1. Plots and Counterplots

**Chapter I: Plots and Counterplots**

**A/N: This is my first Tok'ra story. *…* indicates internal/symbiote talking. Enjoy the first chapter. Sparky She-Demon **

* * *

They were going to learn more about za'tarc programming. After the near assassination of the Tau'ri president, the Tok'ra now had a subject to experiment on; sadly it was a highly respected and skilled operative pair: Martouf and his symbiote Lantash. Much to Freya and Anise's chagrin, they'd been told to turn over their research to the head of the experiment, Re'nal. Neither of them particularly liked Ren'al,

According to Ren'al, Lantash was too badly injured for them to even think about healing Martouf. The only option was to remove Lantash.

*Ren'al would say or do anything to make sure she kept her prize.* Thought Anise.

*Would she really do such a thing? Taking a symbiote out of a willing host and if I know Lantash as well as I think I do, taking a very unwilling symbiote from the host, is against the ideals of the Tok'ra. Why would she risk severe punishment?*

*She'll do anything as long as she comes out on top. Ren'al wants the credit for maybe "solving" the za'tarc problem and it doesn't matter what she does in order to do it.*

Freya gave a mental sigh. Anise had never liked Ren'al, even when they were newly spawned symbiotes. There would be no dissuading her.

As they were heading to the baths, they overheard a conversation. It was Ren'al and a few other scientists.

"-the Council cannot know of this. If Lantash is allowed to heal his host or have help healing him, we lose everything…"

"But Ren'al…"

"Silence! You will say nothing of this to anyone. If it becomes common knowledge among the Council that Lantash can heal Martouf, everything will be lost. Do I make myself clear?"

Ren'al took a deep breath to calm herself and got back to work.

Freya and Anise quickly got out of visual range. Ren'al was planning on doing the unthinkable. They would have to move carefully against her, since she was a member of the Council.

Unfortunately, Ren'al was quickly convincing the other Council members of the futility of allowing Lantash to heal Martouf. Freya and Anise needed to get to the Council member that would be the hardest for Ren'al to convince: Selmak and Jacob Carter.

* * *

Freya made it to Jacob quickly. After listening to her tale, with some input from Anise, they agreed with them. But there was one problem. It would be Freya and Anise's word against the word of Ren'al. The Council member would just say that they were angry about losing the project to her. Proof beyond a reasonable doubt would have to be provided as to what Ren'al was up to.

In the meantime, they would need to get the symbiote that was the best with the healing tech, outside of the healers. The thing was Falina did not have a host at present.

Jacob thought to Selmak,

*We'll need to get Falina a host. It has to be someone that is a complete unknown and won't be easily manipulated by Ren'al. But where could we get one from?*

*Jacob, you already know where you have to get the host from. You have to get one from Stargate Command.*

*I can't imagine that there'd be too many people that would be willing, especially given the recent incident.*

*It's the best place to look Jacob, where we would possibly find someone who fits those criteria.*

A few hours later, Jacob was done with the Council meeting. He'd watched Ren'al like a hawk. She was working fast to convince everyone else that it was futile to let Lantash heal Martouf, even with the help of the healers.

Though the people that were siding with her were still a minority, they were gaining ground. If what Anise and Freya were saying was true, time was of the essence.

But there was hope. Jacob was going to be heading to the SGC in a few days, so he would be able to serve both the official purpose and the purpose of finding a host for Falina, before it was too late.

* * *

As he was getting ready to leave for the SGC, Jacob was talking with Selmak.

*What do you know about Falina, Sel?*'

*Falina prefers female hosts. She's intelligent, along with being quite fiery. Not unlike Lantash. She mostly works undercover operations and is very good at it. So a host that blends in would also be a good idea.*

*As if the pool wasn't already narrow enough!*

*Relax Jacob, I am sure we will find someone suitable.* Selmak soothed, her voice trying to calm him down.

*We can only hope.*

After the official business was done, Jacob sent their Tok'ra escorts away. He needed to talk to George and it needed to be in private.

"What is it Jake?"

Deciding that being straightforward with his old friend, he said,

"Are there any possible people here that would be willing to become a host? It would be best if it were someone that's an unknown."

"Jacob, most of the personnel that are here aren't too thrilled with the idea. And practically all that were interested aren't any longer, given recent events."

He knew that his old friend was talking about the za'tarc fiasco.

*He only said practically all of them. There must be one or two left.*

"Are there any left?" Jacob asked, humoring his symbiote.

* * *

George sat back in his chair and thought for a moment.

"There is one that we haven't gotten to yet, a Lieutenant Elizabeth Lamont. She's been off world for the past two weeks and just got back."

*She? That's good news!*

*Don't get your hopes up just yet Sel. For all we know, this lieutenant won't be interested.*

"What is this lieutenant's specialty?"

"Lieutenant Lamont is involved with demolitions. And she's pretty good at it too."

*Demolitions. Hmmm… sounds like she could be good at sabotage*

*That she could be. The Tok'ra cannot have too many saboteurs* Making a decision, Jacob asked,

"Could we meet her? I think that talking to her would be a good idea."

"Of course. I'll get her up here quickly."

Hammond signaled the airman outside his office and said,

"Find Lt. Lamont and escort her up here."

"Yes sir."

* * *

**A/N 2: So… what do you think so far? Concrit is welcome. I'm also looking for someone to make a cover for this.**


	2. A Willing Host

**Chapter II: A Willing Host**

**A/N: Thank you to my reviewers Roeskva, I.M. Frelling Wonko, MrsSwords, and Hathorgirl. I'm really enjoying writing this. Symbiote/internal talking are italicized and have *…* to make them stand out more. Enjoy the next chapter! SSD **

* * *

Lt. Elizabeth Lamont of the USAF was working on her after mission report. She was trying to get it finished before going to the commissary to eat. She hated writing them.

