Thanks to Agent-G for his help. He noticed that my story was slightly confusing character-wise, so from now on there will be a character list at the top of each page; starting at chapter 2 (I added them just now)

OC List:

Amaris Gotin: Aged mid-thirties, female, Scientist (think Carter) and team leader, younger sister to Keane and Harvey.

Keane Gotin: Aged late-thirties, Male, in the Aldercian army, older brother to Amaris and twin brother to Harvey.

Harvey Gotin: Deceased, Male, was in Aldercian army, twin to Keane and older brother to Amaris.

Lowell Safran: Same age as Keane, Male, small but agile and in Aldercian army, has known the Gotin's all his life.

Devon Gibson: Early thirties, female (don't let the name fool you), archeologist.

Commander Allard: Total jerk. Male, late forties.

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"Well, you're not a Goa'uld, and you're in perfect health. But, we'll have to wait for the Tok'ra to determine whether or not you are a Za'tarc." Janet was looking at her clipboard and sharing her findings with Keane. "Now, I'm going to report this to the general. I think Devon and Lowell are in the commissary, if you want to join them."

Keane stood from his seat at the edge of a bed. "I'm not hungry."

"Well," Janet started with motherly concern. "You must not have eaten in a while. I find it hard to believe that you're not hungry." She said this while placing her clipboard on the table near the foot of the bed.

"To be honest, Dr. Frasier, I'm starving. But, I find it impossible to eat while my little sister is laying there." He had meandered over to her bed and sat near her head.

"Keane, if you wait for her, you'll starve. At least let me bring you something."

"Naw, I'll be ok. I'll eat eventually." Janet looked at him unconvinced, but surrendered and left the infirmary to the General's office.

Keane reached his hand to his sister's forehead and stroked her gently, brushing the hair out of her face. She looked thin, and pale. Amaris had only been victim of Ba'al for a day. Imagine more. She would have wasted away into nothing.

He closed his eyes and rested. He'd been running around for so long, it felt good to keep his eyes closed and just sit there, feeling his sister's smooth skin. When his eyes were closed, he couldn't see her haunted face, and it felt like she was fine. Keane lost track of time, and had fallen into a light sleep sitting at his sister's bedside.

The young man had only been there for 15 minutes when there was a slight movement under his hand. He didn't feel it, but Amaris's eyes opened softly. She woke to the sight of her loving, devoted big brother sleeping at her side, and never leaving her face. She loved Keane so much. She needed to let him know.

"Keane."

It was soft, but it was something. His face twitched a little, so Amaris tried again.

"Keane."

This did it. He blinked his eyes several times, then focused on her face. "Amaris."

"Keane." They stared into each others eyes, his green like their mother and hers brown like their fathers. And of course, Keane's were identical to Harvey's.

"You're awake." He came in closer and gave her a hug, driving his face into her hair, which was sprawled out across the pillow. "And you're safe, Amaris. It's over."

She was overcome with emotion. The tears came, but they weren't the desperate, fearful tears that had fallen before. They were tears of relief and love, hope and promise. "I'm okay." She said it to not only comfort her brother, but herself. She remembered yelling at her team, and the faces they all wore. They horror at the thought of what had been done to her, and the worry that she would never recover.

"Are you sure Amaris? Because you've been through hell. You don't have to pretend to be strong just to make us happy."

It helped to hear that from him. But at that moment, she was okay. The last shred of her family was there with her, holding her. There was no question in her mind that if she ever felt sick or scared, Keane would be the last person she would tell. He'd been through enough. "I'm really okay now, Keane. It might catch up with me later, but for now, we're together." They stayed in their positions for a while, relaxing and no longer afraid.

Then, Devon walked in the room.

Keane picked his head up to see who had come in the door, and that's when Devon let out a thankful shriek. "You're awake!" She ran over to the bed and threw her arms around Amaris. Amaris winced in pain, and Devon quickly withdrew herself. "I'm so sorry! I forgot…I mean, I was just so happy…"

Amaris smiled painfully. "I understand." Devon then wrapped her arms around Amaris again, only gently this time.

"Thank god," Devon breathed into her ear, and Amaris tightened her grasp on Devon, silently agreeing with the woman who she adored so greatly. The little sister she never had.

"Are you going to let me have a turn?" The two women parted, a little reluctantly, but Lowell was here. And they loved Lowell too.

"Well, Lowell, if you weren't so damn slow all the time…" Amaris told him jokingly as he strode across the room to hug her.

"I'm glad to see you awake, Amaris."

Amaris sniffled at the feeling in his voice. "It's good to see you guys. Throughout the whole…" she faltered. "My worst fears were always that he was going to hurt you. I didn't even care what he did to me anymore…but I thought he killed you guys." Lowell backed away, looking in her teary eyes. "I love you all so much. I'm so glad you're all ok."

This is almost too much to watch, Sam thought. She had followed Lowell to the infirmary to see how Amaris was doing, and when she rounded the corner she saw the most beautiful thing she'd seen in a while.

