Taking a deep breath, Jack's nostrils filled with the scent of vanilla body lotion and peach shampoo. He smirked, looking down at Carter's body snuggled up against him. He'd woken up from her hair tickling his chin as her cheek rested on his chest, face slightly tilted upwards towards his. Her warm body draped over his, her smooth legs brushing his hairy ones as she moved every now and then in her sleep. Soft curves pressed against the harder planes of his body. A lazy smile formed on his face as his hand traced the soft skin of her cheek, down the column of her alabaster neck, over the swell of her breasts and brushing her ribs covered by fabric until he reached her soft skin. She was wearing one of his button-up shirts that only barely covered the globes of her sweet six, and nothing else.

Her long legs were entwined with his, her face was still relaxed in sleep and the fingers of his other hand were tangled in her long blond locks. Despite everything she had gone through in the past few months and the fact that she didn't have any makeup on, she still looked beautiful – and much younger than him. Her soft and slow breathing caused goose bumps on his chest but he enjoyed the intimacy of their embrace too much to break his hold on her and turn them both on their side so he could spoon behind her. While he had been applying the body lotion on her lovely body last night, he had caressed her long limbs and back with a massage. After all the emotional distress from the past week, they had both needed the physical contact and he had been yearning the comfort her body could give him. Slowly, the caresses and ministrations had been building their desires resulting in a slow and gentle lovemaking.

Carter had immediately curled up against his side while they were both still trying to catch their breaths following their explosive climaxes. He had only scooted to the edge of the bed a bit to reach out and grab one of his long sleeves from the pile of folded clothes in the corner – he shouldn't have been surprised the Asgard didn't have closets since they don't have clothes either – to give her. After all, the Doc had said she was still vulnerable despite her recovery being almost complete and he didn't want to be responsible for his wife catching a cold or something more serious once her body cooled down because she was sleeping naked – no matter how much he enjoyed her silky skin against his. Once she'd slipped into it and snuggled up against him, they had both fallen into a blissful sleep and he hadn't awoken until now.

His breath caught when he felt her nails dig in his side unexpectedly and his own hand immediately came up to capture and still hers. It had been months since that had last happened and he'd almost forgotten how she would sometimes flex her fingers and scrunch her nose moments before waking up. It hadn't happened since he'd gotten her back but it usually only happened when they were both completely relaxed. Not when they were in a rush or stressed out because he only had a day or two before he had to go back to DC or she'd have to go back to Nevada or Colorado Springs. So it must have been…

Jack frowned, realizing he had no idea what date it was as they had been too caught up in their search for the baby to take notice. He wasn't sure he wanted to know how long they had been out here already, searching for his little girl…. His thoughts went out the window when Sam stirred and blinked slowly. "Morning beautiful," he smirked, pressing a kiss on her nose. Her blue orbs stared at him and he briefly wondered if their baby would have the same enthralling eyes – as she was brown-haired and blue-eyed according to Thor.

"Hi," Sam mumbled sleepily. Reaching up, her fingers caressed the small frown on his face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he shook his head, trying to reassure her. "I was just thinking about the baby… I'm not sure if I can handle another female with those baby blues."

She smiled at his attempt at humor despite the seriousness of the subject – their baby. "I think she'll just be Daddy's little girl," she tried gently, unsure how to approach the subject of their daughter at this time. Both of them had painstakingly avoided the topic until last night, even though she wanted to talk to him about her. Need to talk about her, Sam told herself. If only to keep it all real.

Surprised, Jack cocked his eyebrow. He hadn't expected her to so easily join him in this conversation as he had meticulously avoided it, afraid he'd be insensitive or add to Carter's burden. "She'll have me wrapped around her finger in no-time," he said softly, "like another blue-eyed babe I know."

"Babe?" Sam snorted and rolled her eyes.

He shrugged, careful not to dislodge her from his chest. "She's a ba-be," he drawled. "And you're my gorgeous wife. Now, I know you have some memory loss but 'babe' is actually a term of endearment for one's lover or a pretty young woman," Jack patiently explained, smirking. "Just ask Danny-boy."

