Part Four

As Daniel walked through the 'gate, he immediately sensed Sam's gaze from the top window and just as immediately regretted winning his argument with Mitchell as to why it was better for him to come back instead of the colonel.

It made sense at the time... While both men were fairly good friends with the general, Mitchell had the unfortunate benefit of being under her command. Daniel had no real qualms arguing with an Air Force general, so if the conversation turned heated (as he was sure it would), he was the best to deliver the news.

Now, on the other hand, he was second-guessing that idea.

He absent-mindedly handed his pistol to a waiting SF and made his way through the control center to the briefing room. Sam was still standing next to the window, staring blankly down at the gateroom below.

"Daniel…"

"Sam…"

"Mitchell afraid to come back?"

"Umm…no… I just thought, well…"

"What? That it would sound better coming from you?" She turned to him then, sadness and concern mixing on her face. "You know, when Jack told me what he had Teal'c tell her… About making sure no one could find her… You would have thought he would have included you in that mix." She smiled slightly at his confused look. "Your inane ability to just…trip over things that aren't usually meant to be found."

"Ah…yeah… Well, to be fair, I just walked into this one," he said, returning the smile.

The smile faded from both of them as Sam seemed to struggle with what she wanted to say next. He could see that she wanted to ask a stream of questions, and he almost went ahead and gave her the answers. Her hesitance, however, had him pausing as well.

"Sam…what's going on?" She was about to answer when a loud stomping came from the stairs.

"That man… That… If I didn't think Kinsey was smart enough to think of it, I'd swear he'd transplanted himself into that smarmy younger version of…himself downstairs." Jack paused in his tirade as he hit the top step and noticed a larger audience than he expected. "Daniel…?"

"Jack."

"He didn't see you, did he?" Sam asked.

"Nah. Walter's doing a great job running him around in circles. I just happened to catch a peek as I was getting out of the elevator," Jack said as he spun a chair around and plopped into it.

"Don't get comfortable, Jack." Sam tossed at him. "I need you and Daniel to go to '031. Before Rickson."

"Rickson?" Daniel asked shocked. "Thought his 'team' was still in the works? And why in the world is he going off-world?"

"He's sped up the timeline. That's why he's here. He's chosen his team, and he's sending them out to '031 as a test run. And, as an 'integral leader in the IOA', it's his prerogative to oversee such a test run. In person"

"You've gotta be kidding me!" came the simultaneous, if slightly different, response from the two men in the room. If the situation wasn't so aggravatingly troubled, Sam would have laughed.

Jack jumped up from his seat as voices neared the door on the other side of the room.

"Crap… How we gonna get there if he's snooping around."

"I need you and Daniel to head out with SG-4," Sam said, loud enough to draw attention from the group closing in. "They've found some ruins that I think you'll be interested in, Daniel." Daniel nodded, seeing the ruse in the plan. Jack, on the other hand, was still slightly confused. "As for you, Jack, I figured you'd like a day off. Check out a nice, peaceful planet that wasn't the Charlie site."

"That sounds…interesting," Rickson snarked from the door. "Is that really within regulations, General? I mean, as great a contribution O'Neill has been to the SGC; he is retired."

"Senator," Sam stepped over, cutting off the inevitable response from Jack, "it is my right to decide who goes through the gate. Jack O'Neill has continued to be a great asset to this command, even after his retirement. Sending him on a routine mission is a simple matter of recognizing that contribution and utilizing it in any way I see fit." She fought the temptation to return the proud smile she saw flash across Jack's face.

"I would like to be present for the dialing process," the senator returned, trying to regain ground only he seemed to feel he'd lost. "I've never witnessed it in person."

AKA – I wanna see what you're dialing and assure you're dialing what you're supposed to be dialing… The smile on Jack's face was quick and turned to a grimace as the senator continued his snaking into the SGC workings. Snaking… Who would have thought we'd get rid of the actual snakes, but still be stuck with their personalities…

"Certainly, Senator," Sam said through barely grated teeth. "Heck, I'll show you how to dial it up yourself."

