Daniel was smiling as he came down the path with Teal'c and Bra'tac. The older Jaffa didn't seem any the worse the wear for his experience. He had apparently re-materialised exactly where he had been dematerialised and the small recollection of his vision going completely green made up his whole memory of the event. In fact, as far as Bra'tac was concerned, he had blinked and the sky had gone from early morning daylight to green to twilight. The other Jaffa were all accounted for and there was a celebratory feeling as Daniel followed Teal'c back to the chamber which Bra'tac had insisted he wanted to see for himself.

Teal'c suddenly halted and held up a hand. 'Something is wrong.' He said peering into the darkness.

'You are right, my friend.' Bra'tac put his hand on Teal'c's shoulder. 'There!' He pointed and they all saw what his eyes had made out in the darkness; the prone figure of Colonel Mitchell.

They ran down the rest of the path, slipping and sliding on the loose stones as they raced to Mitchell's side. He was stirring as they reached him.

'Colonel Mitchell.' Teal'c knelt down and helped him into a sitting position.

Mitchell blinked hard past the sharp pain in his head. 'Sam.' He said weakly. 'Cral'k came with a couple of goons…'

Daniel and Teal'c both stared at each other in horror for a split second before they moved. They had barely stood up when a figure, an injured Jaffa, came running out of the passageway.

'Bomb!' The Jaffa screamed before throwing himself to the ground.

The boom of an explosion inside the mountain shook the ground. Teal'c's eyes widened as he saw the fire heading toward them through the passage and he pushed Daniel to the side, throwing himself over the other man as Bra'tac yanked Mitchell out of the way.

The fire exploded from the passage-way.

Teal'c turned back to stare at the entrance with shock.

'No.' Daniel murmured as he sat up. 'Sam.' His throat closed on her name. She couldn't be…she just couldn't be…

Teal'c's body was one fluid movement as he rose and reached for the quivering Jaffa who had run from the chamber. He lifted him from the ground with one hand at his throat. The Jaffa's hands closed around Teal'c's wrist and pushed but his grip was too strong.

'Where is Cral'k?' Teal'c growled.

'I don't know.' The Jaffa gasped.

'What was his plan?' Bra'tac asked as he went to stand by Teal'c's side.

'He believed she lied about the power source; he was going to blow up the device and show everybody. But he first intended to show the woman her place…' The Jaffa began.

'Does that mean what I think it means?' Daniel asked tightly as he helped Mitchell to his feet. The other man leaned on him heavily.

'It means he intended to take her against her will.' Bra'tac said matter-of-factly.

Mitchell swore roundly.

Daniel shook his head, struggled against the images in his head of Sam's last moments being of such horrific abuse. Another thought shot through him. God…what was he going to tell Jack? He staggered and it was Mitchell's turn to steady him.

'What happened to Colonel Carter?' Teal'c asked.

'I didn't see. She surprised us. She shot Amlac before we entered and myself as I placed the bomb. She fought Cral'k hand to hand. I saw them before I passed out. When I woke I didn't see her as I ran from the chamber.'

'Cral'k?' Bra'tac asked.

'He was not there.'

'What else?' Teal'c said sternly.

'That's it.' The Jaffa wheezed.

'You will come with us and tell this to the Council.' Bra'tac said.

'He should die.' Teal'c stated.

'And he will.' Bra'tac noted. 'For her death, his life will be taken.'

Teal'c lowered the Jaffa to the ground and shoved him toward the path. 'Walk.'

Bra'tac looked at the two devastated Tau'ri males solemnly. 'You should come too.'

They followed after the Jaffa to the building they had designated for the Council. The group swept through the torch-lit corridors leaving murmuring voices and wondering eyes in their wake.

They froze at the sound of Cral'k's voice behind the door that led to the Council chamber.

'…and so the human female attacked me with this knife…'

Before Bra'tac could prevent it, Teal'c slammed the door open with a heavy palm and stalked to the centre of the room where Cral'k was stood. The other Jaffa did not stand a chance against Teal'c's fury; Teal'c easily batted away the knife Cral'k held before his hands went around Cral'k's throat.

'I should kill you where you stand.' Teal'c growled.

Mitchell shifted uncomfortably. 'Shouldn't we…?' He gestured at Teal'c and glanced back at Daniel's grief-stricken profile.

'No.' Daniel said. It's a Jaffa revenge thing; he could hear Jack's voice clearly in his head. He hoped Teal'c did crush the life from Cral'k's throat, he thought furiously, the Jaffa deserved it and more for whatever he had put Sam through before the explosion.

'What is the meaning of this?' Byn'c asked.

'Cral'k is responsible for the death of Colonel Carter by placing an explosive within the chamber.' Bra'tac announced authoritatively. 'More, he conspired to rape her prior to her death.' He shoved the hapless Jaffa who had escaped the explosion in front of him. 'This one can testify to the facts.'

'Is this true?' Byn'c demanded. 'Tell us the truth, Ty'roc and we may go easy on your punishment.'

'Yes.' The Jaffa answered. 'It is true.'

'The whole story.' Bra'tac demanded.

'Cral'k approached myself and my cousin Amlac just after we had left the chamber where the Tau'ri female had been given permission to search for the power source.' Ty'roc said his voice steadying as he continued. 'He believed it was a Tau'ri trick and was determined to destroy the device and reveal her deception. He intended to show the female her place. He elicited Amlac's and my help in doing this.'