She lightly punched his chest, before resting her forehead on it in exasperation. Thinking, she started grinning and slowly raised her chin, looking at him from underneath her lashes. "So, you don't mind me calling you babe?"

He cringed at that: he should know better than tease her, especially when she had that glint in her eyes. "Never mind, let's just call the baby ba-be, hm?"

"Jack?" Gnawing her bottom lip, Sam nervously looked at him. "We're going to have to come up with a name eventually."

Letting out a deep sigh, he nodded slowly. Normally, picking out names was a fun and exciting experience – he knew, from when Sara was pregnant with Charlie – but this time he almost feared it. If they gave her a name, it would all become so… real. He'd been thinking about this a lot, ever since they found out about the baby and he never could help the dark thoughts his mind came up with; what if they failed to find her in time? Then they would never get to call her by her name, maybe not even be able to name her. What if Ba'al had already named her? Would they find her in time or would it take them so goddamn long that she'd be more attached to the Goa'uld than her own parents? What about that nano-virus Ba'al had probably in his possession? It could be a matter of weeks or maybe even days and their baby wouldn't be a baby anymore! She'd have her own name, her own identity and wouldn't even know them… "I know," he sighed, flopping back on his pillow.

"Do you-" She frowned and tried again. "Did we…"

"What?" He asked curiously, wondering why she seemed nervous.

"Her name," Sam tried. Seeing he was still clueless, she rolled off him and leaned on her elbows. "Obviously we were thinking about having kids," she started explaining, feeling uncomfortable and once again cursing that damn Ba'al who had taken her precious memories. "You know, since I wasn't on birth control and-"

Understanding dawning on him, Jack nodded. "Yeah, we weren't sure how long it would take to… you know. It's not like we had everything planned yet."

"So… no names?" She asked cautiously.

"No, we haven't discussed names yet," he confirmed, giving her a small smile. "We didn't even know if it was meant to be, so…"

Sam nodded slowly, somewhat relieved to hear that there wasn't another lost memory to add to her list. "I guess that means we'll have to start thinking about a name then," she suggested. "Or did you already have something in mind?"


Slowly opening her eyes, Astarte glanced around her private chambers and noticed the time. As usual, her internal clock was working properly and she had awoken just in time. Turning her head, she took in the sleeping form of her lover. He remained fast asleep, to her satisfaction. Moving cautiously she rose to a sitting position, the satin sheets sliding down her naked skin. Unperturbed, she slipped out of bed and padded across the bedroom to her audience chambers, barefooted. Before opening the doors her eyes perused the room once more and she reached for one of her capes, draping it loosely around her shoulders against the cold. Deciding her consort had not awoken and the audience chamber was devoid of servants, Astarte entered the room. She waited for the doors to slide closed behind her before making her way over to the small container that held her long-range visual communication device.

She reached inside and placed it in the palm of her hand. The small size meant she was able to conceal its presence without great difficulty. The corners of her mouth curled up into a small smirk as she brushed the top of the sphere with her fingertips, activating it with an almost reverent caress. Her heart beat once, twice… three times before the sphere darkened, a black mist swiveling inside preceding the appearance of her lord. "My Lord," she greeted respectfully, dipping her head briefly.

"Astarte, my love," his deep voice greeted her. "As always, you are most punctual."

"Of course," she acknowledged in a matter-of-fact manner.

His dark gaze studied her features as a ripple went through the sphere. "Report, my sweet."

"We are ahead of schedule, my Lord. It will not be much longer until we can implement our final step."

"Excellent," he smirked, obviously smug. "Is everything ready?"

Smiling coyly, Astarte batted her lashes. "Ba'alat has fertilized the ova, we have acquired the virus and are en route to the repository as we speak."

"What of the child?"

"My Kotharat are caring for her; she is in good health," she replied curtly.

He nodded slowly, a small smirk still adorning his handsome features. "You have remained inconspicuous?"

"He is unaware," Astarte confirmed, glancing towards the still-closed door behind which her consort was sleeping. "As I reported before; I have interacted with the Tau'ri aboard the ha'tak."

Making a dismissive gesture, he did not seem to mind. "Those pesky Tau'ri are unworthy of learning of your existence. They should feel honored."

