A/N: Writing dialogue isn't my forte so if there's anything here that confuses, befuddles or you guys simply just don't plain get, that would be my fault. Thank you kaseykc for the beta. Now I feel so much better.

Chapter Spoilers: Crossroads, The Curse, Descent, Allegiance, Cure

37

The three-kilometre bolide entered the atmosphere at thirty kilometres per second creating one of the most colossal sonic booms ever heard on the planet as the air in front of it, unable to get away, was violently compressed. Compression heated the air almost immediately until it reached a temperature of four or five times that of the sun, creating a blinding flash of light during that one-second traverse of the atmosphere.

The object, descending as a huge fireball, was visible at a distance of more than two thousand kilometres from the impact zone. Once it struck land bolide and rock were instantly vaporized creating a crater of about fifty-four kilometres in diameter formed a second or two upon impact. Within the next few months only eight percent of all life survived.

The only evidence that remained of this global cataclysm was the enormous ancient crater it left behind which was all but buried under sedimentary rock and snow. Its exposed raised rim was more than two hundred feet high with portions of it crumbling due to the atmospheric condition it was subjected to for thousands of years. This was the site chosen by the exploring Ancients to erect their Stargate.

The Ancients built the Stargate five hundred yards from a passage that was cut through the rock hewn base of the crater rim. Just outside the passage stood the oddly shaped stone pillars that served as a walkway of sorts to and from the Gate.

The only disturbance in the foot deep snow around the immediate vicinity of the Stargate were those made by the MALP's caterpillar tracks as it made a primary sweep of the area followed by the rescue team as they emerged from the event horizon.

SG-2 and SG-11 secured both flanks, the Tok'ra the front by the MALP. Jacob Carter, the SG team leaders Ferretti and Bennett converged by the DHD a few feet away from the still active Gate while they waited for the last member of their team to come through when a commotion caused them all to look up.

Three figures burst forth from the Gate. Two of them overshot the narrow stone platform and landed with a heavy thud on the ground rolling, displacing the snow around them. The third one in the middle wasn't as lucky. The poor man tumbled down the stone steps before landing unceremoniously in a heap on the freezing ground at the foot of the Stargate.

Several people ran to their aid. Jacob and Major Ferretti ran to the inert form lying on the ground. Major Bennett and three others helped the other two to their feet.

Ferretti was on his knees beside the fallen man. "Major?"

"Paul," Jacob Carter coaxed in a gentle voice beside him, "can you hear me, son?"

Maj. Paul Davis blinked once, twice. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." He started to rise but Jacob gently pushed him back down not looking at all convinced. "Really, Jacob. I'm fine."

Selmak's host sighed in relief and watched as Ferretti and another airman helped the Pentagon official to his feet before turning his attention at their two "Gatecrashers".

"Somebody better give me a damn good explanation as to why the two of you are on the wrong side of the Gate before I decide to leave you here with nothing but the clothes on your back!" Jacob's voice considerably dropped in tone sending chills down their spines.

- - - o 0 o - - -

The stunned silence that enveloped the control room was masked by the Gate klaxon as it continued to ring throughout the base although the Stargate had already automatically shut itself down.

Chief Master Sgt. Walter Harriman saw in his peripheral vision, his superior, Gen. Hammond, striding angrily across the control room through a side door. "Should I recall them, general?"

George Hammond wore a dark scowl on his face as he stood behind his Chief Gate operator's chair and took a long hard look at the inactive Gate through the viewport. All eyes were on him. "No," he growled. "We cannot risk alarming the Goa'ulds to their presence."

"But what about Dr. Jackson and Mr. Quinn?"

A tic appeared on Hammond's jaw. "Unless Jacob sends them right back, there's nothing we can do. They're on their own." He said it like he got a bad taste in his mouth. "I just hope no one else decides to drop by and join the party."

- - - o 0 o - - -

"It was my fault, Jacob." Jonas Quinn quickly admitted. "I forced Daniel into coming with me here."

"You think this is some kind of game, Jonas?" Jacob barked, walking up to them. He was in full general-dressing-down-a-subordinate mode. "In case you haven't noticed, the situation's already dangerous enough without the two of you tagging along."

