"I expected you earlier," were the first words Daniel heard as he materialised upon Thor's ship, ready for his mission on the Tok'ra homeworld.

Daniel winced in apology as he quickly made his way over to the supply chest. "Sorry. Jack's becoming more suspicious with every lie I have to tell him. He called a group social night to keep an eye on me. I couldn't tell him no as I didn't want to risk him hanging around my office on base instead to see why I wanted to stay there instead."

Thor nodded. "Be careful," he said as he watched Daniel change into brown, nondescript clothing; easy to disguise among the colours of the Tok'ra if necessary and plain enough to be ignored in most other situations. "Jack will be a concern if he decides to take action in his suspicions."

"I know," replied Daniel with a sad sigh. "I wish I could just tell him the truth, but..." He left the sentence hanging, both knowing that it was far too dangerous with the Jahul threat to allow anyone else to know the truth of his other life. "Is Jacob right?" Daniel asked to change the subject back to the mission. "Is there definitely no Goa'uld ship above the Tok'ra homeworld?"

Thor nodded. "There is not," he replied. "This suggests the Jahul and its companion Goa'uld will be hidden on the surface, most likely close to the centre of operations."

"I agree," Daniel said with a nod, "and I have an idea of how to find them."

Thor's eyes widened slightly, indicating his interest in hearing the plan. "The Jahul will have guarded their presence if the Tok'ra have not found them as yet," he said with a query to his voice.

"I know," Daniel said slowly and his brow creased in thought. "When I was nearing the Jahul on Bastet's battleship, I felt its presence heighten in my mind, like a cloud of fog trying to block my thoughts. I'll need you to help guard my mind again, both from the Jahul and the Tok'ra sensors," he said, eyes unfocused as his plan of action played out in his head. "Now I know what to look for, I should feel any unusual presence earlier than before."

Thor nodded. "I will help guard you," he said. "It seems from your previous mission that Jahul cannot sense you until you are close. That will give you the advantage to kill both the Jahul and the System Lord."

"I'm not going to kill the System Lord," Daniel replied as he paused in pocketing varying weapons throughout his clothing. "I'm going to let it escape."

"I do not understand," said Thor, clearly confused as the revelation.

Daniel smiled as he walked over to the Asgard. "We still need one crucial piece of information and that's the location of Nun's base of operation. If I let the System Lord escape, with any luck it will report back to Nun in person."

"And you will track it," Thor finished, pleased with the plan. "A wise move."

"I thought so," said Daniel as he lifted the brown material of a face-shield over his features. He grinned and the twinkle in his eye revealed that he had confidence in what he had to do. "Beam me to a quiet corner of the Tok'ra base. I'll begin my search there."

Thor nodded and did just that.

*******

Daniel materialised in the dim shadows of an end corridor, the strangely unnatural glint of crystal-filled carved rock surrounding him as he looked down the exposed passage. There was no one near and he stepped lightly out, keeping to the wall as he lightly crept forward towards the junction ahead where he would have to make his first decision about direction.

He reached it without hassle and settled back against the wall as he let his mind open enough to feel for the presence of empty deflection that he had learned to associate with the guard of a Jahul. His head turned to the left. He turned into the corridor, quietly pacing along until the sound of voices reverberated from around the nearest corner signified oncoming Tok'ra guards.

They turned the corner a moment later and continued on their way, turning again into another corridor further down. Daniel dropped lightly down from the high shelf of rock that he had been lying flat upon, disguising him from view. He could hear two more guards standing still around a side corridor but he didn't have time to wait for them to leave. He crept forward, nearing the sound of the two Tok'ra. Lowering himself down on the ground and pushed forward with his body slightly to peer around the corner, he knew the guards would not be looking to view intruders at that height. He was not to worry: both guards were facing away, though they were positioned only a few feet from the turn of the corner.

Daniel quietly pulled himself to his feet and bent his knees, raising his balance to lighten his weight on the floor. He stepped forward into the line of the open corridor, turning his head slightly to see the backs of the guards as they stood now silent. He took another step, and another, stealthily creeping past, closing the gap between where he would again be in relative safely. He reached it a moment later, the guards left behind oblivious to the intruder that had been so close to them as Daniel continued in a faster pace down the next stretch of corridor towards the direction of the mental pull.

Minutes passed as he turned down more corridors, each looking identical to the others, less guards around to hide from in the high rock-shelves at each turn. He finally reached a doorway at the far end of a dead end. Glancing at the side panel, he easily translated the words etched into the rock against the wall.

"'Sleeping Chambers'." He murmured the words as he quietly pushed through the door and entered the inside corridor. // Makes sense. The Goa'uld would want to wait in comfort while the Jahul gained its influence over the Tok'ra//.

