"Out of the question!" The lead council member, Laria, was furious.

I knew this wasn't going to be easy. Daniel cleared his throat and tried again. "I understand your predicament, really I do, but I don't think you understand the severity of your situation. There's a Goa'uld mother ship within striking distance. They will annihilate your planet, or worse, take you as slaves. Now, you have a mineral that can prevent this from happening, something that will destroy that ship and many others like it. You wouldn't be saving just your world, but countless others. Would that not be what Hantanya would want you to do? It would end a war much greater than you can imagine, a war that has been fought for thousands and thousands of years." Daniel smiled, as much in enthusiasm of his argument as in desperation that he wasn't getting through to these people. "What better use could that statue serve?"

"That statue is the sole means of keep our community whole," Laria said. "Is it what unites us, and indeed, most of the occupants on this world. Many pilgrimage to see Hantanya, and they will not understand why the statue would disappear. This Goa'uld race has never been a threat to us, and there is no good reason for us to grant your request." Daniel leaned back heavily against his chair as she continued. "I am sorry, but there is nothing more to say on this matter. You are our guests, and may stay the remainder of the day to refresh yourselves. You may take your leave tomorrow. Now if you will excuse us. . ."

"Wait. . .please." Daniel leaned forward again, holding up a hand. "At least allows us to study the mineral, see where it came from. We don't yet know what it is that makes it so unique, if you could just grant us time and leave on your planet to discover these things. . ."

"It has been discussed once with your operatives. There is no way to duplicate the material."

"I know, I know, but you aren't leaving us with much of an option, are you?" Daniel stared

unblinkingly into Laria's eyes. "Please."

She considered in a haughty manner, then relented. "Very well. You may have three days, then I expect no more disruption from you."

"Thank you." Daniel was obviously disappointed, and stood as the others filed out. Then he collapsed heavily into his chair. "That went well."

Jack watched the council depart. "I was really hoping it wouldn't come to this."

Daniel turned to him. "Come to what?"

"Plan B."

"Wait, what plan B?" Daniel slowly leaned forward. "You. . .you're going to take it, aren't you? Just like that?"

"Daniel, they don't have three days, and you know it."

Daniel shoved his chair back furiously. "God! I can't believe you! How are you going to get it through the gate, huh? Have you thought of that? It's a little large, don't you think? Is Teal'c going to toss it over his shoulder and carry it out?"

"All I have to do is relay the coordinates to the Asgard," Jack snapped. "Seeing as how they were the ones who told us about this blasted mineral in the first place, they can help us get it out!".

"Oh, so they can beam it up? Why didn't they do that in the first place and leave us outta this?"

"Because they don't want the mineral!"

"And you think they'd come here, with a Goa'uld mothership in the vicinity, and pick up a parcel? What, are they now the intergalactic UPS?"

"Hell, I don't know! They've helped us before! They were the ones that suggested we get the damn mineral! And if we can't get it, we have to destroy it before the Goa'uld get it. They have rings, Daniel. Can you imagine what they'd do with the stuff?"

Yes, he knew. He knew all too well what they could do. "Jack, it's not right. You heard the council, we can't just. . ."

"Fine, Daniel! What do you want me to do? Defy orders?"

"It wouldn't be the first time, would it?" Daniel yelled.

Jack grabbed Daniel's shoulders. Sam had risen as had Teal'c, both obviously uncomfortable with the exchange. "Daniel, listen to me! There is a Goa'uld mother ship poised to attack this planet. After this it could be earth. We've stopped them before, hell twice, but will we be lucky a third time? We need that statue, and I am going to secure it as are my orders, and you are going to help me! You got that?" His eyes blazed with desperation.

Daniel pried Jack's hands from his shoulders. "Look, at least give me a day. Let me see if there is an alternative. They could all be wrong. Maybe this can be duplicated. That's all I'm asking. Please, Jack."