The shocked amusement on Daniel and Jack's faces almost had her crack the stern façade.

Almost…

Mitchell sat on the sofa, watching as Cassie made her way around the small dwelling. She was tidying and rearranging, putting away the bits and pieces the two men had used for their makeshift beds. After a good bit of this, she stopped suddenly and turned on him.

"Okay. Shoot," she said, hands on hips.

"What?" He shook his head, startled from his musings.

"You're looking somewhat uncomfortable, Colonel."

"Cam."

"What?"

"I think…given the circumstances… I mean…you can call me Cam."

"Okay… You're looking even more uncomfortable…Cam." She grinned, taking a seat across from him. "Ask what you want to ask." The confusion on his face had the grin on hers growing…slightly. "Come on. You really gonna sit there and tell me there's nothing you wanna ask? There's nobody here. Nobody to step in, tell ya it's not cool. You have carte blanche. Ask away."

He paused for a moment, thinking. And then…

"How come you never joined SG-1?"

That took her back.

"Really? Ha! Okay… Well…to be perfectly honest…never really wanted to." His bemused look had her laughing again. "Seriously. Look, you know SG-1 from an airman's perspective. You've heard all the heroic tales of how they battled the big bad aliens and allowed Earth's freedom to persevere."

"You're telling me you didn't? No heroic bedtime stories?"

"Sure… But there were other stories. You forget who my mom was. Every time she came home, she'd have this look on her face that told me how bad the day was. After awhile, I learned see a difference. There would be the look for the days that just had a lot of little things – broken bones, flu shots, nicks and scrapes. Siler. Then there was the look for days that had more serious issues – folks on life support, surgeries, tougher things." She paused, thoughts flying across her face. "But there was one particular look; one that I contributed to SG-1. Whenever she had that look on her face, she wouldn't look at me. The conversations we had on those days were hesitant and careful, like she was doing whatever she could to ensure that I didn't worry; that I didn't get scared thinking something happened to them."

"Makes sense. They were different for you than the rest of the command. Meant more. That's why I figured you'd want to be on the team."

"Why?"

"Huh?" he asked, back to confusion.

"Why would you want me on the team?" She sat, patiently looking at him. Her look said she was open to the conversation, but may already know what he was going to say.

"Why not? I mean… It'd be like having that whole original group back on the team, just in one person… With some…extra benefits…"

"Yeah…figured that… Trained by the 'best of the best', right? See, Colonel, that's your mistake. You still see it as that group, just those four individuals. And don't get me wrong – they are four fantastic individuals. But, SG-1 has had a great deal of folks in its ranks over the years. All kinds of different skill sets and personalities pulled together. See, when it really comes down to it, SG-1 really is just two letters and a number. What you've been trying to get is more of an idea, a mentality. It's bringing together folks and melding them into one great being. All the SGC teams have the potential of being an 'SG-1'. It's simply a matter of circumstances that's led them to being who they are."

He sat, staring at her as the thought bounced around his head. He'd said it, from day one – his goal was always to put the band back together. And he did, sort of. But it had changed, folks bouncing out and back. And no matter what changed, after the initial getting-to-know-you period, it would always revert back to that team mentality – that undeniable fact that he trusted his team members to have his back.

"Huh." He leaned back into the sofa. "Well…I gotta say – you make more sense than I've heard other Anicenty-folk do."

"Ha! Well…I'm not an Ancient, and most definitely not an Ascended Being. So...thanks…?" She smirked over at him. "Is that really the only question you've got?"

"I could think up some more, if you want." He smirked back at her as his radio crackled to life.

"Mitchell, come in." Daniel's voice came rushed over the radio, the sound of the gate shutting down barely audible behind him.

"What's up Jackson?" he replied, sitting up in his seat.