At least it had been a relatively quiet mission. Well, as quiet as it could be for an explosives specialist.

Elizabeth had been on a planet that had a very good amount of naquadah. But explosives were needed to get the excavation started. The inhabitants of P4X-1138 had never seen explosives before. So they were watching her every move avidly.

She continued typing some more before her stomach started growling rather loudly. Ignoring it, Elizabeth finished up her report about five minutes later, saved it, and started towards the commissary. Naturally, she would be interrupted.

"Lieutenant Lamont!"

Turning around she saw General Hammond's yeoman walking quickly down the corridor.

"_Oh God, why is the General's yeoman looking for me?" _

Right after thinking this, she started her walk towards the airman.

"What is it Airman?"

"General Hammond wants to talk with you. General Carter is also there as well."

"_Oh My God. What did I do to have attracted the attention of not only one, but *two* Air Force generals? I haven't done anything stupid as far as I know."_

* * *

Noticing that the young lieutenant had turned ashen, Airman Roberts decided to take pity on her.

"You're not in trouble, Lieutenant. They just want to talk to you about something you volunteered for."

Elizabeth tried to remember anything she may have volunteered for. Realizing something, she thought,

"_Wait. General Carter is here. I think I know why he wants to talk to me."_

Elizabeth smiled. Looks like her interest in the Tok'ra had gotten some attention. Unlike most of her colleagues, she found the whole arrangement fascinating.

She'd only voiced those views to the others once. Unfortunately, that was all what was needed to have people give her flak about her views. Elizabeth knew that they were biologically Goa'uld. But it was their philosophy that was different.

The Tok'ra symbiotes gave their hosts many things. And the only thing that the host needed to provide was their physical body. It sounded like a pretty good deal to her.

Elizabeth was pretty damn sure that she was only person interested in being a host left in the Mountain. A Tok'ra had nearly killed the President. She'd also heard that he was a za'tarc; which meant that he'd been programmed by the Goa'uld and didn't know about it. So that made it a case of _non compus mentis_.

Well, now she would find out more, hopefully. What the Tok'ra would want with a newly minted 1st Looey?

* * *

Airman Roberts was watching the young woman. He felt sorry for her. Trying to imagine what she was thinking and feeling, he shook his head. She was probably nervous as hell.

By the time they got to the General's office, Elizabeth was nervous again. Even though she had something of an idea as to what they were going to talk about with her, she still was on edge. Generals didn't usually ask for a first lieutenant unless said lieutenant was up her eyeballs in trouble.

Airman Roberts touched the intercom and said,

"I have Lieutenant Lamont here sir."

"Bring her in," was the reply.

He turned to the lieutenant, whose face was now ashen.

"_Poor kid."_

* * *

Jacob and Selmak observed the young lieutenant that could wind up being Falina's host. Slightly above average height, with dark hair and eyes, the lieutenant looked like a ghost, she was so pale. Obviously she was quite nervous.

_*Not that I can blame her. When a general requests the presence of a lieutenant in your military, it's not usually a good thing, at least for the lieutenant.*_

_*Selmak be quiet. I need to talk to her.*_

His old friend however beat him to the punch.

"Lieutenant, please have a seat." Hammond gestured to a seat that didn't look particularly comfortable, but it served the purpose of being a seat for Lieutenant Lamont.

"Yes sir," was her crisp reply.

Not wasting any time, Jacob got to the point.

"Lieutenant, I'm sure you're aware of the fact that two years ago I was dying of cancer."

"Yes sir." She was going to use the military courtesy that had been ground into her as her defense.

"But I found help. You have heard of the Tok'ra?"

Elizabeth nodded. She'd heard of them. The whole base had heard of them.

"As I'm sure you're aware, that the symbiotes have excellent healing abilities. But sometimes, even the symbiotes themselves need help."

"I thought that the Tok'ra didn't use the sarcophagus, sir."

_*She certainly has done her homework.*_

_*There's probably been talk around the base, Sel*_

Continuing the conversation Jacob said,

"That would be correct Lieutenant. But there are healing devices that can and are used."

* * *

Hammond cut in saying,

"Jake, could you get to the point?"

"I was getting to that George. Lieutenant, there is a symbiote that needs help healing his host. The healers aren't being allowed to help him."

"Why not, sir?"

"They want to examine the host's brain. Have you heard about the fiasco with the treaty signing?"

Elizabeth nodded.

"Well the Tok'ra don't generally like removing a symbiote from a willing host, especially when it's possible for that symbiote to heal the host. But there are people that are planning on removing Lantash from his host Martouf. They are convincing many people that it's a lost cause for him to heal Martouf. Or to even be helped along with the healing process, so our healers aren't being allowed near him."

Elizabeth nodded. There was no shortage of people in the galaxy that would do anything to get what they wanted, even compromise the ideals of their people.

"There is a symbiote, Falina, who is the best with the tech outside of the healers. There's only one problem for her. She needs a host and preferably someone that won't be easily manipulated."

Elizabeth couldn't believe her ears. Was he asking what she thought he was asking? Taking a deep breath, she asked,

"Are you asking me to become a host?"

_*Selmak, maybe you should come to the fore now.*_

_*Been wanting to for a while.*_

Jacob bowed his head, and Selmak began talking.

"That is exactly what we are asking of you lieutenant* she said, not bothering to hide the vocal distortion.

* * *

Though the lieutenant started at the distortion, she did not show any fear. Elizabeth was thinking it over, with what was at stake, there was only one answer that she could give.

"I'll do it."

Jacob/Selmak breathed a sigh of relief. But Selmak had one more point to make,

"You do realize, Lieutenant, that there will be no going back."

