Daniel woke reluctantly to the blaring of an alarm next to his ears. He pulled his pillow over his head and fumbled for the 'off' button with one arm. Hitting it at last, he drifted back to sleep.

"Dannnnnny Boy." Or tried to.

"Go away." At least that's what he tried to say, his groggy voice, when muffled through the pillow, sounded something like "G'wey"

"Time to rise and shine campers, it's another wonderful sunny day in Colorado springs." Pulling off the pillow, he forced bleary eyes to focus on his irrepressible friend. "At least I assume it is, somewhere that isn't deep underground." Groaning, Daniel threw the pillow at Jack and tried to doze off again.

They'd been stuck in isolation nearly two days now, ever since they got back in fact. In suits worthy of astronauts, Dr Frasier and her team had hustled them into this room and there they'd been ever since. Didn't they realise it was hazardous to his health to be trapped in a room with Jack for hours on end? The pit had been bad enough, but at last they had various escape trajectories to plot then. Trajectories? Now I sound like Jack. After the girl, Fene tied their rope around a tree, escape had been easy. At least, the third one had. She had needed a little practice in knot tying, as the bruises on his back attested to. Jack had insisted Daniel be the one to test the rope as he apparently 'bounced back faster'. Not wanting to inquire further, Daniel had got on with it. When they returned, Fene had been taken away to another room and all they had been told was that she was 'stable'. Comforting.

"Ow!" Daniel sat up and stared in disbelief as a pen bounced off the bed. "Jack!"

"Time to get up."

"Why? It's not like there's anything to do."

"Daniel, it's O seven hundred. It's time to get up."

"Did I ever tell you that I think the whole 'O hundred' idea is dumb?"

"Well look who didn't get out of bed the wrong side this morning."

"That would be me. And now, I'm going back to sleep." Daniel pulled the covers over his head and shut his eyes firmly. It worked.

For about a minute.

A annoying and oddly inconsistent beeping started up. He waited for it to end. When it didn't he sat up again and opened an eye. Sitting on his bed, looking like innocence itself, Jack had his gameboy out. He was playing some inane program on it, with the sound on, full volume.

Daniel gave up and went to get dressed.

"Sam! Just calm down, it'll be better in a minute…I think. Milliya!"

Kneeling on the floor of an alien hospice, dying of an alien plague, unable to breathe the alien atmosphere on this alien world, and watched by a terrified alien girl, Sam couldn't help but be amused by the universe's sense of humour. Eight years ago, she'd have done anything to be here, walking through the stargate, exploring other planets. Ten years ago she'd have been amazed at the idea of reaching this world in her lifetime, her dream had been to go into space, to somewhere 'near' like the moon, or even just a space station. And yet now, after accomplishing her dream hundreds of times over, all she really wanted to do was go home.

The stabbing pain shot again through her stomach. Was she screaming? It was hard to tell, all she could feel was pain, she could hear, see, and smell it even. Her pulse pounded somewhere in the iron clamp that was her chest, and her lungs were just two huge stones. There was oxygen all around her, but she couldn't get it! She couldn't breathe, couldn't breathe….

"Sam! Listen to me!" A voice broke into her agony, "You need to calm down, I know it hurts, I know it's painful, but if you don't listen to me, you're going to fall out."

Fall out? Weird phrase, must be alien. Did she mean pass out? God I can't breathe! Seemed like a good idea right now. Where was the air, she needed air…

"Major Carter, you must listen!" That voice she recognised, Teal'c. He was here, good. Forcing open eyes that threatened to spill tears, she caught sight of blurred shapes, people gathered around her. Blinked hard, she brought them into focus, Teal'c, Milliya, even Ella was leaned over her bedside. God it hurt so much! Even the Ashrak hadn't hurt this badly! Trying to literally swallow the air, at least she'd had some, a sudden wave, no fireball of pain caught her by surprise. Groaning she doubled over. Hands pulled her back upright, "We are attempting to aid you Major Carter, you will recover in a moment, do you understand?" The deep voice came from behind her, she nodded painfully. Milliya was kneeling in front of her, their faces were level. But her vision was blurring, not enough air…

"Sam the reason you can't breathe is because the mechanisms that allow you to breathe are affected, they are…" Teal'c said something from behind her, "Yes, they are cramping, this is what causes the other pain too. Now it will pass, but you have to relax."

Relax? She was dying and this alien woman was telling her to relax. Take it easy. She hated being told to relax. But the pain was unbearable, her vision little more than a mass of confused light, and the pounding in her head like a pneumatic drill. So she tried to do what they said, forcing unwilling muscles to subside. When she'd been stuck in hospital with appendicitis at the age of thirteen, the pain had been bad then too. What had got her through that? Through Jolinar? Through the countless other brushes she'd had with pain? A mantra, counting endlessly to a hundred, and again, and again. She counted silently. One…..inhale….two…..exhale….three….inhale….four….exhale….

Her lungs heaved painfully, her stomach rolled with acid and she was afraid she might throw up. Someone leant her forward, Teal'c? It helped a little. Gradually the stone in her chest dissolved, the fire in her muscles was dampened and quenched. Gasping, she would have dropped to the floor if not for Teal'c holding her up. She leant back against him gratefully, almost hearing his heart pulsing strongly through his chest, only dimly aware of the conversation going on over her head.

