Disclaimer Stargate Sg-1 and its characters are the property of Stargate (II) Productions, Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. This story is for entertainment purposes only and no money exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. This story may not be posted elsewhere without the consent of the author.

She slipped into the base, her feet bare and her boots in her hand. Her feet were cold, but it was a minor discomfort, and one she had to endure if she was to remain unnoticed.

She passed the security checkpoints, slowly and carefully, her every sense attuned to remaining undetected.

Descending into the earth, she felt a renewed sense of purpose. So long. She'd planned this for so long and now it was coming to pass.

Slipping out into the hallowed halls of the SGC, she paused a moment, her jaw setting at remembered humiliation the last time she'd been here. It would be different this time. She would not be leaving is in disgrace, she would be returning in triumph.

Paying close attention to the other people in the halls, she walked, explored and memorized, seeing everything while those around her saw nothing.

<><><><><>

Sam walked down the hall, her steps faltering when she saw Daniel step out of the VIP room. "Great," she muttered to herself, forcing a smile on her face as his head turned, catching sight of the movement.

"Sam." He smiled, walking towards her.

"Hey." He caught up with her and paused, obviously intending to talk. "How's Sarah?" she asked, more because it was expected than anything else.

"She's ok, I guess. Considering…" He trailed off, waving his hand in a vague motion towards the closed door and the SF standing outside. Even though Sarah was free of Osiris and back to being her normal self, or as normal as a person could be after being host to a goa'uld for three years, she still wasn't trusted. As per Hammond's orders, she was to be escorted at all times.

Sam knew Daniel chafed at that order a bit, but also knew that it wasn't too far out of line, considering that Pete was bound by the same stipulation, as was almost any other guest of their facility.

"It'll just take time," she said, repeating the same platitude she'd said to Jonas just weeks before as he stood at Kiana's bedside, the Kelownan woman also recovering from her symbiote's death. Sam knew that the situations were amazingly similar but also astonishingly different; Kiana's goa'uld supposedly giving its life to save her, while Sam knew that Osiris had fought tooth and nail to avoid being removed from its host.

Both women had survived, but Sam knew that neither of them had survived unscathed. Kiana was maybe luckier than Sarah was, she could go home to Kelowna, or Tirania or whatever it was called this week, where she'd be safe from the NID. Sarah, however, wasn't going to be so lucky.

Sam knew that Hammond was already fighting the woman's transfer to Area 51, forestalling the NID with promises of conducting a full investigation right here in the SGC. An investigation they would no doubt be participating in, but it seemed to be the lesser of evils, having the NID underfoot but under control as opposed to handing Sarah off to people and parts unknown.

"Yeah, that's what I-"

"Daniel," she interrupted him. "I promised Pete that I would stop by, help him pack up."

"So, he's leaving?"

"Yeah. Janet's going to release him today and General Hammond gave me permission to drive him back to Denver so…"

"You need to go."

"Yeah. I'm sorry. I should be back tomorrow afternoon or so."

"Ok. Have a safe trip," he wished.

"Thanks. See ya." She turned and hurriedly made her way down the hall, purposefully averting her eyes from Sarah's room as she passed.

The second the elevator doors were closed, she slumped slightly, sighing in relief. "Stupid," she muttered, viciously punching the button for level 23. She should have taken another way. She knew which room Sarah had been assigned, and had been doing her level best to avoid it the past week.

A part of her felt guilty at ignoring the woman. Rationally, she knew it wasn't her fault; Sarah was about the only innocent victim in this whole mess. She couldn't help what had happened to her anymore than Sam could have done something different with Jolinar.

But rationality did little to alleviate the fact that Osiris, using Sarah's body, had tried to kill her three times in as many years. Sam couldn't say that she hated her, because she really didn't. Sarah hadn't been in control, it had been Osiris every single time. But it wasn't Osiris' face she saw, it was a round, pale face framed with curly locks and cold blue eyes. It was Sarah's voice she remembered, taunting her as she used the ribbon device on her, taking great joy in listing all the things Anubis would do with Sam once Osiris took her back to him.

The elevator dinged and she got out, ready to deal with problem number two in her life…one very curious Denver cop. All in all, Pete had handled being told the truth rather well, his wise cracks slowly fading into stunned silence and wide-eyed rapt attention.

He still asked questions she couldn't answer, but was content to accept 'classified' as a valid answer instead of thinking that it was a joke. "Hey," she said, walking into the room. "You about ready to go?"

"Sam." Pete hopped off the bed, wincing when the sudden movement aggravated his injury. "I gotta remember not to do that," he said, slowly sitting down as she hurried to his side.

"Yes, you do." She smiled, shaking her head a bit. "Unless you want to spend the rest of the week here."

"Do you think if I'm here long enough, they'll let me see more of the place?" He asked as she opened the drawers and the armoire, making sure that he'd left nothing behind, not that he had that much personal stuff anyway, just a few toiletries she'd brought in for him. She'd checked him out of his hotel a couple of days earlier, packing up his luggage and storing it at her house until he would be ready to leave.

His car was even parked in front of her house and it would be the vehicle she'd use to drive him back to Denver. Fortunately, Janet was willing to help, having offered her services to caravan with them and give Sam a ride back.

"I doubt it," she answered, glancing at the SF hovering just outside the doorway. It had to be frustrating, she knew, to hear things happening, to see people in the hall, but have none of them even acknowledge your presence, but that was the way it had to be.

She'd told him all that she could tell him, which was basically confirming the existence of the Stargate, and of the goa'uld. He knew nothing of their current missions. Still had no idea how many times Earth had almost been destroyed, and certainly had no idea about any of the other oddities in her life. He knew about the Jaffa, but had no idea that Teal'c was one, nor did he know anything about Daniel's missing year.

She hoped that he knew enough to keep him from digging too deep…or calling the FBI again, because she also knew that if he ignored that warning, General Hammond was more than prepared to pull out all the stops and make sure that their secret remained a secret.

"Oh, well," he shrugged. "It was worth a shot. So what now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do I get strip searched to make sure I'm not sneaking anything out. And can you do it?" He waggled his eyebrows at her and despite herself, she laughed.

"No and no," she answered, pecking him on the cheek. "I think Janet wants to take one more look at you and I need to go change my clothes."

"What's wrong with what you're wearing? I mean, not that it's not nice and all, but I do doubt that anyone would get any work done, and it is a little bit cool down here and-"

"Stop," she interrupted. "I always change before I go home. And I don't feel like wearing boots to drive in."

"The doctor in me agrees with that," Janet said from the doorway. "You get enough speeding tickets as it is."

"Janet," Sam protested, rolling her eyes.

"Protest all you want, you are not driving on the way back," her friend promised.

Sam sighed and looked at her watch. "I'll be back in about fifteen minutes?" she asked, smiling when Janet nodded her assent. She turned and left the room, glad that hurdle one had been cleared. Now all she needed to do was find a good excuse to avoid Sarah once she got back.

<><><><><>

Sam sat back in the seat, pulling off her sunglasses and holding them loosely in her lap. The sun was just setting behind the mountains, and it cast the highway into a premature twilight.

The divided four lane stretched out flat in front of them, dual ribbons of red and white lights delineating its path. "You ok?" Janet asked, glancing over at her friend. They were now about thirty miles south of Denver and nearly half way home. Sam had been quiet during the drive, not saying much beyond the most basic of small talk.

They'd dropped Pete off at his apartment earlier that day, Janet cooking up a sudden desire to go visit a local shopping mall to let the pair have some private time before returning late afternoon to drive Sam back to Colorado Springs.

"Just tired," Sam muttered, closing her eyes.

"You know, I'm sorta surprised you didn't stay longer," Janet remarked, switching lanes to pass a slow moving Pinto. "I know General Hammond would have let you take the time off."

"He offered," Sam replied. "I aah, I didn't want to."

Janet raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

"Getting back to work was a good excuse."

"Why?"

"I just needed some space." She sat up in her seat, her eyes opening. "Do you have any idea what it felt like to tell General Hammond that my boyfriend crashed the stakeout?" she asked, her irritation plain in her voice.

"Did you tell Pete where you were going to be?" Janet asked, expecting this topic to come up. She knew Sam had been embarrassed by his actions, even if it had taken a few days for the woman's concern to wear off enough for her to acknowledge the embarrassment.

Sam shook her head. "No. I guess he got the information from a friend of his on the Colorado Springs PD. We had to inform them about our stake out and someone there shot their mouths off."

"Then it wasn't your fault. I can't see how the general would be mad."

"He wasn't, not at me anyway. He is upset about the whole situation though. He's the one that had to call the president and explain about Pete. It still doesn't change the fact that Pete was only there because of me, whether I told him or not."

"So?"

"So?"

"So, what did the general say?" Janet asked.

Sam sighed. "Nothing."

"What?"

"Once he found out that I hadn't told Pete and that he'd found out about it on his own, he didn't say anything. But, Janet, he didn't have to say anything. I could see it on his face."

"See what?" Sam shook her head, remaining silent. "Sam," Janet pushed, knowing that something was bothering her friend. She'd seen it in her demeanor and on her face ever since they'd captured Osiris and Sam had returned to the mountain, escorting both the goa'uld and her friend. Janet had noticed something in her mood, something that seemed to be more than simple concern for Pete and was nowhere near any sort of happiness at capturing Osiris alive.

At first, Janet had put it off to simple worry, but even after Pete's condition was confirmed not to be life threatening and the Tok'ra had safely removed Osiris from Sarah, her mood still hadn't improved. If anything, her friend had gotten more and more withdrawn.

"I feel like I let him down," she finally confessed, leaning back in the seat and crossing her arms over her chest. "Like if I hadn't even tried to date Pete, none of this would have happened," she said morosely.

"That's not true and you know it," Janet corrected.

Sam shrugged. "Maybe not, but it still doesn't change the fact that Pete threw one hell of a monkey wrench in the works," she insisted.

"No more so than Vernon Sharp seeing interdimensional creatures, or Colonel O'Neill's wife seeing the double of their son, and let's not even get into all the fun he had with things blowing up in the middle of Daniel's neighborhood," Janet corrected. "And let's not forget the friend of Daniel's that got to see Sarah's eyes glow, or those reporters that tried to take over the Prometheus, or all those folks that got sent to the Alpha Site a few years ago only to be called back and told 'gee, we were wrong, Earth isn't being destroyed, you can go home now'." Sam chuckled a bit, exactly the response Janet had been hoping for. "Look, Pete wasn't the first security breach, and he won't be the last. It's no big deal."

"It's a big deal to me."

"You're being too hard on yourself." Sam shrugged, not accepting Janet's absolution. Janet fell silent, knowing from experience that once Sam had her mind set one way, it did no good to argue. She'd only change it when she was darn good and ready to.