The presence in his mind fell deeper as he took his first steps forward down the empty corridor, proving to him that he was on the right path. He edged forward, watching and listening carefully for the sight and sound of passing Tok'ra as he did so. He found none; the corridor was empty as all those important enough to live on the base were busy in their attempts at gathering information against Nun's operation.

Daniel turned the corner, following the push of dulling blankness, creeping closer to its source as he felt it grow heavier in his mind. It pushed against his consciousness, wanting to close off his focus, distract him from his curiosity. //The Tok'ra guards wouldn't have stood a chance against this// he thought as he edged closer to a door at the far end of the corridor, silent and ominous in its isolated defense. //The Jahul wouldn't have let their minds anywhere near//.

He reached the doorway, his mind still undetected though he could feel Thor's grip strengthening around him as he felt the presence of the Jahul behind the closed door. He reached to push on the smooth surface and the door swung open, revealing the dim light of the room inside, the sparse furniture covered in luxurious silks, weapons on the walls... and a Goa'uld and its Jahul standing in the centre.

//Kali the Destroyer// Daniel thought in mild interest. His eyes fell upon the Goa'uld, and in that moment he reached for his dagger as he stepped inside the room, twirling it in his hand as he prepared its angle for propulsion. He threw just as the Jahul snapped its hooded head towards him and pushed Kali sideward as it ducked out of the path of the blade. The dagger pierced Kali's arm instead and she screeched in pain and rage, her other arm rising to aim her palm towards Daniel, ready to blast a pulse of energy in attack.

"Leave!" hissed the Jahul as it blocked her line of fire. "I will deal with this!"

Kali obeyed instantly, guided by the unconscious control of Nun to protect his charges, running towards the doorway to escape the danger. The Jahul snapped its neck around and Daniel gasped in pain, falling to his knees at the force of a sudden attack into his mind piercing through the defense of his shields. In that moment, Kali rushed past him, out into the corridor and away to safety. Daniel forced himself to breathe, feeling Thor's strength lift with his own as he closed the hole in his mind's barrier and pushed himself quickly to his feet. As he did so, the Jahul jumped to the weapon's wall and pulled a wooden staff from its hold, flipping around in an instant to leap towards Daniel, weapon spinning between its bony fingers.

Daniel fell to the ground, flattening himself as the staff passed with a gasp of air a foot over his head to miss its impact. He rolled to the side, aiming for the weapons wall as he jumped to his feet and ran the last few steps to the staff's partner, grabbing it with his hand and feeling its weight balance in his grasp. He spun around and froze, his guard raised in the form of a wooden shield in front of him.

"You are not strong enough." The Jahul spat the words from its wrinkled mouth, the dull light of the room catching glimpses of its face beneath the hood.

"You underestimate me," Daniel replied in the deeper tones of Sa'akhu, and he lunged forward, swinging his staff around in an arch to impact against the hastily-raised weapon of his opponent.

The dual began; the dull crack of wood against wood splintering the air as their weapons swung and thrust in increasing speed, the air hissing as it was ripped apart by the path of each blow. Daniel danced back, light on his feet as he ducked down to avoid a high pass aimed to crack his skull, quickly spinning low to arch his staff around, crushing it into the side of the Jahul's thigh as he sent the creature staggering to the side as it lost its balance of attack. It rolled back as Daniel jumped towards it stabbing forward with the flattened end of his weapon. The staff hit the floor instead with a shudder that sent a shock wave through Daniel's arm, lessening as he let his grip lighten for an instant as the impact passed through the wood.

The distraction had given the Jahul a moment to flip to its feet, and Daniel lunged sideward as a blow glanced off the side of his shoulder, the sharp streak of pain not registering in his mind as he saw the Jahul pause in its confidence. He took his opportunity, feigning injury for the split second it took him to twirl his staff around to angle vertical, bringing it down in a sharp slice, shattering through the centre of Jahul's weapon as the creature held it flat in both hands.

The wood splintered; Daniel staff passed solidly to the floor, barely missing another bone-shuddering impact as he stilled it a moment before contact. The Jahul raised its head, the light glinting off a cracked sneer of outrage. They stood for a moment, eyes finally contacting as the hood of the Jahul's cloak fell back to reveal its head beneath. Its skin was grey, fissues running in deep clefts down the centre of its enlarged skull, shadows carved into the sockets of its unseeing eyes as it met Daniel's challenging stare.

It leapt in an instant to the side, ducking around behind Daniel to rush to the side wall, narrowing missing the swing of Daniel's staff as the wood came around in line with its head. It reached for a sword, grabbing the hilt and turning back with a triumphant sneer as it eyed the wood still in Daniel's hands. It lunged forward, Daniel quickly raising his staff to deflect the blow to his chest, the blade of the sword burying deep into the wood, weakening it.

Daniel silently swore his annoyance as he threw the staff at the Jahul, defecting its attention long enough to dive for the wall and grab himself a sword, one lighter and more maneuverable than that of his opponent. He twisted around, one hand splayed as a counterbalance in front of him, the other stretched out to the side, holding the hilt of the sword in a wide tilt backwards.

