Stargate: The Sov'ren

[Lord Reyes]

I ducked low, dodging the fast swing of the rifle's buttstock, and using my right hand as a pivot, I bent backward and hit the back of his left knee with a kick.

His leg buckled, and he fell on one knee, wincing in pain, as I twisted my body up and sent a heavy side kick to his cheek. The force threw his face against the wooden railing with a bang, his gun falling to his feet.

He grabbed the railing, groaning painfully, as he used it as support, trying to rise to his feet. Not giving him the chance, I rose to my feet and edged closer to him, striking a nerve cluster at the base of his neck precisely with a measured punch.

He slumped to the floor, his eyes closing, as he slipped into unconsciousness. Rubbing my shoulder that ached from a previous attack, I glanced to my right. Another guard was lying motionless on the wooden floor, his rifle lying at the foot of the staircase.

"That makes it eight now," I said, my chest heaving up and down as I breathed heavily, sweat trailing down my face to soak my half mask. "Two more to go, and I think I know where they are."

I walked to the railing and bent slightly, laying my arms on it as I caught my breath, looking down below at Setesh's throne room. It was wide with polished sandalwood flooring, sandalwood wall paneling, and a well-lit chandelier hanging from the paneled ceiling.

There was a throne, a gilded ornate throne inlaid with a menagerie of colorful gems and rubies resting on a pedestal with two tall black jackal-headed Nish'ta releasers standing on both sides of the throne.

If I had to guess, this was the site where he brainwashed and manipulated his followers using Nish'ta. Also, it was a worship ground, the place he made his followers worship him as their God.

Staring at the throne just lying there and picturing him on it, being worshipped by abducted and brainwashed young men and women, made me grimace, a cold feeling of disgust welling up deep in my gut.

The more I thought about it, the angrier I became, opening my mental barrier for dark disturbing images and thoughts to rush into my brain.

Taking a deep breath and releasing it, I calmed myself and shook my head as I got off the railing, straightening myself to walk down the staircase on my right.

This was my last stop. I'd scouted the whole house now except for one last particular section, the section I sensed Setesh in.

I'd incapacitated all the men; only two remained, and I was guessing those remaining two were his personal attendants or, to put it more accurately, his eunuchs.

I was confident I could take them at the same time, even if Setesh joined in. So, it was time to launch the last assault that would essentially complete this raid.

Unfortunately, the fact that my mission was nearing its completion didn't set my mind at ease. In fact, it made me troubled.

So far, I hadn't encountered any females in this house. Not even one. I'd found their bedrooms and their bathrooms during my search, but none of them were there.

I had an inkling where they were, but I hoped I was wrong. If I was right, they were probably together with Setesh.

Which was very bad and disturbing because like every Goa'uld, Setesh used human women for one thing and one thing only. They were part of his harem. No, harem was saying it lightly.

They were his sex slaves, and unlike most Goa'uld sex slaves who were willing and found their service extremely honorable, these weren't. After all, brainwashed women couldn't give consent...

My face fell into a heavy frown at the thought of this, my fists clenching tight in anger till shards of pain stabbed at them, as I walked into a corridor near the foot of the stairs, my right hand slipping into my vest to take out my Zat'nik'tel.

One thing I hated more than anything in this world was rape. I couldn't stand it. It was just so repulsive. That was basically what Setesh had been doing to the women and was probably doing now.

If I had even the slightest reservation of not ending his life, it was all gone now. He'd die today, and I was going to make sure it was as painful as possible.

After a couple of minutes of tracing back my steps, I arrived at the corridor I'd been avoiding for the last one and a half hours, and steeling my mind, I walked into it.

Immediately, I felt a mental tug at the back of my head, pulling in a specific direction, towards an opening at the end of the corridor, curving to the right. I strode towards it.

As I drew closer, the tug became stronger, and this time, I could sense, almost feel the presence of a Goa'uld on the surface of my skin. It was supposed to feel familiar, like the feeling you'd get around a family member or a kindred.

But all I could feel was revulsion, a deep nagging sense of disgust and contempt that made the hairs at the back of my neck stand at attention. It was almost sickening and made my tongue taste bitter.

Halting as I reached an inch from the opening, I silently laid my body on the clean smooth floor, on my stomach, crawled to the very edge of the corridor that led to the opening, and craned my head out slightly to peer at the corridor.

Unlike most of the corridors in this house, this one was short and wide, almost akin to a hallway, with exquisite and priceless paintings running along the walls.

There was a golden chandelier hanging down from above, casting a dim soft glow to the place that brought out the red of the carpet spread across the flooring.

At the end of the hallway and the carpet stood a large and thick wooden double door. Two young men, teenagers, in distinct flowing white robes, stood sentry on both sides of the door, Zat'nik'tels strapped to their sides, and ring transport devices sleeved on their forearms.

These were the last two male members of the cult, and behind them was Setesh's private chamber. All I had to do was take them out, then Setesh would have to face me alone, and then he'd die. I could almost hear his screams.

