Chapter 16

Si Fa Xaymni was a largely oceanic world. There was one large island and two long archipelagos of smaller islands scattered about an ocean, though it was the fruits of that ocean that fed the Al'kesh Shipyard that had been built in a crater of the small, asteroid-like, moon of the World. Seafloor Mining produced a decent amount of both Naquadah and Trinium, while offshore fish farms produced quite a bit of seafood.

On the world below, the City of Talatyai sat on the single large island and contained much of the critical infrastructure of the World's one-million-five-hundred-thousand Jaffa and Thirteen-Million-Five-Hundred-Thousand Human Workers. This included, but was not limited to, mineral refining plants, workshops, the Jaffa Training Ground, and most importantly, the Ocean Lotus Palace of Khun Theu Kham.

This was Khun Theu Kham's Throneworld. It was where all of his manufacturing capacity was based, and the only reason that it was not even more populated was that it was not where most of his food production was based. That was on the Jungle World of Ban Mi instead, where rice paddies clogged river deltas and orchards of fruit and plantations of spices dotted the forested, tropical, hinterlands. Ban Mi would be a bitch and a half to take if I couldn't defeat the majority of Khun Theu Kham's forces here at Si Fa Xaymni and they were able to withdraw and fortify Ban Mi out in the Jungles.

Fortunately, Khun Theu Kham only had a single Ha'tak Cruiser and around six Al'kesh Gunships to contest the Orbit, while scans showed his ground forces were only partly mobilized. That meant that our objectives here were very clear. First, defeat Khun Theu Kham's fleet. Next, mount landings on the Shipyard Moon and on Talatyai. Thirdly, capture both of those strategic points, the lastly, mop up any stragglers once both strongpoints were secure. It was all a very straightforward thing, though for once, this did not seem to be masking any hidden calamity that would befall my Forces.

Indeed, the Xiaotian Quan and Tiānlóng began to hammer down the Lone Ha'tak, the Dāb Dkhk's, shields while the Hēilóng and our surviving Al'kesh Gunships tore into the Enemy's Al'kesh. Honestly, it was all so textbook that I likely wouldn't get involved in anything unless it was required of me to do so. Chen, as my First Prime, was more than capable of handling the capture of the Shipyard Moon on his own, even as General Yan and General Tsao led troops onto Talatyai to capture the City, both using ring transports to move their Jaffa around.

Really, all I had to do was sit back and watch as things unfolded. Predictably, that occurred as Zhao spoke up from his position on the comms unit.

"We are being hailed, My Lord!" He called out.

"Are we, now? I will take it up here, then." I mused.

As the small Vocu'ume Projector built into my tactical readout flared to life, I could see the goateed, gold-bedecked, form of Khun Theu Kham flare to life on my screen. He looked angry, that was good. He should be, after all. It would make defeating him all the sweeter.

"I do not know what you are playing at, but withdraw or I shall be forced to utilize my secret weapon." Warned Khun Theu Kham.

"Oh? And what secret weapon would that be?" I questioned.

"I have in my possession, one of the few remaining Gravetic Wave Bombs in existence. If you do not leave, I will detonate it and your fleet will be forced to scatter or be rent apart by gravitic energies. Either way, I win." Informed Khun Theu Kham.

"I do not believe you. How could you find something like that?" I queried.

"Just because the technology was outlawed by the terms of the Peace with the Asgard does not mean they are not still around if you know where to look." Insisted Khun Theu Kham.

"I am not the Asgard. Should you use that weapon, I assure you that I will not show the Mercy for which they are famed." I warned.

"And I am not Ra, I will not shy away from using such a weapon prohibited by a treaty I am not signatory of. Do you doubt my sincerity?" Asked Khun Theu Kham.

"I do not doubt it. Know that should you attempt to use such a tactic, it will be your last." I cautioned.

"Very well. You forced me to this." Intoned Khun Theu Kham.

Then he cut the feed from the Voc'cume Projector as I ordered Zhao to begin scanning the area for any hidden mine launchers or bomb bays. He found a trio hovering in the sensor shadow of the Shipyard Moon. Had I not upgraded the systems on all my Ha'taks, he would likely not have found them in time. Now, however, the mine launchers apertures of Trinium Alloy were sliding open just as I sent in the Mǔdānhuā to disable them. A salvo of fire from the staff cannons was followed by the launch of a plasma Warhead, destroying the apertures and shooting down a large, dark-metal sphere just before it could do more than slip out of the mine launcher, well before the Warhead Armed.

It was a shame, really. Gravetic weapons were one of those rare breed of Goa'uld weapons that could actually do anything to an Asgard Warship. For that reason alone, they were banned during the treaty process to end the War with the Asgard. The Asgard had wanted nothing that could actually harm them to remain in production for us, while Ra simply wished not to piss the Asgard off further and incite future, even more devastating, wars based on a refusal to acquiesce.

They worked based on the same principles as the anti-gravity drives from the Ptah-Class Fighter, simply overclocked to the point of turning the engine into a bomber. The resulting burst of Gravetic Energies would not only rend any ships in the blast area asunder, even an Asgard Belliskner-Class Warship, but would also make Hyperspace Travel a functional impossibility for up to an hour after the detonation, effectively trapping any survivors in realspace long enough to be hunted down.