He swung the blade around, curving his wrist to angle the attack in a fatal arch towards the Jahul's throat, but it was met with a sudden blow to the base of the blade as the Jahul threw its weight into the move, jarring Daniel's sword from his grasp to spin through the air and clatter to the floor beside them. The Jahul's eyes flashed with triumph as it raised its sword for the killing strike, Daniel standing defenseless in front. It curved its blade through the air and Daniel let instinct take over, reaching into a fold of his robes to grasp the belt beneath, his fingers curving around the nunchucks that hung at his waist ready for use. He flicked them out in an instant, holding each end in his hands as he twisted his body to the side, angling his arms one above one below the path of the blade. The sword passed into the trap, caught in the chain as Daniel twisted around again to secure the blade in his grasp. The Jahul pulled, trying to free its weapon, but Daniel moved faster, pushing his weight to the side as he let himself fall upon the creature, knocking it to its feet. A moment later and he had untwisted the chain binding the weapon and had spun himself around to stand behind to kneeling Jahul. Daniel flipped the chain of the nunchucks over its head and around its throat as he pulled back tightly, pushing his knee into its back to counterbalance the strangling hold around its neck. The Jahul gasped out a choked screech of anger but neither its mind nor body was strong enough to form an attack as the life seeped quickly from its defeated self. A final tightening of the chain and Daniel loosened his pull, the body of the Jahul falling to the floor, dead.

A moment later, an alarm call rang, echoing throughout the Tok'ra compound as the presence of the Jahul revealed itself on the scanners now it was no longer alive to form a guard of disguise. Daniel let his muscles relax their defense as he placed his weapon back within the folds of his clothing and raised his eyes to the ceiling.

"Get me out of here," he murmured. "I have a Goa'uld to track."

As the Tok'ra guards burst into the room less than a minute later, Daniel was gone.

*******

"You must return to your apartment now," stated Thor the second Daniel materialised on the Asgard ship. There was underlying urgency in his voice.

"But we have to track Kali," responded Daniel, concerned. "We can't risk losing her."

"Jack is on his way back to your apartment," Thor said by way of response. Daniel could tell he was worried. "I could not interrupt your mission but you now are left with no time to spare. He is outside your building."

Daniel paled as he realised Jack could not have worse timing to act upon his suspicions. "Damn," he cursed as he snapped into action and ran over to his chest, pulling his mission clothing off as he did so. "I have to get him away and I doubt it's going to be easy," he breathed with frustration. He had finally removed all his clothing and weapons and was swiftly pulling his SGC uniform back over his body in the instants that followed.

"Hurry. I will track Kali but you must return," urged Thor. "He is on your floor. He will be at your door soon."

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Daniel pulled his t-shirt over his head, and grabbed his jacket from the chest.

"He is at your door...picking your lock," said Thor is astonishment.

"Beam me back!" Daniel nearly yelled, struggling his arm into one sleeve of the jacket.

Thor activated the transportation device and Daniel disappeared.

*********

Jack fumbled with the lock on Daniel's door, feeling slightly guilty at breaking into his friend's apartment. He had made it back to his own house but had found himself sitting in his car, engine still running, as his instincts told him there was something amiss with Daniel's behavior and it was getting far worse as the days passed. He had considered ignoring it and waiting until morning to continue his close watch on his friend, but he knew he would never sleep until he had some form of resolution.

And so he found himself turning the car around and driving back to Daniel's apartment without a clue how to explain his arrival. Standing outside Daniel's doorway now, lock-picking tools pushed delicately in the door, he still didn't know what he was expecting to find. He had decided as he drove over that breaking in would avoid explaining his presence so soon after he had left. It was dangerous to search when Daniel was asleep in the far room, yet he couldn't let it wait. If Daniel was under control of a Jahul, then this time in their defensive would be the one that Daniel would be acting most actively under orders from his controllers. He needed proof. He didn't know what form it would take but he needed something. He couldn't trust Daniel to watch his back in the upcoming war if he didn't know whose side his friend fought on.

As the lock finally clicked open, a sharp flash of white flashed for a split second from under the bottom of Daniel's door and into the gloom of the corridor. Jack started and pushed the door wide open. "What the hell...?!"

"Jack...?!" Daniel stood in the middle of his living room, still dressed in his SGC clothing, staring in bafflement and astonishment. "What *are* you doing?!"

Jack stood gaping a moment, trying to work out what to say. "What are *you* doing?" he countered, ignoring the fact Daniel was more justified in asking the question.

"I'm... "What*?!" retorted Daniel, his expression indignant. "I asked you first!"

