A/N: Ok. So I survived writing a Sam/Jack moment, apparently with your approval. I had a bit of trouble finding my feet again with the plot but managed to hash this out – it was more about linking everything together properly… I've got a lot of characters running around!
I've got an essay proposal due in tomorrow about Fascist movements in Europe. Have I been working on it? Of course not! Your reviews meant that I had more important things to do!

Flatkatsi: Glad I didn't scare you away. And yes I'm not going to forget about the dead and dying – it did occur to me that perhaps leaving the poor people to suffer wasn't that nice… but hey, I kinda address it here.
Bookworm: "Buck up"! When did we transport into an Enid Blyton novel? Just kidding… the reason I'm so unsure of my writing is because my thesis supervisor keeps telling me who awful my style is! I know fiction is way different, but it doesn't inspire confidence when your professor reckons you can't write to save yourself!
Revvie-S: Okay. I'm encouraged… thanks!

Again, enough of this prattle… back to the story! Oh, and there's a bit of language in this one… just reflecting how much Aussies swear… you've all been warned.

Chapter XIII – Rise of the Phoenix

Baal paced the small space available to him in the cargo vessel. He was frustrated. Frustrated and humiliated. Forced to approach Earth as if intimidated… frightened… forced to sneak into the Tau'ri's solar system rather than announce his arrival with a formidable fleet.

His embarrassing defeat in battle against Lord Yu had weighed heavily in his mind, and caused must dissent within his Jaffa ranks. He could regain the upper hand against Yu or any of the other pathetic system lords without much difficulty – his master's resources were vastly superior – but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that his defeat had humiliated him in front of Anubis. If he was ever to regain the respect his master, he needed more power. He needed to demonstrate his own capability, to show that he had not in fact been defeated, that he could rise again, like a phoenix from its ashes. As he again was forced to turn around in his pacing, he made a concerted effort to calm down. Hardship was the breeder of success. The hardy were triumphant, and his perseverance would not go unrewarded.

As the small blue sphere of Earth came ever closer, Baal realised how much the discovery of Turramulli's cave had been a real breakthrough. Among all the legends of goa'uld history, Turramulli's defeat at the combined hand of the Ancients and the Asgard spoke of his formidable strength – it took an alliance of those rivalled the goa'uld to dispose of him. His strength was perhaps greater than that of Anubis – no one was sure.

The indestructible nature of his host did not make up for the mental deficiency of the primitive goa'uld symbiote… but then it was not for Turramulli that Baal was travelling to Earth. He would certainly seek out the legendary ancestor, but what was hidden among the rumoured cache of naquada was where his real interest lay. Asgard and Ancient technology, weaponry. For a race whose livelihood was the stolen achievements of others, Turramulli's cave promised to be the nirvana he had been searching for.

"My Lord," Baal's most loyal Jaffa approached him warily, recognising his God's tempestuous mood. "We are approaching the moon that circumnavigates the Tau'ri."

"We must remain on the hidden side." Baal broke from his repetitive pacing to approach the main console o the small cargo vessel. "We are not here to destroy the Tau'ri – this time." He added the last words hastily, seeing the surprise in the faces of a couple of Jaffa standing towards the back of the ship. "We are here to take that which the Tau'ri cannot comprehend; that which they do not deserve." He straightened his shoulders and stuck his chin out in an overly dramatic show of his superiority. "We will reclaim that which is rightfully the property of your God."

Baal's eyes were avidly fixed on the front window. He puffed his chest up with anticipation and licked his lips in greed. He saw the irregular shaped continent that housed Turramulli's cave come into view on the horizon of the planet. Soon. Soon he would rise from the ashes, reborn. Soon he would prove his worth to his master and finally crush those pathetic relics who were the System Lords.

As the sun rose into the sky over Uluru, Stacey was at the base of the rock trying to avoid Northern Territory public servants, as well as the local community. Bruce had made the necessary calls to close down the tourism site for the next two days, but of course hadn't been able to give a fully adequate explanation as to why such a course of action was necessary. The site coordinator, national parks ranger and community liaison officer had all been up in arms, not contented for a minute with the story of there having been an accident. They were all running around now, trying to get through the cordon set up by the Army. She couldn't blame them for being upset – a military show of force always caused upheaval, especially in a country that wasn't used to the armed forces having such a prominent presence. Yet another difference between the USA and Australia.

