Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.
Betad by Priapus, Marethyu, Beans
The Dungeon Master
Chapter 05: Order
– Dorian Morgan –
"You should have seen this coming," Egeria says simply. I just shrug, because I more or less did see it coming. I just fucked up preparing for it because I was busy planning ways to fuck with SG-1. "Sokar was loathed by his people, even those who truly believed in his power. Apophis is not so reviled, converting his more devout followers was never going to be as simple."
And there lies my problem. Yes, the entire planet thinks I'm a god but that doesn't mean they don't believe in Apophis anymore. They claim his death was fake, the trickery of an enemy god, and cry for his return as they arm themselves and scheme against me. Basically, Chulak has rapidly fallen into a civil war between those who have truly converted and those who still believe in their extremely dead god.
The people of Netu and Delmak didn't care if Sokar was a god or not, only that he was gone. Even the most loyal follower of Sokar lived in terror, but Apophis isn't such an asshole. Well, he was an asshole, but one who was smarter about ruling than Sokar. It is why he stole the potential hosts from other planets instead of his own population.
It's not really a war. The forces loyal to Apophis are well aware of how outgunned they are. They tried a concentrated attack to retake Apophis' throne room almost immediately, and my Sisters of Battle slaughtered them. They killed one Sister, and I brought her back mid-fight in a display that broke several of them immediately. Dumbasses just gave me a chance to show off.
Since then, they've turned to guerrilla warfare and generally making a nuisance of themselves, causing trouble in the city of Chulak. Jaffa aren't built for this kind of subtle war, and frankly, they're not very good at it, but they're managing to be annoying if nothing else.
I've taken the Temple of the Gods, the most opulent building on Chulak, where Apophis hosted fellow System Lords and other Goa'uld of influence, and claimed it as my second throne. In truth, it's nicer than the one I have on Delmak and comes with thousands of slaves that live purely to serve the 'Gods'. The majority of the population resides in the city of Chulak, although there are many scattered villages surrounding the planet. The city is where I'm facing the majority of the trouble with lawlessness.
I also have to deal with the couple of hundred people we rescued from Apophis' little party, including Sha're and Skaara. Well, I knew taking the planet was going to come with its own problems but my population has increased nearly tenfold. Chulak was far more populated than Delmak, and Apophis encouraged his subjects to reproduce to increase the number of minions he had.
"I blame Apophis. It turns out the Goa'uld have shitty legal systems beyond 'obey your god'," I say with a shrug. They don't even have an equivalent to a police force since the Jaffa are a one size fits all solution to any problem. Crimes? Send the Jaffa. Conquest? Send the Jaffa. Rebellion? Send the Jaffa. They're like a Swiss Army knife but shitty. Jack of all trades, master of fuck all.
It means my Jaffa don't know how to enforce the new laws… which currently don't exist beyond 'obey your God-Emperor'. Ugh, I am not making an entire legal system by myself. Well, I've been blatantly stealing from 40k so far, why stop now? I have more energy from the faith of those on both Chulak and Delmak so I can afford some more.
It's time to enact the Lex Imperialis and get a group actually able to enforce it. If nothing else, this is an excuse to get robot dogs. The Adeptus Arbites will put a stop to this nonsense, so I can go back to plotting what matters.
Finding a way to fuck Sam.
– Egeria – Later –
She probably should have seen this coming, as despite his lofty title, Dorian's interest in the minor quibbles of actually ruling an Empire was extremely minor. She supposed he didn't need to deal with such things himself when he could just expend some of his energy and pull a solution out of his ass.
Dorian's so-called 'Lex Imperialis' was a strict code of law that he had seemingly pulled out of thin air, and while he admitted that the original Lex was incredibly complex and convoluted, the new one was far simpler but no less ruthless. As his advisor, he'd asked her to go through it and see what needed changing, while also assigning Valeria to do the same. It meant that any time she wanted to change one of the more… restrictive laws that pertained to the religion of the Grand Imperium of Man she'd have to reach an agreement with the Sister Superior, which often felt more like a hostage negotiation than a diplomatic discussion.
