Disclaimer: MGM seems to have more sense than this, even though the same is not true for the SciFi Channel.

SG-1 S/J TEAM

Rating: T™© for violence and some adult word choices.

Spoilers: Mild spoilers into season seven, specifically Evolution, Grace, and Chimera. Set any time after Death Knell.

A/N: Comedy, with a heaping scoop of action and a dash of shippy fun. After roaring with laughter at the vast number of fics that feature hapless Pete getting everything wrong, or jealous Pete on a rampage, well, this happened. I blame Anne Rose for daring me. She's always daring me, so she only has herself to blame for the fact I'm dedicating this unlikely tale to her.

Credits: Beta credits go to Anne Rose, Lizzoid, Q, and Kizmet42. Sounding board services provided by Jade East. Thank you. As for the screencap in the title graphic, the blame is entirely my own. My apologies to David DeLuise. Research credits include www.ancientscripts.com, www.sg1.cz, www.scifi.com, www.godchecker.com, the Sanskrit Dictionary, The Origin of Life & Death by Ulli Beier, Reading the Past by Leonard Cottrell, Body Trauma: A Writer's Guide to Wounds and Injuries by David W. Page, M.D., The Structure of Evolutionary Theory by Stephen Jay Gould, and Stepping Through The Stargate edited by P.N. Elrod and Roxanne Conrad. A special thanks to Max Brooks, whose extensive research not only provided valuable information for this piece, but also just might someday save the world.

WARNING: This is not intended as a serious solution for The Pete Shanahan Thing. While I've tried to stay true to canon in all other characterizations, this particular version of Pete quite clearly left his marbles in a bus station, and then replaced them with bats. This angered the bats.

The day started out on an increasingly familiar bad note for Major Samantha Carter when, once again, her boyfriend presented her with an incorrectly prepared cup of coffee.

"Here you go, honey." Pete stared at her with the big dorky grin that she'd thought cute on their first three dates, and thrust the offending mug into her hand. "This is going to be great."

"Yeah, great." Sam could think of a few more accurate words -- awkward topping the list -- and not for the first time she wondered what she'd been thinking. She knew exactly what she'd been thinking, of course. On the advice of her own hallucination, she'd agreed to let her brother set her up on a blind date, and then forced herself to give him a fair chance.

Exactly what qualified as a fair chance was unclear, but then he'd gotten himself wounded over her when they captured Osiris, and she felt obligated to continue seeing him. He was sweet, he had a sense of humor, and that he seemed determined to make her happy was a good thing. She needed someone in her life, and that Pete knew about the stargate program . . . well that just made it that much easier.

Pity about his performance in the bedroom, though. The epic length of her dry spell aside, she remembered what it could be like. Chalk up one more disappointment in the new boyfriend department. Maybe she could get him a book.

Pete insisted on driving to the base, and Sam stared out the window, intently studying landmarks that she had passed daily for years.

"I'm so happy that Mr. Hammond agreed to this, honey," he said. "It's going to be fun."

"General Hammond."

"What was that, honey?"

"General -- not 'mister' -- it's General Hammond."

"Okay honey, I'll try to remember that. Wouldn't want to make a faux pas. Gotta make my girl look good, right honey?"

Sam sighed. If she'd thought, even for a minute, that General Hammond would take it seriously, she never would have passed along Pete's offer. Too late now. She tried to smile.

Daniel's eyes flicked from Jack to General Hammond and back again. In all likelihood, blood was about to be spilled.

"With all due respect, General, SG-1 usually gets into plenty of trouble without babysitting a tourist."

"Doctor Jackson specifically said he could use an extra pair of hands on this one," Hammond said.

Daniel cringed. "I was thinking more along the lines of SG -- "

"There's no one else available right now," Hammond said. "Besides, it'll give us a chance to justify that special clearance."

"Well, that's convenient," Jack said.

"I feel compelled to pack extra lanterns for this mission," Teal'c said.

Daniel turned to him. "Oh?"

"Do you not suspect they will be needed?" Teal'c regarded him for a moment. "Your notes indicated that this temple possesses many rooms yet few windows."

"True," Daniel said. He continued to discuss the temple with Teal'c, while they both ignored Jack's argument with General Hammond.

"Great!" Jack threw up his arms in defeat. "That's terrific. How about I just sit this one out? This guy can be my replacement."

"No one else can fill your shoes, O'Neill," Teal'c interrupted. "Of this I am quite certain."

Jack looked down at his boots. "Well maybe if they stuffed a paper towel in the toe."

Sam opened the door, the subject of all the near violence on her heels. "Sorry we're late, sir."

"So what size boots do you wear?" Jack demanded of the new arrival.

"Boots?"

"For the mission," Sam explained, apparently sensing that allowing Jack to speak for himself was not the best course of action at the moment. She had a knack for that.

"Oh," Pete said, oblivious to the tension. "I take a seven."

Daniel nearly choked on his coffee.

"A seven, you say?" Jack studied Pete's feet with interest.

"Okay then." Daniel stood up and stepped between Jack and Pete. "I guess we'd better get you geared up."

Jack stood in the gateroom, fiddling with his gear to avoid eye contact with Daniel and Teal'c.

"Listen, Jack -- "

"Don't." He ignored the understanding on Daniel's face. "She deserves a life."

"Yeah," Daniel said slowly, but Jack's glare did its job, and Daniel left the rest of the thought unspoken.

Carter rejoined them. She was uncharacteristically late thanks to their shiny new fifth wheel, who trotted at her heels like a happy little puppy.

"Sorry sir."

"Now honey, don't take the blame and get yourself into trouble," the fifth wheel said. "It's all my fault, Mr. O -- "

"Colonel," Carter interrupted.

"Colonel," the fifth wheel parroted. "Colonel O'Riley -- "

"O'Neill," Carter said.

"Right," the fifth wheel said, barely having sense enough to blush. "Colonel O'Neill. It's my fault we took so long, I had some trouble with these boots. I usually wear sneakers."

"Is that so?"

"We don't have very far to walk, do we?"

Jack sighed. He had a very bad feeling about this.

They stepped out into the sunlight of P4X-524, and Sam tried to choose between relief and disappointment at the lack of enemy fire. If someone shot at them, then maybe Pete would take things a little more seriously.

At least they had Daniel's musings to fill the silence.

"The images from the UAV include an inscription in the ancient Brahmi script that translates as 'Temple to the Life of the Dead' and yet this snake figure fails to match any figure in Hinduism or any other religion known to have existed in that region at the time. I tried cross-referencing it to Jain Symbols, on the off chance that it might be an archaic source, but I didn't have much success. Still, it looks vaguely familiar, if I could just put my finger on why . . . "

"Snake?" Colonel O'Neill asked. "We're not talking Serpent Guards? Reunions with Apophis never go well."

Daniel gave him one of those looks which always made Sam fight not to smile. "First of all, he's dead, and secondly, I said 'vaguely familiar,' which I have to say wouldn't really apply to Serpent Guards."

"Indeed," Teal'c said.

"Who's Apapus?" Pete asked.

"Bad guy," Colonel O'Neill answered.

Sam smiled. That about covered it.

"So he has one of those things in his head?"

"No," Daniel. "He is -- or more accurately was -- the thing, in an innocent person's head. That's what you really should understand about the goa'uld. They're parasites who enslave their host bodies. They aren't the face that you see, they're the thing inside."

"So, you and that chick who blasted me? You've got a thing for her?" Pete aimed a knowing wink at Daniel, but fortunately wasn't close enough to add a nudge.

Sam shot Pete a look that he didn't seem to appreciate much, but since it shut him up she found it hard to regret it.

"Daniel," Colonel O'Neill said with a sudden enthusiasm. "Tell us more about this temple."

"We could be talking about an entirely new goa'uld," Daniel said. "Although from the looks of the place, one who hasn't been back here in centuries."

"Just so long as today isn't the day he decides to come back looking for his -- Carter, what is it we're here to pick up?"

"We don't know, sir. The MALP detected an energy signature and the UAV confirmed that the source is within the temple. The readings are consistent with that of a naquada-based power source, but we have no idea what sort of device we're talking about or what it might do."

"Terrific," Colonel O'Neill said. "That always goes well."

Their first glimpse of the temple stopped Daniel in his tracks. He'd known the size of the structure from the UAV images, but it still made an impressive sight.

Jack's reaction involved more annoyance than awe. "So, Daniel, this thing that we don't know what it is, that we're trying to find because it might be important -- or not -- it's somewhere in that little shack over there?"

Daniel nodded. "That's about the size of it."

"Size being a most appropriate word," Teal'c said.

"Honey, can't you just find it with your tricorder?"

Daniel raised an eyebrow at Pete, who was grinning expectantly at Sam, and fought the urge to glance at Jack. "Yeah, the thing is, tricorders aren't real. You're thinking of Star Trek."

"Oh, come on, Daniel, have a little faith," Jack said. "I'm sure Carter could whip one up. Right Carter?"

"I can track the energy emissions, sir. It's still a needle in a haystack, but I can make the needle glow."

Jack smiled. "Excellent."

"Pete!"

Jack turned at the sound of Carter's voice and discovered that their fifth wheel had seated himself on the ground and was busily unlacing his boot. Jack wanted to be a good sport about Carter's social life, but spending time with this dolt was already wearing on his nerves. "Problem?"

"Just taking a break," the fifth wheel explained. "My feet hurt."

"Pete, that's not really how things work," Carter whispered.

"Don't worry, honey, I'm sure Colonel O'Riley doesn't mind."

"Sure," Jack said. "No problem. This is just the perfect place to rest." Jack gestured to the complete lack of cover. "We'll hang out, maybe take in an airstrike."

The dolt looked at the sky.

"Pete." Carter's voice included urgency and annoyance in equal parts, and her cheeks flamed red.

Jack thought she avoided his gaze, but maybe it was just that glaring at the fifth wheel required her full attention. In any case, the wheel was retying his boot.

"Honey? Give me a hand?"

Jack turned away from the sight of Carter pulling the moron to his feet. He didn't get what she saw in this guy, but Carter deserved a life, and who she chose to share it with was strictly her own business.

As they reached the temple, Jack turned to speak to Teal'c, and got an eyeful of the fifth wheel holding Carter's hand.

Hamster Wheel grinned. "It's big, isn't it honey?"

"Yeah," Carter agreed absently. "It's big." She let go of his hand in favor of her weapon, which caused him to wrap his arm around her.

Jack missed whatever she said next, but whatever it was, it made the idiot let go of her waist, and she turned to Daniel to ask about the location of the door.

"It could be hidden or sealed like the entrances to some pyramids." Daniel shrugged. "I really don't know. The architecture is considerably different from any known structure built on the Indian subcontinent at the time that Vedic Sanskrit was written in the Brahmi script, so we lack a basis for comparison."

"This thing's from India? Like the Taj Mahal?" Wheelbarrow Boy gawked like a tourist. "That's weird, isn't it honey?"

"It's not from India," Daniel said, displaying his trademark patience. "If I had to make a guess, I'd say that it was probably built by people from what is now India, who were taken from Earth as slaves at a time when the goa'uld held power on Earth."

The team fanned out to search for an entrance behind the overgrown weeds. Jack stuck with Daniel, knowing from long experience that mysterious ruins were his weakness, and signaled Teal'c to keep an eye on Carter. She could handle herself, she'd proven that way back on Abydos and a thousand times since, but anyone could make a mistake with a bumbling distraction attached to their hip.

"Daniel?"

Jack turned at the sound of Carter's voice and saw her brushing dirt from the stone.

"Way to go, honey!" Her bumbling distraction patted her back. "Is my girl a genius or what?"

Jack held his tongue and went to peer over Daniel's shoulder. Carter had found a groove in the stone, with some partially obscured symbols beside it.

"Well, that's odd," Daniel said.

"It's strange that they'd make an entrance this large and then seal it off like this," Carter said.

"No, not that," Daniel said. "The inscription. It says 'Namaste' -- it's a greeting, but it also means goodbye."

"Like aloha?" Jack asked.

"More like shalom," Daniel answered. "It expresses a great deal with a single word. Shalom is used as a greeting, but the full meaning is much greater, incorporating a wish for peace and good health. It carries a spiritual meaning. Namaste is similar. A more literal translation might be 'my soul greets your soul' -- it transcends the physical."

"So?" Jack asked.

"So," Daniel said. "It's an odd thing to inscribe beside a sealed doorway."

Jack shrugged. "They were goa'ulds, Daniel."

"I'm not so sure," Daniel said. "The goa'uld would not have used a word of such respect to address their subjects. I doubt they'd even understand it."

"Agreed," Teal'c said. "It is most unusual."

"It is a mystery," Jack said. "So. How do we get it open?"

Carter shrugged. "C-4?"

"I like the way you think, Carter."

Daniel offered only a token objection to the use of explosives, so they blew the seal on the door and wrestled the heavy stone out of the way.

They entered the temple as if expecting an ambush. As a rule, Jack never ruled out an ambush, but in this case his instincts told him that it was only a matter of time before something went very wrong on this mission.

