That which we try to forget Part 2
by Annejackdanny and Cancer

Jack frowned, he still wasn’t happy with the placement of the ruby slippers. They didn’t look right on top of the filing cabinet. He sighed and returned to his chair just as someone knocked on his door. 

“Come!”  He called as he sat down again.

The door opened and Daniel walked in.  “Jack…”  He paused and frowned at the ruby slippers sitting on top of the filing cabinet. 

He put the bundle of papers he’d been carrying on Jack's desk, walked over to the cabinet, lifted the slippers, looked around the room frowning, and walked decisively over to the row of shelves.  He moved a couple of Jack’s photos slightly to the left and placed the shoes beside one of them with a nod. 

Jack shook his head. Trust Daniel to find the perfect spot for them, beside the photo of  SG-1 just after they had been on their first mission together.

“You happy now?” He asked with a smile.

“Yep.”  Daniel replied as he sat down facing Jack.

They stared at each other for a moment, until Jack raised a questioning eyebrow. 

Daniel blinked, then leaned forward slightly and picked up the papers he’d brought with him.  “I thought I’d do a bit of research on Chenzira before we meet with him.”

“And. So?”

“There’s not much in the Ancient Egyptian records. He’s cited as a loyal scribe to the Temple of Ra and that’s about it. He’s mentioned a few times in records for the temple, but then all reports of him stop.  Around the time he vanished from records there is an increase in Ba’al worship.” 

“That only tells us what we already know, that’s probably when Ba’al took him.”

“Exactly!” Daniel leaned forward eagerly. “Don’t you see, Jack? This confirms what Chenzira said. He was right to call this his home planet.  And he has perfect right to request to return here if he wishes.”  

“You sound suspiciously happy about that,” Jack said dryly.

Daniel's features changed immediately from excitement to somberness. He sat back and shook his head. “No. No, that's not... Jack, you know I'm not happy about having to face that guy again. Not any more than you are.”

“So what's all the excitement about? Because I can't see the punchline.”

“Of course you can't,” Daniel sighed. “Jack, Chenzira is over 2000 years old. Can you imagine what he must have seen in his lifetime even before Ba'al took him? The changes and way of history he must have witnessed. He served Ra as a young man. He was there. If he really decides to work with us, the things we could learn from him are...” Daniel used his hands to undermine his words, “...unimaginable.”

“You know what?” Jack leaned forward, pinning Daniel with a glare that would have made anyone else flee the room. Not Daniel of course. “Frankly, I don't give a damn.”

Daniel's eyes looked pained. “I know,” he said quietly. “And I understand where you're coming from.”     

Jack half rose out of his chair.  “And just so you know. There is no frigging way that he’s  placing one little toe on this planet. At least not outside this mountain. He is not coming to live here.”

Daniel sighed.  “I didn't imply we should let him live here.”  Deciding to change the subject he shuffled his papers for a moment. “Do we know who'll be accompanying us yet?”

“SG-2,” Jack replied with grin. “Ferretti is prepping his team as we speak.”

~*~*~*~*~

Later in the locker room Daniel watched Ferretti and his team leave. Giving a wave of acknowledgement to Lou as he left, Daniel observed Jack out of the corner of his eye.

The waves of tension were radiating off the man. Daniel tied his boots. “So.”

“So?”

“How do you feel about this?”

“How do I feel?”

“Jack. don’t be an….”

“Yeah, okay. Little weird, little not so peachy... ya know.  I know it’s not him, but still….”

“Yeah, I get it.”  Daniel turned and closed his locker making a mental note to pick up this conversation later, preferably over a beer or two.

They finished gearing up and left the locker room together.

~*~*~*~*~

They all watched as the wormhole swirled out and settled. Jack, adjusting the cap on his head, looked at his teammates and SG-2.  “Okay, kids, we’re off to meet the wizard.”  With Daniel at his side, he led the way up the ramp and into who knew what.   The 'who knew what' turned out to be a blazing sun and sand…nothing but sand and jagged mountains as far as the eye could see.

“You've got to be kidding me!” Jack blinked into the glaring sunlight and put on his shades. “Ya know, I don't get it. Why is it that whenever I go through that gate these days I'm either stuck in some never ending boring-me-outta-my-skull-extraction ceremony or a dust cloud backwater sandy chunk of rock?”

“You only traveled through the Stargate twice since you left the SGC, O'Neill,” Teal'c said stoically.

“And your point is?”

Teal'c merely lifted an eyebrow.

“No trees,” Daniel shrugged.

“Sand,” Jack pointed out as he started walking. “Lotsa sand. Everywhere. Sand.” He gestured at the dunes surrounding them.

“This is one giant sandbox. Lou!” He spun on his heel to face the commander of SG-2. “I want two of your men at the gate. The rest of you are with us.” Ferretti barked out orders and a moment later they were on their way through the sandbox.

“Sand,” Jack muttered again, kicking at the offending ground.

Daniel exchanged a bemused glance with Sam as they followed Jack toward the first row of dunes. It was good to have him back. Daniel would never have admitted it aloud.  But, yes, sometimes he'd missed Jack out here.  

“Isn't he supposed to meet us somewhere?” Jack stopped at the top of the dune, yanking out his binoculars and scanning the area. “There's some building over there. Daniel?”

“I see it,” Daniel muttered, gazing through his own binoculars. “That must be the temple he lives in. It used to be one of Ba'al’s worship places. Where he accepted sacrifices and the naquadah the people of this planet mined for him.” 

“Of course he did,” Jack said dryly.

Jack was edgy, tense. Even though he managed to appear calm and just slightly annoyed at the landscape, Daniel could feel and see it. He cast Jack a sideways glance, wondering if it would have been better to send another team on this particular mission.  But then again perhaps SG-1 was the only team fit and able to deal with this situation because of their past history with Ba’al, No one knew him better than SG-1. Except Vala maybe.  

“General, someone has left the building and is headed this way,”  Ferretti reported. 

“I see him, Colonel,”  Jack replied.  “Guess it’s show time folks.”  He started down the dune with the rest of his team and the two members of SG-2 close behind him.

Chenzira strode down the wide flat steps from the temple entrance into the hot sand. He could feel the heat through his shoes. His robes rustled as he went to meet his visitors, a  dry whisper in the stillness of this world. 

He stopped at the bottom of the steps and watched the procession of people coming down a steep dune. Two of the group he did not know. The rest of them, however.... Ba'al had despised them all.

Samantha Carter, the female. Too intelligent for her own good. She had punched him once, which had amused Ba'al despite his anger. Ba'al had liked women with grit. Which was why he had enjoyed being with Qetesh so much. He had wondered when Samantha Carter had punched him, if she would be a worthwhile mate. Chenzira watched her thoughtfully. He liked her fair hair and blue eyes. Opposed to Ba'al who had preferred the dark fire that had burnt in Qetesh. There was a fire burning in Samantha Carter, too. Chenzira met her blue eyes briefly and was amused at how they narrowed and gave him a troubled stare in return.