"We've got a problem. You still at Cassie's?"

"Yeah…we're still here."

"We'll meet you there."

He was about to ask about the we, when Cassie hopped up from her seat.

"I have to go get An'ya."

"Uh…okay…" He wasn't sure what to think about the suddenly frantic look on her face, but the thought vanished as quickly as the look.

"I'll be back. Feel free to, um, hang out here." And with that, she was out the door.

"Uh, yeah… Sure…"

"So this is where she's be hiding" Jack said, gazing around the ghost town of the marketplace. They'd made a quick trip out with SG-4 and then quickly turned around and re-dialed to '031. He was still internally grinning at the little swindle.

"Yeah" Daniel replied, retracing the now familiar trail through the marketplace and towards the village. "Seems to have really endeared herself to the locals. That's why SG-7 couldn't get any answers out of them."

"They're not looking too friendly right now…"

Daniel followed his gaze towards a couple walking towards them. He recognized Naasa, as well as the frown on her face. It was similar to the one that was on her face when they first met.

"Naasa… What's wrong?"

"I would ask you the same, Daniel." They met halfway along the road, near the fields. "Iaala, the school mistress, said Cassandra came by the school only a few moments ago, taking An'ya away from lessons. She seemed…upset."

Jack and Daniel looked cautiously at each other, obvious of the tension radiating off both Naasa and her rather burly companion.

"We…" Daniel started, hesitantly. "There are men coming… We came to warn her. Make sure she was safe."

"These are the bad men? The one's that are 'up to no good'?" the local man said with a glare. You could practically hear the quotation marks.

"Yeah" Jack returned. "And we're here to make sure they don't get to her. Or mess with you fine folks."

Daniel could see something pass between the two men, a mutual understanding. You helped out our girl; we're going to pay you back.

"Naasa, where would she go?" Daniel asked, as the group started moving again towards the village.

"She always assured us that she would leave before any trouble would come," she replied sadly.

They paused in their tracks at the distant echo of the 'gate engaging.

"That was fast," Daniel said cynically.

"The ship," Jack stated, matter-of-factly. He turned to Naasa. "You the welcome-wagon?"

The phrase was slightly lost on the woman, but she got the general idea.

"I will try to slow them down as much as possible." She headed back towards the 'gate with her companion.

"Any thoughts as to where this ship is?" He wasn't too thrilled when Daniel shrugged in return.

"I'm going to guess it's somewhere near the house."

"Well, let's check in with Mitchell. Find out if he knows what's going on."

Cassie was only slightly out of breath from the fast sprint to the schoolhouse, followed by a jog-pace-set-by-a-six-year-old to the tel'tak. But was more marveled at the timing.

Not bad... Hopefully…

"We're not leaving, are we?" An'ya asked with a frown as Cassie reached for the cloaked ship, triggering the door lever.

"No." She caught the eerily knowing look on the young girl's face. You've never lied to her before. Now is not the time to start. "You're not."

They walked into the ship, door closing behind them. Cass paused just inside the door, watching as An'ya solemnly made her way over to a cushion tucked in a corner and plopped into it, snuggling Pluto tight to her.

"Oh…lil bug…" she sighed, walking over to kneel in front of her.

"I know you have to. Dinah told me… But…" Little sniffle.

"I know. You don't want me to. You know why though." She was trying to keep herself from leading the conversation. The more the kid could get on her own, the more easily she'd be able to deal with it. That's how I learned my lessons…

"To make sure I don't get into trouble. That I'm safe. And that everybody here is safe." Another sniffle, arm across the nose.

That's it kid. Tug at the heartstrings.

"You will be okay. You know that. Pluto's here with ya." She reached over and tugged one of the stuffed animal's ragged ears. "And I promise Daniel or Cam or…Jack… Jack will come and get you. You know Jack, right? All those stories I told you. You'll know him as soon as you see him. And you'll know you'll be okay."

