Chapter 115: The Asgard Question Part 2
Research Station Alpha, The First Moon of Enchantment, November 18th, 1999 (Earth Time)
This isn't going well, Catra thought. Not at all. Thor seemed to believe that they were as bad as Loki about research and things. Which, to be honest, wasn't entirely wrong given that they had almost destroyed Etheria during the Horde War because they - especially Catra and Glimmer - hadn't really been cautious enough. And Entrapta, for all that she was a great friend and good person, could leave a bad impression on people who met her for the first time. Or at a bad time. Not everyone understood that she wasn't like Loki, even if both were passionate scientists.
Thor was still shaking his head. "This is… It seems obvious why you are working with Loki."
"Because we both share the goal of saving the Asgard," Loki said.
"Because we both love science?" Entrapta cocked her head to the side and blinked.
"Because, apparently, you share the same appalling lack of caution and common sense when experimenting!" Thor snapped.
That was… well, also not entirely wrong, Catra had to admit. Not out loud, of course.
"That's not true!" Adora blurted out. "We're very careful - we have the entire base under close surveillance!"
"And it's on a moon, and we have sterilising protocols, so the chance of any organism escaping into the wild is very low," Entrapta added.
"I doubt that disinfectant would have stopped Horde Prime." Thor scoffed.
"I will not make that mistake again," Loki said. "You still act as if I never learned from my mistakes."
"That's because you do not! Or if you learn something, it turns out to be the wrong lesson!" Thor shook his head. "You should not ask how to do something, but whether or not you should do something in the first place!"
"I will not let our species go extinct," Loki said, glaring at his brother.
"Yes! We cannot let you die out if we can help it!" Entrapta chimed in before Thor could answer. "That wouldn't be right! Too many species have already died out - with their entire worlds. And that doesn't even cover the number of non-sapient species that are going extinct on Earth! We will save any species we can!"
"How the Asgard deal with our genetic degradation is
our decision. You cannot decide for us," Thor retorted.
"But Loki can! He is an Asgard himself," Entrapta said.
Thor shook his head. "He is not even a member of the High Council any more. He has no authority. The fate of the Asgard will be decided by the High Council, not by a renegade and criminal."
"As if the High Council has the knowledge and understanding to do what is necessary!" Loki scoffed.
"They are the rulers of the Asgard."
"But you can't force Loki to stop trying to save you; it's his life as well that's at stake," Adora said. "No one has the authority to order people to let themselves die - or die out."
"The High Council has the authority to set the law for the Asgard," Thor told her. "And he has broken the law multiple times, severely. He is a criminal."
"He's willing to change," Adora said.
Catra bit her lower lip to keep from saying anything.
"And he's trying to save your species. Would you really rather die out than give him a chance?" Glimmer added.
"He had many chances and never took them."
Thor was avoiding the question, Catra noted.
"I was held back," Loki said. "And sabotaged by unjust and ignorant people who did not understand what I was doing."
Thor scoffed. "We understood the results of your work perfectly. You have not changed."
"You know," Catra said, "if you judge people by their past, of course, you'll never notice any change."
Adora nodded with a beaming smile aimed at her, and Catra bit her lower lip again. She shouldn't be arguing like this - she wasn't any better than Loki. But she couldn't just let Thor talk like… like Loki couldn't change. Even though Catra still had her doubts about that herself.
"Why should my brother change now when he has never changed before?" Thor asked.
Because it sometimes takes a lot of wasted opportunities to overcome your pride, Catra didn't say.
"Because now, we're helping him," Adora said.
"And do you expect me to forget his past deeds?" Thor turned to stare at Adora.
"If you cannot look to the future instead of to the past, you'll never have a future," Adora retorted.
"Those who forgot the past are doomed to repeat it," Catra heard Jack whisper under his breath, followed by a hissed "Sir!" from Sam.
"We don't ask you to forget what he has done - but you should keep an open mind and give him a chance," Bow chimed in.
"He had many chances," Thor repeated himself. "Does he deserve another chance?"
"Are we talking about a chance to fix your genome?" Entrapta looked a little confused. "Because then, the answer is obviously 'yes' - if you have a problem, you research a solution until you find it."