"Is this a frequent occurrence with this illness?"

"Not till you enter stage two, Teal'c…"

"She will recover."

"So you said before, but if it's got this far Teal'c it seems very unlikely."

"It is my experience that Major Carter is adept at succeeding in unlikely circumstances."

"Even so, she should move into here now."

"Do I get a vote in that?" Sam croaked, strangely gratified at the abashed look on Milliya's face.

"Sam, you're in stage two now, it's only going to get worse. The more you exert yourself the faster and the more painful it's going to be, you'll be better off in here."

"No." Sam pushed herself to a sitting position, gratefully aware of Teal'c's steadying hand on her shoulder. "I can still work. I'm not dead yet." Milliya pursed her lips and seemed about to reply when…

"Sam." The call came softly. Ella, forgotten by everyone in the excitement, was still sitting up in bed looking over at her. She forced herself to stand on suddenly shaky legs and walked over, collapsing gratefully in the chair next to Ella's bed, "What is it Ella?" The girl turned dark blue eyes on her,

"Milliya is right Sam, you should rest now."

"I'm fine."

"Fine?" Sam smiled slightly,

"It mean's alright, I'm still well enough to help out."

"But even if you are, there are others who are better than you. Why hurt yourself more than is necessary?"

"A logical question Ella." Teal'c? The Jaffa stood 'at ease', his expression unreadable. That meant he was worried, dammit, she hated it when Teal'c was worried.

"Teal'c, I know you mean well, I do, but I can't give in to this. We've come to far now, I can't…I won't die of some plague on this damn planet! It can't end like this…" She trailed off, suddenly feeling faint again, a gentle touch on her arm reminded her of Ella's presence,

"We must all accept our fate eventually. Even if it is not the one we expected." Her voice was sweet and soft, and far too old for her age. "You are a warrior on your world, yes?" Sam nodded, the motion making her stomach roll.

"When I have to be."

"Then as a warrior, accept when your enemy is too strong, and more harm than good will come from fighting. Hurting yourself will only bring it a greater victory." Tears came to her eyes, Sam angrily blinked them back. Grow up Major. Ella continued steadily,

"If you need a task, then stay with me. You promised me you wouldn't leave me alone after all. Be my friend still until the it ends, and maybe it will bring you some peace." Shaking her head, the Major looked at the girl in the bed.

"What peace can you find in this?" Ella smiled,

"The peace to know when I can do no more, and that the pain has nearly ended." Sam looked away, refusing to cry in front of Teal'c and these people. But Ella reached out to her,

"Stay with me?" Silently she nodded. Ella lay back, her face pale but composed. Sam looked to Teal'c remorsefully. This was a lull in the battle she wasn't giving up! The Jaffa merely inclined his head before leaving the room, Milliya following. Taking Ella's hand, Sam squeezed it comfortingly. And Ella smiled at her as though she was doing the right thing.

She hoped so.

After completing level six on Mario, Jack put his gameboy aside and brooded. He was good at brooding, prided himself on it in fact. And nothing made for a better brood than being forced to leave two of his teammate behind on a plague ridden planet.

'Not forced' said his inner critic, 'chose to'.

Yes, he chose to, because the alternative was to blown a lot of people to hell just for being scared, and right. Quarantine was the only way to contain a virus like this. If he'd been in their position and an infected alien had wandered into the SGC, he'd probably have done the exact same thing. He didn't have to like it though.

The door opening drew his attention, and seeing Fraiser there he jumped up. What's more, she wasn't in one of those wacky isolation suits.

"Doc?" He said questioningly, Daniel immediately glanced away from the journal he was reading to listen. Fraiser smiled,

"You're free to go."

"What just like that?"

"Well I can't find anything wrong with you. Blood, urine, MRI, all check out fine. Looks like you somehow avoided the infection." Daniel was frowning,

"So are we immune?"

Fraiser shook her head, "No, just lucky." She stood looking at them, "Well are you going to hang around here all day?" Jack jumped up, Daniel was still frowning however,

"Have you found anyway to help Sam and Teal'c?" Jack watched her intently, disappointed when she shook her head,

"No and the girl you brought back with you, Fene? She's not responding to anything I've tried so far. The illness itself is strange…more like an electric current through the cells than anything, than gradually destroys them and interrupts intercellular communication."

"So….not a virus?" Jack interjected, the Doc shrugged,

"It's not like any virus I've ever seen, to be frank I'm at a loss. And the 'soul in a bottle' you described doesn't sound like anything even remotely from Earth. In fact it sounds more like-"

"Ascension? Yeah we figured that" he interrupted, "But Daniel here disagrees."

"I just don't think any ancient could be trapped in a container. Besides whatever that was, it was a lot smaller."

"So what, you're saying size matters now?" Daniel threw him a smouldering look,

"No, I'm say that wasn't an ancient. Since when did illness make people ascend anyway?"

"Radiation poisoning worked for you." Another scowl, "Just saying!"

"If you two are quite finished," Fraiser interrupted, "the General would like to speak to you." Shrugging, Jack made a hasty exit, followed by Daniel. As he made his way to the Hammond's office he desperately tried to ignore that voice that said "You had a choice."

A choice, right.

I know, I know, I need to update more! And I will, very soon. Promise! Please read and review? Reviews make me very happy