It took them two days to get ready, but they were finally underway. Sam stood in the control booth, talking to Sergeant Davis, making sure that he had the correct coordinates and that their GDO's were in working order.

"I just hope we're not to late," Daniel spoke softly, eyes fixed on the gate's motions.

"One way or another, we'll get through this," Jack promised from behind him. He glanced up from tying his bootlaces at him. Teal'c stood impassively to their right. Kawalsky and his team walked in, nodding to the three of them.

Daniel nodded back, glad when Jack stood up and joined him. "Thanks, Jack."

"For what?"

"Believing in me enough to get me on your team."

"You earned it," Jack replied. "And I know you won't believe this, but I trust you."

"SGs 1 and 2, you have a go," Hammond's voice came from the loud speakers.

"Shake a leg, Carter," Jack called.

"I'm right here, sir," she said, entering the room.

"Then let's go. And please remember, no flash photography," Jack quipped. "This is supposed to be a serious mission." Without a doubt, he walked through the gate, Daniel by his side. Following after them was Carter and Teal'c, then SG 2. "Teal'c, do you know this place?"

"Indeed."

"Then as soon as Daniel figures out the correct point of origin, you take point and lead us to our dear, old friend, Apowhist. Oh, how we missed him."

"We did?" Daniel muttered from his position, "funny. I don't recall that."

Only chuckling a little, Jack resumed his speech. "SG 2, hold the gate but lay out a few land mines. I want to be prepared if we run into our other friends, the Jaffa." He watched them move out, listening as the major gave orders before turning to Daniel. "Any luck?"

Daniel nodded, "this is rather fascinating. It takes into account the shifting of gate positions, almost as if the gate builders knew this would happen. I know that the Goa'uld have advanced technology but they didn't make the gates. The cartouche definitely showed that they found them. And since we didn't find a dhd on Earth..."

"Daniel, can you get us home?" he interrupted.

"Yes."

"That's all I need to know. Remember, we only have 48 hours to do this. Tell Kawalsky and Carter, then we need to move out." Jack walked off.

Daniel sighed, defeated. But it was only temporary. From past experience, he knew that Jack would find a way to bring this topic up when time wasn't so tight. Still, it irked him that his friend only revealed his grasp of things when no one else was around. Yet, it also pleased him that he got to see a side of Jack that no one else did.

"He's rather abrupt, isn't he?" Sam asked, coming up behind him.

Daniel faced her, shielding his eyes from the mid-morning light. "He's got a job to do. I thought you would understand that."

"Calm down, I'm not criticizing."

"I realize that, I'm sorry," Daniel apologized, as they moved towards Major Kawalsky. "You interested in my theory?"

She nodded, "it would explain a lot of things. You were also right about planetary shift being a factor in why the gate wasn't working. By the way, weren't two of those symbols part of the address we used when we left Abydos?"

"Yes, they were. The only thing that's different is, as Jack mentioned, the point of origin."

"How did he know that?"

"We talked about it once," he shrugged. Once he had given them both the desired information, they joined Jack and Teal'c on one of the summits. "Now what?"

"Teal'c?"

"This way. We will know what the situation we will be entering into after we see the condition of the village," he explained, slipping into the forest.

"Kawalsky, stay down if you can. Call in 24 if you don't hear from us. Same warning signals if things get bad. Or you see anything suspicious."

"You got it, Colonel." Kawalsky turned to his team even as they disappeared. "You heard the man, keep the lines open and don't use them for any unnecessary chatter. Try to remember that, while this planet may resemble home, it is not. We don't know customs, so we want to be as alert as possible without attracting any attention."

It took them three hours to get to the village and Teal'c indicated that they should take cover. Jack gestured for Carter to go with Teal'c while he and Daniel went the other way. "We'll meet back here in an hour-unless we meet on the other side before then."

They separated and moved along with only a thin line of foliage to cover them. After a few minutes of silence, Daniel whispered, "do you have any idea what you're looking for?"

