Chapter 7

"I can't believe this."

Teal'c watched as Colonel Carter sat heavily on one of the hard benches that ran along one wall of their prison. He raised his eyebrows and limped over to sit beside her, folding his hands in his lap. "We were so close!"

"You believe Cali has betrayed us?"

"Of course I do! She just handed us over to the jaffa and threw us in jail! Hell, Teal'c, she even did the whole evil villain monologue bit when she was explaining things to Kadan, and everything she said made perfect sense!"

Teal'c saw her look over at him, but he kept his expression carefully neutral, knowing that much of her frustration was over the irreparable state of the sarcophagus.

"Why would she have lied about knowing the destination of the rings?" she continued. "No wonder we were attacked in the forest—she was probably wearing a homing device and led them straight to us! Thank god we never mentioned the Tok'ra! Can you imagine what she could have done with that?" She stopped and looked closely at his face. "What? You disagree? You think she still wants to help us?"

He thought for a moment. "I do not know."

Carter scrubbed her hands through her hair, wincing when her shoulder protested. "I don't like feeling stupid. And right now I feel really stupid."

"You have no reason to feel stupid, Colonel Carter. If we were indeed betrayed, then I am as much to blame as you are."

"I suppose." She leaned forward, resting her arms on her thighs and hanging her head. "So now what do we do?"

"We wait. Eventually someone will decide our fate, and we will take what advantage of any opening that presents itself. As we always do."

As she raised her head to look at him, a small smile on her face. "Thanks, Teal'c."

He inclined his head to her. "You are welcome, Colonel Carter."

"Now how come we're back to the titles? You've been calling me Samantha a lot lately. I kinda like it."

Quirking a brow and firmly squashing the heat rising in his stomach, he nodded. "Very well, Samantha."

They sat in companionable silence for a time, each wrapped in their own thoughts, then heavy footfalls rang down the corridor and they both rose to face the door. Teal'c stood protectively beside and slightly behind Carter. She had been through a lot in the last two days, and he was determined she would not suffer any more if he could help it.

Five jaffa stomped in step up to the cell. The foremost one, a big, dark skinned man with an open friendly face, came all the way up to the bars and gripped them with both hands, having handed his weapon to an underling.

"Teal'c of Chulak."

"Yes," Teal'c answered, hiding his surprise at not being called "Shol'va".

"I am Fal. Is it true that outside of this world, the goa'uld have fallen and our people are free?"

"It is. The new jaffa home world is on Dakara, within the very ruins that were the site of the institution of our slavery."

Fal's brows rose and he glanced back at his companions, all of whom nodded at him. "If we were to assist you in escaping, would we be allowed to accompany you to Dakara?"

"You would."

"Very well." The jaffa stepped back and the door slid open. Zats were handed to Carter and Teal'c, and the five guards surrounded them in a protective ring. Teal'c caught Carter's eye as they walked, and she gave him a quick grin before turning back to scan the area for trouble. This was too easy.

The group rounded a corner, and Fal stopped abruptly. Teal'c looked beyond him and saw Cali standing in front of a large group of scowling jaffa.

"Fal," the young queen said, her arms crossed and her stance haughty. "What do you think you are doing?"

"Escaping, my lady."

"Really." Cali cocked her head and moved to the wall. "Go to it then."

Fal's group of men dropped to one knee and fired directly into the astonished jaffa blocking their way, cutting them down before they could get their weapons up.

After the last man fell, Cali ran to Sam and Teal'c, taking them both by the hands. "Are you all right? You weren't hurt, were you?"

"No," Sam said, obviously shaken. "Cali, you didn't, I mean, I thought you had…"

"Betrayed you?" Cali looked at her intently. "Please, Sam, you must believe me when I say I am your friend. I did what I did to keep you alive. Kadan is too intelligent to be easily fooled, but his greed often outweighs his sense. Please, will you trust me to help you escape? To help all of us escape?"

Carter looked at the girl for a long time, then glanced up at Teal'c, who nodded. "Alright. But I have questions."