"Everyone deserves a chance to change," Adora said. "No matter how many chances they have blown before."
Catra felt a mix of love and shame at hearing Adora say that and couldn't help blushing from both.
"Yes. This time, it will work," Loki said. "I can feel it."
Catra looked at him and, once more, felt doubt about his willingness to change.
*****
"Or that might be your breakfast disagreeing with your stomach."
Jack O'Neill shrugged at the glances everyone was giving him. "Hey, just saying that a gut feeling isn't exactly scientific."
Catra snorted, as did Glimmer, and Bow tried his best not to grin, but the others kept frowning at him. Well, someone had to try and lighten the mood before Thor thought they were all like Loki. Which he probably thought already, to be honest.
"Well, no - at least I don't think that anyone ever ran a study on gut feelings," Entrapta said. "Unless it was about medical issues."
"Well, I think with the return of magic, odds are a lot of such experiments were run," Jack pointed out. "Or are still being run. People are trying to find ways to predict the future by using magic." Despite all the warning tales about prophets and prophecies he had heard from Daniel. And the utter lack of any such magic spell or power on Etheria.
"Hm. Since Earth has different magical traditions compared to Etheria, that is a scientific approach." Entrapta smiled at him.
Unfortunately, Thor wasn't smiling. The Asgard was scowling at his brother. "You are dabbling with magic again?"
"I have not used magic in our experiments so far. Not only would that defeat the purpose of finding a cure our species can use without depending on others, but it has not been necessary so far." Loki sniffed. "I have made significant progress with the support of these people - I am positive that this time, I can save the Asgard from our ancient folly."
"Like you were positive the last time? And the time before that?"
"This is so much like you! To dismiss my claims without even attempting to verify them. How… unscientific!" Loki sniffed in return.
"Yes. If you don't verify your data, how can you trust your decisions?" Entrapta asked. "Decisions based on prejudice are bad! And those based on gut feelings, I guess. Unless those experiments on Earth result in data that disproves this assumption."
Thor looked more surprised than angry, at least for a moment. Then he shook his head. "Optimistic projections are not hard facts."
"I'm not talking about projections!" Loki scoffed. "Take a look at the work I've already done!"
As if Alpha had been waiting for its cue - and it probably had, Jack realised - a holoprojection appeared next to the two Asgard, showing DNA sequences and several figures that looked like a mix between Asgard and humans. Which was a rather disturbing thought, actually, in light of Loki's comments about sexual reproduction.
"See? With the data and tools here, restoring our genome is within reach!" Loki crowed.
"What?" Thor bent forward and peered at the figures. "Those aren't depictions of our ancient forms!"
"Of course not!" Loki scoffed again. "Why should we regress to a state we left behind when we can evolve instead?"
Uh-oh. Carter had mentioned something about the project aiming for a new form or something, but hadn't that been because they didn't have the data to restore an older form? This sounded more like…
"You wish to shape our entire species according to your whim?" Thor all but bellowed. He looked at the text again. "Sexual reproduction?"
Loki - typically, Jack thought - was undaunted. "Of course. Asexual reproduction has proven to have played a part in causing our current crisis, while the vast majority of the sapient species we know reproduce sexually. That means that if we want to avoid suffering the same crisis later, we need to adapt - to evolve," he said in a voice that sounded far too smug to Jack.
And far too smug for Thor, it seemed. "You are mad if you believe that our people will accept such drastic changes!"
"Do you think they would rather die out instead?" Loki shot back.
"Some will, indeed, before suffering such… changes!" Thor spat.
"No one will be forced to change," Loki said. "But our species will not go extinct."
"That sounds as if you already have a contingency plan." Thor managed to narrow his eyes quite impressively for their size. "I see. You claim you will not force your plan on others, yet what will you do if the Asgard would rather die out than accept such changes to our species?"
"That is none of your concern," Loki said. "For you will have adapted and changed already or have died when the time comes for any such plan to be implemented."
That sounded like a threat to Jack, but with the looming extinction of the Asgard, it might just be a factual statement.