Nothing moved in the dark building, but Jack made very sure of that fact before letting himself believe it. "So, Carter, how about making that needle glow?"

Daniel watched Sam struggle to calibrate her gadget, hampered as she was by her babbling puppy-dog appendage.

"Say, Pete?" Daniel asked. "Would you mind giving me a hand over here?"

Sam shot him a look of gratitude.

"If it's okay with my girl. Would you mind, honey?" Pete could obviously read Sam's mood about as well as a cocker spaniel could read ancient Sumerian, because he looked like he expected her to demand that he remain glued to her arm.

Or maybe he just hoped that she would.

"Of course not," she said. "Go help Daniel."

"Okay, honey," Pete said. "I'll be right over there if you need me." He pointed at Daniel, who stood maybe three feet from them, and leaned in to kiss her.

Daniel cringed. This had to be killing Jack.

Pete took the flashlight Daniel handed him and aimed it at the wall. "What's with all the snakes? I thought those people worshipped cows."

Those people?

"First of all," Daniel said. "The Hindu don't 'worship' cows, they treat them as sacred. There's a difference. Secondly, not everyone in India is Hindu. Not now, and certainly not then. In fact, it stands to reason that the people who built this temple were quite likely not of the Hindu faith -- the goa'uld usually transfer their own worshippers to other planets, and a goa'uld would find it difficult to emulate the traits of a divine being as visualized by the Hindu."

The lecture did little to enlighten Pete as to the cultural diversity of the human race; the man had wandered up the corridor to shine the flashlight on something that Daniel guessed, based on the giggling, might involve nudity of some sort. It took only a brief glimpse to confirm the hunch.

Daniel glanced at Sam, who seemed too absorbed in her readings to notice Pete.

"Fertility figure?" Jack asked quietly, nodding his chin towards the still giggling Pete.

"Yep."

Jack rolled his eyes, then made a show of checking his watch. "Look, the sooner we find this thing and clear out of here, the better. Do you know anything that might give us a clue about where to look first?"

"If the device was actually of central importance to those who built the temple, that might mean that we'll find it in a central location." Daniel shrugged. "Without more -- "

"Got it," Sam said. "Looks like it's that way."

"Sweet," Jack said. "Good job, Car -- "

"That's my girl!" Pete said loudly. He practically leapt down the corridor to smack her on the back. "Way to go, honey!"

"Yeah." Sam kept her eyes focused firmly on her gadget. "Let's go find it."

Sam knew that Pete was just trying too hard. He did have that tendency, as he'd proven on their first date. She'd found it cute then, in a way, and he'd settled down eventually. Under the circumstances, he probably felt a little out of place. He was a nice guy, he cared about her, and she owed it to him to cut him a little slack.

Still, she wished he'd tone it down in front of her teammates.

The readings led them to a small, dark room in the heart of the temple. They ran their flashlights over the elaborate carvings on the walls. It would take Daniel days just to record all of this, let alone decipher it. The energy source seemed to be in a large stone box built into the floor in the center of the room.

"Sarcophagus?" Colonel O'Neill asked.

"It's about the right size," Daniel said. "We won't know for certain until we get it open."

Sam ran her light along the container as she circled it, searching for signs of an opening. She dropped down beside it for a closer look. "Daniel."

He crouched beside her and peered at the circular indentation that had caught her eye.

"You think?" she asked.

"I do," he answered.

Colonel O'Neill came to peer over their shoulders. "Tell me that thing's not supposed to turn."

"Sorry, sir." She tried not to look at Daniel, who was trying to hide a smile. "It looks like it turns."

Jack's flashlight beam played over the inscriptions on the wall. "So, we're gonna be here for a while."

"Look's like," Daniel said.

"Good," Pete said. He plopped himself down on the sarcophagus.

"Pete, no!" Sam leapt up, as did Daniel, who expressed much the same sentiment.

"What's the big deal?" Pete asked.

"Generally we don't sit on the alien artifacts," Colonel O'Neill explained. "Especially the ones that might explode."

Pete looked offended, possibly enough to start something, but Teal'c intervened. "If you require rest, might I suggest the floor."

Sam let herself breathe again when Pete took the suggestion. The last thing she needed was Pete embarrassing her even further by starting an argument, and she had to admit -- at least to herself -- that she didn't know him quite well enough to know if he had a temper. She glanced at Colonel O'Neill, who gave every impression of studying the inscription on the wall, although everyone knew better.

Well, everyone but Pete, and that just served to illustrate the fact that Pete had every right to feel out of place. She had to cut him -- and his nervous energy -- some slack.

She went back to examining the stone with Daniel, and together they found several more disks beneath centuries of dust. Deciphering a typical goa'uld combination lock would keep them here for days. Hopefully the device inside would prove worth the effort.

Jack gave the walls his full attention, because that beat the alternative. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of their fifth wheel pulling off his boots. He was determined to ignore that. If he noticed, he'd have to say something. He did not want to say something.

This sucked.

He wanted Carter to get a life, but this guy wasn't good enough for her. Not even close. That opinion, however, was best kept to himself. He owed her his support. Eventually she'd dump this clown, and find someone better. Someone who could make her happy. He never wanted her to doubt that he wanted that for her.

Carter deserved happiness.

"Honey? Sam, honey? I need a hand here."

Against his better judgment, Jack turned around and trained his flashlight on Carter's bozo. He was holding up one of his boots and shaking it. Jack watched, fascinated, as the man attempted to peer into his boot despite the darkness, and then failed to shine a flashlight into it, first dropping the boot and then letting the flashlight clatter to the ground.

"Sam honey?"

"What?" Carter sounded annoyed.

Jack scolded himself for being pleased by that.

"I need you to hold my flashlight, honey," the idiot said, oblivious to Carter's tone of voice. "I need to fix my boot."

"I'm a little busy here, Pete." Carter turned her attention back to the sarcophagus.

The clown started banging his boot against the wall, bringing a shower of dust down on his head before peering blindly into the boot once again.

"Uh, Sam," Daniel said softly.

Carter aimed her flashlight at the fifth wheel just as he considered pounding on the wall again. "Pete, that might not be the best idea."

He blinked stupidly at her, and seemed to fully expect that she'd drop everything to fix his boot. "Honey?"

Even in the dim light provided by the lanterns Teal'c had set up, Jack could see that Carter's patience was stretched thin, and something had to be done before this fool brought the whole ceiling down on their heads.

"Teal'c," Jack said softly. "Could you . . . "

"Certainly, O'Neill."

Jack tried not to watch as Teal'c crossed the chamber and held a flashlight for the dolt, who proceeded to pull the sole out of his boot.

"So," Jack said. "Carter. Daniel. Any progress on cracking that code?"

"It's been less than five minutes, sir."

"That's a no then?"

He knew better, but he really liked it when Carter laughed at him.

"Honey . . . " the dolt whined, spoiling a good moment.

They all turned to look at the fifth wheel as he tried to stuff the sole back into one of his boots. A wadded up paper towel fell from the boot. It lay on the ground, illuminated by the flashlight that Teal'c held, and everyone stared at it in silence.

"These boots are too big." Spinning Wheel stuffed the paper towel back into the boot. "You'd think that the Army would have a better selection of sizes."

None of SG-1 bothered to point out that they actually belonged to the Air Force.

Teal'c found Major Carter's choice of companionship unsuitable. She was a formidable warrior possessed of many admirable qualities; surely she could find someone more worthy of her affections. He watched Pete Shanahan fumble with the laces on his boots, and a possibility occurred to him.

Perhaps Pete Shanahan's very unworthiness explained why Major Carter had made such a choice.

Clearly, her feelings for O'Neill caused her to seek out this inferior substitute, because she found herself unwilling to give up her hopes for the future. Teal'c had witnessed the pain experienced by both O'Neill and Major Carter due to the rules of the Tau'ri in this regard. In his opinion, this current situation well illustrated the flawed nature of those rules.

A warrior fighting himself would not win many battles.

O'Neill decided that they should make camp, leaving Daniel Jackson and Major Carter to their work. Pete Shanahan complained when asked to carry Major Carter's pack. Apparently he found moving it to be too strenuous, despite the short distance between the two chambers.

Or perhaps the man was simply lazy.

Setting up camp was not a strenuous activity, and yet Pete Shanahan soon shirked what little responsibility he had been given in favor of heading back into the other chamber to pester Major Carter while she worked. Teal'c resolved to keep an eye on this man, lest his incompetence endanger their lives.

Daniel pitied the flashlight in Sam's white-knuckled grasp. He hardly needed such an obvious clue to notice her tension. In the many years they'd worked and fought side by side, he'd never seen her this obviously uncomfortable with a situation.

"Sam -- "

As if on cue, the situation wandered back into the chamber and shone a flashlight directly into Daniel's eyes. "Can I help, honey?"

"I thought you were helping Teal'c."

"I could hold your flashlight," Pete said. "Would that help, honey?"

Sam closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath.

Daniel heard what Pete missed. "You could help me," he suggested. "Count the rows of script on each wall, and once you're done with that, see if you can find any patterns in the symbols."

He knew that Pete's contribution wouldn't prove particularly helpful, but at least it would keep him busy, and with any luck quiet as well. Just what SG-1 needed on a mission -- an overgrown toddler to humor.

Sam smiled gratefully, and they went back to recording the inscriptions on the sarcophagus itself.

Daniel appreciated Sam's help on this kind of project. They worked well together, and even though ancient translations fell somewhat outside her field, she frequently made observations that proved helpful. They discussed the inscriptions quietly, sharing the hope that a mathematical pattern might emerge, since that would in all likelihood speed up the process.

"Hey honey," Pete said. "What are you guys whispering about?"

"Ancient mathematics," Sam said. "We didn't want to disturb your counting."

"That's okay, honey," Pete said. "I could always just start over. But no whispering secrets, okay?"

"The only one here with secrets is whoever's in this box," Sam answered, the lightness of her tone belying the look on her face.

Daniel raised his eyebrows at her.

"He's just nervous," she whispered. "He's feeling insecure."

"What was that, honey?" Pete asked.

"She said the sarcophagus is well secured," Daniel said. "I think we could all use a break. What do you say we check on dinner?"

Sam stood up and followed Daniel out of the chamber to 'check' on the MRE's. She'd taken about three steps when Pete bounded up beside her and wrapped his arm around her waist.

"So what are you cooking for dinner?" he asked.

"Cooking?" She paused to stare at him in the darkness.

"We're eating soon, aren't we honey?" he said. "My stomach's been growling for hours."

"We have MRE's," she explained. "They don't require cooking." She didn't add that most varieties were pretty much beyond the help of any chef in the galaxy. He could discover that on his own.

They continued into the main chamber, where the others had made camp. They were protected from the elements, and yet some outside light managed to filter in from the doorway they'd blown with the C-4.

She wished Pete would let go of her, but she felt a little guilty for snapping at him earlier, and she didn't want to hurt his feelings. Then she noticed the way Colonel O'Neill had his full attention focused on the MRE in his hand, and she gently but firmly removed Pete's arm from her waist.

She joined the rest of the team for some planning, now that it was clear that they'd be spending at least a few days here. Colonel O'Neill thought they should do a sweep of the whole temple before bed, and she agreed.

"Teal'c and I will take the passages to the west," he said. "You and Daniel can get the east."

"Yes sir," Sam said. "We'll -- "

"Aren't we going to eat, honey?" Pete's question bordered on whining.

"Go ahead and eat first," Colonel O'Neill said. "You and Daniel have been working, after all."

Sam turned around, and her eyes landed on Pete. He'd unrolled her sleeping bag and was fiddling with the zipper.

"Pete?"

"Just zipping these together, honey."

Her face burned, and she crossed the chamber quickly. "Pete, that's completely inappropriate. Now please undo them."

"But honey -- "

"Pete!" She glanced towards her teammates. Daniel, bless him, was talking about the inscriptions on the sarcophagus with great enthusiasm, while Colonel O'Neill put a great deal of effort into pretending to care. She glared at Pete.

He blinked at her. He seemed honestly surprised by her reaction, but he gave in and started unzipping the sleeping bags. Almost immediately, the fabric got caught in the zipper, and he started cursing at it.

Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c took that as a sign to retreat, and they headed off to do their sweep of the building. Sam cringed at the look on the colonel's face.

"We might as well eat." Daniel appeared beside her and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Remind me to tell you about my first night in the field with Sarah and Dr. Jordan."

She nodded and smiled a little, grateful for Daniel's friendship.

Daniel sat down across from Sam and tried to scare up some enthusiasm for his MRE. Watching Pete squeeze Sam's knee certainly did nothing to help his appetite. He got that she needed someone, and he even got why she seemed to give this guy the benefit of every conceivable doubt, but that didn't make it any easier to watch.