The Colonel was breathing heavily. He and Daniel locked gazes for some time before he relented with a nod and backed off. Daniel let out the breath he had been holding and turned to Sam.

But he had no idea what to say.

He quickly went to gather his notes, and talk to the people.

***********************************

Daniel sought out the team that evening, and found them watching the nightly Hian ceremony from a distance. Daniel stood beside the Colonel, eager to share his findings, but hesitated when he saw the expression on Jack's face. He looked out over the crowd and listened to the hypnotic hum, and realized the impossible was happening. Jack was caving. He didn't want this any more than Daniel did. The younger man touched his back gently, pulling Jack away from his thoughts. The touch was acknowledged, and Jack cocked his head, signaling that they move further away from the source.

Daniel started right in. "There's an old cave with the writings of Hantanya himself. Supposedly. I mean I haven't had time to translate it of course, it seems similar to Sanskrit but the. . . "

"Daniel."

"It could be a key to understanding what kind of man he was and why he is revered so."

"Uh-huh. Which does what for us right now?"

"Uh, nothing, really. But I found out something else. Apparently they think this statue isn't just a representation of a god, but the god itself. And no one is allowed to touch it, upon death by combustion."

"Really? Combustion?"

Daniel nodded quickly. "Yeah, they – burst into flames and then disappear."

"Really." Jack turned back to the people and watched. "So this is their god then. THE god."

"Seems that way."

"Did you find any mineral in the mine?"

"Unfortunately, no."

Jack slowly turned back to Daniel. "No? No as in squat?"

"Yep."

"Yes, you did find some? So we can get that, and not take the statue?"

"No, I – Jack, stop it. Listen. There isn't anything left in the mine. But these writings could provide a vital clue. . ."

"So you said. Daniel, I don't need a clue, I need a solution. Now I sent you to find one, and all you can do is go play archaeologist on me."

Daniel folded his arms. "I am an archaeologist! Why is that such a problem with you?"

"Because you spend half of your time in the past and the rest of the time in a dream, and you don't realize the severity of the situation here! You wanted a chance to rectify the situation, and instead you went digging!"

"I didn't dig, it was on the rock wall."

"Daniel, for God's sake!"

"For all we know these notes will rectify the situation!" Daniel exclaimed. "Why are you so quick to dismiss it?"

"Because I need the mineral, Daniel! The cozumine. That's all. You weren't able to provide that, so we go ahead with our plan." Jack turned and headed back to his room.

But Daniel was hot on his heels. "No! Jack, just wait, listen to me!" Daniel stopped and hung his head, then turned to Sam and Teal'c and passed over his notes. "Can you two take this to my room and see what you can find out about that mineral? I want to talk to Jack." It wasn't a dismissal, and he knew better than to instruct his friends on how to go about their mission, but it was the best way he could think of to say, 'back off and give us some space'. Teal'c nodded, and Sam took the folder from Daniel, promising to leave it in his room. Daniel thanked her and ran after the Colonel.

********************

He found Jack in his temporary room ten minutes later. His gear had been stripped, and he was sitting on his bed. In the distance the faint lilt of song could be heard. Daniel closed the door behind him and walked over to the window, realizing with a start that he could see the statue leering at him. He turned away from it.

Jack looked up wearily. "What is it now, Daniel?"

"I think you know. And I think it's time we talk about it."

"There isn't anything to. . ."

"Jack, we have to preserve this culture. We can't just go off half cocked here – look – I know we need the mineral, okay? I've got that. But you see what that statue means to these people." He gestured towards the window.

"Uh, excuse me, I thought the object of getting the mineral was to create weapons to defend ourselves and 'this culture'. Is that not preservation?"

"How can you preserve a culture you are willing to destroy? Just so you can obtain this mineral?"

"Sacrifices..."

"That's bullshit! Sacrifices mean nothing if there is nothing to save! Take this mineral and you destroy the what this culture has built itself around for hundreds of years. This isn't taking what is rightfully yours, or accepting a gift! This is destroying a society for your personal gain!"

