The Thelemity of the Thief
Part 4 of ?
Synopsis: Vala's quest to catch "her" Daniel continues. Takes
place during "Threads". Contains major spoilers for "Reckoning" and
"Threads". Minor ones for "Death Knell", "The Ties That Bind" and various
others.
The Thelemity of the Thief
"Thieves respect property. They merely
wish the property to
become their property that they may more perfectly respect it."
— G. K. Chesterton, The Man who was Thursday
"It's not just any crystal," a woman argued exasperatedly. "It's a priceless relic held in high regard by the worshippers of Grannus."
I know that voice, thought Benitar of Dak Sheb, pausing mid-step on his way through the crowded bazaar to meet the client of his mate, Yvondra Amicass.
:Yes, you do,: agreed Mektil. :Shall we rescue whomever she's trying to swindle?:
"Well, maybe they'd like to have it," a male voice replied haughtily. "It's worthless. Our collection comprises only the finest in the sacred artifacts of Baal... Grannus is not fit to kiss the feet of Lord Baal."
"Why would he want to?" she huffed irritably.
"More importantly, how could he?" added Benitar, recognizing both the dark-haired thief and the local museum curator. "Grannus is dead."
Vala Mal Duran's face stretched into a wide grin. "Benitar!"
"Vala," the short, blond-haired man answered with a smile. "Master Curator, you've always known me to be a reliable source of information..."
"Of course," the curator replied, giving Vala a very disdainful look that lingered a bit over-long on her poorly concealed curves. "Grannus has been slain? Our Lord Baal doubtlessly removed the upstart."
"Actually, he was killed by his own Jaffa. The Jaffa Rebellion recently attacked and took control of Dakara from Baal, who was himself engaged in battle with a formidable enemy known as the Replicators," he began, smiling wickedly at Vala.
"No doubt Baal defeated his foe and crushed the rebels!"
"Actually, a Tok'ra, a Tau'ri, and the rebels defeated the foe and Baal. Word is the Jaffa are planning to build a new nation with its capitol at Dakara, and Baal has disappeared. When news of his defeat reached Grannus' own Jaffa, they took the liberty of removing their own master themselves."
"Blasphemer!" the curator gasped, turning heel and stalking off into the throng.
"Well, so much for that sale," Vala sighed, re-adjusting the strap of the bag she carried over her shoulder. "Thank you so very much!"
"You are welcome," he grinned in reply, then raised an arm in the direction of a quiet café. "Giving that sort of news sure felt good."
"I'm sure it did," she replied dryly. "So a Tok’ra, a Tau’ri, and the rebels? Which Tau’ri?"
"Since when do you care?" The last time he’d talked to Vala, she had cared very little at all to hear of the current state of affairs, much less any of the more prominent resistance groups.
"Since I met one of them and was impassioned by their cause."
Benitar’s eyebrows shot up. "Impassioned?"
"Absolutely."
:Sure she was.:
"Right. Didn’t care for them any more than you did for us, right?"
"All that boring rhetoric," she agreed. "Details, Benitar!"
"The Tau’ri was Samantha Carter of SG-1, daughter of Selmak’s host, Jacob."
"Oh." She made her way to a table in a darkened corner and seated herself in a chair. "Why just one member of SG-1? Where were the other two? The Jaffa and the hand—y linguist?"
Handy linguist? It was true, the Tok’ra had found the archaeologist’s linguistic abilities useful a time or two, but—
:She meant to say ‘handsome’,: Mektil interrupted in silent amusement. :I believe Yvondra is correct about her. She is, indeed, 'gone'. But then again, so is he... in an entirely different way.:
Quiet, you, Benitar told his symbiote. Aloud, he said, "The Jaffa Teal'c was fighting alongside his brethren in orbit of Dakara itself. Doctor Jackson was... engaged elsewhere, and couldn't be reached to assist in the translation."
Vala raised a curious eyebrow. "More undercover work for the Tok'ra?"
"No. As you might know, the relationship between the Tok'ra and the Tau'ri has become strained of late." He paused, and Mektil took over.
