"Major, you look flushed," Janet commented.

She had just ensured that General Hammond had been made as comfortable as possible. The CO had managed to hold out until late afternoon before admitting he no longer had the capacity to stay in command. After some maneuvering a place was made for him in the infirmary rather than in the general ward on twenty-three. And she'd just finished a debate with the delirious man about his 'location'. He'd insisted that he be treated like any of the other personnel. After a minute or so of listening to the Texan ramble that he didn't deserve special treatment simply because he was CO, Janet had nodded in placating agreement, then pushed his bed to the closest spot near the nurse's station, ignoring his protests. While it was the 'prime' position where someone would be monitoring him and the other patients in the room for the whole time, it also served to hide the severity of the general's condition from the majority of the base. It was one thing for them to know that Hammond had relinquished command to General O'Neill. It was a total different kettle of fish to see why, despite the personnel going through the same thing themselves. Morale was low enough as it was without adding that visualization.

"Just from helping set up here," Ferretti grunted, shoving a bed into position near the wall. With more patients coming in, they were setting up level twenty-four as another ward. The level was full of small rooms as opposed to the open space of the bay on twenty-three. While it would be harder to monitor the patients, it would allow some privacy for those with the worst symptoms.

The doctor automatically reached her hand out to his forehead in the mothering gesture of testing his forehead for a temperature.

Ferretti shied away. "I'm fine, Doc."

Janet ignored the stab of hurt at his movement. Can't he even bear my touch in a medical capacity? "Don't be ridiculous, Major. Sit down and let me take your temperature." She plucked a thermometer from her coat pocket.

"I'm fine."

Her patience cracked. She didn't have the time to deal with his crabby machoism right now. "Major Ferretti, I have a base full of sick personnel-"

"Then go deal with them," he snapped back. "Don't waste your time with me." He immediately regretted his outburst when Janet reeled back as though he'd slapped her in the face. Ran a guiltily frustrated hand through his hair and softened his tone. It wasn't just guilt over how crappily he had been treating her lately. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that since he and his team had been the only ones to have contact with SG-5 they had somehow been responsible for spreading the virus. "I'm bad luck, Doc. By my count I've had two strikes. You better stay away for when number three hits."

"What are you talking about?" Janet was totally confused.

"Look, Doc, if I've got it, I've got it. No point in me taking up a bed yet, or you running tests, when others are worse than me. Let me be useful while I still can be...let me try to make it up-" He cut off, turning away from her under the guise of unfolding the sheets for the bed.

"Make up for what, Major?" Janet asked softly, recognizing the guilt-ridden hunch to his shoulders. Instinct told her that it was more than whatever personal issues they were having at the moment.

"For this." He flapped his hand around at the beds he was setting up for the sick. "I don't know how, but I and my team are responsible for this wildfire spreading."

"Is that what you think?" Her heart twisted at the self-loathing in his voice.

He gave a bitter laugh. "Doc, I'm infected, not dumb."

"Lou." She placed a hand to his shoulder, forcing him to turn around to face her. "You and your team are not responsible for the virus spreading. It's true you were the first to carry the virus besides SG-5, but Teal'c has determined there have been at least six other people who were infected from the same point of contact. We would still be in this same situation whether or not your team met up with SG-5."

"Really?"

"I don't lie to my patients...or to my friends." She waited with baited breath for his reaction to her tentative offer of truce, though she still didn't know what they had been fighting over this last week and a half.

For a long second their eyes locked, Ferretti struggling with an internal war.

"Which am I?" he finally asked gruffly, then breaking eye contact he gave a derisive shake of his head. "I can answer that. I've been a shit of a friend."

"Yes, you have," she confirmed. "But you're about on par for one for my patients." With a small smile she shoved the thermometer in his mouth. When he started to protest she pressed her finger to his lips. "No talking."

Ferretti made a show of rolling his eyes but he stood still.