The idea of that brought a dark smile to my face as I crawled back before I got noticed, pushing myself up to my feet. Thumbing the release hatch of my Zat'nik'tel, the serpentine weapon buzzed erect and the maw widened.

Steeling my nerves with a couple of breaths, I slid to the entrance of the hallway. Taken by surprise, the hands of the eunuchs went to the weapons on their sides, mouths opening to sound an alarm.

But they didn't get that chance. With two loud buzzes, two streaks of bright blue light shot out of my Zat'nik'tels, one after the other, hitting the two young men.

They both spasmed and slumped to the ground, blue light dancing over every inch of their bodies. In a couple of seconds, the lights vanished, and they became motionless.

Slowly, I strode to the wooden door, stepping over the bodies, and paused right in front of it. There was no sound behind the door.

It was either the room was soundproof, Setesh and the girls were sleeping, or they were all just silently waiting for me to open the door so that they'd all gang up on me at once. Either way, it really didn't matter. I was going in.

I stretched my left hand towards the door and mentally selected the telekinetic module of my harakesh. The ring weapon hummed as it activated, and the humming continued, the sound increasing in intensity each second.

The moment the humming died down, indicating the completion of its charge building up, I placed my palm on the door and with a thought, signaled a release. The door immediately exploded.

 

[Lord Reyes]

A deafening roar ensued as the door raptured inward and blasted apart, splintering into countless wooden shards that scattered across the opulent corridor-Esq hallway.

Copious dust filled the place, dancing in the air, as I stepped through the now nonexistent door, my eyes squinting as they fixed on the scene unfolding before me.

I was in a large, luxurious, and opulently furnished, master bedroom bathed in the soft glow of a gilded chandelier hanging from the fresco ceiling.

The floor was carpeted with thick wine-colored Turkish rugs, and the large windows running along the wall painted in neutral tones were draped with luxurious golden curtains embellished with intricate patterns and embroidery.

The air was thick with the scent of perfumed oils, incense, sweat, and sex, mingling with the whispers and echoes of sensual moans, grunts, and groans.

The bodies of seven young naked women, their nipples erect, their asses and private parts in full display, and their skins glistening with a sheen of sweat and oils entwined in a hedonistic display on a large red king sized bed with a canopy that stood on my right.

Some of the girls were kissing each other passionately, tongues intertwining with an exchange of saliva.

Some were busy fondling each other breasts passionately, fingers moving in and out of their ripe vaginas steadily, with intermittent moans of pleasure escaping out of their mouths.

Some were scissoring each other, moaning and screaming in delight as their private parts rubbed and scraped against each other and the rest were eating each other out, their supple and erotic bodies in a six-nine position.


It was a den, a den of sexual depravity that would've caught any man off guard, making them hunger and lose their minds instantly for the sight before them, but I wasn't like most men.

I'd seen and experienced much more and much worse than this. All I had to do was think of it, and I'd have memories of enormous orgies that spanned hundreds of meters, involving hundreds of beautiful women in all colors, shapes, and sizes who all existed to pleasure me and me alone and the sensations that came with them.

What I was witnessing here in this room was child's play, enough to raise an eyebrow, but certainly not enough to distract me from finding my target.

At the very middle of the large bed, surrounded on both sides by the young naked women lost in the throes of reckless pleasure, was Setesh looking right at me.

He was a handsome man with thick silky shoulder-length black hair, dark brown eyes, an oval mature face adorned by a silky goatee, pink lips, and a toned slim body bereft of any blemishes.

He stood on his knees, naked, with two blonde girls that looked exactly the same on all fours, licking his erect cock, coating it in saliva, both taking turns to eagerly suck it, their sky blue eyes glazed in lust with wide happy but crazed smiles plastered across their faces.

My face scrunched up in disgust at the sight of this, hot red rage seeping into my bones, as Setesh had the gall to flash me a smirk.

"I have been expecting you," Setesh said in the main Goa'uld dialect, his voice booming and lilting, eyes flashing brightly white as he snapped his fingers, making the twins stop sucking his dick to kiss each other, tongues entangling in a mess of saliva as moans streamed out of their mouths.

"Tell me the name of the one who dares invade my holy residence and interrupts the bliss that is Set!" He demanded with the arrogance of a false god as he got from the bed, eyes flashing bright white.

Not in the mood for idle conversation, I ignored him and raised my Zat'nik'tel, firing it the next second. Blue fire streamed towards him.

Just before the blast hit him, he extended his right hand adorned with a karakesh and the red crystal centered on his palm glowed. The air shimmered in front of him like a curtain.


The blast collided with the air and instantly dissipated. The next moment, the orb glowed again and a boom sounded as a shockwave shot out of his karakesh in my direction.

Reflexes honed for countless millennia kicked in and my body instinctively threw itself to the right, dodging the wave at the nick of time. The blast hit the wall and exploded, shattering and cracking parts of it.