"So there I was." Pete paused in his narrative to shove another heaping forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. Or near his mouth, anyway. "Face to face with this thug, and he had a gun. So this thug is looking at me, right, like he's gonna kill me. And I said -- " Another bite of spaghetti. "And this is what I said, I said 'Are you looking at me?' -- just like that -- 'Are you looking at me?' and then he -- "

More spaghetti met its end. "Well he lifted the gun, right? But he was looking at me like he didn't know what to think -- distracted -- so I tried to kick the gun out of his hand, and the psycho shot me! Right in the shoulder. Can you believe it?" Pete waved his forkful of spaghetti around to illustrate his amazement. "Just a flesh wound. My kick messed up his aim. Pretty good story, right honey?"

"Yeah," Sam said, clearly not listening. "Daniel, do you think -- "

Pete seemed to notice that he didn't have Sam's full attention, and sought to rectify the situation by running his hand up her thigh.

It worked, in that it incited an immediate response from Sam.

She grabbed his hand, removing it from her leg with force and aiming a potentially lethal glare his way.

"Honey?" Pete attempted to hold the hand that had so effectively dispatched his from its owner's thigh.

Daniel pretended to be engrossed in his MRE, and successfully managed to ignore most of the whispered exchange that followed. He got up to dispose of his empty package just as Teal'c returned.

"Has he been injured?" Teal'c asked, indicating Pete.

"Not yet," Daniel muttered. He glanced at Pete, and noticed the copious red stains on the man's face and clothing. "Oh, that. He tried the spaghetti."

Jack stalled.

He knew that he was stalling. The west passageway and its chambers were secure. More than secure. Empty would be the most accurate description. He didn't need to double check any of it.

And yet.

He gave the walls another once-over with his flashlight before heading back to the main chamber.

The fifth wheel had food on his face. That was the first thing he noticed. The second thing he noticed was the fifth wheel's hand, resting on Carter's knee like it belonged there.

He noticed that lots.

"Honey?" The fifth wheel leaned closer to Carter. "I could really use a foot rub."

Jack suddenly took great interest in the snakes carved on the wall.

"Sam?" Daniel said. "Shouldn't we get started on that sweep of the east passageway?"

Thank God for Daniel.

"Let's go," Carter said.

Behind him, Jack heard the unmistakable sounds of Carter jumping to her feet and checking her weapon.

"But my feet hurt," the wheel squeaked.

"Yeah, well, so they'll hurt more," Daniel said. "Let's go."

Jack might have smiled at that, but the image of that dolt touching Carter's knee hadn't yet faded from his mind. At least they would be gone for a while. He kept studying the snakes.

"Can't I just -- "

Carter cut him off. "Pete."

"Okay, honey, but you owe me for this." The squeaky wheel continued to whine about his feet as they left.

Yep. Snakes were fascinating.

Teal'c came to stand beside him. "You are tense, O'Neill."

"Ya think?"

Sam extracted herself from Pete for the third time. They should have left him back in the main chamber. Of course, then he'd be bothering Colonel O'Neill, and Pete was her responsibility. She owed it to her teammates to keep her date out of their hair.

She sighed.

Coffee-making and bedroom related inadequacies aside, she found Pete to be sweet and attentive, and she'd enjoyed his company before. If this relationship had a chance of working out, she needed to take the bad with the good.

Putting in time with her team was bound to make anyone nervous. They'd saved the world. Anyone would feel inadequate in comparison. Letting Pete's insecurity get on her nerves would not improve the situation. She resolved to be more patient with him, because snapping at him would only increase his anxiety.

"Look, honey!" Pete aimed his flashlight at a carving. "I think he wants someone to pull his finger."

That left her at a loss.

"Sam," Daniel said. "Come look at this."

She hurried up the corridor and trained her flashlight on the object he'd found. It looked suspiciously like a control panel from a goa'uld ship.

"What do you think it does?" Daniel asked.

Sam aimed her flashlight at the surrounding walls, searching for any visible technology. "Unfortunately there's no way of knowing, at least not immediately. It could control just about anything, possibly even a self destruct mechanism."

"Or it might not do anything, at least not any more."

Sam gave him a look.

He shrugged. "We could get lucky. It's been known to happen."

The stone around the panel was intricately carved and crumbling with age, partially obscuring its edge. Removing the casing to get a better look at the crystals would be delicate work. Daniel held the flashlight as Sam examined it in more detail.

"Hey, honey!" Pete bounded up to them, tripped, and sprawled across the temple floor.

Sam avoided the same fate only because Daniel caught her arm as Pete knocked her against him.

"Thanks," she said to Daniel. "Sorry about that. Pete? Are you hurt?"

"I think I broke my ankle."

Oh no. Don't be broken. Please don't be broken. Please don't be broken.

Sam examined the offending ankle as Daniel held the flashlight. "It's not broken. Possibly sprained, although it really doesn't seem to be swollen."

"What do you know about it?" Pete demanded. "It sure as hell feels broken to me!"

Surprised by his agitation, Sam gave it a second look, but she reached the same conclusion. "Sometimes a sprain can be pretty painful, but it's not broken -- "

"How do you know?" Pete asked. "It sure hurts like it, and you're not a doctor."

"Actually she is," Daniel said. "And before you complain that she's not a medical doctor, let me point out that Sam is a fully qualified field medic. If she says it's not broken, it's not broken."

"Are you sure it's not broken, honey?" Pete asked.

At her assurance, he let her help him to his feet, and then leaned pretty much all of his weight on her shoulder. She shot Daniel a look, grateful for the way he instantly understood what she needed, and with his help she dragged Pete back to camp.

Jack looked up as Carter and Daniel returned, carrying the fifth wheel between them like a sack of potatoes. Oh crap. Just what they needed: an injured -- and probably whiny -- fifth wheel.

"I think I broke my ankle," Fifth Wheel announced. "Although my girl here says it's just a sprain. Maybe it's one of those hairline fractures."

Yep, whiny. Peachy.

He watched as Carter bandaged an ankle that appeared perfectly healthy, at least to his untrained eye. Flat Tire demanded something for the pain, and Carter produced a little white pill that looked remarkably like an ordinary aspirin.

"Take this," she told him. "It should do the trick."

"Are you sure it's strong enough? Maybe I should take two."

"Colonel O'Neill only took one the time he had to walk six miles through enemy territory with a broken leg, not to mention a staff blast to the shoulder." Carter glanced at him. "One will do the trick."

Jack nodded, confirming her lie. "Trust me, one's plenty."

She stood up. "Sir, we could use your help in the east passageway. Daniel found what may be a goa'uld control panel, and I need to make sure it doesn't pose a threat."

"Sure thing." He shot Teal'c an apologetic look as they left him alone with Carter's mildly wounded yet remarkably whiny dolt.

Teal'c eyed the injured man with suspicion. Major Carter's subterfuge made it clear that this injury was of little significance, and the possibility existed that it was merely a ploy, although to what end remained unclear.

"An alien planet." Pete Shanahan looked around at the walls. "Weird about the snakes, huh?"

Teal'c said nothing.

"This is so weird," Pete Shanahan said. "It's like a movie. Isn't it like a movie?"

Teal'c studied him.

Pete Shanahan stared back at him. "Weird that you're an alien. Who would have thought that aliens were black, huh?"

"Yes," Teal'c said. "My skin is indeed darker than yours. How astute of you to notice."

"I'm not racist or anything," Pete said. "Sidney Poitier is a great actor."

"Indeed." Teal'c stared at him. Most people stopped talking when he did that.

"So, this is fun. Sort of like guys' night. We could play poker. Do you play poker? It's a little drafty in here. Hey, do we have any beer?"

"You wish to become inebriated?"

"Oh, come on dude! You can tell me. Don't you guys stash a little beer in those packs?"

"We do not," Teal'c said.

"Oh, I bet someone does." He shifted in the direction of O'Neill's pack.

"You don't want to touch that." Teal'c changed position and moved his hand.

Pete Shanahan's eyes followed the movement and came to rest on the staff weapon at Teal'c's side. He did not ask about beer again.

Jack held the flashlight while Carter and Daniel worked. He almost hoped the panel would turn out to conceal a self destruct device, forcing them to scrub the mission and drag the sack of potatoes back to Earth where he belonged.

"I'm sorry about Pete," Carter said. "He's just trying too hard -- "

"This is him trying?" Jack said. Oh crap. That had just slipped right out.

"He's not like this when we're -- usually. Usually he's different."

She's said usually -- twice, no less -- but Jack knew what she'd meant. Alone. The last thing he wanted in his head was even the vaguest notion of that loser alone with Carter. At least in the dark he could pretend not to notice Daniel's sympathetic glance, or Carter's reddening cheeks.

This sucked. In the past, there'd been plenty he couldn't say to Carter, but never before had it been so awkward that he couldn't find anything to say.

Daniel saved them all from the silence. "The first time I went out in the field with Sarah, I was trying so hard to impress her that I just dug myself in deeper with every word out of my mouth, and I got so nervous that I dumped an entire pot of stew all over Dr. Jordan's sleeping bag."

"Ouch." Jack winced in sympathy.

"I think I've got it," Carter said a moment later. "Daniel, if you could just hold this -- there."

The panel opened to reveal a number of crystals.

"Most of these look damaged," Carter said. "I think it's safe to say that whatever this controls, it's no longer functioning."

"So it won't blow up?"

"I don't think so, sir."

He hid his disappointment, and they gave the rest of the chambers a once-over before heading back to camp.

"I'll take first watch," Daniel said. "That is, if you don't mind, Jack. It'll give me a chance to read over my notes."

"Sure," Jack said. "You, then me, then Carter, and Teal'c last."

"You forgot Pete," Carter said.

I wish, Jack thought, but he managed not to say it. "Yeah, okay. Carter, then Pete."

"Thank you, sir. It'll help if he feels useful."

"Hey, honey! We missed you!" Pete patted the spot beside him.

Sam cringed at how close together he'd placed their sleeping bags, and wished she'd volunteered for first watch.

It took everyone a few minutes to settle down for the night, and Sam realized that she'd stalled about as much as possible. Sure, he'd spooked her with the whole zipper incident, but Pete wouldn't expect something here, in the middle of an alien temple with three of her closest friends in the same room. His zipper idea probably stemmed from some misguided notion of survival techniques, nothing more.

She slipped off her jacket and sat down to unlace her boots.

Pete crawled up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her neck.

"Pete," she whispered urgently.

She glanced at Daniel, who already seemed engrossed in his notes, and her eyes darted to Colonel O'Neill, who lay stiffly on his side, facing away from her. She twisted away from Pete with as much tact as she could manage -- which admittedly wasn't much -- and concentrated on her boot laces.

"Honey, how about that foot rub now?" Pete asked. "You owe me, after what happened to my ankle."

Daniel dropped his notebook, and made more noise picking it back up again than Sam would have thought possible.

Pete, in the meantime, scooted around and laid his hand on her knee.

"Pete," she said quietly. "I'm on duty."

"But honey," Pete said, not bothering to be quiet at all. "You can't be on duty twenty-four hours a day, that isn't fair. Can't we just -- "

Daniel coughed.

"We need to get some sleep." Sam started to climb into her sleeping bag.

"You're not going to sleep with your pants on, are you?" Pete asked.

"Yes," she said, her patience growing thinner still. "As a matter of fact I am, and you should, too. If the goa'uld happen to show up, you'll want your pants."

Pete grumbled, and then thrashed around in his sleeping bag, apparently searching for his pants.

Sam stared at the temple ceiling in the grey light of the lanterns.

"Honey?" Pete propped himself up on one elbow and loomed over her. "Can't we at least snuggle?"

An ominous crunch -- loud and mysterious, yet definitely originating from Colonel O'Neill's direction -- echoed through the chamber before Daniel started coughing once again.

Daniel contemplated breaking Shanahan's arm. If Sam woke up and discovered that arm draped across her stomach like that, she'd probably do it herself. Jack, if he woke up and saw that, might skip right over breaking the arm in favor of ripping it clean off so he could pummel its owner to death with it.

That idea had its appeal.

The discovery that Sam was dating someone who treated her with such disrespect was quite frankly shocking, but Daniel doubted that it would last much longer. In the meantime, however, he hated to watch his friends suffer. He glanced at his watch. He only had about fifteen more minutes to figure out how to relocate the offending arm, because then he had to wake Jack up for his shift.

He glanced at his friend, who looked tense even in sleep, and sighed. Best to get this out of the way. He crossed the chamber, knelt down beside Pete, and physically lifted his arm.

"Hey -- "

Daniel clamped his hand over Pete's mouth. "Start showing a little respect for Sam's wishes." He kept his voice so low that he knew the other man had to strain to hear him. "Or else you and I are going to have a problem."

Pete stared up at him.

"Ew, and stop licking my hand." Daniel wiped his hand on Pete's sleeping bag. "Now go back to sleep."

He went back to his spot against the wall, smirking a bit at the glare that practically hit him in the back.

Jack usually enjoyed his time on watch. He liked the quiet, and he liked the peaceful look on Carter's face when she slept.

But not tonight.

Tonight he'd been on watch maybe fifteen minutes before the fifth wheel had stirred in his sleep and rolled up against Carter, his hand landing right in the middle of her stomach. That hand was about six inches from breaking Jack's rather tenuous grip on his sanity, and he couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from it.

This dolt had some nerve.

The hand moved another inch closer to inciting homicide.