His earlier comment nagged at her. "Lou, if you classed today as your second strike, what was the first?" As soon as the question left her mouth she saw the instant shutter close over his face. Her hand still resting on his shoulder gave him a shake. "Hey, don't do that. Please."

The major gestured to the glass stick in his mouth and he mimicked the action of zipping his lips.

"Screw the thermometer." Janet tried to pluck the instrument away, only to find he had clamped onto it with his teeth. "Let go, Major. I don't fancy adding mercury poisoning to your symptoms."

Though it took a lot of effort, Ferretti managed to flash an innocent teasing look on his face.

Janet wasn't entirely successful at holding back her snort of laughter. She was tempted to let the issue slide, for in that brief second the Ferretti she knew was standing before her. But she knew his problem wasn't going to be resolved by him ignoring it. "Please, Lou."

Reluctantly he let the thermometer go and the shutter descended again.

"Please," she repeated. "Something is obviously eating you up inside. Let me help."

Ferretti couldn't bear to see the genuine concern on her face. He didn't deserve anyone's concern, especially not hers. He deserved her hatred. He tried again to fan out the sheets, needing to keep his hands busy, because Lord help him if he didn't, the next time she looked at him with those warm caramel eyes he'd kiss her senseless...and that would just fuck up everything. He also knew Janet well enough that she wasn't going anywhere unless he gave some kind of answer. What was it with bossy little women lately? he thought ruefully. First Cupid and now the Doc were determined to drag answers out of him regardless of what he wanted. He settled on the one thing he could admit to. "How could you forget the first strike, Doc? You were there."

"I was? What was I, asleep?"

"Buried," he answered flatly.

Her eyes widened in shock. "You can't possibly be blaming yourself for the rockslide."

"How can I possibly not?" Ferretti fired back. "It was my shot that downed that glider!"

"You couldn't have known that would happen. It was an unfortunate accident."

"Some fuckin' accident. You...and Dodger," he hastily added, "almost fuckin' died. We thought you were dead."

"You know better than anyone how unpredictable a battle is. A soldier can as easily be hit by a ricochet bullet from friendlies as from a staff blast."

"But you're not a soldier..." Ferretti drew in a shaky breath, cutting off the two words that almost tumbled from his lips, 'to me'. Knew he was dangerously close to spilling his guts about his love for her. "I...we were there to for your protection! Not to send a glider crashing into you!"

"No, Major," the doctor said firmly. "You were there to protect the wounded, just like I was." She saw his guilt stubbornly refuse to relinquish its hold on him and she demanded in exasperation, "Are you looking for forgiveness?"

The major had to bite his lip to stop himself from answering. Forgiveness was not what his heart was thumping for.

"Fine," Janet continued on. "I don't believe there's anything to forgive, however, I'll say the words if you need to hear them."

Ferretti remained silent.

"I forgive you for doing your job, for destroying that glider before it shot at us, for being the one to pinpoint for the combat engineers our exact location so they knew where to dig."

For a moment they stared at each other. Their expressions reflected the same emotions, though they had them for their own different reasons; partly glaring, partly imploring and a smidgen of desperation to get their relationship back to how it had been before Anubis's attack.

Eventually Ferretti swallowed. "Thanks, Doc."

Janet saw the guilt dissipate, though whether it was truly gone or just shoved away to the recess of his mind, she couldn't say. She allowed the first true smile to her friend in over a week to tweak her lips. "There's one thing I won't forgive you for."

"What's that?"

"Hauling me like a sack of potatoes to the Stargate."

"Well, I skipped my gym workout that week," he gave a shrug with a cheeky grin that miraculously felt unforced. "Hoisting you made up for all those bench presses I missed."

"Great, I've been delegated to a dumb bell," she grumbled good-naturedly.

They were interrupted by a sharp rap on doorframe from one of the nurses. "We've got three more stage three cases."

The smile dropped from both of their faces. With a sigh the doctor started for the corridor. "Lou, if you start showing any symptoms..."

"I'll be a good little major and let the doctor know," he promised.

"Hey, gorgeous."