I rolled to a stop and drew a dagger from one of the pockets of my vest, holding it between my fingers, and flung it at him using everything I had.

The knife shot at him, cutting sharply through the air at high speeds. The orb on his Karakesh glowed and he managed to get an energy field to wrap around his body just as the edge of the dagger reached him.

Unfortunately for him, he seemed to forget it wouldn't do him much good.

"Ahhhh!" He howled in pain as the blade speared into his chest. He stumbled, falling on his ass, onto the carpeted ground, crimson blood flowing out of his wound insertion point.

...Damn it, I missed his heart.

His howl broke the ambiance of the room, finally halting the activities of the girls whose eyes instantly widened in shock and horror, gasps flowing out of their mouths.

"My God Set!"


"What's happening!?"


"Our God Set is injured!"

"Quick, protect our God!"

They filled the room with screams of horror and surprise as automatically, they quickly rushed down from the bed to shield him from me, covering him from my eyes with their naked tantalizing bodies as I rose up and stepped toward him, their eyes burning with rage and defiance.

I paused and clicked my tongue in annoyance, my eyebrows furrowing and my eyes squinting as they scoured past their bodies to search for the body of Set.

Unfortunately, due to their number and how they'd spaced themselves around him, I couldn't see him, not even his hair.


"Shit, these girls are going to give him time to heal!" I cursed loudly and quickly pointed the maw of my Zat'nik'tel at them. "I don't have time for this. Go to sleep girls."

Buzzes immediately filled the room as I began shooting each of them with the weapon, blue current dancing and spreading all over their bodies as they spasmed and collapsed onto the ground one by one.

As their bodies slumped to the ground, Setesh's body was finally revealed but what I saw didn't make me happy as we locked eyes. He was gazing at me with eyes burning and a face contorted with rage, his right hand stretched out towards me, the red crystal glowing ominously.

"Die!" He bellowed as a shockwave erupted out of his hand, spiraling towards me.

I barely had enough time to raise my hands in front of me before the shockwave hit me hurling my body through the air like I was paper.

My back collided with a wall with a bang and I gasped as all my breath got stolen out of my lungs, waves of agony spreading throughout my body in an instant.

My head aching and fuzzy, my eyes hazy, my body throbbing with pain, as I slipped onto the ground, falling face first. The insides of my mouth were tangy and spiced with the iron taste of my blood.

Groaning in pain and coughing my mouth and nose desperately sucked in oxygen, hazy eyes trembling, and my senses disoriented, I planted my shaky hands on the ground and groggily pushed myself up, forcing my back against the wall.

Through my hazy eyes and shaky vision, I could see Setesh coughing, blood trickling out of his mouth as he pulled the knife out of his chest with a painful scream, sprawling out crimson blood flecked with violet onto the carpet.

Letting out loud coughs intermittently, I hissed, almost screaming in pain as I grabbed my head pounding like it had just been run over by a freighter with my right hand devoid of the Zat'nik'tel, vision increasingly getting cloudy.


Quickly, I activated my harakesh and set it to healing with my mind, slowly raising my left hand fitted with the device to my head, as it hummed and spewed out the tri-beam to form the white orb.

Slowly, my pain and migraine started clearing, my vision and focus gradually steadying as the beam hovered at the side of my head, its soothing light of radiation healing me.

Ahead of me, back against the bed, Setesh slowly rose to his feet, using the bed as support, as the gaping wound on his chest started stitching itself together.

His eyes widened for just a second in shock and fear upon seeing the device, but it disappeared the next moment as he stood unsteadily, legs wobbly.

Seeing this, I spat out blood and released a grunt as I placed my right hand on the wall and used it to also raise my body to my feet, my left hand still healing me with my harakesh.

"Who sent you Ashrak?" Setesh asked in the main Goa'uld dialect, his dark eyebrows clashing together as a heavy frown fell on his face, his booming voice laced with concern. "Which of the System Lords are you in service to?"


"...Does it matter?" I coughed out in Goa'uld as I straightened myself, wiping the blood off my lips with my sleeve, deactivating the harakesh as my migraine fully disappeared. "All you need to know is that you have been marked for death and death is what you shall receive, by my hand."

I added, speaking with the mannerisms of a Goa'uld Ashrak, not bothering to correct him with regard to my identity.

A dark smile spreading across my face, I watched his eyes flash white with rage, his thin pink lips twisted by anger, and fished out another dagger from my vest.

Holding it in a reverse grip in my right hand, my body instinctively lowered slightly into one of the thousands of deadly martial art stances ingrained in my head, my legs spreading out.

My body still hurt like a bitch but at least my head was clear so I could manage. Setesh was in a worse state than I was but he was healing and healing fast. In a few moments, he'd be back to perfect health and I couldn't let that happen.

...This battle was going to have to be quick and precise, with no wasted movements. Just attack and maim.