"I thought you did. Didn't you talk to Teal'c?"

"Jack, why would I do that? I thought we were going to go to Apophis' palace and see what was going on, not study a village," he was exasperated. "Aren't you supposed to be taking these things into consideration? You are the Colonel."

"Well, you're the anthropologist. Any ideas?" Jack asked, stopping to face him.

He thought for a moment, "well, if the choosing has taken place, there would be a celebration. But I don't hear it. If its taking place, then there would be signs of the people preparing for it. If its over, we'd see signs that they were celebrating."

"Colonel O'Neill, Captain Carter here. Better double time it and join us, sir. Teal'c says there's something you should see."

"Understood, Carter. What's your position?"

"About seven klicks east of the town's center." Before he could respond, she spoke again. "Teal'c says to cut through town. If you're careful, they won't pay you any mind."

"Gotcha, give us a few." Jack rose, "let's go, Daniel-and be careful."

"So says the man with his gun at the ready," he replied, eyebrow raised in question. "I thought Sam said we should be careful."

Waving a hand in surrender, Jack let the P-90 fall to his side after making sure the safety was locked down tight. "Let's go."

Though he didn't like the look of the gun still in plain sight, it was better than nothing. With the possible appearance of enemies, they needed to be prepared. Side by side, they made their way through the village, Jack following Daniel's example. He kept his eyes focused on the path before him and moved forward until he saw Teal'c rise slightly and wave them over.

With a firm hand under Daniel's arm, they moved towards the spot he had just been. "What is that?"

"The sign of Heru'ur, another one of Apophis' enemies."

"Another personal enemy?" Jack asked, "how many does he have?"

"There are 2 still alive, Heru'ur and Sokar."

As much as Daniel wanted to ask for more information, this sign may signal a serious change in their current situation. "What does this mean? This sign of Heru'ur's presence?"

"That if the captives were with Apophis, they no longer are."

"Colonel," Carter spoke up, "over here."

Without question, he made his way over to her position.

"Listen," she whispered before he could ask what was up.

The four of them listened carefully, moving forward to hide as they did so. "There it is again, sir."

"What is it?" he asked, looking back at Teal'c before continuing to move in the direction of the sound.

"An execution line."

"Shau're," Daniel breathed. Only Jack's hand on his shoulder prevented him from breaking cover and going down. "Jack!"

Though the colonel winced away from the sound of betrayal in his voice, he held on. "Think, Daniel. It will not help if we don't find out where and who is in that line. For all we knew, Harem-utsis was taken captive by Apophis and they are being shot. Its possible, right?"

"It is." Teal'c's reply was solemn.

Reluctantly, Daniel listened to him and settled down, following them. They moved towards the sounds, splitting up into 2 groups. "If you see anything we can use, take it," was Jack's final order.

He and Daniel stayed back and watched Sam and Teal'c move slowly down towards the sounds. "Daniel, call Kawalsky and warn him. I'll keep watch."

The linguist did no more than nod, which worried Jack. "Major, we have a new enemy. Well, he's really not ours, his name is Heru'ur."

"Copy that, Dr. Jackson. Any orders?"

He looked at the colonel questioningly. "Jack says no. What's your situation?"

"That Apophis guy came out of the gate about five minutes ago. We stayed hidden but I told Garrett to follow for a while, let us know if he meets up with anyone. No sign of hostages."

Blue eyes closed, tiredly. "Okay. Thank you."

"Sorry, Doctor J," he said, sorrow in his voice.

"I know."

"Kawalsky? Did Apophis come through with a large group of Jaffa?" Jack suddenly asked.

There was a moment of silence, "no. There were only 3 or 4 with him."

He accepted the radio from Daniel, nodding his thanks. "Stay where you are. If Garrett gets more information, let us know. Same signals."

"Yes, sir."

"Teal'c? Carter? Did you get that?"

"Indeed. He does not know of Heru'ur's arrival."