They drove on for a few more minutes, Janet slowing as traffic got a bit heavier. "You know, Daniel came to talk to me today," she said slowly, knowing that she was broaching a topic that was almost as touchy as the one she'd just left behind.

Sam sighed. "I know. He wants me to talk to Sarah."

"And you don't want to."

"No. Why is it that everyone thinks that just because I happened to be a host for a couple of days, that that makes me the expert and that everyone that happened to have a snake in their head will automatically bond and be sisters for life?" she ranted, her voice rising as she spoke.

Janet shot her a sharp look and quickly signaled, pulling off the side of the road. "Sam?" she asked as she put the car into park.

"Daniel has been on my back for the past week to talk to Sarah."

"Why haven't you? I mean, you talked to Kiana," Janet reminded.

"Kiana's different," Sam said softly.

"How?"

"She just is."

"Sam."

"Kiana never tried to kill me." Janet raised her eyebrows. "What Daniel doesn't understand, he remembers Sarah. He used to date her, probably slept with her. He remembers the host. All I've ever known is Osiris. I look at Sarah and I see Osiris. I…I just can't…"

"All you ever knew was Kiana's goa'uld," Janet said, playing the devil's advocate.

"It's different," Sam insisted.

Janet reached out and squeezed Sam's arm. "Why don't you tell him how you feel?"

"Oh yeah, that'll go over well. 'Gee, Daniel, I'm glad your girlfriend is all degoaulded and ok, but could you
please keep her the hell away from me because she gives me the creeps.'" She said, making a face. She pushed her fingers through her hair. "I just need to get over it."

"I still think you should tell him," Janet said. "He'll understand. At the very least, he'll stop bugging you about seeing her."

"Maybe," she said, her tone suggesting that she didn't believe Janet's words at all.

"Do you want me to talk to him?" Janet offered.

Sam slowly shook her head. "No. I need to. I just don't want to. He was so glad to get her back, I don't want to be a wet blanket."

"You're not being a wet blanket, you're being honest…and he'll appreciate that in the long run," Janet said.

Sam stared at her for a few seconds, then nodded. "I'll think about it."

"Ok," Janet answered, glancing in the rear view mirror before signaling and pulling back out into the flow of traffic.

<><><><><>

Sarah sat in her room, the blank pages of a journal sitting on the table before her, mocking her. It was Daniel's idea, for her to write down her memories and recollections; he'd even bought her the small leather bound book. At first, she'd thought it'd be easy, at least easier than speaking about her experiences to someone, but she was wrong. It was difficult, so much had happened in the past three years, so much more than she could ever put down in words.

Three years.

She still didn't believe that she had been gone that long. At times, it felt like just yesterday when she'd been in Chicago, at other times, it felt like a lifetime ago.

She remembered some of it, bits and pieces. She remembered being in Cairo, walking through the market and understanding much of what the locals had said, somehow able to translate Aramaic, something she had never mastered before

She even knew how to get out to the temple; unerringly finding it even though it's entrance was mostly concealed. She remembered watching herself attack Stephen, trying to kill Daniel. Leaving Earth in a ship, feeling sick and scared after Osiris passed out from the tranquilizers, but unable to stay awake herself long enough to even try to figure out how to turn the ship around and go home.

Flying through space, seeking refuge where she could, taking advantage of no one knowing who she was to allow her to slip in unnoticed, gathering information and intelligence.

She remembered meeting Anubis, pledging herself to him. How Osiris had reveled in the power, enjoyed the wealth and privilege, eagerly doing his master's bidding to curry favor.

She remembered doing so many horrible things, things she prayed were a dream, but she knew in her heart that they weren't. She knew that she'd killed people, tortured them, laughed at their pain. Even though she knew Osiris had been in control and merely using her, it was still her hands that she saw streaked with blood, her voice that had laughed. No matter who was in control, she had done so many horrible things.

Things that everyone seemed to know about. She didn't like venturing out into the halls, all the soldiers there looked at her, stared as if they knew, as if they were privy to her memories. Some looked at her with pity in their eyes, others with undisguised hatred and distrust.

She wasn't used to people hating her. True, she'd been known to ruffle some feathers back in Chicago, sometimes even going so far as inspiring some heated words, but never to the point of hate. A part of her desperately wanted to leave this place, to go outside and try to start her life over. But she was also deathly afraid to leave Daniel's protection.

He'd told her how important it was that she remember her time with Osiris. He told her how vital her information was, how it could save lives. He hinted to her, in his tone and words, that there was more behind the simple request than mere information. She was important to them, a vital source of intelligence, but she was a source they didn't trust.

She was watched, she knew. Followed and monitored. She felt trapped, even more trapped than she had felt with Osiris. She could stay here, as a prisoner, or she could leave and spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder. Both choices seemed equally horrible and she had no idea what to do. She had no way to alleviate the helpless panic that assailed her when she woke up, wondering exactly where she was waking up, hoping that it was real and that she was free of Osiris, but also wishing that there was some way to wake from the nightmare that she was currently living.

"Sarah, can I come in?" Daniel knocked on her door and she closed her eyes, really wishing that he had something else to do. He'd been incredibly nice ever since she'd returned, spending hours at her bedside while she'd been in the infirmary, then arranging for her to stay in the VIP room once she'd felt well enough to leave.

He visited her several times a day, sometimes by himself, other times with his friends. He brought her food from the outside, doing his best to remember all her old likes and dislikes. He'd even brought her some tea and a hot plate so she could have the beverage whenever she wanted.

He listened when she wanted to talk, exhibiting a level of patience and empathy that she'd never seen before. It was almost like he was a whole different person.

"Come in, Daniel," she called out, knowing that if she refused him, he'd just be back later.

He pushed the door open, the plastic sack in his hands rustling a bit. "In the mood for chicken?" he asked, raising the sack so that she could see the logo on the side. "You like white meat if I remember correctly."

"Fried chicken sounds good, thank you." She got up off the bed and walked over to the small table. The VIP room was decently furnished, better than her first apartment had been anyway. She had a queen sized bed with lamps on both sides, a small table and four chairs. What little clothing she had fit very well in the spacious armoire and chest of drawers. There was a small TV on a cart with a VCR and DVD player and Daniel had done his best to keep her entertained, borrowing heavily from a friend's DVD collection.

Those small silvery discs were a constant reminder of just how much had changed, they had been a new and expensive phenomenon when she'd left…and were now apparently incredibly common.

Her only quibble was that the bathroom only had a shower. She was longing for a long soak.

They sat at the table and he quickly unpacked the food, setting a laden plate in front of her. "I can't remember, do you like diet or regular? I got one of each. Sam always drinks diet, she says it tastes better, but I can't remember what you drink," he said, babbling a bit as he held up two large plastic cups.

She felt her heart lurch a bit at the mention of the woman's name, immediately chiding herself for doing so. Sam was just a friend of his, someone he worked with, nothing more. "Diet is fine," she said, remembering that he preferred the normal kind. In truth, she couldn't even remember what the soft drink tasted like, so it made little difference to her which one she drank.

She started to eat her chicken, her movements faltering as a memory washed over her.

Tearing apart a game bird, ripping the leg from its socket. Biting into it, uncaring of the grease dribbling down her chin and staining her robes. Anger when she found a scorched bit. Yelling at her guards to bring the cook to her. The woman on her knees, pleading for her life, begging for mercy. Raising her left hand, using the weapon to slowly cook her brain.

The dull thump of her body hitting the floor. Waving her hand, the scrape of the woman's shoes as she was dragged away. Picking up her dinner, peeling away the scorched skin and eating the rest.

Suddenly not hungry, she dropped the chicken onto the plate, ignoring Daniel's look. "I guess I'm not that hungry," she said, reaching for the biscuit. She tore it apart, slowly stuffing the bread into her mouth, hoping that the bland substance would quash the nausea swirling in her stomach.

"I was thinking maybe you'd like to go outside," Daniel suggested, wiping his hands on a napkin.

"What?" Sarah pulled her attention back to the man sitting across from her.

"It's about sunset, so there isn't much to see. But the general said it was ok for you to go outside, as long as I was with you and we stayed on the base," he said. "That is, if you feel like it."

She stared, surprised when no easy answer presented itself. Did she feel like it? She didn't know. Part of her wanted to go outside, but was that her or was it a remembered feeling from Osiris? Did she want to go outside for fresh air, or was it some primal instinct to escape? What if she did something bad while she was outside? What if she couldn't control herself?

"Sarah?" Daniel prodded. "Are you ok?"

"Yes, fine," she replied automatically. "Fresh air sounds good," she decided in an instant, hoping that she'd made the right choice and knowing if she hadn't, the armed guards would hopefully keep her from hurting anyone else.

<><><><><>

Daniel walked down the hall, pausing outside the door to Sam's office. He watched her work, his eyes narrowing. Busy huh? Yeah, she looked busy. Just as busy as she'd been every single day of the past two weeks.

He didn't understand what her problem was. All he wanted her to do was talk to Sarah, see if she could find out what was bothering her, maybe reassure her a bit. After all, Sam had to know exactly what Sarah was going through and he hoped it would allow Sarah to open up a bit.

His sessions with Sarah had not been going well in the past two weeks. He would try to get Sarah to remember, but she would always claim not to. He wanted to believe her, but the haunted look in her eyes told him that she did remember what happened during her time with Osiris.

He knew that the NID were getting more and more impatient, desperate for information, and, he feared, desperate enough to do something about it. He couldn't let that happen to her, couldn't put her through that. She'd already been through so much; he couldn't knowingly set her up for an interrogation.

"Sam?" he said, stepping into the room. She looked up, regret flitting across her face before it was quickly hidden behind a smile. Normally, he'd take her reticence as a signal to back off and give her some space. Normally. Right now, all it did was to steel his resolve. "Got a minute?"

"Umm…sorta. I was aah, I was working on something," she said, her tone telling him that she was lying.

"This will just take a minute. I was wondering if you had some time this evening?"

"What for?"

"Well, we packed up all Sarah's stuff when she …left, and they're having a hard time finding it all and she's really got nothing to wear. So I thought we could hit the mall, get her some clothes and stuff," he suggested.

"I didn't think she was allowed out of the facility."

"General Hammond said we could, as long as someone went with us."

"So, what do you need me for? I'm sure there are a couple of SF's-"

"Yeah, that'll be nice and low key, escorted by two men in cammies with guns," Daniel interrupted.

"Daniel-"

"Look, Sam. All I'm asking for is a couple of hours of your time. We'll go out to the mall, get her a couple of outfits, maybe grab some dinner and come back here."

"I don't see what you need me for. Sarah's not a host anymore and I'm sure you can handle her."

"What is your problem?" he demanded, crossing his arms over his chest.

