Mirrors on the ceiling, the pink champagne on ice

And she said, "We are all just prisoners here of our own device"

And in the master's chambers they gathered for the feast

They stab it with their steely knives but they just can't kill the beast

- From Hotel California by The Eagles

The Beast

Sam'd had little time to examine her surroundings after the Khan had pushed her through the door, but as her eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting, she'd realized that she was in a room that looked disturbingly like a dungeon. Chains and hooks and leather straps hung from the ceiling, while whips and floggers of all sorts lined the dark stone walls. In one corner, she saw the room's only piece of furniture – a medieval-looking wooden bench with a straight back and cuffs at the top and bottom. But no sooner had she registered the room's bizarre implements than Babi had lunged at her.

Much to her relief, she was able to easily spring away from his grasp. If his roar of frustration was any indication, he had grossly underestimated her. She was faster than he was, and now that she was no longer under the influence of the light, she finally felt clear headed and in control. However, she couldn't help the chill that traveled down her spine when Babi began to laugh, a deep and ominous sound.

"The Khan has finally provided me with someone worthy of my attention," he said, his voice reverberating with an eerie timbre.

"You'll have to catch me first," she taunted, trying to buy some time to consider her options.

Babi was now between her and the door, which she quickly confirmed was the only way out of the room. She knew that she couldn't dodge him forever. No, if she was going to survive, she'd have to go on the offensive. Looking upward, she spied a long, curved hook, hanging on a chain attached to the ceiling. If she could just jump out far enough to reach it…

With another roar, the monster barreled toward her, and she sprang into action, hurling herself toward the dangling hook. She felt a sense of satisfaction when she was just able to grasp it, but her relief was fleeting, as Babi collided with her mid-air and immediately wrapped his huge, hairy arms around her waist and pulled her down.

"Now you are mine," he growled, his foul breath washing over her face.

Repressing a wave of nausea, Sam rammed the hook that she still held into the back of his shoulder with all her strength. Babi let out a howl that was equal parts pain and rage, but her tactic had the desired effect, and he released his grasp on her, giving her time to scramble toward the door.

Frantically, she ran her fingers along the edges of the entryway, desperately hoping to find the locking mechanism. Having no luck with that strategy, she resorted to simply grabbing the handle, pushing then pulling as hard as she could. Yet the door wouldn't budge. It was locked from the outside, as she had feared. She was good and truly trapped.

"I will make you pay for that," she heard Babi growl through clenched teeth from behind her. "And I will enjoy every minute of it."

Sam slowly turned around to face her attacker, and for the first time since she had entered the room, she felt an overwhelming sense of dread. The beast was staring at her, teeth bared in a menacing fashion, the hook still lodged in his shoulder. He yanked on the chain that attached it to the ceiling, and it fell to the floor. Picking up the end, he began to move slowly toward her, closing in, like a predator stalking his prey.

Moving as fast as she could, she tried to dart around him, but this time he was prepared. With a flick of the wrist he threw the end of the chain toward her such that it caught her legs and sent her sprawling onto the hard floor. Sam struggled to get away, but Babi simply chuckled as he pulled her toward him by the chain, which was now wrapped around her foot. She flipped over in an effort to better defend herself, but it was too late. The moment she turned to face him, he reached down and grabbed her by the neck, then lifted her off the floor. She wanted to fight him, but she found herself gasping for breath as Babi squeezed her windpipe even tighter, and darkness enveloped her.

When she regained consciousness, she was surprised to find that she was not only alive, but apparently uninjured. Slowly, she took inventory of her situation and had to tamp down hard on a wave fear when she found that she was seated on the medieval chair she'd seen earlier, completely naked with her hands strapped above her head. Though Babi was not in her immediate line of sight, she could hear him breathing heavily somewhere on the other side of the room.

It took her a minute before she saw him. Crouched in the opposite corner, he was watching her, his beady eyes glinting in the dim light. She suddenly had the unnerving realization that he'd been studying her the entire time she'd been unconscious and naked on the chair, taking his fill like a sadistic voyeur and intentionally waiting until she was awake to do whatever it was he had planned. The thought made the bile rise in the back of her throat.

