14 A Raid VII

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."