With the proper closing platitudes delivered, Ba’al shut off the conference phone. It may have been a front for other, less reputable operations, but Hammel Technologies was still a venture of his, and being something of a perfectionist, Ba’al had to ensure that everything was running smoothly. Even when he was ostensibly on vacation.
As part of his image as an affluent Tau’ri businessman, Ba’al had procured a property in the Hamptons. A luxurious property with far more space than he required for himself, Ba’al nonetheless found it marginally suited to his needs. It was not nearly as impressive as any of the seats of power he had enjoyed over the thousands of years of his life, but it gave the Tau’ri the impression of great wealth, and that was what he required at the time.
In any case, he wasn’t always alone.
That line of thinking made Ba’al smirk and rise from his chair, intending to go rouse the one who was still asleep in the bed they had rather rigorously tested last night, when the communication orb on his desk shimmered to life. Most Tau’ri who came into this place - except the ones who knew what it was of course - thought it a curiosity, little more than a decoration. That suited Ba’al just fine, but he preferred more warning when one of the other Goa’uld decided to drop in.
“What is it?” he said, picking up the orb and balancing it on his fingers. His annoyance increased when Osiris’ face coalesced on the surface of the orb.
“You try my patience,” Osiris snapped. “What is the meaning of keeping me on this damnable planet?”
“The naquadah mines there are rich,” Ba’al replied in a drawl. “And if the weather is somewhat disagreeable - “
“It snowed.”
“-then it is a small price to pay for increasing our own resources.” Ba’al’s eyes narrowed. “Do not interrupt me. Your impudence may have been indulged by Isis, but I am not she, and I have far less patience for your malcontent.”
“No, you are not,” Osiris replied. “Still, you are ruled just the same by that Tau’ri female you insist on dallying with -”
“Leave her out of this.”
“She is the reason you are more Tau’ri than Goa’uld now-”
“Silence!” Ba’al had reverted to the symbiote voice in his anger, eyes flashing gold. “You will keep your teeth together on matters which are of no concern to you, and you will remain there overseeing the mines until such time as I assign you elsewhere. If you can only ride to power on the backs of others, do not protest when they require you to do repellent things.”
Osiris smirked, but inclined his head, barely enough to be polite. “As my lord Ba’al commands,” he said archly. The orb went dark and Ba’al set it back on its tripod stand, glaring balefully at it. Osiris would have to be taught a lesson.
The prospect of retribution filled him with glee, and Ba’al felt much more at ease as he left the office, heading toward the bedroom. It was going to be a good day.
AUTHOR: starfics
FANDOM(S): Stargate SG-1
CHARACTER(S): Ra, Ba'al
PROMPT: 175. All I Ask
RECIPIENT: wayward_muses
RATING: PG
WARNINGS: Goa'uld being themselves. Threatening and melodramatic and so on.
SPOILERS?: n/a
PREVIEW/SUMMARY: Everone heeds the call of the Supreme System Lord.
WORD COUNT: 706
Ba’al strode down the long, brazier-lit corridor in the ha’tak, the heavily embroidered and beaded hem of his coat whispering along the floor. Behind and flanking, two Horus guards escorted him to the throne room; he could see the glow of sunlight from where the hull had opened to allow it in. Ra was nothing if not theatrical, he thought, even though the fact that there was a place for the seal between space and pressurized interior to rupture during spaceflight was impractical.
The two Jaffa broke to either side, taking up positions by the door, and Ba’al continued forward to stand, boldly alone before the throne. Ra was not there, however; he stood by one of the openings, the sunlight glinting off the sun disc and the horns of Hathor behind his head. Curious he still wore them, despite having imprisoned Hathor herself. Ba’al had not been there, but he had the genetic memory of it. The queen that had spawned the prim’ta that had eventually become him had seen the banishment, seen Ra’s hand device glow painfully bright and watched Jaffa carry the body of a goddess away, to be imprisoned in a remote place for eternity.
Ba’al saw it as though he had been there. And as he stepped forward, not kneeling but standing defiantly upright, he was quite aware it could be him next.
“Why do you continue to defy me?” Ra asked. Ba’al kept his face carefully neutral, though the Supreme System Lord sounded annoyed. Not that that was too uncommon an occurrence, but it was better to tread carefully when Ra was in a mood.
“My lord, I do not know what you refer to.” That was a lie; Ba’al had a very good idea what Ra was talking about, but it was never good to give away more of one’s hand than was necessary, particularly when dealing with others among the System Lords.
“You insist on pulling back from the Tau’ri which I gave you to control.”
“The Tau’ri are a threat,” Ba’al began, about to go into a carefully thought-out speech. “I merely propose we--”
He stopped; Ra had held up a hand, the one with his kara’kesh on it, and the jewel was beginning to glimmer with a faint light. Ba’al (or rather his host) had been on the receiving end of a hand device once, and it was not a thing that either of them wished to repeat.