"I see," Setesh said, his limbs and muscles tensing as his naked body tensed for battle.
"I would have thought of sparing your impudent life and allowed you to be in my gracious service if you had been cooperative.

"But it seems I have no choice but to torture the information out of you and then end your miserable life." He remarked with the arrogance of a god, eyes flashing white, as he slowly stretched forth his right hand, orb glowing.

"Good luck with that."

 

[Lord Reyes]

At my mocking words, Setesh's eyes flashed in anger, and he raised his right hand towards me, his crystal glowing. I raised my left hand, and the moment Setesh shot a shockwave towards me, I did the same, timing it to the very second.

The air in front of us exploded with a boom as our shockwaves canceled out, the remnant force blowing away some items in the room.

We both recoiled from the attack, sliding backwards, but I forced myself to a stop near the empty doorway and lunged toward him as he almost tripped on top of the unconscious girls.

With a flick of my wrist, light glinting on the shiny surface of the sleek blade of my dagger, I aimed for his exposed flank, hoping to cut through his flesh.

A metallic clang echoed in the room as, with inhuman reflexes, he blocked my attack with his hand device, the blade bouncing off it. He swung his right hand sideways toward my face, but I jumped back at the last minute, dodging it by a hair's breadth.

He extended his right hand at me and shot another shockwave, but I ducked, missing it as it struck the wall with a boom that shook the room, dust and gravel spraying.

He charged towards me, sending a heavy kick to my head that would've given me one hell of a concussion if I hadn't backflipped away.

Extending my left hand, I pushed out a strong shockwave toward him, but he brushed it aside with an energy shield, stepping toward me.

I rose up quickly and barely managed to sidestep a jab that cut through the air with a force that pushed wind into my face. Taking advantage of his exposed side, I swiftly swiped my dagger across it.

The blade bit into his flesh easily, blood spraying out, but it wasn't able to bite deep enough as Setesh managed to step backward before I could inflict any serious damage.

Hissing in pain, he moved to the side and touched his wound with his left hand, raising it to his eye level. His brown eyes narrowed to a point, rage filling up his eyes as he saw the crimson blood flecked with violet staining his fingers and palm.

Breathing shallowly as I watched him do this, I swung my dagger casually, flicking the blood off the blade, and slowly started circling him.

"You will pay for this with your life," he threatened viciously, eyes widened in fury, almost growling, as he moved counterclockwise in my direction, the harakesh crystal glowing.

"Waiting to see how you'll do that, Almighty Setesh," I smirked, making sure my voice was spiced with as much contempt as I could muster, hoping to rile him up.

"You know, it's almost pitiful how weak you are for someone who was once a System Lord. I expected more from someone who claims to be the God of Death.

"But then again, I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised. After all, you are first of all, a false god. No, you're worse, a disgraced false god.

"And secondly, most important of all, you're a coward and a loser in exile, hiding out on this isolated rock of a planet from Ra.

"Someone who has by this time, forgotten about your poor excuse of an existence. But don't worry, when you eventually fall by my hand, I'll make sure every Goa'uld in the galaxy, including Ra, remembers your name and knows about how weak you are and how easily you lost your life.

"I'll make sure your entire existence will be made into a joke, a joke that will be told even to the lowliest of slaves so that everyone will laugh at your pitiful legacy until perpetuity.

"That I promise you, Setesh."

I told him, my tone and voice reeking with disappointment and disdain, a wide scornful smile spreading across my face as I continued circling him like a predator stalking its prey, eyes searching for the right angle to attack.

My words seemed to strike a chord in him, targeting his insecurities in a way that made his eyes widen and rise to their limits, his body shaking as pure unadulterated fury and hatred started burning in his eyes, neck muscles tensing and pulsating.

"Aarghhhh!" He roared at the top of his lungs, reverberating across the room, as his eyes glowed white, and immediately dashed towards me like an animal blinded by wild rage.

"...Checkmate," I whispered, grinning, as he reached my position, his body left wide open for attack.

Dodging a powerful blow intended to take out my nose, I shifted myself and countered with a swift slash across his right shoulder. Blood spurted into the air, dropping down like rain onto us and the floor.

In his rage, he ignored the pain and grabbed my shoulders, his fingers biting into my flesh like a vice. I didn't attempt to break off his hold and rocked my head forwards, my forehead impacting his with a loud bang.

A little disoriented, he released me as my head ached slightly from my attack, and I immediately ducked under an outstretched arm heading for my neck, the knife firmly in my grip as I sliced across his thigh, the blade cutting through white flesh.

He screamed in pain and stumbled, almost falling to one knee, but his superhuman endurance and resilience kicked in and steadied him as I sent another slash to his right arm.

He was quick to parry, deflecting my attack with the golden surface of his karakesh, with a strength that sent a shiver down my spine and made my wrist ache.