"I...uh," began Jack as he stood hovering at the door, eyeing Daniel's SGC uniform with a calculated look in his eye. "I think I left my house keys here. Didn't want to wake you to check," he said, knowing the excuse wasn't the slightest bit believable to either of them. "Anyway, I thought you were tired. What was that flash and what are you doing still awake *and* in uniform *and* standing in the middle of the room? You look out of breath." He let an accusing expression form on his face.

"You probably saw the light-switch - I had just turned the lights off after putting away the dishes," said Daniel with a shrug, hoping desperately that Jack would let his excuses go for the night and leave. "I was just about to take a shower when I heard *you* breaking into my apartment so I flicked the lights back on. You gave me a heart attack, Jack," he added for extra effect. "I thought you were a thief." He put his hand over his heart to explain away his slightly panting breath from his raised heartrate that was already settling back to normal as they spoke.

They stood staring at each other, neither believing each other's words. Jack opened his mouth to speak and Daniel's mind raced into overdrive, thinking of what he was prepared to risk to save the mission as he knew Jack was a breath away from finally speaking his suspicions.

The shrill sound of a mobile phone rang out and a curse came from Jack's mouth instead. He reached into his jacket pocket and brought out the offending object. "Yes?" he snapped, annoyed by the interruption.

It was General Hammond on the other end of the line. "Colonel O'Neill? I'm sorry to wake you."

Jack cursed again, this time to himself. "Sorry, General," he said with a wince. "I wasn't asleep; I'm at Daniel's. What's going on?"

Daniel stood still in the centre of the room, waiting impatiently and wishing he could at least hear what conversation was taking place through the phone.

"Jacob has just contacted me," said General Hammond. Jack could hear the concern and doubt in his voice. "Not ten minutes ago, the Tok'ra were alerted to the presence of a Jahul on their base. They found it dead."

Jack whistled. "Go, Sa'akhu!" he replied with an impressed expression. "What about the Goa'uld?"

"Well," began General Hammond. "That's the problem. It seems that a Goa'uld mothership just flew into view of Tok'ra senses. The ship has left quickly after it arrived and Jacob is sure the Goa'uld that would have been on their planet is aboard."

Jack's face creased with confusion. "I thought Sa'akhu was going to kill it?"

"So did I," the General responded, equally surprised. "We can only presume he failed. I have already called in Sam and Teal'c. I need you and Daniel here now. We need to contact Sa'akhu and find out what's happening."

Jack paused and in that moment his mind made a decision. Sa'akhu was contacted through Daniel and Daniel was under suspicion. He could not be sure any intel passed through his friend was accurate. "I don't think we have time for that," he said finally. "It sounds like we need to move now. Let Daniel sleep," he added. Daniel could swear he saw a glint of challenge in Jack's eyes as he stared across the room. "I'll come in instead and we'll deal with this." He disconnected the call.

"What's going on?" Daniel asked as silence feel between them.

Jack pocketed his phone and turned back to the doorway. "That's classified."

There was a heavier silence as Jack's hand fell upon the doorhandle. Daniel knew they had passed tactful deceptions. Jack wanted him to know he wasn't trusted anymore.

"Even from me?" he asked anyway, his tone casual, but he could hear it ringing false in his ears. He saw Jack tense as a sigh escaped the man's throat.

"We'll deal with this later," Jack responded quietly and Daniel knew what he meant: he would be formally investigated as soon as there was time.

Ironically, Daniel couldn't have wished for a better reply. Later was the only time he could spare as the minutes ticked by and Kali's ship sped closer to its destination without him aboard to ambush her final meeting with Nun.

As the door closed behind Jack, Daniel stood for a moment in the silence, ignoring his earlier impatience. After it was all over, he knew he'd finally have to tell Jack the truth. Now was definitely not the time. "Beam me back," he sighed into the emptiness of the room, and he disappeared in a flash a moment later.

*******

The urgency of the chase seemed a thing of the past as Thor and Daniel stood staring out the viewing window of the Asgard ship as it sped in cloaked silence after Kali. Half an hour had passed since Daniel had returned to the ship and yet still Kali showed no intention of slowing down to focus her destination path upon a single location. It was a tense silence but not one of worry, more so that of anticipation.

"I'm worried about the call Jack received before he left," said Daniel as he continued staring out at the darkness outside. "I know you checked SGC activity when I got back, but I can't help thinking there's something else going on." He turned his head and looked to Thor. "Mind checking again?"

Thor nodded. He padded back over to his control panel and placed the palm of one hand upon the flat surface. Daniel had long wondered by what means Thor gathered his information - telepathic, visual imagery, auditory transmission; the archaeologist within him being as curious to know as the scientist within Sam would have been. And yet, contrary to Sam, he hadn't pushed Thor to reveal his technology, knowing regardless of their special relationship, Thor still kept his own secrets. It was not meant as a show of lacking trust but in Daniel's case, more just a lack of necessity. Thor dealt with the higher technologies leaving Daniel free to utilise his skills in his own private manner upon their missions.