"I understand that. I still want to do it."

Selmak looked her in the eye, then said,

"So be it."


	3. Work to Do

**Chapter III: Work to Do**

**A/N: I had a real hard time writing the blending sequence. I hope it turned out okay. Thank you my reviewers! Enjoy the chapter. Sparky She-Demon**

**P.S: Fixed a small clerical error.**

**9/4/13- Fixed another small error. **

* * *

Elizabeth had gotten things taken care of and quick. Though there were people helping her, there were still things that she needed to do herself. Like talk to her landlord, who was less than amused at her terminating her lease sooner than expected.

While she was walking towards the Gateroom, Elizabeth heard a sneering voice say,

"So you're finally drinking the Kool-Aid when it comes to the "good" snakeheads, Lamont? At least that's what the rumor mill is saying."

She took a deep breath and counted to ten. It was Captain Atkinson. He was a big league asshole, who'd taken a particular hatred towards the Tok'ra for reasons unknown. Atkinson didn't give a rat's ass about philosophical differences. A snake was a snake. With a forced smile she replied,

"Captain. I thought you didn't believe the rumor mill?"

"I'll take that as a big yes. What is it you want from becoming a host? The ability to play with all those magnificent toys, the extended lifespan, what is it you want from this arrangement, Lieutenant?"

Elizabeth had nearly lost her temper when she heard General Carter's voice,

"Lieutenant, we need to get up to the Gateroom."

More than happy for the way out, she smiled sweetly and said,

"I guess you'll never know… Sir."

* * *

Once she walked through the Gate with General Carter, he turned to her saying,

"Follow me Lieutenant. This way."

Elizabeth followed him quickly. She would've offered to lead, but she didn't know the way.

After walking for a few miles, Jacob stopped.

"Come here, Lieutenant."

Stopping about a foot away from him, Elizabeth saw a ring device come up. She blinked, and as she opened her eyes, she was no longer in the desert. Instead she was in some underground complex made of crystal. Elizabeth looked around in fascination.

Allowing her a few minutes of looking around, Jacob/Selmak watched her.

_*I do believe that she will suit Falina quite well*_

_*Falina's another hothead like Lantash isn't she?*_

_*Let's just say that Falina will like the fact that Elizabeth was involved with explosives in the Air Force.*_

Jacob grumbled at the thought.

_*Just what we need: another hotheaded Tok'ra loose.*_

Jacob was so deep in thought, that he didn't hear Elizabeth ask him a question.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?"

"Where can I put my stuff sir?"

"Keep it with you for now. After you've blended with Falina fully, you'll be shown to your room."

* * *

As they walked through the tunnels, people stopped them to talk with Jacob or more accurately Selmak.

These people also noticed her and the fact that she had an SGC patch on her right shoulder. Some of them seemed surprised, but didn't say anything.

As they walked further down the corridor, another woman came up to Jacob.

"So is this the new host?"

"Yes Freya. This is Lt. Elizabeth Lamont. Elizabeth, this is Freya. Her symbiote's name is Anise. They will be helping you with the healing process."

Elizabeth nodded. She was starting to get nervous. Having a symbiote in one's head that had been born around the time of the Norman invasion of England; put a lot of things in perspective.

Freya returned the nod. Turning back to Jacob, she said,

"Ren'al is currently off base and will be for the next few days. If we're going to do this, we need to do it now."

Jacob turned back to Elizabeth saying,

"Last chance to turn back Lieutenant."

She rolled her neck and then squared her shoulders.

"I understand, sir. But I'm not backing out."

"Good. Follow us."

Elizabeth was following the other two, no _four_ at a rather brisk pace. It was going to take a bit to modify her thought process to include multiple beings in one body.

They went into a room that had what looked like a fish tank inside. And inside the fish tank, was what looked like an eel, but was apparently a symbiote.

Cracking her fingers, she asked,

"So, how do we do this?"

* * *

Falina was bored.

There was no other word for it. Swimming around in the tank was not fun. She did not like having the limited interaction. It was understandable that being held in a tank was used as a punishment for the Tok'ra. Even though Selmak and her host had told her that they were actively looking for a host, finding a willing host these days was not easy.

Just as Falina was getting ready to sleep, she noticed some people entering the chamber she was in. Two of them she recognized as Jacob/Selmak and Freya/Anise, the other one she did not.

_*Hmm. Looks like I've got a new host.*_

After a few moments of trying to look at her new host, Falina gave up for the time being. She would get to look at her soon enough.

No sooner had Falina gotten that thought, she was already making her way into her new host.

Elizabeth choked slightly.

"What do I do now, Sir?"

"You might want to get some sleep lieutenant. A full blending needs to be completed, and you need some sleep before you get to work."

After being led to a semi-private room (another thing she was going to need to get used to), Elizabeth suddenly felt very tired. Crashing onto the bed, she fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

8 hours later….

Elizabeth was out like a light. Before going to sleep, she'd been awake for over 36 hours. Meanwhile, her symbiote was making fast work of going through her memories and fully blending with her.

Falina was thankful for the fact that her host was young and healthy, with practically no healing for her to have to do, other than the fact that Elizabeth had been slightly sleep deprived.

She'd gone through the memories that her host had. She knew why they'd gotten this SGC lieutenant so fast. Ren'al was going to be trying to commit one of the capital crimes amongst the Tok'ra.

Falina decided that eight hours of deep sleep was enough for her host. They had work to do. She began to prod Elizabeth awake.