Thor shook his head. "So, do you plan to repopulate our species? With your own?"
Loki frowned slightly at that, so Jack was sure that Thor had hit the nail on the head. "I will not let my people die out due to ignorance, false pride and superstition."
"That is not your decision to make!" Thor told him.
"So, you think the High Council can order me to commit suicide? And to abstain from procreating?" Loki said. "And you call me unethical!"
Well, he had a point. Kind of - Jack didn't like agreeing with Loki. But letting others, even your own government, decide whether or not you were allowed to have kids? That decision belonged to you, not to the government or anyone else. And, Jack added with a slight grimace, remembering his thoughts about his own sort of heritage, what with Anise's proposals, so does the decision whether or not you would have kids. Which he wouldn't, at least not now.
*****
That wasn't right! Adora shook her head. "You can't order your people - any of them - to die. Or die out. That's wrong!"
"One person cannot decide the fate of a species," Thor retorted.
"But the High Council can?" Loki asked, scoffing once more.
"The High Council, at least, is the legitimate authority of the Asgard! You are a renegade and criminal with no authority at all - and a history of failures and violations of our people's most important ethics. Your careless actions endangered the entire sector! If anyone is the least qualified to make any decisions about a species, it's you!" Thor glared at Loki.
"You would doom our people merely to obey pointless laws and customs that have long since lost their relevance! When a species faces an existential crisis, it must adapt, or it will die! You cannot cling to outdated morals when your very survival is at risk!" Loki spat.
Now that was… wrong as well. Adora shook her head. "No. In a crisis, it's most important to stick to your ideals."
"Yes," Bow chimed in while the two Asgard glared at each other. "If you abandon your ideals for convenience, did you ever have any ideals at all?"
Loki turned to face her. "If your ideals lead to your demise, then they are obviously not valid."
"Of course you would say that!" Thor shook his head. "Some ideals are worth more than your life! Some lines are so important that no price is worth crossing them. Not that you would understand that."
Adora nodded in agreement. With the principle, not the judgement of Loki. The ends didn't justify the means.
"Life means change. Adapt or die. Ideals are no exception," Loki retorted. "If upholding an ideal does more harm than good, it needs to be changed. Anything else is stupid. Suicidally stupid if you are in lethal danger."
Adora glanced at the others. Catra had her lips pressed together as if she was forcing herself to remain silent. Glimmer looked… angry but torn?
"Very pragmatic," Jack said. "But who gets to decide what is more harm than good?"
Loki frowned at him. "It should be obvious that the survival of your species is paramount."
"No!" Thor retorted. "You are wrong. Our survival is not paramount. Not if it costs everything that makes us what we are. If we follow your plan, if we change like you want us to, then we will not be the Asgard any more. We are more than our genes - and you want to change those as well!"
"We changed more radically in the past," Loki spat. "Did we stop being Asgard then? Once, we sexually reproduced. Were we not Asgard back then? We had other ideals in the past, as you know - ideals we changed or dropped."
"We changed, but not for mere expediency or convenience!"
"This is about the survival of our species, not about mere convenience or expediency." Loki glared at his brother again. He hadn't actually stopped glaring for a while, Adora noted.
"No. This is about
you, above all." Thor spread his hands and gestured at the holoprojections in front of him, then at the room. "This is about your ego. About you being proven right. About your will being enforced on the Asgard. If it were about the survival of our species, you would not go behind our back, you would not conspire to… to create a new species from our genes."
"I have tried working with you and the High Council! Multiple times! But I never succeeded because you are unwilling to do what must be done - or let me do it. You are so terrified of change, you are dooming our species!" Loki took a step forward toward his brother.
"No! We are not terrified of change! We are horrified by the atrocities you did and would do in pursuit of your goals!" Thor stepped forward as well until he almost touched Loki. "And as I told you before: If you have to betray your ideals to survive, then that is too high a price to pay."
"For you. I am willing to pay this price. Future Asgard can choose their own ideals."
"Oh, you fool! You have not changed at all!" Thor turned away, then addressed Adora and her friends. "And you! You have seen how he thinks - that he will do anything, no matter how vile, to achieve his goals. How can you support him?"