"I know what is transpiring at the SGC," said Thor as he raised his hand off the panel. Daniel knew the Asgard well enough to hear the uneasiness in his voice. "The Tok'ra witnessed the Goa'uld mothership escaping from their homeworld after you killed the Jahul," he said. "They have presumed that you failed to kill Kali and they have communicated with the SGC over the matter."

Daniel cursed. He knew why the misunderstanding had happened. It was due to his own reluctance to involve his friends in the mission, therefore resulting in him leaving out the crucial details of how he was planning of dealing with his side of the mission. "Can we somehow tell them what I'm planning?" he asked.

"It is too late," responded Thor. "O'Neill was called to base and has volunteered to assassinate Kali himself."

Daniel gaped. "They wouldn't! Not without trying to contact...*me*." As he finished his sentence he realised the full extent of what had occurred. He remembered Jack's words on the phone in his apartment: 'Let Daniel sleep. I'm come in instead and we'll deal with this.'. The pieces fell into place. Jack hadn't trusted him to communicate with Sa'akhu and so the crucial step that would have settled any confusion and left Daniel free to locate Nun was now lost.

"The Tok'ra have offered for Jack to rendezvous with their nearest ship to the last known location of Kali," said Thor, elaborating on the information he had just gathered. He could see the frustration in Daniel's eyes. "Jack will use the Stargate to travel to the closest available planet and travel by shuttle to the main Tok'ra vessel. From there they will join the chase and Jack will use the Tok'ra transport rings to transfer himself to Kali's ship. He will then assassinate the Goa'uld."

"We can't let that happen!" Daniel exclaimed, annoyed at both himself and Jack for the lack of communication that caused the current situation to arise. It was ironic in many ways, he thought, that he had been trying to protect Jack by not revealing the truth of his identity and yet that fact was what was about to destroy their chances of bringing down the army of Nun. "If Jack kills Kali then we will lose our chance at locating Nun. We *have* to let her get to Nun alive."

Thor nodded his agreement. "Action will need to be taken."

Daniel turned back to the viewing window and stared unfocused into the stars as they flashed past on either side of the craft. He knew the moment Thor began speaking that there was a very grave possibility of what he would have to do. He stood silent a moment, letting his mind steel against the reluctance he felt at the necessary action. Eventually, he turned back, taking a deep breath to release his tension as his thoughts displayed themselves with disturbing clarity. "I have to fight Jack," he said simply.

Thor stared back and the silence stretched into the blanket of universe outside. "I know," he replied simply.

**********

It was a strained half-hour later that Daniel finally saw what he had hoped would never arrive: the Tok'ra transport vessel carrying Jack aboard, ready for his mission. He stared at the hologram of the ship projected from a side panel, necessary for viewing as the ship was cloaked just as they were. A moment after it arrived, a beam of light shot out, connecting it to the Goa'uld mothership. It was the activation of the ring device and with it would have gone Jack.

"Right," said Daniel as he stood staring out the window, already dressed in his chosen clothing: black lightweight material with weapons already hidden throughout, and a mask of semi-opaque cloth covering his face. It was enough for him to see, but not enough to be recognised, he hoped. This was his friend he was fighting against this time. With the influence of Nun still so close, he couldn't even risk going aboard the ship and just telling Jack to halt his assassination. He doubted Jack would even trust him; his request would sound more suspicious than anything before. "Beam me aboard," he said finally, turning back to Thor.

"This Goa'uld mothership is heavily guarded," warned Thor. "There is no Jahul but there are Jaffa. There are no signs of life on the control deck so Kali must be elsewhere on the vessel. You will have to be careful."

Daniel nodded, gave a half-hearted smile of reassurance and disappeared in the flash of the transporter beam.

********

He materialised in a storage room, located to the side of the vessel. Daniel knew exactly where Jack would be heading: the bridge. Jack would presume Kali would still be there. He opened the door slightly and listened outside. There was the sound of marching footsteps fading, but nothing nearby. Silently, he stepped out.

As he jogged quietly down the smaller corridor, heading towards the large central corridor leading towards the bridge, Daniel knew he had to be careful. He couldn't risk running into any Jaffa as even if he did overwhelm them, as he was sure he could, their absence would alert Kali to the presence of an intruder aboard the ship. He could only hope Jack was keeping a low profile as he also made his way towards his intended victim.

As he turned another corner, Daniel heard the sound of a patrol marching close, and he backed quickly against the near wall, flattening himself and stilling his movements as the Jaffa neared. They passed by without hassle, and Daniel breathed his relief quietly as he rounded the corner and continued towards the bridge. His eyes darted carefully around as he searched for his true target, Jack, knowing with any luck that he would find him before the man reached the bridge.