She looked up at her then, tears stubbornly glistening in her little blue eyes.

"And you're going to come back. You promise. You're going to come back for me. And we'll be safe together."

"Absolutely." They gazed at each other, one putting as much meaning into the look as possible for the other. Maybe not like this… But I will come back.

"And I'll be brave."

"You are brave."

"You are too…" And suddenly little arms were around her neck, holding tight. "I love you, Cassie."

Cassie clasped arms around her small body, willing her own tears to stay put, the memory of another all-too-similar scenario running rampant in her head.

"I love you too, lil bug." She reluctantly pulled away, wiping at an errant tear falling down An'ya's check. "I gotta go…"

And just like that, tears vanished and a resolute look was planted on the young face staring back at her.

"Kick their butts."

When Daniel and Jack made it to the small house, they found Mitchell still sitting in the front room, the old book he'd found earlier opened in his lap. He was distractedly flipping through it, looking up as the two men walked in.

"Hey…guys…" He slowly closed the book, placing it on the seat beside him and standing up. He mentally reminded himself to leave out the sir. "Umm…not that it's not nice to see you, Si- Jack, but…what brings you out to this lovely moon?"

"Where's Cassie?" was the flat response.

"Didn't you guys see her on your way back? She said she was headed to the school to get An'ya."

"No," Daniel said, slightly harried. "Rickson's on his way, with a full team. I think she probably figured it out when we radioed. Naasa thinks she's headed out."

"What? She's gonna take off? We can't let her do that." At the two blank looks he received, he added, "Look, guys. I get it. You don't want Rickson and the rest of the IOA goons chasing her down. But, seriously? She shouldn't have to run around the galaxy for it. Think she's already had her fair share of crap. Don't you?"

Daniel just shifted his glance, trying to ignore the truth of Mitchell's words. We know. But what else is there for us to do?

"She's not leaving." Jack's continued short blunt statements had both Daniel and Mitchell stare at him in concern. "She's going to fight."

"Jack…"

"Yeah, Daniel. I know. You guys head back to the 'gate, help the locals with Rickson's team. Get into any trouble, call it in. It's gonna come down to who finds her first, and I want it to be us." He reached up and snagged his radio out of its pocket. "Switch over to channel 13. I don't want us crossing over with the other team."

"What are you going to do?" Daniel asked, pulling out his own radio.

"I'm gonna go find that ship."

"We still don't know where it is."

"I've got a fair idea," Jack said, thinking of the barely visible trail he say winding back to a thatch of wood behind the house. When the other men turned a curious gaze on him, he managed a sly grin. "Well, I did teach her most of everything she knows…"

As she made her way out of the trees and down the path, Cassie swiped at a wayward tear that had snuck down her cheek. She hated leaving An'ya by herself, but she had no doubt that Jack and the rest were already out on the hunt for her.

Them…amongst others…

Just as the thought crossed her mind, she heard rustling and voices ahead of her on the barely visible trail. And she could swear they were fairly familiar.

She instinctively switched to stealth mode and crept forward to find three rather frustrated pirates. Actually – more like two bemused pirates and their stomping captain – the very same pirate captain that had shot her back during the Dakara debacle. She was about to step out and query the group when everyone tensed. The captain – Leraq – reached out to grab at thin air.

Thin air that turned into a snivelly little senator. He had apparently snuck away from his group with the aid of an altered Sodan cloaking device.

"You actually had the gall to show your face, Rickson?! After yet another failed little set-up?" Leraq had the senator by the lapels – literally, and Cassie was finding it difficult to maintain her hidden demeanor.

Sadly, Rickson did not appear as rattled as he should have.

"You still seem to be empty handed, Leraq. I happen to remember a small clause in our arrangement that stated you would not get any compensation if you did not fulfill your end of the bargain."

"We wouldn't get any compensation, no matter the bargain! It's the off-season on this market-moon. There is nothing here. Unless you expect us to rob and pillage the village."