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About an hour later, Amaris was sitting in the infirmary alone, staring at the ceiling. Apparently, the Tok'ra had come and her teammates had to take a Za'tarc test. She had no clue what that meant, but once she got on her feet; she needed to take one too.

It was hard for her to sit here with nothing to do. Before, when she was surrounded, they were all talking to her, distracting her. Now, all she could think about was Ba'al.

No one ever told her about what had happen to that Goa'uld. Had they killed him? Did he get away? She had asked Keane, as he was the last to leave. He just stiffened and told her he had to go, abandoning her to thought. It was clear he was protecting her, but she needed to know or the thought of it would torture her forever.

Torture.

She shivered, and pulled the blankets up. Dr. Frasier had told her it might be best to sleep, but Amaris didn't dare. She knew the nightmares would come. And maybe she could avoid sleep until they left her alone for the night, so no one could see her humiliation.

A sudden noise at the door made her jump. She was comforted though, when she saw who came in. He was pretty cute, brown hair, blue eyes, and he was walking towards her. He had glasses on, but they truly suited him, and complimented his facial features.

"Hey. I'm Daniel." He had walked to her bedside and offered a hand.

"Amaris." She took it and smiled.

"I just came to see how you were doing. Your brother told me you were doing ok, so I thought we could talk."

She nodded, but her face was set. "I'll talk with you, if you promise to tell me something."

Daniel wasn't surprised at all. He was told by Devon that Amaris was a curious and smart individual. "Sure, I guess. But some things I can't tell you…we haven't yet given you a za'tarc test."

"That has no meaning to me, Daniel. But, I think you'll be able to answer me this."

"Then by all means ask."

She smiled, hoping that he would tell her. "Ba'al…what happened to him?"

Daniel made a face. He should have known. Keane wanted to shield his sister from her tormentor's fate, but he couldn't lie to her. Her hazel eyes were so hopeful…she was genuinely curious, worried. It would keep her up all night, to not know. He wanted to spare her that pain. But then again, knowing he probably survived would torment her too. And the fact that her brother slit Ba'al's throat might bother her too. She loved Keane…it was evident when he peeked in during their happy reunion. Sam saw it too and shared it with him.

"I'll tell you. But you have to promise not to tell your brother I told you."

Her eyebrows shot down in a furrow. "Why?"

"He didn't want to tell you," he said honestly. "And I want to stay on his good side. It seems like a good idea."

"Yeah," she laughed lightly. "He could probably squash you like a bug." When she saw Daniel's face, she laughed harder. "Oh, I didn't mean to offend! It's just…when Keane gets angry, you can feel it in the air. You even start to get angry." She seemed lost in thought, face a little sorrowful. She was thinking of the first time he had gotten that angry.

He had been a POW for months, and when he finally came home, his mother and father had died of cancer, his younger sister a scientist. It was really his worst nightmare. Then, after the war, Amaris and Keane discovered Harvey had died. The body was returned to them, and they gave him a proper funeral, buried next to their parents.

Things went downhill fast. Amaris and Keane lived together and were in serious financial trouble. Amaris got sick, and the medical bills put them even deeper in debt. Keane took it horribly, blaming himself for their troubles by letting his CO leave Harvey behind. "We wouldn't be in this mess if he were here, Amaris," he had told her one night, when she came in from working late at night to see him crying on the couch.

She still didn't believe it, and he knew it. Even after the trouble had passed and all was well, he never forgave himself. So when Keane was angry, it wasn't at the world. It was the inner anger and self-loathing he still harbored.

"I won't tell him," she finally said, eyes moist. Daniel didn't know what had just happened, so he had no option other than to just tell her.

"Do you remember me and my team bursting into the room?"

Amaris thought hard, digging through the pain. She found it in her memory, a shred of hope at the sight of them trying to save her. "I do. But…he was going to kill you," she said horrified.

"He was…but then from the shadows jumped your brother and Devon. She was aiming a weapon and firing, all to stop Ba'al from hurting us, and further harming you."

Amaris's face brightened at the thought of Devon. "She's really grown up. She's so brave now."

"Well, from what I understand, she got it from you." Amaris blushed.

"Please, continue."

"Well, while she did that, your brother took care of Ba'al." Daniel wondered if that would be enough for her. He didn't want to tell her about the anger he saw in her brother's face.

"I see." Her voice was quiet, and Daniel winced. It was clear she knew already, what he was trying not to hint at.

"And once we were freed, we released you, met up with Lowell, and ran to the gate."

"Wait," she interrupted. "Why were you guys on Ba'al's ship to begin with?"

"We were rigging it to explode and wipe out all of Ba'al's fleet."

She brightened significantly. "That's great! So he's gone?"

Daniel clenched his teeth. "We don't know what went wrong, but the explosives never went off. And, as you very well know, Ba'al has a device…"

"To bring him back to life," she finished for him, nodding sadly. "So he's still out there."

"Yeah." They sat in silence for a moment.

"Well, at least he doesn't have our gate address. I kept my secret." She seemed so pleased with herself, that Daniel didn't have the heart to tell her that Allard had gone through the gate rather recklessly, and as far as he knew, Ba'al was destroying her home right now.