Jack stood. "We need that mineral. It's for their benefit as well as ours!"

"We'll find something else!"

"How? You gonna pull it outta your ass?"

"There has to be another way!"

"That mineral was tested to hell and back before we even embarked on this mission. It can't be synthesized! How are we going to replace that? You wanna cut down a tree and say it's as good as a rock?"

"I don't know! I just know that taking it will destroy this place! Not just this city, apparently their entire world culture has evolved around this! Don't you understand that? The entire world! People come here on pilgrimages!"

"Why are you talking about saving worlds, when you want the Goa'uld dead as much as I do! Why is it okay for you to wipe out that race and not another?" Jack yelled.

Daniel grabbed his head. "Because the Goa'uld are parasitical, because they take innocent lives! I don't see the similarity here!"

"I do! You think it is okay to obliterate a race because that race happens to obliterates others. Yet you can't see sacrificing the culture of a race in order to do this. Where is the line, Daniel? Do you believe in the preservation of life or not?"

Daniel opened and shut his mouth several times, his mind reeling against what he knew was a logical argument on his part. Instead he found that all he could do was to turn away, flustered.

Jack huffed. "Thought so."

"Jack," Daniel muttered, not facing him, "that's not fair."

"Fair? What's fair? God, you know, I always pegged you for naive, Daniel, but not downright stupid." Jack pulled his cap on and gave the bill a frustrated tug. "Now come on. We have work to do."

"No."

Jack lowered his hand. "Excuse me?" he asked, in a tone of mild disbelief.

Daniel turned to him, his hands tucked into the pockets of his fatigues, his eyes sharp with conviction. "I said no," he responded calmly.

Jack took a deep breath. "Daniel, don't do this. Don't make me do this."

He gave a resigned shrug. "Do what, Jack? Destroy these people? If that's what you're determined to do, then fine. I want nothing to do with it."

Jack walked up to him, faced him, stood nose to nose with him. Daniel tensed slightly, despite his convictions. "Dr. Jackson," Jack snapped in a quiet but furious tone, "you will obey my orders. I don't care if you are a civilian, I don't care if you approve of what is going on or not. You are SGC and you are to follow orders. Now what are they?"

Daniel stared into the brown eyes that usually held a sparkle, eyes that had once quirked with humor, eyes that betrayed more of the true soul of Jack O'Neill than the man would ever realize. Now those eyes were flat, except for a blaze of anger right in the center, covering his own reflection in the pupil. Daniel frowned and pulled back, then jumped as O'Neill yelled out, "I asked you a question, mister. What are your orders?"

"To go through the gate and retrieve any and all signs of the cozumine mineral by any means necessary," Daniel responded stiffly.

"And are you fulfilling that obligation to the satisfaction of this team and your commanding officer?"

Daniel clenched his jaw. "I have no commanding officer," he growled.

Jack ground his teeth together and snarled, "So you are willing to throw away everything we worked for, everything we have gained for your petty morals? You want to throw away the best chance we have at stopping the Goa'uld so you can rest your pretty head and be content with yourself? Do you realize how many will DIE if you stop us now?" Jack was back nose to nose with Daniel.

"I'm willing to risk that for another way!" Daniel shouted.

That did it. Jack yelled in fury and raised his fist. Daniel's eyes widened and he threw his arms over his face, ducking, waiting for the blow. He slowly peeked over an elbow to see Jack pull back, seething, trying his hardest to regain control. Daniel slowly lowered his defensive position and watched as Jack backed off, then turn to him in anger. "Damn you," he said in a low voice, "I'm giving you one more chance." He pointed his finger. "You talk to these people, tell them we need the mineral. Do whatever it takes. But do it quick, and remember I don't take no for an answer. You got that?" Jack stormed out, his footsteps reverberating in the near vacant hall.