Doug, for his part, had done his best with the Anangu people. They hadn't objected too strongly to the news that there would be a strong military presence on the rock for a couple of days. Rather, they'd laid all the blame on Doug and his treacherous 'alliance' with the Howard government. They hadn't demanded access to any information as the Territory government had – they didn't care. They'd just stated, again, how much they wished it could be different, how much they felt cheated by the government that had time and time again stolen their culture, their livelihood, their hope. Poor Doug was shaken, and visibly distressed at the events that were taking place – stuck as he was between two cultures that, through government arrogance and incompetency, were constantly at loggerheads.

It was now approaching 10am and in the distance Stacey could see the ever growing flotilla of tourism buses and private vehicles being turned back at the hastily-constructed checkpoint. Most of the tourism operators had been appraised of the situation, but some had attempted to approach Uluru anyway. As for the general public, well Stacey had known that an 'accident' wouldn't stop them from coming. They hadn't been able to control the media speculation on the radio and television news that morning. It was now widely known throughout the country that joint US and Aussie forces had 'taken over' Uluru, as one pretentious journo had put it. Such a scandal had probably actually increased the amount of traffic approaching the rock. She was sure that half of Alice Springs had decided to drive down, just to 'check things out'.

To her right, Stacey saw Bruce walking away from a pack of irate public servants. He was almost running by the time he reached the military blockade and passed through to the relative calm of the other side. He jogged towards her before coming to halt about a metre away, sinking to the ground in exhaustion.

"Christ," he exclaimed with bewilderment, "They know I can't tell 'em anything. And still they're chasing me like a pack of bloody piranhas!"

(A/N: I apologise for the 'Christ' to anyone who may be offended – but in my head it's just what Bruce says… I wouldn't personally say that, but I'm pretty sure he would)

"Just wait 'til General Marty rocks up," Stacey mused. "Apparently he's coming in a chopper – that'll send the media crazy, not that they aren't already." She cast her eye over to the roadblock were there was now a small legion of media vans camped out, their satellite dishes pointed high into the sky.

"At least the Yanks got all that weird-assed technology up there before sunrise." Bruce looked behind him towards Uluru, where the night before there had been a constant stream of SGC personnel climbing and descending with stranger upon stranger equipment. "You'd think they were launching a bloody rocket what with all that gear!"

"Yeah, what was with that telescope anyway?" Stacey turned to look at Bruce. Around 4am, a helicopter had come roaring across the desert to hover directly above the site on Uluru and lever down what looked like one powerful telescope. When Jonas had finished speaking via radio to whomever was on board, he and Teal'c had immediately set it up and looked intently into it for what had remained of the night. The concern on their faces hadn't been promising. "Jonas seemed pretty worried…"

Bruce snorted with laughter and looked slyly at the woman sitting next to him. "Oh and I bet you noticed!" he chuckled.

Stacey blushed at his comment and looked away, trying to maintain a look of nonchalance. "I'm an observant person," she replied haughtily. "Just because you wouldn't notice what is blatantly obvious to the rest of the world…"

"Whatever you say Stace." Bruce smiled to himself as he surveyed the military circus that had installed itself overnight.

"C'mon Bruce – focus." Stacey was losing her patience. "Don't you think it's something to worry about if both the aliens look petrified at what they see and refuse to tell us what it's all about?" She saw Bruce take note of what she was saying and continued. "I mean, they know that they have to tell us what's going on – I mean, it was part of the agreement of us working together, right?" Bruce merely nodded silently, becoming slightly perplexed himself. "So whatever it is, it's gotta be something that scares the shit out of them… and something that scares the shit out of them, well, it can't be good."

Jack woke to the strange sound of Sgt Siler's voice barking into his ear. "Sir?" the man sounded unsure of himself, as if he didn't believe the Tok'ra device capable of working at such great distance. "Colonel? Sir? Do you read?"

Pushing himself up, resting on his elbows, Jack tried to make sense of his surroundings. The fact that he was alone on the floor disconcerted him, and he looked wildly around to find Sam. Seeing her less than five metres away, tending to the injured, he relaxed immeasurably before seeking out the source of the noise.

"Siler!" he exclaimed into the device, surprised to hear the gate technician's voice. "D'you win a holiday to Australia?" he asked playfully.