The next Jaffa contingent on patrol he saw coming, and he was easily hidden behind a column as the heavy clang of their march passed by. Daniel was concerned, though, about the frequency of the Jaffa appearances. He had no doubts that he could keep invisible from them, but it was Jack that was his concern. His friend did have a habit of favouring confrontation to stealth.

Daniel let his walk rise again to a light jog as he neared the next corner, knowing Jack couldn't be far. He heard a light noise and stopped silently as he peered his head around the corner. It could not have been a Jaffa patrol; they had no need to be silent. His suspicions were confirmed: there was Jack, heading quietly, but not quietly enough to avoid Daniel's attention, towards the direction of the bridge. Daniel pulled back and reached into the recesses of his clothing and pulled out his dartpipe, pushing the waiting dart down into the tube in preparation. It was the only thing he could think of to achieve his goal while avoiding confrontation with Jack. Raising the dart to his mouth, he curving his lips around the end of the bamboo as he glanced again around the corner. He took aim in line with the back of Jack's neck. He saw Jack pause in his tracks and knew he couldn't risk waiting any longer: Jack had good instincts and was too well trained to not notice a drawn-out attack. Daniel blew sharply into the pipe and sent the dart flying.

It missed. Jack ducked to the side at the last moment and spun his head with well-trained reflexes to view the path of the dart as it fell harmlessly to the floor further down the corridor. Jack's head snapped back as he pressed himself flat against the wall, gun in hand, as his eyes surveyed the corridor from where the attack had come. Daniel could see the confusion in his eyes, knowing it was because Jaffa hardly used darts so Jack knew his enemy was unknown to him.

Daniel swore inwardly and grabbed a thick piece of metal, about a foot in length, that had been hanging from his belt. He knelt down swiftly and swung his arm around the corner, throwing the metal in a spin towards Jack's knees, peering his head around to watch Jack's drop his aim down the corridor as he was forced to jump out of the way. In that moment, Daniel leapt onto his feet and around the corner, dashing forward towards Jack, too quickly for the Colonel to return his gun aim back towards his attacker. They collided, Daniel pushing Jack back against the wall, twisting to slice a path with the side of his outstretched hand into Jack's wrist, spasming the muscles and loosening the gun from Jack's grip. As Jack raised his other arm to punch forward, Daniel raised his foot and kicked the gun down the corridor, far out of reach as he ducked back out of the way of Jack's fist. Daniel jumped back and stood still for a split second, guards raised as he stared through the material of his mask, assessing Jack's reaction as Jack stared back with fierce and malicious confidence in his eyes.

"I don't know who you are," Jack murmured, "but I have a job to do and there's no *way* I'm going to let to stop me." He pushed himself away from the wall the second his statement had been uttered and threw himself at Daniel, letting one arm come up to block Daniel's sudden punch as he grabbed hold with his other, flipping Daniel over his hip to the ground.

Daniel barely hit the floor before spinning around and pushing up from his arms, cutting through the air with his legs to impact of Jack's abdomen. Jack grunted and fell backward a step, collecting himself in an instant to raise his knee, smoothly blocking Daniel's following kick that had been aimed at his groin.

"Nasty," Jack commented as he grabbed hold of Daniel's leg and twisted it around, forcing Daniel to spin with it as he fell over upon his back.

Daniel bent his trapped leg and used his other leg to curve around Jack's knee, pulling forward and knocking the Colonel down on his back. He rolled forward as Jack fell, curving the arch of a punch into Jack's stomach as he did so, hoping it would incapacitate the man long enough for him to end the battle. It didn't. Before Daniel could bring his other fist around to impact on Jack's face, Jack kicked out and connected with Daniel's thigh, causing him to wince and pull his arm back to defend himself from the punch that came flying instantly after it towards his collarbone.

Daniel ducked sideways as he did so, raising his arms up, one grabbing around Jack's wrist, the other under his elbow, forcing it into extension and pushing it away. It locked the joint in place as Daniel rose to place a swift kick to Jack's other arm that was flailing wildly to release the trap.

Jack twisted as the kick impacted, ignoring the pain of impact as he pushed through and grabbed a stranglehold around Daniel's throat. Daniel gasped, not willing to let go of Jack so easily yet struggling for breath as the fingers dug into his skin, accurately positioned to cut off the blood supply to his brain. He knew Jack wouldn't hesitate in killing him, thinking he was just another nameless enemy. Daniel himself, though, was struggling to control his own ability, resisting any move that would cause serious damage to the man he still hoped was his friend.

Daniel finally relented and let go of Jack's arm as his pulled his own arm back, extending his wrist sharply, fingers clawed out of danger as he shot his palm forward into Jack's breastbone, winding him and succeeding in breaking the deadly clamp around his own throat.

They broke apart, each gasping for air as they rolled in opposite directions: Jack towards the bridge, Daniel away. Daniel recovered first, flipping lightly to his feet as he felt his breath return and flood through his body. He snapped into a defensive guard and turned to stare down at Jack who was clutching his chest on the floor, struggling to stand.

