Cassie sat on the bottom of the pyramid staircase, her hands wrapped around the mug of coffee she had hoarded after lunch. She watched as Sam was escorted around the forum by Daniel, Jack and Teal'c. Daniel would stop and point at the plants engaging Sam's mind for a moment or two; Jack would counter, lifting his hands from his gun to gesture as he made some strange observation or joke, and Teal'c would simply be there; an oasis of calm for Sam whenever she needed a break from the other two. It was very much their usual by-play despite Sam's injury.

Rya'c sat down beside Cassie. He watched the antics of his father and friends as silently as she did. Cassie felt her muscles slowly start to unknot; her gut started to untwist. She felt the nagging bite of failure again despite Daniel's suggestion the previous evening that when Jonas and Vala showed up they could try again. With a cargo ship they could find the dragon's territory easier and Daniel thought making contact with the dragon matriarch might make a difference. Jack had countered that it was one thing making contact with a singular dragon; another to tackle the Dragon Queen deep in the heart of her home turf.

Cassie sipped her coffee, relishing the faint bitter taste. She breathed in deeply and took in the vista before her; the wild, green tangle of jungle around them; the white square of the forum with its patches of green; the mountains in the far distant rising up into the azure sky.

It was beautiful planet, Cassie thought. It was so different from Hanka with its temperate climate and cool forests, the grassy plains where blue and purple wildflowers would blossom in the spring. She felt a twinge of homesickness for the first time in years. She'd like to go back one day, Cassie realised. She wanted to go back and pay tribute to her family; to her mother and father who given her life; to the brothers and sister she had lost.

The brother she had found stirred beside her and she turned to him.

'They belong together.' Rya'c said simply, gesturing out at the four people in front of them.

'They always have.' Cassie agreed.

Rya'c lifted his chin. 'I used to believe the Tau'ri had taken my father from me.' He shook his head. 'It was only after I proved my own worth as a warrior that I realised that they had given me my father by freeing him from Apophis, the False God.'

'I wanted to be them.' Cassie confided quietly. 'When I was little; I wanted to be like them; to be a hero and save the world. I don't know why I stopped.'

But she did. It had been the moment Sam had told her that her Mom had died; the brilliance of Janet Fraiser snuffed out on some bloody battlefield under an alien sun.

A breeze rushed by them and sent her hair flying.

Cassie brushed the red strands back absently. 'I was going to be a teacher.'

Rya'c glanced at her.

'Back on Earth,' she explained a little self-consciously, 'I was going to be a teacher.'

'A worthy calling.' Rya'c said.

Cassie's lips twisted. 'But not mine.' She sighed heavily. 'I think I've been fooling myself. I think I never really stopped wanting to be...' she motioned with her cup toward SG1, 'them.' She shook her head. 'Maybe Will did me a favour.'

'Will?' Rya'c's face creased in confusion.

'My ex.' Cassie explained. 'He dumped me a couple of months ago. He had someone else. He wanted to be with her more.'

Rya'c's face grew angry. 'He dishonoured you.'

Cassie grinned suddenly. 'I punched him.'

Rya'c nodded in approval. 'This is good but I should challenge him to a fight to the death regardless.'

Cassie's mouth fell open; a brief flicker of panic stirred. 'You're kidding, right?'

'I am your brother, Cassandra Fraiser.' Rya'c said formally. 'I cannot let such a slur to your honour to go unchallenged.'

She stared at him and just caught the twinkle in his dark eyes. She wagged a finger at him. 'You almost had me.'

Rya'c shrugged. 'My wife has told me often that women are more than capable of defending their own honour.'

'You love her very much.' Cassie noted, trying hard to keep the jealousy out of her voice; she wished someone loved her as much as Rya'c evidently loved Karyn.

'Yes.' Rya'c agreed enthusiastically. 'I will be glad to return home to her.' He leaned in conspiratorially. 'We are with child.'

Cassie smiled widely. 'Rya'c! Why didn't you say...that's great!' She couldn't quite believe that he had left his pregnant wife to help them with the mission but, in reflection, she realised that it had been a matter of honour to find his father. And Karyn was undoubtedly safe on Hak'tyl with Ishta.

'Karyn is convinced she carries my son.' Rya'c said brightly. 'But I think I would like a daughter.'

She was going to be an aunt. The knowledge made her happy. Cassie nudged his knee with hers. 'Does Teal'c know?'

Rya'c nodded. 'I told him on our first night here.'

Cassie smiled and waved at the four SG1 team-mates in the forum. 'You know he's probably told them already.'

'Told them what?' Mitchell threw himself down to sit beside Cassie on her other side.

Cassie and Rya'c exchanged a look.

Rya'c opened his mouth to reply but stopped suddenly. He pointed into the sky. 'Something approaches!'

Mitchell raised a hand from his gun to shield his eyes.

'Is it a cargo ship?' Cassie asked urgently but she was already talking to air. Mitchell and Rya'c were both on their feet. She threw her cup to the ground and was running after them before she knew it, clattering over the slippery moss and patchy white stones to close the distance between her and SG1.

Mitchell was yelling; a warning, Cassie realised. Even if it was a cargo ship, they had no guarantee it was Jonas and Vala. There was an outside chance someone else could find them - like the Lucian Alliance.

Jack seemed to understand first. He shouted at Teal'c who simply picked Sam up in a fireman's hold. Daniel turned to look at the sky and was pulled away by Jack. They were all running...

They met in the middle and turned back for the pyramid as one...

In the sky, the object grew larger and Cassie slowed as she recognised the shape and form as the cargo ship.

'Cassie, get into the pyramid!' Jack ordered. 'Go!'

'But...' Cassie started to protest but a look at Jack's stern features had it dying on her lips. She made for the steps.