Cali laughed. "You always do. I will answer them once we're safely away from here."

"No. Now."

Cali sighed and nodded.

"Are we going to the rings?"

"Yes."

"I thought you told us you didn't know where they went."

"I didn't."

"But you told Kadan they went to the moon, and they do."

"I guessed."

"Oh."

"Now can we go?"

Sam nodded and rose, and the group headed to the ring room, the jaffa falling into step more out of habit than anything. Three minutes later, they filed in and congregated in the center of the room, standing close together so they would all fit. Fal operated the controls and joined them on the circle.

As they were being transported away, Teal'c saw orange flares sparking off the metal around him and a flash of Kor'ana's furious face.

"Move!" Teal'c yelled as soon as the rings rose from the circle. "Kor'ana is right behind us!" The group took off, charging out of the room and down a long hallway which ended in a T.

"Which way?" Sam asked no one in particular.

"Follow me," Fal said, turning left and running down another corridor.

"Where are we going?" Teal'c called out from the back of the group. He looked behind and saw a burst of white light come from the ring room. "Jaffa!" he yelled, diving for cover behind a wall panel. Sam came with him, her zat open and ready, though she heavily favored her injured shoulder.

Orange and blue bolts came boiling down the corridor, followed by six jaffa. The group dispatched them quickly from their cover positions and took off again.

"We'll head for the throne room," Fal called back, answering Teal'c's earlier question. "There is only one door and it is easily defended."

"Is there a chappa'ai on this moon?" Teal'c asked.

"I do not know. I have never been here," came the answer. "I have only seen the schematics for the structure."

More weapons fire came from behind them, and the group scattered again. Two of the rebels went down, smoking holes in their chests, followed by three more from the attacking group. But another unit of jaffa, this one headed by Kadan, came up behind the first and they all fell to, firing until the corridor was filled with smoke.

Fal motioned to the remainder of his men and they broke cover. "Go!" he yelled to Teal'c as he raced by, then emitted a battle cry that echoed off the glinting walls. Four more enemy guards fell under the assault before Teal'c felt Carter's hand on his arm, pulling him away. He limped after her and they ran, Cali in the lead, Teal'c and Sam firing over their shoulders. Moments later, they reached the ornate doors of what could only be the throne room and ran inside, closing and locking it behind them. There, at the far end of the very large, very cluttered, room was a stargate, beckoning to them like an old friend.

"Samantha," Teal'c started, taking up a position near the door, using several pieces of destroyed furniture as cover.

"Right." She ran to the DHD and pressed the first symbol. Nothing happened and she tried again, swearing when the device did not respond. She pulled off the red dome in the center of the device and called back over her shoulder, "The control crystal's gone!"

Teal'c opened his mouth to reply when the door exploded inward, knocking him off his feet and sending him sliding across the floor. Stars exploded in his vision as his head hit the ground, but he raised his zat and kept firing at the door. A blue lightening bolt arced toward him and caught him in the chest, sending him into convulsions and threatening to pull him down into darkness. He fought it hard, desperate to stay conscious, but he was paralyzed. Lying helplessly on the floor, he peered through the dust still stirring in the air from the blast and saw Kadan standing in the doorway, Kor'ana at his side. The queen lowered her arm, having used her hand device to demolish the doors, but she quickly raised it again as Carter took aim from behind the DHD. A powerful wave of energy caught Sam on her right side, sending her spinning away. She hit the floor and didn't move.

Ignoring Teal'c, evidently believing he was unconscious and no threat, Kor'ana and her First Prime sauntered into the room. They moved slowly toward Cali, who was looking concernedly at Carter lying near her.

"So, daughter, you have betrayed me," Kor'ana said, putting one bejeweled hand on her thin hip. "Just as I knew you would. Allowing you to help the prisoners escape gave me the perfect excuse to get rid of you once and for all." The queen bared her teeth in an ugly sneer and moved a little closer. "You are weak. I had hoped that by keeping the memories of our kind from you, you would prove to be more pliable. Evidently I was mistaken. You are no better than the Tok'ra filth who continually turn their backs on their heritage.