"Dammit, I don't have *time* for this," Jack gasped to himself, as he jumped up, recovering faster than Daniel expected. Yet, instead of turning to continue their fight, Jack did exactly the opposite to what Daniel would ever have expected from his friend: he turned and ran.

It took Daniel a split second to realise Jack's motives: killing Kali was more important to him than fighting against an unknown stranger. Jack clearly thought he could outrun Daniel and escape the time-wasting battle in order to lose his opponent and complete his mission.

//General Hammond must have thought killing Kali was too urgent to forestall// Daniel thought with annoyance. He didn't bother thinking about it any further. Instead he snapped into action and ran after his teammate.

Jack had half a corridor head start on him but Daniel was faster on his feet. As Jack cleared the nearest corner, Daniel sped after him, muscles forced to the limit as he worked on closing the gap between them. He couldn't let Jack onto the bridge. He knew it was empty but as soon as Jack also did, the Colonel was more than likely to cause some kind of technical damage instead that would alert Kali to their presence and ruin Daniel's chances of letting her lead him to Nun. There was no way the Goa'uld would risk going straight to Nun's base when she knew at least two intruders had followed her this far.

The door to the bridge was close ahead and Jack was but metres from it. Daniel pushed himself harder, but as he did he saw Jack enter the room and scan it simultaneously, quickly realising it was empty. Daniel heard Jack swear and then his friend did exactly what Daniel had dreaded: he pulled a grenade from his pocket and reach his finger inside the pin, eyeing the communications wall as he did so.

Daniel wasn't close enough to stop him. He was left with no weapon on him that he could throw that would not kill or maim his friend. He strained himself to run faster, a metre from the doorway now but he knew he couldn't move fast enough. There was nothing left to do but the one thing he knew could ruin not only their friendship but his entire life in the SGC forever.

"*JAAACK*!! *NOOOOO*!!"

Daniel kept running full-pelt, screaming the words from his lungs. He saw Jack pause in pulling the pin and snap his head around to stare at the masked figure running towards him. Jack's expression had paled. Dumfounded shock and absolute disbelief flooded over his features as he froze, unable to move, grenade forgotten in his hand.

"*DANIEL*...?!"

Daniel didn't give him time to think, knowing he had only a precious few seconds before Jack would recover and make a move. He kept running across the room, not slowing for a moment as he crashed straight into the flabbergasted figure in front of him, knocking him to the ground. Before Jack could even raise him hands to defend himself, Daniel formed a fist with his hand, thumb protruding, and slammed it with acute accuracy into Jack's neck, cutting into the arterial supply, knocking his friend unconscious in an carefully directed assault.

He had succeeded.

Daniel pulled himself to his feet, ignoring the guilt inside his mind at the necessity of his actions. He turned his back on Jack's body that was lying unmoving on the floor, and he paced over to the security control panel. He glanced down at it and breathed the first sigh of relief he had allowed himself since beginning the mission. There was no indication on the board that the Goa'uld or Jaffa were aware of the intruders aboard their vessel. Yet, as he was staring down, the screen on the wall in front of him flashed into activation, and Daniel realised a second too late that he was standing in clear view of the incoming transmission.

It was too late to duck. The face on the screen had already seen him.

It was Nun.

Daniel froze. The creature on his screen was instantly recognisable; the power and authority emanating from its force could be felt even as Daniel stood staring from the bridge of Kali's mothership. It was not entirely human; a hybrid of Jahul in its blending. Its creviced face was darkened grey, hiding beneath a hood of black cloth that clung close to its taut skin. Its jaw hung slightly ajar, showing the enlarged, neglected incisors within. Its nose was shrunken; its common senses useless as evolution changed its focus to the mental. And yet its eyes were not fully blind. They were wizened, small pinpoints of black surrounded by an ashen grey, boring into Daniel's own through his mask as they stood staring at one other, each clearly as shocked at the encounter as the other. Daniel saw a flashed vision of Earth force itself before his eyes, his mind not fully protected. A chill blanked his mind as he slammed his shield up, but it was too late. Nun had grabbed a vision of his home-planet.

Daniel recovered and slammed his palm down on the control panel, cutting the transmission as the screen fell into blackness. "DAMN!"

His mission was destroyed. Nun knew Kali had been compromised. The Goa'uld hybrid would not stay waiting for an ambush to arrive. And there was every chance he would leave to destroy Earth.

As the scattered tatters of his plan spun around before Daniel's eyes desperately trying to establish a new formula, the door behind him hissed its automatic opening and he spun around to see a figure stride into the room, as yet unaware of the scene on the bridge. It was Kali.