"My problem? What do you mean my problem?"

"You have been avoiding her for the past two weeks," he accused.

"I have not."

"Yes, you have. You've gone out of your way to avoid her," he said, his frustration leading him to push the boundaries of friendship with Sam.

She pursed her lips, deliberately looking away. "I've been busy," she said slowly.

"You weren't too busy to talk to Kiana," he shot back.

"What?" Her head shot up, meeting his gaze.

"After Kiana's goa'uld died, you talked to her several times in the infirmary."

"Jonas asked me-"

"And I'm not?" he shot back. "Jesus, Sam, I'm not asking for a kidney, I'm asking for half an hour of your time, maybe an hour if things go well. You spend more time than that talking to Teal'c about Wormhole X-Treme every week."

She closed her eyes and sighed loudly, her body language speaking volumes. "Fine. What time do you want to leave?" she relented.

"Five-thirty. We can beat the rush then, maybe eat first."

"I'll meet you up top," she said, her tone accepting but far from enthusiastic.

He nodded and turned on his heel, knowing that he'd won a victory…but also acknowledging that it didn't feel like one.

<><><><><>

She watched Daniel leave, a wide grin splitting her face. So the perfect little major did have a weakness, she thought, watching the expressions play across Carter's face. She saw resignation there, resignation and regret and, dare she hope it, dread?

Slipping out of the lab, she followed Jackson as he made his way back to his girlfriend. This could be just the opportunity she was hoping for.

<><><><><>

Sam walked through the mall, trailing behind Daniel and Sarah, and feeling distinctly like the much unwelcome third wheel. It was a Wednesday night and the mall was only sparsely populated, a few house wives mingling with small gaggles of teens and the occasional yuppie, cell phone to one ear and briefcase over his shoulder.

They wandered from store to store, Sarah finding a few things, but mostly not caring for the current fashion of low cut pants and equally low cut tops. Sam offered to carry the bags, then cursed herself as she felt more and more like hired help than a friend.

She stared as she walked, window shopping and mentally making note of what she should get Cassie for her birthday. Maybe one of those sweaters in yellow. Or a CD. There was a group she was talking about just last week.

"How about you, Sam?" Daniel asked, turning to look at her.

"Huh?" She pulled her attention back to the two people with her.

"Sarah is in the mood for a break. There's this pretzel place in the food court, or I think there's also the Cookie Hut," he suggested.

"That's fine, whatever," she shrugged, pasting a smile on her face. He led them around the corner and into the food court.

"What do you want?" Daniel asked as they found a table.

"It's all…so overwhelming," Sarah said, frowning. "What's a smoothie?"

Daniel smiled. "You like strawberries, right?"

"Yes."

"One strawberry smoothie coming up. Sam?"

"What? Oh, I'll just go and-"

"My treat. What would you like?"

"A smoothie is fine too; peach, please, if they have it."

He nodded. "One peach, one strawberry, coming right up."

He walked away and left them alone. An awkward silence settled over the two women and Sam looked around, her fingers drumming slightly on the table. "How long have you known Daniel?" Sarah asked, her accent giving her voice a lyric quality.

"About seven years," Sam answered.

"And you've been on the same team the whole time?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded. "In fact, my first mission was to meet him and bring him home," she said, glancing around to make sure that no one was within hearing distance.

"He told me that he spent a year on Abydos."

"He did. And then we brought him home and we've been working together ever since."

Sarah nodded, frowning a bit. "Is that all you do?" she asked pointedly.

"Excuse me?"

Sarah shrugged. "He talks about you all the time. You obviously mean a great deal to him."

"We're just friends," Sam said, fighting back a sense of déjà vu. This was the second time in less than a year someone had thought she and Daniel were more than the co-workers they really were. It'd be funny, if it wasn't for the serious look on the woman's face.

"Friends?"

"Friends," Sam insisted. "Daniel's like a brother to me."

"He talks about you a lot. About how you used to carry a symbiote."

Sam looked around again, almost wishing that there had been people close to them, or that the line at the smoothie place wasn't so long. Anything that would give her a good reason to cut Sarah off. "Yes," Sam said. "I did."

"He knew about that," she said softly, her tone telling Sam exactly who 'he' was. "He didn't like other ones."

"Very few goa'uld do," Sam said, keeping her voice low.

"You killed them."

"What?"

"He knew about you. Knew that you'd killed some goa'uld, that you wanted to kill him," she accused.

"I don't want to kill anyone. If I kill, it's in self-defense or in defense of another," Sam said.

"And who were you defending when you took him from me?" she asked.

"Took him? Are you saying that you didn't want to be free?"

"I am saying that no one ever bothered to ask me what I wanted," she said. "You locked me up in a cage. You held me against my will. They took him from me and never once did anyone even attempt to ask me what I wanted," she said, her voice rising a bit.

"Here we go," Daniel said, setting three Styrofoam cups down on the table. "Sorry it took so long, they had to go get some more strawberries out of the freezer." He sat down between them, handing out straws and then looking at them, seemingly just becoming aware of the tension between them. "Is something wrong?" he asked, staring from one to the other.

"No, Daniel, nothing's wrong," Sarah said, staring at Sam for a second before taking a drink of her smoothie.

Sam stayed silent, taking a few token sips of her smoothie, Sarah's words running through her brain.

<><><><><>

Sarah walked into her room, closing the door behind her. She'd left a lamp on earlier and was glad of that fact as she used the dim golden light to navigate her way across the room.

Surprisingly, the evening had been fun. It had been rather enjoyable to get out of the dim recesses of the mountain and see more of the world. She really hadn't looked forward to it, hadn't wanted to be reminded about all she'd missed, but once she'd gotten there, she'd been able to forget all that, able to lose herself in just absorbing the atmosphere of the mall.

She'd enjoyed the anonymity of the small crowds, the knowledge that she was nothing to them. She was just another woman walking and shopping. In fact, if it wasn't for the presence of Major Carter, it would have been a perfect evening.

She didn't know what it was, but there was something about the woman that bugged her, set her nerves on edge. Every time she was in the same room with Carter, she would get this knot in the pit of her stomach.

"Did you have fun?" A soft feminine voice cut through the room and she spun, dropping her shopping. She stared, her eyes growing wide as she saw no one. "Did it make you feel normal?"

Sarah dashed for the phone, her heart lurching when she couldn't pick it up, a weight holding her hand down. "Do you know what they do to people that hear voices around here? You should ask your Daniel about that. You might even be able to get the same rubber room they put him in."

"Who are you?" Sarah backed away, hating how her voice quivered. What was going on? This wasn't Osiris' voice; she remembered what that sounded like. She remembered his gloating tones, his sly cruelty.

The voice laughed. "I'm your new best friend. We're going to have so much fun together. So much fun."

<><><><><>

Sam juggled the cups of coffee, awkwardly shifting them so that she could knock on the door. She paused for a second, taking a deep breath. She could turn back. No one else knew what she was doing. She could just keep walking down the hall and go to her office, pour one cup down the sink and no one would be any the wiser.

She could. But then she'd be taking the easy way out. Sarah's simple words had struck a chord with her last night. She was right, in all of this, no one had ever asked her her opinion, no one had taken into consideration anything she wanted. First Osiris possessing her, then her rescue. They'd all assumed that she's wanted to be rescued. Sam didn't think that it was a false presumption, even though Sarah might not realize it just yet.

Captivity did strange things to a person. It changed them, molded them into something different. There was no doubt that Sarah had been effected. She'd spent the past three years a prisoner in her very body, witnessed herself commit countless atrocities, murdered sentient beings in cold blood.

And in all of that, she'd had no choice. Maybe it was about time people started giving her one.

Sam knocked on the door, frowning when there was no response. She knocked again, casting a glance at the SF. "She in there?"

"Yes, ma'am. Has been all night."

Sam nodded and pushed open the door. "Sarah?" she called out. "Are you ok?" she asked, spying the woman sitting on the floor, backed into one of the corners. She set down the coffee and hurried over, kneeling in front of her. "Sarah? Do you need help?" She reached out and touched her arm, her eyes growing wide as Sarah looked up. She saw the woman's blank expression change into one of fear and anger.

"Get away from me," she snarled, pushing Sam back.

Sam fell backwards, landing on her butt. Sarah pushed herself up from the floor and hurried to the other side of the room. She was still wearing the clothes she had been the previous night and Sam could see her shopping just dropped on the floor. "Sarah," she said, getting to her feet. She held out her hands, hoping to ease the woman's fear. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head slightly, like she was clearing the cobwebs. "Nothing," she muttered, her hands fluttering around her face.

"I just brought you some coffee," Sam said, pointing at the cups, concerned about Sarah's outburst but also knowing that making a big deal about it would only make it worse. "I thought maybe you would like something different."

"Thank you," she said softly, reaching for the cup.

Sam watched her, noting that while she held and sniffed the beverage, she made no move to actually drink it. The silence stretched between them, the level of discomfort growing by the second.

"Well," Sam said, feeling even more unwelcome than she had the night before. "I need to change, get to work." She grabbed her own cup off the table and made her way towards the door. Sarah nodded, not saying a word.

Shrugging, Sam opened the door and walked out, closing it behind her, only relaxing when the door closed. Still shocked by what had happened, she barely glanced at the SF as she made her way down the hall. "It's gonna be a great day," she muttered to herself. "Just great."

<><><><><>

Jack knocked on the open door, General Hammond's wave inviting him in. He took a seat, trying not to eavesdrop too much on the man's phone conversation. "I assure you, the second we learn something, we will share it with you," he said, setting the receiver down with no small amount of force.

"No call list not working?" Jack asked, noting the flush on the man's face and the set of his jaw…a sure-fire sign of one annoyed Texan general.

"The NID doesn't believe that we are doing our best to retrieve any intelligence from Miss Gardner," he said. "They want to transfer her to Area 51 for a more 'detailed debriefing'." His tone told Jack exactly what those last two words meant. If she was lucky, they'd kill her in a few weeks, unlucky, she'd end up like Conrad, locked in a cage for the rest of her life.

"Daniel's been talking to her. She says she doesn't remember much," Jack reported. "Evidently, Osiris wasn't the sharing type."

"What do you think?" Hammond asked pointedly.

Jack paused, thinking back to the few minutes he'd actually spent in the company of Sarah Gardner. He'd never met her before she'd been taken as a host, so he had no way to compare her behavior then to now. In one way, she acted totally normal, in another he recognized some of the same signs he'd seen in Carter years ago, insecurities, a pain in her eyes that spoke to deep set memories, whether they be acknowledged or not.

Carter had chosen to deal with Jolinar's memories, to try and remember some of them. He had a feeling that that acceptance had led to her recovery. Sarah, however, didn't seem ready to take that step just yet. And he didn't know if she ever would.