And she was the hostage with a Bolter to her head.
Religious freedom was not exactly permitted within the Empire, nor was free speech against the Emperor or his enforcers. Dorian was a mixture of very laid back in his rule while also being extremely authoritarian. He wanted his people to be happy, but he wanted them to be loyal and obedient as well.
His was a brutal regime toward enemies, traitors and criminals. It was only fitting, then, that the organisation he had summoned to enforce his law upon Chulak and Delmak was equally brutal. The Arbitrators that he had summoned from… somewhere had been unleashed upon the city of Chulak to enforce the Emperor's Will, emerging from a Precinct-Fortress that had been summoned into being upon the planet.
She wasn't sure if he was creating life, already grown with memories and knowledge, or summoning people from wherever this Imperium of Man was, but they all came with a deep knowledge of the Lex, a talent for enforcement and a deep devotion to the God-Emperor of Man.
In truth, she could not disapprove of the idea of actually creating a legal code to be followed in the Imperium. Having a unified legal code across the planets he ruled would help enforce order and lessen crimes and corruption, but his methods were… as unsubtle as the rest of him.
His Arbitrators were armed with shock mauls and suppression shields capable of resisting Ma'Tok blasts, along with an assortment of ranged weaponry provided by Calexa-Nine. That wasn't mentioning the cybernetic dogs and hawks, called Cyber-Mastiffs and Grapplehawks, respectively. Calexa had made a horrific comment about how interesting it was that they weren't using servitors this time, happily explaining what a servitor was.
Again, their technology was fascinating because he was clearly pulling it all from somewhere, and that somewhere sounded like a nightmare that made the Goa'uld seem tolerable. But at the same time, Dorian also knew how nightmarish it was because he was making changes as he incorporated more and more of the original Imperium into his empire. Each Cyber-Mastiff and Grapplehawk was technically a servitor according to Dorian, because he'd used his powers to create cloned brains like he had with the Goa'uld Queens. At the very least, they weren't harvesting living creatures for parts, and she'd heard him discussing making something that could endlessly create the cloned parts with Calexa so they'd never need to.
The simple code of law that he'd created outlawed the main crimes that he saw as a problem. He'd openly admitted that it was a very basic version of what would come later. In some ways, it was softer than what the Jaffa were used to, because it wasn't unusual for a thief to have their hands cut off in Jaffa culture, or for grudges to be settled between individual Jaffa, allowing for honour duels to the death. There would be resistance to his new code of law, outlawing such practices, but it was a chance to make the Jaffa more civilised… at the cost of furthering Dorian's indoctrination of them.
She was walking a fine line. She amused Dorian, something she knew all too well, but that only went so far. She also aroused him, thanks to the curvy body he had picked for her, but again, that only went so far. If she pushed too hard, he'd push back. But he had too much power to be left to his own devices, and even today, she'd managed to get some of the more draconian laws removed or altered. Dorian was going to expand rapidly. He was too powerful not to. If he was left to his own devices with nobody but those he summoned to advise him, the galaxy would slowly be overrun by an Imperium that was far more brutal, not because Dorian was brutal but because he wouldn't care to change things as long as it worked.
Dorian was impulsive and lazy. He didn't want to wait for things that he desired. She'd seen it with Nya, the tribal girl he'd claimed as a concubine. He'd wanted to just claim her immediately, but with some nudging he'd agreed to let her get settled in and mourn her father first. Instead, he was wowing her with the luxury that came with her new position and she knew it wouldn't be long before Nya was the one to approach him.
She was still incredibly mixed over her own body. It was truly amazing, with regeneration and strength that shamed the Jaffa, but half the time she spoke with Dorian, he was more interested in her breasts than her words. At the same time, it was because she was providing eye candy that he was even willing to listen in the first place. Dorian was hedonistic and impatient, and he wanted her. While she would admit he was attractive, she wasn't eager to spread her legs for a teenage boy, no matter how good-looking or powerful. At the same time, Dorian was only going to accept no for an answer for so long. She wore the revealing dresses he created for her because he was more likely to listen to her when she was showing off, but at the same time that meant she was tempting him with each meeting. She was lucky that Valeria and Dominica were so eager to entertain their god, distracting him.