'Go on.' Byn'c commanded gravely.

'We acquired an explosive device from those used by the Kull warriors during the battle to hold Dakara against Anubis and went back. We knocked out the Tau'ri male guarding the entrance…' the dark eyes flickered to Mitchell who acknowledged him with a tilt of his head, 'and made our way to the chamber. The chamber was in darkness and the Tau'ri female opened fire on us. Amlac was hit. Cral'k and I both dived out of the way and were able to remain hidden in the darkness. I set the bomb on the device as instructed by Cral'k but as I finished setting it, she shot me.' He indicated his wounds. 'I fell injured and momentarily passed out. Before I did, I saw Cral'k and the female struggling. He was attempting to rape her.'

Daniel turned away, bile rising in his throat. Teal'c's hands tightened around Cral'k's neck.

'A bright flash of green light woke me,' Ty'roc concluded, 'and there was no sign of the female or of Cral'k. I realised the countdown was almost over and ran from the chamber. I was barely outside when it exploded.'

'And to that I can attest.' Bra'tac said.

Daniel turned back to the Jaffa, a frown crossing his face. 'Excuse me, not wanting to interrupt here but did you just say that you saw a flash of green light when you woke up?'

'Yes.' Ty'roc replied.

'You're sure?' Daniel checked.

'Yes.'

Daniel started smiling. 'That's great.'

'What's great?' Mitchell asked bemused.

'Well you get what that means, right?' Daniel looked from Mitchell's puzzled face, to Teal'c's and Bra'tac's and back. 'She's alive.'

'Daniel…' Mitchell figured the other man had lost it.

'Sam's alive!' Daniel insisted.

'I do not see how that is possible, Daniel Jackson.' Teal'c said calmly; a contrast to his continued throat-hold of Cral'k.

'She must have used the security transportation device to get away from the chamber before the bomb exploded.' Daniel explained excitedly.

'Is that possible?' Mitchell asked.

'Knowing Colonel Carter, indeed it is.' Teal'c said confidently.

'We need to go find her.' Daniel said hurriedly.

'Release, Cral'k, my friend.' Bra'tac laid a hand on Teal'c shoulder. 'He will die by the hand of the executioner.'

Teal'c slowly released Cral'k and threw him to the ground. 'If we do not find her alive, I will kill you myself.'

Cral'k spat at Teal'c's departing figure. 'Shol'var.' His eyes gleamed with hatred. 'The hatred of the Tau'ri amongst the Jaffa will grow and you will die at the hand of my Lord God Ba'al…'

The knife flew across the room and embedded itself in Cral'k's throat. They all turned to look in surprise at Byn'c. The older Jaffa waved at the body. 'Remove it from our presence.' His eyes met Teal'c's. 'It is Cral'k who is the shol'var here and I have exacted his punishment accordingly.'

'Go.' Bra'tac gestured. 'I will stay to deliberate with the Council over the ramifications of Cral'k's words and what has transpired here tonight.'

Teal'c inclined his head at Byn'c before he and the Tau'ri men left the Council chamber.

'OK, Jackson.' Mitchell said. 'Where do we start looking?'

Daniel took out his radio and waved it. 'Sam, are you there? Sam, if you can hear me, say something.'

There was a resounding silence.

'I'm thinking we need back-up.' Mitchell said.

'I agree.' Teal'c said. 'I will round up a group of Jaffa to assist in the search.'

'Actually, Teal'c, I was thinking of getting some more of us good old Tau'ri out here.' Mitchell said. 'If we're right and she used the transporting device to get herself out of the chamber then unless we find another one of those consoles we could search the whole planet and still not find her.'

'Yes, so?' asked Daniel impatiently.

'So, Sam was tracking the power source. If we get some fancy equipment out here that could do that faster…'

'We can find the source of the power and likely another console where we can access the system and find out the location she sent herself to.' Daniel concluded. 'That's not a bad idea.'

'Thank you. I'll go back to the SGC and report the situation to General O'Neill.' Mitchell said. 'You stay here and continue trying her on the radio. It might work.'

'No…' Daniel stopped him. 'I'll go back. You stay.' God only knew how Jack was going to react to Sam going missing. 'If you go, you won't be allowed to return through the Stargate with your injuries.' He said covering for the real reason although his words were true; Mitchell looked as white as a sheet. There was no way a doctor was going to release him back to duty if he went back to the SGC.

'Really?' Mitchell touched the back of his head gingerly and when his fingers came back with a smear of blood, he figured the archaeologist had a point. 'OK. You go back. Leave your radio for Teal'c though. That way both he and I have one.'

Teal'c and Mitchell escorted Daniel down to the Stargate where he dialled home and entered the IDC on the GDO. He left them both standing together as he ran into the wormhole.

Daniel stumbled when his foot hit the ramp at the SGC, only just managed to right himself as he walked the last few steps to the bottom where Jack waited anxiously; the unscheduled wormhole already alerting him to the possibility that something had happened.

Jack's hands fisted at his sides as the archaeologist came to stand in front of him. For once, Jack couldn't think of a joke to get him over his unease and his worry; couldn't think of a one-liner that would break the tension. He could see in Daniel's eyes something had gone very wrong. His brown eyes gleamed at the younger man. Don't tell me it's Sam, he thought furiously, not Sam. Only one week and four days…

Daniel read the message as clearly as if Jack had spoken the words, knew he couldn't give the other man what he wanted. He swallowed hard. 'Sam's missing, Jack.'