_*Mmph. Let me sleep.* _

_*We have work to do. We can sleep when we are done.*_

After a bit more prodding, Elizabeth was fully awake. After getting out of bed she asked,

_*So where do we go?*_

_*Not so fast, first you need to change into clothes that'll attract less attention around here.*_

Elizabeth looked around her room. On the wall opposite from her bed, was a Tok'ra uniform. She thought as she was getting dressed,

_*Thank god that it's not like what Freya was wearing. I don't think I'd be too comfortable in that.*_

_*I don't really like that style either. By the way, I don't think I've properly introduced myself. My name is Falina.*_

_*My name's Elizabeth. How long were you in that tank?*_

_*A bit over three months. It was incredibly dull.*_

By that point, Elizabeth had finished getting dressed. Having been told where to go, she navigated the tunnels with ease.

As they got to the rendezvous point, Elizabeth/Falina noticed Freya motioning towards her.

After being given brief instructions as to how to work the healing device, the four women headed to where Ren'al was keeping Martouf. After making sure that no minions of hers were around, they quickly took Martouf out of stasis and began their work.

Elizabeth thought,

_*So it begins*_

* * *

**A/N 2: So… how was the blending scene?**


	4. New Enemies

**Chapter IV: New Enemies**

**A/N: Thank you Amara for noticing some things and bringing them to my attention. You're really keeping me on my toes. Thank you Roeskva for catching that clerical error. Enjoy the chapter my readers! Sparky She-Demon**

* * *

Falina/Elizabeth along with Freya/Anise had been working on Martouf and Lantash for three days before they had to be _really_ careful. Ren'al was back, and was working her scam again. She had been less than thrilled by the fact that Falina had a host and a Tau'ri host at that.

She'd already started on Elizabeth/Falina and even if they weren't in on the counter scam, they would not have bought it. There were too many holes in the story for her liking. Elizabeth was surprised at how many people had bought the story.

_*How is it that beings who are supposed to be so smart and masters of sabotage, be so clueless?*_ Thought Elizabeth.

_*It is because that Ren'al is one of their own, and has never really tried something on this scale before. Also there is a growing number of Tok'ra that really do want to solve the za'tarc problem.*_

_*Even at a price like this?*_

_*Well, they're being fooled.*_

_*Don't we have to start today's round of healing?*_

"Falina, could I have a word with you?" It was Ren'al.

_*Oh shit.*_

_*You've picked up Tau'ri swearwords rather quickly, haven't you Falina?*_ her host mentally smirked.

_*That is a bad habit of yours.*_ Thought Falina.

Ren'al asked,

"Why did you agree to become a host?"

Somewhat surprised, Elizabeth said,

"Why do you want to know?"

"It's just that I thought, considering the tragedy that happened; no one from the SGC would be willing to become a host."

Elizabeth thought it over. Since Ren'al was the person that she was actively trying to work against, obviously the truth could not be given. Elizabeth decided to do some tap dancing laced with the truth.

"There really wasn't anything left for me back on Earth. I'd expressed interest in becoming a host in the past. And that was true: Very few people wanted to be hosts after the incident. But it really wasn't the host's fault."

Ren'al shook her head. She was surprised that a Tau'ri would understand that, especially one that was so young from a very young race.

Continuing, Elizabeth asked, "May I leave now? I do have some work to do."

Ren'al nodded and motioned her to leave.

Elizabeth immediately said,

_*Wow. That was close*_

_*Too close. *_

_*Do you think she bought it?*_

_*You can never really tell with her.*_

_*That is true, according to you.*_

* * *

Elizabeth was doing her best to stay focused on the matter at hand. The fact that she found Martouf handsome wasn't helping matters. She'd been doing her honest best to keep those thoughts to herself.

_*You think he's gorgeous.*_

Elizabeth ignored her symbiote and got back to work. But she did admit that Martouf was quite handsome.

_*You think he's pretty…*_ Falina's tone was getting even more teasing.

Elizabeth had learned the hard way that just because someone was nice looking, didn't mean that they would turn out to be a good person. A few of the guys she'd dated… Well any guy that would try to get close to her again in that manner would have to prove himself of being trustworthy beyond a doubt.

Falina had finished her teasing and took on a more serious line of questioning.

_*Why did you become a host?*_

_*It seemed like a good idea at the time. There were really no reasons for me to stay on Earth. All my family's dead.*_

_*I am sorry to hear that you've lost your parents already. How did they die if you don't mind me asking?*_

Elizabeth took a deep breath. This would be the first time she told anyone outside of those shrinks she'd been forced to see when she was younger.

_*My biological parents died when I was eight years old in a car accident. Both of my parents were only children and both sets of grandparents were dead at that point. So I was put into the foster care system.*_

Falina looked through Elizabeth's thoughts and continued to listen.

_*Some of the homes I was in were better than others. But no one ever wanted to keep me. People that are looking to adopt kids usually want them a lot younger. In the homes that weren't so good, I used my snark as a defense mechanism. It usually got me the label of having an attitude problem. No one ever saw it for what it was. Not until Eric and Monica got me.*_

_*Who were they?*_

_*They were an older couple that was usually given older kids to look after. I'd just turned fourteen and was starting 8__th__ grade. They took me in. Unlike so many of the others before, they saw the snark for what it was. Slowly they worked with me, and by the time I was getting ready to graduate from 8__th__ grade they gave me the best gift of all: Eric and Monica adopted me. They were the ones who saw me graduate from college and get my gold bars. I miss them both.*_

_*They sound like good people.*_

_*In a way, yes. After they died, I lost all my ties to Earth.*_

_*So the Tok'ra are a third family for you?*_

_*That would be correct.* _

Falina and Elizabeth were relatively silent in their thoughts. As Elizabeth's thoughts returned to Martouf, she felt a rush of emotion for his symbiote, Lantash.

_*What's going on Falina are you alright?*_

_*I'm just worried about my old friend that's all.*_

But Elizabeth could tell that there was more than what Falina was telling her.

