Author's Note: Finally got the next chapter up!

"The men cheered - the women fainted - the children waved multi-colored flags!" -Amanda Tapping

Sam moved carefully down the pitch-black hall, her right arm guiding her along the wall, and her hands cradled against her stomach. She still hadn't run into anyone, but now she was grateful for the fact – she did not need to get into hand-to-hand combat now that she had burns on her hands from the force shield panel. She just wished a generator or something would kick in and turn the lights back on. She lost track of how long she'd inched her way through the facility, but eventually she came to a dead end.

Sam frowned. She had been very careful, listening to any change in the hall's acoustics that might indicate the presence of a door or an offshoot from the hallway. She hadn't detected any. But why would a force shield be placed to block the way to a dead end?

Wincing as her raw hands connected with the naquadah-rich surface of the wall in front of her, Sam began feeling along the smooth surface, thumping the wall here and there as she had before in her cell. There must be a way out, a hidden panel – something! She stiffened when she heard footsteps approaching.

Sam flattened herself against the wall and listened. As far as she could tell, there was more than one person approaching, but not many. Maybe three or four. She forced herself to breath evenly as she waited. Finally she could feel the figures passing by. She breathed silently as they talked amongst themselves in their odd language. Then one of the figures brushed against her and cried out in surprise. Sam grabbed the man as she heard the sound of weapons being primed.

Teal'c smirked, pleased that he had finally found something to help them. They had arrived several minutes ago in what appeared to be a small control room, and disabled all the men working there. Fortunately, the equipment in this room seemed to have an independent power supply and was not affected by the loss of electricity that had disabled the lighting system. The room was dark with shadows from the faint light of various controls, but they had power.

Daniel Jackson was attempting to communicate once again with their prisoner, while O'Neill stood watch at the entrance and Teal'c examined the room's vast array of equipment. He had discovered what he believed to be some kind of transporter. With luck, it would enable them to leave this place and find the Stargate. But first they must find their final teammate, Major Carter. To leave her behind in this place was unacceptable to him.

He approached O'Neill and informed him of his find, then moved to observe Daniel Jackson's progress. He could tell the younger man was frustrated. The guard being questioned was speaking to him, but the archeologist was still unable to decipher his strange language. Teal'c turned back to the transporter controls. He must learn their operation so that when they found Major Carter, they could leave immediately.

Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose and went to push up his glasses which, or course, he didn't have. He sighed and turned his full attention back to the alien he was trying to question. He'd tried every language he knew, he'd tried figuring out their language, all to no avail. And with the lights down, he couldn't draw on the ground or in the air, or use sign language of any sort. How could he communicate with someone who not only didn't speak his language but also couldn't see him?

Daniel froze. Helen Keller. Helen Keller! He grabbed the babbling guard's hand and drew a stargate on its palm with his finger. The alien fell silent. Daniel drew the round circle again. Nothing. Daniel drew the Stargate and a DHD near it. The man kept still and silent. Practically shaking with the need to make him understand, Daniel began drawing all the gate coordinate symbols he could think of.

All at once, something seemed to click for the alien. He gripped Daniel's hand and started babbling excitedly. He then turned Daniel's hand over and started drawing as well. Daniel forced down his own excitement at the break-through to concentrate on what the creature was now 'saying'.

Jack knelt by the little girl, who transferred her death grip from his hand to his sleeve. He rubbed her shoulder gently, keeping alert for approaching enemy soldiers. Once again in his military career, he was playing the 'hurry up and wait' game. It was bad enough under normal circumstances; he hated it in combat situations. He sighed when the child leaned up against him, hugging as far around his waist as her little arms could reach. What on earth were these people up to? Obviously not effective soldiers, they certainly had the advanced technology to present a formidable façade.

It was, in fact, this façade that had enabled them to capture SG-1. When they'd stepped through the Gate onto a planet the MALP had suggested was uninhabited, they had quickly found themselves transported to this facility, surrounded by armed, seemingly dangerous guards, relieved of their weapons and separated. He only wished he'd known then what lousy fighters these guys actually were. They could have fought their way out instead of allowing themselves to be disarmed and imprisoned.

The girl pulled back and clutched his arm again when Daniel shouted in triumph. Apparently he was finally making progress with the prisoner. Jack squeezed the girl's shoulder and kissed her head reassuringly. He had every confidence in Daniel's ability to convince the guard to help them. And if that failed, he had every confidence in Teal'c's ability to do whatever was necessary to get them out of there, even if he had to punch through solid rock to clear a path. One way or another, they were going home.