He also had his new breeding program, full of attractive young women eager to be bedded by the Emperor. As long as he had other things to amuse himself, he was unlikely to force her into anything. Plus, despite his smug arrogance, Dorian was not a bad person. He wasn't a particularly good person either, but he wasn't evil. He was a teenage boy with seemingly unlimited power, and all that entailed, but convincing him to do things in a kinder way was rarely hard unless it truly inconvenienced him.
So she wasn't worried about him actively deciding to force her into his bed. No, the bigger concern was that he'd find her annoying and just send her away or stop listening to her. He was hardly the first man to be guided by his cock, and his two most frequent bed partners were a pair of zealots who would encourage him to burn everything heretical or alien to death. Dominica was a firm believer that anything that didn't worship Dorian deserved to die painfully. Valeria believed they deserved one chance to convert before she burned them to death.
If she lost her place by his side, he'd be left with two genocidal battle priests and a sociopathic tech priest as his advisors. Calexa was the closest thing Egeria had to a reasonable ally here, and she'd just recommended turning everyone who took part in the burgeoning rebellion into servitors for her foundry.
With guidance, Dorian could bring an end to the cruelty of the Goa'uld and build a lasting empire that would bring the galaxy into a brighter age. If that guidance was only from his devout followers who would never disagree with him, she feared he could end up far worse than the Goa'uld.
Heading into his palace, she found him easily enough, with his head in the lap of Nya as she fed him pieces of some fruit. He'd used his powers to create entire orchards and farmlands to feed his people, and himself, as he refused to live off rations or subpar food. Nya was dressed in blue silks, nearly translucent and barely covering her body. As Egeria had expected, the girl had been thoroughly wooed by the glitz and glamour of being the Emperor's concubine, her quality of life having improved considerably.
"Heya, Ria," Dorian greeted lazily, eating the grape that Nya fed him. "I take it something happened to have you looking so grim?"
"Indeed. There was another attempted riot in the city of Chulak by the supporters of Apophis," Egeria reported, making him hum lazily. He could be near-omnipresent with his powers, but he rarely actually used them due to the energy cost. She was slowly working out how his powers functioned, turning faith into energy that he could use to manipulate reality on a terrifying scale. His only limit was his source of energy, which was why she could never convince him not to have his people so heavily indoctrinated into worshipping him. It would cripple his own powers.
As she said, he could be convinced to be more reasonable when it didn't inconvenience him. Anything that hindered the Imperium's faith in him was more than an inconvenience. Trying to stop that would make her go from an amusing ally to a threat needing to be burnt alive real fast.
"How did the Arbitrators do?" Dorian asked, sitting up slightly. Of course, this meant he was resting his head directly between Nya's breasts, but she was sure that was entirely a coincidence. She could tell he was paying attention because his eyes were meeting hers instead of her cleavage.
"They've reported absolute success at suppressing the riot, and have taken the rioters into their custody. Each rioter has been found guilty of sedition and disturbing the peace and is awaiting their final sentencing. Several of the rioters were armed with Ma'Tok staves, leading to them being taken down more… ruthlessly, but the shock grenades Calexa provided were most successful in disabling the attackers. Those Jaffa have been found guilty of a series of more serious crimes," Egeria reported, making Dorian chuckle. "The Arbitrators reported no casualties on their side."
"Broadcast their sentencing to deter the other would-be rioters," Dorian said with a lazy shrug. She knew the sentence most would get, since she had literally helped write the legal code. Delmak still had plenty of mines that needed working, and Calexa hadn't sorted the automation for them yet. Hard labour in a penal colony would break the will of most. It was far kinder than Apophis or Sokar would have done, but still a brutal punishment. "Valeria is going to send some of the more diligent of her new sisters out on missionary work. Apophis had plenty of priestesses who have since seen the light, and it'll be easier to convert them if it's coming from the mouths of their own people rather than foreign invaders."