_*Just friends my ass. I know that there's more to your relationship with Lantash than what you're telling me.*_

Falina mentally grumbled slightly. Her previous hosts hadn't ever been this fast at picking up her emotions this early in their relationship.

_*C'mon. If you can't tell me than whom else can you tell?*_

_*Well…*_ Elizabeth could sense her symbiote's reluctance and mentally prodded her some more. Knowing that her new host would not let it go any time soon, Falina started,

_*Lantash and I have been friends since well, forever. Up through our first several hosts, we were a nearly unstoppable pair when it came to fighting against the Goa'uld. My feelings began to evolve into love. It took me a while to get the courage to tell him, and by that time, Jolinar had come into the picture…*_

Elizabeth mentally hugged her symbiote.

_*A while after she arrived, I volunteered for a long term deep cover job. It would get me away from all of them. While I was happy for my friend, I wasn't really comfortable around them at that present time.* _

Elizabeth's throat was tight. She felt sorry for her symbiote. Elizabeth then asked,

_*Did you ever see them between the time you left and now?*_

_*Only a few times and they were very short intervals. He's had two hosts since I left, not counting Martouf.*_

The two women finished up the current round of healing in silence. Falina wanted to brood and Elizabeth gave her space.

* * *

While Elizabeth, Freya, and both of their symbiotes worked on healing Martouf and Lantash, Jacob and Selmak were working their part of the scheme. In order to keep Ren'al from catching on, they were keeping her busy with work from the recent treaty signing with Earth. Ren'al wasn't too thrilled with that. Though she wasn't actually being insubordinate, Ren'al was walking a thin line.

Jacob was starting to get really perturbed with her. He asked,

"Do you not want this treaty to work, Ren'al?"

Her reply was,

"I have other work to do. You are aware of the za'tarc research?"

"I am. And if things are as hopeless as you're saying, then what's the rush?"

Ren'al paused. She didn't want to tip her hand, and have Jacob or Selmak get suspicious. So she said,

"I suppose that it's no rush."

"Good. Now let's get back and do it correctly."

* * *

Another night had fallen, and the four women were back to work healing. Jacob and Selmak were keeping Ren'al busy, and were having an excellent time doing just that.

There were also rumors about the news from their scout at Kali's court. A thought to be long dead female system lord was sending feelers out. The scout hadn't gotten the name of the Goa'uld, but would send news once he did.

This time Jacob joined them as they were healing Martouf. He whispered,

"How much longer do you bunch need? It's getting tougher to come up with excuses to keep her away from here."

Anise replied,

"A day or two at the most. Falina and Elizabeth are working on very little sleep."

Jacob looked at the younger host. Though she showed no outward physical manifestation of being tired, it was more of the air around her. Both host and symbiote needed to get some sleep.

Selmak said,

_*If my memory serves me correctly, Falina and Lantash used to be quite good friends a while back. Perhaps that is why she's running both herself and her host ragged.*_

_*Were they ever more than friends?"_ Jacob queried.

_*No. But shortly after Jolinar arrived, Falina volunteered for a long term undercover mission.*_

_*So they have unfinished business.*_

* * *

Selmak was about to reply, when they noticed that Martouf was starting to stir. Elizabeth stopped what she was doing and stepped back. Whichever one was in control would not recognize her, and Elizabeth motioned to Jacob to approach. Shortly before Jacob or Selmak could speak, Lantash was muttering,

"Let me heal him, I can fix this, let me…" He was getting louder, and noise was not something they needed at the moment, so Jacob cut in,

"Lantash now is not the time for noise."

"Jacob? Is that you?"

"Yes it's me. Welcome back."

"Where am I?"

"You're in the tunnels. We've had to heal you on the sly, while I've kept Ren'al busy."

"Who healed me?"

"Anise and Freya did, along with the help of an old friend of yours, Falina."

Lantash managed a smile, before saying,

"Nice to see you again Falina."

"Likewise. Now, why don't we get you out of here, so you can sleep and finish the healing?"

After doing some careful maneuvering and making sure that no one was about as they snuck Lantash to his temporary quarters, where he could sleep and do the rest of the healing himself.

After making sure that no one would be snooping around in that area, the other six left. Anise and Freya would be testing to make sure that they weren't still a za'tarc, though they were about 99% certain that it wasn't the case anymore.

Shortly before leaving the other four, Selmak who was in control said,

"Get some sleep. We're all going to need it."

Tomorrow would be the day that Ren'al would be caught red handed. Selmak was looking forward to it immensely.

* * *

**A/N 2: They're baaack! **


	5. Truth Comes to Light

**Chapter V: Truth Comes to Light**

**A/N: More thanks to Amara D'Angeli. Really keeping me on my toes. Enjoy the chapter. SSD  
**

* * *

Looking through her lab, Ren'al was getting frantic. She couldn't find the notes she'd taken for the za'tarc testing-real notes which said that Lantash was fully capable of healing Martouf. If those notes fell into the wrong hands…

Ren'al shook her head. It was never a particularly good idea to attract fate's attention, especially when you didn't want it.

The timing of Falina getting a host was rather convenient. As she recalled, Falina was good with the healing tech not just the hand device. Since she was good friends with most of the healers, but not actually a healer herself, she would be the perfect person to use to heal Martouf, since she'd managed to get the healers out of the loop by saying that there was no point in healing them.

"Looking for something?"

Ren'al spun around and saw Jacob/Selmak holding a very familiar looking file. As her face turned ashen, Jacob continued, "Interesting notes aren't they? Quite different from the notes you showed the Council."

Trying to save her own skin, Ren'al started to say, "Selmak, I can explain…" She stopped as some guards came around Selmak.

