Daniel made his way alone through the lush deciduous forest of PX-2375 with the equipment he needed to take a sample from the tree. Jack had won the bet on default. Sam had been deeply engrossed in some new data on hyper drives, and Teal'c was off world. Daniel didn't fear stepping through the gate without back up. There had been no evidence of civilization and he had his sidearm if any wildlife tried to bother him.
The magnificent tree still took Daniel's breath away when he came to the clearing that its arching boughs created. It was impossible to tell how tall it was, its large emerald leaves blocked both the view of the top and the sun. It was such a serene place, however once again Daniel was stuck by the feeling that he was an unwelcome invader.
Shaking off the feeling Daniel sank the tip of the core tool into the hard bark of the tree. When the tree's sap started to leak out Daniel removed the sharp tip to examine it. The thick sap was silver in colour and heavily metallic in scent. The odour reminded him of something but before he could put his finger on what there was a sharp snapping sound behind him.
Daniel whirled around and found a woman standing about ten feet away. Her long dress looked as though it was made of spider webs. Her full curly hair bore a headdress made of flowers and a pair of deer antlers that looked as though they were actually hers and not just a decoration. She said nothing, she just stared.
"Hello." Daniel said awkwardly.
The strange woman's piercing green eyes narrowed to annoyed slits.
"I...I'm Daniel. A peaceful exsplo..."
Daniel did not get a chance to explain himself. The wood woman brought her hands together with the sound of a thunder clap and a flash as blinding as lightning. He woke later with the kind of headache that was becoming all too familiar. It was the pulse pounding throb that told him that he'd been knocked unconscious, again.
His pain quickly turned to an adrenaline rush as he found himself unable to move freely. At first he feared that he'd become a captive, but a few moments of struggle revealed that he was tangled in something, not bound by it.
Once free Daniel sat on the mossy ground panting. His first instinct was to find his glasses. He spied them a few feet away and reached out to get them. The large black paw that suddenly came into his view caused him to jerk back with a yelp.
Panicking he tried to stand several times. Each time he crashed back to the soft earth. Struggling for breath Daniel weld his eyes shut and willed himself to calm down. When he gingerly opened his eyes again he looked around rather than down at himself.
The bindings that he had struggled against when he'd woken were his clothing, which now lay in a tattered heap. Swallowing hard he looked down at the long lean canine legs that had replaced his arms. His eyes traveled up the soft white fur that covered his chest, and then back at the large red tail with a white tip that swished restlessly behind him.
"Okay...this isn't good. I...I can't be a fox." Daniel lamented and then sneezed violently. "I'm allergic to fur..."