The crystal glowed and quickly, I stepped to the side, narrowly escaping a blast of shockwave that nicked strands of my blond hair and hit some of the furniture in the room with a boom, shattering them to pieces.

Finding it difficult to breathe, I pulled down my half mask with one finger, panting heavily as sweat trailed down my face to soak my dark clothes, muscles and joints protesting, as I started circling Setesh again who was weakly rising to his feet, groaning and grunting in pain.

Despite his wounds and the fact that he was bleeding profusely, blood trickling down from them, he was still fighting. That was a Goa'uld for you, bastards were hard to put down due to their superhuman physical characteristics.

If he was an Ashrak or any Goa'uld that trained and fought regularly like Apophis or Her'ur, I'd be dead by now. I would barely see the attacks coming.

Luckily, Setesh was just like most Goa'uld, almost never having fought any battle on their own for ages. They were so reliant on Jaffa or human troops, their karakesh, and other advanced technology or weapons, that they'd lost that instinct, that awareness for combat.

So when faced with someone like me who stood with them on virtually equal grounds, he panicked, faltered, and made common mistakes, mistakes that no seasoned military officer or Jaffa would make if they were in his shoes.

It was a shame, frankly embarrassing how Setesh was fighting. A part of me, the hunter part, felt insulted since deep down, I was expecting a harder fight, a worthy battle that I could someday brag about.

But I was just disappointed. Hewas just so weak that it almost made me pity him. With all the blood he'd lost, most of his strength had been sapped away. I could end the fight right now if I wanted to.

But no, not yet. The fight had to go on just a little longer. He had more suffering to endure. I wasn't done pouring out all my anger and frustration just yet.

I narrowed my eyes at him as we locked eyes, his eyes red and slightly hazy but still burning with hatred and anger, his bloody teeth gritted.

He started limping, his right hand hanging somewhat loosely by his side as he attempted to draw some distance between us, but I didn't let him, charging towards him immediately.

When I got close, he mustered up whatever strength he had left and came at me with a flurry of hard, fast punches that would've put any seasoned boxer to shame.

I deftly parried each blow patiently, using my dagger to block and deflect his punches, each time countering with small slices across his torso, drawing more and more blood.

His superhuman endurance allowed him to ignore and shrug off many of my attacks, only serving to increase his rage and frustration, providing him with the energy to add kicks into the mix.

I danced around him, my body twisting and moving as I parried, blocked, and swerved his attacks, my movements graceful and fluid as I replied with more nicks, cuts, and slices that drew bloody arches and lines across his body like an artist painting a picture.

Eventually, his body could no longer ignore the toll that the steady trickles of blood were taking on him.

His attacks and movements became sluggish, his legs wobbly, eyes dazed, breathing labored, and a face as pale as chalk as copious sweat dripped down to soak the carpet together with his blood.

Casually shifting my head away from a very weak and slow punch, I decided to end this fight and stomped hard on his left knee, breaking it with a crack.

"Ahhh!" He yelled out in pure agony as his knee bone bent the wrong way, and he sank to the floor on one knee in front of me.

I watched in cold detachment as he tried to raise his karakesh desperately to no avail as a result of the deep wounds on his right hand, the center crystal glowing intermittently and then dying.

"P-P-Please...spare my life, I have tr-treasures, vast treasures to pay for my life. Please don't kill me." He begged pitifully in Goa'uld, his voice breaking and straining, blood staining his lips and chin as I threw my bloody dagger away and rose my left hand to his forehead.

"Your treasures are already mine, Setesh," I commented coldly in English, priming up my harakesh. "You have nothing to offer. Now, you die."

His eyes widened, brimming with unimaginable fear at my words. He tried to move away, but I kicked his stomach harshly and grabbed his hair as he doubled over, pulling his head up for him to face his retribution.

"Nooo! Pleas– Arghhh!" His pleas got cut short, and he started screaming, his eyes bulging, as my harakesh hummed and poured out a column of golden light onto his forehead.

The light grayed his forehead, like an X-ray, giving a clear view of his skull and the symbiote lodged and twisted around the base of it, squirming like a giant worm as the radiation sent waves of inconceivable torment into its brain.

His horrifying screams continued, reaching a crescendo, as the golden light slowly and painfully tortured the symbiote.

I felt nothing doing this, torturing him, slowly chipping his life away, regulating the intensity of the radiation with my mind so that he would die experiencing the worst kind of pain any being could experience.

It scared me, the coldness and apathy I felt towards him, especially the pleasure I was feeling doing this to him.

Sure, I wanted him to pay for what he'd done to the poor boys and girls he'd taken as his slaves or followers, but it wasn't just that.

I was venting, using him as a scapegoat for all the bad and miserable stuff that he and his race had done to humans that were haunting my sleep, keeping me awake and ebbing away at my sanity.

I was pouring out all my anger, frustration, sorrow, basically every negative emotion that came with the memories I'd inherited, on him. And it felt so good.