She accepted the compliment with a small smile and raised a delicate eyebrow. "I must agree. However, O'Neill and his companions did not appear to."

"Fools," he huffed. "In time they will learn to appreciate your talents, my love. At least we can shape one of their own to our image."

"Indeed," she concurred with a nod. "Ataratah will soon realize her true potential and will bring shame on the efforts of her progenitors."

He gleefully rubbed his hands at the prospect. "Did you not forewarn Colonel Carter of this when she was still carrying the child within?"

"I did," Astarte acknowledged, the memory fleeting but stored in her vast mind. "During our confrontation I even promised O'Neill to ensure her true potential would be realized; they will soon learn to reckon with a true force, one not bound by petty rules."

"The mere thought of the inhibited potential of the two Tau'ri make me sick; had they not been our adversaries we could have ruled the galaxy with them by our side," he mumbled pensively, staring at something outside of the scope of the sphere. His eyes snapped back to her, as if he suddenly realized she was still there. "I digress," he smirked apologetically. "What of Ba'alat?"

She rolled her eyes in annoyance, thinking of the Queen. "I have fed his suspicions and she remains unaware of the final steps of our plan. However, unless the capacity of her brain has diminished over the centuries I will presume she has surmised some of our objectives as she already has knowledge of Ataratah and should be spawning prim'ta within the day."

"She cannot be trusted," he narrowed his eyes as he warned her. "She will contact you when she has spawned?"

"As he has instructed her," she affirmed with a nod of her head.

He rubbed his chin pensively, most likely deep in thought as he contemplated his next move. "Once she does you will send one of your most trusted Jaffa to retrieve them."

"All of them or merely the most promising, my Lord?"

"Your Jaffa must ensure all the prim'ta are taken."

Astarte canted her head in curiosity and gave an almost imperceptible nod to his instructions. "Very well, I shall instruct Jabir, one of my most capable commanders on Kadesh to take a battalion of his men and do as you instructed."

He grinned with obvious approval. "Excellent, my love."

"Would that be all, my Lord?" She questioned cautiously, aware that she should not leave her lover for too long in case he would wake.

"I have been informed the Tau'ri have the support of the Asgard and they have been searching the Born Quadrant, before moving to Os."

Her eyes glowed with outrage upon learning they had entered her quadrant. "Are you certain my Lord?"

He raised his brows in a silent question. "I am a God; gods are all-knowing."

"Do not ridicule me, love," she replied, her teeth clenched in anger at this new development. "The Asgard must have been aware of the location."

"They will soon reach your section," he stated in a calm tone. "Have your Jaffa intercept them and proceed as you wish."

Surprised, she leaned back, her anger ebbing at this new prospect. "Anything?"

"Within reason," he said placatingly, his own dark eyes twinkling at her zeal. "Send your underlings to join me on Praxyon; it is no longer safe on Kadesh if the Tau'ri and Asgard are aware of your presence in that section of space. You may also deal with Ba'alat; once she has achieved her goal she is of no further use."

"Of course, my Lord," Astarte dipped her chin courteously as enthusiasm was burning through her veins like wildfire. Recognizing his facial expression, she gave him a flirtatious smile and bowed. "I shall contact you once the next step has been completed," she promised, once again brushing her fingers over the sphere. The handsome features of her smirking lord slowly clouded with black mist until the long-range visual communication device deactivated. She placed the sphere back into its container and secreted it away before rising and returning to her private chambers to join her lover.


Several hours later Daniel and Janet were going over the star map, Jack and Sam were monitoring the ship's sensors, Teal'c joined them on the bridge after training in what they had designated the gym and Thor was eating, while Heimdall was in his lab.

"Thor," Jack called out, after spotting a blip on the monitor. "I'm picking up on something."

Placing a yellow cube back on his plate, Thor padded over to the console and readjusted some of the stones. "It appears to be a fleet of ha'tak vessels."

"Any snakes aboard?"

"It appears to only contain Jaffa."

Jack frowned and glanced over his shoulder. "T, are your Jaffa buddies supposed to be here in Oz?"

