"You look like shit."

Mitchell opened her eyes, and smiled. Jack O'Neill had entered the room, and was walking over to her bedside.

"There's a fine case of the kettle calling the pot black." Mitchell countered. "You look like you haven't slept in a week."

"Yeah, well... for your information, I just woke up."

"Bullshit."

Jack smiled. Melony was obviously not as close to death's door as he'd been afraid she was. Either that or she was faking it fairly well – which he assumed was closer to the truth, since she did look like shit.

"For your information, hotshot, I did just wake up. Ask Fraiser, she's the one that woke me."

"Sleeping at your desk when you're supposed to be doing paperwork isn't the same thing as sleeping in your bed, Jack." She told him, snickering when he slipped on the puddle of water on the floor and almost fell on his face.

"What the hell?"

Mitchell shrugged, even though that hurt just a bit. "Someone must have spilled some water... or something."

Jack gave her a suspicious look, but the one she gave him in reply was all innocence.

"How do you feel?" He asked, turning serious as he sat down on the edge of her bed, taking the place Brad had vacated only minutes before.

"Like shit."

He grinned, and looked for someplace he could touch her. She was all bandages.

"Hurt?"

"A bit. Talon's doing the best he can."

"I love that little snake."

She smiled. "He's not really your type."

"I didn't say I wanted to marry him, Melony..."

"Brad looks awful," she said, changing the subject. "Why don't you ask General Hammond to order him to get some sleep?"

"Too late. That's what Hammond's doing right now. Fraiser reported to Hammond that you woke up, Hammond asked if he'd seen you, Fraiser said that's where he was at that moment, and now Hammond's ordered him home for the rest of the day. He'll stop by and see you before he goes, I'm sure."

Melony nodded. Good. She noticed that O'Neill was looking at her with an expression she couldn't quite figure out.

"What?"

"You don't look much like a system lord, you know... certainly not like the most powerful system lord ever."

She smiled.

"I'll work on that."

"Your plan worked pretty well."

"I know." She held up the arm that had the device on her wrist. "I was catching up on my messages before Brad came in. The system lords have all sought Tao out, asking to hold parlays with me to discuss my terms."

"That's what Jacob told us. No chance of it being a trick?"

She shook her head. "They're telling me to choose the place and time. And even if they wanted to ambush me, they'd never be able to raise enough of a force to do any damage."

"You sound pretty sure."

"I am, Jack."

"What will you do with them?"

"Who?"

"The other system lords."

She shrugged – and again it hurt.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nope."

"An enemy left behind is one that might someday defeat you, Melony. You know that."

"Maybe, Jack... but I've had my fill of killing for a while. I control an army bigger than anything you'd ever believe. No one's coming after me for a long time. And if someone does decide to, I'll be ready for them."

He nodded. At least she wasn't going to become complacent.

"What are you going to do now?" He asked, curious.

"Probably sleep a while longer."

Jack smiled.

"Smart ass. I meant when you get out of bed."

"I'll have to go and do a bit of consolidating, meet with the first primes of the system lords I've defeated, converge my armies and tell them what I expect of them. Then I'll come home for a while and work on the defenses of Earth – then we'll do the same for the Tok'ra, wherever they decide to settle down."

"Where they decide to settle down?"

She shrugged – and damned if it didn't still hurt to do it!

"They don't have any reason to fear the system lords, Jack. The Tok'ra won't need to hide anymore. I wouldn't advise allowing them to settle on Earth – not unless you're absolutely positive the symbiote is a Tok'ra and not a Goa'uld – but they can set up on a planet somewhere and live to be old for a change."

O'Neill hadn't considered that. He'd mainly been thinking that the Earth's dangers were past, now. He hadn't considered that the Tok'ra, too, were in the clear.

"Well... with the Goa'uld gone, Earth doesn't really need all that much for defenses, do we?"

"There're other dangers out there besides the Goa'uld, Jack. Better that we're ready for them when they come."

True enough.

"You're staying on earth?"

She nodded.

"Talon has always said that when the system lords were defeated, we'd come back here. I promised him I'd take him to see Mount Rushmore."

"Mount Rushmore?"

She grinned. "It's what he wants to see... what can I say? Of course, that's not going to be for a little while, still. I have a lot to do once I can get out of bed."

"Fraiser's going to want to keep you here for months."

"Talon thinks it'll be a week or so."

"That's it?"

"That's what he says. The serious injuries are already healed. Once the bones are fixed, and I'm not looking quite so much like death warmed over, I'll be leaving for a little while to gather my armies up and settle things."

"How long?"

"A month. Maybe a little more."

"Brad won't like that." Hell, Jack didn't like that.

"I know, but then I'll be home."

There was a knock on the door, and Sam peeked her head in. She smiled when she saw the two of them talking; glad that Mitchell didn't look quite so awful as she'd expected.

"Janet says your time is up, Colonel."

Jack scowled.

"Tell her that her clock must not be working right, I just got here."

"General Hammond wants to see you."

Mitchell grinned, fairly certain that the next thing Jack was going to hear from Hammond was an order to go home and get some rest. She reached out and took his hand.

"I'll see you when you get back on base. Tomorrow, probably."

Jack had obviously figured out the same thing Melony had, because the scowl deepened, much to her amusement and to Sam's. He leaned over and pressed a careful kiss against her cheek.

"I'll be back before then."

"Uh huh."

"You watch and see."

She nodded, and he stood up, and slipped on the puddle of water again.

"Damn it."

"Someone should probably clean that up..." Melony observed, smiling.

Jack looked over his shoulder at her, but the smile was gone in an instant – replaced by yet another innocent and slightly puzzled look. He headed for the door, and Carter, grumbling something under his breath.