"Well…you are pirates."

All three pirates were honestly stunned at the thought. Pillage villages indeed.

Cass stood, conflicted. She had met Leraq and his small crew shortly after leaving Dakara, and Leraq had given her the whole breakdown as to why he felt the need to shoot her – for a price, of course.

Apparently, she discovered, the senator had, through his SGC contacts, arranged to have the pirate kidnap her and turn her over at a pre-arranged meeting. In return, the pirates were welcome to take whatever they felt would make a suitable payment from the settlement they were meant to conduct this kidnapping in.

Of course, upon discovering that they were meant to kidnap a member of the fabled SGC out from under the noses of the Free Jaffa Nation, the pirates quickly arranged another deal. Teal'c offered them a tel-tak in exchange for assisting in the charade of 'shooting' the same person they were meant to kidnap.

Now, here they were again. And, evidently, the senator had once more tried to ensure that the SGC would not get away with whatever ploy they had planned to keep Cassie out of his hands. The majority of her conscience was perfectly happy to let Leraq carry out whatever justice he felt necessary. There was, however, a small little bit of that same conscience that told her she should step in.

Of course, that little bit was just as equally happy to change its mind depending on Rickson's reaction.

She carefully and quietly backtracked a ways before casually wandering towards the group, appearing shocked at the sight of them.

"Well, well, well…fancy seeing a pirate here. Leraq, I know you tend to ignore most important facts; but I figured even you would know to check a calendar." She maintained a blank face, which was tough with the outrage that was brewing just under the surface of Rickson's. Apparently his quarry being on friendly terms with the pirates he'd sent after her wasn't ranking high in his desired outcomes. "Marketplace is closed this time of year."

"Cassandra…so nice to see you again. Unfortunately, my information regarding this lovely market-moon was slightly…well, incorrect." His grip tightened on Rickson's suit. "I'll have to come up with another…arrangement."

She went to respond, but settled for a glare.

"Not to worry, my dear girl. I plan on taking my grievances elsewhere. You're little home here won't be involved."

"That's all I needed to hear. Enjoy, Captain." And with a nod to the two other pirates, Cassie made to continue down the path.

"Captain Fraiser?!"

The subtle hint of fear that had crept into the senator's bellow had her grinning internally. When she stopped to turn back to him, she made sure to keep a composed glare.

"Senator?" she returned, with an extra dose of sickly sweetness.

"You can't leave me here." The look on his face was one of unabashed demand for obedience.

"I'm sorry, Senator. Last I heard Captain Fraiser was listed as KIA. Dead folks can't possibly be considered under any obligation to obey regulations…so…I can do just that." She turned again to walk away.

"Do you really think the troubles for the SGC will just slip away if I don't return? That your General Carter will regain everything we've taken away from her? That you will be free to return and continue with your sham of a normal life?"

That had her stopping. She knew he probably wasn't the only member of the IOA causing trouble; had no doubt the trouble would just intensify with the disappearance of one of their top supporters.

Damn it.

She turned around, walking up to Leraq and taking a great deal of effort to not glare at the snake beside him.

"You want payment, right?" She waited for a response, but got a confused look in return. "There's a house at the end of this…trail, a shed out back. Underneath the bottom shelf is a chest. Plenty of loot that will more than pay for this…little adventure." The captain looked between her and Rickson, working on which option would be more satisfactory. "Look, from what I hear about how much you got for the Dakara job, this will be plenty for you, plus some. Just…leave me the schmuck."

"What are you going to do with him?"

Got him. She ventured a rather disgusted look out the corner of her eye at Rickson.

"Gonna make sure he gets what's coming to him. Don't you worry about that." She turned back to Leraq. "But there's a few loose ends he's gonna have to tie up first."

He considered it for a bit more before letting go of the suit and pushing the senator away.