"And the small guard?"

"Day of choosing."

"All right. So, the symbiote hasn't chosen its new body. Lines open but be cautious," he warned before shutting the communication down. "Let's go, Daniel."

"He'll take her, I know it."

Jack kept silent, just lent him his strength. They made their way up and looked over. "She's not down there."

"Are you sure?" he asked, not wanting to look at the fallen.

"Yes. Teal'c? Is there a back way into the complex?"

"Not from your position."

"Then you and Carter get in, see what you can find out."

Daniel spoke up, "can you see the group below? Is Heru'ur among them?"

"He is the man in gold using the hand device to torture them," Teal'c's voice was calm.

"Thanks," Daniel said, "be careful."

"We will, Daniel. I have a friend at stake too." She ended the conversation, turning to Teal'c.

"Now, I will procure disguises while you strip yourself of all unnecessary items and clothing." He was already in the process of taking off his vest. "Place them where they will be safe and their weaknesses will not be exposed. I do not want to be rendered defenseless."

She only nodded, following his lead. He disappeared after spotting something below them, leaving his zat'nik'atel with her. Oddly, she preferred the smaller weapon to the P-90. It was silent and smaller, definitely more lethal, and one did not need to hit the target directly in order to nullify the threat.

Once everything was ready, she hid herself in a small crevice. A movement to the left caught her eye and she reached for the radio. "I see Apophis," she bit out the warning before turning it off. She curled in further, trying to make herself as small as she could.

Teal'c was on his way back when the warning came. He knew the terrain but wouldn't be able to hide in time. "At least I die free," he fiercely spoke, going on to meet his fate.

Sam waited, tensed when Apophis paused not far from her place. What could she do with only a zat against 4 Jaffa and the headman himself?

Teal'c turned the corner and she stiffened, didn't he hear her? Was this just some big plan of theirs to get their secrets? She shook that thought off, knowing that it wasn't Teal'c's way.

"Teal'c, you are not dead," Apophis' voice was pleased. "You have returned to me."

"I have not," he said, firing on the Jaffa.

Carter leaped from her position and shot another one. Throwing herself up and into a roll, she picked up a staff weapon and hit their second one-even as the last Jaffa fell.

Apophis grabbed hold of her behind his force field. Using the staff weapon, she shoved one point into the ground and the other up under his legs, yanking as hard as she could. The shock, rather than actual pain, caused him to let go of her. Flipping back, she grabbed the zat and hit him with one blast, watching him drop.

"Come on, CaptainCarter. Heru'ur would have heard this and we do not want to be captured." They scrambled around a few rocks, somewhat slowed down by the uniforms Teal'c had.

Once they were a safe distance away, Teal'c helped her change into it, then got into his own. "Colonel, we're fine. Apophis is down and we have a way in."

"Good. Daniel wishes you luck."

"Thank him for me, sir."

Whether by fate or just mere dumb luck, they were able to get back before Heru'ur showed up with his Jaffa. "You both did this?" there was doubt in his voice.

"We caught him by surprise," Teal'c replied stoically. "But our helmets were struck by their staff fire and will not open now."

Heur'ur nodded slowly, "you three go with them and take Apophis to my throne room."

They picked up the Jaffa who still lived and Apophis and carried them off to the fortress. Sam stayed close to Teal'c, wondering how they were going to break away from the others. But she knew that she needed to trust him, he must have some plan.

Once Apophis was deposited, they were given orders to get their helmets fixed. "The harem quarters are this way," he said, striding forward.

"I don't like the sound of that," she muttered. "It is so degrading."

Teal'c said nothing, not knowing what to say to this statement. He was still dealing with this new version of her. Nothing in his experience as First Prime of Apophis, nor had his time on Abydos prepared him for a woman like CaptainCarter. Though he knew that SaraKawalsky and DoctorFraiser were trained to fight, in the battle on Abydos, they had only defended. Their healing skills being the more important thing. But this woman had fought-and fought well. She was a true warrior.