"Yes sir," the sergeant answered bluntly, well used to Jack's ironic sense of humour. "I assume you're enjoying your downtime with Major Carter?"

Jack saw Sam freeze out of the corner of his eye, but just winked at her; he was up for some banter. "Siler… you have no idea." He was grinning from ear to ear as he said the words, and watched with glee as Sam turned a scarlet colour, half laughing, half gasping in alarm. Before this game could get any more dangerous, Jack decided to move on. "So… what can we do you for?" he sat up properly now, and noticed with surprise that Turramulli seemed to be, well, asleep on the other side of the forceshield. It had never really occurred to him before, but he didn't think goa'ulds actually slept. Before he could waste too much time wondering about the resting habits of this particular goa'uld, however, Sgt Siler again grabbed his attention.

"Sir I was actually wondering if could talk to Major Carter." Siler's voice was apologetic as it filtered through the gadget. "We've got some technical issues with some of the equipment up here."

Sam moved to settle on the ground next to Jack, taking the device out of his hand and lifting it towards her mouth. She felt his arm snake around her waist to rest comfortably on her hip. She instinctively flinched and started to move away from him but felt his fingers tighten in response to her resistance. Realising that it didn't really matter whether she was leaning comfortably into his body or not, she relaxed and spoke to Siler.

"Hi Sergeant." She said, rather less cheerfully than Jack, but in a focussed voice. "Have you got anything to help us yet?" It couldn't hurt to ask, although she seriously doubted they had found anything.

"Uhhh… not really." Siler looked around him, marvelling at how such an armada of equipment could be so useless. "Jonas said something about there being Asgard and Ancient aspects to the technology?"

"Ye-es." Sam realised suddenly just how difficult it could be to interface with any of the Uluru structure. They'd had little only limited experience interfacing with Asgard technology, and next to none with Ancient devices. A hybrid of the two had the potential to be more difficult again. In addition, the cavern was much older than most alien structures they had come across – it was entirely likely that the form of technology was completely different. "The problem is," she drew her knee up to hug it against her chest, "this isn't Asgard technology like we've seen – it's much older. Judging by the physiology of Fodor, the technology dates back to a time that the Asgard are currently studying."

"Can Fodor help us?" Siler assumed the strange name referred to the Asgard's ancestor in the cavern with Sam and Jack.

"Siler – if he could, d'you think we'd be relying on your accident-prone ass to get us outta here?" Jack had wrenched the communication device from Sam's hand.

Sam looked around at the Asgard and two humans. She'd checked on them just before, and tried to make Colonel McGregor as comfortable as possible. There was almost no skin left on him, however, and his body temperature was dangerously low. She'd done all she could – wrapping every piece of thermal equipment they had with them around him and laying him on top of their jackets to try and insulate him from the ground – but without immediate medical treatment, he would probably succumb to hypothermia and shock without regaining consciousness. It was harder to be sure of the extent of Fodor's injuries. Essentially, he was suffering from a gunshot wound, but whether the bullet had pierced any vital organs was another question. She'd managed to remove the bullet when he was in the stasis pod, and she had thought him on the road to recovery, but his present unconscious state was hardly encouraging.

Sam calmly took the piece of tok'ra technology back. "He's unconscious at the moment, but I don't think his injuries are too severe – hopefully he'll be able to help in due course." She felt powerless sitting in the cavern, and it frustrated her. At the very least, she wished she could communicate effectively with the SGC, without having to resort to getting second-hand information from whomever answered when she spoke to the surface. "Have we heard from the Asgard yet? Or have the Tok'ra got any more information?" She tried to ignore Jack's amused snort at her mention of the Tok'ra, pausing only to give him a slightly disapproving look.

"General Hammond didn't say anything about the Asgard, so I assume not." Siler hesitated before speaking of the Tok'ra. "The Tok'ra have been in communication, but what they've had to say hasn't been particularly helpful."

"What a surprise…" Jack murmured sarcastically, before regretting it, as Sam punched him lightly with her free arm and glared at him dangerously.

"Apparently they think we never even should have approached Turramulli's cave – as he represents a much feared legend among the goa'uld." Siler paused, smiling as he imagined the reaction Jack would probably have to what he was saying. "Apart from that, they didn't really tell us anything we didn't already know."