Teal'c, the shol'va. Every system lord in this galaxy had wanted his head. What a great victory that would have been. But Ba'al had soon discovered that killing the Jaffa would only be a short lived triumph. Using Teal'c's hunger for freedom as a tool for his own personal agenda had been much more appealing to Ba'al. He’d had great plans for the Jaffa. Teal'c would have earned much power among his people had the time machine not been destroyed. 

Doctor Jackson... Chenzira searched for the memory Ba'al had of the man with the spectacles. He was the one who had lived among the Ancients. A source of knowledge and secrets, yet not useful without a mind controlling device as many of the memories from his ascension still seemed to be buried deep within. Jackson was a man of books, a scribe. He sought knowledge and yet he was not to be underestimated because he could wield this knowledge like a sword and if the Ancients had tolerated him among them, he must be of value.

Chenzira knew these people, yet he’d never met them in person. Ba'al had been the one interacting with them, hating them, fighting them. And he had been defeated by them time and again. Finally Ba'al had even lost his greatest triumph, his last battle. A plan prepared so carefully, so explicitly. Yet, SG-1 had brought failure.

He watched as the group of humans came to a halt in front of him, their leader flanked by the two unknown Tau'ri.

Jack O'Neill.

The wave of viciousness was as hot as Anhur's sun and Chenzira had to fight hard to control his features when he was face to face with the man who had almost died at Ba'al's hands – and then had managed the impossible. He’d escaped. From a fortress. And had been a thorn in Ba'al's side ever since. Taunting him.  Antagonizing him.

“General O'Neill,” Chenzira said smoothly. “SG-1. Welcome to Anhur.” He turned and waved at the sandstone temple. “It's no palace of luxury, but it is cool inside.” 

O'Neill's dark eyes narrowed instantly. “I like the view from the outside,” he said. “Nice place.”

Chenzira curled his lips in disdain. “Ba'al had a rather unique taste of how he wanted his temples to be built.” It didn't always mirror Chenzira's liking, but that would change now of course. Soon. 

“That's interesting though,” Doctor Jackson said, flailing his arm all over the temple's derelict facade. “I've never had the opportunity to actually study a temple of Ba'al's. We always met him outside his... home.” 

“I was invited to his home once. Didn't leave an impression,” O'Neill said dryly.

Jackson winced.

Chenzira doubted that to be true. Ba'al had left an impression on everyone who survived meeting him. Especially on O'Neill. He could sense the man's unease even though he hid it well.      

Clearing his throat, Jackson said, “I'd like to take a look at the architecture if you don't mind, Chenzira.”    

“From the outside, for now,” O'Neill said.

“And the inside, later,” Jackson replied lightly, without looking at his leader. He was studying the writings near the temple entrance. “This must be hundreds of years old. Chenzira, do you know when Ba'al had this temple built?”

“I do. I was there,” Chenzira replied mildly. “It is approximately 1000 Tau'ri years old. I don't know the exact date. But please... let's find some shade and water in the temple courtyard.” 

Jack grimaced and walked over to talk to Teal'c, Lou and Anderson while Daniel studied the temple wall. Jack brushed by Carter as he passed, muttering, “Keep an eye on him.” 

Sam nodded and continued to stare at Chenzira, then blinked and gave him a pinched smile. “Sorry. I didn't mean to... “

He allowed himself a smirk. “As long as you don't attempt to hit me again, Colonel Carter, there is nothing to be sorry about.” 

She blinked again, probably trying to figure out if he had just threatened her. “Right,” she finally said. “Can't say I'm sorry for the punch. But it wasn't anything personal. It was for Ba'al. He deserved it.”

“We did share the same body though,” Chenzira said with the quirk of a smile.

Sam fixed her eyes on a point behind Chenzira's head. What was the guy doing? Was he trying to flirt with her? Was he playing games? When she forced her eyes back on him, the smirk had left his olive-skinned face and the familiar haughty air of arrogance she had sensed a moment before was gone as well from his features.

“I apologize,” he said quietly. “Ba'al has left me with millennia of memories. Some I find hard to... fight.”     

“Okay,” she said, realizing he didn't quite look like Ba'al anymore. She couldn't put her finger on it, but the extraction had taken something from the man. He seemed to be more... ordinary. Bland. His eyes were brown while Ba'al's had been almost black when  they didn't glitter in their golden Goa'uld flash. His face was less animated and the tentative smile he gave her now didn't have anything of the sarcastic evil spirited note she was used to from Ba'al. 

But it wasn't okay. She felt a cold shiver crawl up her spine.

Numbers began flashing in front of her eyes, star constellations, solar flares, exploding stars, high walls of a tower surrounding her, liquid fire all around her...

Oh, no, not again. Not now, she thought with an inward groan. Cradling her weapon in her arms, she tried to stay anchored to

reality and when Daniel called her name she started moving, relived the numbers and symbols retreated to the back of her mind.

One of these days she needed to write them down and figure out what they were.

“What's up, Daniel?” She stepped next to him, gazing at the dusty wall in front her. Rows of glyphs on sunlight bleached stone.

“Ba'al had quite some influence here,” Daniel said. “People of Anhur came here to bring him sacrifices so he would grant them rain and a good harvest. He held orgies here. But he also let them sacrifice their first born children and animals.”

“Oh, my.”

“Yeah, pretty much rutting and killing,” Daniel said, glancing at Chenzira over his shoulder. “He's carrying a heavy burden.”

“I can't even... imagine how he is going to live with the guilt,” Sam murmured.

“Maybe he isn't. Maybe he's realized that Ba'al was another personality and a separate being. It's possible that in order to continue to live a halfway normal life he will try to bury anything attached to Ba'al.”

“Do you think that's even possible?”

“The mind is a scary deep place. Well, mine is anyway,” Daniel joked, though they both knew it was only half in jest. “You can bury a lot in there if you want to.” 

“Sometimes I can still feel Jolinar somewhere in there,” Sam admitted reluctantly. “Lately I seem to be having some... flashes.”

Daniel stopped brushing his long fingers over the wall and slowly turned to look at her. “What kind of... flashes?”

“Oh, you know... weird stuff like symbols, numbers... must be fragments of Jolinar's memories. I used to get them a lot in those first few years after she was part of me. But it’s  pretty much stopped in the last couple of years. I thought she was gone. Apparently something's still there.” And if she could still sense Jolinar's presence in her head, how hard would it be for Chenzira who had spent so much time being possessed by Ba'al?

Daniel pursed his lips, his eyes thoughtful, as he continued to look at her. “Are you sure those flashes are from Jolinar?”

“Yeah. Where else could they come from?” She shrugged. It wasn't a big deal. And it would probably stop on its own sooner or later. 