"Jacob-"

"And you!" Jacob interrupted, turning his attention to the man beside Jonas. "Daniel, you should know better. We have no idea how the headhunters were able to track the two of you down and yet here you are looking for even more trouble. You're jeopardizing our only chance of rescuing Malek!"

"That is why we're here." Jonas dared say.

Jacob whipped his head around and looked Jonas in the eye, scowling. "Excuse me?" He said in that commanding voice of his.

"We're here to make sure that nothing bad happens and that everyone gets home safely."

Jacob fixed a level stare at Jonas. "Is there something you two know that we don't?"

"Well… uh… it's kind of…"-Daniel stuttered, clearing his throat as he exchanged a nervous glance with Jonas-"complicated."

Jacob turned on his heel and, as he passed Major Ferretti, said, "Dial Earth, major. We better return them to George before they both freeze to death."

Jonas held out a hand. "We're not going to-"

Jacob growled out warningly, his hand made a slashing motion in the air. "I don't want to hear it."

But Jonas didn't heed the warning. "But Jacob, you don't-"

"Jacob." Daniel signalled Jonas to let him handle this before running after Jacob. "Jacob, wait."

"We don't have time for this, Daniel."

"We are well aware of that."

"I don't need this kind of complication right now."

"Yes, I know."

"What if something happens to you? What am I going to tell George and the others?"

"We can take care of ourselves."

"Not in the least bit reassuring. My decision stands. Go home."

"I-if you could just hear us out-"

"I've heard enough." Daniel swung around and stood right in the middle of the other man's path, holding his ground. Jacob frowned disapprovingly. "This matter is not open for discussion, young man. Go. Home."

"I know what we said back there sounded lame and that you think that we just did it without thinking of the people that are after us thus endangering everyone's lives in the process but believe me when I say that we are only trying to help."

"Then you two should've stayed put in the goddamned base like you were supposed to!" Jacob looked like he was about to rupture a vein the way he looked at him. Daniel gulped as he watched the other man walk away only to double back again. "If this is as important as you say it is then why didn't you say anything back at SGC in the first place?"

"Jonas tried to tell Hammond." Daniel began. "But since he lacked proof to substantiate his claim the general would have none of it."

"Tried to tell what exactly?"

"Jonas believes that something will go wrong, whether it's mission related or not, we don't know for sure, but he's convinced that whatever it is – it's not good for our side."

"Did he say how he came upon this information?"

Daniel opened his mouth to answer, hesitated then began again. "I can't tell you-"

"Daniel-"

"Actually, I don't know exactly how to tell you."

Jacob shook his head in frustration and began walking back to the others without waiting to see if Daniel was right behind him or not. He hadn't taken more than three steps when Daniel finally gave in and was running after him.

"All right. All right! I'll tell you." There was a long pause, as if Daniel was trying to think where to begin. "I think you already know about Jonas having these certain 'abilities', right?" And so Daniel recounted the conversation he had with Jonas back in his office that morning.

At this Jacob sighed. "Jonas is my friend, don't get me wrong, but like George I would like to have more proof than that."

"Most of you won't be coming back." Daniel said gravely. He paused for a moment to let the words sink in. "That's what Jonas felt and that alone is enough to propel him to action. If you only saw the look in his eyes when he told me about it, Jacob."

"And since when did a mission never have its risks, huh?" The Tok'ra snorted. "Tell me."

"And I'm telling you that this risk in particular he isn't really happy about."

"Daniel, if we listen to everyone who says they're worried every time we go out on a mission nothing will ever get done."

"I don't see any harm in being a little bit more cautious." Daniel reasoned. "I know it may seem farfetched but if it is within his power to stop it from happening, he will do what he must, of that I have no doubt. And right now he is convinced that by being here he could avert whatever it is from happening."

"And your reason?"

"To keep an eye on him."

Jacob looked at him askance. "So you're asking me to accept this at face value?"

"I would be of the same opinion myself were it not for the fact that those same hyper-abilities, as Janet would like to call them, recently saved SG-1, not to mention, had always been correct whenever it decided to manifest itself."

A shuttered look came over Jacob Carter's face as he stared silently at him. It was never a good sign. "Geez. I've been out of touch with Earth for a while and someone starts having delusions of grandeur." He muttered to no one in particular. "Now all we need is a statement coming from him that he's actually a descendant of Darth Vader."