I remembered my shrink from my past life advising me to let it all out once in a while. She told me that it was healthy and a good way to release pent-up emotions and all that. That it would feel good when I did it.

...I wondered if this was what she had in mind when she told me that.

Suddenly, his screams abruptly stopped, and he crumpled on the ground with a thud, dead brown eyes widened in terror, blood slipping out of his uncountable wounds and mouth to soak the carpet. He was dead.

With a thought, I deactivated my harakesh, making the light fade away with a hum, and fell to the ground on my ass as the adrenaline rush faded, breathing heavily, heart rate racing.

I grimaced and hissed in pain, as the full brunt of my overexerted muscles, tendons, and joints, sent rivers of aching agony flowing across every fiber of my tired body.

A wry smile drew on my face, and I chuckled self-deprecatingly as I stared at Setesh's dead still bleeding body, fingers raking through my soft hair slicked with sweat as the full implications of what I'd just done sunk in.

Setesh the Goa'uld was dead, but so was Set Farguoge, his host. I'd killed a monster and condemned an innocent man to a harrowing death.

I had blood on my hands now, and this time, I got it there myself. This wasn't like the deaths simulated in my memories. This was something I did myself; there was no Goa'uld to blame.

I wanted to feel something, something besides plain pity, but I couldn't. No guilt, no sorrow, no remorse. Just pity, regular plain old pity...

Releasing a helpless sigh, I shook my head and rose carefully to my feet, turning to walk out of the room. I'd feel sorry for myself later. I had work to do.

...This house wasn't going to raid itself.

 

[Lord Reyes]

I crouched down and placed the Goa'uld explosive device on the silvery floor, pressing the display on its sides. It beeped as the countdown started, small white lights flashing on the metallic silver orb.


Straightening up, I glanced around. I was underground, in a small circular chamber with smooth bluish-silver metal walls and flooring.


Above me, light fixtures ringed the wide circular hole etched in the ceiling, brightly illuminating the place. This was Setesh's underground chamber, leading to his secret tunnel network, built out of paranoia like every Goa'uld bastard.



I shifted my eyes to look down, raising my right hand to inspect the new device fitted on it, flexing my fingers capped by golden pieces. It was Setesh's karakesh, one of my spoils of war.

It felt comfortable on my hand, as if it was always supposed to be there. Goa'ulds almost never took theirs off, so I understood the feeling.

They considered it as part of them, a second skin more or less, and in a way, this was true since their minds were literally interfaced with it, creating a deep bond that was almost eternal.

Ashrak had that bond more with their Harakesh than their Karakesh, since they used the former more regularly and only used the latter when they wanted to blend in with the normie Goa'ulds.

It was hard using both of them at the same time, so I'd removed my harakesh and placed it into my pocket, making me very uncomfortable.

It didn't feel right not having it on my hand, as if I'd lost a piece of myself, but I'd have to endure it for now. The karakesh was of more use to me now, especially in Setesh's home.

Pressing the activation button, a familiar buzz filled the air as five black transportation rings descended from the ceiling, enveloping me in their glow.

In the next moment, a bright flash blinded me, and the surroundings shifted. As the flash dissipated, I found myself in Setesh's throne room, with the transportation rings retracting into the ground.



The sounds of feet shuffling and the sound of something hard being broken apart echoed in my ears as I surveyed the room. The throne room had changed.

Well, you couldn't even call it a throne room anymore since there was no longer any throne in the room. Just in front of me, young men and women in white robes were busy dismantling the gilded throne and packing the inlaid jewel pieces into boxes.

Other young men and women were moving in and out of the room, picking up the filled boxes and leaving, not uttering even a single word, like programmed robots.

Staring at this for a few more seconds, I looked away and walked out of the throne room into the corridor that led to it.

Passing by more young men and women who were busy moving and carrying stuff out of some of the rooms as I passed through different corridors, I reached the main entrance and walked out of the house together with some of the followers, ex-followers.

The first thing I saw were three black vans, parked a few meters away from the house, two of them being loaded up with metal boxes, crates, and trunks by Setesh's former followers.

As I stood aside, watching them, one of the young men walked up to me from behind. I turned to face him, taking note of his black mop of hair, light blue eyes, and freckled face.

"All the explosives have been planted as per your orders, set to explode in one hour," he informed me dryly, his tone neutral.

"Good," I nodded with a smile and patted his shoulders. "Thanks for letting me know. Now go and help your friends out so that we can leave this place as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir," he nodded and turned to walk away into the house.

Watching him vanish into the house, my smile dropped and I turned to walk toward one of the vans, delving into my thoughts.

It's been a couple of hours since I killed Setesh. After my light nap, I moved around the house, zapping away the brainwashing influence of the Nish'ta microorganisms from the systems of every guy in the house.

Then, I configured the minds of each and every one of Setesh's followers using my harakesh, inputting some commands and prompts in them to help me complete and finish up this raid.