"Oh I'm going to love hearing you try to tap dance your way out of this minefield."

Ren'al tried to talk, but Jacob waved her off saying to the guards, "Make sure she stays in her quarters until further notice. Use non lethal force if tries anything."

As Jacob walked back to the Council chambers, Selmak said, _*Ren'al is not going to be able to explain her way out of this one.*_

_*It'll be interesting to see what she does to try.*_

Selmak replied, _*We need to bring this before the Council. This is going to be a long day.*_

Jacob murmured his agreement, and a short time later, they began their work in getting the inquiry started.

* * *

"Is this really necessary?"

Freya rolled her eyes. Lantash was definitely back to his usual self. She supposed that it _had_ been too much to hope that maybe this experience would smooth down some of Lantash's rougher edges.

"Yes it is. I need to make sure that neither one of you is still a za'tarc. You don't want to be put into stasis again, do you?"

Lantash was stonily silent. She'd cornered him. Then Martouf spoke to him,

_*I don't want to go through that again. Let's get this done and then we can thank that old friend of yours for healing us.*_

_*True. I really would like to discuss a few things with Falina.*_

Lantash turned to Anise, and stated, "Let's get this done and over with."

Most of the questions were of the nature to establish a base line. After those questions were answered, Anise asked,

"What is the last thing you remember, Martouf?"

"I remember was seeing a lower ranked SGC member speaking to Dr. Jackson and seeing that the President had arrived. Everything else after that is mostly a blur."

"Is there any mission where there seems to have been lost time or where things don't make sense?"

Both Martouf and Lantash were confused by that question. They couldn't think of an event where there seemed to have been lost time. Anise then noticed that Martouf and Lantash looked to be having a short one on one chat Anise would have appreciated being included in before acquiring the information second hand via Martouf. How could she be sure she wasn't missing something important? Even if he wasn't a za'tarc any longer, would anyone ever truly be sure that the information wasn't suppressed?

Finally, Martouf said,

"There was what we thought was a near miss at Bastet's court. We were going to get some information from the Tok'ra operative there, but things got interesting when some of her guards had noticed and followed us. We had to make a fast exit. I thought we'd made it, but now in light of recent events, that could have been when we were turned into za'tarcs."

Anise had been watching the machine like a hawk. Sure enough, the memory of their escape was false.

"That would be correct."

As they went through the rest of the questions, there were no more memory gaps for either Martouf or Lantash.

"You are no longer a za'tarc. It seems that once the mission is activated, it deletes itself. You're no longer a danger to yourself or others."

"That's good to hear."

Martouf and Freya turned at the sound of the new voice. It was Elizabeth. She had a smile on her face.

Turning to Freya, Elizabeth said, "Ren'al's real notes on Martouf's condition have been found. Both she and all her accomplices are all facing an inquiry."

_*Oh… I hope she gets what she deserves.*_ Lantash thought rather venomously.

Ignoring Lantash's vindictive thoughts for the time being, Martouf asked,

"Was her host involved…" he scrambled for the name of Falina's new host.

_*Elizabeth.* _Lantash provided.

_*Right*_ Martouf continued, "Was her host involved, Elizabeth?"

"Not sure just yet. Ren'al has been keeping her mouth shut on the whole thing. That's what I would be doing under the same circumstances. I don't know what her minions are doing just yet. Depending on what she did to get them to work for her, they could keep silent or sing like canaries…"

_*Sing like canaries?* _Lantash asked his host. Both of them were quite confused.

Anise and Freya looked confused as well.

Elizabeth then realized that she would have another job to do with the Tok'ra: Teach some of them Tau'ri idioms, if there were any that wished to learn them.

"What I meant when I said "sing like canaries" was that they'd give her up and leave her out in the cold by herself to take full blame. Not that she doesn't deserve it; they'll be doing it to salvage what's left of their reputation. The council wants to talk to all of us. They sent me to get you."

* * *

Not that Ren'al was surprised, but the people that she'd gotten to work with her were turning on her.

Upon finding out that Ren'al's host Tara was every bit as involved with the scam as Ren'al herself was; the council was going to have to come up with a different punishment. It was a given that she'd lose her seat on the Council. Nothing had been said about her cohorts.

One thing had surprised Ren'al. Not only had her real notes been found, but Martouf and Lantash were up and about, thanks to the help of Falina and her new Tau'ri host. Both of them were less than thrilled about nearly being used for a science experiment.

Well, she'd survived over 1500 years as a symbiote. Ren'al would take whatever punishment was thrown at her.

* * *

Elizabeth was practicing the use of the hand device, with both the ribbon and blast aspects of it.

For practical purposes, she was practicing above ground. The last thing she needed to do was break fragile equipment. Elizabeth wasn't that good with the hand device just yet.

_*Relax.*_ Soothed Falina,_ *I'm every bit as skilled with the hand device as I am with the healing device, and you took to that rather quickly. A lot faster than most. You'll become competent with it definitely, and will most likely become very good with it, with my help.*_

_*The blasting part is pretty easy. It's the ribbon function that I'm having trouble with.*_

_*You're not the only host who has had trouble with the ribbon function in the beginning. Since it is a focused energy, you need to train a lot more with it.*_

They continued their practicing for a few more hours before they both felt that someone was coming. That someone was a host. Turning around, Elizabeth saw that it was General Carter and Selmak.

Bracing to attention quickly, she asked, "What can I do for you sir?"

Waving his hand for her to relax, Jacob asked, "How's it working out for you Elizabeth?"

"Not too bad, sir. I'm having a difficult time with the ribbon function. I take it that this isn't just a visit to find out how I'm working with the tech. Did the Council reach a final decision?"

"Yes. I thought telling you both in person would be a good idea, given your involvement in preventing Ren'al from succeeding."