"If I am unlike you, mother, then I have done well," Cali said softly, though her carriage was straight and proud. "I have seen how you treat those over whom you rule. With cruelty and death. I will have no part of it."

Kor'ana hissed at her. "When Apophis comes…"

"Apophis is dead."

"You lie!"

"No." Cali's voice was still calm and controlled. "He was killed several years ago. He is not coming back."

Kor'ana raised a shaking hand and pointed at Cali. "Kill her!" she shrieked. Kadan dropped his zat and raised his staff, training it on Cali, who didn't move. The jaffa grinned as he activated the weapon and fired directly at Cali's chest, but a blur of speed and color came from beside the girl and absorbed the full brunt of the blast. Sam crashed to the ground and slid several feet, leaving a bloody trail in her wake.

Teal'c screamed soundlessly as he watched Carter fall, fighting with everything he had against the paralysis that kept him from her side. He felt his fingers twitch against the zat still in his hand and redoubled his efforts, desperate to help her.

Recovering quickly, Cali grabbed Sam's zat off the DHD and fired twice, hitting Kadan with both bolts. His eyes rolled up in his head as he convulsed and fell.

Kor'ana stared at her first prime lying on the ground, her eyes wide. "How dare you!" she shouted, raising her hand device to Cali. "You will die, daughter. Then I will revive you and kill you again!"

Cali looked pityingly at the deranged queen. "How will you revive me mother? You have no sarcophagus."

A twisted smile split the skeletal face. "How wrong you are, daughter." She spit the last word as if it was an epithet. "It's in the next room. It was originally to be given to you when you spawned your first brood, but I think I will save it for a much more entertaining purpose."

"You're lying," Cali said, her voice still calm. "If there was a sarcophagus here, you would have been using it all this time."

"Who is to say that I haven't?" Kor'ana smirked and attempted a suave grooming of her hair. "And I do believe it has been very beneficial."

Movement behind the queen caught Teal'c's eye and he saw Sam struggling to her knees, one hand around her middle, the other digging in one of the pockets in her pants. He looked back to Cali, wanting to see if she had noticed Carter, but the girl's eyes were fixed on the queen. A glimmer of fear was showing in Cali's face as the red crystal within Kor'ana's hand device began to glow with deadly energy.

Teal'c watched, still fighting his ever lessening paralysis as Carter forced herself to her feet and raised her clenched fist over her head. Something blue and obviously sharp flashed toward the queen and buried itself into her back. Teal'c shifted his gaze to Kor'ana's chest and saw the front end of a large blue crystal punch through her riotous garments, covered in blood and gore. As he watched, Sam fell to the ground again, both arms now wrapped around her middle and her face completely white.

Kor'ana saw her too and tried to turn, staggering as blood poured from her body. With a last burst of will, Teal'c finally threw off the residual paralysis and raised his zat, blasting Kor'ana with electricity. Once, twice, three times he hit her and she vanished as if she had never been.

Teal'c rolled to his feet and stumbled over to where Carter had fallen. Cali was already there, looking stricken. She helped him turn her over, then cried out at the sight of the bloody hole that smoldered where her symbiote pouch had been.

Quickly, Teal'c felt her neck for a pulse. It was there, but it was so thready that he feared she had only moments to live. He looked up as Cali spoke.

"Take her to the next chamber, Teal'c. My sarcophagus is there. Use it to heal her."

The jaffa quickly put his arms under Carter's body and pulled her toward him. Heaving himself to his feet, he limped as fast as he could toward the demolished door and out into the corridor. The next room was only a few feet away, but it felt like a hundred miles. His vision swam and faded, but he forced himself to keep moving. He would not let her die. Not when salvation was so close. He stopped at the doorway, leaning against the wall until it irised open.

Teal'c staggered into the chamber, heading for the large sarcophagus that took up the majority of the far wall of the room. Blood ran down his arms from Carter's wound, soaking his borrowed shirt. He stumbled and fell to one knee, clutching his friend tightly against his chest. She moaned in his arms, her eyes fluttering.