Daniel spun in his seat at the quiet familiar voice behind him. For a brief second his heart jumped for joy at seeing Annika, thinking that somehow she'd been released from the lockdown, until his brain registered she was transparent. Swallowing his disappointment he smiled at her. "Hi."

"It's good to see you, Annika Jackson," Teal'c had also turned at her appearance.

"How are things inside?" Keelah asked, hurrying over from the food table with mugs of tea and coffee.

"We're waiting..." she sighed. "For tests results to see if the antivirals are having any effect, if the estrogen is helping. For now everyone is comfortable and there's not really much we can do. I thought I'd pop up and say hi." Her eyes drifted to Daniel, longingly, worrying, troubled.

Teal'c didn't miss the look. Knew that the couple had not had a moment since the lockdown to talk without at least seven others listening in. "I believe the only place of privacy here is the facilities room. I will continue working with Colonel Carter with the possible 'gate coordinates."

Contact with their allies had proved fruitless. They hadn't been able to reach the Nox at all; they speculated that the summit they were attending was still in progress and that it was possible they weren't even on their home world. The Tok'ra hadn't been able to recall any such plague, but Selmak and Anise were scouring their historical records for any references to sicknesses that matched the virus. They had spoken directly to Bra'tac, who also had no memories of such a virus affecting the humans of Apophis's enslaved worlds. He'd offered to ask the rest of the Jaffa. Given that there were over fifty different Goa'uld crests in the camp from all over the galaxy he was hopeful that someone had some knowledge, however he had yet to report back to them.

Both of the Jacksons sent a grateful smile at their friend's understanding and Daniel began striding to the bathroom with Annika drifting alongside him. Her ghostly arrival hadn't surprised any of the other personnel, they had in fact been expecting her visit much earlier.

"How are you holding up?" Annika asked as Daniel shut the door behind them. She knew just by looking at him how frustrated he was at being stuck topside.

"Ready to pull my hair out with worry," he admitted, leaning against the sink. Dialing the possible 'gate coordinates had become busy work; something for those of the primary team stuck topside to do to feel like they were doing something without really accomplishing anything. Daniel, Teal'c and Keelah knew it, as did Sam and Walter who were in the control room, however none of them were willing to stop. If they did then they would be literally left to twiddle their thumbs. "How are you? Any symptoms?" He wouldn't put it passed her to hide any symptoms as long as she could.

"None as yet," she replied honestly. "Neither has Jack or Sam." She swallowed. "But I'm scared. I've never seen anything like this before. Never felt so useless."

"Right back at you." He automatically reached for her to try to sooth away her fear. His hand swiped right through her.

Annika had delayed this visit as long as possible, but the end of the day was ticking ever closer. Over the course of the day almost half of the personnel had progressed to stage three of the virus, and a quarter were in stage four. The jump between stages was quick and dramatic. The increased oxygen levels and estrogen appeared to only slow the initial two stages. Once the bleeding started, lesions developed on their arms, legs and torsos. Two dozen people had to be intubated, for the lesions had also spread to the inside of their throats. The blood trickling down their esophagus’ and tracheas was clogging their airways. Though everyone was trying to hide it their fear was oozing through the base. And for the psychic so sensitive to emotions that fear was as tangible as the blood seeping into the sheets. It was threatening to overwhelm her. She really needed to feel Daniel's arms around her; needed the sense of safety only he could give her. The psychic concentrated on solidifying her astral form. "Try that again, please," she pleaded, ignoring the instant pounding of her head from the exertion.

Daniel immediately held her close. In those few seconds he drew as much comfort from her as what she gained from him. But as quickly as she solidified, it disappeared, and his arms holding her so tightly folded inwards so that he wound up almost hugging himself. With a heavy heart he let his arms drop to his sides.

Unbeknownst to him, the strain on Annika's physical body for even such a fleeting time caused her legs to buckle. Luckily she had been partly leaning against a wall and was able to slide down it to sit on the floor. She knew the act would be tiring, just not quite to the degree that it had been. Regardless of the effects, in her mind it was worth it. For those seconds she was able to stem the panic that was steadily growing inside her. Daniel's love cocooned her from the horrors of the virus she was surrounded by; gave her the mental strength to say what she'd officially come for. "Daniel, you have to go home...you and Teal'c."