Snow crunched underfoot from somewhere nearby.

"All we're asking is that you trust us." Jonas, who appeared out of nowhere, pleaded softly, his eyes looking straight into Jacob's. "I would never do anything that would endanger the lives of my friends or this mission."

Jacob suddenly sighed - a you're-not-getting-the-point-at-all sigh. "It's not a question of trust as it is so much about acting without thinking of the consequences." His visage suddenly appeared tired. "Have you ever thought what would happen to the two of you once we get back to SGC? That is if the headhunters do not get to you first. We're talking about insubordination on a grand scale here. Yes, you are civilians but you, Daniel, more specifically, work for the military and just because you usually get your way it doesn't mean that that will always be the case. Jonas may not fair better since he is an ambassador-"

"Former ambassador." Interrupted Jonas. "I resigned my commission a few days ago. There was a conflict of interest and I knew better than to stay."

"They may never trust the two of you again." Jacob firmly continued. "Have you ever thought about that?"

Daniel looked him straight in the eye. It was his turn to cross his arms over his chest. "Oh my, aren't we in the same boat?" He said as he tried to pull his best sarcastic Jack O'Neill impression on Jacob.

The retired USAF general turned Tok'ra stiffened. "We're different."

"How different?" Daniel asked. "You guys sneaked through the Stargate behind the Tok'ra Council's back to rescue a friend. We sneaked through the Stargate to make sure you guys succeed and get back home safe and in one piece. I say we have a common ground." He quirked a brow with a 'don't-you-think-so' look on his face.

But Jacob Carter remained unmoved.

Daniel sighed. "We are all on the same side here, Jacob. We also want to get Malek back as much as you do. We're not here to stop you."

"All right," Jacob finally said after a few moments of silence, "suppose I believe you. What then?"

This time Jonas appeared stomped. "I don't know. I guess we go through with your plan and we'll see it from there." He said, shuffling uneasily on his feet.

"What if you're wrong and it is something that we can handle by ourselves?"

"Then that's good, isn't it? As for the two of us, we're doomed either way." Daniel shrugged. "If you send us back now we'd, no doubt, be in big trouble. Let us stay and help you rescue Malek, the situation waiting for us back at the base won't change, yes, but at least we did something worthwhile while we still can."

Jacob studied both of them and noticed that they were trembling slightly from the cold, although, they tried very hard to hide it. "Seriously, whose great idea was it you two jumping through the Gate?"

Jonas abashedly looked away, grasping the strap of his messenger bag till the knuckles in his fingers turned white. Daniel winced as he averted his eyes to the snow covered ground. "Mine," the archaeologist answered quietly.

Just then Ferretti joined them. "Jacob, we've got to get moving," he said. "I want to reach the mines before dark fall." He threw a disapproving look at the two civilians. "What about these two?"

"Let's get them home, major." Ferretti answered with a crisp "yes, sir" while their stowaways began to protest. "I can see you two shivering from a hundred feet away! Suffice it to say, you're not properly suited for this kind of environment."

"So basically what you're saying, Jacob, is that if we're properly geared for this mission you'll let us tag along?" Jonas cocked his head to one side.

"Obviously,"-Jacob crossed his arms-"you're not."

"Yes, we are." Jonas quietly contradicted nodding at the huge messenger bag slung across his shoulders.

Jacob looked troubled as he turned to Ferretti. "Why do I feel like I'm going to regret this?"

- - - o 0 o - - -

'You seem to be missing a guardian, rebel.'

The badly deformed tin cup halted midway through thin lips as a pair of intense amber eyes quickly scanned the immediate area around them.

The Tok'ra known as Malek, currently disguised as a former Goa'uld overseer turned prisoner Gor'kesh, was hard pressed not to turn around to where he knew her tent stood. He took a small sip of the brackish water while their eyes covertly looked around.

'We do not have a guardian.'

'Oh? I seem to remember a certain Jaffa who follows you around like one would expect from a loyal pet.'

Malek's brows furrowed. 'Nee'chos is not our guardian,' he replied with more conviction, irked at the thought that this woman was making fun of them. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Yarek leave the sea of tents that housed the prisoners, walking towards the mines. He was going to relieve Nee'chos for the night. The latter was bound to emerge from the underground any moment now.