Jack considered waking Carter up early, just to make that stop, but since that also meant an awkward moment in which he'd have to face Carter while that bozo had his arm around her, he abandoned the plan.

This sucked.

He watched the hand. If it so much as twitched . . . It did. It twitched. And Jack, leader of the team that had saved Earth more times than he cared to count, really couldn't do much about it. Well, not much. But he could do something.

Jack found a pebble on the ground and chucked it expertly at the dolt's forehead.

The rock hit him squarely between the eyes, and the fool jumped up with a yell loud enough to wake the dead.

Jack lifted the notebook that Daniel had shoved into his hand earlier with a whispered 'just in case' that he'd refused to understand at the time, and made like the shout had disrupted his reading. He circled the chamber with the flashlight beam before letting it settle on the fifth wheel. "Bad dream?"

"Are the aliens attacking?"

No one rushed to answer him.

Carter seemed to be hiding a smirk behind her hand. "Go back to sleep, Pete. I think it's almost my watch anyhow."

Jack went back to his bedroll, secure in the knowledge that Carter was now a good six feet away from that hand.

Teal'c suspected that a wild animal had entered the temple, and he reached for his weapon before he realized that the sound he heard was in fact Pete Shanahan, loudly snoring while on watch. He was slumped against the wall, his head lolling to the side and his mouth hanging open. The flashlight he had dropped had rolled well out of his reach.

Waking him seemed pointless, so Teal'c left Pete Shanahan snoring against the wall and took over the watch himself. He knew that the Tau'ri shared the Jaffa tradition of shooting a warrior caught asleep on his watch, although he doubted a strict adherence to the policy.

Given what O'Neill shared with Major Carter, Teal'c did not believe that he'd shoot her boyfriend, at least not for an offense of this nature. The man did not appear to pose an immediate threat, after all, and he was not a member of the military.

Teal'c knew that O'Neill would do what needed to be done, regardless of his personal feelings, if it came to that. He'd seen him do so before at great personal expense, when the threat was immediate. In this case, it was not. However, Pete Shanahan could not be trusted with such a vital duty, and he would discuss this with O'Neill if they spent another night on this planet. Teal'c hoped that would not prove necessary.

This mission had grown wearisome.

The next morning, Daniel suggested that they examine the temple's outer walls in the daylight. "Some of the inscriptions were obscured by overgrowth in the photographs taken by the UAV. Since Brahmi is a script with which I have some familiarity, reading the full inscriptions might help me understand more about this culture, and that could prove helpful in deciphering the alien inscriptions on the sarcophagus."

"It's also possible that the outside of the building might reveal the presence of technology which could prove dangerous if we were to stumble upon it accidentally," Teal'c said.

Carter nodded. "That panel we found might not be the only one, and I'd like to know what it does."

Jack agreed, and the team gathered up the gear they'd need to spend the morning working in the sun.

"Honey?" The fifth wheel made a show of hopping the three feet to Carter's side before leaning heavily on her shoulder. "I don't think I can walk that far on my own."

Jack tried not to glare at the dolt, or smirk as he noticed that the rest of the team pretty much had that covered. His hands were tied, given what he had -- and didn't quite have -- with Carter, but he took comfort in his team's ability to pick up the slack.

The first thing that caught Jack's attention outside was the complete lack of cover should the planet prove less uninhabited than promised. "Teal'c, what do you say we take a walk. Make sure we don't have any would be troublemakers lurking in the bushes?"

"Certainly, O'Neill."

He told himself that this little walk had nothing to do with the sight of the sack of potatoes hanging on Carter's arm. When it came to alien planets, 'uninhabited' frequently meant 'inhabited, but by people really good at hiding.' He had learned to be cautious.

"I wish to speak to you about Pete Shanahan," Teal'c said. "He is not to be trusted."

"Oh?"

"He fell asleep while on watch last night."

"Oh." Jack scolded himself for hoping that Teal'c had uncovered some deep treachery, and not just more evidence of incompetence. "Well, he had his chance to be useful. I won't trust him with any more responsibility."

"Indeed."

They circled the temple, alert for any signs of recent activity. Jack noticed the mark on the ground an instant before Teal'c pointed it out.

"Something was dragged from this spot," Teal'c said.

"Yep," Jack said. "And it was bleeding."

Sam followed Daniel around to the front of the temple, where she deposited her pack, as well as Pete. "Someone needs to keep watch," she lied. "If we get engrossed in the translation, we might not hear someone approach."

"Sure thing, honey," Pete said. "You can count on me."

She helped Daniel clear some of the brush. Parts of the inscription had eroded due to exposure, but they could make it out.

"Like I said before," Daniel said. "The name of the place translates to 'Temple to the Life of the Dead.' I'm just not entirely sure what that means."

"And the snake?" she asked. "You said that it looked familiar -- that it might mean something."

"That's what I'm hoping to learn," Daniel said. "Translating these other inscriptions should lead me in the right direction. Or at least a direction."

"If -- "

"Honey!" Pete called.

She considered ignoring him. He's injured, she reminded herself, and she tried to quell her annoyance.

"Hey, honey! I just thought of something."

She didn't quite dare hope he'd thought of something that could prove useful. "Oh?"

"Remember that movie we saw? The one with the great sword fight? Weren't they in India?"

"That was Japan." She turned back to Daniel.

"Are you sure honey?"

For some reason, Sam found herself reminded of her constantly bickering neighbors from the summer between her first two years of college. She'd never understood how they stayed together when they even squabbled over movies they'd seen. In retrospect, she doubted they had.

"So," she said to Daniel. "If the -- "

"Honey? Are you sure?"

"Yes, Pete." She closed her eyes and swallowed. "I'm sure that The Last Samurai was set in Japan."

Daniel, to his credit, didn't react at all.

"It was a great sword fight, though, wasn't it honey?"

"Sure," she lied, desperately ignoring the look on Daniel's face. Had she really found Pete's awkward nervousness cute on their first date?

"Honey, did I tell you about the time I got shot?"

"He'll get shot again if he tells it a second time," Daniel muttered through a forced smile. "And it won't just be a flesh wound."

Jack scanned the horizon as Teal'c examined the drag marks, and searched for any prints that might have survived. "Human?" he asked.

"I do not believe so," Teal'c answered. "It appears to have been too heavy."

"Peachy," Jack said. "So whatever did the dragging, it's capable of hauling off something too big to be human."

Teal'c nodded. "It went that way."

"That way it is," Jack agreed.

They followed the trail through the grass until Teal'c paused again and dropped down to study the ground. "I believe that it died near here."

"Oh?"

"There is less blood now."

"And the thing that killed it?" Jack followed Teal'c's gaze to a stand of trees. "In there, huh?"

"Indeed."

Jack pulled out his radio. "Carter."

"Sir?"

"Teal'c and I found something." He gave her a quick summary. "Watch your six. We're checking it out."

The drag marks were even easier to follow in the wooded area, and they led straight to the tallest tree in the bunch. Bits of animal hair were snagged in the thorns of the bushes at the base of the tree. Jack approached it with caution, ready to zat anything that moved.

Teal'c peered up into the tree. "It appears we have arrived too late. It is gone."

Jack followed his gaze. The upper branches of the tree were mangled and broken. If something large had dragged its breakfast up there, then something equally large had removed it by force. From the looks of things, that hadn't proven easy.

They scanned the ground for signs of further dragging.

"Maybe it can fly?" Jack didn't like that possibility, but then again, he didn't like this much at all. Whatever had happened, it added up to a whole mess of somethings that were capable of an awful lot of dragging.

"O'Neill." Teal'c pointed to something on the ground, blending into the shadows just out of sight from the damaged tree.

Jack joined Teal'c beside the carcass of the largest cat-like animal he'd ever seen. It had an ugly wound on its shoulder, and its neck looked broken.

"It has not been dead long," Teal'c said.

"So," Jack said. "This isn't what got dragged up into that tree?"

"I do not believe so, O'Neill. This creature is still warm, and shows no signs of having been dragged."

"Terrific. Any guesses on what killed it?"

"I do not know," Teal'c said. "These tracks belong to this creature." He indicated the faint outline of a print. "There appear to be broken branches in that direction."

They scanned the area, moving slowly back-to-back, weapons drawn.

Teal'c indicated another faint mark on the ground. "Something recently departed these woods and headed south. I suggest we return to camp."

Jack nodded. "Good plan."

Daniel carefully recorded the entire inscription before attempting to translate it. He could tell from Jack's frequent radio contact that their outdoor time could get cut short pretty much any time, should the colorful local fauna choose to make an appearance.

The threat didn't bother him particularly -- Sam had his back, after all -- but he hoped he'd finish with the inscription before they had to run for their lives.

"Honey?"

Oh good, Pete had more to say.

"Honey, do you think they're dinosaurs?"

Against his will, Daniel turned to watch Sam react to that.

"Dinosaurs?"

"Maybe the aliens brought dinosaurs here, like a nature preserve."

"Yeah," Daniel said. "The goa'uld aren't really into ecology. Also, the dinosaurs died off sixty five million years ago."

"Colonel O'Riley said something big was on the loose."

"I think if he'd meant T-Rex size, he would have specified." Daniel turned back to his work.

"Did you hear the one about the dinosaur who stubbed his toe?" Pete asked.

"Probably not," Sam said.

"It was dino sore!" Pete giggled.

Daniel couldn't be bothered to groan, and caught Sam's eye as she winced. That, Daniel figured, was pretty much the nail in the coffin.

"I swear all I gave him was an aspirin," she said softly.

"It would be cool, though," Pete said. "Like in that movie. You know, that movie. The really cool one with the dinosaur."

"Jurassic Park?"

"No, Godzilla."

"Pete," Sam said. "Maybe under the circumstances, you'd better head back inside. You might have trouble running on your ankle."

Daniel tried not to watch as Sam hauled Pete to his feet and led -- or more accurately half-carried -- the hobbling man back inside the temple.

Sam left Pete in the safety of the temple and hurried back to Daniel.

"I could fend off the dinosaurs on my own until Jack gets back," he said. "You know, if you want to keep an eye on Pete."

She rolled her eyes.

He shrugged. "Sam, you're dating a guy who thinks that Tom Cruise would win in a sword fight."

"I know he's been a bit much to take," Sam said. "He's sweet, though, and I wanted to give him a fair chance. I thought, I don't know, I thought his jokes would grow on me, like -- "

"Like Jack's?"

Sam felt the truth punch her in the gut. "Oh God."

Daniel looked sympathetic, but needled her anyway. "The difference is that Jack's jokes are funny."

She knew she wasn't hiding her emotions very well, because Daniel laid his hand on her arm. "I know it must be hard, trying to move on, given . . . well, you know."

Sam nodded, and fought the tears prickling her eyes. "I thought I should try, and not -- not use it as an excuse to keep my life on hold." She studied Daniel's face. "He says he's okay with it, but -- " She shrugged, unable to put her question into words, but knowing that Daniel would get it anyway.

He did. "Jack thinks he's okay. I think you know better than to believe that -- unless you're trying to make him jealous?"

"God no."

"No, of course not." Daniel adjusted his glasses. "I know that's not who you are, but for a moment I thought it might explain your tastes."

She smiled a little at his attempted levity. "He's a friend of my brother's."

"Oh." He squeezed her arm again. "A fix-up. That explains the 'fair chance' thing. You really went above and beyond the call of duty on that one, you know." He raised an eyebrow at her. "Godzilla?"

"You're not going to forget this, are you?"

"Nope. Listen, Sam, in all seriousness, there has to be a solution for you and Jack."

"There is," she said. "We beat the goa'uld."

"Ah, it's settled then. We'll beat the goa'uld."

She laughed and gave Daniel a quick hug. "Think the key to that is in this inscription?"

"Only one way to find out."

Jack watched the sky, especially in the direction of the temple, but he didn't see any giant birds of prey circling overhead. With any luck, the wildlife would go on about its usual business and leave them alone.

For some reason, he had his doubts about that. Luck tended to forget about them until the fat lady finished warming up her voice and got her sheet music in order. Then luck would make a grand entrance, or more accurately luck would get itself dragged to their rescue, kicking and screaming, thanks to something brilliant Carter cooked up.

Jack's radar remained on high alert as they approached the temple. He could see Carter and Daniel, both bent over Daniel's notes as they did their genius thing, but at first he didn't see the fifth wheel. He tried to work up some concern, but failed, and then spotted him hovering around the door to the temple.

Yep, doing nothing. That was about right.

Carter smiled as they approached. "Daniel has everything recorded, sir, and I didn't find any signs of goa'uld technology on the exterior of the building."

"Is that good?" he asked.

She shrugged.

"Okay, then. Lunch?"

Daniel showed Jack the morning's notes, more to provide a distraction than anything else, because the moment the team entered the temple, Pete hobbled over to wrap his arm around Carter's waist.

"I need to see my girl," he said, practically dragging Sam across the chamber.

Daniel watched Jack's eyes follow them. "So, big cat?"

"Yep." Jack fidgeted with the pen Daniel had tucked through the spiral notebook. "Big dead cat."

