Sturgis Turner could not quite believe his eyes. When Harm had dropped off the radar after his showdown with the Admiral, he had fully expected never to see his friend again, or at least not for a lot longer than three months.

And seeing him in Navy uniform, a Captain no less, was the last thing he would ever have expected. When a two-star practically throws you out of his command, and the whole Navy, you don't generally get back in without people hearing about it, let alone a promotion. And frankly, part of him was surprised Harm had even wanted to get back in. As much as Sturgis loved the Navy, and as much as he knew Harm loved the Navy, he had to admit it had not done well by Harm in the recent past.

"Sturgis, is that who I think it is?" He looked over at his companion.

"Any other six-foot-four dark-haired sailors you know of whose dad's name is on that part of the Wall?"

"There's no way he can be back in the Navy. That would take political intervention, and I'd have heard about it. I'm surprised he didn't come to me if he needed help getting back in."

"He definitely hasn't been in DC the last few months. There's no way neither of us would have heard about it."

"So what's he doing back here now?" Bobbi knew Harm. He tended to have a reason for everything he did, however obscure it might seem to an outsider.

"If I had to guess, I'd say he came to tell his father about his promotion. And I intend to find out what he did to deserve that promotion so far below the zone."

The third watcher was looking far more closely at the tall Navy Captain, and with far less curiosity. He was surprised that the man had not felt his presence, but then, he was weak and unused to whatever sensations he might have been experiencing since he murdered Apollo.

The Tau'ri was as tall and dangerous-looking as the report had said. It would take careful planning to teach him his lesson, especially as soon he would recognise the feel of a nearby symbiote for what it was. But careful planning would reap him great rewards. To capture a man who had slain the son of a powerful Goa'uld, and who had encouraged the Jaffa of Zeus to murder their master, would make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. Maybe even give him the status to rise above the rank of Ashrak.

Harm, unaware that Bobbi and Sturgis had seen him, returned to the Cheyenne Mountain without being seen by anyone else who knew him. Until the plane left the runway at Andrews he had felt a strange sensation, as if there were someone near him who did not fit the body they wore, but for the time being he chalked it up to paranoia.

A week later, SG-6 was back in the field. The regular gate journeys, which resembled nothing so much as a wild ride in an F-14, did more to return Harm to a semblance of his former self than any amount of sitting alone and thinking could do. The routine of the SGC became as normal as it ever was, with SG-1 getting themselves, and in some cases the planet, into plenty of sticky situations, and most other teams having a relatively dull time of it, making friends, arranging trade agreements and occasionally getting shot at. The number of Purple Hearts that got handed out was shocking.

FOUR MONTHS LATER

The leaders of SG teams 2, 3 and 6 had been summoned to the briefing room following SG-1's most recent mission. As the three men had made their way to the room, they had made good-natured wagers about how long it would be before they were all leading their teams through the gate, and which would be the first team to get shot at on the other side. They were wagers Harm the JAG lawyer would never have made, not liking to dwell too much on death, but at the SGC you had to make sport of it, otherwise you'd be insane within a month. And SG-6 had gained a reputation similar to that of SG-1, whereby people would readily put money on their getting into trouble, but would always then put money on how long it would take them to get out of trouble, confident that it wouldn't take too long.

SG-1 were sitting in their customary seats. Hammond gestured to the three new arrivals to sit down, then told Major Carter to brief them on what SG-1's recon mission had discovered on PX9 274.

"Tests of the soil near the gate, which is halfway up a mountain, suggest that somewhere nearby is the biggest deposit of naquadah we've ever come across, probably relatively near to the surface. When I've finished the analysis of our test results, I should be able to pinpoint the exact location of the deposit. If we can get our hands on some of this naquadah, there's a chance we can use it to upgrade some of the Prometheus' systems."

"I feel a but coming" "Where's the catch?" "Why do you need us?"

All three team leaders spoke at once. ONeill raised an eyebrow at them, and Carter hid a smile.

"Well, sirs, there's a slight problem."

"Carter's Wonder-rock isn't exactly lying around for us to walk in and take away."

"Thank you, Colonel. There's a Goa'uld base on the planet. We're not sure whose it is, but it's well-guarded, and not far from one of the most likely locations of the naquadah. Chances are thats why it's situated there."

"So why don't we just forget about it? We've got other sources of naquadah."

"We don't have any source as plentiful as this one probably is. And even if we can't secure it for ourselves, we don't want a Goa'uld having access to that much of the stuff, even if they don't have much of a power base. That much naquadah could make an incredble bargaining chip."

Harm looked at the General.

"Sir, you're not seriously suggesting that we take our teams into a situation like that? Naquadah's not exactly easy to carry around, and trying to get to some with a Goa'uld base next door? It's insane, sir."