Behind her on the forum, Jack took position behind one stone dragon; Mitchell another. Both of them looked fierce and determined; both of them held their weapons with an innate ability that spoke of experience.

Cassie tried not to think about the possible danger to them; tried not to think of the sacrifice they were making placing themselves in the frontline to cover the rest of them as she made it into the safety of the pyramid.

They entered the great hall at a run. The air cooled Cassie's heated skin and she stood breathing heavily in the middle of the room.

Teal'c gently placed Sam down.

Sam gazed up at the Jaffa with wide, frightened eyes. She didn't understand what was happening, Cassie surmised, as she stooped to sit beside Sam and placed an arm around her.

'It's OK, Sam.'

Sam shifted, curling up inside Cassie's embrace and Cassie swallowed her shock at the trusting gesture even as she clasped Sam to her tightly. She lifted her eyes to see Teal'c and Rya'c, weapons in hand, leaving to support Jack and Mitchell. Daniel pulled his handgun from its holster and took position by the doorway. He sent her a wry smile. 'Don't worry. It is probably Vala and Jonas, and, you know, we're over-reacting.'

Cassie held onto Sam and wished she'd thought to pick up her zat.

The silence stretched.

Cassie could hear was her own heart beating at a fast canter inside her chest; the rough intakes of breath that she made. Sam's quiet mutterings, equations and things that Cassie couldn't make sense of, sent puffs of air across her neck even as the other woman held on tightly to her.

What was happening outside, Cassie wondered anxiously. Surely the cargo ship had landed; surely they knew if it was Vala and Jonas by now or someone else...

There hadn't been any sound of gunfire but then she hadn't heard anything. The hall was insulated against the noise in the forum apparently. Worry about the rest of the team outside nagged at her incessantly.

Daniel suddenly moved. He straightened and gestured towards her even as he holstered the gun. 'It's OK. It's Teal'c...' he started smiling, 'and some guests.'

Cassie rubbed Sam's shoulder soothingly and let out a long breath. 'See, Sam? It's OK. It's Jonas and Vala.'

She could hear voices getting closer as the group made their way up the passageway towards the hall.

Sam inched away from her and slipped out of her hold. Cassie handed Sam the notebookand pencil reluctantly. Sam immediately began writing, rocking back and forth as she scribbled. Cassie got back to her feet just as the group entered. She saw Vala first and felt a rush of relief; the former thief had made it back to the cargo ship; hadn't been killed by the Cult.

Vala skipped across the hall and grabbed Cassie. 'Cassie!'

Cassie patted Vala's back. 'Vala.' She winced as Vala's grip tightened. 'Need to breathe here.'

Vala inched away and beamed at her; her eyes sweeping over her critically. 'You look terrible.'

'Thank you,' said Cassie dryly. Her gaze went behind Vala and Jonas gave her a small wave. Cassie moved to welcome him.

They hugged briefly.

'You found them.' Jonas said softly. The memory of their conversation in the cargo ship when she had confided her belief that she was meant to find SG1 came back to her and Cassie nodded, flushing.

'Technically, we found them.' Mitchell drawled.

Cassie shot him a look.

Mitchell held up a hand; his blue eyes twinkling at her irrepressively. 'I'm just saying.'

'You made good time.' Daniel commented as the group made their way into the hall and gathered around the brazier. 'We weren't expecting you for another day at least.'

Jonas slid a look towards Vala. 'Someone decided to take a short cut through an asteroid belt.'

Vala grinned. 'We made it didn't we?' She shrugged. 'And besides, we sent a message to the SGC telling them everything so if we had been destroyed by an asteroid, everyone here would have still been rescued.'

Jonas opened his mouth to argue and Daniel placed a hand on his shoulder.

'I wouldn't bother.' Daniel said with a sympathetic smile. 'She'll win.'

'Thank you, Daniel.' Vala said primly. She caught sight of Sam and the lively amusement faded from her mobile face. She made her way over to her and frowned when the other woman didn't move. 'Samantha?'

'Vala,' Cassie began but she stopped; unsure how to explain.

'What's wrong with her?' Vala asked bluntly.

Jack cleared his throat. 'We have a lot to catch-up on.'

In the end, they sat around the hall, drinking coffee and exchanging stories. Vala explained how she had zatted the DHD on Cartegia, causing the wormhole to shut down just before she ringed away. She was certain the lock device was fried and even if the Cult wanted to travel through the Stargate, they couldn't.

Cassie caught the look Jack and Mitchell exchanged and realised both men had been concerned about the possibility.

Rya'c and Cassie's covered their arrival quickly before Daniel retold the story of SG1's original mission and Sam's injury. He explained how they had tried to heal her; their theories about the dragons and how they had tried to elicit their help.

'Dragons?' Jonas asked incredulously. 'As in actual dragons?'

'Let me guess,' Daniel replied, lifting his mug, 'you thought they were Unas?'

Jonas nodded. 'You?'

'Unas.' Daniel agreed. 'But they are clearly dragons.'

'Fascinating.' Jonas murmured.

'Yes.' Jack said dryly. 'Fascinating.' He turned to Vala. 'You think you can help Carter? Cassie thought you might have better luck with the device.'

Vala shook her head regretfully, sending her pigtails flying. 'I mean, I could try but...' she sighed and gestured at Sam, 'I've never heard of the Goa'uld healing device working on this type of injury.' She frowned. 'But then I've never really heard of this type of injury.'

They all looked despondent. Cassie tried to keep her own disappointment from her expression; tried to hide that she had secretly hoped that Vala would be successful with the device where she had failed.

'So, we're back to the dragons as our only option of helping Sam.' Daniel said.

Jack looked unhappy at the pronoucement, and he wasn't the only one.

Cassie sighed; her belly churning with worry.

They were going to have to find the dragon's den and face down the Queen after all.