He found it...fascinating.

They peered in, searching for any familiar faces. "Is there another room?" she whispered.

"Only where the rejected are. They are no longer among the living," he gently added. "But your friend might be in the dungeons."

"Why would she be in there?"

"To break her of her fire," he led them down through the maze to the dungeons.

"What of Shau're?" she asked, though she had her suspicions. His silence confirmed her feelings and she felt bad for the young man who was becoming the brother she'd always wanted but never expected to have. They searched the dungeons and turned away, "she's not there."

"I am sorry," he said, leading her into another chamber. "We do not have enough room but taking these would be a good idea." He opened a storage box and handed her a few small globes.

"What are these?" she pocketed them like he showed her.

"I believe that you would call them grenades."

She smiled, "the colonel will appreciate these."

"We should go," he replied, removing something before they left.

"What was that?" She knew she was repeating herself but she had to keep talking. It was better than thinking about the fate of her friend.

"I will explain later. We must inform O'Neill and DanielJackson of our discovery."

"Right," she followed him down the hall. "What about Apophis? Won't he tell Heru'ur about us?"

Teal'c shook his head, "it will not serve him to reveal anything."

She noticed that they were going in the opposite direction. "Where are we going?"

"To the rings. We will beam up to Apophis' ship, from there we will beam up our friends. It will be safer."

"Won't the use of the rings give us away?"

"Not when we use this dampener. Nirti developed it for use in stealth attacks when she and Apophis were allies. She is what you would call an inventor."

"I wouldn't have thought Goa'ulds made alliances. From what Daniel has said, they are an arrogant race of beings."

"Nirti is different. She wishes to pursue the perfect host and army to serve her before she conquers on a large scale." They stood in the center of the rings and he activated the device. "Release one of the grenades after the rings have disappeared once we are on the ship."

Nodding her understanding, Sam followed his instructions and turned it on.

"Be sure to avert your eyes. Our helmets will only protect us to a certain extent," was the last thing he said before they disappeared from the building.

Releasing the 'grenade', it knocked out all the Jaffa in its range. Carter opened the helmet and looked around, "there don't seem to be a lot of them for a mother ship."

"This is not a mother ship, it is a smaller vessel. I felt it would be best. Our number is not sufficient enough to take over a mother ship."

Pulling out the radio, she called the colonel and told him what they had done.

"Excellent work, guys. We'll pick up your equipment. How are you going to get us all without revealing yourselves?"

"This ship has stealth technology, sir."

"Roger that," he and Daniel made a retrieval run. "Kawalsky? Got your ears on?"

"We read and will be ready."

"Leave one of your men behind, just in case." He instructed, then gave Carter the all-clear sign. It was an odd sensation to feel the rings surround them and lift them up off the ground. "Okay?"

"We're fine, sir," she answered, holding out one of their new toys. "Teal'c says this is their version of a grenade. It's effective and knocks out the enemy through the use of a powerful light and some kind of waves that affects their minds."

"Later, Carter. How was your recon?"

"We didn't find who we were looking for."

Jack nodded, "Apophis?"

"Is in Heru'ur's custody, sir. But there were many people in the dungeons and in the harem."

"We can't leave them there, Jack."

"I know, Daniel."

"It would not be advisable to attempt a rescue when both Heru'ur's man and the men of Apophis are here. With Apophis in custody, Heru'ur has the right to claim his men as his own."

"Couldn't we set them against each other before we rescue them?" Kawalsky, whose team had just beamed in, asked.

Teal'c thought for a moment, "it would necessitate freeing Apophis."

"We do have enough armor to conceal our identities, sir," Carter inserted, "and a silent ring system."

"I assume that this ship could pass for either side to shoot indiscriminately," Kawalsky semi-asked.

"Indeed, I chose it well."