Except there was this niggling voice of doubt telling her that she wasn't 100 percent positive the flashes really came from Jolinar. Over the course of time she had learned to distinguish Jolinar's memories from her own. This was slightly different. She couldn't say how, but it was. She slapped the niggling voice down. It must be Jolinar, right? It was the only explanation she was comfortable accepting. The whole extraction ceremony had probably brought up long buried memories of the brief blending between Sam and Jolinar. It would pass.  

“I don't know,” Daniel mumbled, then straightened when Jack and Teal'c came over. “When we're home we have to talk,” he said quietly.

Sam blinked. “About what?”

“About...”

“Daniel, are you done with the wall? We're ready to go inside. Lou and Anderson  will walk perimeters. Teal'c insists on being my personal guard.”

“Me too,” Sam said with a grim smile, patting her weapon.

“Why don't you go ahead and I'll videotape this wall...,” Daniel started, fumbling in his pack for his camera.

“You can play later. Let's go.” Jack turned swiftly and moved towards the temple entrance, expecting Daniel and Sam to follow.

“Oh, look. It must be Jack. I forgot how much I missed his charming personality,” Daniel said, eyebrows climbing over the rim of his glasses. 

Jack turned back to him, cocking his head. “Oh, look, it's Daniel. I forgot how much I missed his attitude.”

Sam saw the smile lurking behind the general's brown eyes and didn't bother to try and hide her own as they followed Chenzira inside the building.

image3

It was dark, only torches illuminated the narrow corridor they had to cross before they entered a hall bathed in bright sunlight and deep shadows. Jack squinted up at the derelict ceiling where several holes let in the light. He could see pieces of walls through the openings in the roof.

“I think there used to be domes,” Daniel said next to him, following his gaze upwards.

“You are correct,” Chenzira's voice came from ahead of them.  

“This looks similar to the temple of Beelshamen,” Daniel explained further. “He was a pre-Islamic sky god of Ancient Syria.”

“He was one of the many gods Ba'al posed as,” Chenzira said. He led them through the hall which was empty except for an altar and several piles of rubble and collapsed parts of the ceiling or walls. 

Jack relaxed slightly and let out the silent breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He wasn't sure what he had expected, but this excuse of a temple didn't resemble the fortress he’d been in while visiting with Ba'al. It was unnerving to realize how deep his issues with said visit went. 

Ba'al had his claws into Jack like nobody else before him. And along with this particular memory came the buried ones from Iraq. Only, Iraq was a walk in the park compared to what Ba'al had done to him. Tortured him, killed him, revived him, tortured him... stripped him bare of any dignity...  Jack had thrown all of it into a pit somewhere and never looked back. Ba'al had continued to show up on his doorstep one way or the other through the years and Jack had dealt with that, too.

Why the hell was it so much harder this time around? The guy wasn't even Ba'al anymore.

Jack had seen the snake being sucked out of Chenzira. He remembered how he'd stared at the twitching dying creature on the ground of the extraction chamber and waited for a feeling of triumph, satisfaction, relief.

And realized he'd felt nothing. Nothing but an unsettling touch of... of something he couldn't place. And back home he chose to ignore the feeling just like he chose to ignore  his thingamajig gene most of the time.

Chenzira strode through a portico. Jack saw pillars supporting damaged statues in alcoves. A musky smell made him feel slightly nauseous and he was relieved when they stepped through a small door into a paved yard. Scanning the narrow place quickly, Jack made out a stone well, stone benches and scattered pieces of pottery on the ground.

Daniel immediately picked one up and studied it. Again Jack had to smother a smile.

“Do you want to refresh yourselves?” Chenzira picked up a wooden bucket tied to a hemp rope, but Teal'c immediately placed a hand on their host's chest and stopped him from going near the well.

“Teal'c?” Daniel asked tentatively, carefully pocketing his pottery find in his tac vest.

Teal'c readied his staff weapon and cautiously edged closer to the stone wall, peering inside the shaft for a long minute. When he stepped back he merely held out his hand and after a moment of locking eyes, Chenzira handed Teal'c the bucket and backed off while Teal'c let the bucket into the well until it hit water.

“The well was installed much later,” Chenzira informed them. “It made it easier for the slaves to collect water. The water hole is not far, but its slopes are sandy and there are often wild animals around to drink.” 

“How thoughtful of Ba'al to make life easier for his slaves,” Daniel said and Jack was grateful for not being the only one with issues around here.

Apparently oblivious to the sarcasm, Chenzira replied. “That wasn't his intention. But the water is cleaner from the well and could be delivered much faster.”

“Of course,” Carter muttered.

Jack watched Teal'c sniff the water when he had pulled out the bucket, then pushed it at Chenzira with the simple order, “Drink.” 

“Ah. If it won't kill me you assume it is safe for you to drink.” There it was again. The slightest bit of mild amusement Jack had seen before. And again it was gone before it could fully blossom on the guy's face.

“Very well.” Chenzira drank, then lowered the bucket and pointed to a wooden scoop lying on one of the benches. “Use this. I would offer glasses or cups but I don't have such a thing here. It's been a very long time since Ba'al left this world.” 

“Not much left of the pomp and ceremony, eh?” Jack spun around and looked for hidey holes, catching Teal'c, Carter and Daniel doing the same. Chenzira claimed to be alone on this dust cloud of a planet, but Jack wouldn’t give a rat's ass for the word of ex-Ba'al.  

“We should sit,” Chen-zero said when nobody made an attempt to drink from the water.

“Yeah, let's sit and talk,” Jack decided. He’d learned a thing or two about diplomacy during his time in Washington. Oh, and he’d watched and observed Daniel doing Doctor Jackson's 101 on how to deal with aliens. He might not have paid attention to all of Daniel's ramblings, but he'd caught a thing or two and it had come in surprisingly handy when having to deal with a room full of politicians.   

He could do this.

They gathered on the stone benches while Teal'c remained standing, staff at his side, looming like a warrior statue close to Jack.

It was comforting.

Chenzira had never imagined Jack O'Neill as a diplomat. However, he’d never believed the man to be dense either. Ba'al, too, had known there was much more behind the taunting sarcastic nature of the man than he let on. A sharp mind. A killer. A warrior who was a formidable enemy. Ba'al and Chenzira had followed  the trail of dead System Lords closely. Had studied O'Neill's way of war. It had been unorthodox to say the least. The man was hard to predict. Only one thing he could say for sure; O'Neill was dangerous. Even more so if one of his teammates was in trouble. He wasn't afraid of death either. Combined with Teal'c's thirst for revenge and his goal of freeing the Jaffa, and the sharp intellects of Samantha Carter and Daniel Jackson, SG-1 was a force to be reckoned with.

And they’d played nicely into Ba'al's hands by eliminating system lord after system lord.

