PREVIOUSLY:

Daniel angrily interrupted. "I don't care what's happening out there. I need to find Vala and my daughter."

Aneteo overheard the conversation, seeing they were ignoring him.

Daughter?

"Daniel Jackson, we will assist you to find your family." Teal'c interjected. "We will not abandon them."

"Sam you and Cam get back to the Hata'k so we have a way outta here. We'll help Daniel find them; no butts."

Sam motioned towards Aneteo. "What about him."

"You can't leave me here to die." Aneteo pressed towards the opened door.

"Tempting." Jack smirked.

"You owe me O'Neill……..

Jack was immediately in his face. "We don't owe you anything. You could burn for all I care. So don't press your luck."

Aneteo knew without any weapons or backup, he was at the mercy of his enemy. So he remained quite.

This isn't over O'Neill.

"Let's go Daniel. Teal'c take the lead."

"Damn, this whole ship is coming apart." Jack was looking at the debris and the walls that seemed to have melted away. Whatever was keeping them from being sucked out was a blessing to all of them.

"Cam said that there were flames shooting out from the ship. I think we need to follow this trail where everyone is running away from." Stated Daniel.

"I believe you are right Daniel Jackson."

Jack could tell Daniel was terrified about what he may find. He knew that Daniel had been too long, separated from his family. There had not been a moment's peace for him to enjoy the fruits of marriage and fatherhood. He knew Daniel was tired, and frustrated, for the sheer fact of him putting on explosives to threaten the Lucian Alliance showed how unstable he was at losing Vala and Eshera to Ba'al's kidnapping.

"I can hear escape pods leaving the ship. Whatever is going on Daniel, we need to move fast."

Daniel heard Jack, but his fear was trying to take over. He needed so desperately to hold onto hope that Vala and Eshera were alright. He needed it badly.

"Nooo….. mother, not this. Please not this, please I can handle her." Eshera began to grow somewhat stronger since the reprieve of Adria's attacks.

"What do you take me for mother?" Adria threw her flames at Eshera, not worrying about Eshera's attacks.

Eshera blocked the ball of flames sending her own towards Adria. Adria simply concentrated on attacking Eshera. She didn't expect any attacks from Vala.

Vala's black flames encircled her body, and outstretched tentacles along the walls of the ship, as if searching for something. Then the flames leapt and threw Adria against the wall. Adria quickly recovered, but was shocked by the sheer force coming from her mother.

"I don't know where you get this power mother, but you cannot defeat me. Both of you will die today, I promise you." Adria began stretching out her own red flame to attack both Eshera and Vala. Vala had not said a word but slowly walked towards Adria. The center of the ship was aflame with this fight. They couldn't have known that the wormhole was increasing since Vala entered the fight. They couldn't haven know that the entire universe was being pulled into several wormholes. The planets that existed in each galaxy were being torn apart by the very forces that Adria, Vala and Eshera were creating. They had no idea that their fight was one of prophetic annihilation or creation of eternal peace. The Ancients had plaid their game on both sides, but miscalculated the cost of so many at the feet of one lost soul.

Adria drew from her hate and intensified her attacks full force. But Vala's black flame intensified even more. The ship was shaking from their attacks on one another. Vala's flames reached out to Eshera who blocked just in time before it threw her thru the walls. Adria was confused. She couldn't understand why her mother was now attacking Eshera. Not that she had any concern, but only curiosity staved off her attack against her.

"Adria, she can't control this. She will destroy us both. This flame is feeding off your hate and hers. She's lashing out at anything that would stop her." Eshera stood up, hoping to get through to her mother.

"Mother, please hear me. Stop this or it may be too late. I love you and so does daddy. You can't let this control you. Think about………………….aaaahhhh

Adria took advantage of Eshera's distraction. She threw her arms out to fire upon her mother, since Eshera was down. "Don't fight me mother. You can't win."

Vala finally spoke. "You are no consequence to me. All time is irrelevant, you are irrelevant. There can only be one existence. You cannot be here; you cannot be allowed in this world. Both of you cannot exist outside of me." Vala's voice was menacing and cold. Even Adria drew back as Vala slowly approached her and the black flames seemed to grow upward and all over.