Daniel squinted at his retreating form, his face drawn tight. He allowed his legs to give way and sat heavily on the bed, not quite believing what had just happened, and not knowing what to do next. In that moment all he wanted to do was to go home, forget about everything, forget about the Stargate and all of the events that happened as a result of his...mistake? Was it a mistake to open the gate? He used to think it was a good thing, now he wasn't so sure.

**************************

"He did what?" Sam was incredulous. She stared at the subdued man, watching in disbelief as the grim memories caused him to wince.

"You heard me." Daniel answered in a low voice. He was pissed, confused, everything. His friend, his close friend, one could almost say best friend if one believed in that kind of distinction, had threatened to hit him. As much as he wanted to chalk it up to stress, he wasn't sure he could do that. There had been venom behind the attack, something that wasn't right, wasn't Jack. Maybe the stress was getting to him in a way that it never had before. It had been a tough year, maybe he had snapped.

That thought didn't make him feel any better.

"I don't understand." Sam sat stiffly with her hands braced on her thighs, her eyes cutting from Daniel back to the door. "He wouldn't do anything like that. Not to you."

Daniel knew that in her eyes, shock didn't begin to describe it. She simply couldn't fathom it. Sure, they fought, but more like brothers than anything. There had been the odd occasion where one hit the other, but in every instance that she knew of there had been an outside source at work. She would have expect Jack to find a better way to vent. He did.

"That's what happened." Daniel's voice was softer, and his hand dropped to his side. The window before him looked over a glassy lake, and standing at the water's edge was Jack. Daniel watched as he paced the bight white walkways that bordered the water. "I guess I really pissed him off this time." He turned away from the window and ran his fingers through his cropped hair, then sat at his makeshift desk, sorting through scattered papers. He opened his laptop and started back to translating the text, effectively ignoring Sam, who ventured to peek over his shoulder and rest a sympathetic hand on it before leaving.

The words blurred before him. He removed his glasses and cleaned them as best he could with his shirt before realizing that they weren't the problem. He shoved the papers from him, feeling too tired to concentrate, too torn between to views to stop, and too confused to care. He rested his head on his desk and allowed his exhaustion to take over. Just for a moment.

***************************

Sam was not a happy camper. She launched herself towards the Colonel and gave him a shove on the arm. "What the hell were you thinking, Sir?" She spat out his title in full sarcasm and braced herself mentally for the verbal barrage and consequence that would follow pushing a superior officer.

But eyes that turned to her were pained, and there was no reprimand. She stood there, breathing heavily, then managed to calm herself when she realized the Colonel wasn't trying to defend his actions. In fact, he looked in shock.

"Sir?" she asked again, this time in a softer tone. The Colonel just turned and sat on a nearby bench, and after a moment's thought she joined him.

"He's never pissed me off like that. Never." Jack stared into the distance. "For a moment I wanted to choke the life from him."

"Why?"

"I don't know." He stared into the distance for several moments before answering. "'Cause he has a choice."

"Sir," Sam asked gently, "what are you talking about?"

"Major, I don't want to take that thing away from these people any more than he does. I have no choice."

"With all due respect, sir, you do."

"With all due respect, Major, you aren't in the know. There's much more going on here."

Sam stiffened. "I don't suppose you'd care to enlighten me, sir."

"No. I wouldn't. I. . .I can't." He turned to her, then gestured with his head toward the living quarters. "He okay?"

"Truthfully? I don't think so."

"Damn." He rose, then hesitated. "You do understand that I'm just following orders here." A hopeful gaze rested on her face.

"Yes, sir," she responded quietly. Jack looked at her for several moments, then lowered his head and walked away.

Sam bit her lip and stared out over the water.

**************************

Jack found Daniel sitting at his desk. The younger man was rubbing his eyes behind his lenses while staring at the text before him. The scene would have been familiar except for the tension in his shoulders and the frown on his face. "Hey."

Daniel looked up, squinting. "Hey."