They were following my orders now, but just temporarily. The mind fog brainwashing effect would dissipate after all this was done.

It was with their help that all the stuff I needed was being packed and loaded into the vans which I'd also be taking away.

Following my instructions, explosives had been planted at strategic points of the house and compound by some of them, explosives powerful enough to bring down the entire house and destroy any shred of incriminating evidence against me and also, Setesh's existence.

It was overkill, I know, but necessary. No one had to know or even suspect what happened here. Even the followers wouldn't remember it. I'd erased any memory of me and their whole time in Setesh's cult, especially the girls, using the hand device.

I did a very thorough job on that end. They wouldn't even be able to remember Setesh's name. There would be some side effects as gaping holes would now be present in their memories, but it had to be done.

It was the least I could do for them, especially the girls. They didn't have to remember any of the awful and disturbing things that happened to them during their time in Setesh's cult.

They'd leave here, every one of them, and go back to their old lives and families, never remembering what happened during the past couple of years of their lives and never being haunted by memories of slavery and oppression.

Ignorance...was truly bliss and they were going to enjoy it. I almost envied them for that.

I came out of my thoughts as I reached the open booth of the van and inspected it. This one was full, packed to the brim with a menagerie of goodies.

Everything from Zat'nik'tels, vo'cume projectors, jewelry, gems, cash, gold, Goa'uld stun grenades and explosives, to Naquadah bombs were being stored inside in metal crates and trunks.

The same stuff here and many more were also being loaded up and stored in the other van. I was stripping Setesh of all his treasures, every single one, not even his throne was being left behind.

They were more than enough for the things and plans I had in mind. With them, my foundation on this little blue planet was set and I was up to a pretty damn good start.

A wide smile spread across my face as I closed the fully filled booth with a muffled bang. Turning, I watched as they placed the last batch of goods into the booth, completely filling it, and similarly closed it.

Then like clockwork, those here on the compound started marching towards the third black van, stepping into its wide and long booth. The rest, coming out of the house, did the same, walking to enter the booth of the van.

After a couple of minutes, only four guys, including me, were on the brightly lit compound as the booth of the third van closed. The three moved in separate directions, each entering into the driver's seat of the three vans.

Now alone on the compound, I glanced around, taking one final look at the place and moved around the first van to the passenger's seat. I opened it and climbed into it, plopping on the soft seat as my designated driver sparked the car.

The other drivers did the same as my car drove out of the compound onto the road through the opened main gate, headlights glaring, as it took a right.

I saw the other vans driving out of the compound also through the rearview mirror. One of the vans took a right, trailing after the van I was in, while the other took a left, driving in the opposite direction.

The van just behind this one was the other van loaded with the stuff while the other was loaded with the ex-followers. They'd drive away to the outskirts of town and stop there.

By that time, the mind fog would have weaved off and they'd eventually separate to go their own ways, pockets filled with enough rubies and jewels to take care of their needs for at least a month.

The two drivers, on the other hand, would follow me out of town, keeping me company until I got myself a secure place to lay low and park the vans.

Then they'd also go their separate ways with enough money to start a new life. My job here was officially done. It was time to move on.

Relaxing in my seat, the cold wind blowing on my face and cooling my body, as the car drove ahead through the night, I released a deep sigh and closed my eyes.

Suddenly, after a couple of minutes passed by, a thunderous explosion cut through the silent night like a hot knife through butter, echoing everywhere. The corner of my lips curled up into a smile.

"Goodbye."

 

[Lord Reyes]

"It's been two days since the devastating explosion rocked the compound of the enigmatic Cult Of Seth," the female reporter with short brown hair and hazel eyes narrated, her soft voice grave and somber. "The full wreckage of the compound has been combed twice, but so far, no bodies have been recovered."

The screen changed, displaying images of the charred remnants of Setesh's house, with copious amounts of smoke billowing from it into the sky. The whole property, even the outer section that held the mini forest, had been marred by destruction.

It looked like a huge forest fire had just run its course, burning the trees and plants to blackened crisps. The devastation was almost mesmerising.

"The local authorities still do not know the cause of the explosion, but experts are speculating that it was caused by an accidental gas leak. More investigations are being conducted to ascertain the real cause.

"The local authorities, together with the FBI and CIA, are still conducting investigations into the whereabouts of the members of the cult and their leader, the mysterious Set Farguoge.

"It seems they hav––" The reporter's words got cut short as I switched off the television screen, plunging the hotel room into silence.

Lounging in the plush armchair, I raised the glass to my mouth and took a long sip of the fragrant red wine, savoring its sweetness as I reflected on the news and the events of the past few days.

Just as the reporter said, two days had passed since my stunt at Setesh's place. The police and the authorities had been busting their balls trying to make sense of what happened back there, but to no avail.

The explosions caused by the series of naquadah explosives were comparable to a ballistic missile.

The positions they were planted in had been perfectly calculated by yours truly to create a localized resonance effect, effectively incinerating most of the things in that house and efficiently erasing any evidence they could've used to compile an accurate report.