Adora clenched her teeth, then took a deep breath and met Thor's eyes without flinching. "Because everyone deserves a chance to change. To do better. Because to deny Loki that would be betraying our ideals."
Thor stared at her for a moment without saying anything, then glanced at her friends. "I see. It's on your head, then." He nodded in. "I shall take my leave. The Asgard will not condone any of this."
Adora didn't think he was just talking about the experiments.
Glimmer nodded. "A shuttle will take you back to the Stargate."
As Thor left the room, Alpha leading him to the hangar, Adora couldn't help sighing.
"This could have gone better," Jack said, echoing her thoughts.
*****
"It could not," Loki said at once, scoffing. "My brother has always stubbornly clung to the High Council's rules and regulations in blatant disregard of logic and rationality. He would never change. But, ultimately, his disapproval does not change anything."
You don't seem to be quite as nonchalant as you sound, Samantha Carter thought. She wasn't an expert in Asgard expressions and body language, but Loki looked tense, and there was a certain underlying frustration in his tone.
"I think that's what he said about you," the General commented.
"Yes. And it's wrong. People can change, even after a long time," Adora added.
People could, Sam agreed. Humans, at least. But the Asgard were not humans, and they lived a very long time - over a thousand years at the minimum since both Loki and Thor had been in contact with the Norse on Earth in the early Medieval Age. Who knew how old Loki and Thor were? Older people were often set in their ways. Of course, that might not apply to the Asgard. However, she couldn't deny that Thor hadn't seemed open to the idea that Loki had changed. Or would ever change.
"Thor is the Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet," Catra said. "And a member of your High Council, right?"
"To my current knowledge, yes," Loki replied.
"Does he speak for it?"
"I would say that Thor is one of the High Council's mouthpieces instead." Loki snorted. "As you have seen, he will obey them without question."
Sam's eyebrows rose. That sounded like a very biased opinion.
"Whatever," Catra said, shrugging. "The question is: What will the Asgard do now? Will they try to stop you?"
"They would love to." Loki grinned. "But they cannot afford a war with you, not when they are already fighting the Replicators. They can harp and complain, but it will not amount to anything more than noise."
Sam wasn't about to dismiss diplomatic pressure as mere noise. Once again, she missed Daniel.
"The Asgard are a major power," Glimmer pointed out. "And we shouldn't dismiss them like that. There's more to power than just the military."
"And they won't be fighting the war against the Replicators forever - they are winning, after all," Catra added.
"By the time the war ends, I will have completed my research," Loki retorted. "The deed will have been done, so to speak."
That sounded very confident. Maybe overly so. But neither Morrison nor Entrapta seemed to disagree with the assessment. Then again, both were a little quiet - understandable with Morrison; he wasn't used to interstellar diplomacy. But Entrapta usually spoke her mind, often without regard to the situation at hand. Sam knew that from experience.
"And then what?" Adora asked. "What will you do?"
"I will save the Asgard. I will offer the cure to my people," Loki said. "They deserve a choice. A chance to change and survive as a species."
"And what will you do if they refuse it?" The General shrugged at Loki's frown. "Sometimes, people act irrationally. They might not want a new body even if it's far superior to their old one."
Loki scoffed. "While I cannot deny that some of the Asgard might baulk at the idea of such a change - my foolish brother is one example of that backward thinking - that does not extend to everyone. Our numbers aren't what they were in the past, but even a fraction of the Asgard joining me will be enough to restore us in the long term since we will be able to reproduce again."
"Yes." Entrapta nodded. "And even if all Asgard refuse, you just need enough genetic diversity to avoid inbreeding, and that won't need too many samples - we can introduce variations here as well."
"Exactly!" Loki smiled. "In the worst case, I can restore the Asgard myself."
Just like Thor had feared.
"Sounds like a copyright complaint waiting to happen. Does Bright Moon have copyright lawyers?"
The General was joking, but this was an issue. "How would the Asgard react to that?" Sam asked. She couldn't imagine that they would be happy about Loki's plans. Thor certainly had said so.