Dorian's 'modifications' on the various academies were baffling. Time dilation was not unheard of, especially with Ancient tech, but Dorian's ability to place the various structures he was using to train his Astra Militarum, Adeptus Arbites and Adepta Sororitas in bubbles of altered time to train faster, while also 'blessing' the buildings to ensure that the training happened faster at the same time had massively sped up the training process.
"I'll make sure word is spread. They will be less eager to openly riot when they know the price," Egeria agreed. She wasn't fond of using fear to keep people in line, but if this became an active civil war, Dorian would deploy the sisters, and Dominica would solve this the best way she knew how. Fire and grenades.
Intimidated was better than incinerated.
"I'd like to contact my people, as well," Egeria started, making Dorian blink as he looked back to her from where he'd been flirting with a blushing Nya.
"You haven't already? I had wondered why they hadn't come running back to mommy," Dorian snorted. "You know where they are hiding then?"
"I've spread word through the Goa'uld that survived your purge of Chulak, and made discreet contact with several of my people who had infiltrated Apophis' court. They feared you'd burn them if they came out of hiding, and couldn't risk trying to use the gate or steal a ship," Egeria pointed out.
"Nah, I was even nice enough to make sure none got caught up in Dominica's rampage. I figured there'd be a couple lurking around," Dorian explained. "Do they know who you are?"
"No, not yet. I merely spread word using some of the knowledge that remained in Bynarr's hosts mind from his blending with Jolinar to lure them out of hiding," Egeria explained.
"Oh yeah, you lot do that, don't you. I did wonder why you wanted that dude, when his mind was swiss cheese. That's why they would have needed Sam to get into Netu," Dorian realised, making her blink again at his clear knowledge of future events. Or future events that would have happened if he weren't currently taking an axe to whatever timeline he foresaw. "Oh, right. Jolinar's host would have died running from some assassin, and she jumped into Sam to try to save her own life. Didn't work, she would have died anyway, but not after Selmak got caught, the Tok'ra would have used the echo of Jolinar's memories in Sam to find out how she escaped from Netu."
Dorian liked flaunting his future knowledge, an amused grin on his face at her flummoxed expression. She knew him well enough at this point to know he wouldn't explain anything else, but he'd proven multiple times that he did know the future. Just another power in his growing box of bullshit.
"Yes, blending with a host can leave traces behind. They are normally not accessible, but I have my ways. I got just enough to learn some code phrases that I could use to convince my people that this wasn't a Goa'uld trap," Egeria explained instead, moving on. He pouted slightly at her recovering from her shock, but he just nodded.
"Honestly, I figured you'd be looking for a way to contact them already. I'm kinda surprised Jolinar hasn't come wandering back yet," Dorian admitted with a grin.
"If I know my children, they don't know what to do about you. Your existence goes against their beliefs about false gods, but Jolinar saw your powers firsthand. I imagine they're looking for a logical explanation for how you do the things you do," Egeria admitted, watching him laugh.
"Ahh, I bet their scientists are tearing their hair out. Their poor hosts. Ooh, I wonder if they'll send Anise. They should, I'd let her experiment on me anyday," Dorian joked.
"Is Anise by any chance using an attractive female host?" Egeria asked with a knowing, slightly scolding look. His grin gave her all the answer she needed. She'd learnt that she could get away with scolding him since she was 'mommy-coded'.
Whatever the fuck that meant.
– Skaara –
As he entered the throne room, he got his first look at the 'God-Emperor of Mankind' as Dorian lounged upon his throne with a casual, laid-back smile. After Ra and Daniel's many lectures, he was hesitant to believe in any god but… what else could move a planet?
He didn't understand the scientific side of things, but he understood that the Goa'uld had no real powers, only technology. But what technology could move a planet to another solar system? Daniel had taught him at least enough to know that such a thing was beyond impossible.
And yet, it had happened, seeing as Dorian had moved Chulak away from the grasp of the Goa'uld.
"You wished to see us, Emperor Dorian?" Sha're asked, nervous despite the confident way she stood before the throne.
Many of the captives that he and Sha're had been imprisoned with had been sent back to their homes, to spread word of the Imperium of Man to their people, but not he or Sha're.
