River of Stars Ch 9 bit – Argh

~ crossovercreativechaos

“You’re saying that Kanzeon Bosatsu is….” Hammond stared down the alien black eyes in the hologram, and was glad he’d already sent an airman down to invite Jacob up here. “Commander Thor. Before we discuss the situation any farther, I’d like to have Ambassador Carter and Selmak in on this. Just so all parties involved are absolutely clear on all details.”

The Asgard’s gray head tilted, a shimmer of light. “In light of the information the SGC has so far provided, I believe that would be wise.”

Which sounded like Thor thought they knew a lot more than they were telling.

I wish I did, General Hammond thought reluctantly. As it is, I know just enough to realize we’ve gone from SNAFU to full-blown FUBAR.

With SG-1 right in the middle of it, and no way to warn them. God, he hoped Jack was on his toes.

The conference room door opened, Jacob walking through with a general’s determination to show no uncertainty. “George.” He nodded to the hologram. “Supreme Commander. To what do I owe the honor?”

“Jacob,” Hammond said plainly. “Let me cut right to the point. Thor says that Kanzeon Bosatsu… is a Tok’ra.”

Jacob’s eyes bugged. He shook his head, like shaking off water, and held up a hand: Wait. Frowned, eyes chasing back and forth across the room without seeing it, like a silent version of Daniel and Jack having one of their infamous arguments about the merits of C-4 versus decoding hieroglyphic locks. Blew out a long, long, breath. “…Oh, hell.”

“Is it true?” Hammond asked. Not judging anyone. Not yet.

“I think I need to sit down for this.” Jacob grabbed a chair so he could look Hammond and Thor both in the eye. “Apparently it is. Selmak, that really falls under need to know. As in, we needed to know that!”

Then Jacob’s head dipped, and Selmak looked up. “Supreme Commander. You ask us to unveil our greatest shame.”

“I do not understand.” Thor blinked. “She has done a great service to the Asgard, by ensuring dangerous technology does not fall into System Lord hands. The people on her planet are allowed to govern themselves, save where advanced technology might be put at risk. What has she done which is shameful?”

“She denies that technology to the Tok’ra,” Selmak said coldly. “She has abandoned Egeria’s mission against the System Lords. She spawns new broods – not to replace our numbers, who need them the most, but to experiment with making them other than what we are! They are not Tok’ra! They are not even Goa’uld! They are – other.”

“Or as a certain colonel might put it,” Hammond mused, “she told you to go screw yourselves.” He skewered Thor with a look. “Now tell me why.”

“Because I requested it of her.” Another slow blink. “Do the Tok’ra not wish allies against the System Lords? Kanzeon Bosatsu is… righting a wrong the Asgard cannot correct. Given the Protected Planets Treaty rests in part on the System Lords’ reluctance to challenge our fleets, we could not have it known that there was… an aspect of technology the Asgard could not safely handle. So I requested her silence.” Thor regarded Selmak calmly. “It would appear this strategy is no longer effective in maintaining Shangri-La’s safety.”

Selmak scowled. “If there is a technology the Tok’ra can use against the System Lords-”

“It would seem the Tok’ra, as well, cannot safely handle that technology,” Thor said levelly. “Given the events that took place nine centuries ago, when the Tok’ra Kamou did his best to tamper with it… and nearly slaughtered one of the last Furlings left alive.”

“Furlings?” Hammond broke in, before this could get any farther out of hand. Obviously, as Daniel would put it, there was a breakdown in communications here that wasn’t anything as simple as the meaning of words. “The last race in the Alliance? Are you certain? We’ve barely even found a few ruins-”

“Shangri-La was one of their terraformed worlds,” Thor cut him off, watching Selmak. “We are certain.”

“Furlings?” Selmak’s tone held what Hammond thought might actually be honest disbelief. “Supreme Commander. I have been on Shangri-La. There are no Furlings there.”

Thor’s black eyes seemed a bit more blank than usual. “The child. Son Goku.”

Selmak dipped his head, and Jacob was back and blinking. “You can’t be serious. I know what a Furling looks like! They’re-” His hand waved toward the ceiling, like a cub reporter gesturing at Godzilla. “Twenty feet tall! With claws and fangs and chitin-scale armor, throwing psychokinetic force around like baseballs! They’re the scariest sentient thing any Goa’uld’s ever seen! And you think we could have missed them?”

49 thoughts on “River of Stars Ch 9 bit – Argh”

  1. Either adult Furlings could pull some psychokinetic tricks that make Youkai look like wannabes (entirely possible) or Selmak never actually saw one and is exaggerating based on genetic memory.

    Though the panicked description is giving me Guyver flashbacks.

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    2. >Bit of both. Selmak’s never seen an adult Furling in the flesh… and Furlings, like youkai, can do not only shapeshifting but illusions.>
      And Goa’uld/Tok’ra are probably very bad at resisting said illusions even if they know it’s fake.

      And if the illusionist is good enough………psychosomatic reactions can be one hell of a thing.

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  2. I can’t help but think Selmak is exaggerating here, though that could be my unfamiliarity of both the source materials speaking, then again Selmak saw Goku with his special limiters on. I had this thought for a while but in the original myth Wukong/Goku could use his hair to create lesser copies which sounds suspiciously like cloning would be like to primitive humans. Speaking of the myth how has SG-1 not commented about “Journey to the West” unless you don’t want to explain a plausible reason how Shangri-La legends got to Earth, which is perfectly understandable.

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    1. Given the little Furling info there is out there – if we go by gamebooks, not show canon? (Show canon doesn’t describe them at all.)