:The Tok'ra have long thrived on secrecy and subterfuge to accomplish our ways. The Tau'ri are much more direct. It is a difference which has long caused tension between our peoples, and it was for that reason our formal alliance was dissolved. The Tau'ri stopped trusting us and became more demanding of our increasingly limited resources.:
"More likely, they wanted you to share even a tiny bit and you wouldn't do it," she smirked, twisting in her seat, "Tok'ra generosity being what it is. Now you're jealous of their accomplishments."
:Jealousy is not a factor,: Mektil promised, Benitar's fair skin flushing uncomfortably.
"Sure it's not." Vala drew herself across the table toward him. "You can't stand it that the Asguard like to give them big guns and engines and won't give you the time of day! I've seen their ship, the Prometheus. Pretty impressive for a bunch of primitive humans, wouldn't you say?" She batted her eyes at him for a moment before slowly sliding back to her seat. "Now, where's my tablet?"
Ease yourself, Benitar told the flustered symbiote, clearing his throat and unconsciously stroking a hand over the breast pocket of his tunic. "It is in the possession of a historian and scientist who has apparently been working on it for four years or more. He recently told one of our scientists, Anise, that he had deciphered the code in which it was written and translated it word-for-word, but was unable to understand it in context."
"Since when did the Ancients start writing things in code? The language itself looks pretty incomprehensible to me without mixing it all up."
:Apparently only the most important documents are written in code,: Mektil explained. :The Ancient weapon at Dakara, the one which destroyed the Replicators galaxy-wide, was guarded by a mechanism which was cleverly encoded.:
"So this tablet's got to lead to something good." She began to play with a strand of hair. "Go on, tell me where to find this 'historian and scientist'."
Benitar shook his head. "It's not that simple. If I tell you where it is, you have to promise the Tok'ra will get a chance at the translation before you take it anywhere else."
"Here's my translation: You think the tablet might lead to another technological treasure like the Ancient weapon at Dakara—which, I presume, is now in the hands of the Jaffa? You want a crack at it before someone else—the Tau'ri, for example—gets control of the technology and you can't even touch it." She released her hair with a flick of her wrist. "Am I right? I am, aren't I?"
:You are correct,: Mektil grudgingly agreed, :but not for the reasons you believe. The Tok'ra wish to retrieve this 'treasure' before it falls into the hands of someone who will misuse it.:
"I've heard that one before. And who better to misuse it than yourselves?" She leaned across the table once more. "Tell you what... I'll trade you the Livanna Crystal for the location of the tablet."
"The Livanna Crystal is a worthless relic," Benitar began, guessing that this was what she had been attempting to sell to the hapless museum curator. He was shushed by his symbiote.
:The tablet will do you no good without a proper translation," Mektil responded. "The Tok'ra have thousands of years of knowledge and expertise to draw upon. You will find it difficult to find anyone who has the means to translate and interpret the information better than us.:
Vala rolled her eyes and stared up at the ceiling. "No, I don't think so. In fact, I know just the man for the job. So do you, I think, as doubtlessly the Tok'ra would eventually run to the Tau'ri for assistance... as you have so often done in the past, I'm told. Maybe I'll just eliminate the middle-man... You."
Don't do it, Mektil, Benitar begged, but to no avail.
:Doctor Jackson was killed in the Replicator attack.:
The thief shot to her feet. "What?"
:That is why he could not be reached. He was captured by the Replicators and is believed to have perished nearly two weeks ago when the weapon disintegrated the ship he was imprisoned aboard. The Tau'ri believe he is still out there, but the Tok'ra are not given to such foolish sentiment.: He ignored Benitar's protests and rose to stare at the tall woman as close to eye-to-eye as he could get. :The Tok'ra really are the best chance you have of deciphering the tablet, Vala.:
"No," Vala answered emphatically. "If I don't get it translated my way, nobody gets a piece of the treasure. Got it?" She crossed her arms in defiance. "And I'm quite certain he's been reported dead before. For nearly a year, once, wasn't it? Why don't you Tok'ra trust the Tau'ri a bit more?" At the embarrassed surprise darkening the Tok'ra's face, she stepped closer, running her fingers up his chest before entwining them behind his neck. "The Livanna Crystal for the information, Mektil. Take it or leave it." With a coquettish smile, she picked up her bag, turned around, and exited the café.