"With Daniel and Teal'c's help translating, I think I could modify the shields to protect us from the blasts of other ships," Sam suddenly exclaimed, knowing that lessening the death toll would help to sway Jack.

Daniel placed his hand on Jack's shoulder, "he knows where Shau're is. Please, Jack."

"You really want to do this?" he asked each of them. "It may be my decision but I want your input."

It was silent before Kawalsky spoke up, "they may not be from Earth but they are people, Colonel. We cannot turn our backs on them."

"All right, we're down to 32 hours. Daniel, you and Teal'c get started on the translations. Carter, plan out what you need, prepare for any emergency. Kawalsky, your team should get some of the serpent armor and hope it fits us. I don't want all of us down there, so use some common sense. Teal'c, when you feel Daniel is comfortable with the language-and you will tell him, Danny-I want to know the layout of the fortress.

"Ferretti, with me. I want to be sure that there aren't any hidden surprises waiting for us. Move it, people, we only have a few hours to implement this and get it done before our window home is closed and sealed forever. I really don't want that. Or explain this ship if we have to fly it home." Then he looked around, "think the general would mind if we brought this ship home?"

"I'm sure he wouldn't. It does match with our standing orders of procuring technology to fight the Goa'ulds. But then he'd have to explain its presence to the President. He might not appreciate that, sir."

"Which he might pass on to you," Daniel added.

"Well, it was just a thought." Jack followed SG2 out, leaving behind his team. It was a smaller ship but was more secure than other mother ships. "Think Teal'c chose Apophis' escape vessel?"

"Wouldn't surprise me," Lou muttered. "He has an odd sense of humor."

Moving silently, they examined it inch by inch. A movement to the left had Ferretti raising his hand in warning. Jack covered him as he scurried to the other side. Moving closer to the inner wall, they looked in and saw a female Jaffa waiting by a sarcophagus.

Jack moved back and stifled a groan, letting his head hit the wall lightly. With one motion, both men clicked their radio switch twice in warning, then turned them off. Ferretti reached for his zat, nodding that he was ready. Taking a deep breath, he first placed his gun on the ground. For now, they needed her alive. "Excuse me? But I'm new around here and can't seem to find the bathroom. Would you help me?"

She stood up, anger on her face. "Jaffa! Kree!"

"Hey, I was just asking," he dived down as the bolt flew past him and hit the wall. Another shot was fired and this one hit his shoulder. He rolled out of the way, taking cover by the sarcophagus. Lou didn't hesitate once the zat had appeared, one shot and she dropped. Without making sure that he'd hit her, he fired on the Jaffa they hadn't seen standing guard at the wall.

"Shake it off, Colonel," Ferretti said, approaching him.

He groaned and rolled over, slowly getting up. "I hate those things. Teal'c, we have a sarcophagus in here. Would you come and check it out?"

"I am on my way. DanielJackson and CaptainCarter have almost finished their preliminary work."

"Kawalsky?"

"We're good, though I'm really sick of hearing the word 'kree.' What's it mean anyway, doc?"

"Any number of things. Stop, attention, kneel, fool, get moving, infidel, listen to me, stand up straight, that kind of thing."

"Sorry I asked, we'll be at the Pel'tac soon."

"That's great. Once we get this done, I want to see how well it works. We could probably use some of this technology to modify our existing ships."

"I just hope we aren't giving Apophis any kind of advantage, Sam."

"We'll deal with it if we have to, Daniel," Jack said. "Everyone's good, though, right?"

"Yes, mom," Kawalsky quipped, "with all due respect, of course."

Jack rolled his eyes, "Kawalsky?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't make me hurt you."

He laughed, "Sara would use you for a throw rug if you did, sir."

Teal'c walked in, "you wanted to see me?"

"What do you know of this?" Jack gestured to the sarcophagus.

He read the writing, "this is Ammonnet's. She is the wife, consort, of Apophis." Seeing the fallen woman, he knelt down and rolled her over, reaching into the pouch on her belly. "She still carries the symbiote."