      …He’s really not exaggerating.

      (And I’m not bringing up the Journey to the West because Daniel’s probably never read it.)

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      1. Kids in general take time to grow into and develop whatever potential they have and can use as adults. Hence the reason why adults are supposed to protect them as much as possible. I didn’t think this was rocket science? >.>a

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      3. >Kids in general take time to grow into and develop whatever potential they have and can use as adults. Hence the reason why adults are supposed to protect them as much as possible. I didn’t think this was rocket science? >.>a>
        Remember that the Tok’ra will see things through their own cultural bias.

        And with them you don’t really have a childhood. The genetic memories basically make them adults at the get go. So he doesn’t see Goku and think immature Furling = less dangerous.

        He sees Furling attempting to look less dangerous = Likely going to kill he via surprise attack or something.

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  5. Selmak’s reaction reminds me of Dragon Ball. You know, the moments where Vegeta and Goku turn into a giant, homicidal monkeys.

    Though, I bet Selmak’s would change his mind real quick if he ever met a pissed off Goku. Without his limiter.

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    2. >Also? The obvious answer to Selmac/Jacob’s question is YES.>
      Hammond: You don’t want my reply to that question Selmac. You really don’t.

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  7. …this snippet suspiciously sounds like Selmak, on behalf of the Tok’ra, going “Why can we never have nice things” and Hammond and Thor, in crescendo, replying with “This. THIS is why you can never have nice things.”

    That, and I’m now imagining youkai kids playing with illusions automatically registering as humongous and scary in Tok’ra genetic memory. Because the illusions *were* that frightening, as were the minds and potential behind them. And, well, some youkai *do* get that big. Without their limiters. Maybe. They can certainly get that dangerous… case in point, Goku.

    On the other hand, genetic and racial diversity being what it is, there’s nothing to say that the Tok’ra genetic memory could very well have realistic memories of the Furlings. Goku might just be from a strain that *didn’t* get that big.

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  8. And illusions and shape-shifting and the baker’s dozen of other plausible explanations this setting has its disposal could not possibly explain that difference Selmak (this is why thinking inside the box is so arggh . . .)

    . . . and as YMFaery put it – Goku isn’t an adult. Immature lifeforms can sometimes look very different from their adult form. Goa’uld larva look different from adult Goa’uld for example.

    And another thing, I think the Asgard would recognize members of a species that they were close allies with. So you are either accusing them of outright lying or being unable to tell what their own allies looked like . . .

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      3. So, genetic/cyborg hybridization of Kanzeon’s early Kami and Yokai products? I wonder if he recognized the non-human Yokai and some Kami DNA being in common? In that case maybe a bit more than 50% Furling with Alteran percentages tweaked up (it’s not human standard and source of some power and we’re making a combat monster: AMP IT UP!) and human filling in the gaps? (Some of the non-viable Natakus probably used varying percentages of Unas.)

        Neatly explains the suicidal tendencies when you: aren’t given time to develop as a child; are made using 2+ naturally empathic races; and are raised by a sociopath who only sees you as a tool.

        Actually, would that natural empathy be part of why he and Goku bonded so quickly? Each one subconciously felt the other was. . . sending and reading on an instinctive level almost no one else around them was properly registering? Heck, that’d explain why Goku berserked so hard he shattered his limiter when Nataku died, he may very well have felt Nataku’s soul fading in his own head.

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      4. Poor, poor Nataku, yes. And I like that explanation for Goku’s limiter failing in this ‘verse.

        (Konzen punching out Kanzeon will never not be Awesome.)

        We know Nataku’s still alive, if not among the conscious. Given what Kanzeon now knows about him – and what empathic kids need – I think she has plans.

        Sanzo: I felt something walking on my grave. I’m going to go shoot it….

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  12. >>Poor, poor Nataku, yes. And I like that explanation for Goku’s limiter failing in this ‘verse.
    (Konzen punching out Kanzeon will never not be Awesome.)
    Glad you like my theory! (And given how she’d just handed Seiten Taisei his behind on a silver platter – hell yes.)

    >>We know Nataku’s still alive, if not among the conscious. Given what Kanzeon now knows about him – and what empathic kids need – I think she has plans.
    Sanzo: I felt something walking on my grave. I’m going to go shoot it….
    Aww. Sanzo gets to adopt another tyke. That’s adorable. *is shot*
    In all seriousness I had hoped that Nataku survived here (I know he barely survived in canon). From Kanzeon’s canon description of Nataku’s current state and facts in River of Stars snippets I was assuming that his soul took some damage from what happened to him. I imagine dying is never very good for anyone.

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    1. Nataku did survive, even if it’s taken a long time to heal some of the damage. Kanzeon’s waiting on 2 things before she tries to take him out of stasis, at the moment. 1) Giving Goku some time to have Sanzo’s undivided attention – the last time or two his limiter came off, he was slightly more in control, and Kanzeon’s crossing her fingers that works. 2) Trying to do something about the Tok’ra first, given they screwed things up royally last time!

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      1. *winces* I’m assuming neither of those was the RoS version of Ni Jenyi’s surprise attack/near murder of Goku in front of Sanzo from out of stealth. Because yeah, given – from what I remember – that one had his highest innocent body count so far. . .

        I assume in this ‘Verse Ni was using his own version of Vox tech, actual stolen/reverse engineered Vox tech, a stealth function built into his piece of the scripture, or his piece of the scripture contained Vox tech? It was after all a JOINT lab. No one has said that it was just Ancient, Asgard, and Furling. Be kind of awkward to leave the fourth species in the alliance out of a joint research lab in all honesty.

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