Adria drew back and threw everything at Vala. Her flames bounced off Vala and rickashayed, back at Adria, throwing her thru the walls and melting anything within its space. Adria felt pain, and she felt something dripping from her nose; it was blood. This infuriated Adria even more and the maelstrom of wormholes intensified two folds. Eshera felt something familiar and then she knew; her father was near.

Daddy hurry. Mother is in trouble. I don't know what to do. Please hurry.

Daniel stopped dead in his tracks. He heard Eshera's words and they sounded desperate. "We have to hurry Jack. Something's wrong with Vala. Eshera just contacted me."

"Where Daniel Jackson?"

"I think this way, down this long corridor." Daniel started at a run, while Jack and Teal'c were close behind.

Eshera didn't notice Adria bleeding, but her concentration was on her mother. She remembered she once stopped her mother before. But now she was much stronger and controlled by Ba'al. This, she felt was different. Like she had no more connection to her mother. She mentally tried to reach her, but was bombarded by visual pain and suffering. Eshera gasped at the sheer power and pain her mother had suffered. It was fueling her powers and she didn't know what could get thru to her mother.

Eshera moved as close as she could to the open hole Adria and her mother went thru. She peered in and could see Vala attacking Adria as Adria did with her, relentlessly. Adria seemed to be going for all the marbles and she wasn't holding back. Eshera could see both women now, trading blow for blow with their flames. The very ship seemed to rock violently from the onslaught of attacks. It was hard for her to tell who was actually gaining ground. Eshera did notice that her mother was bleeding now, and Adria did not look any better. It was almost a stalemate in terms of who had more power.

"I could hear screams Jack." Daniel kept running towards the end of the corridor. It looked like missiles had decimated the ship.

"Daniel, be careful. We don't want to go rushing into this situation before we know where Eshera and Vala are."

"I don't think we have much time Jack. I can feel Eshera's fears. Something is happening, and I know Vala has to be at the center of it."

"We will find them both and return safely Daniel Jackson. Have faith my friend."

Daniel nodded to Teal'c, knowing both his friends would sacrifice their lives to save his family. As they closed in on the holes, what they saw froze them all with fear. Vala and Adria were in a heated flamed battle, and both women looked like they were being burned and cut to pieces. Both women looked menacing and Daniel was stopped by Teal'c, as he tried to go to Vala, fearing his safety. Jack out of the corner of his eye, caught sight of Eshera.

"Daddy, Uncle Teal'c, Uncle Jack. Mother….mother is in trouble. My flames are no match for them."

"Let's get you outta here first kiddo. We'll figure out something to save your mother."

Daniel was frantically trying to get to Vala. "Let me go Teal'c; Adria is killing her."

"I cannot Daniel Jackson. Colonel O'Neill has your daughter. We must think about her safety first." Daniel looked towards Jack and could see his daughter was hurt also. He ran to her, trying to keep his eye on his wife. "Eshera, thank goodness. Wha…….what happened?"

Eshera hugged her father. "I don't know daddy. Mother………mother was trying to protect me from Adria. Something went wrong. I must help her return to herself. I…..I can only see pain in her mind. She won't relinquish it. I…I think that's why her flames are black. She's feeding off it. I….have to make her understand. She's lost….lost." Eshera tried not crying, but she wanted her mother back.

Suddenly the ship jerked and shuttered. Pieces of the ship fell too close to where they were sitting. Adria suddenly still locked in battle with her mother, saw Daniel and the rest. She saw her opening to distract her mother. She threw her flames towards towards them. Eshera instinctively threw up a wall of her own flames to protect them all. Eshera screamed as if she was being seared.

"STOP THIS ADRIA; STOP." Daniel shouted, but Adria threw Vala thru the hole in the wall. Daniel heard her cry out and the ship shook again violently.

"I will finally get rid of you and your friends once and for all Daniel Jackson. Your so called daughter can't save you this time."

Daniel could see that Adria was beyond reasoning. So could Jack and Teal'c. There was nothing any of them could do. Eshera was barely conscious. Daniel didn't want it to end this way. He had finally found his family and now they were all going to die at the hands of this mad woman. Daniel did the only thing he could think of. He pulled Eshera closer to shield her from what was inevitable.

As he saw the ball of flames coming towards him. His last thoughts were of Vala.

Goodbye my love. I love you….I love you.

TBC