Ba'al had almost felt disappointed when he learned that O'Neill had moved up in Tau'ri ranks and retreated from going out in the field. The new guy, Mitchell, however, had been amusing as well. He, too, had the strange way of honor Tau'ri warriors seemed to carry.

But Ba'al had found he enjoyed battling the old bastard more, simply because he wanted to play with O'Neill for a while longer and then seek revenge for the shame the man had brought upon him by escaping his fortress.

As fate would have it, O'Neill was back in the field now.

Daniel and Jack had quickly worked out a couple of conditions and a 'wish-list' regarding Ba'al's... Chenzira's... proposal to offer them resources and other valuable goods. Daniel had expected to do most of the talking like he used to do before, so he had prepared as well as possible under the short notice he had, for this meeting. 

But Jack didn't seem to need Daniel's help as much as he used to. He was smoothly giving Chenzira an overview of what the SGC and HWS were looking for. There was an air of tension in Jack, but he was all business now. Daniel wasn't fooled by that, though. Jack had eyes in the back of his head and wasn't half as relaxed as he pretended to be. But he did the act damn well. 

“So... allies,” Jack said. “We're looking for allies, preferably with the means of trading.”

“Weapons,” Chenziar assumed. 

“Actually, no. Not so much. The direction of our politics has changed a bit. What we're looking for are clean energy resources, technology for the purpose of science and medical care. People who are willing to share.”

“I see,” Chenzira said thoughtfully. “I will provide you with a list of worlds to visit.“

“Friendly people,” Daniel added. Just to be safe.

“Of course.” The ex-Goa'uld smiled and Daniel felt cold all of a sudden.

He couldn't help but feel as if he was staring into a deep dark abyss every time he looked at Chenzira. Sure, he looked different, he even talked different. Yet, something of Ba'al seemed to lurk under the surface like a predator hiding in the shadows to bide his time.  Waiting patiently for the opportunity to attack.  <

“I will have to look for the record with those gate addresses,” Chenzira said. “But I remember Ba'al kept them here.”

“Good. And while you're in the mood to share...” Jack raised an eyebrow. “Would you be willing to hand over some of Ba'al's... toys, as Vala put it during our first conversation?”

“Did you not just state you are no longer interested in weapons? I also believe the SGC sent several teams to Ba'al's former fortresses to collect his belongings?”

“Ba'al had some very interesting technology in his possession. We would like to take a look at some of them and take them back to the SGC to study. You’re right. We’ve already secured a few of his technologies, but we’re sure there're more hidden somewhere. For example, the cloning technology Ba'al took from Anubis is very intriguing,” Sam chimed in and Daniel could hear the excitement oozing out of her words. “We didn't get a chance to obtain it, yet.” 

“Ba'al's technologies and resources are scattered all over the galaxy,” Chenzira hedged.        

“You will take us to them,” Teal'c bottom lined it. “What we do not claim, we will destroy.”

“What he said,” Jack agreed. “Ba'al's stuff has to go.”

“It will take years to accomplish this,” Chenzira said and, for the first time, seemed a little insecure.    

“So it will take years. We'll contact you when we need your help and you can work with one of our teams,” Jack said, his voice hard. “If you truly want to side with us, you have to work for it.”

“And until all of Ba'al's secrets are discovered, I will be your prisoner?”

“No,” Jack said. “But you'll be closely watched. You do have that locator thingy in you, remember?”

“I see.” Chenzira rose and began pacing the narrow yard. “You didn't mention any of this when we first talked,” he pointed out calmly. “May I remind you that it was I who offered my help in the first place?” 

“Which was very generous of you,” Jack said smoothly. “But my superiors are a little worried about the amount of power you might gain if you collect Ba'al's heritage on your own.”

“I already told you, I am not interested in gaining power,” Chenzira said, annoyed.

Hel-lo. He looked pretty Ba'al-ish when annoyed, Daniel thought, taking in the narrowed eyes and hard lines around his mouth.

“Then work with us,” Jack said coolly.

“If I refuse to comply, will you leave me here and send a bomb through your Stargate?”

“Now, there's a thought...,” Jack said, flashing Chenzira a predatory grin.   

Okay, it was time to step in. Daniel cleared his throat. “We’re merely looking at damage control here, Chenzira. It's not just you who might use Ba'al's technologies and weapons  There are others who might want to get their hands on the cloning technology or the anti-grav controls. We have to make sure nobody can claim these things and continue Ba'al's course of action. Nobody can take his place. We're not kidding ourselves. There might still be minor System Lords out there dreaming of building an empire.”

“And with all that stuff out there, they might have a chance to succeed eventually,” Jack said, now serious again. “Think about it. You want more blood on your hands, Chenzira?”

“Very well,” Chenzira said after a moment of silence. “As proof of my willingness, I would like to show you something. Ba'al left some of his belongings here.”

“Like what?” Jack asked.

“Artifacts he collected from all over the galaxy. Some of them still have to be studied to determine their purpose. You might find something useful among them.”

He turned and walked through a doorway at the other end of the courtyard. The three sitting exchanged looks and then, each giving a small shrug stood and, joined by Teal'c, followed Chenzira inside the temple complex.

“Oh, my,” Sam murmured as she entered the room and took in the pieces of tech lying on various stone tables. She turned to General O'Neill. “Sir?” 

“Go ahead, Colonel. Geek to your heart's content. You too Daniel,”  Jack said waving at them to go on. Leaning against a wall beside Teal'c he watched as his science twins studied the doohickeys while they listened to Chenzira's explanations and speculations. 

“We should be wary, O'Neill”

“Always, Big Guy.”

“Have you been able to translate the writing on this?”  Daniel asked as he ran his fingers over the raised text on what appeared to be a shiny metal box.

“No,” Chenzira replied as he looked at the item in Daniel's hands. “It is of a language neither I nor Ba'al have encountered before or after we found this..”

“Interesting,” Daniel muttered. “I almost feel I should know it and yet don't recognize it.” He ran his fingers over the writing again murmuring as he did.

The cries of  “Daniel?!” and “Doctor Jackson?!” made Jack jerk his head up so quickly he almost snapped a tendon.  “Ah crap!  Daniel, what the hell did you touch!!” 

“Jack....”  Daniel glowered at his friend from the blue energy barred cage that now surrounded him. 

“You'd think after all these years, Daniel...”  Jack glowered back as he strode across the room. He reached out to touch the bars, then thought better of it and snatched his hand away.

“Jack, for the last couple of years...” Daniel started, irritated.

“You want me to list the various incidents, buddy?”  Jack's lips twitched as he stood in front of the cage that now housed his very pissed archeologist.

“Well...”

“I didn't think so.”  Jack's demeanor instantly changed as he turned to face Carter and Chenzira. 

Teal'c had his staff in Chenzira's face. “Undo it,” he growled.

“I'm afraid, I can't.” Chenzira took a step back, looking down his nose at the staff only inches away from his nostrils.

“NOW!” Teal'c barked.