What is this Livanna Crystal? Benitar asked his symbiote.
:A relic held in reverence by the worshippers of Grannus,: Mektil explained. :A religious artifact to his human slaves, it is actually an information crystal believed to possess Grannus' notes on the many uses of solar energy in warfare, research he was forced to abandon when his domain was conquered by Cammulus.:
So... valuable?
:Extremely.:
Shouldn't we trade the information we have on the Ancient tablet for it, then? he asked, fingers reaching reassuringly to the hidden pocket once more.
The pocket was empty.
:After her!:
Benitar bolted out of the café, glancing in each direction for the raven-haired pickpocket. "She's gone!" he yelped aloud.
:The Stargate is closely guarded by the Lucien Alliance. She came by ship, remember?:
"Right." He took off in the direction his own ship's sensors had indicated another tel'tac had been landed, dodging the citizens milling about in the bazaar. He had reached the edge of the crowd and was about to make a turn down one lane when he heard angry voices coming from a nearby alley.
"Jup has already commandeered your ship and is waiting to take us back to the Alliance fleet!" a harshly-accented voice shouted.
"Jup barely has command of his own bodily functions, let alone an entire ship," responded the familiar nonchalance of Vala. "What say you let me go, and I don't rip off any extra appendages?"
Benitar and Mektil peered cautiously around the corner, taking in the sight of a rather ugly, tentacled being pointing a weapon at the beautiful thief. "Where is your partner?" the mercenary demanded, shaking his gun for emphasis.
"Partner? I don't have a partner, Tenat, you know I work alone." Her expression didn't change, but her eyes met Benitar's and silently demanded, Help me out, here!
"The one who calls himself Olo! He is the one responsible for—unh!" Tenat groaned in agony as a zat'nik'tel blast sent him twitching into unconsciousness.
"It's about time!" Vala exclaimed, stepping on the mercenary as she made her way toward Benitar, which elicited a soft groan from the fallen alien. "What took you so long?"
:The tablet,: Mektil demanded.
"So you've decided to tell me where it is, then? Very well, I'm listening."
:Not that tablet. The one you stole from us.:
She pouted. "Stole? Mektil, I may not have the best reputation, but how dare you imply I stole something from you?" Benitar grabbed her satchel and opened one pocket, pulling out a Goa'uld record device. "Oh, that tablet."
:It doesn't do you much good without this specially programmed decoder,: Mektil smirked, withdrawing the smooth black stone from his belt pouch.
"Oh. Right. Well, my offer still stands," she grinned.
Just give it to her, Benitar admonished. Whether Doctor Jackson's dead or not, she won't be able to do anything with the Ancient tablet by herself, even if she is able to get it away from its current owner.
:Very well,: Mektil agreed, handing the tablet and the stone over to the thief and accepting the satchel in return. He inspected its contents before nodding in agreement. :As a show of my 'Tok'ra generosity', I also promise to see you safely off this planet.:
"I have a ship," she protested.
:Not according to that mercenary, you don't,: he reminded her.
"Right. Well then, in that case, I accept."
Together, the Tok'ra and the thief made their way toward the Stargate, Benitar quickly stunning both guards with his zat'nik'tel. "Hurry, Vala, others will have heard."
"Thank you, Benitar," she smiled, hugging him closely. "Give Yvondra my best." She turned and ran toward the dialing device, punching the symbols quickly. When the wormhole had stabilized, she gave him a little wave and ran for the event horizon.
Sudden suspicion caused Benitar to reach into the bag on his shoulder, his hand meeting only fabric. :Stop her, she has the crystal!: Mektil cried. But Vala was already gone, and the Livanna Crystal with her.
"We'll meet again," Benitar vowed, chuckling.