Unfortunately, as I destroyed the warhead before it could arm, that put paid for any attempt to reverse-engineer such a weapon from an existing sample. Oh, I was certain I could figure it out from first principles using my enhanced intellect and Goa'uld Genetic Memory. Now wasn't the time for that, though. I had to focus on winning this battle. Once I did, I could move onto the Jungle World of Ban Mi, Khun Theu Kham's Breadbasket, and hopefully manage to wrap up my conquest of Khun Theu Kham's Domain in less than a week.

"My Lord, the Dāb Dkhk's shields have just gone down over the bridge section." Intoned Zhao.

"Target their Pel'tac. I warned Khun Theu Kham not to try what he just attempted. Threats must be backed by the will to carry them out, or else they are but words in the wind." I ordered.

"At once, My Lord." Nodded Zhao.

As he did so, rapid-fire bolts of bright orange-gold streaking out and smashing through part of the pyramid section of the Dāb Dkhk's superstructure, I watched as the enemy's sole Ha'tak shuddered in place before going still, cast adrift on the sea of stars by the might of a full salvo of a Ha'tak to the unshielded Pel'tac. As I saw that, I grinned. It would only be a matter of time now.

In fact, Chen would report in some two hours later saying his forces had secured the Shipyard Moon. An hour after that, General Yan and General Tsao reported in that they had just defeated an enemy Jaffa Force on the beaches outside of Talatyai. Almost predictably, we received a hail from the Ocean Lotus Palace shortly after that.

The Vocu'ume Projector this time displayed a younger Man in Green Robes, with minimal gold as opposed to the large amounts that had been on display on Khun Theu Kham's person. He bowed toward me as he saw that he was connected and I nodded back, clearly in the superior position here.

"Who am I speaking with?" I questioned.

"I am Pu-Phi-Su, Lord Erlang Shen. A Minister working under the late Lord Chumpha, who was our late Lord Khun Theu Kham's Chancellor. As you have slain both Lords Khun Theu Kham and Chumpha, I am the seniormost representative of the Government of Lord Khun Theu Kham's Domain remaining." Introduced the Man in Green Robes, Pu-Phi-Su.

"I see. And am I to assume you are calling to surrender?" I queried.

"I am, though there is but a single condition." Informed Pu-Phi-Su.

"What condition would this be? You are hardly in a position to make demands, after all." I asked.

"This is so, but I have heard from some. . .mutual friends of ours that you are a Goa'uld who can be trusted to do right by the people of our Domain, both Goa'uld and Non-Goa'uld. If they told me true, then I believe you will agree to my condition." Responded Pu-Phi-Su.

Now that certainly sounded as if he was hinting at having been an abnormal Goa'uld working as a Tok'ra agent within Khun Theu Kham's Government. I would need to contact Canens to verify, but in the meantime, I believe I ought to extend a little trust here. I could at least hear out whatever this condition he wanted me to agree to was.

"I see. Name your condition and know that I will be contacting our mutual friends to verify your claims shortly." I intoned.

"Spare the people of Khun Theu Kham's Domain a sack by allowing our own Jaffa to remain as garrison troops within Khun Theu Kham's Domain, at least partially. I have a list of likely candidates for Garrison Liason Officers that you may feel free to peruse at your leisure." Explained Pu-Phi-Su.

Now that sounded an awful lot like there were Actual Tok'ra still on-planet that Pu-Phi-Su was covering for. No doubt they had been planning something when my invasion caught them all flat-footed. If I agreed to this, it would likely allow the Tok'ra to finish whatever operation they had been in the middle of on Si Fa Xaymni. I knew that, and it was likely that Pu-Phi-Su knew that I knew that.

There was only one conclusion I could draw from this condition. This was a test from the Tok'ra, wanting to know if I would be as reliable an ally as I seemed. Would I allow them to finish whatever operation they had been in the middle of before I arrived or would I force them to abort their operation for my own self-aggrandizement? Fortunately for the Tok'ra, I was planning to keep my word on the Alliance in both Spirit and Letter whenever possible.

"Very well. Send me this list. I agree to your terms of surrender." I agreed.

And like that, I had just swiped two more systems for my own in a single day with minimal casualties. I would have Chen board the Dāb Dkhk and tow it back to Taiji where the Sirrush would add it to the repair docket of captured Ha'taks. In the meantime, I would contact the Tok'ra and see about verifying Pu-Phi-Su's claims. If I had found out he had played me to save his own skin, he would soon find out that Abnormal Goa'uld could be just as ruthless as the more usual sort when it came to punishing treachery.

Once I had finished with that, it would be on to Shenrab Miwo's Domain to continue my recent spate of conquests. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here's the next chapter. Erlang Shen manages to wrap things up fairly quickly here, thanks to several factors, including there being actual Tok'ra Agents on-world, and Khun Theu Kham being somewhat ineffectual as a military commander. He's now ahead of schedule, and assuming that Shenrab Miwo doesn't take longer than expected to defeat, that will allow Erlang Shen around a week or so to consolidate his new holdings before Lord Yu even leaves with his fleet to confront him.

As for what, precisely, the Tok'ra were doing on Si Fa Xaymni, that will be revealed in the next chapter, which will be an Interlude with the Tok'ra High Council.

Stay tuned. . .