Daniel knelt beside Janet's small figure. She and Sam were both sleeping peacefully thanks to the sedatives Dr. Carmichael had administered to them. Sedation was the only thing that could really be done for them at the moment. Plus, it would prevent any further delirium-induced mishaps.

Daniel cupped her soft cheek in his hand as he looked at her condition. Painful looking lesions had begun forming on her arms and legs. And her breathing was shallow. Once again Daniel was grateful for the medication that allowed her to sleep through such an affliction.

As he gazed at her, it occurred to him just how incomplete he felt. She was close enough to touch, but she was still far away in a sense. He missed talking to her about anything and everything. He missed her bright smile and infectious laugh. He missed seeing the sparkle of love light up her chocolate eyes. He missed holding her close. He missed her.

Daniel cleared his throat and began to speak softly. "We're going after her, Janet. Morrigan has the cure, and I won't stop until we get it. I'll be back soon, I promise. Just…just keep fighting."

He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Janet's forehead. "I love you, Janet. And I promise to never make you doubt that again."

"Are you sure about this plan, Daniel?"

"Teal'c uses Morrigan's incoming rings to go up to her ship. While he's doing his thing, we bargain with her, and hopefully she'll cure the women."

"And…"

"And?"

"Then what?"

"Well, worst-case scenario, we get taken aboard her ship."

"Right."

"And, assuming he hasn't been captured, Teal'c can free us."

"And if he has been captured?"

"I guess we play it by ear."

"Ah." Jack nodded as he put on his hat. "You know…all this time, I thought it was Carter who came up with all the insane ideas."

"We take turns."

Jack gave Daniel an exasperated look. "Ok, fine. Let's just say this goes according to plan, and she does cure them. Won't she be pissed when we escape? She'll just start this all over again."

"Well, I've been doing some thinking about that…"

"And…" Jack prompted.

"I think the people of the village need to be relocated."

Jack's eyebrows shot up in a questioning look. "Oh?"

"We were all here for the last seismic tremor they had. Combine that with the sheer energy of this new form of naquadah…it's just begging for trouble.

"Carter said it could be mined."

"If it's done properly, and carefully, it probably can be. But either way, I don't think it's safe enough for anyone to actually live here."

"Yeah, she mentioned something about that, too."

"Remember the first Croa'tan tree we found? It's only an educated guess, but I think that a long time ago a village used to be there. From what I could tell, it was situated close to a mining site. My guess is that something happened to cause a chain reaction with the naquadah…and the village was destroyed. Morrigan must've relocated the survivors here. That's why this village is so small. And from what we've seen, this planet's soil is rich in this new form of naquadah. That's why there aren't any other settlements on this planet…Morrigan knew that if there were too many people here, they'd very likely blow the planet up."

Jack gave Daniel a dubious look. Daniel licked his lips and continued on quickly. "And all of that aside…if Morrigan does cure them, they need to get as far away from her as possible."

"So…where did you have in mind relocation-wise?"

"If nothing else, we can send them to the light side of P3X-797, they're always willing to take in refugees who need somewhere to go."

Jack nodded, but couldn't help but sigh at how farfetched this whole thing sounded. Yet he had to admit that, in his experience, it was the long shots that always seemed to do the trick. But that didn't mean he had to like it. "I'll tell Reynolds to have the villagers ready to evacuate as soon as the snake gives us the cure."

"What about…"

"I'll have him get as many isolation stretchers for the women as he can, just in case. Now, get some sleep, Daniel. Apparently, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

Teal'c too had misgivings about Daniel Jackson's plan. Still, it did seem like the best course of action, considering the circumstances. And he had vowed on his honor to do all he could to help restore Doctor Fraiser to health.

It was easy to see that time was running out for Major Carter, Doctor Fraiser, and the other female inhabitants of the village. And something had to be done quickly if they were to be saved.