"I did. Abydos has buried its Stargate," Dorian said simply, making them both freeze. "After your kidnapping, Daniel Jackson returned to Earth and ordered the others to bury the gate to prevent further attacks. You cannot use the Stargate to return home. In addition, Earth has installed a device upon their gate to prevent unauthorised activations. If I sent you to either, you would be killed instantly upon arrival. I find this mildly distasteful, given the effort that went into saving you in the first place."
"Could you not use your powers to send us home?" Sha're asked, but the white haired woman who rescued them scowled deeply at her question.
"You would have the God Emperor of Man acting as your personal transport?" Valeria asked, her hand twitching toward her weapon as Dorian raised his hand soothingly, calming her instantly.
"As it happens, I see no reason to. Daniel Jackson has joined Jack O'Neill in the formation of a team known as SG-1, to explore the galaxy and learn more of the threats. Jackson seeks his wife; O'Neill, his friend. It is inevitable that they will encounter the Imperium, I have seen it," Dorian explained with a shrug. "I will not waste my precious time and energy to speed up an inevitable outcome. Which leaves the simple problem of what to do with you two while you await that outcome."
The fact that Jack was looking for them made Skarra smile, despite the dark thoughts in his mind. Sha're brightened at the mention of her husband, and neither of them were foolish enough to press a being capable of moving planets to do something he'd decided not to. He wouldn't pretend to understand how or why such a being did anything, but even if he looked like a youth barely older than Skaara, it didn't change his fear and respect of this God Emperor that had so easily bested the false god that had kidnapped them.
Not least of which was because the woman by his side still looked borderline murderous and was heavily armed.
"Skaara of Abydos. I can sense your shame. Long have you idolised Jack O'Neill, but when the time came to defend your people, you failed," Dorian said, making Sha're go to defend him before the Emperor raised a hand, silencing her. "It is not your fault, of course. You are no warrior, and while you were armed with a similar firearm, your training was minimal at best, unlike the years of training O'Neill went through."
Skaara didn't respond, unnerved by the Emperor's knowledge of him and his deepest thoughts. He had failed. Failed to defend Abydos, failed to prevent his sister from being taken. He hadn't achieved a single thing.
"Do you wish to be strong? To be a warrior, like your idol?" Dorian asked calmly, cutting through Skaara's thoughts.
"...I do," Skaara admitted.
"Then the Astra Militarum will take you in. In time, you will take their teachings back to Abydos so your people can learn to truly defend themselves. In time, you will be a decorated hero like Colonel O'Neill," Dorian declared, resting his chin upon his fist with a strange smile on his lips. "As for you, Sha're. Your time with Daniel Jackson has left you better educated than most. I intend to take advantage of this. Consider it a way to repay me for rescuing you from the fates you would have faced, becoming nothing more than hosts for the Goa'uld parasites."
"Our fates?" Skaara asked, making Dorian pause before he waved his hand and Skaara winced as he watched a flood of memories being inserted into his head. He watched as he was chosen and dragged away from the other captives, implanted with one of the false gods. His heart froze as he watched a ship of massive size and power destroy Abydos itself, destroying his planet.
Sha're let out a cry, no doubt going through something similar as Dorian waited for a moment.
"Sha're would have met her end after years of possession by Apophis' Queen, Amaunet, forced to bear Apophis' child during her enslavement. Her parasite would have tried to kill Daniel Jackson, losing both their lives in the process. Skaara, you would have died at the hands of another of the false gods after being host to the parasite Klorel, freed only to die when your planet came under attack with no way to defend itself," Dorian explained easily, casually discussing such a horrible fate. And yet, Skaara could not call it fake. He had felt the parasite pierce him, felt his control leave him, felt the weapon that killed him. "I deemed it not to be."
"What are you?" Sha're finally asked, gasping as she breathed heavily, clearly steadying herself.