“Teal'c, I assure you there is nothing I can do.”

“Let him go for now, T,” Jack said, turning to the Colonel who was studying the box. “Carter?”

“There's no obvious sign as to what triggered it, sir.”

“Doctor Jackson was running his fingers over the words on the box and muttering to himself.”  Chenzira said, carefully stepping around the slightly lowered staff.

Jack glared at Ba'al's former host.  “If you want a chance to prove yourself, now you got it.”

The two stood staring at each other for a moment. Finally Chenzira sighed. “As I told Doctor Jackson the words are in a language neither I nor Ba'al have any knowledge of.  I can only guess that he touched the words in a particular order, which activated the trap. Let me see.” He stepped next to Carter and took the box from her.

Jack scrubbed a hand through his hair and turned to his trapped archaeologist.  “Daniel?”

“I don't know, Jack.”

“Daniel.”

“I was just running my fingers over them. The words seem so familiar, but then again I've never seen them before.”

“Daniel.”

“Jack.”

“Try.”

“I'll try.”

“He will try what?” Chenzira asked Carter, beside him. She didn't reply and continued staring at the box. He glanced at Teal'c and received a stony glare in return.

These were strange people. As were all the Tau'ri he had met over the last years. He couldn't quite remember if the Tau'ri had been like that in his own time when he had lived on Earth as a servant of Ra. But then, those times had been vastly different. Good times.

Less complicated. Clear structures of either obey or command. Be a slave or be a king or god. Everyone who was not king or god served in one way or the other. And the slaves used to really worship their gods then, with passion and giving their very lives for their masters. Simple and comforting.   

Daniel blinked and brought his hands to his temples as sudden dizziness overwhelmed him. Cold sweat trickled down his brow and his heartbeat sped up significantly. “Jack,” he called out, slightly alarmed.

Jack spun around, gave him one look and frowned. “You don't look so good, Daniel.”

“I don't feel so good, actually,” Daniel snarked back, wrapping his arms around himself in an effort to bring the tre mors under control.  The tremors that had started with the racing heart. He closed his eyes and concentrated on breathing deeply and relaxing. Great. He hadn't felt this lousy since their stay in Washington over a month ago. And it felt different this time. Like the cage bars were giving him little electrical shocks to speed up his heart.    “Hang in there,” Jack said, and addressed Sam.

“Carter?!”

“Sir, I’ll need equipment from the SGC,” Samantha Carter interrupted Chenzira's musings. “It's a force field of some kind, but I have to determine what triggered it and what will unlock it. It's a different kind of force field than the ones we've encountered before. It only seems to focus around the bars. Daniel? Can you try and stick your hand through the bars, without touching them?”  

“Um...” Daniel reached out one hand tentatively wriggling his fingers in the space between two bars. He was able to shove one hand through them, maybe part of his arm. Nothing happened. “Works,” he announced.

“Good. What are you symptoms Daniel?” 

“Oh, heart racing, cold sweat, the urge to run a mile...”

“Restlessness,” she translated and nodded. “Anything else?”

“No, but it's pretty annoying as it is.”    

“Get Lou to pass the request to the gate and update them on the current situation,” O'Neill replied. “I want Lam out here.”

“Yes, sir.” After one last worried look at Daniel she headed for the entrance

Chenzira picked up the box Carter had lain down on the table as she had left to do O'Neill's bidding. Faint echoes of memory sounded in his mind. He now knew what the box was for. He remembered Ba'al laughing over such a child's toy and finding evil joy in  trapping the unwary with it.  A simple code, tapping the words in a precise way, created the cage. There was also a code that would remove it, but he was not inclined to share at the moment. There was a perverse enjoyment in watching the Tau'ri trying to free their team-mate.  So, he continued to look at the box while gently rubbing his fingers over the words.  Careful not to touch them in a certain manner.

Ba'al had a wicked sense of humor, Chenzira recalled. A humor they had often shared

O'Neill and Teal'c watched the man at the table studying the box. 

“Teal'c,” O'Neill asked quietly. “What does your gut tell you?”

“Chenzira knows more than he is sharing.”

”You saying...”

“He lies.”

“He does that, you know?” O'Neill smirked without humor, then shrugged. “Well, the snake did fer sure.”

“So does he.” Teal'c agreed. He stood a little more straight as a cold breeze seemed to waft through the room. Like a ghost had touched him.  

He lies...

He does that, you know....

And then something had transpired. Something that had come back to haunt him in his dreams at night. In the past it had cost Teal'c long weeks of struggling to come to terms with not being able to kel'no'reem and to find rest in regular sleep once his symbiote had been removed. Over the years he had trained himself to sleep and find peace in meditation if unexpected nightmares disturbed the periods of rest. Recently, however, his sleep had been unsettling and not even the meditation would completely chase away the disturbing images coming to him.  

Ba'al's haughty and triumphant smile and glittering golden eyes were part of those images, as were his words.   “Teal'c… I will always regret that you never became my First Prime.”    

Then there would be a shift and Teal'c found himself being Ba'al's first prime. The dream always developed in the same way. He would serve Ba'al and Qetesh, his queen, until she killed Ba'al. The pictures were quite clear. There was a construction Teal'c had never seen for real, a high tower of machinery, stars surrounding the top, there was fire and killing and Qetesh stalking towards him... 

Once he had tried to communicate with his symbiote. The experience of receiving images and memories that were not his own, was similar. However, Teal'c knew his dreams must be demons of his own subconscious, personifications of his inner fights and nightmares. Doctor Lam had explained the concept of nightmares to him once when he had asked her for advice with “bad dreams”. According to the Doctor, the dreams would subside on their  own eventually. 

“Well, I think he's lying, too. Unfortunately we can't rely on our guts,” O'Neill muttered next to him.  

Teal'c merely growled his displeasure with the situation.

General O'Neill's radio beeped and Colonel Carter asked for permission to go back to the SGC to gather the equipment she would need from her lab. “Yeah, go ahead,” O'Neill said. “Give Landry a short brief on what's going on.”

Chenzira grew tired of watching Daniel Jackson brooding in his cage. He had thought this to be way more entertaining. However, he would wait and see if the lovely Samantha Carter was smart enough to figure it out.

Brushing his hands over his dusty robes, he spun around to face his other two guests. “There is something else I would like to show you, General.”

“What's that?” Narrowed brown eyes met his. “Another little box creating nice little cages?”

“Nothing quite so effective I'm afraid,” he replied with a straight face.

“Is that sarcasm?” O'Neill cocked his head and his scarred left eyebrow made an upturn.

“A statement. Ba'al liked efficiency and the cage seems to be efficient,” Chenzira countered.

“Yeah? What do you like, Chenzira? You like efficiency too?”

“As I told Colonel Carter earlier, you have to bear with me. Ba'al's presence in my mind was strong. It is still … confusing to talk freely to you.”