As much as the two women's situations were similar, there was one fundamental difference, Carter had been possessed by a creature for a few days and it had, according to her, died to save her life while Sarah had spent years as an unwilling host and Osiris had fought tooth and nail to avoid being extracted.

They also had a good idea of all that had happened to Carter since she'd spent most of her time as a host locked up in a cell on Level 16, whereas Sarah had been out roaming the universe. He knew that Carter had done nothing worse than a little physical assault and the occasional death threat. They had no way of knowing all that Sarah had done, unless she told them.

"She knows stuff," he finally said. "She may not understand the context and it may be totally worthless to us, but she knows stuff," he pronounced. "The…" He paused, gathering himself, well aware that he was broaching a topic he'd discuss for only a very rare few. "It takes a lot of energy for a snake to hide everything from a host. More energy than I think Osiris could have exerted for three years. Besides, he had no reason to hide it from her. As far as he was concerned, she was his host for the rest of her life."

Hammond nodded. "That was Major Carter's assessment as well. Jack, I may be able to keep Miss Gardner here, but I will not be able to keep the NID away from her."

Jack sighed. "That'll make Daniel's day. What can we do?"

"Right now, I have nothing to fight with. Now, if we can get some information from her, that might be enough to keep the NID happy."

"It won't be easy."

"I know. Talk to Doctor Jackson. Impress upon him the importance of Miss Gardner's remembering."

"Yes, sir," Jack said, getting to his feet. Dismissed, he left the room, his next destination Daniel's lab.

<><><><><>

"I don't remember!" Sarah insisted, getting to her feet. She started to pace, her breath coming quick as the walls of the room seemed to close in upon her. She cast a glance at the person seated at the other side of the table. "I don't remember, Daniel," she said, crossing her arms across her chest, fighting the urge to rub her temples. Her head hurt, and she longed for nothing more than to just lie down and sleep.

She hadn't slept much at all in the past days. Every time she was alone, the voice would come back, taunting her. Telling her just what the SGC really wanted from her, how they planned to use her then send her away. No one wanted her here, not even Daniel. He was just following orders, just doing his job.

He got to his feet. "Sarah. I know this is difficult, but you need to try." He walked around the table, grasping her arms. "This is important. You need to try to remember."

"Daniel, it's like a dream. A very long, very horrible dream. I don't know what is real and what he made me see," she confessed. "The last thing I really remember is opening the canopic jar in Chicago," she confessed, not even wanting to admit that much. Why wouldn't he listen to her? Why couldn't he just accept that she didn't want to remember and leave it alone? Why did he have to push her?

"Do you remember being on a space station? There was a big summit, whole bunch of people were there. You came to speak on behalf of Anubis," he prodded. She shook her head. "I was there, you saw me. You had a knife and-"

"NO!" she broke away from him, backing away.

He stepped forward, grabbing her arms again, his grip firm but gentle. "It's ok, you didn't kill him. Do you remember seeing me there?"

"I…I don't know. Maybe." She stopped, closing her eyes as memories washed over her. A meeting, she wasn't invited, but she knew she would be welcomed, knew they were too hungry for power to ignore her.

She remembered seeing Daniel, remembered the joy at seeing a familiar face amongst all the strangeness. Remembered wanting to do nothing more than to throw herself in his arms and beg him to take her away.

Osiris had found it amusing. He'd enjoyed pulling the knowledge from her, enjoyed her crushed hope when she'd realized that Daniel wasn't there looking for her, it was just a coincidence. He'd taunted her, tormented her with how he would kill Daniel, torture him to death while she watched. And then he cajoled, promising to make him a host so she could have Daniel as her consort, promising to enslave Daniel for her.

"I was there," Daniel's soft voice penetrated her memories. "I saw you. You recognized me. We spoke. I tried to get you out of there, but it didn't work. Remember? I locked you in the teltac's cargo hold. Then Yu let you go and I had to run."

"He was mad at me," she whispered, the memory overwhelming her.

"Who?"

"Anubis." An angry voice, a heavy force throwing her across the room, hurting her, punishing her for her failure.

"Why? You got him accepted."

"Because I didn't kill Yu when I had the chance. He punished-No!" Her eyes flew open and she pulled away from him, staggering backwards. "No!" she repeated, remembered pain making her feel sick and weak.

He hurried forward, taking her in his arms. "It's ok, it's ok, it's ok. You don't have to remember that. You don't have to," he crooned, his hand stroking her back. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

"I don't want to remember, Daniel. I want to forget that it ever happened," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "Why can't you just let me forget?"

"I wish I could, I really wish I could," he said sadly. He led her over to the bed and urged her to sit down. "Why don't you lie down for a little bit? I'll go get us something to eat."

"I'm not-"

"You need to eat," he insisted. "I think that's enough for today anyway. I'll go talk to the general, see if maybe we can take a walk, go outside and get some fresh air." He caressed her cheek, pushing one strand of curly hair behind her ear. "I'll be back in just a few minutes, ok?"

She nodded, sniffing a bit. He gave her a half-hearted smile and stood up, quickly leaving the room. Still feeling shaky, she scooted back onto the bed, lying down.

"Touching, isn't it?" The voice startled her and she sat up, her heart pounding in her chest. It was back. She didn't want it to be back.

"Go away," Sarah whispered.

"He really seems to care, doesn't he?" she taunted. "He doesn't let on that he's just doing her bidding."

"Leave me alone."

"You do know that he's just following orders, don't you?" Sarah turned her head, trying desperately to track the sound of the voice, to get a glimpse of the source. There was nothing in the room, no one but her, just like every other time. "He's telling everything to her. She's his true master."

"What are you talking about?"

"Go look. They're right outside. They don't even have the grace to go around the corner and try to hide it."
Her curiosity overriding her fear, Sarah got to her feet, making her way across the room. There was a small window in the door, one that was normally covered with a small curtain in deference to her privacy.
Mindful of the guard outside, Sarah slowly pushed it aside just an inch, moving her head closer to peer out the tiny opening.

Daniel was out in the hall, about twenty feet away, and was talking to Major Carter. As she watched, he shrugged, running his fingers through his hair. "He's telling her everything," the voice said. "Every last word. And in a few minutes she will go running to the stargate and tell everything to the Tok'ra."

That word struck a chord in Sarah's brain. Tok'ra. Osiris had hated that word, hated everything it stood for. They'd tried to kill them, more than once. Tried to assassinate them in cold blood. They were trying to kill all the system lords. The Tok'ra were jealous of their power, envious of their holdings. It was a revolution and the Tok'ra wanted to rule the universe, their rise to greatness paved with the blood of countless slaughtered goa'uld.

"That's all she is, a Tok'ra spy," she continued. "She's not even human anymore, just ask her. Ask her about the naquadah in her blood. Ask her about the Tok'ra she carried. Ask her where her true loyalties lie. She doesn't care about you. None of them do. All they want is to use you, use your information to suck up to the Tok'ra. That's all you are to them, a resource."

Sarah shook her head. "No."

"Do you know what they will do with you when they are finished with you?" the voice continued. "They dissect people here. They will carve you up like a Thanksgiving turkey. You're nothing to them. You're nothing to her. Do you know how many goa'uld she's killed? And you're going to be the next one."

"No," Sarah insisted. Daniel wasn't like that. He was glad that she was back. He cared for her. He promised to help her get her life back up. Promised to help her find somewhere to live, to come up with something to explain where she'd been for the past three years.

"Yes. Daniel doesn't love you; he's using you. She's who he cares about."

"No!" Sarah shouted, spinning away from the window and stalking back to the bed. She threw herself down on its soft surface and pulled the pillow over her head, struggling to muffle the voice as it droned on and on, tormenting her with words that were more painful than anything Osiris had ever done.

<><><><><>

"Just for a few minutes," Daniel said. "I'll go get us some sandwiches and be right back."

"Daniel-"

"Sam, she was upset. I don't want to leave her alone," he interrupted, his tone more than a little pleading.

"She might need to be alone," Sam said, her reluctance to spend time with Sarah annoying him. What was wrong with her? If Sarah was still a goa'uld, maybe he could understand, but she wasn't. She was just the host, an innocent victim in this whole mess.

"Sam."

"Ok," she relented. "Just long enough for you to get the food. I really do have work to get done."

"Thank you," he said, squeezing her arm. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

She turned towards Sarah's room and he started in the other direction. Suggesting a break wasn't just something he was doing for Sarah, he'd needed one too.

His session with Sarah had scared him a bit and maybe been more upsetting for him than for her. In the back of his mind he'd always known that she had been through a lot, but it hurt to have that fact confirmed.
He knew first hand what atrocities the goa'uld were capable of and it pained him to think that Sarah had been exposed to that.

He wondered if he'd made the right choice in not telling her about the NID. Jack had suggested that she be informed, hoping that the added pressure would motivate her to remember, give her a reason to work harder. Daniel had disagreed with him, insisting that more pressure would do nothing but make things worse. And he'd thought he was right, but now he wasn't so sure. Maybe she needed to know, needed to have a realistic picture of what was happening.

He had no doubt that her memories were horrible, but they were nothing compared to what would be awaiting her in Nevada if the NID got their way. They'd use her, just like Conrad had done to Sam.

Interrogate her first, with methods that he knew bore more than a little resemblance to methods the goa'uld used. Then they'd run tests on her. They'd hurt her, he knew that. And there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.

He reached the elevator and swiped his card. He should tell her, he decided. She deserved to know what was going on in her life. The elevator arrived and he started to walk in, stopping when the wail of a klaxon cut through the air. Recognizing the location of the security alert, he turned on his heels, running back down the hall. He skidded to a stop just in time to see Sam backing away from the room as the single SF struggled to control Sarah. "Sam?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. She just flipped out."

"She's trying to kill me!" Sarah screamed. "Keep her away, keep her away!" Sarah tore herself from the SF's arms and threw herself at Daniel. "Help me! Help me! She's trying to kill me," she cried, her arms wrapped around him to tightly he was sure she was leaving bruises. "Help me, Daniel, please," Sarah begged.

Overwhelmed and confused, he could do no more than just keep holding her as more people gathered, all of them silently asking the same question as him, what the hell just happened.

<><><><><>

"I don't know what happened, sir," Sam said, looking helplessly around the briefing room table.

"Miss Gardner said you threatened to kill her," General Hammond said.

"No," Sam insisted. "I didn't. Daniel asked me to go in and keep her company while he got some lunch."

"That's it?" Jack asked.

"Yes," Sam answered. "That's it, sir."

"You must have done something, Sam," Daniel said. "She was very upset."

"Daniel," Sam protested. "I didn't. I walked in the room, tried to talk to her, she freaked out and started screaming at me."

Hammond looked around the table then sighed. "Maybe it would be best if you kept your distance from Miss Gardner," he said. "At least until we can figure out what's going on."