Loki frowned. "I would hope that their foolish pride will not push them into an attempt to genocide the new generation of Asgard, but in light of my experience with the High Council - and Thor's stated views, which you witnessed - I cannot exclude the possibility."
That sounded a bit far-fetched to Sam.
"We won't let them - or anyone - murder your children!" Adora, of course, jumped at it.
"They would have to attack the Clones as well if they wanted to destroy all your children," Entrapta pointed out. "But they wouldn't do that, would they? Thor didn't seem to have issues with you." She looked at Hordak.
"I doubt that he would have announced a desire or plan to kill us all in our presence," Hordak said. "However, I don't know if he has fully considered the implications of our creation - that we are, technically, your descendants." He nodded at Loki. "Or what the rest of your High Council will think about this. Us. He has known we are related to the Asgard since we first met, though."
Sam agreed. Thor had only discovered Loki's involvement today, but he might have already suspected something.
"But…" Entrapta shook her head several times. "Why would he want to murder you? That would make no sense! The Asgard protect people from the Goa'uld!"
Sam bit her lower lip. Her friend was getting worked up about this entirely hypothetical threat. An entirely hypothetical threat, she realised, that Loki had brought up. And which would make sure that the Etherians would support and protect him at any cost…
*****
Catra frowned at Loki. He 'couldn't exclude' the possibility of the Asgard attempting to murder all Clones? If the Asgard tried that, it would mean war. And he had said they were unlikely to start a war while fighting the Replicators. But the possibility alone - pure speculation - had Adora up in arms. Which was awfully convenient for Loki. Of course, they didn't know much about the Asgard; they had only met Thor and Loki, and you shouldn't judge an entire species after meeting only two of them - imagine if someone had met Shadow Weaver and Double Trouble and thought all Etherians were backstabbing bastards like them! But the Asgard were protecting at least some planets from the Goa'uld, and Thor had taken the revelation that Hordak and the other clones were closely related to the Asgard, enough to fool some of their Asgard's own defence systems, without much of a reaction. He had only lost his temper once he had discovered Loki had created Horde Prime.
She cocked her head to the side and snorted. "I don't think we should assume the worst about the Asgard just because Thor doesn't like Loki."
"Of course not," Adora agreed.
"They have been protecting people from the Goa'uld," Bow added. "Without exploiting them, as far as we can tell."
"They did pose as gods, though," Jack pointed out.
Teal'c nodded.
"Yes, but…Thor said that was a mistake, and they did it to avoid, uh, influencing their culture?" Bow shrugged. "They don't rule them or demand worship, that much we know."
"True." Teal'c nodded again.
"And Thor didn't make an issue about the Clones even after he knew you were related," Catra pointed out, nodding at Hordak. "He only got mad at you, Loki."
"Based on prejudices," Loki said.
"Well, he must have suspected you before," Jack added. "He mentioned scientists breaking their laws when we met him."
Loki sneered. "The High Council would blame me without any proof."
Not without reason, Catra thought. Loki must have done some really nasty things in the past for that. "He does seem a bit fixated on you," she said. "Were you close before you became enemies?" She noticed Adora and the others glancing at her but ignored them. Being siblings didn't mean you had to be close - they didn't know much about Asgard society.
"We are brothers," Loki said. "We grew up together. We worked together. But when I needed his support the most, he betrayed me to the High Council."
Catra suppressed a wince. She knew that feeling. Very, very well. But she also knew that feeling betrayed didn't mean you were in the right. Not at all. "And ever since then, you've worked to show him how wrong he was?"
"If he were objective, he would have admitted his mistake," Loki replied. "But no matter what I did, he opposed me - sometimes ruined my work. I fear that he will deny I was right even after I save our species."
Ah, yes. That sounded very familiar. Uncomfortably so. Catra nodded. "And it was never your fault?"
"Of course not! I only did what needed to be done to save our species!" Loki spat. "But he does not want to understand that the High Council is wrong and would doom us all!"
Catra glanced at Adora. Her lover was wincing. And so were Glimmer and Bow. And they weren't looking at Catra. Pointedly so.