"Indeed they are not," he replied stonily.

"Either it's them, a group of other Jaffa or some Goa'uld left home and let his Jaffa free reign."

Cocking his head, Teal'c glanced at his friend. "Apophis often allowed me to venture with my men and insisted I contact him on regular intervals."

Jack shrugged, his eyes not leaving the screen. "That was in the old days, back when there were still Goa'uld in the galaxy. I doubt any Goa'uld other than Ba'al would allow his Jaffa to roam free and even for him that seems slightly insane."

"I shall attempt to hail them," Thor informed them before executing his movements. "This is Supreme Commander Thor of the Asgard Fleet, identify yourself."

The large screen flickered before an olive-skinned Jaffa appeared with a vaguely familiar symbol adorning his forehead. "I am Jabir, commander of my mistress' fleet."

"Who do you serve?" Teal'c boomed, never before encountering a Goa'uld who would refer to themselves as female unless she was a Queen like Hathor.

"My Lady Astarte," came his respectful reply. "She has asked me to contact you."

A silence descended upon them as everyone looked at Daniel.

"Why?" Jack asked, breaking that silence when no one else seemed able to move.

"It is not my place to question my goddess. Yet she informed me of you, the insolent one, O'Neill."

Turning to his friends, he pointed his shoulder over his thumb. "He's good."

"Ask him what the message is," Daniel hissed, still slightly excited at finding out the Goa'uld's name. He had been right: Astarte! That's why the Jaffa's tattoo looked familiar! Of course, this also meant they were probably close to her home planet!

Moving a stone, Jack did as told. "What did she want?"

"She will tell you herself," Jabir replied, inclining his head before disappearing.

Jack frowned and turned to Thor. "I thought you said there were no Goa'uld aboard that ship?" Seeing his buddy shake his head, he rubbed the back of his neck. "Then why did he just leave?"

"O'Neill, we meet again," the familiar face with the mahogany curls appeared on the screen, almost purring the words.

"Yeah, what'dya want?"

Astarte rolled her eyes mockingly. "Eloquent as always."

Ignoring her remark, he shrugged. "Now, what message did you have for me?"

"I want to offer you and Samantha the chance to join your daughter."

He narrowed his eyes at her, not trusting that sly smile of hers. "What's the catch?" Jack asked, not moving when he felt Sam sneak up on him and took her hand behind his back.

"No catch; you will surrender and join your daughter while your… friends will leave."

"Why not just hand her over?"

Astarte leaned forward on the screen, her green eyes twinkling. "Jack," she drawled sweetly, "may I call you Jack? Samantha and General sounds so… formal."

"Whatever," he mumbled, squeezing Sam's hand.

"I am not offering your daughter's freedom; I will not willingly let her go. Surely you must understand this? I am merely offering the both of you a chance to join us, me."

He huffed. "Afraid we're closing in on you?"

"I most certainly am not. You will not find Kadesh – or at least you will not know if you find it since I am not there, nor are my people."

"Then why your offer?"

She smiled flirtatiously. "You and Samantha are both attractive; I do not mind sharing and this way you can have your petty family. Perhaps even more offspring. If we bundle our forces we-"

"Not interested in taking over the galaxy," he interrupted her, feeling sick to his stomach by her so-called generous offer.

"Neither am I," she replied, surprising them.

"You're a Goa'uld, aren't you supposed to have that imprinted in your DNA?"

Astarte merely shrugged. "Genetic memory is highly overrated, love. I have survived thousands of your years; you did not even know of my existence until recently. Had I wished to overtake the galaxy I had already done so, or die trying."

Jack had to admit she had a point there, but he really wasn't interested in her memoirs. "Whatever," he rolled his eyes. "We're not going to join you; in case you've forgotten, Ba'al and I aren't exactly buddies and neither are you and me."

"We could be so much more," she purred.

"Don't even go there," he barked. "We want our child back and we will do whatever is necessary to get her."

On the screen, Astarte smirked, obviously taken with herself. "I would be very disappointed if you did otherwise. I look forward to our next confrontation. You might want to haste yourself as children grow up rather fast. Farewell Samantha, Jack."