"Well, knowing you, I'm sure your spoils are more than worth it. However… Rumor had it I made it out of Dakara with two tel-taks…" He slid closer to her, putting a finger under her chin. He gave her a smirk, which quickly faded as she pierced him with a stern gaze.

"There's precious cargo in that tel-tak," she said with emphasis. "Go near it and the next time we meet, you'll be singing soprano. That's a promise."

He gave her a respectful nod and the group made their goodbyes. As the pirates made their way back towards the direction she had come from, Cassie turned to the senator.

"Smart decision, Captain" he spat, adjusting tie and lapels.

"I'm sure this will come as a shock, but I didn't do it for you." She didn't even bother looking at him, instead focusing her attention a short way ahead on the trail. She had had a feeling there was another addition to the small group that was working to make himself as invisible as she had. Now that things had calmed down – a bit – she was finally able to determine who it was. "Come on out, Jack…"

Damn… He'd been watching the entire exchange from behind a tall patch of grass. When she'd been on the verge of letting the pirates take off with Rickson, he was with her. Let them deal with the snake. But he understood why she'd gone back.

What they were going to do now, on the other hand, was still up in the air…

The two of them met Jack on the path, but while the senator stopped to glare accusingly at him, Cassie kept walking without so much as a glance. He cut off whatever smart comment was coming at him from the suit to catch up with her.

"Hey. What's up?" Nothing. "Come on, kid. You're terrible at the silent treatment. Might as well get it out."

"Ha!" she laughed, glancing behind her to find Rickson lagging behind but still following. "There's nothing to say," she returned under her breath. "I'm gonna tell you the same thing I told Daniel – I understand, but I'm still pissed."

"Yeah…I got that. But whatever you plan on doing now… It's not worth it."

"Don't know what you're talking about it." She picked up her pace.

"Right" he said, reaching out to grab her arm and stop her. When she wouldn't turn to look at him, he continued "Cass – look, it's crap. This whole thing is just crap. But turning yourself over to him is not going to do anything but make it worse."

"You're wrong Jack." She turned to him then, a determined look on her face. "It'll finish it."

"I don't like it." Daniel had been glaring over at Gregson since he and Mitchell had made it back to the 'gate. "Not one bit…"

Gregson, as well as the two other SGC members that had come through as a part of Rickson's team, had been standing post at the edge of the 'gate platform. Naasa and her companion, Samiel, had attempted to talk to them, but hadn't received any response.

"Where's Rickson?" Mitchell asked somewhat perplexed. "I thought you guys said he was coming through with his team. I figured he'd want to be here for this. Make sure we didn't ruin his plans again."

"Yeah… He should be here. And yet…" Daniel made his way up to Gregson. Concern for the whereabouts of the senator was actually falling pretty low on his list of priorities. My turn for some convincing… "Sergeant…Gregson, right?"

"Doctor Jackson… I thought you were with SG-4?" The young man gave him a knowing gaze and then looked away.

"Yeah, well…we were… Look, Sergeant, I have no doubt that Rickson has told you a lot of things…"

"Senator Rickson has opened my eyes to things, yes. Are you going to try and tell me that it's all lies?" He didn't bother to look back over at Daniel; just resumed his thousand-yard stare out towards the marketplace.

"Ryan… It's Ryan, right? I'm not trying to change your mind. I'm just trying to figure out what would make an Air Force sergeant turn his back on a fellow airman, an officer even."

There was a flutter across the young man's face, as if he were going to reply. It flickered and faded with nothing more than a twitch of an eyelid.

"Captain Fraiser was on the training unit when you went through, wasn't she?" That got the sergeant to turn. Hanging out with military types for over a decade had its benefits. Figured out which strings to pull… "You spent a month under her care. She took you through exercises, training you to do exactly what you're doing right now. Are you really telling me you consider her a threat to national security? An alien that needs to be neutralized? Dissected?"

He thought he might have at least cracked the exterior, as Gregson opened his mouth to finally take part in the conversation. But he was cut off from a shout behind him.