"Well, we won't let them doom your species!" Entrapta said. "And then you can make up with your brother."
Loki nodded.
Did he really think that would work? And did he really care so much for Thor's acceptance? Or was it, as Thor had claimed, just about being right? Was this about his pride above all? Catra knew how that felt as well. It had been her lowest point, well, one of them, when she had risked Etheria's destruction just to win against Adora.
On the other hand, Loki was trying to save his species. If the High Council really preferred dying out to changing, even radically changing, then they were being stupid and had no right to drag others down with them.
Catra shrugged. Ultimately, Loki's relationship with Thor wasn't any of her business. As long as it didn't cause a war or something. "I think that will take more than being right, but he's your brother, not mine."
"Whatever." Glimmer shook her head. "In any case, we need to ensure that the Asgard won't attack us. We can't launch an offensive against the Goa'uld if we have to guard against them."
"And we should explain to the High Council that our experiments are safe," Entrapta added. "They don't have to fear us."
Loki snorted at that. "They fear what they cannot control."
"They must fear a lot, then," Teal'c commented. "Most of the Universe is outside of anyone's control."
Jack frowned. "I'm not sure how welcome we'll be in their space. Thor seemed pretty pissed off that we were working with Loki."
Catra could understand that as well.
"Yes," Adora said. "But we still have to reach out to him. And we need to find out what the rest of the High Council thinks."
"And we need Daniel," Jack said.
*****
Mojave Desert, California, United States of America, November 20th, 1999
Jack O'Neill wasn't sure what had been going through Daniel's head when he had picked a retreat in the Mojave Desert to help Sha're recover from being a Goa'uld host. Did he think it would look familiar to her? Jack doubted that. "At least it's not summer," he muttered as he brought his personal stealth shuttle to a stop next to what looked like a rather cheap bungalow.
Since landing and leaving indents in the ground from the shuttle's struts would defeat the purpose of using a stealth shuttle in the first place, he left it hovering with its rear facing the door, then quickly lowered the ramp and stepped out.
By the time he rang the door, the ramp had been retracted, and the shuttle was invisible again. And the two undercover security watching over his friend and Sha're he had made had stopped staring at him.
"Coming!" he heard from inside the bungalow. A moment later, the door was opened, and Daniel smiled at him. "Hi, Jack."
"Hi, Daniel." Jack made a point of looking his friend over. Civilian shirt, jeans, liht shoes, messy hair, no harried expression or tension… Daniel looked like he was doing fine in the retreat. And Jack felt a slight pang of guilt for what he was about to do.
"Jack O'Neill. Welcome." Sha're joined Daniel, half a step behind him, one hand on his shoulder. She was wearing a simple dress and sandals and looked better than the last time Jack had seen her, but she was tense - and her eyes kept looking around, past him and back to the bungalow's living room.
"Hi, Sha're." Jack did his best to smile reassuringly at her. "How are you doing?"
"I am doing… well," Sha're said.
Jack would have believed it if not for the slight hesitation. And the way Daniel put his hand on hers and gently squeezed.
"Come in!" His friend took a step back, wrapping an arm around Sha're's waist, and gestured towards the living room with his free hand.
"Thank you."
The bungalow looked nicer on the inside. Probably refurbished by Uncle Sam in a hurry after their return from Saqqara, and the outside had been left alone because it would draw less attention. "Nice digs," Jack said as he sat down on the chair next to the couch.
"Yes," Daniel said. "The Air Force is being generous. Or the Alliance - I don't actually know who's paying for this."
Jack shrugged - he didn't know either. "It doesn't matter; it's still the least that you deserve for everything you've done for Earth."
Sha're appeared, carrying a tray with three glasses, three bottles of beer and a plate with olive oil, salt and flatbread that looked like it was homemade. She put it down on the low table, then sat next to Daniel on the couch. So close, Jack would have trouble sliding a sheet of paper between them.
"Thank you," he told her as Daniel opened the beers. It was some German brand Jack didn't know - it wasn't sold in the Lübtheen Base. It did look expensive, though.