Jack shuffled. "Can I. . ." he gestured to the bed, since there was no chair other than the one that Daniel occupied.

"Jack, I'm really kind of busy." Daniel responded in a dismissive tone. "I – dozed for a minute. Now I'm really running out of time."

"Sorry." The apology hung in the air, and Daniel wasn't sure if it referred to the unfinished work, or the fight. Jack sat on the edge of the mattress. "Find anything?"

Daniel sucked in his cheek, and took several deep breaths. When he finally fixed his eyes on Jack's face and saw the regret there, he relented. "Not much. Not yet. This mainly just seems to be a myth that extolls the virtues of Hantanya without giving any concrete information as to what really occurred." He smiled grimly. "If he wrote this he was quite proud of himself. For instance, I rather doubt he ever. . ." his eyes widened. "Oh my god."

"What?"

"Here, 'And it was so told among the people that Hantanya has the power to obliterate and to resurrect. Those who serve him shall be rewarded, but those who venture to reach him shall be engulfed in flame and vanquished.'" Daniel turned to Jack. "Think, Jack, what does this sound like?"

"Bad scripting?"

"NO, Jack. Think. 'Engulfed in flame and vanquished'. They say to touch the statue makes one erupt in flame, then disappear."

Jack thought for a moment, then straightened. "A teleportation device?"

"Exactly! Jack, we have to get to the statue tonight. We have to. . ."

"What? Touch it? What if that story isn't lying and it really does burn you alive?"

"Do you not find it odd that no one has ever touched it?"

"Considering the myth? No."

"No, Jack, look, what if the flame is no more than a beam? We can toss something at it to be sure. I don't think it's harmful. I think the myth was just designed to keep people away. There has to be a reason."

"Obviously it worked! You do realize that thing is heavily guarded."

Daniel shrugged. "When has that ever stopped us?"

Jack's lips quirked. "Does this mean what I think it means?"

Daniel nodded. "Tonight at sundown."

A grin flashed across Jack's face. "I'll make you into a soldier yet," he said, and his face fell at the subtle pain on his friend's features.

******************************

The stars were out in force, except for where the monolithic statue effectively blotted them out. Three guards were stationed a good distance from the statue, and were easy to sneak around.

"Too easy," Jack muttered. "Why even have them here?"

"I don't think they're used to actually having to guard the statue," Daniel whispered. "The people are awed enough."

The four silently crept behind the figure. It was the closest anyone had been as far as they could tell, even the natives. Even the guards were usually stationed at a safe distance from the huge structure. Sam scanned the area as Teal'c stood guard. "I'm picking up massive energy readings, sir. It's coming from the statue." She looked up, trying to see the top.

"That would stand to reason. What kind of readings?" O'Neill asked.

Carter shook her head. "I can't say. It's unlike anything I've ever seen. It must be what makes this mineral so special. I can definitely see how this would be used as a conductor."

"So can I," Daniel muttered wryly, and picked up a small rock from one of the gardens. He aimed, and threw the stone at the statue. . .

. . .and watched in amazement as the stone traveled through it.

Jack blinked. "Well. That was unexpected."

"It's a hologram!" Sam breathed.

"I do not understand," Teal'c commented from his position.

"Neither do I," Sam said.

Daniel was slowly walking towards the statue. The severe face didn't acknowledge him. Instead, it gazed out over the barren landscape as it had done for ages before. He was standing silently at the base when a bolt of energy struck out and hit him square in the chest. He cried out and fell as the others dove to the ground.

"Daniel!" Sam yelled.

"Stay down!" Jack crouched but nothing else happened. He crawled over to the doctor's still body, hearing shouts from the guards. "Teal'c, help me get him out of here." The Jaffa did as commanded, carefully lifting the man over his shoulder. Jack scanned the area as he pulled Carter to her feet. "Let's go before that thing goes ballistic, huh?" Doesn't hurt, my ass.

They ran, ignoring the shouts and commands to stop.

TBC.....