"Any idea what species?" Daniel asked.

Jack shrugged. "Big and black."

"There are black leopards in India," Daniel said. "I suppose it's possible that the goa'uld transplanted some of the native wildlife. Or of course it could be something native to this planet. Did it have any distinguishing features?"

"The creature resembled animals I have seen on many planets," Teal'c said. "Although unusual in size, I do not believe it would pose significant danger unless threatened."

"There is the little matter of what killed it," Daniel said.

"That is a mystery," Teal'c agreed.

Daniel glanced at Jack, who was busy pretending not to watch Sam with Pete, and exchanged a knowing look with Teal'c.

"So," Daniel said. "Any chance it was killed by dinosaurs?"

Jack turned back to him, eyebrows raised. "Daniel?"

"Yeah." Daniel shrugged. "Pete had this theory."

"Ah."

"Sam didn't -- "

"Are we eating or what?" Pete hobbled back across the chamber, one arm wrapped firmly around a somewhat guilty-looking Sam.

"Lunch," Jack said. "Right."

Daniel sighed. Hinting about the impending breakup would have to wait.

They sat down to eat and Daniel passed around the MRE's. Sam felt a wave of gratitude when he gave Pete a meal featuring a relatively benign hamburger patty instead of the treacherous spaghetti. She opened her own and forced herself not to pull back when Pete leaned closer.

Sam felt like a jerk. It wasn't Pete's fault that he could never compare to Jack O'Neill. What man could? Under any other circumstances, a swift end to the relationship would be best, but she couldn't very well dump a guy in the middle of a mission on an alien planet.

Unfortunately, putting it off meant . . . well, this. She hated the dishonesty of it. This whole mess was her fault, and it wasn't fair to Pete or to Colonel O'Neill. It wasn't even fair to Daniel, who spent their entire lunch break trying to keep conversation flowing in the least uncomfortable direction.

At the moment, the least uncomfortable direction involved the dead cat. "A leopard is capable of carrying prey as large as twice its own body weight up into a tree," Daniel was saying. "So there's really no mystery there. But as for what can kill a leopard as large as the one you described, and make off with its lunch? I think we have reason to feel some concern about that."

"Indeed."

"So the wound," Daniel said. "Do you think it could have been made by a weapon of some sort?"

"The flesh was torn -- "

"Hey!" Pete complained. "Do you guys have to talk about dead things when we're eating?" He patted Sam's knee. "There is a lady here, you know."

They all stared at Pete.

Teal'c eventually broke the silence. "Major Carter has herself slain larger creatures."

"Yep," Colonel O'Neill said. "There are stories."

"I could share one," Teal'c said. "But I do not wish to interfere with your meal."

Pete's grip tightened on Sam's knee as he glared at Teal'c, and Sam covered his hand with her own, hoping to keep him from responding. She shot an urgent look at Daniel.

"Yeah," Daniel said. "Perhaps we should -- "

Pete bolted to his feet and stalked off, all traces of his limp disappearing in his anger.

"Pete!" Sam moved to follow.

"Sam." Daniel caught her hand. "Let him go."

Pete went as far as the doorway, at which point he apparently remembered the potential dinosaurs lurking outside. He dealt the wall near the door a brutal kick.

Sam cringed. That settled her question about Pete's temper.

Jack sighed at the fifth wheel's temper tantrum. He couldn't let this dolt waste rations in the field. He glanced at Carter, hoping she'd deal with it, but she seemed wrapped up in a non-verbal debate with Daniel.

"Pete," Jack said. "Finish your lunch."

For a moment, things looked tense. Then the fifth wheel returned to his seat and ate, shooting accusing glares at Teal'c the whole time.

Without conversation, the meal ended quickly.

Daniel said something about comparative something or another and headed off to the sarcophagus chamber. Carter took Pete with her to further study the control panel in the east corridor, and Jack shrugged at Teal'c. "We could go take another look at the dead cat."

"To what end?" Teal'c asked.

To the end of not hanging around here, Jack thought. "Another sweep of the west corridor, then?"

Daniel adjusted the lanterns and sat down on the floor to go over his notes. He was hoping that the inscription on the chamber wall might bear a similarity to the inscription outside. Not in language, of course, as the one outside was clearly Vedic Sanskrit written in the Brahmi script, while this one differed significantly. However, if they shared a phonetic root, it might provide a starting point for some experimental substitution.

Understanding this wall, with any luck, would mean they could open the sarcophagus.

In this case, the final goal mattered above any other mysteries here, because obtaining the device inside meant they could go home, which would thankfully mean the end of Pete. Maybe his friends had to wait for happiness, but they could at least avoid this particular misery.

He studied the wall, searching for patterns that could indicate repeated words, and counting the number of different symbols used. He hoped the language would prove phonetic, which would open the possibly of connecting it to another language, and hoped it was more than merely wishful thinking that made him lean away from the possibility of logograms.

As for the Sanskrit, muhurmuhuH . . . again and again walk the old?

A slight sound echoed in the chamber, and Daniel turned as a blur of motion smacked into the side of his head. Everything went dark.

Sam heard the shout and sprinted down the corridor, using her weapon to light the way. "Daniel!"

She took quick inventory of her surroundings, ascertaining that the threat had fled, before dropping to her knees beside him. "Oh, God."

His pulse was steady, and he was breathing, but she could see blood in his hair, and feel a nasty swelling growing on his forehead.

"Daniel?" She knew the answer, but asked anyway. "Can you hear me?"

"Carter." Jack appeared in the doorway. "What happened?"

"Something attacked him," she said. "Get my pack."

He was back within seconds, kneeling beside her as she shone a flashlight in each of Daniel's eyes. "How is he?"

"His pupils react equally," she said. "That's a good sign. We need to stop the bleeding." She rinsed the wound with saline, examining it closely for signs of skull damage. "I have to close this."

Colonel O'Neill held the flashlight as she temporarily closed the laceration with steri-strips. "What did this?"

"I don't know, sir. It looks like he was struck at least three times," she said. "I don't think his skull is fractured but we should get him back to the SGC."

"Is it safe to move him?"

"I don't know, sir. We should immobilize his neck in case of spinal injury." She bit her lip and looked at Colonel O'Neill for the first time. "There's really not much I can do for him here."

"Teal'c can head back to the gate and call for a medical team," he said. "We need to secure the area before whatever did this comes back."

"Major Carter," Teal'c said. "Where is Pete Shanahan?"

She realized with a sinking, guilty feeling that she had no idea.

"It's okay," Colonel O'Neill said. "We'll find him. He's probably in the main chamber anyway. Stay with Daniel."

She nodded, and sat watching Daniel breathe as the others went to look for Pete and get help. If Pete had gotten hurt -- seriously hurt, as opposed to slightly-twisted-ankle hurt -- then her guilt would have a field day. She took Daniel's pulse again, relieved that it remained steady. She gave his hand a squeeze. "Wake up soon, okay Daniel?"

Teal'c's surprised cry of pain echoed through the temple, followed by Colonel O'Neill's shout. Sam dropped Daniel's hand to reach for her weapon, and noticed Pete standing just outside the doorway.

"Watch him," she ordered, not waiting for acknowledgement.

She met Colonel O'Neill dragging an unconscious Teal'c.

"Carter, get his legs, will ya?"

She hurried to help. "What happened, sir?"

"Force field."

They carried Teal'c into the central chamber.

"He'll wake up on his own," Colonel O'Neill said. "How's Daniel?"

Sam examined him again. "The same. The force field?"

"Blocking the exit."

"Then I should suture this laceration."

"Ya, okay." He knelt down and held the flashlight while she got to work.

"He hit his head?" Pete asked. Sam had forgotten he was there. "Will he die?"

"He'd better not," Colonel O'Neill said. "If he dies again, I'll kill him."

Jack glanced towards the doorway. Whatever had done this to Daniel might be locked in the temple with them. "Pete, hold this."

He handed over the flashlight and moved to the doorway.

"Pete," Carter said. "Aim it more this way. Yes, like that."

Jack scanned the corridors.

A thump resounded through the chamber, and he spun around.

"Sir?" Carter said. "A little help?"

Pete's unconscious body lay in a heap beside Daniel's head. The flashlight had rolled out of reach, and Carter had both hands occupied with holding Daniel's scalp together.

"Oh, for crying out loud, isn't he a cop?" Colonel O'Neill retrieved the flashlight and held it, one eye on the door as Carter finished the stitches.

"I'm sorry, sir," Carter said.

"For what?"

She nodded towards Pete.

"I guess he doesn't like the sight of blood."

Teal'c groaned and sat up.

"Teal'c, buddy, how ya feeling?"

"Not entirely well, O'Neill, but I will recover. How is Daniel Jackson?"

"Carter?"

"I don't know, sir. Without the equipment available at the SGC, I have no way of knowing for certain. We'll know more when he wakes up."

Teal'c climbed to his feet. "What has befallen Pete Shanahan?"

"He fainted," Carter said, rather dismissively, Jack thought.

The sound of an object clattering to the floor echoed through the temple.

"That's our cue," Jack said. "Carter, you about -- "

"Just one more . . . there."

"Good." He handed her the flashlight. "Teal'c? Let's move."

After assuring herself that she'd done everything possible for Daniel, Sam rolled Pete into a slightly more dignified position and took up watch at the doorway. At least the central chamber afforded a defensible position, but whatever had attacked Daniel was clearly capable of stealth.

Daniel was much harder to catch off guard these days.

Her radio stayed silent. She listened for any hint that Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c needed help, but she only heard the breathing of the two unconscious men in the chamber. Pete fainted at the sight of blood. Terrific. She had a few things to say to her brother when they got home.

They returned a short while later, and Colonel O'Neill held up a small statue. "Whatever attacked Daniel dropped this," he said. "We found it in a chamber in the west corridor."

"It has blood on it," Teal'c added.

Sam examined it. "The base is sharp enough to cause that laceration, but there's no way to confirm that this is Daniel's blood."

"I think it's a safe bet," Colonel O'Neill said. "Unless we're locked in this temple with two somethings that aren't particular about who they club over the head."

"Do we know where it went?"

He shrugged. "This place is full of hiding places, and most of the chambers have more than one exit."

"Indeed."

"So, here's the plan. We hold this position until more of us are mobile, Carter does something about that force field, and we hightail it back to the gate."

Sam agreed. "I'll wake up Pete and we'll go get started."

"No," Colonel O'Neill said. "Take Teal'c. Nobody's going out there alone."

"Sir -- "

"Carter." He nodded slightly, but meaningfully, in Pete's direction.

She found the idea of leaving her commanding officer alone with her soon-to-be ex-boyfriend unsettling at best, but that didn't make a terribly valid argument. "Sir, I'd feel more comfortable if you had Teal'c to watch the door, that way you could keep a closer eye on Daniel."

"Wake up Pete," he said. "He can watch the door while I keep a closer eye on Daniel."

Sam knew defeat when she saw it. She crossed the room and shook Pete's shoulder. "We need you to keep watch."

"Honey? What happened?"

"Colonel O'Neill can fill you in," she said, instantly regretting it. "I've got to go."

Jack watched the slow rise and fall of Daniel's chest, and kept one eye on the dolt guarding the door. All the fifth wheel needed to do was stand there and pay attention, but Jack wasn't about to trust him to do it right.

Fifth Wheel had proven himself nothing but a liability so far, after all. Jack didn't have a clue what Carter saw in the guy, and he really didn't want to think about it.

"Got any potato chips?" Hamster Wheel asked.

"What?" Jack stared at him.

"Chips," Wheelbarrow explained. "Snacks. We always have snacks on stakeouts."

"In case it's escaped your attention, we're not sitting around in a nice safe squad car waiting to nab some petty thief. Something big and alien pretty much wants us dead. On top of that, Daniel needs a doctor, and we can't get him to one thanks to a force field. So no, it's not time for snacks."

"You think he's gonna die, huh?" The dolt didn't seem too torn up about it. "Do people die on these missions a lot?"

"Keep your eyes on that corridor," Jack snapped. "Unless you'd like to be the first -- "

Daniel made a sound, and Jack turned back to him. "Daniel?"

Teal'c followed Major Carter back to the outer door, alert for potential threats. They found the control panel for the force field almost immediately. The fresh damage from Pete Shanahan's burst of anger contrasted sharply with the rest of the wall.

"This won't be easy," Major Carter said. "The center of the panel is bent into the crystals, and part of it looks like it's lifted up beneath the stone."

Teal'c watched the darkness as she worked in silence for a while.

"I can't believe Pete did this," she said, anger in her voice. "Daniel needs a medical team. If he -- "

"Daniel Jackson will recover," Teal'c said. "He has done so many times before."

"I hope you're right, Teal'c."

"Do you have reason to believe that his injuries are severe?"

"I really have no way of knowing," she said. "We won't know until he wakes up." She turned to look up at him. "I could really use a second set of hands. Do you think -- "

"Carter," O'Neill said over the radio. "It's Daniel. He started to wake up."

Sam jogged back to the central chamber, her hand on her weapon, but mostly trusting Teal'c to watch her back. Fear for Daniel overrode all other concerns. "Sir?"