"They sell them in California," Daniel said, smiling a little embarrassedly. He must have caught Jack studying the label.
"If they had to fly it in from Germany itself, it would still be fine - you deserve this and more," Jack told him.
Daniel shrugged.
"Daniel told me about this beer, back home. He did not lie about its taste. It's very different from what we have at home, but very good," Sha're said as she filled her glass.
Daniel did the same. Jack would have preferred to drink from the bottle, but when in Rome… "Cheers!"
The beer was good. "I'll have to order some for the base," Jack said, holding up the bottle, before he tried the bread. Yes, definitely homemade. "Did you make this?" he asked Sha're as he dipped another piece into the oil. "It's great."
She tilted her head slightly. "I am learning how to use the… appliances." With a wry smile, she added: "The first tries were… not so good."
"They were good," Daniel insisted at once. "Much better than what bread we get here."
Sha're smiled and nodded, but it looked as if she didn't believe him. Jack studied her while he grabbed another piece of flatbread and refilled his glass. She looked… fragile would be wrong. But she wasn't at ease. That was understandable, of course, with what she had gone through, but being on Earth would be a shock under the best circumstances. "So, enjoying the desert?" he said.
"It's nice," Daniel said. "Quiet. Peaceful."
"It reminds me of home. A little," Sha're added.
"Well, we couldn't take you to Egypt," Jack said.
"Daniel explained that, yes."
"I would have loved showing you the country where the Stargate was found, but… Politics make that difficult," Daniel said.
"I understand. I have… seen the news." She nodded at the television in the corner. "It was a little scary."
And coming from a woman who had been the host of a Goa'uld queen, that said a lot about the news.
"Yes." Daniel nodded again, finished his beer, then gently took Sha're's hand again. "Anyway, Jack, while I know you'd use a stealth shuttle just to come visit, you didn't come just to visit, did you?"
Jack felt guilty again. He grimaced, then slowly nodded. "Yes. I didn't come just to check up on you. We - the Alliance - have a bit of a problem."
"And you need my help." Daniel tilted his head a bit to the side, glancing at Sha're. He hadn't let go of her hand, Jack noted.
"Well… You're our foremost expert in alien diplomacy," Jack said.
"I'm not a diplomat, Jack. I'm an archaeologist."
Was that modesty or an excuse to let them down? Probably the former; Jack knew Daniel had never shied away from helping those in need. On the other hand, Sha're needed him right now, and he hadn't yet asked what the problem was… "I guess someone forgot to tell that to all the aliens we met," Jack said, grinning.
Daniel frowned a little but nodded. "Well, someone had to talk to people. But our actual diplomats have been in contact with Etheria for over a year now. And also with the Tok'ra. And academics of all kinds have been analysing alien cultures." He nodded at a stack of magazines next to the couch.
He was right, of course. But none of them was Daniel.
"And the Etherians have diplomats as well," Daniel went on. "They have had global diplomatic meetings, formal ones, for centuries, and they've been dealing with people different enough they could arguably be aliens - although I guess that their cultures did share basic similarities, which would not be the same with actual alien cultures. On the other hand, we mostly talked to human cultures, so it's not that different compared to Earth's experiences."
Jack nodded. "Yeah. But none of our diplomats have made first contact as often as you did. Or at all. It's not about knowing how to behave at a state dinner or making nice with people you hate - it's about understanding aliens. And having an open mind." He looked straight at Daniel. "And most importantly, it's about being honest."
His friend blinked, then frowned. "OK, what exactly did the Alliance diplomats do, and why didn't Adora and Glimmer straighten them out yet?"
Jack winced. "Thor found out about the deal with Loki."
"Oh."
"Loki… the alien you mentioned trying to save his species?" Sha're asked.
"Yes." Daniel nodded at her.
That was a correct description, but one that left out a lot of stuff. "Thor had found some clues that Loki was interested in Earth and came to warn us," Jack went on. "
"Oh." Daniel winced. "And then he found out that we're working with Loki."
"Who apparently is Asgard's most wanted mad scientist," Jack said, smiling wryly. "And he and Thor have some issues with each other. Big ones." And maybe a subscription to 'Sibling Problems Weekly'.