"Yeah. You did great, Amaris." She smiled at his praise.

"But wait! What happened to Allard? He was with my team."

"He…didn't want to rescue you. So, the story that I got was that her was restrained and Lowell watched him while Devon and Keane rescued you. But he got away, and we guess he's back on Aldercy."

She shook her head. "They should have gone with them…now they cannot return home without facing severe punishment."

Daniel smiled at her concern. "I think you're worth it." She blushed. "I mean…I think you're worth it to them. You're like their sister."

"Yeah." She twisted her mouth in thought.

"But um, what I wanted to talk to you about was this writing that Devon said you guys found a while back?"

"Yes, about the Tau'ri. Earth." She smiled.

"How much do you know about the Tau'ri?"

"I know you've probably pissed off your share of Goa'ulds."

Daniel smiled slightly. "You know that more than anyone else."

"Yeah. And I also know this is where humans originated. We were moved to other planets by means of the stargate. I don't know exactly why, but I think it has to do with the Goa'uld."

"So much in this universe does." He pulled out a notebook and turned through the pages. He finally stopped at a page where a photograph was taped in with some sloppy notes below it. "This is the picture of the stargate buried in the ground. You can see the cover stone and the markings." Amaris took the notebook, interested.

"Devon's the archeologist, but I recognize these markings. They're the ones we found and deciphered about the Tau'ri. Unfortunately, most of the wall where the marking were was destroyed. We could only get information from a little, and even that was hard to come by. It was a very difficult translation."

Daniel nodded his agreement. "So hard, that the markings were not deciphered until after our first trip through the gate 8 years ago."

"When was this picture taken then?"

"Umm…about 65 years ago. We only discovered the uses of the Stargate 8 years ago."

Her eyebrows rose. "That's quite a gap. We discovered out Stargate 10 years ago, and the program has been up and running for a year."

"Impressive."

"Well," she said, slightly embarrassed for her world. "It was only funded because we hoped to use the gate for military uses, like a weapon. We had to abandon that idea. We just go through it to get weapons, etc."

"We had to compromise for that too," Daniel said knowingly. I really like talking to her. She seems to understand, and be interested, and care about it.

She smiled brightly, hazel eyes shining. "We have a lot in common."

"Well, technically, we're all from this planet. So we have more in common than we're aware of."

"…But this writing? What did it say?" Her eyes had been drawn to the photo again, reminded that he was telling a story.

"Well, it gave the story of how the Goa'uld came to earth, looking for slaves. Humans were abducted and forced to work. The Goa'uld took humans as hosts, even, and made them worship them. The reign of the Goa'uld on Earth was a horror story."

She frowned. "What does that mean…to use humans as hosts?"

Daniel looked into her eyes. He didn't like talking about that. But she was so curious, like a child. He couldn't help but share with her. Taking the notebook and flipping the pages, he came to a picture of a Goa'uld symbiote.

"This enters the body, attaches itself to the brain stem, and controls the body." Amaris winced, but Daniel continued. "You can only tell if they are a Goa'uld by the voice, unless you have been a host before. The naquada marker in the blood would allow you to detect a symbiote."

"That's what he meant, then," Amaris said softly, and went over the outline of the snake-type being with her fingers, and then touched the back of her neck, where her brain stem was.

"He threatened to make you a host?" Daniel asked her, disgusted.

"He said…" she strained to remember. "I think he said I would make a perfect vessel. For his queen. I didn't know what he meant…" She trailed off and closed the notebook. She breathed deeply, trying to keep her composure. Ba'al had some nerve.

Daniel watched her struggle. It was hard to accept that someone was convinced you were perfect to be possessed. Daniel could understand what Ba'al saw in Amaris, though. The same thing he and Apophis both saw in Sha're. Amaris actually looked like Sha're a little bit.

"The Goa'uld are evil. And you should be thankful you could be rescued before…" he trailed off and turned away, overcome.

"Before I became a host?"

"Yeah."

"I don't feel thankful. I feel like crap." She sat up. "I'm afraid to fall asleep, because I remember every damn detail, and I know I'll have to relive it again in my dreams. I think I'd rather be a host then live like this."

Daniel snatched his notebook up and stood. "How can you say something like that?"

She was startled at his angry and almost aggressive reaction. "What?"

"Amaris, I know what the Goa'uld do to people. My wife was taken as a host seven years ago. But I knew she was still there, screaming against the demon within her. I was even able to talk to her once. She was still her, but she watched herself do horrible things…without being able to stop it. The Goa'uld can inflict damage to their host. They're in complete control. They have access to their host's memories. Being a host is worse then death."

Daniel then stormed out of the room, leaving a shocked Amaris. She didn't know…she didn't understand how personal it was to Daniel. His wife is a Goa'uld? That must be horrible. She immediately felt badly about what she said.

Sinking back into the pillow, she thought about what she had learned from him. There was no way the history was done, and she wanted to know the rest. But she had angered Daniel. He was not coming back to see her anytime soon.

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