Elizabeth nodded and motioned towards a level rock where they could sit and talk. As she began removing the hand device, Jacob began talking.

"It's actually quite simple what's being done to Ren'al and her cohorts. Those she and her host were working with, are being sent elsewhere and are being demoted in rank. The postings are really going to be a nuisance for them."

Elizabeth nodded. She and Falina didn't care what happened to the minions.

Falina thought, _*I want her to rot in Hell for what she tried to do to my friend.*_

Ignoring her symbiote's ruminations, Elizabeth asked, "What will happen to Ren'al?"

Selmak took over for this part of the conversation, "Obviously Ren'al lost her seat on the Council, but that was only the beginning. She is being relocated to a faraway outpost where she can't work on her "science". She also cannot take control from her host for the next thirty years."

Elizabeth was silent for a moment. While it wasn't quite what she'd wanted to happen to Ren'al, she supposed it would have to do, for now anyway.

"What's next sir?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, there may be some new information coming in. I can't tell you just yet, but you'll probably have a lot of work to do in the short term future." Jacob replied.

* * *

**A/N 2: What do you guys think?**


	6. Goddess of Death

**Chapter VI: Goddess of Death**

**A/N: Conversations in bold are the symbiotes talking in their own voices. This was a fun chapter to write. Amara helped a lot. Enjoy the chapter. Sparky She-Demon.**

* * *

Now that everything involving the za'tarc fiasco had been finished, everyone was getting back into the normal swing of things. Elizabeth's training with the hand device was getting better and she was going on a short mission to acquire weapons and possibly information if there was anything of use.

Elizabeth hadn't slept any the previous night. She was incredibly nervous, as this would really show other Tok'ra that she was more than capable. Falina then said to her, _*You don't have anything to prove, Elizabeth. In healing Martouf and Lantash, you have more than proved yourself capable.*_

_*Yeah but…*_ Falina quickly cut her young host off by saying,

_*But nothing. Yes you are a new host, but what some of the others tend to forget sometimes is that they were all new hosts at one point or another, and in less than ideal situations.*_

_* I'm one of the lucky ones, I guess.*_

Elizabeth was working in one of the labs on a new explosive. The Tok'ra had quickly utilized her knowledge of explosives and had tasked her with improving a small naquadah based explosive. It had consumed her attention entirely.

_*It's a good thing that you've got me to help keep track of things. You wouldn't hear anyone if they walked in.*_ Falina stated.

_*No one better walk in. This particular explosive device is quite volatile and if it gets disturbed there will be a small explosion capable of sending us clear across the room.*_

Falina knew that her young host was right. Elizabeth was a highly trained explosives expert, and disliked distractions while she was working with them, since any kind of distraction could potentially have dangerous results.

Just as she was about to add a small amount of naquadah to her measurements, Elizabeth looked up as she heard Martouf walk in.

Surprised, she added a little bit more naquadah than what was needed. It reacted and then blasted her across the room.

* * *

Rushing over to her, Martouf asked,

"Are you alright Elizabeth?"

He quickly found out that Elizabeth was _not_ in control at the moment. Falina began to tear into Lantash, eyes flashing,

"**What were you thinking, just barging in like that? You know full well that this part of the tunnels is used for explosives research, which is by definition dangerous without the added difficulty of having unwanted and potentially dangerous distractions in the form of a stubborn man who goes straight into a situation without knowing what's ahead and in doing so, endangers both himself **_**and**_** others!"**

Not to be outdone, Lantash came to the fore. Eyes flashing, he replied,

"**That's rich, coming from someone who leaves her best friend and never gives the reasons as to why she left. I thought we were friends; we'd talk about everything and nothing at the same time. We saved each other's lives on countless missions. And you couldn't even tell me why you left?"**

"**It's really none of **_**your**_** damn business what I do with my life Lantash. We may have been close but we had our own lives."**

Neither symbiote was finished with each other. Lantash began,

"**And after you left, I barely saw you. And when I did see you, you were so clipped and formal, especially when Jolinar was around. It was like you were determined to drive me away."**

At the mention of Jolinar, Falina started suggesting things in Goa'uld that would only escalate the spat. Elizabeth began mentally yelling in order to try and get Falina's attention before she said something that she'd certainly regret. Thinking to her friend and trying to calm her down, _*Whoa, whoa, whoa! Simmer down, Falina. This argument is going to get you nowhere fast.*_

While Elizabeth was working on Falina, Martouf was trying to do the same with Lantash, which was easier said than done. Having finally managed to make his way into the argument, he asked, _*Where did that come from Lantash? Why haven't you mentioned Falina before now, if she provokes such a response from you?*_

_*I hadn't seen her since before you became my host. I didn't think it was relevant to tell you about someone you may never see.*_

_*But it is of relevance. What's the story with you two?*_

Lantash grumbled at his host, saying, _*I don't want to talk about it.*_

He'd quickly given control back to Martouf, who immediately noticed that Elizabeth was also just finishing up with Falina.

Martouf then said to Elizabeth, "I think it's safe to assume that our symbiotes have a lot of unfinished business with each other."

Elizabeth said with a slight dusting of irony, "They most certainly do! Did you get anything from Lantash as to why he reacted like that? I'm not really getting any details from Falina."

"Lantash is being less than forthcoming with that information as well."

Martouf noticed that Elizabeth was being rather fidgety in his presence before she said, "I really need to get back to work on that explosive, Martouf. And I do my best work without an audience. Maybe we could talk later?"

Martouf nodded, and left the room, to give the explosives expert the space she needed to work. Rubbing her hands together, Elizabeth quickly getting back to work, and did her best job trying to forget her response to Lantash's handsome host.