"Teal'c," she said thickly.

"You must hold on, Samantha," he rasped.

"Hurts." She arched in his arms as pain washed over her in waves. Her breathing was ragged, coming in gasps as her life bled away over his hands.

Teal'c forced himself to stand, hefting his precious burden, and lurched forward the last few steps. Carefully, he laid her on the ground and activated the sarcophagus, then lifted her slight form and placed it gently inside. Once her weight left his arms, he made to straighten, but stopped, looking at her face. The glow of light from the machine illuminated her features, highlighting her beauty. On impulse, Teal'c leaned back down and brushed her lips with his own, memories crashing over him at the contact.

Rising, he pressed the panel that activated the device, and collapsed to the floor. Cali came in, watching the lid close over Carter, and sat down beside Teal'c.

"I owe her my life," the girl said, taking his huge hand in her tiny one.

"As do I," he answered. "Many times over."

"I am sorry I did not kill Kor'ana, Teal'c. I simply could not bring myself to do it."

The jaffa grunted, blackness washing over him from the trauma of the last few minutes. "Do not blame yourself. Your hatred of killing is what makes you different from the one who bore you." He closed his eyes, unable to hold the darkness at bay any longer.

Cali sat down beside him, leaning her back against the sarcophagus. "Sleep, jaffa. I will watch over her."

"Teal'c?" Sam opened her eyes and stayed still for a moment, trying to remember what had happened. Why am I in a sarcophagus? She sat up and looked down at herself, her jaw dropping. The lurid X that had plagued her for what felt like forever, was gone. She was healed. She was whole. The shredded remains of her shirt were the only indication that anything had ever been different. Standing, she looked down at the floor.

"Teal'c!" she yelped, jumping out of the sarcophagus and landing beside her friend. Frantic, she felt for a pulse, and sighed in relief when she found it, strong and sure.

"He needs to be treated, but he will live," came a voice from the shadows. Sam whirled and saw Cali walking toward her.

"Maybe we should get him into the sarcophagus," Sam said, turning back to her friend and running a hand over his head. His hair was soft, she noticed, softer than she'd thought it would be.

"He thought you'd say that, so he asked me to tell you no. He wants to heal at home."

She smiled slightly. "That sounds like him. The problem is, I have no idea how we're going to get there. The control crystal to the DHD is gone, so that route is out of the question." She looked hopefully at Cali. "Unless you know of a power source we could use. Or if there are any ships in the area."

"I do not know of such a power source or of a ship, Samantha. I am sorry."

"Someone call for a cab?" came a voice from behind them.

Sam spun around. "Cam!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock.

Colonel Cameron Mitchell strolled into the room, quickly taking everything in, including Cali, before returning his gaze to Carter. He was followed by Vala MalDoran and Daniel Jackson.

"Vala! Daniel!" Sam said, obviously still dumbstruck. "How did you find us?"

"Oh, you know," Mitchell drawled. "A little luck, a pinch of genius and a dash of…"

"They captured one of the jaffa that ambushed you on 245," Daniel interrupted. "Once he found out the jaffa were free of the goa'uld, he told them everything he knew about how to find you."

Mitchell turned to the younger man. "I was getting' to that part," he protested.

Sam grinned. "I can't tell you how good it is to see you guys."

"Of course you can," Vala said, tossing her hair away from her face. "We're listening."

"Perhaps another time." Teal'c's voice came from behind Carter.

Cam glanced at Cali again, raising his eyebrows at Sam. "She with us?" he asked. Sam nodded and Mitchell and Daniel went around to help Teal'c to his feet.

Vala looked down at the child now semi-hiding behind Carter and walked toward them. "Who do we have here?" she asked. Her blue eyes widened as she drew near, and she stopped abruptly. "Samantha, you do know she's a goa'uld, right?"

Sam put an arm around the girl's shoulders and pulled her close. "Vala, this is Sepha, host to Cali. And she's not Goa'uld. She's Tok'ra."