Colonel O'Neill moved out of her way as she dropped down beside Daniel. "His breathing changed, and he moaned a little."

She took his pulse, and then gently squeezed his fingers. "Daniel? Can you hear me?"

His fingers twitched in her grasp.

"Daniel?"

"Sam?"

She smiled. "It's good to see you, Daniel. How are you feeling?"

"Not that good." He started to move.

She laid a hand on his shoulder. "Take it easy. Where does it hurt?"

"Oh, the usual. Headache. A little nausea."

"Don't sit up," she said. "It'll make it worse. Do you remember what happened?"

"Someone hit me over the head with . . . was it a pipe?"

"Statue," Sam said.

"Are we talking Unas here?" Jack asked.

"I didn't get enough of a look," Daniel said. "So I take it they -- it, whatever -- is still on the loose?"

"It's worse than that," Jack said. "Whoever did it activated a force field. We're locked in here with them."

Sam cringed. "Sir, it was Pete -- "

"What the hell?" Pete shouted. "You're accusing me of murder!"

"God no." Sam stared up at him, shocked that he'd think that's what she'd meant. "I was talking about the force field."

"I didn't do that either!"

"You did," Teal'c said. "You were unaware of it."

"At lunch," Sam explained. "The control panel for the force field is beside the doorway."

"Peachy," Colonel O'Neill said.

Sam turned her attention back to Daniel. "Want something for the pain?"

"Yeah, that would be a good thing."

"Hey!" Pete actually stomped his foot. "Don't I even get an apology?"

"For what?" Colonel O'Neill asked.

Pete ignored him. "Honey, I'm waiting."

"Pete, we'll talk about it later." She turned back to Daniel.

"Fine." Pete stormed off down the dark corridor.

Colonel O'Neill sighed. "Teal'c?"

"I will follow him."

Daniel opened one eye experimentally, closed it for a moment longer, and accepted Sam's help when she offered him a drink. "Thanks," he said. "But you'd better go help Teal'c with the rounding up."

"I'm afraid I'd better," Sam said. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to order Colonel O'Neill to get it."

"Oh, don't worry about that," Daniel said. "I'll have him fetching me a five course meal the second you leave."

She laughed and touched his cheek, and then set off to fetch her wayward date.

"There aren't any broken canopic jars around, are there?" Daniel asked. "Because I don't remember that guy being quite that big of an ass before."

"Already ruled that out," Jack said. "Carter would sense it."

"I wasn't entirely serious," Daniel said. "But it's oddly comforting to know you've put some thought into the possibility. Any idea what has gotten into him?"

Jack shrugged. "I may have pissed him off earlier. Plus that fainting spell couldn't have been good for his ego."

"Fainting spell. Really." Daniel seemed amused. "Maybe he's figured out it's over."

"It's over?"

"Come on, Jack. You can't seriously think -- "

Sam's shout echoed through the temple.

"Go." Daniel nearly caught the zat that Jack tossed at his chest. "I'm good."

Sam saw the blur of movement barrel into Teal'c just as she turned the corner. The light of her P90 showed her only a glimpse before Teal'c and his attacker rolled into one of the chambers and out of her sight. She called for help and sprinted after them.

An inhuman wail pierced the air, its echo filling the temple.

Teal'c threw off his attacker just as Sam reached the cluttered chamber, and she tried to keep her light on it but the maze of artifacts obscured her view. She saw little more than a glint of green eyes before she heard the solid thunk of it striking the floor on the other side of a large stone table.

She circled the table, searching for her target. She aimed at a large, dark shape, slinking low to the floor, but it bolted from the chamber before she got a lock on it. It appeared to have a tail, but other than that, she failed to make out any details. It vanished before she reached the next room, and she turned back.

"Teal'c?"

He sat up as she reached him. Blood covered his face. "That creature was not an Unas."

Colonel O'Neill skidded around the corner. "Carter?"

"It disappeared into the next chamber."

"What did?"

"Don't know, sir. I didn't get a good look at it."

"I saw it," Pete announced. "It's a bear."

Sam had her doubts about that, but at least Pete was back with the group. She'd deal with him later. She was a little more worried about Teal'c. The laceration on his forehead was bleeding into his eyes and making it difficult to assess the full extent of his injuries.

"Well whatever it is," Colonel O'Neill said. "We'd better get back to the other chamber before it eats Daniel."

"Teal'c?" Sam asked. "Can you see?"

"I would appreciate your assistance, Major Carter."

Sam led Teal'c back to the central chamber, where Daniel had managed to prop himself up enough to aim a zat at the doorway. Beads of sweat glistened on his pale face.

"Ouch," Daniel said to Teal'c. "You too, huh?"

Colonel O'Neill and Sam helped Teal'c take a seat beside Daniel, and Sam got to work on his wounds. He had four parallel cuts, all deep enough to bleed profusely. The one that worried her most crossed his face dangerously close to his eyes, and it seemed to make it difficult for him to open them. Even if the eyes themselves weren't damaged, an infection in the area could compromise his eyesight, and even minor swelling could prove a serious problem while they were stuck here.

Daniel managed to hold the flashlight while she took a closer look.

"It looks like your eyes are okay," Sam said. "But we need to keep the swelling down."

"Honey," Pete said. "I'm thirsty."

She ignored him.

"Honey, I said -- "

"Yeah," Colonel O'Neill said. "Let's have a chat."

Jack gripped the fifth wheel's upper arm firmly and led him into the corridor.

"Ow! Let go! You're hurting me!"

"Good." Jack shoved him against the wall. "Now listen up."

"Hey! You can't treat -- "

"Your little tantrum put my team in danger. If -- "

"My taxes pay your salary!"

Jack clamped his free hand over the fifth wheel's mouth. "If you move so much as one inch outside that chamber again without my explicit permission, then I will personally feed you to whatever the hell it is that did that to Teal'c. Capiche?"

He expected a nod. What he didn't expect was for the dolt to lick his hand.

"What is wrong with you?" Jack wiped his hand on the loser's shirt and shoved him back into the chamber. "Stay."

"But I'm thirsty."

"Tough." He turned back to his team. "Carter? How's Teal'c?"

"I think he'll be okay, sir." The worry in her voice said differently.

"Carter?"

She stood up and followed him to the doorway. "Whatever attacked him clawed him in the face. There's a risk of infection, and one of those wounds is pretty close to his eyes. We need to get him out of here."

"What're you saying?" Jack asked quietly. "He could go blind?"

"I don't think so, sir, but any swelling will at least temporarily impair his vision."

"Peachy."

"I've got to get back to work on that force field."

"Yeah." He looked around at their team. Teal'c couldn't see, Daniel could barely sit up, and then there was the fifth wheel. His options sucked. "Take Pete with you, and watch your six."

She nodded and started to gather her tools.

Jack caught the fifth wheel's arm again. "If anything happens to Carter, I'll shoot you."

Daniel watched Jack fidget in the doorway, apparently frustrated that it was too narrow for proper pacing. "Jack, you're making me dizzy."

"You already were dizzy," Jack said. "You got clunked over the head with a statue."

"Good point. Listen, I think I could help Sam if -- "

"I thought you were dizzy."

"Right." Daniel sighed. "I've been thinking about the inscription -- "

The sound of raised voices echoed through the temple.

Jack grabbed his radio. "Carter?"

"We're fine, sir, just -- "

"Hey," Pete's voice interrupted. "I was talking to you -- " The transmission ended.

"Lover's quarrel," Jack muttered. "Fantastic. Have I mentioned how much I really don't like that guy?"

"If it brings you any comfort, O'Neill," Teal'c said. "I do not believe that Major Carter intends for their association to continue."

"Oh?"

"Her patience with him has grown thin."

"Teal'c's right," Daniel said. "I think Sam's planning to end things when we get home."

"Oh?"

"She kind of hinted." Daniel considered saying more, but he didn't want to directly break a confidence.

Raised voices continued to filter down the corridor.

"If we get home," Jack said. "That guy's really not making it any easier."

"You think you're so smart!" Pete bellowed. "You think I don't know! You and that Johnson guy have been all over each other!"

"What?"

"I saw you," Pete said. "Whispering your little secrets and holding his hand. Don't think I don't know what that means!"

It took Sam a moment to realize he meant Daniel. "Pete, he's hurt -- "

"Don't give me your excuses! You women are all the same. One man's never enough."

"Pete -- "

"You think I care what you have to say? You're going to listen to me now!" Pete actually stamped his foot and waved a finger in her face. "It stops now, you hear me? You're my girl, and don't you forget it!"

"Excuse me?"

"I'm not having my girl mess around with some muscle-bound G.I. Joe, not on my watch."

Only her anger kept her from laughing in his face. That, and the fact that she had a job to do. "Pete, we can talk about this later, right now -- "

"Oh no," Pete said. "You don't decide when this is over. That's for me to decide. I'm the man here."

"No, you're the civilian here," she said. "Follow my orders, and let me do my job. Our personal issues can wait."

"Listen, bi -- "

She caught his arm as he made a grab for her, and slammed him back against the wall, her arm pressed to his windpipe. "You listen. We will talk about this after we get out of here. Our lives are in danger. Everything else can wait. Okay?"

His lips flapped a bit, and she released the pressure enough to let him speak.

"This isn't over."

"No," she agreed. "It's not. But can we get to work?"

He nodded and she released him.

He looked almost contrite. "We'll talk later?"

"We'll talk later." She felt a little sick with shock. Lame jokes and whining were one thing, but the jealous temper tantrum had caught her a little off guard. Still, she had a job to do, and their options were limited. She set up a lantern beside the damaged panel. "Now keep an eye out for . . . the bear."

Pete shrugged, unconcerned. "Bears hibernate. It's probably sleeping."

Jack tried to ignore the rather loud argument between Carter and her loser. He paced. He scanned the corridor for hostiles. He asked Teal'c about his injury, and quizzed Daniel about his headache.

When the arguing seemed to stop, his anxiety only rose. He reached for his radio. "Carter? How are you doing out there?"

"Everything's fine, sir," she answered.

He refrained from checking in with her again for almost twenty minutes. By the third check-in -- after about an hour of work -- she started to sound frustrated.

"I could use an extra set of hands," she said. "This panel is wedged in pretty tight."

"Head on back," he said. "Fetch the rest of the gear from the main chamber while you're at it."

Carter arrived a few minutes later carrying both his pack and Daniel's. The fifth wheel staggered behind her with Teal'c's gear. His whining had turned ugly.

"You don't have any right to boss me around," he muttered at Carter's back. "And you'd better remember what I said."

Carter looked furious. She dropped the packs inside the door and went to check on her patients.

"Hey!" The dolt stamped his foot like an angry toddler. "What did I just get done telling you!"

"Telling her?" Jack raised an eyebrow at Training Wheels. "I bet that went well."

"What would you know about it? Huh? You sticking it to her too? I always wondered why the army let in girls but now I know all about -- "

A lifetime of military training propelled Jack's fist into Pete's jaw.

The dolt crumpled to the ground.

"Better."

"Indeed," Teal'c said.

"Yep," Daniel said. "Definitely better."

Carter turned from examining Teal'c. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"You tell me, Carter. Your brain usually works a lot faster than mine."

"By the way, Daniel," Carter said. "You and I are sleeping together."

Daniel blinked at her. "Goodie?"

Daniel claimed he felt well enough to stand watch, for a few minutes at least, so Sam and Colonel O'Neill went for the equipment Pete had refused to carry a few minutes earlier.

Sam dropped to her knees and started shoving Pete's scattered gear into his pack.

"He's not good enough for you," Colonel O'Neill said. "Not even close."

She gave a wry laugh. "Ya think?"

He joined her on the ground. "Not that anyone ever could be."

She stopped packing and caught his eye in the dim light. "Someone is. I just have to be patient."

He got it. She read it in his face before he looked away. "You deserve a life."

Sam laid her hand over his and waited until he met her gaze once again. "I have one."

"Ah, Teal'c?" Daniel spoke softly. Hopefully softly enough that the owner of the lopsided green eyes currently approaching from the west corridor wouldn't feel the need to hasten any attack it might have in mind. "We're about to have company."

The eyes moved slowly. The owner of those eyes appeared to have its head cocked, and Daniel guessed from its apparent height that it moved on four legs. He could hear Teal'c quietly speaking to Jack on the radio. Maybe they could trap it between them in the dark corridor.

It grew closer, stepping from near-complete darkness into the gray half-light filtering through the chamber door. Daniel raised his zat. It was definitely an animal, darkly colored, and carrying its head at an odd, disjointed angle.

It was big, and it definitely noticed the snack-sized human in the chamber doorway.

Daniel fired the zat. The creature leapt, and he fired again, rolling, barely avoiding sharp claws. Gunfire erupted as Jack and Sam ran down the corridor, and the creature fled.

"You okay?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, just, that was close." Daniel squinted up at Jack and pressed a hand to his throbbing head. "I was sure I hit it."

"Me too," Jack said.

"I saw Daniel hit it," Sam said. "The glow from the zat gave me a pretty good look at it."