"Well, that was weird," Daniel commented, grimacing at his food; he'd lost all appetite.

"Indeed."


"Did you succeed, my love?" Ba'al questioned when she returned from the peltac to join him for lunch.

Smiling, Astarte nodded. "I did."

"How long until they will reach Gubla?"

"If they find the coordinates on Kadesh now, it will still take them more than twelve hours to reach the other side of the galaxy," she replied, sitting down and reaching for a glass of wine.

He frowned. "Kadesh?"

"It was time for a new location," she shrugged. "My Jaffa have all been moved once I was informed of the Tau'ri presence nearing my planet."

"You were most fortunate," he acknowledged, silently wondering who had informed her.

She smiled up at him, studiously ignoring his questioning glances. "I was."

Ba'al smirked as his hand tangled in her curls. "What of the prim'ta?"

"My Jaffa have retrieved them from Gubla; a selection procedure has already begun," Astarte informed him coolly; she had already instructed her Kotharat once Jabir had delivered them this morning. They had been fortunate to receive Ba'alat's communication last night as they had entered the orbit of this planet, only hours after receiving her new instructions; the prim'ta had been spawned. "What of your plans, my Lord?"

He regarded her as she took a sip of her wine and he wrapped a curl around his finger. "I used the correct combinations of markings on the wall and the repository did indeed appear."

"For once your Jaffa were successful," she remarked as she glanced towards him, intrigued. "What of the device?"

Ignoring her first comment, Ba'al grimaced. "As expected, it did not respond to my presence; when I looked into it there was mostly blackness and some colored specks."

"Yes, as we had anticipated. Yet, we were not entirely certain; now we are. The child?"

"When I placed her in front of it, the device protruded further from the wall and she gurgled when looking inside," he informed her.

Astarte placed her glass back on the table, the corners of her mouth drooping in disdain. "It is most common behavior of such a young Tau'ri specimen when confronted with colorful lights."

"Indeed," he muttered, scowling. "Her head was too small for the repository to hold."

"Most unfortunate," she replied curtly. "We will try again in the evening. You have already started the treatment?"

"Yes, one of your nursemaids is overseeing it as we speak," Ba'al explained smugly.

Smirking, Astarte raised her glass in a silent toast. "Most excellent, my love."


"O'Neill," Teal'c's voice boomed through the corridor.

Not having heard him approach, Jack swiveled on his feet to turn and face his old friend. "Teal'c… I, ah, was just going to grab something to eat."

"I shall accompany you," he replied, easily reaching his brother-in-arms with long strides. "There are some matters Daniel Jackson, Doctor Fraiser and I wish to discuss with you and Colonel Carter."

"Okay," Jack drawled, a puzzled frown on his face, wondering what it could be. "Where are Space Monkey and the good Doc, anyway?"

Guiding them through the corridors, Teal'c gave him a sideway glance. "They have chosen to remain in the lounge. What of Colonel Carter?"

"She went to see Heimdall and Thor, I think," he pointed over his shoulder in the direction of where he came from.

"Very well," he inclined his head respectfully, before entering the lounging area.

"Daniel, Doc," Jack greeted casually as he strolled inside. "T said you wanted to discuss something with me and Carter?"

Looking up, Daniel smiled bashfully. "Ah yes, as a matter of fact there is something… where's Sam?"

"With our gray buddies," he replied, shrugging. "Something about conferring with the other Asgard for the possible location of Kadesh. Obviously it's around here somewhere since that bitch was trying to lure us away from it."

"Yes," he bobbed his head, gesturing to an empty seat.

Jack raised a brow but sat down anyway. "I need to sit down for this?"

"Oh no," Daniel shook his head, his eyes wide behind his glasses. "Just thought it would be more comfortable, that's all."

"Okay," he drawled suspiciously. "What's up?"

"Well Sir," Janet started when Daniel promptly looked at her. "Just… ah, logistics."

"Doc?"

Raising a brow and seating himself, Teal'c felt it necessary to explain. "O'Neill, what Doctor Fraiser is attempting to convey is that it appears prudent to request additional assistance from Stargate Command."

