The(questionable) burdens of leadership of a troll Emperor by Noodlehammer

Chapter 17

Surprise buttsex!

I mean update, surprise update.

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Ren'al nodded in greeting at the fellow Tok'ra that had come to collect her.

Since being permanently stationed on Erius, Zarin/Juliana no longer wore the rather drab, tan colored clothing favored by most Tok'ra. Instead of that they wore what Ren'al guessed was a deliberately understated blouse and skirt.

"Councilor, to what do I owe the visit?" Zarin asked and began to lead her nominal superior out of the extensive and heavily fortified facility that housed the stargate.

"The Tok'ra have come across some critical information that we felt was prudent to share with the Empire." Ren'al answered.

The Tok'ra and the Celestial Empire weren't exactly allies, but they were more than acquaintances. The Tok'ra were still wary of Naruto and Xanna's blunt declaration that they intended to absorb them into the Empire, though the fact that they apparently had no intention of using violence to do this helped. Conversely, the horned rulers didn't seem overly concerned with fostering closer relations and instead merely let things happen as they will.

This odd relationship meant that their two factions only shared information with the other when they felt like it.

The High Council had actually been extremely surprised when they were told the gate address for Erius. That bit of knowledge had always been guarded jealously and it had served the Empire well so far. They couldn't fathom why Naruto and Xanna would allow it to become known to them now. Even with the shield over the gate and the fortress it was housed in making assault through it just about impossible, once a planet's address was known it was easy to calculate its' position in the galaxy.

The Tok'ra were happy to finally have that information to be sure, but they were well aware that they had just become a security risk for the Empire, making them wonder why they had been allowed to know it.

"What kind of information?" Zarin asked curiously.

"Ra is dead." Ren'al replied bluntly.

Zarin froze in shock as she processed this information.

The death of Ra had been a major goal of the Tok'ra for thousands of years, knowing that as long as the Supreme System Lord lived, the Goa'uld would never fall. Or at least, that had been the case until the Empire had showed up. With the changed situation, they had expected that Ra would meet his end in battle if he did at all. Having his death come out of nowhere like this was the last thing they expected.

"It is not confirmed," Ren'al conceded. "but he is long overdue to return from his journey to Abydos and the other System Lords are already showing signs of descent into civil war."

"This is wondrous news!" Zarin said with a wide smile, her pace quickening in her excitement. "We should go share this with Naruto or Xanna immediately."

Ren'al forwned slightly as she increased her pace to match Zarin's. It was too soon to tell for sure, but Ren'al suspected that Zarin and Juliana were starting to 'go native' as it were. The lack of military escort for Zarin in what was clearly a restricted facility said much about either trust in the Tok'ra ambassador or a complete lack of concern.

"How has your task as an ambassador been?" She asked after a while, her voice betraying none of her thoughts.

"It has been...an experience." Zarin answered slowly, obviously searching for the right word.

"In what way?" Ren'al pressed.

"The people here, they are...different...from any humans I have ever met. I am used to seeing them oppressed and fearful, but here they are strong and they know it."