* * *

Somewhere else in the tunnels…

Jalen had to find a Council member and fast. The news she possessed was of utmost importance. Having been sent on an errand by Kali, Jalen also took a side trip to Vorash. The Tok'ra had yet another System Lord to deal with and this one was reported to be nasty, even by their standards. She hoped to find Jacob.

Running into him in the library, she said, "I found out the name of the system lord who made contact with Kali. It's Morana; she's back and looking for potential allies."

Jacob nodded. From Selmak, he got memories of having dealt with Morana in the past. This was not good, and it needed to be dealt with.

"There will be an emergency council meeting in fifteen minutes. You can share all of your information then, so you don't have to repeat yourself."

* * *

Roughly six hours later, and the council was still having trouble picking which Tok'ra to send to Morana's court. The favored choices that were immediately available had been Aldwin, Zanuf, and Sina. But there were others that had been thrown into the mix.

Jacob hadn't liked any of the proposed candidates. There were two Tok'ra (four when you counted both the host and the symbiote) that both he and Selmak had in mind, who they thought would be perfect.

Waiting for a pause in the argument between Garshaw and Per'sus, Jacob interrupted, "This arguing is getting us nowhere. Pretty much every suggestion that has been put up has been discarded, mostly due to the fact that they could be easily recognized by Morana's allies and be fingered. I have two people in mind, who are perfect for the job _and_ have worked together in the past."

Garshaw asked, "And who might these symbiote/host pairs be?"

Jacob smiled shortly before Selmak took control, and said, "Why, Martouf, Lantash along with Elizabeth and Falina."

Per'sus quickly said, "Out of the question. The symbiotes are too fiery and Falina's host has only been her host for a little over a month." Most of the other Council members present also nodded their agreement. Lantash and Falina were notorious hotheads.

Selmak continued to argue by saying, "I know sending two such... fiery symbiotes may not generally be a wise idea, chiefly since one of them has a new host and the other hasn't taken a mission like this in a very long time, but that may actually be an advantage here; it's unlikely anyone will recognize them. Besides, they have worked well together in the past."

Garshaw added, "There was a time when those two were nigh on unstoppable together."

Per'sus made the final decision, "It is time to bring them back together and see if they still are as unstoppable as they once were. It's settled. Lantash and Falina will be going undercover in Morana's court. Jacob, why don't you and Selmak go and brief the SGC?"

"Gladly. Besides, I'd like to see my daughter. How much should I tell Sam about Martouf and Lantash, given the circumstances?" Jacob asked.

Per'sus thought for a moment and said, "Use your own discretion, Jacob."

Jack thought to Selmak as they got ready to leave for the SGC, _*What the hell does that mean?*_

Selmak said in a soothing tone, _*It means that you tell her what you think she needs to know. If SG-1 ends up at Morana's court, they will have to know who to look for when they need help.*_

_*I'll tell them as much as I can.*_

* * *

"Oh that's just great, another snakehead to worry about trying to kill us. Is this ever going to end?" Jack snarked grumpily after being told about Morana. "What pantheon is she from?" He asked Daniel.

After pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose Daniel said, "Morana is from the Slavic pantheon. She is the Goddess of Death, and also presides over winter and nightmares. Some sources compare her to the Greek goddess Hecate, which associates her with sorcery. Still others liken her to Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture. For the most part though she is associated with evil spirits, pestilence, things like that."

Jack turned to Jacob, "So is there _any_ good news concerning Morana?"

"The Tok'ra are getting some operatives ready to infiltrate her court. So if you wind up there, the operatives will recognize you and do their best to help as much as they can."

Teal'c asked, "If they recognize us will we be able to recognize them?"

"You should be able to recognize them. They'll be leaving as soon as they can get the stuff they need together."

That signaled the end of the briefing. Jacob turned to Sam and hugged her saying, "I'm sorry that you had to shoot them Sammie."

"It was them or the President; I really didn't have much choice other than to shoot them." Sam rubbed her hands together to warm them up, before asking,

"How are they doing? Are the Tok'ra going to heal them?"

Jacob replied, having thought his answer over previously, "They're being taken care of Sam. You have nothing to worry about."

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the tunnels…

Elizabeth was edgy. She had been above ground again when she and Falina were working with the hand device. Elizabeth was still thinking about the explosion that had blown her across the room and the subsequent row between Falina and Lantash.

Some the things Goa'uld that Falina had said to Lantash, wow. She was no stranger to profanity, being in foster care and in the military had pretty much stripped her of most of her shock when it came to profanity. Elizabeth asked Falina, _*How much of what you said in Goa'uld to Lantash, did you really mean it?*_

The terse reply was, _*I was just saying what I thought. I was angry and really wanted to unleash my vitriol on the person that endangered you.*_

_*Bull-shit! You and I both know that I wasn't really hurt; I was more shaken up than anything else!*_

As the argument continued they both got distracted with their mental sparring match. Falina barely had time to say, _*Someone's coming!*_

Elizabeth quickly began removing the hand device once she saw that it was Martouf. She smiled her greeting. Falina was still peevish, so she let Elizabeth be in control.

Martouf smiled back at her before saying, "The Council wants to speak to all four of us. I think they have a major mission in mind."

Elizabeth immediately followed him back into the tunnels.

Once they got to the Council chamber the noticed that most of the High Council had been waiting for them to arrive. Elizabeth immediately tensed when she saw that Jacob/Selmak weren't there.

Per'sus rose from his chair and said, "The System Lord Morana is making a comeback. We need some Tok'ra to go undercover at her court. It has been decided that you two would be the ideal choices. Do you have any questions?"

* * *

**A/N 2: The next chapter will be their reactions to finding out about the mission and the beginning of the mission prep. What did you all think of the argument?**


End file.