'Is there something of import you wish to discuss or are you simply trying to amuse yourself because there is not much else left for you to do since there is no game out there left for you to hunt?' he asked, not even trying to hide the irritation in his voice.

'Ach. How cold. I simply eliminated those that threatened the safety of everyone here…'

Malek wasn't kidding about it. As soon as the invading party had total control of the mines, this mysterious woman who went by the name Maya, set out alone on foot and effectively and efficiently annihilated any and all kinds of threat from the immediate vicinity of the naquadah mines. She was gone for three days and returned with her clothes darkly stained with blood of who knew how many animals she killed but herself remained unscathed.

It further strengthened their belief that this brown-skinned woman, with the lithe, graceful figure of a dancer, was not someone to be meddled with.

Danem was silently laughing at him. Malek's frown darkened. 'Unless there is a reason behind this sudden call of yours, I suggest delaying it for later. We still have work left to be done.'

'You said before that Egeria was found buried alive.'

'Yes.'

'In Pangar?'

'That is correct.'

It was, after all, common knowledge that it was the planet where Egeria took her last stand against the overwhelming forces of the then Supreme System Lord Ra, so it was only logical to reach such a conclusion.

'And that Tok'ra were not the ones that found her.'

He threw what remained of the water on the ground then hung the empty cup on a nearby rack before trudging back towards one of the nearby open mine shafts to their left.

'A Pangar scientist found her by chance inside one of Ra's temples in stasis. They imprisoned and did tests to her and her offsprings for so many years until SG-1 arrived on the planet.'

'At least in the end she was able to find out what happened to her children after all these years. Believe me when I say that your queen wouldn't have wanted anything else.' A morose feeling accompanied her statement but it was gone before Malek could comment on it. 'Exactly how did the Tau'ri find out about her?'

'They were searching for new allies and found themselves on Pangar. Everything happened from there.'

'What were they like? SG-1? Seems like you know each other.'

Malek's brows furrowed. 'If you are implying that if we know them intimately, no. We do not.'

'But you know them, yes? What were they like, the times you were with them?'

Malek slowed their pace at the question.

'Why would you like to know?'

'I was merely being curious. I have never met any of them personally. The Goa'uld couldn't stop talking about them along with the Tok'ra and the Jaffa Resistance.'

'You are not bothered by this, of your enemies growing in number?'

'No. I've told you before to not put words in my mouth, rebel.'

'For someone who works for a Goa'uld, you surely are indifferent.'

'There are far more important matters that require my attention. Besides, it is not my place to worry of such things.'

'They are quite an unexpected bunch. The same could be said true about their race. It is interesting to note that although their technology is no match against those of the Goa'uld they still managed to hold their ground. We have never encountered a race that is as quite as stubborn. And we believe that because of this stubbornness they managed to gain alliances along the way - in the most unexpected of places. SG-1 is the most enthusiastic group of individuals we have ever met.'

'Good enough to trust them with your lives?'

Malek halted in mid step. 'We believe we could. Of course, that is only our personal opinion. Before, we wouldn't trust anyone except our own brethren. Not even our own allies.'

'Are you implying that they're different?'

Malek pondered on this.

'More than that, they made us realize one thing.'

'Realize… one thing?'

They were just a step away from the entrance to the mine when Malek paused, thinking of how best to answer her question. Unbidden, his mind went back to the time when Jacob brought them to the Tau'ri Alpha site where he met, for the first time, the famed Colonel O'Neill.

'A wise Tau'ri leader once reminded me that the Tok'ra were not alone in the fight against the Goa'uld.'

- - - o 0 o - - -

"You guys really outdid yourselves this time."

Jonas Quinn and Daniel Jackson looked at one another before they both turned their attention to the man walking right behind them.

"Yes, well, it was the only viable option we had available, Captain Edrald." Daniel remarked panting a little as they ascended a small hill. "We knew we could sneak through the Stargate - that was the easy part. The rest depends on convincing Jacob, Ferretti and Bennett to not kick us back to Earth."