The sound of the sarcophagus opening had them reaching for their weapons. Inside, a woman lay sleeping deeply. "Teal'c?"

"I sense nothing dangerous. She is clean."

"Daniel will be thrilled," he started to speak when her eyes opened. "Shau're?"

She screamed, scrambling out of the box before his voice penetrated her panic. "O'Near?"

"Yeah, it's me. Let's go," he helped her up and they left the room. Behind them, they heard the door close and a zat fire upon it. "Teal'c?"

"I did not think it wise to let the mature symbiote be free. They jump."

"May be we should just kill her?"

"Why not give her the chance to turn away from the false gods?" he asked. "I am not the only one who believes them false."

"True," he replied.

"You may also question her for the information your government seeks."

"I guess." Still, he couldn't help but feel uneasy at the thought of letting her live. They made their way to the others.

"Jack, I think..." his voice trailed off as his face paled, "Shau're?"

"Dan'yel!" They stared at each other before Jack helped her walk to him.

"I found her and thought she looked like she needed a good home, so I wondered if you wanted to keep her." He removed his arm and replaced it with Daniel's. "So, Carter, what do you have for us?"

"It took a little doing but I was able to figure out how to do it. They should work for a short while before failing," she answered.

"How long?"

"An hour, at most."

"Well, hopefully we won't need a lot of time to get in, free ol' Apo, and get him to another ship-with his friends from here." He studied them, before sighing and getting on with this assignment. "How many uniforms did you get?"

"4, sir."

"Teal'c?"

"That will be sufficient."

"Very well. You, me, Kawalsky, and Mills will go down. Carter, you and Ferretti will provide air cover for us. Get in as many shots to both sides as you can. Daniel, help them out. Keep Shau're close, she may be helpful in relaying messages between us. Garrett, how's the gate?"

"Inactive, sir," came the sharp reply.

"If things change, head for higher ground, then leave once its clear. I want no heroics."

"Understood, sir."

"We'll try to guide the captives towards the gate, do not interfere unless you see Jaffa. Alert us and use the mines."

"Roger that, sir."

656

"Well, that wasn't a complete bust. Where's Shau're?"

"Sleeping."

"You okay?"

"It was too easy, Jack." Daniel sighed, "as much as I wish it were otherwise, it was just too easy to find her. Call me a pessimist, but I keep waiting for something to go wrong."

There was silence. What could he say? He'd been feeling the same way himself.

"No!"

They leapt to their feet at the scram and grabbed their weapons. Rushing towards the sound of the shout, they saw the 2 Jaffa from the sarcophagus room holding Shau're in the rings room.

"I knew we should've killed them," Jack cursed himself. "Let her go!" He raised his P-90, training it on them, wishing that they'd thought to bring a zat with them.

"No. She pleases me." They used her body as a shield, knowing that the two humans would never fire on them with their odd weapons as long as they were behind the woman.

"Dan'yel!" She pleaded with him to end this stand-off, to kill her and free them from this fear.

The guns dropped after a few tense moments, Jack following Daniel's lead. "I'm sorry," he whispered to his wife. "I can't."

They could only stand and watch as the rings activated and they disappeared from sight.

656

They stood in front of the gate in the embarkation room, staring at it after the last captive had been sent home. The confiscated ship was safe in area 51. "You did good work, SGs 1 and 2. After your post mission exam, you are free to go home."

"Thank you, sir." Jack said, eyes never leaving his friend. "Daniel?"

"She's out there somewhere, Jack."

"Yes, she is."

He looked at him then, a hopeless desperation for comfort and promise in his eyes. "So, what are we going to do, Jack?"

"Find her, of course."

"And if she's Ammonnet?"

"It's a big universe, Daniel, surely someone will know how to free her from the snake." He squeezed his shoulder, "come on. It has been a long day and there will be more of them, we need food."

With one last, longing look, Daniel followed Jack.

End, Act 4