"Like hell." He vehemently shook his head. He may not be able to be with her but there was no way he was going to put even more distance between them, not without a damned good reason.

"You have to be home by midnight."

And there's the damned good reason, he thought. Her mentioning the timeframe made him realize why she had made the ludicrous request. "This has to do with the 'other' thing?"

She nodded. "You'll need weapons....guns and a zat'."

"So we have to stop something from happening?" Daniel tried to press for more details, even as his heart cried 'screw the mystery event'. What could be more important than his family and friends dying? He wanted to ignore the voice in his head that whispered that right now there was nothing he or Teal'c could do for those within the base.

"This is a bit of an oxymoron but I keep seeing the words 'participating observer'."

"No idea of what?"

"Nope."

"When?"

"Tomorrow. Hence the midnight curfew. I think it will be early morning." Violet eyes focused on his face, as though she was imprinting his image into her mind. "I know you don't want to go, and I don't want you to go...knowing that you're above us, that you're there is more of a comfort than you could know..."

"But," Daniel said softly.

"Yeah. But," she agreed. He looked so torn and frustrated, duty warring with his heart, Annika couldn't stop herself. She concentrated once more on solidifying her body and reached up on tiptoe to place her lips gently against his. Oh, it felt so good to feel his kiss, to feel his love shoot through her in a warm protective wave. Reluctantly she drew back. "Be careful," she whispered.

"Promise," Daniel assured her. "I love you."

"Love you too." Annika gave him a small wave then her ghostly image disappeared.

Merging her astral self back with her body, Annika remained slumped against the wall. She just needed a few moments rest to restore her strength. She must have nodded off because she wasn't aware someone else had entered the room until the heavily accented voice spoke.

"Gen'ral O'Neill, can you please come to storage room next to Dan'yel's office...I've found Anny'ka."

Found? How long have I been asleep? Long enough for my bum to turn numb, she thought ruefully. Her eyes flickered open to see Sha're crouching beside her with a radio in hand. "Don't get Jack, I'm alright."

"I've been ordered to report any one who is ill," Sha're said quietly, her dark gaze searching her features for signs of how far the virus had spread. "And you have been out of contact for over an hour."

"I'm not ill. Just tired." Annika was annoyed to have been found in such a vulnerable position, especially by the Abydonian. She had been pretty much avoiding the woman since her arrival. Logically she understood that most of the Sha're's behavior had been due to the brain tumor and trauma over what she had been through, and she'd tried to be sympathetic. However, her memory vividly recalled how much pain and trouble Sha're had caused Casey's reality. She didn't trust herself to be civil to the woman.

"The urge to sleep is one of the first symptoms," Sha're pressed stubbornly.

"This has nothing to do with the virus," Annika snapped, flexing her ankles to get rid of the numbness in her legs, wincing a little at the pins and needles that started to shoot up her calves. "I astral traveled to Daniel and it wore me out. I'll be fine in a couple of minutes...a couple more minutes. Stop looking for symptoms that aren't there."

"You think I want you to be ill?"

"I know that you wish nothing more than to have me out of the picture freeing up the position of Daniel's wife."

"It doesn't matter what I wish." Sha're didn't try to deny the redhead's accusation. "Dan'yel has made it quite clear with whom his heart now lies."

"And yet, you still hope."

"Would you not if you were in my position?" Sha're asked, not apologetic nor defiant, just a hint of a plea for understanding. "To have those blue eyes look upon you with the love you remember?"

Annika couldn't give her an answer. She'd like to say that she wouldn't but the moralistic denial stuck in her throat. It wasn't like Sha're was falling for the identical twin of her dead husband. Daniel had the same memories as Sha're's Daniel, at least up until the event that made their universes diverge. If, heaven forbid, her Daniel had died and she was forced into another reality where another Annika had been, wouldn't she have the same hope Sha're was having now? It wouldn't be her Daniel and yet...