Sam opened her mouth to protest, then shut it, closing her eyes briefly. "Yes, sir," she agreed, the look on her face telling George that she was biting her tongue in a big way.

"Doctor Jackson, why don' t you coordinate with Major Carter, make sure you're not in the same place at the same time. Dismissed," he said, motioning for Jack to remain behind. "Jack?" he asked once the other two were gone.

"I don't know, sir. I looked at the security footage and nothing looks threatening to me. Carter didn't even get within ten feet of her."

"Security reports that she was upset the other day as well, after Major Carter visited her." Jack could only shrug. "Can you think of any reason for the major to threaten Miss Gardener?"

"They've had a couple of run-ins, sir. But no more so than any other goa'uld."

"We don't normally have 'any other goa'uld' in our custody," George reminded.

"Look, General, if Carter's been guilty of anything over the years, she's been too sympathetic to hosts for my taste. And the Tok'ra too, but that's another topic."

George sighed. "You do realize that a threat to Miss Gardner's person is exactly what the NID wants."

"Transfer her for her own safety," Jack said, rolling his eyes as George nodded. "I'll talk to Carter and Daniel. Make sure there are no other incidents."

"Do that," George ordered. He got to his feet and dismissed Jack, then made his way back to his office, closing the door. Sitting down at his desk, he pulled out a well-worn bottle and expertly tipped two pills out into his hand. Swallowing them down, he leaned back in his chair and sighed. When the hell had this undeclared war of theirs gotten so complicated?

<><><><><>

"Major Carter," Teal'c said as he stepped into his friend's laboratory. "You are here."

"Where else would I be?" she asked, her tone telling him that she required no answer to her question. He had seen her little in the past week, in fact were it not for him knowing that she was working, he would think that she was taking some time off.

"In the past, it has not been unknown for you to spend much time here," he said. "Enough time to require O'Neill or General Hammond to suggest that you leave."

"That's when I have something to work on."

"And you do not have a project requiring your attention at this time?" he asked, moving closer to his friend.

"Not really." She tossed the small item in her hand onto the table and leaned back, crossing her arms across her chest.

"You resent the restrictions placed upon you?"

"Yes. No. Yes," she said, contradicting herself. "I mean, I'm sorry for what Sarah went through. And I'm sorry that she's having a tough time. But I haven't done a single thing to her and I'm being treated like some sort of criminal," she ranted.

"Daniel Jackson believes he shall soon have a …breakthrough with Sarah Gardner," he reported, recalling his early morning conversation with his friend. He had been pleasantly surprised when the archaeologist had sought him out, seeking his counsel and opinion. In the past week, Teal'c had seen little of any of his friends. Daniel Jackson was spending as much time as possible in the company of Sarah Gardner, Major Carter was sequestered in her laboratory and O'Neill was often not on the base, availing himself of some hard earned time away from his duties in addition to conducting several lectures at the Air Force Academy.

All in all, it had left Teal'c feeling rather lonely. In the past, even if they were not scheduled for off-world travel, his friends usually sought out the company of the others, even if it was simply meeting for a meal.

"Good for him," she said. "Maybe things will actually get back to normal around here." She took a deep breath. "So, what have you been up to?" she asked, deliberately changing the topic.

"Nothing of much significance," he replied. "I came to inquire if you wished to join me for a meal?"

"I don't know, Teal'c-"

"You have been at work for several hours. I have observed that the human brain functions more efficiently when it received nourishment at regular intervals," he said, knowing that she was going to agree with him as soon as he saw the look on her face.

He knew that while he had missed her company in the past several days, it would also do her good to get out of her laboratory. This was usually a task O'Neill took upon himself, but in his absence, it was one Teal'c was happy to undertake.

"I guess I am hungry," she said, getting to her feet. She followed him down the hall and towards the commissary, chatting about the recent episode of Wormhole X-Treme. Once they reached their destination, they got into line and quickly picked out their food. He led her to a table, pleased to see that she had chosen a wide variety of items. Over the years, he had noticed that when she was upset or angry, she reduced her food consumption, almost as if a fast could change things.

After a few minutes, she suddenly stopped eating, her fork stilled halfway up to her mouth. "Damn," she muttered. He turned to see Daniel Jackson walking into the room, Sarah Gardner on his arm. As he watched, the young woman stiffened, visibly cowering closer to Daniel Jackson. The man looked helplessly between the two women, clearly torn. He spoke quietly to her and urged her to keep walking, away from the door and into the commissary. "I better go," Major Carter said, putting down her fork.

"That is not necessary," Teal'c said. "She must acclimate herself to your presence."

"The general's orders were to stay out of her way," she said, getting to her feet. "Thanks for lunch, but I think I'm gonna go see if I can work at home or something." She laid her hand on his shoulder and quickly left the room.

Teal'c watched her go, then turned his attention to the pair walking towards him. As he looked on, Daniel urged Sarah to sit, then came over to speak to him. "Where'd Sam go?"

"She felt it was better if she removed herself from Sarah Gardner's presence," Teal'c reported.

He nodded as if he knew the answer but simply needed Teal'c's confirmation. "We can't keep going on like this. It's not fair to Sam."

"I agree."

"I'll talk to Sarah," he offered before making his way back to his companion.

Teal'c watched the pair of them for several minutes before leaving himself, his mood distinctly pensive. At this precise moment he regretted O'Neill's absence. The colonel was most adept at mending rifts between his friends, a skill Teal'c had yet to master. Perhaps it was time the human was informed of the situation, he decided.

<><><><><>

She sat in the chair, idly flipping through the pages of the journal. She really couldn't thank Doctor Jackson enough for his idea. This was fascinating reading, and far more detailed than the woman had gone into in any of her numerous debriefings with Jackson. She looked at her watch, trying to gauge how long it would take them to eat lunch.

Gardner was leaving her room more and more now, and it was a mixed blessing. It did allow her to relax for a while, move about without maintaining her silence. However it also meant that there were no trays of food to eat, or half-consumed cups of tea to drink. And it also meant that things were being said that she couldn't hear.

At first, she'd toyed with trying to follow the woman, but a close call had convinced her that the less she traveled, the better, especially after getting trapped on the surface for several hours before finding someone going down she could hitch a ride with.

Despite the small setbacks, things were going well. Even better than she expected. The door opened and she hurriedly set down the book, remaining as still as possible. Gardner stalked into the room, Jackson following her. "Sarah, what's the big deal?"

"She was there. You promised me she wouldn't be there," she accused, turning on her heel to face him.

"I said she normally eats later. And anyway, she has just as much of a right to be there as you do," he said.

"Daniel-"

"Sarah, Sam is my friend. She would never hurt you."

Gardner shook her head and she smiled, gratified that the woman could not be swayed by mere words. "No. She tried-"

"Tried to do what?" Jackson demanded. "You know, you never did tell me what Sam did to make you so upset," he challenged.

"You don't believe me? My word used to be good enough for you."

"It is."

"Apparently not. Or is it the fact that the word of a goa'uld isn't good enough for you."

"Sarah-"

"That's it, isn't it? You trust her more than you trust me," she accused.

"No, Sarah-"

"That's because you're working for her, isn't it?" Gardner stalked over and grabbed the journal off the table, nearly tripping over her feet. "That's why I'm doing this, isn't it? So you can go tell her and she can tell the Tok'ra?"

"What do you know about the Tok'ra?" Jackson demanded.

"Enough to know that you're working for them, working with them. Is that why it's so important that I remember?"

"No!" he yelled. "We need you to remember so that we can keep the NID off your back and keep you from ending up locked in some cage in a secret base somewhere," he said.

"What?"

"That's why it's so important that you remember. They want to take you. We've been able to keep them away from you, but it won't work much longer."

"So, that's all it is," she said slowly. "That's all I mean to you. All of this talk is just that, talk."

"No, Sarah."

"Leave me alone," she said, turning her back on him.

"Sarah-"

"Guard!" she yelled, waiting until the door opened. "I want to be alone."

"Sir?" the airman said, clearly torn.

"I'll be back later," he promised, quietly turning on his heel and moving towards the door. She got to her feet, slipping out behind him, her heart lurching for a second when he seemed to notice, pausing to look behind him.

She made her way down the hall in the opposite direction fighting the urge not to laugh out loud. This was working out even better than she'd planned. In fact, if she did things correctly, she would not only accomplish her mission, she might get a little bonus to go along with it.

<><><><><>

Twenty minutes later he again made his way to Major Carter's lab, armed with suggestions from O'Neill and the man's promise that he would speak to General Hammond about the situation with Sarah Gardner. Loud banging sounds drew his attention and he picked up the pace, surprised to discover that they emanated from his destination.

He stood in the threshold, watching as she angrily pulled drawers from the cabinets before slamming them back closed. She stuffed papers into her bag with little regard to whether or not they wrinkled. "Major Carter?"

"Go away, Teal'c," she said.

"Has something transpired?"

"You could say that. I have a schedule," she bit out, unplugging her laptop computer and shoving it into the bag.

"A schedule?"

"I called Daniel, to apologize…and he suggested that maybe if we had a schedule. You know, if I only ventured out into the halls at specific times then he'd make sure that he and Sarah weren't anywhere in the vicinity," she said, her voice bitter.

"Does Colonel O'Neill approve of this idea?"

"I don't know. And I really don't give a damn," she said, picking up her bag. "I'm gonna go home. Hopefully, I'm allowed to walk to and from the surface without clearing it with Daniel. If not, he'll just have to get over it."

"Daniel Jackson is under extreme pressure to acquire knowledge from Sarah Gardner about her captivity to placate the NID," he reminded.

"I know. Trust me, I know. But I'm also sick and tired of being treated like the villain in all this when I haven't even done anything to that woman," she exclaimed, grabbing her bag and tossing it over her shoulder. "Lock the door when you leave," she said over her shoulder before striding out into the hall.

He stood there for a moment and then picked up the phone, dialing O'Neill's number from memory. This situation required an immediate resolution, and he would insure that it happened even if he had to physically restrain all parties.

<><><><><>

"I don't know what else do to, Jack," Daniel said as he led his friend to Sarah's room. "She doesn't believe me any more."

"Maybe it has something to do with you lying to her the past three weeks," Jack quipped.

"I didn't…I didn't want to freak her out any more than she already was," he explained. "Maybe if you reassure her that we aren't just going to turn her over, that we're going to protect her, maybe it'll help."

"If you think so," Jack said, stopping in the middle of the hall about twenty feet from Sarah's room. "Look, Hammond's done all he can. The NID will be here tomorrow. The good news is, they have to talk to her here, they can't take her with them."

"That's good?"

"It's better than the alternative," Jack said seriously.