"Yeah Jack, think about it," Daniel added. "It won't be much longer until we find the planet and then we have to make sure to search it properly. Why not ask General Landry for some SG-teams?"

"We must not forget the tale of the flying serpent that protects the Goa'uld Queens."

Scrubbing a hand over his face, Jack nodded slowly. "I guess you're right, T. We're gonna need some extra firepower if we're going to take out a bunch of dragons. Some of the teams can do a recon while we look for-"

"Astarte," Daniel helpfully mentioned.

"That's not what I was going for, but yeah," he grimaced. "I'll go see if Thor can hook me up to the SGC."

Janet watched the general saunter away and stood. "I'm going to check the armory to see what the Asgard have and what we'll need in addition and also make sure the med kits are supplied."

"Can't we use that matter materialization thing Thor used for his food?" Daniel questioned, recalling how the Asgard computer core could make pretty much anything according to Thor. It made him wonder though, why the Asgard had always felt it necessary to beam up Earth technology – like their 'primitive projectile weapons' – when they wanted their help in fighting the Replicators. Perhaps the designs for P-90s was too 'stupid' or beneath them. He should ask them sometime, when they weren't trying to save the galaxy.

"I'll ask him when I'm done," she replied, before briskly walking towards the cargo bay.

Turning towards the Tau'ri archeologist, Teal'c regarded him for a moment. "Daniel Jackson, do your books describe the possible physiology of these flying serpents?"

"Ah, I'm not sure," he stammered, quickly getting up to look at his notes on the Seraphim and Tianlong – he still wasn't sure which they would come across. "Why?"

"I deem it prudent to be prepared for battle," he stated as he too rose and joined Daniel Jackson at his desk.


Standing over the child on the bed, Astarte raised a brow. "How much time needs to pass for the effects to become visible?"

"I cannot say for certain," Ba'al replied, his eyes trained on both females. "I have adjusted Pelops' research and made my own calculations. It should take mere hours."

"He was a fool; not simply because of his simple experiments but he did not even try to conceal his research."

He nodded slowly as he adjusted the transmitter. "Yes, there were hardly any security measures taken," he acknowledged. "Yet I have inspected his notes and they appear genuine."

"I am aware," she affirmed.

"It appears the child is becoming attached to you," Ba'al chuckled softly at his consort's indignant glare. "She is smiling at you."

Grimacing, Astarte scowled at him before returning her gaze to the child. "It is most likely an involuntary spasm of her facial muscles."

"It is not," he reminded her, knowing she was just as aware of it. "You should be pleased."

"I am not," she groaned. "I do not feel the need to mother a Tau'ri child. We will bond once she is of age, not before."

Reaching for his hypodermic syringe, Ba'al grabbed the child's arm for a new injection. "Obviously she already adores me," he smirked as the child smiled at him and reached out her chubby hands.

"How can she not, my Lord?" Astarte mockingly inquired. "What of the prim'ta?"

"We will inject them as well in the opposite chambers," he gestured towards the doors. "Call upon the Kotharat carrying our latest companions."

"As you wish," she replied, ducking her head before leaving him with the child.

Once he was done, Ba'al returned the equipment and reached for his healing device. Slowly, he scanned the child and was satisfied when he became aware of the virus in her system. "I will return shortly, my sweet," he smirked at her and turned around. Opening the door, he glared at the Jaffa priestess in service of his lovely consort. "Remain with the child until I return."

"Of course, my Lord," Ki'fi replied, bowing before rushing towards the female infant. She gently picked her up as she noticed the child was still awake. "Time for your feeding, Deasura," she stated respectfully. It did not matter she was a mere child; the male Jaffa had conveyed the stories of her powers and it would not be long until Ki'fi would see the evidence of her divinity with her own eyes.


"Are you sure this is the planet?" Jack asked as he eyed the analysis of the planet's scans. It was all in Asgard, but after having checked so many planets he'd lost count, he had become quite adept at interpreting these results. "There aren't any snakeheads present according to this," he gestured towards the screen.