"I never heard Jacob use that tone of voice before," commented SG-2's civilian member Dr. Jim Grant walking ahead of them. He shot them a quick look over his shoulder in wonder. "How did you convince him not to contact Stargate Command?"

"We reached a compromise." Daniel replied in a low tone, hopping over a boulder jutting out of the snow.

"Daniel made a pretty convincing argument." Jonas finally spoke up, scanning the horizon to his right. "He didn't need my help back there."

The captain seemed not to hear what was being discussed as he continued his train of thought aloud. "And not only did you dare disobey the general and followed us all the way here," Edrald continued in total disbelief. "You even brought your own EWCS, to boot! How were you able to get a hold of a pair of it?"

"What escapes me is how you guys managed to squeeze them inside that bag." Grant sounded in awe of the two, staring at the item in question. "Adding weapons to your stash wouldn't be a bad idea since you almost got everything except something to defend yourselves with."

"We would have if we could. Unfortunately, I was unable to turn in my keycard yesterday for the new security codes to be entered." Daniel replied.

Jonas Quinn's messenger bag held nothing in it but a pair of winter EWCS for him and Daniel when everyone thought differently. It was normal seeing the Kelownan lugging the huge bag around the base - which usually carried research paraphernalia and stuff - so when he turned up at the Gate room with it in tow, no one really suspected anything until it was too late.

Edrald quickly walked past them and reached out a hand at his teammate in front of them in one fluid motion. Grant uttered a soft "hey!" when he felt a tug on his side. The captain then turned back to them and held out two zats on his hand. Daniel and Jonas took one each and said their thanks.

"Really," Edrald muttered, shaking his head a little helplessly. "You two are a handful. Just what were you thinking? You should by now have realized that you just like dug your own graves, right?"

Daniel cocked his head to one side. "It was a calculated risk."

"Is Colonel O'Neill going ballistic once he hears about this included in your calculated risk, Daniel?" Captain Edrald lectured before turning an accusing look at Jonas. "If I only knew what you were carrying in that bag when we bumped into each other at the corridor I would've talked you out of it."

Grant eyed his teammate. "C'mon, Aidan. You seriously believe you could discourage Jonas Quinn from going through with it?"

They'd been walking for a while now across uneven ground heading southwards, their only guide was the supposed message they received from Malek. Jacob said that the mines were about a kilometre and a half from the Stargate.

As the team came out of the crater stone monoliths lined what seemed to be of an ancient walkway, some of them still had stone lintels propped overhead that reminded them of Stonehenge. It must have been impressive in its day with each block spaced out evenly from each other although there were now gaps on some of them. Some crumbled to the ground half buried in the snow due to their long exposure to the elements; others seemed to be as recent as a few months.

On these they found numerous scorch marks no doubt from staff blasts – evidences that a battle had happened there.

They sent ahead a pair, a Tok'ra and another from Bennett's team, to scout the path they were going to take and report back anything suspicious to the party.

The snow covered landscape was almost barren with patches of vegetation here and there. Over the horizon to their left was a dark forest that ran parallel to them that stretched on for miles on both directions. Although they hadn't crossed paths with any of the planet's local wildlife yet the team knew they were there and the last thing they needed was a pack of large predators closing in on them unawares.

Jacob, Davis and Ferretti led the group, Bennett and his men took the rear with Daniel and Jonas somewhere in the middle. It was an estimated thirty-minute trek on foot on uneven ground but if they quicken their pace, they'd be able to cover more ground in less than twenty. The planet's weak sun ever covered by tall cumulus clouds made it difficult to gauge how much daylight they had left a concern Ferretti voiced out back at the Gate.

"I'm only thinking of their safety, Grant." Edrald reasoned. "Jacob's right. I mean a Goa'uld placed a hit on them, which in itself isn't unusual, but all this sudden hype is very unsettling. SGC is the only place they're safe right now. Don't think just because this planet's location was kept secret doesn't mean it can't be found. We did."

"But Jacob allowed them to stay." Grant countered. "This is basically a Tok'ra mission, we're just helping out, so if Jacob thinks it's okay for them to stick around, we wouldn't be having this discussion now, would we?"