"Good shot, by the way."

Daniel accepted the hand Jack offered and winced as his head protested against the upward motion. "Am I crazy, or was that a cat?"

"It looked like a cat," Sam agreed.

"Yep," Jack said. "Cat. Big cat."

"We're locked behind a force field with a hungry . . . I'm guessing leopard -- and it's invulnerable to zats," Daniel leaned back against the wall. "That seems about right."

"Any more good news?" Jack asked.

Cursing erupted from the floor behind the sarcophagus.

"Pete Shanahan is awake," Teal'c said.

"You hit me!" Pete shouted from the floor. "Wait till I tell my lawyer! I'll sue you so good I'll own the whole freaking army."

"Yep," Jack said. "You do that."

"You'll be sorry!"

"Doubt that," Jack said. "Now stop shouting. You'll attract dinosaurs."

Jack turned his back on the fifth wheel. "Daniel? Hold down the fort. Carter, you're with me."

"Hey!" The dolt clambered to his feet. "She's my girl, and she's not going anywhere with you."

Carter rolled her eyes.

"Okay." Jack turned back around. "How about this? She stays here with us, and you go see if the leopard's hungry."

The dolt blinked at him.

"No? Didn't think so. Stay." Jack adjusted his weapon. "Daniel? If he gives you any trouble, shoot him."

They headed off in the direction the leopard had gone, carefully scanning the corridor for what Jack hoped would be an unconscious cat. He knew Daniel had hit it, possibly twice. It should have collapsed instantly, but since it hadn't, maybe it had landed in a heap a few jumps from the door, masked by darkness.

No such luck.

The east corridor split off in two directions, with dozens of interconnected chambers leading off from it. They saw no sign of the cat.

Jack sighed. "Let's go fetch that gear."

"Too bad we can't barricade this somehow." Carter ran her light along the walls. "If the control panel Daniel found in the east corridor belonged to a force field, then maybe I could salvage the components and construct -- "

"Or," Jack said. "We could build a fire."

She smiled at him. "That would be much easier, sir."

Teal'c kept his eyes covered with a cold pack as Major Carter had advised. In addition to reducing the inflammation, this provided the added benefit of allowing him to ignore Pete Shanahan. He almost felt pity for Daniel Jackson, who did not share the same luxury, and was therefore forced to endure the man's company while they waited for O'Neill and Major Carter to return.

"You'd better keep your hands off my girl," Pete Shanahan said. "I don't like what's been going on around here. I don't like it at all."

"You don't say." Daniel Jackson possessed a great talent for diplomacy.

It was wasted on Pete Shanahan. "Hey, you'd better show me some respect!"

"I see." Anger seeped into Daniel Jackson's voice. "Like the respect you showed Sam earlier?"

"That's none of your business!" Pete Shanahan moved closer to Daniel Jackson.

Teal'c had no fear that despite his injuries, Daniel Jackson could defend himself, but Pete Shanahan's ranting might prove a dangerous distraction. Teal'c focused on any potential sounds from the corridor. He would not allow this fool to further endanger his team.

"A guy's gotta put his foot down," Pete Shanahan continued. "Else, a woman will get all uppity."

Teal'c's hidden hand tightened on his weapon. Hearing such words in reference to Major Carter filled Teal'c's mind with visions of Pete Shanahan meeting with an unfortunate accident.

Daniel Jackson's voice carried the same sentiment. "Uppity? Yeah, see, here's where you may be a little confused. Women are actually human beings, not property, and -- "

"She's my girl!" Pete Shanahan insisted. His voice grew louder, and certainly now carried into the corridor, where Teal'c could hear the approaching footsteps of O'Neill and Major Carter. "I'd better not catch you talking to her again, or -- "

"Hey." O'Neill had reached the doorway. "Looking for another fist to the jaw? Carter, you want to do the honors this time?"

"Sir," Major Carter said softly. Then her steps crossed the chamber and Teal'c heard her offering Pete Shanahan a canteen. The tone of her voice well masked the anger she certainly felt; it helped that she'd missed the most offensive of the man's comments.

Teal'c hoped that Daniel Jackson's assessment was as accurate as it seemed, because he found it unsettling to see someone whom he admired involved with such an objectionable individual.

"So," O'Neill said. "Here's the plan. We're going to keep a small fire burning in the doorway here. That should keep the nice kitty from paying us another visit."

"What do you intend to burn?" Teal'c asked.

"The larger pieces of the brush that Daniel and I cleared this morning are stacked just inside the door in the main chamber," Major Carter answered. Her voice grew closer as she explained, and her hand landed on his arm. "There should be enough to keep a small fire going for a few hours, anyway. Hopefully that will give Colonel O'Neill and I enough time to disable the force field."

Pete Shanahan objected loudly to the plan. "You're not running off and leaving me here again! I forbid it!"

Major Carter took Teal'c's compress and replaced it with a colder one. She started to speak, clearly determined to ignore the man's unreasonable demands.

"Hey! Look at me when I'm speaking!"

"Pete, please." Major Carter's voice sounded foreign, pleading, and not like the strong woman Teal'c had always known.

He felt his anger grow. A capable warrior such as Major Carter deserved a great deal more respect. He felt she should demand it, and failed to understand why she hesitated to do just that. She'd stood up to system lords. This man was nothing.

"Ready Carter?"

"Are you listening?" Pete Shanahan stamped his feet. "I said I forbid it!"

"Forbid?" O'Neill asked. Teal'c could tell that his patience had also expired. "See, I'm the only one here who gets to forbid things, and if you can't get that through your head -- "

"Are you threatening me?"

"Yep," O'Neill said. "I am."

"I won't stand for -- "

"Pete," Major Carter said. "I know the situation is making everyone a little tense, but just hang in there, and we'll be back to the SGC in a few hours. Okay?"

"I'm a civilian," Pete Shanahan said. "He can't order me around."

"Yes he can," Major Carter said. "Now please, can you just cooperate?"

Pete Shanahan muttered his agreement, but Teal'c did not believe he could be trusted to keep his word. No honorable man would speak to someone he claimed to love in such a manner.

Once they got the fire started in the central chamber's doorway, they took the time for a quick meal. Sam tried to ignore Pete's hand on her knee, a task which Colonel O'Neill seemed to find equally challenging.

Pete was apparently oblivious to the glares he received, and his confrontational mood dissipated once he started eating. He seemed relaxed. Cheerful, even. Sam wondered if his show of temper might be related to low blood sugar, or if she was just making excuses for him.

"Sam," Daniel said. "I've been thinking about the . . . "

Pete tensed and wrapped his arm around her thigh, glaring at his perceived rival and completely missing the look on Colonel O'Neill's face.

Sam attempted to remove Pete's hand from her leg, and he dug his fingers into her thigh hard enough that she'd probably have bruises. If she hadn't already made her decision, that would have done it. She pried his fingers loose and forced down any other reaction. "We'd better get back to work."

Colonel O'Neill quickly agreed, and they returned to the main chamber to disable the force field.

"So," Colonel O'Neill said. "What do you need from me?"

Loaded question, under the circumstances. She pushed all of that from her mind and handed him a screwdriver. "I need you to help me pry this panel apart. The way the metal buckled, it wedged itself under the stone. I can't get at both corners simultaneously."

He gave the chamber another pass with his flashlight before they got to work.

Prying the bent metal away from the crystals one millimeter at a time didn't require much thought. Sam's rebellious mind kept returning to Pete, and how she could be so blind as to get involved with that kind of guy. She knew better than to let her personal issues distract her while in the field, but for once her ability to compartmentalize everything seemed to be failing.

"Carter?" Colonel O'Neill asked softly. "You okay?"

She nodded and tried not to look at him, because they couldn't afford to have this conversation. "I'm sorry, sir."

"For what?"

"For Pete."

"You're not responsible for his behavior."

She could have left it there. "That's not what I meant."

He studied her face, and she knew she didn't need to explain. "You don't need to apologize. You were right to try."

She didn't know what to say to that, so she turned back to the panel.

This sucked.

Jack wanted to say something to Carter. He wasn't clear on what he wanted to say, but since he couldn't say it anyway, that was missing the point. She felt guilty, and he wanted to put a stop to it. She deserved a life, and whether she got one or not, he'd always care about her. She certainly didn't owe him anything. He'd be happy for her if -- okay, he'd be jealous as hell, but that was no reason for her to wait forever.

Together they kept working on the panel, freeing the metal one millimeter at a time. Jack paused frequently to scan the chamber for hungry wildlife and statue-wielding locals. "I guess it would be too much to ask."

"Sir?"

"I was just thinking that if we have to be locked in here with not one, but two things that want us dead, it would be nice if maybe they'd want each other dead too."

She gave him a brief smile that he felt in his gut, and repositioned the screwdriver. "They might, assuming whatever hit Daniel is the same thing that killed the leopard you found outside. Here, I think I've got it. Hold this, right here, and pull."

The metal popped out from beneath the stone with a screech of protest, and clattered to the ground.

"Uh oh."

"Carter?"

"It's just that I don't recognize this configuration." She aimed her flashlight at the damaged crystals, and then at some writing on the damaged panel. "Or this language. I'm going to need Daniel."

"Can't we just shoot it?"

"Sir."

"Maybe C-4?"

She shook her head. "It's already damaged, and the force field is working. My guess is that this is just the control panel. The power source for the shield itself must be located somewhere else."

"So," he said. "We broke the off switch?"

He ignored his urge to place blame -- or perhaps a fist -- where it was due. He wouldn't rub Carter's nose in the fact that her moron date had caused the problem.

"That's pretty much it, sir. We either need to find the power source for the shield, or repair this panel. Either way, I'll need Daniel to translate."

"Yeah, okay. I'll get him; you watch your six."

"I think I'll just keep my six to the wall, sir." She grinned at him, which did all sorts of things to his insides. "It'll be easier that way."

Daniel's head throbbed, and he was starting to think that had less to do with his concussion and more to do with Pete. The man would not shut up about Sam. Not that he had anything new to say. It pretty much all boiled down to repeatedly laying claim to what he viewed as his property.

"It takes a real man to handle a woman like that," Pete explained. "You've gotta remind them who's boss, or they'll mess around on you."

Daniel's hand twitched on his zat. The temptation grew with every minute.

"You'd better know what's good for you," Pete said. "And that's staying away from my girl."

"Yeah," Daniel said. "I'll be sure to do that." He spotted Jack in the corridor. "Force field down?"

"Not yet." Jack stepped carefully around the small fire. "Carter says she needs you for -- "

"No way!" Pete jumped up and waved his finger in Jack's face. "I'm putting my foot down! This guy doesn't go anywhere near my girl!"

"For cryin' out loud," Jack said. "Haven't you gotten it through that thick skull yet? You don't give the orders here."

"He's messing around with my girl!"

"Yeah." Jack rolled his eyes. "I see that happening. Daniel, how's the head?"

"Fine," he lied.

"Sure it is," Jack said.

"Hey!" Pete stamped his foot. "You can't just ignore me!"

"Well, a change of venue wouldn't hurt." Daniel accepted the hand Jack offered and climbed to his feet. "Let me just -- "

"Colonel." Sam said over the radio. "I've got company."

Sam watched the green eyes approach at a steady pace. The cat had its head tilted to the side as it watched her. It neither blinked nor hesitated as she slowly raised her P90. Her finger found the trigger and she took aim.

The cat moved into the patch of daylight filtering in through the doorway, its eyes still focused on her, and Sam fired. Her shoulder absorbed the impact of the weapon. She heard the sound of the shot.

The cat, however, continued forward unaffected.

She had to have hit it, and yet it didn't seem to react at all. She fired again, spraying the approaching animal with bullets, any one of which should have killed it.

It leapt forward, and she rolled to avoid its attack.

"Carter!" Colonel O'Neill fired on the creature as well.

Sam scrambled backward, clutching her P90 with both hands and using it to block the cat's attack. She caught it in the throat with the makeshift blunt weapon and shoved with all her strength. The animal fell sideways against the force shield in the doorway a few feet away. The impact sent it flying in a shower of crackling energy, and it landed in a crumpled heap near Colonel O'Neill's feet.

They both kept their weapons aimed at it as Sam stood up, and Colonel O'Neill poked it with his boot. He jumped back with a sound that for Colonel O'Neill was pretty close to a yelp of surprise.

"Sir?"

The cat leapt onto its feet, sprinted past Colonel O'Neill, and disappeared into the darkness.

"Okay," he said slowly. "What the hell just happened?"

Jack turned to Carter for an explanation.

She shrugged. "Maybe someone's outfitted it with a personal shield of some kind."

"See," Jack said. "That's what happens when planets are supposed to be uninhabited. Not only are they inhabited, but the inhabitants turn out to be completely nuts."

Carter smiled a little. "You're not wrong."

For a moment, smiling back occupied his full attention. "Well then, I guess I'd better go get Daniel."

"No need," Daniel answered. "I'm here."

"Good," Jack said. "I'll head back -- leave you kids to the genius thing."