"Captain Stanley, dial the stargate."

Daniel turned to find Rickson hurrying as nonchalantly as possible up the path through the stalls, Jack and Cassie following slowly behind.

"Crap… Jack?" He made his way back towards Mitchell as the senator breezed past.

"Sergeant, take the captain into custody." The gleeful way he said it made Daniel, amongst others, want to sock him.

"Jack?" Daniel asked again. The stout look on his friend's face told him he wasn't going to get an answer any time soon. At least not one that he was going to be happy to hear.

"What the hell's going on?" Mitchell piped in.

Neither of the two said anything as they reached them. Jack stopped next to the two men while Cassie made her way over to Naasa. Daniel watched the exchange with growing unease. Naasa was shaking her head, obviously upset with what Cassie was saying to her. Cassie, on the other hand, was trying to calm her down and explain the situation. She motioned over to the three of them, and Daniel thought he caught "An'ya" in the flurry of words. Once she finally got a nod of acceptance from the older woman, she turned to them.

At first, he thought she'd try the same maneuver on them; but she obviously thought better of it. She just gave them a solemn nod. The exchange he saw between her and Jack was longer – more meaning. After all this time, it was no surprise that she had picked up Jack's wordless communication skills.

She turned and walked right up to Gregson, who, to his own credit, was now looking rather uncomfortable with the idea of putting zip-ties on a well-respected officer.

"Come on, Sergeant. Don't make me do it myself. I'll only screw it up." She actually managed a smirk. It seemed to do the trick, as the young airman finally went to work putting the zip-ties around her wrists.

The 'gate engaged and the little gaggle of the IOA grunts lined up, Gregson with a gentle hold on Cassie's arm.

"Well, gentlemen," Rickson smirked, "looks like I win." He paused again for dramatic effect. "Don't bother following us. Would hate for an incident to break out in the ole gateroom."

Lamest last words ever. Jack was fighting hard not to walk over and just pop the jerk on the nose. As it was, he was holding firm beside Mitchell and Daniel to ensure they didn't bum rush the group. Your play, kid…

He wanted to trust that she knew what she was doing. Hoped she could pull whatever it was off.

The three of them watched as the group made it's way up the ramp. Cassie twitched just shy of the event horizon, as if she were going to turn around and look back, but stopped and disappeared through the blue swirl.

And with that, the 'gate disengaged with a pop and they were left standing there staring at the hole that remained.

Sam stood in the command center as the 'gate engaged on their side. The IDC that came up on the screen was not the one she was hoping to see.

"It's the code we assigned to the senator's team, Ma'am." Walter looked up at her expectantly, and you could sense the feeling around the room.

You could say nothing. Just keep it closed and let him splat against the iris like the bug he is…

"Open it." It wouldn't just be him, and she knew it. No sense letting good airmen go splat with him… Shouldn't be punished just for falling for his lies…

The thought – all thoughts – immediately vanished as figures walked down the ramp. It took her just a few seconds to decide to move. She rushed down the short steps into the gateroom.

"Senator, what is the meaning of this?"

"General… I've taken Captain Fraiser into custody," he replied, smug look still firmly in place.

"Into custody? On what charges?"

"Well, unauthorized absence and treason for starters. I'm sure we can think up a few more on the ride to Nevada."

Sam froze. She didn't know what to say, what to do. She looked over at Cassie, who was evading her gaze.

She had never felt so helpless. So unable to help a person she cared for, who trusted her to keep her safe…

"Cassie…"

The younger woman finally looked up at her, a flicker of fear and concern flashing in her eyes before she composed herself.

"It's alright, General. No worries." She looked around her, seeing those who were supposedly meant to be guarding her standing rather relaxed and unnoticing. She leaned over to Sam. "Hiding doesn't seem to have worked."

"Cass…" Still, nothing more came.

Cassie shook her head, giving her a meaningful look.

"Time to fight them on their turf."