"You have a point…"

Captain Edrald's voice trailed off as a distinct low rumbling sound reached his ears. It seemed to be coming somewhere from the forest to their left. Jonas must have heard it too, since he suddenly stood quite still, staring fixedly at the same direction where Edrald heard it.

And it seemed to be growing louder by the second.

The ground underneath them began to vibrate. As the tremor intensified, trees began to shake loosening snow off their leaves, raining down on them. Everyone raised their arms to protect themselves against the onslaught of hardened snow while trying to stay upright which was proving to be difficult by the second.

Earthquake!

Loud splintering noises rent the cold late afternoon air as trees were ripped from their trunks, branches torn out of trees. Thundering crashes, of trees falling to the ground, resounded around them. Out in the open there were no places to hide so all they could do was huddle closer to the ground and wait for the earthquake to stop.

The ground shaking was so violent land became displaced. Fissures on the snow covered ground suddenly appeared, branching off in all directions. Off to their right a huge chunk of land rose at an alarming rate while a few meters off another portion sunk into to the ground leaving a huge hole on the pristine white landscape. Some opened up to reveal an obsidian chasm below, swallowing up anything that fell into its gaping maw.

Jonas Quinn suddenly cried out in alarm as the ground underneath him disappeared into one of these ever widening fissures.

And him along with it.

- - - o 0 o - - -

The first thing Malek noticed was the low rumbling sound coming from somewhere off to their right and it seemed to be growing louder. The next thing they noticed small debris began falling from the roof of the entrance of the mine shaft, covering the dark entrance with dust.

Before Malek could so much as lean in for a closer look, an unseen force threw them violently off their feet, landing just inside the poorly lit entrance, hitting their head against a rock wall in the process.

Malek felt something hot trickling on the side of their face but did not give it any notice. The first thing that registered in their mind was that they were under attack.

Until they heard a cry of warning from somewhere outside the mines. They clearly heard what was being said as the ceiling above them began to collapse threatening to bury them alive.

- - - o 0 o - - -

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion.

A look of surprise swept across Jonas Quinn's face, caught unawares by the predicament he suddenly found himself in. Arms flailing, Jonas tried to grab hold of anything he could to stop himself from falling but there was nothing but loose snow and soil dragging him further into the lip of the fissure.

Daniel Jackson shouted.

Aidan Edrald attempted to grab hold of Jonas' hand but he was a second too late.

Jim Grant caught the Kelownan by the sleeve of his jacket just below the elbow just as Jonas was about to disappear out of sight.

The sudden abrupt change in momentum swung the Kelownan forward – towards the fissure wall of hard packed snow. The jostling and added weight further aggravated the ground Grant was on, already weakened by the violent ground movement, collapsed. The philologist found himself sliding headlong towards the edge of the precipice right after Jonas.

With a cry, Edrald lunged forward, grasping Grant's extended arm with both hands. Daniel, too, acted quickly. He jumped and bear hugged the captain around the torso, digging the toes of his boots on the ground for leverage, shouting at the others for help.

Grant gasped out loud. He wasn't aware of what was happening above him. His precarious hold on Jonas broke off, feeling the rest of his arm slipping under his fingers.

Falling to his death.

Grant gasped again, this time because he felt a strong tug on his wrist. Someone one loudly swore above him, further tightening their grip on him, but Grant seemed unaware of it or the earthquake that continued to wreak havoc as he continued staring below him.

Jonas was there and he wasn't falling. The Kelownan had his fingers wrapped in a vise-like grip around his wrist. Grant did the same, his mouth set in a grim line of determination.

Hands reached out to help. It was tricky with all the shaking and the swaying but the others managed to haul the two of them to safety.

When the ground finally settled a few seconds later and everything was once again quiet and calm, the only thing that could be heard in the eerie stillness were their laboured breathing as they lay down exhausted on the cold ground.

The others quickly converged around them.

"Is everyone all right?" Jacob Carter asked, worried.

Daniel didn't move from where he lay, gulping in lungfuls of air. He craned his neck to where Jonas was lying down.

"That wasn't what you were trying to prevent, was it?"

"It's kind of complicated." – a nod to the MacGyver episode, "Honest Abe" one of the funniest episodes of the show that I love.

"I've been out of it for a while and everyone starts having delusions of grandeur." – Han Solo in Return of the Jedi.