"Indeed, I am quite confident, O'Neill," Heimdall replied. "The amounts of naquadah on the planet are congruent with Goa'uld presence. There are also trace amounts of specific energy our sensors have found and analyzed, which indicate several Goa'uld ha'tak vessels have entered hyperspace recently."

"You can see that?" Daniel questioned in amazement.

Heimdall tipped his head to the side. "Correct; the formation of a hyperspace window will leave a specific energy signature for a short amount of time. Councilor Freyr aboard the Samantha Carter immediately analyzed the vicinity of the planet once he discovered the amount of naquadah on the planet."

"Freyr?"

"Yes Jack," Sam nodded, gesturing towards the screen. "After we ran into Jabir and Astarte, we," she indicated Thor and Heimdall, "discussed the possible locations for Kadesh with the other Asgard since we were obviously close. Freyr had already finished in the Born Quadrant and was heading towards us-"

"Oz," he corrected her.

She frowned for a moment, before she understood. "Well yes, but he wanted to meet up with us here in the Os Quadrant. Instead, his satellite scanners discovered this planet when he was underway and relayed it to us. It's about twenty minutes from our rendezvous with the SG-teams."

"When will they get here anyway?" Daniel wondered aloud, glancing at Jack.

"We are nearing the coordinates of the designated planet," Thor informed them.

Jack shrugged at his friend. "They should gate there any minute now, Daniel. I told Hank to send me all the recon teams and some of those recruits that weren't otherwise involved."

"I have assisted Doctor Fraiser with the inspection of our arsenal and medical supplies; since Daniel Jackson's sources of information are unreliable and unclear we cannot be certain our weapons will be effective against the fiery serpents," Teal'c informed them.

"I know," he smirked. "I already asked Thor to make us some of those plasma beam thingies," Jack explained. "Handheld of course, we can't carry the ones attached to this ship around."

Thor padded over to his console to observe the progress of the matter materialization technology. "The handheld plasma beam weapons are almost complete and the personal cloaking devices are already done."

"Cool."

"Indeed."

Sam rolled her eyes at their boyish enthusiasm and cleared her throat. "So, we'll pick up the SG-teams, head to Kadesh and move to the planet, right?"

"Yeah sure you betcha," Jack replied as he walked over to the 'window', seeing them enter the orbit of the designated rendezvous point.


"SG-16 and -7 will scout the south city two klicks from here, SG-2 and -5 you're checking this town, while SG-3, Doc Fraiser and SG-1 is with me," Jack ordered as they stood at the edge of the city after Thor had beamed them all down on Kadesh. A chorus of "Yes Sir" sounded from the men and women on the teams.

"Sir?"

"Hailey?" Jack glared at her.

Jennifer swallowed and nodded briefly. "Yes Sir, where do you want us?" She gestured behind her, where the other airmen not assigned to a team were waiting.

"Hm," he frowned for a moment. "Reynolds, you take Hailey," he ordered. "Mitchell, you're with Feretti, Satterfield is with Altman, Fisher with Thompson and Menard with Paulson."

Waiting until the four lieutenants and Lt Col Mitchell had joined their respective teams, Daniel stepped up to Jack. "Um, are you sure this is a good idea?"

"You were the one that insisted I take more SG-teams with me."

"I know," he rolled his eyes, "but Menard? The guy's worse than Rothman in the field!"

"He specializes in naquadah, Danny-boy," Jack replied in a placating manner. "In case you weren't paying attention to Heimdall; there's a lot of naquadah on this planet. Besides, Hank already sent him through the gate. Now that he's here, he might as well make himself useful."

Raising his brow, Teal'c turned towards them. "Did the Asgard not say there were no human, Goa'uld or Jaffa life signs on this planet?"

"Yeah, so I doubt he'll get himself in trouble."

Albert Reynolds stepped up to the three original male SG-1 members. "Sir?"

Jack pointed at the personal cloaking devices the Asgard had given them. "Use them, just in case. But remember they only block sound and scent, not body heat."

"Yes Sir," Albert replied, signaling his men – plus Hailey – to use the devices.

"Alright people, we've already briefed you on what's going on so you know what to do," he spoke up, addressing all the teams. "Still, this seems to be Astarte's home planet so watch your six. Move out!"