So, there he stood, partially hidden behind the tree Morrigan had left the Croa'tan marking on three days ago. According to the villagers, Morrigan always chose this location to appear whenever she went to visit the planet. Teal'c could only hope that he was near enough to intercept Morrigan's transporter rings when she came. If she came.

"Daniel!" Jack called as he finished changing his clothes in Thomas Brooke's bedroom.

"Yeah, Jack?" Daniel replied as he opened the door. Seeing the older man's apparel, Daniel couldn't help but smile. The white button-up shirt and brown pants that Thomas lent him were both just a bit too baggy for Jack's trim figure.

Daniel opened his mouth to say something, but Jack cut him off. "If I hear one Michael Landon comment from you, so help me…"

"Well, seems only fitting since you were the one making Little House on the Prairie comments there, Pa." Daniel replied.

Jack shook his head, briefly noticing that Daniel's mood had improved considerably now that they had a plan of action. Jack sighed as he pulled on his sagging pants. "Don't they have anything in a 30 long?"

"Yeah, sure, I'll just go ask the store clerk."

Jack threw Daniel a dirty look. "Why aren't your pants doing this too?" He asked motioning towards the similar clothing that Daniel wore.

Daniel grinned. "Because I am wearing my belt."

Jack looked down at his fatigues that he'd tossed aside and scowled. Dammit. "Right." Jack said hastily as he reached for his own belt. "Everything ready?"

"Yes," Daniel replied, catching Jack's meaning. "Teal'c and I both have detonators, just in case. He's in position by the tree now."

Jack nodded as he began arming himself. At least the baggy clothing was good for something. Morrigan wouldn't expect two of her peasants to be carrying weapons, so hopefully they wouldn't be searched. And the oversized clothes hid the bulge of their gear quite nicely. Jack carefully tucked his Beretta between the waistband of his pants and the small of his back. Erring on the side of caution, he also strapped a second gun near his ankle.

"And you've got the zat, right?" Jack asked.

With a nod Daniel patted his left thigh, indicating where he had hidden the weapon.

"All right," Jack said, as he righted himself and grabbed one of Thomas' straw hats. "It's show time."

Nearly 15 minutes later, Jack and Daniel were in position in the center of Hereford. With any luck, Morrigan would show up and believe them to be peasants who wished to appease her anger for the sake of the other villagers.

Teal'c was close by, still half-crouching by the tree that was less than 10 feet away. His timing had to be perfect if he planned to get onboard Morrigan's ship. If he missed the rings when she came, he would not get a second chance.

And there they waited. As the morning sun grew higher in the sky, Daniel began to wonder whether or not Morrigan would actually come. Daniel nearly laughed at the irony, for once he was actually hoping that a Goa'uld would show up.

Jack was also becoming impatient with the situation. He had been on countless stakeouts throughout his career in the military, yet he still hated the waiting game. He was a man of action, and would much rather be actively doing something.

Fortunately, Morrigan didn't keep them waiting much longer. A low rumble in the distance caught their attention, the sound of which progressed in intensity as it closed in on their position. Soon, something broke through the clouds that filled the sky, and there, hovering just above the treetops, was a Goa'uld pyramid ship.

This was it. Jack's eyes darted over to Teal'c. The Jaffa merely gave a curt nod; he was ready to leap into action just as soon as Morrigan's rings were activated.

'Good luck, T.' Jack silently wished.

As was the case with most Goa'uld ships, Teal'c heard its approach long before he saw the Ha'tak vessel. By the time the ship had settled within ringing range, he was fully prepared for his attempt to intercept the ring transmission.

After the rings were activated, he would have mere seconds to dive into the beam before the incoming rings blocked his way. His timing had to be precise.

Teal'c cast a quick look towards O'Neill and gave him a slight nod.

He was ready.

His eye shifted over towards Daniel Jackson as well, Teal'c knew that so much was riding on this mission's success for his friend.

He would not fail.

Looking somewhat like a cat preparing to pounce on its prey, Teal'c waited for his moment to come.