Daniel flicked his wrist as the System Lord caught sight of Jack lying on the floor only metres from her feet. He didn't have time for thought; Kali was not necessary to his plan anymore. The dagger that had fallen down into his hand a moment before, he sent flying across the room in a deadly spin. Kali didn't even have time to turn her head before it impacted into her neck, killing the parasite inside and releasing its long-suffering host in one mercifully silent moment.

Daniel stood, his thoughts in frays as time slowly reigned back into the predictable seconds of the present. He glanced over at Jack and walked over, still slightly dazed from the events of the past minutes. He knew, given a fair hearing, that he could explain himself into forgiveness and understanding from his friend and all those at the SGC. Yet, as he stared down at his unconscious friend, he knew there was a very realistic chance that this could also be the last time he would ever spend time with any member of the SGC again. It might even be the last time he would be allowed back on Earth.

"Beam us to the ship," he said, his voice hollow and unfocussed as he spoke the words to the Asgard he knew would be listening.

In a flash both he and Jack disappeared, leaving only the body of a dead, false god lying on the bridge as the mothership continued to speed silently through the stars to an unknown destination.

*******

In the gloom of an underground cavern on a planet barren except for the crevassed landscape of ochre-coloured stone and rough, grey rock, stood a cloaked creature. He was still staring at the screen projected in front, now blank from image but it had not been only a moment before. Then, it had shown a figure aboard Kali the Destroyer's mothership.

The cloaked creature was not as strong as the Jahul it controlled, yet it had the element of surprise as it had viewed the intruder caught upon its screen. He had pulled the image of Earth from the enemy's mind before the mental guards had snapped shut. He knew what his next move was to be. He had lost too much to wait in the shadows any longer. He must attack. Earth was to be his target.

*******

Daniel stood aboard the Asgard ship, now dressed in his SGC uniform, as the vessel sped through the darkness outside. He was staring at Jack, lying on the floor nearby, held within a play of tinted light. It was keeping the Colonel in a state of unconsciousness for the journey.

"Nun will attack Earth," Daniel spoke quietly, and Thor could tell he was in mourning for something else, something that might well prove to be lost forever.

"He will forgive you," said Thor, choosing to ignore Daniel's statement for the time being to instead respond to what was deeply bothering the man. He padded over to place a comforting hand on Daniel's own.

Daniel sighed, wanted to believe him. "It'd be nice to think so," he said as he shook the thought from his mind. "But I can't worry about that now. Earth is in danger."

"What do you plan to do?" Thor asked, accepting Daniel didn't wish to discuss the matter of Jack at that time.

"I'm going to return Jack to the SGC with a note warning that Nun is on his way," Daniel replied. "He'll be needed there." He shrugged his shoulders in futility. "I need you to beam me to Abydos and I'll use their gate to return him back. I don't want you to be incriminated alongside me in any way."

"I am not ashamed of my association with you," Thor said, disapproval in his voice that Daniel would even suggest that he be separated to leave the blame solely on Daniel.

For the first time since the mission had ended, Daniel let a glimmer of a smile show itself on his face. "Thanks," he said, looking down at the Asgard, and Thor could tell he meant the word. "I'd still like to use the Abydosian gate, though. I want to talk to Kasuf while I'm there."

Thor bowed his head in acceptance, understanding the old man had always been a wise councilor within Daniel's life. "Understood. Are you ready to leave now?" he asked.

Daniel gave a nod of his head and walked over to stand next to where Jack lay on the floor. Thor switched the holding beam off that had been keeping Jack unconscious.

"He will awake in a matter of minutes," Thor said. "You have done well, Daniel Jackson."

Daniel felt a tightness in his throat at the words of honest belief in him. He wished he could feel the same confidence in himself. "I hope Jack will eventually see it that way," he said, as he stared down at the Asgard with strength in his voice that he hoped was not as false as it sounded in his own mind.

There was no more words spoken as Thor activated the transporter beam and Daniel and Jack vanished from his view.

**********

The old remains of the temple that housed the Stargate on Abydos was empty as Daniel and Jack appeared in a sudden flash of white light. Daniel pulled himself into action as soon as they arrived, pulling the note he had already written from his pocket and pushing it into Jack's breast pocket, letting a corner peer out so it could be clearly noticed. He walked over and dialed Earth's address into the DHD and waited without expression as the chevrons engaged in sequence. When the wormhole finally established, he walked back over to Jack and gathered him up in his arms, lifting his easily as he carried him towards the rippling blue circle.

"I'm sorry about this Jack," Daniel said to the unconscious figure he held. "I'm going to have to throw you through."

He swung his body back and then forward, repeating the motion with more force a second time yet this time he let go of Jack's body, sending it flying into the wormhole. A few seconds later, the blueness disappeared and the gate deactivated.

"If he ever forgives me, he's going to *kill* me for that," Daniel muttered to himself with a wince of self-preservation as he turned his back of the Stargate and began his walk out into the desert outside.

********

CONCLUDED IN CHAPTER FIVE...