Sam and Janet watched the teams take off, everyone holding a P-90 – with the exception of Teal'c – or, if it was loosely hanging around their neck one of the Asgard handheld plasma beams and zats and handguns strapped to their legs. Sam couldn't remember the last time she'd fired a gun, or even held it, but the weight still felt natural. "Ready?"

"I think I should ask you that question, Colonel," Janet joked, smiling at her. She was amazed with how easily Sam slipped back into Colonel Carter, despite not being able to recall any memories about her weapons training. Still, it was obvious her instincts were still there as she had shown when the General insisted she practice in the cargo bay by shooting at a force shield. Of course, every single shot had been perfect, therefore he couldn't object to taking his wife out on the field. Not even Janet herself could think of a plausible reason to keep Sam aboard, not this time.

"I'm fine," she replied confidently.

"Sweet," Jack whistled, overhearing her reply. "Because we're off to see the wicked witch."

Adjusting the handheld plasma gun, Daniel frowned at him. "You do realize she isn't home, right Jack?"


"Crap," Jack exclaimed for the umpteenth time. "Nothing?"

"No Sir," came Reynolds' reply through the radio.

"Well, that's exactly what we've got here too," he mumbled. "Okay, meet us back in the, ah… center room. O'Neill out," he let go of his radio and turned to his old team and the doctor. "Daniel?"

Looking up from the writing he had been studying, Daniel pushed up his glasses before speaking. "Oh yes, um… looks like we were right; this is Kadesh, ruled by Astarte the great goddess of… ah, never mind. Anyway, she's not here, no one is."

"Ya think?"

Sam snorted at that and walked over to the console. "Maybe there's something in the computer."

"Check it out," Jack ordered, before walking over to the door that led to the corridor from where Reynolds and his team would be coming from. "Reynolds, I want Hailey to check out the database with Carter, hurry up," he ordered into his radio.

"Yes Sir, we're almost there."

Waiting for them to get there, Jack radioed in with the other teams who all seemed to have run into the same nothingness as them. "Carter, can you copy that and take it aboard Thor's ship?"

"Not sure," Sam replied absentmindedly as she was skimming through the database. "It's got a lot of information and I'll need at least one extra crystal to transfer it on."

"I shall retrieve the crystals you need," Teal'c offered and, after receiving O'Neill's approval contacted Thor.

Daniel and Janet watched Teal'c disappear in a beam of light, both averting their gaze to the blinding light.

"Now what, Sir?" Janet asked quietly.

"Now-" Jack interrupted himself as SG-3 joined them. "Hailey, get your six over there," he barked, pointing at the computer. "We need to know where they went."

"Yes Sir," Jennifer replied, jogging over to the console. "Ma'am," she greeted the Colonel.

A white bright light suddenly appeared, giving form to Teal'c.

"Colonel Carter, I have the crystals you require," he stated, handing them over to her.

Sam simply nodded in reply and held out her hand, her eyes not leaving the screen. "I think I've got something. Daniel, didn't you mention that the Queen Ba'alat might be on a planet named Gubla?"

"Yes!" he exclaimed, jumping up. "Did you find it?"

"There's an address here," she replied, reading the coordinates aloud.

Turning to their commander, Daniel raised his brows. "Jack?"

"I guess that's where we're going then," he shrugged.

Raising a questioning brow, Teal'c showed his confusion. "O'Neill?"

"It just seems a bit too easy," Jack explained. "But it's better than nothing."


"Councilor Freyr is commanding Samantha Carter," Heimdall felt it necessary to explain to the Tau'ri and the single Jaffa. "This new class of ships can travel approximately ten times faster than the O'Neill class at maximum velocity and it has better weaponry as well. Therefore, he will be the one to travel towards Gubla."

"Fine," Jack muttered, not really caring as long as he got there fast. "SG-3, Hailey and the Doc will go with us, but the other teams are still collecting evidence on Kadesh," he gestured towards the planet visible through the window.

"Very well," Thor inclined his head. "I shall remain in orbit while Heimdall and I will explore the Goa'uld database."

Jack barely had the time to respond before they were beamed over to Freyr's ship.