He rose then and began to move slowly toward her from across the room. Now that he had emerged from the dark corner, she could see that he was fully aroused. Panic threatened to overwhelm her. She struggled in a vain attempt to free herself from the chair, pulling on her cuffed wrists and kicking out at him with her unbound legs. But the monster simply continued his slow approach, growling as he stroked himself. Disgusted, Sam fought another bout of nausea.

Without warning, he charged her, and she was certain that she was going to die a terrible death. She closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable. But the pain she was bracing for never came. Instead, she jumped when she heard a crash and the sound of a zat firing twice.

When she opened her eyes, she saw Babi fall to the ground right in front of her, and the larger-than-life form of her commanding officer standing in the doorway of the dungeon, his zat still aimed at the space the monster had occupied just seconds before.

"Carter," he said, his voice rough and full of relief, and it was all she could do not to burst into tears. "You okay?"

She could only nod, then get out a shaky, "Yeah." He crossed the room in just three strides and began to work on her restraints.

It reminded her of how he had come to save her from Adrian Conrad's henchmen just weeks before. He must have been thinking the same thing, because he said, "We've got to stop meeting like this, Carter," as he was untying her hands. She knew he was trying to keep things light, but his voice was still rough and belied the depth of his concern.

Once her hands were free, she all but fell into his embrace. It was only a matter of seconds before she began to shake with shock. "I've got you," he whispered in her ear, holding her even closer.

Her mind was moving a thousand miles an hour. She knew that he shouldn't be holding her, that she shouldn't want him to, and that it was the least of the things they shouldn't have done. But all she could focus on at the moment was his solid chest pressed to hers, his strong arms wrapped around her, and the overwhelming sense of relief she felt in his embrace.

After several seconds, he finally pulled away. From seemingly out of nowhere, he produced her robe and draped it around her shoulders before studying her face intently, no doubt to see if she really was alright. Suddenly, she was ridiculously proud that she hadn't started crying. She pulled the robe closed and lifted her chin to meet his gaze. He nodded at her once, apparently satisfied with what he saw.

Only then did she notice the ruckus coming from the pleasure dome. "What happened?" she asked, gesturing in the direction of the dome.

Jack cocked a half grin. "Party's over, and now we've got to clean up." He turned serious once again. "We could use your help. You up to it?"

She stood up tall, steeling herself. "Of course."

With that, he handed her an extra zat before turning to leave the dark room. Sam began to follow, but just before she walked out of the dungeon, she spun around and fired her zat at the still form of Babi, effectively wiping him from existence.

When she walked into the hallway, Sam was surprised to find that she no longer felt the effects of the light. However, once she entered the pleasure dome she could immediately see why – the machine had been turned off, and the result clearly had been disastrous. Everywhere she looked she saw overturned furniture, broken glass, and dead bodies, a few of which were human slaves, though the vast majority were Goa'uld. In some cases, it appeared as though they had literally been torn limb from limb, evidence no doubt of the sheer rage the slaves had felt once they were freed from the light.

As her eyes swept the open space, they finally landed on Daniel, who was talking to Liza on the far side of the room. He looked up and met her gaze, his face grim. Giving Liza's arm a quick squeeze, he immediately began to head in her direction. "Sam! Are you okay?" he asked as he approached. "I saw the Khan take you. What happened?"

But Jack answered, instead. "Later, Danny," he replied with a look that brokered no argument, and she was saved from further comment with the entrance of Teal'c and Reynolds.

"All of the remaining Goa'uld have fled, along with their Jaffa," Teal'c reported. "They have returned to their ships in orbit via a ring located near the entrance to the pleasure dome."

"Should we pursue?" Reynolds asked, and it was apparent that there was nothing he wanted more.

But Jack just shook his head. "They're probably gone already." When Reynolds began to protest, he continued. "Look, they came here to vacation, not to fight. They won't be coming back."

Reynolds deflated a bit and gave a slight shrug. "So I guess we can go home, then."

"No," Jack said sternly. "No, we can't. In fact, none of us can leave."

TBC...

A/N - Babi was the ancient Egyptian baboon god. Known for his bloodthirsty nature and insatiable sex drive, he was often portrayed with an erection.