“So, he's still there? In the back of your head?” O'Neill's voice was conversational, but his jaw twitched. He must be gritting his teeth.

“Not quite. But his memories definitely are. Some of them are not that clear as they used to be. We are very... old. Well, I am now. Ba'al is dead.” Chenzira decided it was time to change the topic. “Are you interested in what I have to offer, or not?”    

“State your proposal,” Teal'c said darkly.

“Very well. Once Ba'al parted with Ra and built his own empire, he found a planet which contained a room similar to the one on Abydos.”

“A cartouche room?” Daniel asked from his spot on the cage floor. His arms were still wrapped around himself and he was pale as a ghost, but he seemed to have stopped trembling at least.  <

“Yes, Doctor Jackson. I believe it holds addresses not known by yourselves or any others.  But as well as that room, the planet has an unusual building. Most strange. In one large room it has four panels which contain writing in Asgard, Nox, Ancient and a language we do not know...” <

“Furling,”  Daniel murmured, his current mishap forgotten for the moment.

“Furling? I do not know this race.”

“Not many do,” Daniel replied.

“Interesting. As well as these panels, there was a plinth which unfortunately we could never manage to start operating. It looked similar to a dial home device, but it did not function.”

“Maybe it was damaged,” Teal'c offered, not without a tinge of satisfaction.

Daniel turned to Jack, eyes wide and almost black in the waxen face. Jack returned his look stoically, but gave him a faint nod. Sounded like another Heliopolis.

Daniel turned back to Chenzira.  “Do you remember the address to this planet?” >

“Unfortunately,” Chenzira sighed, “I do not. My memories of that earlier time are very hazy.  But I do remember Ba'al had many of the addresses found there recorded. It is the list that I was going to provide you with. However, the symbols of the address of the planet are not among them.”   

Yeah, right, memory hazy, uh huh and Jack could sell him the Eiffel Tower. Grimacing, he nodded. “Fine. Do you have those addresses at hand?”

“I have to look for them in another room. I will go and retrieve them,” Chenzira said.

Jack jerked his head in the direction of the retreating man. “Teal'c.”

But his 2IC was already moving to escort their host.   

Jack turned his glare to the man sitting cross legged in the cage. “Daniel, you got any idea about this language yet?” 

“No, Jack. I'll let you know when I do!” Daniel wiped his brow as his eyelids dropped close.

“How ya doin'?” 

“Fine.”

“Right.”  Still slightly pissed then.

“It seems just out of my reach. Must be among the knowledge buried in my head by the Ancients. But I can't get to it.”

“Merlin or Oma?” Jack didn't really want to know...

“Ahh, I'm not sure. Probably... nope, not sure.”

“Maybe the writing said; Don't touch,” Jack teased.

“Did I ever tell you how much this whole 'don't touch that, Daniel' annoys me,” Daniel snapped with uncharacteristic acidity opening his eyes to glare at him through the blue cage bars. 

“Once or twice, I think,” Jack replied.

“Well, maybe it's time to take it to heart because I've touched things all the time while you were gone – and I'm still alive.”

“There's a wide range between 'being alive' and being healthy and safe. Like being priorized, injured, zapped, kidnapped...”

“If you want me healthy and safe 24/7, tie me to a desk and throw away the key to my office,” Daniel countered angrily. 

“There's a thought.”

“No, seriously Jack!” Daniel scrunched up his face in annoyance. “You can't just take over command again after all these years and expect me to still listen to this crap you used to dish out at me. I grew up a long time ago, just in case you hadn’t noticed.” 

“Hey, easy grasshopper...”

“See? That's exactly what I'm talking about! Remind me not to talk you out of retirement again. Next time you want to walk out on us, I'll let you!”

“Whoa, Daniel...” Jack felt uneasy all of a sudden. Yes, Daniel had told him how annoying he thought Jack was at times. But never this viciously. “I didn't walk out on anyone! What the hell are you talking about?”

“I'm talking about you, Jack. You and the way you're treating people. I'm probably the closest thing you ever had to...” Daniel stopped mid sentence and blinked.

Jack took one step towards the cage, then froze, mesmerized by the stunned expression on Daniel's pale face. “Daniel?” he asked softly. “You're the closest thing I ever had to...?”

Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose, shaking his head. “Never mind. I... I don't know where that came from. I'm sorry, you didn't walk out on us. It's... I'm fine.”

“In fact, in our timeline, I'm the closest thing you have to a best friend.” Jack put a hand to his own temple, hearing his own voice answer in his head like through a fog, oozing with sarcasm, “Yeah. Yeah, I'd buy that.”

“Eleven years ago, your son accidentally shot himself with a loaded 9 millimeter he found in your closet...“

“All right. Stop it right there. My kid is fine. He's at home, and he's fine! What the hell's wrong with you?” … “I don't have to understand anything! More importantly, I don't want to. As far as I'm concerned, you people are nothing but a pile of paperwork waiting to happen.”...  “All right, they can have access to food, water, and any medical attention they might need, but they cannot go past this door except to use the head. And nobody comes in or out until we can surface, and… deal with these freaks.”

Freaks?

“Jack?”

He crouched next to the cage, staring at Daniel. “Why did you say that?”

“What? I told you, I'm sorry. I guess I … you know I didn't like the thought of you sailing off into the sunset. But I didn't think you were walking out on us. Well, maybe I did for a minute, but not really. ” 

“No,” Jack shook his head. “It's got nothing to do with my retirement. Something weird's going on here.”

“What do you mean?” Daniel's eyes betrayed his words when they gazed at one another. 

“I don't know,” Jack said quietly. “But it has to do with Chen-zero guy here. Somehow it's related to him.”

“Because it started at the extraction ceremony,” Daniel murmured.

Their eyes locked again. “Yeah.” Jack gritted his teeth. “You still feeling edgy from time to time, like you did in DC?”

“Yeah. Right now for example.” When Jack rolled his eyes, Daniel grimaced. “Okay, this is related to the cage. But I still do from time to time. You still hearing voices?”

“Who said I'm hearing voices?” Jack frowned.

“You did. Well, sort of. When we were on the boat.”

“Well, not  that I know off....”

“Jack, don't.” 

Jack rubbed a hand through his hair and carefully looked around for Chenzira and Teal'c before turning back to Daniel. “Look. This isn't the place or the time.”

Licking his lips, Daniel gave Jack an understanding nod. Message received. And it meant they'd talk later. Which, in Jack's book, was never a good thing. Meaning of life stuff. Oh, joy. 

Daniel relaxed visibly and stretched out on his back, staring at the blue glowy bars over his head. Realizing his boots almost touched the other end of the cage he pulled up his knees and planted his feet on the ground. “You think it's a force field? Sam believes it's a force field.”

“Looks like one. You shouldn't...” Jack bit his tongue.

“I won't touch the bars. I know that's probably gonna hurt,” Daniel smirked.