The only lead they'd have would be the followers, but by this time, they were long gone. The CIA didn't have any records of them, only Setesh, so they were in the clear, as well as me.

The whole case was a wild goose chase. They'd eventually get tired, frustrated, or both, and then the whole thing would be added to the long string of mysterious occurrences of this nation.

Then, it'd be forgotten, and no one, except perhaps the locals, would ever speak of it again.. The chapter had been closed and I had moved on.

I gulped down the rest of the wine, placed it on the tabletop, and stood up, my eyes scanning the room. I was in a hotel room, a very luxurious one.

It was big and lavish, with cream-painted walls adorned with framed prints and artwork, dark brown carpeted flooring that added a touch of warmth, and a high ceiling that had a golden-colored chandelier hanging from it, softly illuminating the room.

Floor to ceiling windows adorned with luxurious golden drapes stretched on the walls at the sides of the room, providing an almost picturesque backdrop of Seattle's city lights and the starry sky.

The room was furnished with everything I needed: a television set, a computer seated in the corner, armchairs, tables, and elegant wooden closets, etc.

Behind me was a large bed with a headboard, fitted with mauve silken sheets and pillows, flanked by bedside tables with lamps.

The central air conditioning system flooded with room cold air that hugged and chilled my half naked body, making me feel like I was right home.

It cost a pretty penny to get this room, especially in this city, but I was rich now, and had more than enough to splurge, so I got it anyway. The penthouse suites were already taken; else, I would've gotten one.

I've always had a taste for the finer things in life. My Goa'uld memories only made it worse. With all the money and resources I had now, it was going to be very hard for me to settle for anything less.

Stretching myself, I stepped to the computer in the corner of the room, enjoying the feeling of the soft and warm fabric of the carpet underneath my bare feet, and took a seat on the swivel chair in front of it.

I thumbed the power buttons of the monitor and system unit and relaxed my back on the backrest, waiting for the computer to boot up as the monochrome screen flickered to life.

I pulled back one of the drawers of the desk, took out a modem inside it, and plugged it into the computer after it finished booting up.

Refreshing the primitive Apple OS, I clicked on the Web icon and, with a few keystrokes, accessed an underground secret forum I'd been active on for the past day.

Now that I had considerable wealth and resources, it was time to create my foundation. All the stuff I'd taken away from Setesh had been stored in a secure private warehouse on the West Side of this city, near Elliot Bay.

I didn't have any real use for them right now. The only things in that cache that would help me now were the money and the jewelry. But even that came with some problems.

I wasn't sure they were clean. Even if they were, I couldn't use them for large-scale stuff because as it stood now, I literally had no identity.

To use my new resources for the things I had in mind, I needed an identity, an American background, a legal name, and paper trails to back them up.

I couldn't exactly brainwash my way into getting these, nor could I politely ask for those from the US government, so my only option was to use the backdoor. In other words, the black market.

I'd get all my needs and more catered to there very efficiently. It was the best alternative I could ask for. Was it illegal? Yeah, very much. Did I care? No, not even a little. Maybe I would've cared in my past life, but now?

The law was as inconsequential as the speck on my boots. Having thousands of years of memories and experience in ruling planets and solar systems kinda had that effect on people. Besides, the law didn't take aliens into consideration.

I'd spent the better part of yesterday roaming through tons of online forums and chat rooms for a black market contact or even any black market activity. I managed to find a contact, but it wasn't easy.

If it were at least the early 2000s, all I'd have to do was download the Thor browser, go through some safety protocols, and then I'd find myself on the Dark Web. The unfriendly part of the broader Internet.

There, it was only a matter of asking the right questions and saying the correct things, then voila, I'd find and get whatever I needed.

Unfortunately, it was the '80s. A time where the Dark Web didn't exist and the black market barely had any presence on the Web.

It was only with luck that I managed to get a contact. From there, I told whoever it was what I wanted. He or she told me they'd discuss my deal with their superiors, and they'd get back to me later on the next day.

They gave me an appointed time at which they'd contact me on the same forum to give me feedback. It was only two minutes left for them to contact me.

I had full confidence they'd give me a location to meet up to discuss the finer points of my proposal or deal. After all, it wasn't every day they met clients who wanted to wash twenty-six million dollars and also forge a new identity...

A beep resounded as a notification popped up on the forum page for my account.

Clicking it, my page got redirected to a black chatroom. The ID or username: Black Savant was blinking white on the page. A message popped up on the page.

black savant: Club Night angle, D.C, eight o'clock pm tomorrow, keyword, white angel. Come alone and don't be late.

V: Roger that.

I typed a reply and immediately, the chat room closed down, as they erased it, bringing me back to the forum listings.

I exited the Web and powered down the computer, pressing my back against the chair as I relaxed, the corner of my lip curling into a small smile.

"D.C it is then."