Carter and Daniel leaned over the crystals, and Jack set off to check on Teal'c. He found the fifth wheel lurking in the corridor.

"I thought I told you to stay in the central chamber."

"I'm not leaving that guy alone with my girl!"

"She's not your girl." Jack grabbed his arm. "She's my second-in-command. This is a military operation, not -- "

"Hey! Get you're hands off of me!"

"Not gonna happen. I'm through messing around with you." Jack shoved him back in the direction of the central chamber. "Do as you're told."

"Get out of my way! I know what's going on and you can't keep me from stopping it!" The dolt took a swing at him. Not a terribly effective swing, but it put an end to whatever remained of Jack's patience.

"For cryin' out loud." Jack shoved him back against the wall. "Nothing's going on."

"No woman of mine is going to ignore me when I put my foot down!"

"She's gonna put her foot in your ass if she hears you talking like that."

"She needs to learn -- "

"No," Jack said. "She doesn't. She's a whole lot smarter than you."

"No woman -- "

Jack shoved his arm into the dolt's throat. "What are you, a cave man? Being a woman has nothing to do with anything."

The idiot looked a little purple.

Jack let him go. "Get back in there and keep your mouth shut, or I'll shoot you."

"You can't do that." The idiot tried to push past him.

Jack grabbed him again, shoved him into the chamber, and pulled out his zat. "Ready to follow orders?"

The dolt blinked stupidly at the zat. "You wouldn't dare! Now I'm going to talk to my girl, and you can't stop me!"

Jack shot him.

Teal'c smiled at the sound of Pete Shanahan's unconscious body striking the stone floor. Only a fool would believe that O'Neill made idle threats.

O'Neill unsnapped a pocket. "How are you holding up, Teal'c?"

"My condition is improving, O'Neill." He lifted the compress and squinted at the figure on the ground. "In fact it has improved greatly in the last few moments."

"Carter and Daniel will have that control panel working in no time, so -- " O'Neill spun around as both men heard the slight rustle of the leopard stepping into the campfire.

O'Neill fired his zat but the creature continued to advance.

Teal'c climbed silently to his feet. If he kept from drawing its attention, he could catch it by surprise.

The animal held its head at an angle, unconcerned with the fire -- contrary to the stench of burning hair -- as it focused on the unconscious man that O'Neill now moved to protect. O'Neill tossed the useless zat aside and reached for his handgun just as the cat leaped towards him.

Teal'c moved quickly, blocking the attack with his staff weapon before the powerful jaws could lock around O'Neill's raised arm. The stench of burning flesh filled the air and flames jumped from the cat's smoldering leg to O'Neill's jacket. Teal'c ignored O'Neill's loud curse and threw his body weight forward against the cat, knocking it onto its side and firing his staff weapon. A gaping hole appeared in the creature's side, but it leapt to its feet. Teal'c tackled it.

"Hold it down!" O'Neill shouted. He grabbed its thrashing legs and bound them with plastic restraints.

The animal's leg was charred where it had stood in the campfire, and its head flopped at an unnatural angle. In addition to the staff blast, it had multiple bullet wounds and a gaping tear in the flesh of its shoulder. It continued to struggle.

"This animal is no longer alive," Teal'c said.

"Well it's sure as hell moving around enough," O'Neill answered. He had a hand clutched to his side and appeared to be in considerable pain.

"You are injured," Teal'c said.

"Ya think?" O'Neill snapped.

Major Carter and Daniel Jackson arrived.

"Sir!" Major Carter went straight to O'Neill.

Daniel Jackson glanced at his friend, and then down at the struggling creature. "It's moving around an awful lot for a dead cat."

"Indeed."

"The tel'chak device had the ability to reanimate dead tissue," Daniel Jackson said. "A similar device must be active nearby."

Teal'c nodded. "That would explain the undirected nature of the creature's aggression."

"Terrific," O'Neill said, the pain of his injury evident in his voice. "That's just what we needed. Zombies."

Sam rushed to Colonel O'Neill, her stomach turning at the odor of charred flesh that she hoped like hell wasn't related to the pain she saw in his face. She caught his hand, gently pulling it from where he clutched at his side. "Oh God."

He had blood on his hand and the part of his skin visible beneath his scorched shirt looked black. "I'm okay," he tried to claim. "We need -- "

"Sir, I need to take a better look." Her hands shook as she gently lifted the burned fabric away from his side, grateful that for the most part it didn't stick to his skin.

"Ouch!" He protested. "Carter, that hurts."

"That's good," she said.

"What do you mean good?"

"Pain is a good sign," she explained. "Hopefully there isn't any nerve damage."

He grumbled, but he helped her pull off his tee shirt, or what remained of it anyway, and sat down on the bedroll she hastily spread out.

Daniel silently handed her a second blanket, which she wrapped around Jack's shoulders. Then she knelt down beside him for a better look at his injuries. It was bad, but not nearly as bad as she had first thought. The worst of the burn was on his side, and the portion that qualified as a third degree burn was relatively small, only spanning about five or six inches across. The blistering skin surrounding it probably hurt far more.

Judging from the looks of the ruined jacket she saw laying nearby, it could have been much worse. She shuddered and swallowed hard.

Sam hurried to thoroughly coat the burned skin with antibiotic cream, which made Jack flinch at the contact and hiss with pain. She forced down her own reaction. "Sorry."

"It's okay," he said. "Just hurry up."

She covered the area with moist gauze and bandaged it loosely. "Better?"

"Yeah," he said. "Thanks."

"It looks like the leopard got its claws into you." She gently touched the four parallel gashes running across his chest. "I have to clean these out or they'll get infected."

"Carter -- "

"Sir, you can't risk an infection." She wet a gauze pad with antiseptic. "If we're stuck here much longer we'll run out of antibiotics." She got to work on the first wound. "How exactly did you catch yourself on fire?"

"The cat," he said. "Darn thing walked right through the campfire before it jumped me."

She glanced in the direction of the dead animal, which continued to struggle against its bonds. Pete's unconscious body caught her eye. She'd noticed earlier that he was breathing, that he wasn't bleeding profusely, and that he didn't show signs of having recently been on fire. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to know more, but she had to ask. "Did Pete faint again?"

"I zatted him," Colonel O'Neill answered. "He wouldn't follow orders."

She bit her lip to keep from laughing, but wasn't entirely successful, although when Colonel O'Neill smiled back she found that she wasn't particularly sorry either.

"So tell me, Carter, am I going to live?"

"You need to stay warm and drink plenty of fluids," she said. "Burns can cause dehydration and hypothermia, even if you feel warm."

"Yeah, okay." His eyes met hers just as she caught his hand again, and they both froze for a moment before she forced herself to check to see that the blood she'd felt on his hand earlier wasn't from yet another injury.

"I need to get back to work on the force field." She handed him some pain pills and a canteen.

"You need to get some sleep," he said. "We all do. You can try again in the morning."

Jack watched Carter move around the chamber, checking on their injured teammates and dragging Pete's unconscious body out of her way. He suspected that she blamed herself for the numerous ways this mission had gone awry, but she was really the one holding it all together.

They'd be screwed without Carter.

Daniel took the first watch, and busied himself with the notes he'd taken that morning, before everything had gone wrong. He said something about the engravings on the wall that Jack didn't even pretend to understand, and then lapsed into silence.

Carter settled down beside him, close, and offered him her jacket. "You need to stay warm, sir, and we can't exactly turn up the thermostat."

Her comment referred to the jacket, not her proximity. They often slept close to stay warm, and they never bothered to fret over how it might look. In a few hours he'd have Daniel beside him while Carter sat watch. It was common sense. Survival. Nothing more.

After years of such missions, he wouldn't have even given it a second thought, except he had just noticed that the fifth wheel had started to stir.

"Carter." He nodded in Hamster Wheel's direction.

She sighed and her annoyance showed in her face.

Daniel had also taken notice of the squeaky wheel's stirring, and had reached for his zat. Good thing someone was on their game.

Jack mentally kicked himself for not putting the idiot in restraints when he had the chance. The cat's timing sucked. One more minute and the fifth wheel would have been securely bound, instead of preparing to cause trouble.

"What the hell!" The dolt had barely managed to prop himself up before he started shouting. "You shot me with that thing so you could make time with my girl!"

"Pete -- "

"I don't wanna hear your excuses!"

Carter jumped to her feet and grabbed the moron's arm, dragging him out into the corridor mid-rant.

Jack started to follow, but the wave of pain made his head swim. "Daniel?"

"On it."

He watched Daniel climb silently to his feet. At least Carter had backup if the shouting attracted any of the zombie-cat's friends, or if the fifth wheel turned violent.

"No, you listen up." Carter sounded pretty calm, considering. "Colonel O'Neill zatted you because you refused to follow orders, and that puts us all in danger, just like you put us all in danger when you kicked -- "

"You're blaming me now? Taking his side over -- "

"This isn't a game. Look at this. This is blood, from people I care about -- "

"Doing all three of 'em, aren't you?"

"How dare you!"

Then the corridor erupted with obscenities and Daniel bolted from the doorway. Panic overrode pain, propelling Jack to his feet. He made it to the door just in time to watch Daniel take one last shot at the figure fleeing into darkness.

"Carter!"

"I'm okay, sir." She kept her back to him, scanning the corridor for the escaped dolt. "You shouldn't be up."

He reached for her and turned her to face him. "Damn it, Carter, he -- "

"He hit me," she said softly, turning away. "I let -- "

"Don't you dare try to think that any of this is your fault."

"Sir -- "

"Carter." He tried to get a closer look at her injury.

"It's nothing," she said. "Especially considering the day we've had. I got off easy compared to the rest of you."

"You've got me there." He tried to keep it light, but this was Carter, and the son of a bitch had clocked her in the eye. "Let's get back inside."

"I can't believe I let him land a punch," Carter said. "I should never -- "

"I wouldn't exactly call that a punch." Daniel bent down and picked something up out of the dirt. "Sam, he blindsided you with a rock."

Jack swallowed a curse and caught her chin with his fingers, gently tipping her face so he could get a better look. The swelling looked bad. "We'd better get a cold pack on that."

"Sir, it's really -- "

"Yeah, mine's worse. We've covered that. Doesn't mean that doesn't hurt, though."

"Let's go back inside," she said softly.

He forced himself to lower his hand from her face, and turned back towards the doorway. The pain in his side reasserted itself and the world started to spin. He reached out to the wall for balance.

"Sir?"

"Just a little dizzy."

Carter immediately ducked under his arm, draped it around her shoulder, and wrapped her own arm around his waist, carefully avoiding the burn that he suddenly resented a little less. When they reached his bedroll, he let Carter fuss over him for a moment before he once again insisted that she take care of herself as well.

"Sir, I'm fine, and you need -- "

"Carter."

Teal'c handed over a cold compress and Jack lifted it to Carter's eye.

"Sir." She took the compress from him. "You can't afford to get chilled. Teal'c, how many more of these do we have left?"

"Carter . . . "

"Jack," Daniel said in that way that usually signaled impending death. "What are we planning to do about Pete?"

"Nothing," Jack answered. "Let him fend for himself. He hit Carter in the eye with a rock."

"Yeah," Daniel said. "But he hit Sam in the eye with a rock."

"Didn't I just say that?"

"Well the thing is, he's bound to come back. Do we have a plan?"

"Look, even given our current . . . " Jack glanced at his team. This mission was really not going well. " . . . situation, I think we can take him."

Carter smiled, which helped his mood.

Jack shrugged and caught her eye. What he really wanted to do was shoot the son of a -- but it was probably best not to make that the plan. "Zat him and tie him up in a corner?"

"Yeah," Carter said. "Sounds like a plan."

He studied her face, and pushed away the impulse to reach out and give her shoulder a comforting squeeze. If Daniel needed comfort, Jack wouldn't hesitate to give his shoulder a brief squeeze, but with Carter he hesitated, because with Carter what he really wanted to do was pull her into his arms, kiss the top of her head, and say all sorts of things that he had no business saying to her.

"He's never hit me before, if that's what you're wondering."

"Didn't even occur to me," he said honestly. "You'd mop the floor with him."

"I'm a little embarrassed that -- "

"Don't be." His arm found its way around her shoulders after all. "Nobody's a perfect judge of character. I had him pegged as an entirely different kind of ass myself."

She laughed softly and leaned into his embrace.

For a few minutes, he let more serious concerns take a back seat while he pondered a recurring mystery. They'd spent the last two days digging around a dusty old temple on an alien planet, hiking, and fighting off zombified predators, so just how did Carter manage to keep her hair smelling this good?

Daniel tried to give his friends some privacy by focusing on his notes, but the way Jack clenched his fist as he fought to control his emotions made Daniel's heart ache with sympathy. Nothing was more important than defeating the goa'uld, but even so, he doubted the necessity of some sacrifices.

Right now, though, he needed to work on deciphering this language. Then Sam could lower the force field and get them all out of here. He had to start someplace, so he decided to operate under the assumption that the symbols on the wall were phonetic, and that the language shared a connection with the Sanskrit outside.

He returned to the notes he'd taken that morning, and for the second time began translating the inscripti