Daniel nodded. "Yeah." He jerked his thumb towards the door. "She won't take it well."

"She doesn't have a choice. Look at it this way, the sooner she gives them what they want, the sooner they'll leave her alone."

"Ok." Daniel led Jack down the hall, nodding at the SF. "Sarah?" He knocked. "Sarah?" He opened the door and stood there for a second, staring at the empty room. "Sarah?"

"Where's she at?" Jack asked, peeking into the empty bathroom.

"I don't know," Daniel answered. "She should be here."

<><><><><>

Sam flashed her ID and easily cleared the security checkpoint, ignoring the ogling look from the SF. "Boys will be boys," she muttered as she parked her bike in the corner of the lot, a very long bike ride having done a lot to clear her mind and defuse her anger.

She swung her leg over the machine and pulled her helmet off her head, running her fingers through her hair. It was late, just past sunset and for once she was glad to see Daniel's car. They needed to talk. She'd been out of line when she'd yelled at him earlier that day.

She knew he was just trying to do what was best for Sarah, but he needed to recognize that he needed to give her some consideration as well. She had a job do to, a job that couldn't be restricted by having to adhere to a schedule.

She made her way into the mountain, mentally practicing what she was going to say. They had to work this out, if not amongst themselves, then she would have to get the colonel and General Hammond involved. Maybe they could find somewhere else for Sarah to stay? Maybe a secured place over at Peterson?

She changed elevators at level eleven and entered the smaller car, frowning when the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Slightly on edge, she turned, feeling silly as she scanned the empty car. "You've been watching too many movies," she muttered, feeling silly.

Her heart lurched when she felt a sting I her upper arm. Shocked, she looked, staring in amazement at the dart sticking out of her arm. The world began to spin and she staggered, reaching for the wall of the elevator in an attempt to remain upright.

She fumbled for the phone, crying out when something knocked her off her feet. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. I can't have you doing that now, can it?" a voice from nothing said.

Unable to fight the pull of the tranquilizer, Sam's eyes slipped closed and she knew no more.

<><><><><>

Claire dragged the unconscious woman through the halls, holding her close to keep her within the cloaking field. Fortunately for her, it was early evening and many of the base's personnel had gone home, leaving a smaller night shift to deal with.

She'd heard that the good major had gone home, but obviously Carter was just as much of a suck-up workaholic as she'd heard.

Her presence did make things a little difficult, but nothing she couldn't deal with. She would just have to get a little creative. And creative was what she did best.

Hearing people coming down the hall, she ducked into a stairwell, breathing heavily. As she waited for them to pass, she peeked at her watch. She would have to hurry if she was going to get the major safely stowed before it was time for the main event.

<><><><><>

"Where could she be?" Daniel asked, following Jack as he made his way up to Level sixteen.

"Relax, Daniel, she can't have gone far," Jack consoled his friend. "We'll just check the instant replay."

"Jack," Daniel said, his annoyance plain.

"Look, you said she was upset, she probably went for a walk."

"Without the guard seeing her?"

"He took a pee break."

"Doesn't that defeat the purpose of guarding?"

"Yes, and we're going to flog him in the morning," Jack quipped. "We'll find her, Daniel," he reassured his friend.

"She was just so upset, Jack." Jack swiped his card, summoning the elevator. "Go ahead, say it," Daniel said as the car arrived.

"Say what?"

"I told you so," he said, punching the button for the right floor.

Jack shook his head. "You did what you thought was best." With a moaning sound, the elevator jerked to a stop, the lights flickering off, plunging them into darkness. "What the hell?"

"Emergency lights will be on in a second," Jack said, fumbling for the telephone. "It's dead," he said, not getting the dial tone he was expecting.

"This just keeps getting better," Daniel said. "Now all we need is a hockey mask wearing psycho and we can reenact that horror movie I saw last week."

<><><><><>

The lock rattled and Sarah got to her feet, her hand instinctively pulling against the metal cuff that was chaining her to the wall. She saw the woman drag Sam in, using an identical cuff and chain to secure her to a hook on the far wall. "I'm afraid you just lost your private room," she said.

"Why are you doing this?" Sarah demanded. She ignored her, digging through Sam's pockets, the unconscious woman giving her no resistance. "You can't keep us here." She stood up, shoving a few things into her pockets. "What do you want from me!" Sarah yelled, pulling on the chain, rattling it to get the woman's attention.

The woman turned, pulling a pistol from her pocket and aiming it at Sarah. "Shut up!" she ordered. "You will speak only when I tell you you can speak. Do you understand?" Sarah remained silent, staring at the weapon. "Do you understand?" she asked again, punctuating the question by cocking the pistol.

Sarah nodded and the woman stared for a few seconds before turning and stalking from the room.

<><><><><>

Jack groaned and stretched, looking at his watch for the tenth time, twisting his arm to catch the meager light from the emergency beacon in the corner. "What the hell is taking Siler so long?"

"Do they even know we're in here?" Daniel asked.

"I dunno, Daniel. What do you think?"

"Jack-"

"Look, it's SOP. If we lose power, first thing you do is check the elevators. It's just a matter of time."

"I thought we had generators to keep us from losing power."

"We do. We can exist cut off from the outside for months," Jack said.

"Then why are we in the dark?"

"I don't know."

"There must be something going on," Daniel mused. "I hope Sarah is ok."

"I'm sure she is."

"How do you know?"

"Daniel."

"We don't even know where she is, how can you know that she's ok?"

"How do you know she's not?" he fired back.

"Jack?"

"For all we know, she went for a walk and is back in her room right now. Let's not panic."

"And if she's not?" Daniel asked.

Jack sighed. "Daniel."

"If we get out of here and she's not in her room?"

"If we get out of here and we can't find her, then, yes, you can panic to your hearts content."

<><><><><>

Claire walked into the room, the goa'uld device clutched firmly in her hand. She slid the major's key card into her pocket and silently thanked whomever had been deluded enough to give her such broad access.

She'd been able not only to enter the armory and retrieve her new toy, but had also used the card to gain access to the computer core, using one of the major's own programs to insure their privacy. She wanted no interruptions.

Her charges were just where she'd left them, she was glad to see. Carter was coming around, getting groggily to her feet and the goa'uld was standing in her corner, her arms crossed over her chest, like the coward she was.

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you are in?" Carter demanded. "This is kidnapping, assault."

"Oh shut up!" Claire said, walking over to the woman. She raised the device in her hand and pressed it against Carter's skin, smiling when the major screamed in pain, collapsing to her knees. She held it to her for a few minutes, glancing away to see that Sarah was staring in horror.

Not wanting to kill Carter, not yet anyway, she removed the device, thoroughly enjoying when the woman collapsed to the floor, her breath coming in harsh, panting gasps.

She turned to Sarah. "Now that she's out of the way, I think it's time we had a little talk."

<><><><><>

Sly slipped the pry bar between the doors and pulled, counting on the two men assisting him to hold the doors open. "Anybody down there?" he called, shining a flashlight into the dark shaft.

"Siler? That you?"

"Yes, sir. How many people are stuck with you?"

"Just Daniel and me. What's going on?"

"We're not quite sure, sir. The whole base just shut down," Sly explained, moving to the side to let two airmen bring forward a rope ladder. He climbed down the ladder and stepped onto the roof of the car. He opened the hatch.

"What do you mean shut down?" Colonel O'Neill asked him, shielding his eyes as Sly shined the flashlight into his face.

"I mean shut down, sir. No power, all the emergency bulkheads have come down, even the phones aren't working."

"What about the backups?" he asked as Siler lowered a second ladder down to them.

"They're not working," Siler answered.

"So nothing's working?" Doctor Jackson asked him, climbing out of the car.

"We do have running water, sir," Siler said.

"That's good," O'Neill said. "Cause the first thing I gotta do is hit the head. Then we're going to get down to the control room and find out what the hell is going on."

<><><><><>

"Leave her alone!" Sam yelled, pulling ineffectually against the chain around her wrist. "She doesn't know anything."

The woman ignored her, standing over Sarah, yelling at her, occasionally hitting her with the pain stick. At first, Sarah had fought back, denying the woman's words, but now she was just curled up on the floor, her arms wrapped protectively around her head.

"Who do you serve?" the woman demanded, stepping forward to kick Sarah.

"Stop it!" Sam yelled, trying to get at her. Both of them were chained on opposite sides of the wall, the length of the chain meaning that Sam couldn't get close enough to the woman to do anything. The woman kicked Sarah again and Sam reached for her left wrist, pulling off her watch. She threw it at the woman.
It missed and shattered against the wall, but it was enough to make her turn around. "You're torturing her."

"She's just a goa'uld," the woman said, stepping towards Sam.

"She's a human being."

"She's the enemy. And you're guilty of giving aid and comfort to the enemy."

"She's not the enemy. That's what was inside her. It's gone now."

"I never did understand why they chose you. Why they kept you here. You're just like her, a rotten, stinking goa'uld. Maybe that's why no one ever finds any technology. You keep it, don't you?"

"What?" Sam demanded. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"It all makes sense now. You keep it for yourself. You're a goa'uld aren't you? You're all goa'ulds. That's why you stopped us, why you imprisoned us. We were going to find out the truth and you couldn't allow that."

"We're not goa'ulds," Sam insisted, cringing at the madness in the woman's eyes. The far away look of insanity that chilled her to the bone. It reminded her of the cold glint she'd seen in Jonas' eyes before he'd died.

"They're everywhere aren't they?" she said, ignoring Sam. "This whole base has been taken over. That's why she's here. She's your mistress, isn't she? You're going to conquer Earth."

"No. We're not-"

"So there are more of you," she said, pouncing on Sam's misspoken word like a hawk on a mouse.
"I have to stop them. Can't let them take control. Can't-"

Sam lunged, using the cuff around her wrist as an anchor, she kicked out, knocking the woman down.
They both fell hard, the pain stick rolling from the woman's hand. Sam lunged for the weapon, the chain around her wrist keeping her from easily reaching it. She brushed it with the tips of her fingers and scrabbled for it desperately.

Just as she wrapped her fingers around it a heavy boot slammed down on her hand and she cried out. The woman picked up the device and then raised her foot, stepping out of Sam's reach. "Treasonous bitch!" she yelled, reaching forward. Sam tried to pull away, tried to avoid the trident tip of the pain stick as it lunged for her.

She failed.

<><><><><>

Jack slid down the last few feet and paused a second at the base of the elevator. He was definitely getting too old for this crap. Daniel's boot dropped into his vision and he stepped back, allowing his friend to complete his descent.

"What now?" Jack asked Siler.

"Well, sir, I'm hoping whomever's trapped on this level also started working on the bulkheads," he said, manipulating the lock on the door.

"If not?"

"If not, then we'll need to crawl through the ventilation shafts to the storeroom on corridor B and pull out the plasma torch."