“All I ask,” Ra said, his voice low and dangerous, “Is obedience from those who serve me. Who was it who gave you life?”
“It was--”
“Who was it who found you a more than suitable host? Who provided you with Jaffa, ships, human slaves, territory both here on Earth and among the stars?” Ra’s eyes flashed golden. “Who made you what you are as you stand unworthy before me?”
Ba’al clenched his jaw, but bowed his head, showing what he thought to be the proper amount of obeisance. “I do not forget those who help me,” Ba’al said. “But I cannot ignore a threat - for all that the Tau’ri are an unevolved, unenlightened species they have strength in numbers. I am saying it is no longer expedient--”
“I will tell you what is and is not in your best interests!” Ra thundered, and Ba’al braced himself for the blast from the kara’kesh that never materialized. When he glanced up again, Ra had brought his hand back, fist clenched, and was lowering it. Ba’al allowed himself to relax slightly; whenever Ra caught himself it was a good sign, as he usually simply acted.
“You will go back to your territory and you will bring the Tau’ri under control,” Ra said at last. “You will not question my wisdom in this matter.”
Ba’al paused a moment before bowing. “As you wish,” he said, and with the Horus guard flanking him, he left.
Back on his al’kesh, Ba’al crooked a finger and his First Prime appeared at his side. “What is it, my lord?”
“Instruct those Jaffa loyal to me to board the vessels currently at Ashkelon and Ashdod,” he said, aware of the weight his words carried and the consequences of his actions. “Prepare for departure from Earth.”
TITLE: Phone Call
AUTHOR: starfics
FANDOM(S): Stargate SG-1 [HAMPTONS AU]
CHARACTER(S): Ba'al, Osiris (Ba'al/Sam if you think about it)
PROMPT: 077. Phone Call
RECIPIENT: wayward_muses
RATING: PG
WARNINGS: Goa'uld.
SPOILERS?: n/a
PREVIEW/SUMMARY: Ba'al's in charge of things posing as a wealthy human businessman. Osiris likes to be a pain in the tootie.
WORD COUNT: 566
“Yes, be sure that this information reaches the appropriate ears,” Ba’al said, leaning back in his luxurious office chair as he wrapped up a conference call with one of his executive officers. “Acquiring that company will be a great boon for us.” With the proper closing platitudes delivered, Ba’al shut off the conference phone. It may have been a front for other, less reputable operations, but Hammel Technologies was still a venture of his, and being something of a perfectionist, Ba’al had to ensure that everything was running smoothly. Even when he was ostensibly on vacation.
As part of his image as an affluent Tau’ri businessman, Ba’al had procured a property in the Hamptons. A luxurious property with far more space than he required for himself, Ba’al nonetheless found it marginally suited to his needs. It was not nearly as impressive as any of the seats of power he had enjoyed over the thousands of years of his life, but it gave the Tau’ri the impression of great wealth, and that was what he required at the time.
In any case, he wasn’t always alone.
That line of thinking made Ba’al smirk and rise from his chair, intending to go rouse the one who was still asleep in the bed they had rather rigorously tested last night, when the communication orb on his desk shimmered to life. Most Tau’ri who came into this place - except the ones who knew what it was of course - thought it a curiosity, little more than a decoration. That suited Ba’al just fine, but he preferred more warning when one of the other Goa’uld decided to drop in.
“What is it?” he said, picking up the orb and balancing it on his fingers. His annoyance increased when Osiris’ face coalesced on the surface of the orb.
“You try my patience,” Osiris snapped. “What is the meaning of keeping me on this damnable planet?”
“The naquadah mines there are rich,” Ba’al replied in a drawl. “And if the weather is somewhat disagreeable - “
“It snowed.”
“-then it is a small price to pay for increasing our own resources.” Ba’al’s eyes narrowed. “Do not interrupt me. Your impudence may have been indulged by Isis, but I am not she, and I have far less patience for your malcontent.”
“No, you are not,” Osiris replied. “Still, you are ruled just the same by that Tau’ri female you insist on dallying with -”
“Leave her out of this.”
“She is the reason you are more Tau’ri than Goa’uld now-”
“Silence!” Ba’al had reverted to the symbiote voice in his anger, eyes flashing gold. “You will keep your teeth together on matters which are of no concern to you, and you will remain there overseeing the mines until such time as I assign you elsewhere. If you can only ride to power on the backs of others, do not protest when they require you to do repellent things.”
Osiris smirked, but inclined his head, barely enough to be polite. “As my lord Ba’al commands,” he said archly. The orb went dark and Ba’al set it back on its tripod stand, glaring balefully at it. Osiris would have to be taught a lesson.
The prospect of retribution filled him with glee, and Ba’al felt much more at ease as he left the office, heading toward the bedroom. It was going to be a good day.