"The God-Emperor of Mankind. All mankind. The people of Abydos may not know of me, but you are descendants of humans taken from Holy Terra, and as such, you are my subjects. No more will I allow humanity to be enslaved and possessed by parasitical snakes," Dorian said, his casual expression fading to something far more intense as his eyes glowed with divine might. The very room seemed to resonate with his power, the strange architecture and golden throne humming with power before he relaxed again, slouching as the light faded and the room quieted. "You are safe here, Skaara and Sha're of Abydos, and you will be reunited with your loved ones before long. I have seen it, and so it shall be."
Despite everything, Skaara couldn't help but believe him.
– Dorian Morgan –
I am going to pound Sha're until she forgets all about Dan-yel.
Man, she is super cute but I am a patient man (lies) and I can be subtle (more lies).
Knowing their fates and the fact that Abydos will be destroyed if nothing changes is enough to make sure that the pair are motivated to learn and be useful to their benevolent saviours. Sha're will go to the Order Hospitaller, and the Imperial Guard will make something out of Skaara.
By breaking him down and filling his head with loyalty and obedience. Yeah, he'll take his training back to Abydos when it's time to add the place to my collection. Sha're has had years of listening to Daniel explain that the Goa'uld aren't gods. I give it a month before the Sisters have re-indoctrinated her into worshipping a real god.
Somewhere in the astral plane or whatever the Ascended call their higher plane, I sense the disapproval of the Ascended that has been watching me since I yoinked Chulak. I reach out and give them the astral equivalent of a middle finger, feeling their shock as they rapidly flee upon realising I know they're there.
Heh.
— Bonus Scene — Samantha Carter
"Let it be known that this world has been claimed in the name of the God Emperor of Mankind. Simarka is the property of the Grand Imperium of Man. Let no xeno, heretic, or lesser power dare defile this soil, for to trespass is to declare war upon the Imperium. Blessed be humanity, in the light of the Master of Mankind… these guys really don't do 'short' messages, huh?" Jack read with a strange look as they looked upon the pillar that stood before the Stargate on P3X-593. "Daniel, am I hallucinating or is this in English?"
"No, you aren't. I suppose it's possible that the language survived and was passed through the people taken as slaves by the Goa'uld," Daniel murmured as they examined the pillar. The text was in perfect English, engraved in bold golden, almost gothic lettering and a two-headed eagle was proudly displayed at the top.
The pillar itself was not just some rock they'd carved onto, being cut far too perfectly and made of a pitch black, almost marble-like material.
"But wouldn't that be ye olde english?" Jack asked, making her chuckle despite herself as she looked around. None of the other stones around here were the same colour or type. Had this pillar been taken from another planet and brought here? No, it couldn't be because it was seemingly naturally formed from the ground, connected to the stone beneath it. "This Imperium seems to use modern-day English. I'm not the only one who finds that weird, right?"
She walked around the pillar, freezing as she spotted a second message on the back in far smaller writing.
"Uhh, guys?" Sam tried, hearing the two bicker as Daniel tried to find a logical explanation for the English language being so prevalent while Jack was just… well, Jack. "Guys!"
"There a problem, Sam?" Jack asked, finally turning to her as she gestured to the second message. "Huh."
"Yes, that includes you, SG-1," Daniel read, making them all pause and share a very confused look. "Are we being watched? We've not seen any sapient life yet, but-"
"...there's an even smaller message under that one. 'No, you're not being watched. I'm just that good, signed Dorian, God Emperor of Man. No, Daniel, I'm not descended from the Greeks taken from Earth, my parents just liked the sound of it," Jack read out loud, increasing their confusion tenfold. The pillar glowed for just a moment as a new message appeared. "Skaara and Sha're are fine btw, you're welcome. BTW?"
"By the way, it's used online on message forums," Sam explained, trying to find any logical explanation for this at all as she frowned. That wasn't just modern English, it was internet slang from the past decade at the very most.
She stared at the pillar in confusion. It remained stubbornly silent even as Jack and Daniel tried to question the inanimate object. If this Dorian was watching, he wasn't responding anymore. Another flash of light made them all jump.
'No, Sam, I'm not watching. I wrote all this ages ago. Your dad has lymphoma, btw. Should probably get that checked out before it kills him. If your tech sucks so much that you can't cure it, you'll just have to ask nicely.'
What.