"It took you half an hour to cut through a bulkhead last time," Daniel reminded.

"Yes, sir. And there are four between here and the gateroom."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Jack said.

"I agree, sir, because we have another problem."

"What?" Daniel asked.

"Whoever shut the base down, also shut down the air recycling systems. We've only got a few hours before the CO2 reaches dangerous levels, and the more crowded areas will become toxic first."

<><><><><>

Anguished screams echoed off the walls and Sarah cringed, trying to pull herself in tighter. Hurting. Someone was hurting. She remembered hurting, remembered making someone scream. Laughing as they writhed on the floor, reveling in her power.

Raising her head, she watched as the woman tormented Sam, prodding her again and again with the stick. Yelling and screaming, shouting horrible things. She watched as Sam struggled, trying to get away and failing, helplessly lying on the ground.

It was the screaming that got on her nerves. The screaming that she hated. Others had done that. Falling at her feet, begging for mercy, their eyes wide as they stared, paralyzed by the golden beam of the hand device.

He'd enjoyed it, loved seeing people cowering in fear. Hundreds, he'd killed hundreds that way. Whole villages fell to appease his perverted lust, to fuel his sick desires. He would draw it out, sometimes for hours.

That was what haunted her when she slept. That was why she didn't want to remember, for with the information came the screams and with the screams came the terror.

Stop. She wanted it to stop. She covered her ears with her hands and still it didn't stop. She moaned and cried and she could still hear it, the screams now hoarse and weak. Stop. It had to stop.

Pulling her hands from her ears, she staggered to her feet, wincing at the noise. She stepped forward, stopping when she reached the end of her chain. Desperately, she pulled, yanking her hand unmercifully against the unforgiving metal. The skin tore, and she pulled. Blood dripped into the gray floor and still she pulled. Grabbing one hand with the other she relentlessly squeezed, crying out as she felt her thumb dislocate.

As the pain drove her to her knees, she yanked her hand free, watching in morbid fascination as her thumb flopped uselessly. She crawled across the room, her gaze fixated on the other two women. Sam was on the floor, her eyes closed, her breathing ragged. And the other stood over her, staring dispassionately as she raised her foot, placing it on the helpless woman's throat.

She stepped down and Sarah lunged, pushing her to the floor. The woman screamed, the pain stick skittering across the floor. Riding the strength of her rage, Sarah climbed on top of her, wrapping her good hand around the woman's throat.

The woman struggled and fought and Sarah tightened her grip, seeing not her tormentor, but herself, the part of her that she'd thought was gone, the part of her that reveled in pain, the part of her that administered death and strife.

Desperate hands clutched at hers, short fingernails digging into skin, and still she squeezed. The body under her bucked and fought but she remained where she was, holding it down with her very weight. The woman's struggles diminished and Sarah only squeezed harder, leaning forward to apply as much leverage as she could.

Finally she lay still, her frantic fingers fluttering briefly, then folding and following her hand to flop on the floor. Sarah sat there for several minutes, her hand still wrapped around her throat, her body still draped over the woman's chest. She watched as tears streamed down the woman's face. She listened as harsh, gasping sobs tore through the room. She stared until she realized what she'd done, then she screamed.

<><><><><>

Jack squeezed himself in beside Siler, adding his strength to the man's as they tried to push the bulkhead aside. He felt Daniel behind him, ready to slip the heavy bar into place, using the three foot long piece of iron as a prop to keep the door from closing behind them.

This was becoming a well-practiced ritual for the men, this bulkhead being the fourth, and last, they'd worked their way through.

The Sargent's initial diagnosis had been wrong, the bulkheads hadn't been locked into place, merely closed and so cutting through them hadn't been necessary. Something Jack was grateful for in a way. Prying them open was more physical labor, but it was also a hell of a lot easier than the three weeks worth of paperwork that was required to replace one of the steel doors.

He felt Daniel slide the bar into place and the three of them relaxed, all breathing heavily. "Now what?" Daniel asked, peeking around Jack to see an empty corridor. The way to the control room was clear but he could see that the door to the gateroom was closed.

The two airmen that had helped them out of the elevator came down the hall, their arms burdened with weapons. "Sir," one of them said, holding a P-90 out to Jack.

"Thank you, sergeant." Jack checked the weapon. "We take the control room. Let's not assume the worst, but let's be prepared for it. This could be a glitch, but it could also be the beginning of a systematic takeover of the SGC. Our objective is to secure the control room, find out what's going on, and if this is some sort of invasion that we can't control, we crash the mountain," he ordered.

"Yes, sir," the three airmen said.

"And if it's just a glitch?" Daniel asked, taking the pistol the man handed him.

"Let's hope it is," Jack said. "Siler, Wells, you're with me. Cartago, you and Daniel hang back, watch our six. If we don't give you the all clear, your objective is to get upstairs, spread the word to NORAD or to Peterson. Tell them the SGC has been compromised." Jack looked pointedly at Daniel. "Under no circumstances is anyone going to get a John Wayne complex. The security of the SGC is more vital than any one person," he said pointedly. Daniel simply nodded.

Jack signaled to the two men and they silently swept around the bulkhead, their tread light and fast. Standing at the threshold, Daniel watched, his eyes alert for any sign of a threat. The trio approached the control room and Daniel tensed, his heart pounding in his throat. They crept up the stairs and out of sight and Daniel strained his ears.

How long was he supposed to wait? He knew if things were okay, Jack would be telling him shortly. But he also knew, if things weren't okay, the longer he waited, the less his chances of slipping away undetected and being able to spread the word to the surface. He looked to Cartago and saw the same question on the man's face.

He wished that he'd pressed Jack, asked for a deadline or a time limit. Something to make his judgement call easier. "I don't hear anything," Cartago whispered.

"Me neither."

"Maybe we should-"

"No," Daniel interrupted. "You heard him. First priority is to get out of here."

"And then what?"

"What?"

"Is anyone going to believe us?" the man asked.

Daniel shrugged. "We'll have to make them."

"How?"

"We just will."

A whistle cut through the air. "If you two kids are done, we got work to do."

Daniel turned, staring at Jack leaning against the threshold of the control room. "Jack?"

He waved him forward. "Hammond's only gonna explain this once," he said.

"Why do I have the funny feeling that getting through the bulkheads was the easy part?" Daniel asked.

Jack quirked his head. "Oh, you ain't heard nothing yet."

<><><><><>

Sam slowly opened her eyes, swallowing in an attempt to calm the nausea roiling through her stomach. God she hurt, every single nerve ending felt like it was on fire. She closed her eyes and laid there for several minutes, trusting on her ears to tell her what was going on.

It was quiet, deathly quiet. She could hear her own breathing rasping, hear her own heart beating. A rhythmic thumping impinged upon her hearing and she frowned, trying to place the sound. Someone else was close by. Alarmed, she opened her eyes, frowning at the field of green and gray swam into view.

Blinking, she raised her head, alarmed to discover that the field of green was a pair of standard issue BDU's, covering a leg. Following the leg up, she saw a pale hand and equally pale face. Recognizing the form of her tormentor, she pushed herself up, crying out softly as her muscles protested the sudden movement.

The paleness of the woman's skin and stillness of her features confirmed that she was no longer a threat, and obviously not the source of the sound. She looked around the small room, her eyes settling on Sarah.
The woman was huddled in the corner. Her eyes were unfocused and she was rocking gently. The chain hung lifelessly from the wall, rusty stains marring the silvery cuff. Other dark stains colored the dusty floor and Sam looked at Sarah, noting how the woman kept her left hand cradled in her lap. "Sarah," she said, wincing as her throat hurt, her voice rough and almost a croak. "Sarah," she tried again.

The woman ignored her, lost in her own world. "Sarah?" she said louder, wincing as the noise made her head hurt. Still not getting a response, Sam tried to stand up, sliding back down when her legs refused to hold her. The room started spinning and she closed her eyes, not even aware when her head hit the floor, cushioned by her arm.

<><><><><>

"We're hoping that restarting the system will undo whatever Major Carter did to the computers," Davis reported.

"I don't buy Carter sabotaging us," Jack said.

"Me neither," Daniel said, staring at the small group gathered in the control room. Siler was off in the corner, working on rigging a naquadah reactor to power the computers. Teal'c and Wells were helping him while Davis briefed Jack, Daniel and General Hammond.

The room was dark and oddly silent, not even the omnipresent whir of the computer fans breaking the quiet. Emergency beacons shone in two corners, giving the room an eerie cast, heavy shadows adding a sense of spookiness.

"I'm not inclined to either, however the evidence seems to lead that way," Hammond said.

"The program that I saw before we got shut down looked just like the code she used five years ago when you guys…borrowed the gate," Davis said.

Jack shook his head. "That doesn't mean anything."

"Maybe not, sir, but with all due respect, the major has a rather distinctive way of writing code. I know what it looks like."

"Sam's not even here," Daniel said. "She went home."

"In a bad mood," Hammond said.

"What?"

"I am sorry, O'Neill," Teal'c spoke up. "Major Carter was most…irritated when she left this facility," he relayed, his voice full of regret.

"Just because she's irritated, doesn't mean she did anything to Sarah," Daniel insisted.

"What?" Hammond asked, clearly not aware of the situation.

"She's missing too. Or was before the lights went out," Jack said. "That's what we were coming down to tell you."

"We're ready, sir," Siler said.

Hammond nodded. "If this works, as soon as we get control back, lock down the base. I want a level by level search for both Miss Gardner and Major Carter," he ordered. "The sooner we find both of them, the sooner we can get to the bottom of this," he said, cutting off Jack's protests.

"Sir-"

"Permission granted to lead the search," the general said pointedly. He waited for Jack's nod before turning to Sly. "Shut it down."

<><><><><>

"You know, they say aliens hide down here," Jake Bosworth said, following Dixon around the corner.

"You really buy that crap?" Colonel Dixon asked, rolling his eyes.

The man had the grace to blush. "Come on, sir. We're searching the subbasement to the subbasement. Only hell is lower."

"Trust me, this is not hell," Dixon said, leading his teammate around another corner. "You want hell, come to my place and take my kids. Better yet, take my wife."

"Sir?"

"PMS Bosworth. You know, if we ever want to finally cream the goa'uld, we need to get every single female officer when she's PMSing and give her a gun. They won't stand a chance."

Jake shot his leader a look, used to his domestic grousing. "Place still gives me the creeps," he muttered.

"Sooner we check it, sooner we can go upstairs and only be three hundred feel below the Earth."

They made their way through the maze of corridors and small rooms that comprised the sublevel. Fortunately, Davis' idea of rebooting the system worked and things were getting back to normal. Unfortunately, normal meant that he and Bosworth were on search detail, with about fifty other lucky people that happened to be marooned in the SGC until the two missing women were found. Which really sucked considering that he was supposed to be home an hour ago.