"You have a valid point, Captain, but I have to agree with Major Carter on this one. Since we built the Prometheus, our need for naquadah has increased. And being able to power this base and the stargate with a naquadah reactor would significantly lower the amount of money it costs to run this place, money that could be spent on developing our weapons systems to give increased protection against Goa'uld invasion. SG-2 will hold position at the stargate to make sure the rest of you don't get cut off. SG-3 and SG-6 will provide cover for SG-1, and create any necessary diversions, while SG-1 attempt to infiltrate the base and see if they can neutralise it. If they deem it too much of a risk, you'll all withdraw, taking with you any naquadah you can get your hands on, and return here. If the plan seems a total loss, we'll write off that planet and flag it as dangerous. If it looks like it would be possible to take out the base using different tactics, we'll regroup and try again at a later date. Major Carter should be able to determine the location of the deposit within the hour. You and your teams leave in two. Dismissed."

The mission started out well. They often do.

Strangely enough, it didn't finish on quite the same note.

"Please tell me you're kidding."

"No sir."

"Oh shit." Harm rarely swore. The fact that he did so now shows just how bad the news Frank had just delivered to him was. "Are SG-1 out of there yet?"

"No sir."

"They got any way of hearing us?"

"No sir. The dampening field around the complex isn't letting our radio transmissions through."

"Where's SG-3 at the moment?"

"About a click to the right of that ridge." This offered by CPO Marks. "They can't read us because of the magnetic field from the iron and naquadah in the hills."

Harm nodded. "Okay, here's what's going to happen. Frank, Tony, you're going to double time it over to SG-3's position. Tell them what's going on, and stick with them. I want you positioned on the route SG-1's going to take getting out of there, deal with any hostiles you might see so they don't realise what's going on, and can't tell anyone about it. Ray, Zip, you're going back to the gate to reinforce SG-2. If we lose the gate, none of us are getting out of here alive. Any questions?"

"What're you going to do?"

"Im going to distract those Jaffa Frank saw."

"Hammer, there's about three hundred of them. It's gonna take more than you to distract them."

"They're gonna feel me coming. They'll have to head for me. They'll either think Im a Goa'uld, and want to find out what's going on, or realise who I am and do their best to kill or capture me. I'm not exactly popular with the snakes at the moment. I take anyone with me, that puts them in needless danger. Once I'm within range, I'll try and pick them off whilst staying under cover. Let's move."

"Hoo-yah."

Frank, Tony and SG-3 did as Harm had requested. They met up with SG-1 as they fled the compound, the charges placed and the base ready to blow. Jack immediately noticed their agitation.

"What's goin' on?"

"Three hundred Jaffa descending on this position. Hammer's gone to try and head them off. Alone."

"Is he nuts? Don't bother answering that. You know where they are?"

"Not exactly, sir. The speed and direction they were travelling, if nothing had happened to them they'd've been in a position to shoot you as you crossed the compound."

"In that case, Rabb could probably use our help. Let's move, people."

Casting aside any pretence at operating stealthily, they moved as quickly as possible in the direction Frank thought the Jaffa were most likely to be found. After only a few minutes, they heard the sounds of staff weapons and zat guns being discharged, interspersed with the occasional explosion of a hand-grenade and some automatic-weapon fire.

Staying just inside the treeline, they were able to see what was going on, taking in the entire situation in an instant. Harm had single-handedly ambushed the Jaffa as they came through a ravine towards him, slightly beneath the position of SG 1, 2 and part of 6. The rocks in his part of the ravine provided Harm with some cover, and the ravine offered the Jaffa small hope of escape, but Harm was still taking heavy fire.

Instantly, all those looking down from above drew out hand-grenades, and the Jaffa found themselves put upon from above as well as from the lone Tau'ri who had drawn them into the ravine in the first place. A few got off further shots, but the detonation of a large number of grenades in an enclosed space was not conducive to longevity. Those Jaffa not killed by the initial explosions were taken out by flying shards of their comrades armour.

Unfortunately, four of the Jaffa had been bearing between them a crate of naquadah. The exploding grenades catalysed the explosion of the weapons-grade naquadah, and a blinding flash filled the ravine, the heat of the explosion killing the few Jaffa who were not by then completely dead.

Harm, only slightly wounded in the initial firefight, had got to his feet to get the hell out of there when he realised the cavalry had turned up. As he turned, he felt the heat of the explosion strike the top left-hand side of his body. White-hot pain consumed him, and he fell to the ground, striking his head against a rock as the skin on his left arm blistered and the blood tried to boil.

Frank Cody saw this happening, and with total lack of regard for his own safety he high-tailed it down to his team-leader. He was closely followed by the others, though they went more cautiously and were more alert to the possibility of some of the Jaffa having avoided the blast.

Frank looked up as Jack reached his side.

"He's out cold, sir. And his arm looks really badly burnt. We need to get him back to the gate."

"For cryin' out loud, is this guy ever conscious when you finish a mission? Let's move, people."

As they approached the gate, they heard another explosion. Looking back, they could see the sky light up with a bright orange glow and the Goa'uld compound was blasted to smithereens. They spared only a few seconds to watch before going through the gate, to emerge on the other side yelling "MEDICAL TEAM!" as loud as they could.

Next Part