In a hazy dream, Captain Carter sees Horus Goa'uld and warriors in unfamiliar uniforms fight within a series of blue crystalline tunnels as civillians flee. One man in particular approaches, calling her Jolinar and urging her to the Stargate. Carter sees the six destination chevrons and her own reflection, wearing the civillian garb.
During briefing, Carter presses the group to travel to the co-ordinates she saw as the Tok'Re may be in trouble. Colonel O'Neil and Daniel Jackson are unsure of travelling to a Goa'uld planet, but Carter insists the Tok'Re are trustworthy. Teal'c confirms Carter's theory; the Tok'Re are known in Jaffa legend and are hunted as spies by the Goa'uld. General Hammond arranges a mission to the planet, though only after O'Neil agrees.
Just before going through the Stargate, Carter calls her father, who has moved to Colorado to be closer her. Samantha explains she is going on a trip for the Air Force and may be gone a while but the call ends on a low note. General Hammond expresses his concern, though Sam relents that Jacob is becoming distant in his moment of illness. Hammond offers compassionate leave but Sam's knowledge of the Tok'Re means she must go.

SG-1 arrive on the Tok'Re world, but find no evidence life-forms have been near the Stargate in some time. As the group explores further, Teal'c explains that the Tok'Re are renouned for their ability to mask their trails....just as a group of staff-armed warriors leap from the sand and surround SG-1. The leader, Kordesh, insists they mean no harm but will defend themselves if attacked. One of the party reconise Teal'c as Apophis's First Prime with repulsion; Teal'c explains he is allied with the Tau-Ri against the Goa'uld, but Carter warns their attackers are Goa'uld themselves. Kordesh spits they are not Goa'uld even as his voice deepens and eyes glow.
Carter reconises one of the group as Martouf, explaining Jolinar of Malkshur died saving Carter. SG-1's attackers, especially Martouf, seem troubled by this news. Daniel Jackson explains they are there to find the Tok'Re and form an alliance, Carter explaining she remembers enough to know the party are Tok'Re. Kordesh orders his section at ease, offering to take SG-1 to their stronghold if they surrender their weapons. O'Neil is untrusting, but Carter, Jackson and Teal'c overrule him.

On Earth, General Hammond receives a call from Jacob Carter and goes to the USAF Academy Hospital to see him. Jacob explains that though the cancer has been removed from his lymph nodes, it has moved to his liver where treatment is futile. Carter begs to know what Samantha does in Cheyenne Mountain, but Hammond still refuses. Later, when Jacob is revived after his heart stops, the doctor explains that it is impossible to gauge how much life is left in Carter and tells General Hammond to summon Jacob's family.

Using transporter rings, SG-1 are taken to an underground facility made from the same crystal substance Samantha saw in her dream of the last Tok'Re stronghold. Teal'c explains that according to legend, the Tok'Re posess technology allowing them to grow tunnels, which are destroyed after the order moves on. O'Neil asks how Carter knows Martouf, but Carter can only say some kind of strong bond existed between Jolinar and Martouf.
SG-1 are brought before the Tok'Re's Grand Councillor, Garshaw of Belote, whom Teal'c reconises as the most hunted Goa'uld of all time. Garshaw explains that her order prefer being called Tok'Re to Goa'uld, and that she is honoured to meet the ones who destroyed the Supreme System Lord (Stargate the movie). Asked for the circumstances behind Jolinar's death, Carter explains that Jolinar jumped into her to escape an assassin, but was finally located and killed. Kordesh questions Carter's trust, stating that since Samantha was not a voluntary host she may have killed Jolinar herself.
Colonel O'Neil makes no secret of his distrust of the Tok'Re, much to Garshaw's annoyance. Garshaw and Martouf insist that though the Tok'Re host symbiots, none do so by force and the relationship is one of mutual benefit. When Jackson asks why anyone would want to become a host, Garshaw's host Yosef emerges. Yosef explains that in "blending", she gains all of Garshaw's knowledge and her lifespan is more than doubled. Furthermore, Yosef herself is not altered by Garshaw's presence.
Carter and Teal'c realise that since the Tok'Re do not take hosts by force, their numbers cannot grow strong enough to destroy the Goa'uld. To reinforce this point, Yosef introduces SG-1 to a bedridden woman named Sarouche. Sarouche has aged to the point where her symbiot, Selmak, an important Tok'Re leader, cannot heal her. Both Selmak and Sarouche are ill and because the Tok'Re do not use the sarcophagus (Need), Selmak must take a new host soon or die. Yosef invites SG-1 to blend with Selmak, but all recoil at the thought.

Yosef asks why SG-1 sought the Tok'Re if they would not become hosts; SG-1 explains they wish to share technology and information, and fight together to destroy the Goa'uld. Garshaw refuses, saying they are neither strong nor advanced enough, and non-Goa'uld technology is useless to the Tok'Re as they work using stealth. SG-1 argue that they destroyed the Pyramid Ships of Apophis and Klorel (The Serpent's Lair), but this only inflames Garshaw as many Tok'Re died in that battle, though the information that the ships were attacking Earth is new information to the Tok'Re. Nontheless, SG-1 will be detained within the Tok'Re stronghold until the order decides what to do with them.
Martouf invites Carter for a stroll on the planet's surface, and though O'Neil is against it Carter feels she must. As Carter describes in more detail the circumstances in which Jolinar died Martouf wavers; Martouf's symbiot Lantash explains the two were lovers. Carter asks how such a relationship works, and Martouf explains that host and symbiot share not only bodies and memories, but also emotions and feelings.
Martouf slips that he would like Carter to become Selmak's new host, which causes Carter to turn away; as Martouf and Lantash share emotions, Carter still feels Jolinar's emotions, including Jolinar's 100-year strong desire for Martouf. Martouf begins to help Carter alleviate her insecurity, but they are interrupted by Jackson; the Grand Council of the Tok'Re have agreed to an audience with SG-1.

As SG-1 are escorted to the Tok'Re Grand Council, Teal'c asks for clarification on how the tunnels are created. Garshaw explains that the Tok'Re have learned to pattern and accelerate the natural growth of crystals to create the tunnels. The tunnels can be grown so rapidly that the Tok'Re build the facility only as necessary, and so SG-1 are able to witness the awe-inspiring creation of the Tok'Re Council chambers.
En route to the Council Chambers, Colonel O'Neil follows Kordesh as he leaves the rest of the group. O'Neil watches as Kordesh takes out a small bronzed sphere but is then discovered; Kordesh explains that these are his private chambers (without doors as the Tok'Re hold no secrets from each other) and offers to help O'Neil back on his way. O'Neil declines, finding his own way.
The Tok'Re Grand Council have reviewed SG-1's offer of an alliance, but are unwilling to side with Earth for reasons of security; the Tok'Re are the most hunted enemies of the System Lords. Though Earth may be trustworthy, there is always the risk a spy will be entered in their ranks. Technology and information are other bargaining chips which fail to convince the Tok'Re.
Towards the end of the hearing, Colonel Makepeace and SG-3 are brought in, prisoners of the Tok'Re. Makepeace explains that his team were sent to extract Carter so she could be with her dying father, but the Tok'Re will not let any of them go: both SG teams will be held in the facility until the Tok'Re move on to convince Earth the teams are dead, killed by the Goa'uld. As Carter has Jolinar's memories, she is viewed as the highest risk of all and is denied permission to return home.

To be continued....

I have been waiting ever-so patiently for this episode ever since In the Line of Duty (sigh). Finally, we are able to meet the complete gang of the resistence group who oppose the System Lords!! And the writers haven't made such a mythologically important episode a complete waste of time!!

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