"Have we sent a new message to the Asgard about Fodor?" Sam was still ignoring Jack, who was still expostulating about the Tok'ra. The silence that greeted her last question told her all she needed to know. "Ok Sergeant. Get on the phone to General Hammond now and make sure they send the new message in any and every way possible. They'll be anxious to rediscover Fodor – I can't imagine they still knew he was here."

"Yes Ma'am." Siler replied sheepishly, although he was glad to have a concrete task to fulfil. "Oh and Major? About the electro-magnetic receiver…"

Sam knew what he was going to say before he'd finished the sentence. "You have to couple it with the naquada generator before calibrating the settings, otherwise all it does is detect the power source." She paused, remembering just how often Siler tended to be in the infirmary. "Get someone else to actually couple them together – it sometimes shorts out."

She felt Jack shake with laughter at her last comment and caught his eye with a smile. He wasn't the only one who could share a joke. "Oh and Sergeant?" Sam suddenly had an idea. "If the receiver still doesn't pick anything up, or the signal is depressed, you might want to interface it with the naquada to focus the search. You should be able to programme it to recognise only the same elemental properties as…"

Jack felt his mind slip away as Sam rambled on in her incomprehensible technobabble. He spied Turramulli, immobile on the ground on the other side of the shield and again wondered exactly what was going on. It occurred to him that the sarcophagus was probably when the go'auld slept… but then, what about the Tok'ra? Sam probably knew the answer to this sort of question. He looked at her face, wonderfully animated with a sense of purpose and insight as she shared her immeasurable knowledge with Siler. The extent to which he relied on her was becoming more and more apparent as time went on. The fact that he could fight the goa'uld for five years without knowing something so simple as whether they slept was frankly ridiculous.

He was snapped out of his circular thought process by the sound of Teal'c's voice, which was oddly strained and full of concern. "Major Carter, we have just been alerted to the presence of Baal in orbit of Earth."

Jack froze with the shock of these words before retrieving his hand from around Sam's waist and grabbing the Tokr'a device from her hands. "WHAT!" he yelled into it, causing Turramulli to stir from his slumber, snorting discontentedly. "How the HELL could he just appear like that out of nowhere!" Suddenly his heart was racing, he could feel the blood pumping through his veins, making him slightly dizzy. He had drawn his knees up to his chest and was now resting his forearms on them. Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered Sam a warm hand resting on his shoulder and looked over to see Sam's face watching him closely.

"We have in fact been aware of an alien vessel approaching for some hours, O'Neill." If Teal'c was fazed by Jack's screeching, his voice didn't indicate it. "However we could not be certain of its provenance until now.

"Great." Jack unfurled himself enough to let Sam move closer to him, eliminating the space he had created in his shock at the news. "As if we didn't have enough to worry about already, what with Mr Hairy-Pillock and all." Surprisingly, although he certainly felt fear, it occurred to Jack that the prospect of being confronted with Baal no longer made him want to be physically sick. He looked around the cavern, realising suddenly the potential benefits of being trapped in an Asgard/Ancient control centre. Bring it on, he thought to himself.

"I am not acquainted with anyone by that name." Jack heard Sam stifle a giggle upon hearing Teal'c's words – the Jaffa's misunderstanding of English colloquialisms was a constant source of amusement to them all.

"I mean Turramulli, T." Jack sighed into the communicator.

He was about to ask what exactly they were planning to do about Baal's presence in orbit around Earth when an all-too familiar, arrogant, and snide voice filled the cavern, sounding strangely distorted.

"Oh how sweet." Baal's holographic self leered at the sight of Sam and Jack sitting so close to each other they were almost hugging. "The humans have feelings for each other."

Jack felt Sam's grip on his arm tighten as he swung his head around fast enough to cause himself a serious neck injury. Standing there, wavering slightly with the distortion of the image, was the unmistakably pompous figure of Baal.

TBC

A/N: Ok. This was an annoying linking chapter to write, and I don't know how well I did it. Hopefully you're all still with me.

I was looking at some info about Pine Gap military base for what I'm writing, and when put into google there are all these conspiracy theory sites that come up! Rather fitting for SG1… secret government base etc! You should check it out.

Anyhoo. I'd better be off. For Bekki's benefit: have a nice evening and sleep well!

Please review! You guys keep me sane (or is it insane?)…