"And Adora and the others couldn't explain the situation?" Daniel cocked his head to the side, frowning again.
"They did their best, but…" Jack sighed. "Thor didn't exactly agree with the whole 'even war criminals get a second chance if they say they're sorry' stance of the Etherians."
Daniel frowned some more and pushed his glasses up his nose with one finger. "That's an unfair view, Jack. The Etherians do not see things the same as we do - they have entirely different traditions for settling conflicts, at least compared to modern Earth, and their culture focuses a lot more on personal relationships between rulers."
Jack managed not to grin - Daniel starting to lecture was a good sign. "Well, as we found out, the Asgard don't share those traditions, and Thor's focus on the personal relationship with his brother the mad scientist didn't go over well with the Etherians. And vice versa. So…" He spread his hands. "Thor also didn't like the idea that Loki's trying to build the future of the Asgard, including their body and sexuality."
"Their sexuality?" Daniel blinked.
"I thought they didn't have sex - they grow bodies like plants," Sha're said, frowning.
"Well, yeah, they do, but Loki thinks that's part of their problem, and so he's trying to change it. Make them more like us." Jack snorted. "Literally - he wants to know more about how we handle sex and what we find attractive in a partner."
Daniel blinked, his mouth half-open. Sha're seemed surprised as well, but less so.
"Anyway," Jack said, "Thor didn't leave on good terms, and no one knows what the Asgard will do now. That Horde Prime was Loki's creation doesn't help at all, of course."
Daniel slowly nodded. "Thor should have realised that after our second meeting since they scanned Hordak. But… maybe Thor didn't want it to be true? Or maybe there were other possibilities?"
"He wasn't aware that Loki created Horde Prime. He thought Loki just helped with the clones," Jack explained.
"Ah." Daniel nodded once more. "That would fit. But that would also make things worse - another thing that Loki did that caused a lot of harm. Indirectly, but still."
"You've found the crux of the problem." As expected.
Daniel gave him a look that told Jack he had been a bit too obvious with the flattery. Even though it was the truth. "Anyway, that's the kind of mess we're dealing with."
"And you want my help with it." Daniel glanced at Sha're again, this time with a guilty expression.
And Jack felt guilty again. "Maybe look the files over and give us a bit of advice? You more than deserve your time off, and you're dealing with a lot." He shrugged. That wouldn't be enough, though. Daniel was best when he was talking to people.
"And the Etherians trust me, while they wouldn't trust a diplomat. Not as much," Daniel said.
"Yes." Though Jack, Carter and Teal'c all had also agreed that Daniel was the best choice. For mostly the same reasons. They knew and trusted him. With their lives, if necessary.
"And they are right," Sha're said.
Jack blinked, and so did Daniel. "Sha're…" His friend trailed off.
Sha're smiled at Daniel. "This is important. For everyone. For the war against the Goa'uld." She bared her teeth for a moment, and Daniel wrapped one arm around her again. "And you won't be gone - you can… commute?"
"Yes, commute." Daniel smiled.
"Or we can go to your house. See more of Earth."
Jack knew that Daniel hadn't spent much time in his nominal home in Colorado since the Stargate had been moved to Canada and the Alliance had been installed in Brussels. But there was no need to bring that up. Hell, if Daniel wanted a villa in Belgium - or anywhere else - and a personal shuttle with pilot, he'd get them in a heartbeat. It would be a drop in the budget for the Alliance. And Daniel had more than earned it.
Anything to get his friend on the job. But they better look out for Sha're as well. And separating them… "You can help him," he said, looking at her.
She seemed surprised for a moment. Then pensive. "I have seen a lot. Much of it was…" She pressed her lips together. "But some was useful."
Daniel hugged her, then glared at Jack. "You don't have to do this. You already got debriefed. And that was…"
That wouldn't have been pretty, no. Jack could imagine. But he also could imagine that doing something to help the war against the Goa'uld, or just doing something, would help Sha're.
And, ultimately, it was her decision.
Especially if it helps fix the mess with the Asgard, he thought. And felt a pang of guilt again.
*****