They made their way down another corridor and he reached for the switch, frowning when the light didn't turn on. "Siler's been slacking," he quipped, reaching for his flashlight.

"They're not all out," Bosworth said, nodding towards the end of the hall and the small sliver of light seeping out from under a door.

"Could just be a coincidence," Dixon said.

"Could be." They edged their way down the hall, their soft footsteps sounding horribly loud in the near silence of the abandoned level.

After several feet, Dixon held up his hand, motioning for Jake to stop. "Do you hear that?" he whispered softly.

Jake nodded. "Voices."

"Female voices." Dixon reached for his radio.

"Wait."

"What?"

"What if it's aliens?"

"Like that never happens around here?"

"I don't want to tell Colonel O'Neill and Doctor Jackson that we found their friends and be wrong."

"Bosworth, you're a weenie," Dixon said, releasing the radio. They crept quietly forward, the voice getting louder and louder as they got nearer.

"Sarah. The keys have to be in her pocket. Can you get them? Come one, Sarah, just reach out, get those keys. Sarah, you can do this. You've got to do this. It's the only way we're gonna get out of here. You've got to help me here."

Recognizing the voice, Dixon picked up the pace, moving to peek in the window. Motioning to Bosworth, he pulled the door open, barely noticing the startled cry from the woman in the room. "Clear," he said, holstering his weapon.

"Colonel Dixon," Carter said, looking up from her place on the floor.

He took stock of her attire and deliberately bit his tongue. Majors in leather…there was a movie like that once. Maybe he'd seen it in college? "Major," he said, moving to check the fallen woman, knowing before he even touched her that she was dead. "I'm guessing that's Doctor Jackson's friend," he said, pointing at Sarah who was still curled up in the corner, quietly rocking.

"Yes, sir."

"Who's this?"

She shook her head. "I have no idea. She locked up both of us down here. The keys are in her pocket," she said, carefully rattling the chain around her wrist. "Where is here, by the way?"

"You could say whoever that is, she sank to a new low, ma'am," Bosworth said.

"Ignore him, he's a smart ass," Dixon said, retrieving the key and unlocking the cuff, trying to be as gentle as possible and not do any more damage. Her wrist was noticeably bruised and swollen, telling him that something definitely not fun had been happening down here. "You're in the basement of the SGC. We'll get some help down here and have you guys back upstairs in no time," he promised.

"Thank you," she said sincerely, cradling her wrist in her lap and making no move to get to her feet. "You better get Daniel down here," she said softly. He raised his eyebrows in question. "I think she needs him." She nodded towards the woman in the corner.

"Will do," he agreed, reaching for his radio.

<><><><><>

"How the hell did this woman get off of death row and in the SGC?" Jack asked, looking at the people seated around the table. It had been several hours since Sarah and Sam had been found down in one of the sublevels. Both were still in the infirmary, Sarah, he knew, probably already in surgery to repair the damage done to her hand.

It hadn't taken them long to identify the assailant, even after three years in prison, Jack had still recognized ex-Lieutenant Claire Tobias, one of Makepeace's renegade officers.

"According to my sources, when she'd backwards engineered tech, she built herself a back door," Agent Barrett said, his voice sounding tinny over the teleconferencing unit. The man had a cup of coffee cradled in his hands and his normally neat appearance was slightly scruffy, his tie loosened and his hair mussed. Jack knew that he'd probably been up all night, as had all of them as well.

"Back door?" Jack asked.

"Sort of like that Machello guy you guys dealt with several years ago. He kept notes in an original language. Tobias would leave out one key element or twist a couple of numbers. Not enough to ruin the item, but enough to make sure that anything that was made from her plans didn't work," he said.

"And she exchanged her services fixing the devices for her life," Teal'c said.

"Yes," Barrett confirmed. "And it worked." He pointed at the camera. "That thing you found in her quarters, the Asgard confiscated the original, but Colonel O'Neill has identified it as being similar to the cloaking device he…borrowed from the Tiernod. That's probably how she was able to have free run of the base for weeks and no one knew."

"And likely how she was able to escape the custody of her captors," Teal'c said.

"Probably," Barrett confirmed.

"Still doesn't explain how she disappeared from death row and no one noticed," Jack said, clearly irritated.

"That's because, as far as we knew, she was dead, Colonel," Barrett said. "She was reported executed a year ago."

"Why would she come here?" Daniel asked.

"We found where she'd escaped from," Barrett said. "The people were gone, but they left their reports behind. One of them mentioned increasing levels of paranoia and obsession about the SGC, Major Carter and the goa'uld,"

"Her motive was revenge?" Teal'c said.

Daniel shook his head. "I can understand being angry at the SGC, even at Sarah but…Sam had nothing to do with her getting arrested. If she was going to go after anyone, I would have expected Jack."

"Thanks," Jack quipped. "I think that was personal," Jack said after a few seconds, his voice now serious. "When we were off-world, she told me that she was up for the SGC and that Carter beat her out," he said.

"I'm sorry about this, Colonel," Barrett said. "Whoever started all these rogue operations, buried them deep. We may never find them all."

"That's so reassuring," Jack quipped.

"Thank you for your assistance, Agent," Hammond said, picking up the remote and disconnecting the call. "Major Carter's and Miss Gardner's reports can wait until they're recovered. Dismissed," he said, getting to his feet.

"I'll catch up with you guys," Jack said, following the general into his office. "I guess we need to do a better job of keeping an eye on what's going on in the basement," he said, taking a seat in Hammond's office, the thought that his friend had nearly died so close to home was a sobering one. Not to mention the potential chaos that could be created by the alien device. "What about the device?"

"It was damaged irreparably," Hammond said, his hidden meaning clear. As soon as Carter was back on her feet, Jack knew her first job would be to flummox the thing, make sure that no one else could ever use it. "Even invisible, I still want to know how Tobias managed to live on this base for three weeks without someone noticing," Hammond said.

Jack shrugged. "She's smart."

"Yeah, she is. I remember her," George said. "And she's right, both she and Carter were up for the same position."

"Carter won."

"It was a toss up," George corrected. "They were both equally qualified, both had good records. Carter had knowledge of the stargate but Tobias was the better engineer."

"Sir?"

"She was the daughter of a friend and I hated to see all that potential wasted pushing paper in the Pentagon," he confessed.

"Do you regret it?" Jack asked softly.

George shook his head. "Not in the slightest."

"Then that's what counts."

<><><><><>

Sam ran the scanner over the small device, not surprised when her readings came up the same as they had the past ten times she'd tried. She turned it off and set the small device down on her table and picked up the small tape recorder, her injured wrist making it an easier method of taking notes than typing. "Experiment number ten, I've removed several components from the replicated Tiernod device and it still works. Without access to Tobias' notes, I'm not certain if I will be able to effectively disable the device. And even if I do, anyone with access to the notes will be able to troubleshoot and repair it. Recent tests performed by Doctor Fraiser indicate that there is a side effect, namely the fact that certain waved emitted by the device will alter the serotonin level in a human. This could account for Tobias' instability, since disrupted serotonin levels can induce paranoia and psychotic behaviors. I'm starting to think that either there was a fatal flaw in the recreation of the device or that there is some difference between Tiernod physiology and human physiology and that the device is not compatible to be used cross-species. It does render an individual invisible, however unless we can find a way to eliminate the side-effect on the wearer's seratonin levels, prolonged use will result in increasing levels of paranoia and instability."

A movement caught her eye and she stopped talking, snapping off the recorder.

"Can I come in?" Sarah asked, standing on the threshold.

"Sure," Sam replied, setting down the tape recorder. She acknowledged the SF and saw the woman step back, taking up station outside the door, but out of sight of the occupants.

"Daniel's going to help me find an apartment this afternoon," she said, stepping closer, her arm still encased in a sling to protect her injured wrist. Sam had visited her a couple of times in the past two weeks, relieved to discover that the woman's catatonic state had been only temporary, resulting from shock.

Sam knew that it would be a while before she'd fully recover, but at least she was making some strides, aided, no doubt, by Daniel's steady presence. "So you can leave the base?"

Sarah nodded. "I still need to come in and talk to your psychologist, but I guess they trust me not to try and take over the world, or tell everyone what happens down here."

"That's good," Sam replied honestly, glad to see that the woman was starting to pick up the pieces of her life.

"I've remembered a few more things, just bits and pieces…"

"It takes time. It's been five years since Jolinar, and I'm still remembering new things," Sam said.

Sarah nodded and looked away, acting like she was going to leave the room, then turned back. "They're afraid of you, you know?"

"What?"

"Well, not you specifically. Humans, the Tau'ri. They're afraid of you, Anubis especially. That's why he's concentrated so much of his efforts on trying to destroy Earth. He knows that, other than Lord Yu, the Tau'ri are the only other real threat. The other system lords know that too," she said, stepping closer to Sam. "And they're torn. They hate the Tau'ri, but right now I think they hate Anubis more."

"They're the ones that welcomed him back," Sam reminded.

"Yes, and they're regretting it. They have found out that Anubis did not want to join the system lords, he wants to rule them. They're afraid of him, afraid of what he's doing to them. Afraid that they will be the next one to die." She stopped just a couple of feet away from Sam. "I want them to be afraid of me too," she said.

"What do you mean?"

"Daniel said that you used hypnosis to remember."

"In the beginning, yes."

"Can you show me?" she asked, her voice eager and earnest.

"Are you sure?" Sam asked her. "Chances are a lot of what you remember isn't going to be good."

"I want to stop them. Keep them from ever doing this to anyone again. You said it yourself, some of what I know may be important."

"It might be. It might be nothing," Sam warned.

"I want to remember," Sarah declared.

Sam studied her for a few seconds, then nodded. "Ok. I can talk to the person that helped me."

Sarah smiled, relaxing a bit with Sam's promise. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sarah turned and walked out into the hall, leaving Sam alone. She sighed, picking up the cloaking device and turning it over in her hands. It looked like they weren't going to get any new technology today, but they may have just gained something far more valuable, and more deadly.

Sarah walked down the hall, nodding towards the woman escorting her. "I'd like to go to Doctor Jackson's office now," she said.

"Yes, ma'am."

They reached the elevator and the SF summoned the car. While she waited, Sarah looked down at her free hand, flexing and relaxing the fingers, watching the play of skin and muscle over bone. She used to wear a ribbon weapon on that hand, used to use it to dispense pain and punishment.

It was an elegant device, graceful and pretty. But also cumbersome. When she wore it, she could often use her hand for little else. It was odd that a simple, unadorned human hand was a far more effective way to kill.

~Fin~

Feedback:sky_diver119@yahoo.com

HOME