“I know you grew up a long time ago, Daniel,” Jack said quietly. And he did. Daniel had stopped being the team's 'kid' a long time ago. Long before Jack had left the SGC. Even long before Jack had been promoted to general. It probably was his own weak spot that he still wanted to protect Daniel from time to time, felt the urge to … mother-hen... And Daniel had grown out of having to be protected, had probably humored Jack by listening to his nagging all those years.  

“I know you know that.”

“That guy...“ He grimaced. “Messing with my head, sort of.”

“I know,” Daniel said gently, still gazing at the bars wondering if he could stand and pace without being hit by the forcefield. He decided it wasn't worth trying.

“It shouldn't bug me that much. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Dealt with it. Maybe I'm really too old for this crap.” Jack carefully settled on his ass next to the cage. Crouching was something his knees wouldn't forgive. He felt it in his bones. The heat, the walk across those damn dunes, the whole Chenzira show was making him queasy... “This guy is as harmless as a viper. I can't prove it, but he's not what he claims to be.”

“Ba'al is gone. But I know how you feel. How you must feel.”

Jack wasn't sure how much Daniel remembered from when he'd been sitting with Jack through his time in Ba'al's fortress. He preferred not to know. He himself didn't want to go back there and he was grateful that it had been Daniel who had been with him there. Because Daniel respected Jack's need to keep it locked away, to not talk about it. Yet, Jack suddenly realized, if there was anyone he'd might feel comfortable talking to about it, it was Daniel.   

Because Daniel was the closest thing Jack had to a best friend.     

“It's not just Ba'al. It's something else. And it's affecting all of us,” Daniel said.

“How?”

“I'm not sure, but Sam said something about flashes.”

Heavy footsteps announced the return of Teal’c and Chenzira. Jack got to his feet with surprisingly little twinges in his knees. “T? Got it?”  More footsteps had him executing an about face. “Excellent!” he exclaimed, grinning at the arriving cavalry. 

“Oh man!”

“Can it Lou,” Jack snapped. 

“Yes, sir. Hey, DJ.” 

“Hey, Lou,” Daniel muttered, keeping his eyes stoically on the bars surrounding him. 

“Where do you want us to put these, ma'am?” One of the two technicians wanted to know. They were carrying a portable lab for all Jack knew.

“By that table, please.” Carter shadowed the men as they placed the equipment where she had instructed them to.  Doctor Lam brushed past Jack, totally focused on her patient. “Hey, Daniel, how are you feeling?”

“Frustrated, pissed off, like an exhibit on display...” He shrugged. “Dizzy, cold, my heart's pounding like I'm running a marathon.” 

“Alright. I'll be monitoring you while they're trying to free you. Just stay like that on your back, please?“

Daniel sighed as he complied. “I suppose Vala and Cam know about this by now,” he assumed as Ferretti passed the cage.

“Yep, they do,” Lou grinned. “Vala isn't happy.”

Daniel groaned, slapping his hands over his face.

“All set here,”  Doctor Lee called to Sam.

Sam acknowledged with a wave of her hand as she typed on a laptop with the other.   

“Carter, care to share?”  Jack asked, as he watched the men who had carried stuff in depart until it was just Ferretti, Lee, Anderson, and Chen-zero. Oh, and Lam, who was currently fixing several electrodes to a resigned Daniel. She had to be careful not to touch the glowing bars as she prepared Daniel for the EKG.

“This is odd,” Carter muttered under her breath, then added for everyone to hear, “Apparently one can reach through the bars without being shocked by the field, but being inside the cage causes the physical symptoms coming from the bars. Being outside the cage or just reaching through the bars doesn't seem to affect anybody.”

“Perhaps the cage is designed so food can be handed to the prisoner through the bars,” Teal'c assumed.

“Possibly. There must be a frequency going out from the bars only to the occupant of the cage. Very advanced.” Sam nodded.  “I plan to try pulse waves, sir. In several sequences. I hope to hit a particular sequence that will cause the cage to switch off.”

“I'll hook up the box and see if it sends out energy pulses to the cage. If it does we can also try to interrupt the transmission to see if that will open the cage,” Doctor Lee added. “I'm not sure it will work, but we can try, can't we?”

“Go for it,” Jack said with a nod.

“Yes, sir. I just have to finish the data,” Sam replied absently.

“Of course,” Jack said to Teal'c as he watched Carter's attention turn back to the laptop.  “She just has to finish the data.”

“Indeed,” Teal'c replied.

Doctor Lee coughed and approached Chenzira like he was a poisonous snake. “Um...,” he rubbed his hands nervously. “Um, excuse me? Could I please have that, uh, box?” 

“In a moment.”

Chenzira watched all that was going on with quiet amusement. Really, he had not been so entertained in a long time. It was apparent the Tau'ri were not all that advanced.  They had to employ such primitive methods. He gave a sigh. He really couldn't allow Colonel Carter to use pulse waves. There was no knowing what would happen if they made contact with the cage. It was a shame his entertainment had to come to an end. 

He held the box in one hand and began to tap the release code.

“Colonel Carter, wait!” 

Sam stopped and looked up at Doctor Lam's call.  The cage around Daniel began to shimmer. Lam stepped back from it. Jack straightened up and glared over to where Chenzira was standing. There was nothing obvious. The man was watching just as everyone else was. 

Standing and watching - but also holding the innocent looking box.

The cage gave a final shimmer and disappeared. They all moved forward to gather around Daniel, but Lam waved them to a halt. “I'm not done here.”

“I'm fine, Carolyn. The cage is off and I already feel better,” Daniel assured her as he sat up.  

Lam scowled. “I'm at least going to finish the EKG, Doctor Jackson. Stay where you are.” 

“Yes, ma'am,” Daniel said dryly as he lay back down.

Dr. Lam bent over to study the EKG as the portable printer chattered and spit out the tape.  “Okay, you can stay, but I want another EKG after your post-mission physical.”  She turned back to peel the electrodes off her patient.  “Dr. Jackson?”  She paused, an electrode stretching a tiny bit of skin.

“Ahh,” Daniel smacked her hand, ripping the electrode off his chest. “Got it. EKG after physical.” He rolled away from her and sat up, rubbing a hand over his face.

“Fluids and energy bar, in that order,” Dr. Lam stated, indicating to her assistants they could pack up her gear.  Much quicker than she’d appeared, she was gone. 

“She's scary, but still not as scary as Doc Fraiser was,”  Jack murmured.

“No one will ever be as scary as Janet,”  Daniel replied with a small melancholic smile.

“You okay?”

“Yeah.”

Jack reached out a hand and Daniel grabbed it, letting himself being hauled to his feet. They looked at each other for moment before Jack turned his attention back to Chen-zero and his box. “Sooo... What just happened there?”

“I'm afraid I don't know. I was doing what Doctor Jackson did and it is possible one of the sequences I tapped was the release code.”    

Jack's gut was screaming. The guy was lying.  He knew it.  But, dammit, he had no proof. The man stood there oozing innocence.  But, as sure as there was no snow in Netu he was lying.

“Since Doctor Jackson is now free I think we should return to the courtyard for some refreshments and I will tell you what else I have to offer,” Chenzira said.

The others looked at Jack. There was nothing else he could say other than, “Yeah, okay.”

They followed Ba'al's former host back out into the courtyard and retook their seats.  Teal'c poured out water and handed it around before he took his stance beside Jack again.

Having the big guy there was definitely comforting.  

Sam was studying the data module Chenzira handed her once they settled on their benches. It was slightly altered Asgard technology so she should be able to read it at the SGC. “This is a list of gate addresses, right? Is there anything else on it?”

“No, only the addresses Ba'al found on that planet. There should be more than five hundred new addresses on there. I am sure you will find new friends among those,” Chenzira said.

“Or foes,” Daniel murmured, then cleared his throat and asked loudly, “Did Ba'al visit any of these planets himself?”

“Yes. He conquered some. However, this was hundreds of years ago and those worlds lost  their interest for Ba'al.” You mean you sucked them dry and left them to rot, Jack thought with disdain. “Let me get this straight – these addresses could very well lead us to dead worlds, unfriendly aliens or black holes. You said you could provide us with planets to make allies and find energy resources.” 

“Surely you will find something useful within five hundred gate addresses,” Chenzira said indignantly.

Or you could lead us on a wild goose chase while you're laughing your tail off.”

“Jack...” Daniel interrupted softly.

“No, Daniel. He has to come up with something better than a bunch of gate addresses to make himself worthwhile.”

Chenzira crossed his arms and leaned back against the warm stone wall of the temple. He really liked O'Neill. Maybe it was a good thing the man hadn't died under Ba'al. It would have been such a waste. “The General is right, Doctor Jackson. And as things are, I do have something else to offer. Ba'al liked to be in control of everything. That said, there is a database  hidden on one of his planets. It will provide you with information about all the system lords. Their hiding places, slave planets, treasure and armory fortresses, Now that they are gone, you might want to collect their... heritage. It also contains a list of planets Ba'al thought were conquerable.”

“Blackmail material for Ba'al to have something to hold against his fellow System Lords?” Samantha Carter asked, eyebrows raised. 

“Something like that, yes. And since it's not needed any longer....” Chenzira shrugged.  It was no hardship to let go of this information. None of it was useful anymore, so the Tau'ri could as well have it.               

“We'll take it,” O'Neill said. “We'll also send a team in to take a closer look at that room with the thingamajigs you showed us. But I gotta warn ya. If there are any more unpleasant surprises like that cage...”

“I will make sure your people won't trap themselves anywhere,” Chenzira offered with an amused little smile.   

“Oh, yeah, that's comforting,” the General scoffed, then turned serious again. “I got a better idea. You pack up your stuff and accompany us back to the SGC. We'll make you comfortable there and eventually set you up with a team to work through all of Ba'al's hidey holes. If things go peachy, and you get along well with your new team, we'll let you go and find yourself a home.” Chenzira's dark eyes narrowed just for a split second before his face returned to its smooth bland mask. “Very well. I must ask for solitude though. I am not ready to socialize much yet.”

“You'll get your own comfy room and your own guard. I'm sure nobody will bother you,” Jack assured him.

“I will not go to Earth as a prisoner,” Chenzira objected, a shadow of Ba'al's authority in his voice.  

“You won't be a prisoner. Rather a highly honored guest. The guard is standard procedure for any alien visitors...” Daniel explained.

Except for Teal'c and Miss Mal Doran,” Chenzira flashed snidely.

“That's different,” Daniel replied. “They already proved themselves loyal. Anyway.... You’re free to go wherever you want on base, with the exception of the gateroom and the control room.  Your guard will accompany you.” 

“To make sure you won't get lost,” Jack offered cockily.

“Of course.” It was Chen-zero's turn to scoff. It took more willpower than he cared to admit not to snarl. O'Neill brought out the worst in him. He had to be careful not to appear too much like Ba'al. But if he had been truthful about one thing, it was the difficulty of  controlling Ba'al's leftover hate and memories. It was indeed not easy. 

“Sir, I'd like to return with the team to study the technologies,” Carter interrupted the conversation. She didn't like where this was going. She was used to the banter between the general and Daniel. But that was friendly mocking, sometimes serious, but never this... vicious. She could feel the tension between General O'Neill and Chenzira like a block of C4 waiting to explode. 

“Of course you do,” Jack replied dryly, then he turned back to Chenzira. “We'll leave SG-2 with you for the time being. They'll make sure you get everything packed and come through safe and sound. Thank you for your hospitality and willingness to be so... accommodating.” 

“Jack?”  Daniel's tone spoke volumes as he sent a puzzled look at Jack.

Jack grimaced. He knew Daniel wanted to ask more questions about this new Heliopolis planet.  But he had to get away.

“Later, Daniel,” he mouthed. Chen-zero would be available to answer Daniel's questions as soon as he was at the SGC, locked up in his VIP quarters. Well, not locked up unfortunately, but under close guard at least. Jack was torn on this. He wanted the man as far away from Earth as possible. At the same time he knew Chenzira could do much less damage if he was at the mountain, away from his 'toys' and unarmed.  It was a bitch anyway you put it.

Daniel stood and looked closely at Jack.  He could see the signs of strain around his friend's eyes and knew his questions had to wait  It was obvious Jack needed them to leave. 

He turned and smiled at Chenzira. “Thank you for your time and for your help in freeing me. I’d like to talk to you about that planet you mentioned once you've settled in at the SGC.”

Chenzira got to his feet and began leading the team back through the temple.  “Anytime, Doctor Jackson.” 

He turned to SG-1 as they reached the main entrance. “It has been a pleasure to meet you as myself.  I hope this will be a good start to a continuing alliance with you and your SGC.” 

“Yeah, likewise,” Jack muttered as he put on his sunglasses. ”Don't go anywhere.”

“I will stay in the neighborhood.”

Jack turned to Feretti with new orders. Nodding, Lou went to inform the rest of his team.

Teal'c stepped next to Jack, fixing Ba'al's former host with a glower. “I will stay as well to make sure he does as he is told.”

“I'm sure SG-2 can handle it, T. But I want you to return with Carter when we send the tech team through to study the doohickeys,” Jack said quietly. 

Teal'c inclined his head. “Then it is time to leave now, O'Neill.”

Daniel scowled at Jack's back as the general made his way down the stairs.  “We, too, hope that this is the beginning of an alliance between you and the SGC,” he felt compelled to say.  

Chenzira watched as they left, a satisfied smile settling on his face.  He had planted a small seed to see if it would grow in Doctor Jackson.

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Part 3

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