"I know he is not my Dan'yel." Sha're's voice was taut with barely held back emotion. "But seeing him...the same voice, the same looks, the same laugh...I cannot grieve for my husband when I see him every day."

The psychic could see the very real pain the Abydonian was going through. Though coming to this reality may have saved the Abydonians' lives, Sha're was an emotional casualty. As much as Sha're was not her favorite person, she didn't wish upon her the agony tormenting her. "I know how this is going to sound, especially coming from me, but when this crisis is over maybe you should ask General Hammond to look into finding you another planet to live on."

"It would just be a convenience for you if I were gone."

"I won't deny that," Annika admitted. "However, if proximity to my husband is stopping you from moving on, from dealing with what has happened to your husband..." She paused struggling to put her thoughts into words. "This universe is new to you, despite the similarities to your original one. You have the opportunity to start a new life. You can't do that if you're hanging onto the past."

Dark eyes searched her face, convinced that she would find malicious intent to get rid of the 'other woman'. It was with a slightly baffled voice she said, "You are really suggesting that without...malice."

"Sha're, I'm too tired at the moment to wish anyone malice," Annika sighed. "Stay if you wanna stay, go if you wanna go. It's just an option available for you to decide what's best for you."

The Abydonian was thoughtful for a moment. "Where could I go?"

"Depends what kind of life you were looking to live," Annika shrugged. "We have relationships with planets so peaceful it's boring or ones who are actively fighting the Goa'uld."

Jack, who had been openly eavesdropping for the last minute or so, decided now was a good time to make his presence known. "If you decide that you do want to leave, we can put out feelers on your behalf."

Sha're straightened from her crouched position, giving Jack a head tilt of acknowledgment at his offer.

Annika remained on the floor, trying to gauge just how much Jack had overhead, specifically her comments about her physical condition. "How long were you out there?"

"Long enough." He fixed her with a hard stare then addressed the Abydonian who had notified him. "Thank you, Sha're, you did right to call me."

"I'll see if Dok'tor Fraiser requires some assistance." Sha're recognized the dismissal and hurried from the room.

Annika met his stare, deciding to ignore the question in his eyes, hoping that Jack would just let it be. "I told Daniel about my vision and the need for him and Teal'c to leave the base."

"I know. He checked in and plans to leave at 2330," Jack replied. "He did not mention you being 'tired'." From the way Annika ducked her head under his scrutiny, he'd bet dollars to donuts that Daniel was oblivious to how draining that astral visit had been on his wife. Jack had been keeping track of Annika's altered abilities as she determined what she could and couldn't do anymore. From what he knew, simple Casper-ing shouldn't have knocked her for six. The question was, was it due to the virus or to something else?

"I'm fine," Annika insisted.

"Then stand up and say that," he countered.

"I will...in a minute."

"You did more than just astral travel," Jack accused.

"So what if I did?" she replied defensively. "You would have done the same thing if it were Sam topside and you could take a moment to hug her."

"Casper, I need you to conserve your strength."

"And I needed Daniel to stop from suffocating," she fired back. "He protects me. When I'm in his arms he cocoons me in his love, it's something the negative energy can't penetrate. And I needed that even for just a few seconds."

"How many times have you thrown up since this morning?" He was going to ask why she had decided to hide away in a storage closet, but she had basically answered that question. The closets were one of the few places that hadn't had any foot traffic so he supposed there was no negative energy floating around in them. Jack just wished she had mentioned her location before she did it, this last hour he'd been worried out of his mind because no one could locate her.

"Does it matter?" Tentatively she tested her legs to see if they were ready to play nicely and support her. "No amount of anti-nausea pills will help until the virus is gone from here."

"Okay," Jack helped her to her feet. "But the next time let someone know which closet you're taking a time out in. I don't wanna be the one to tell Daniel that we lost you in a sealed mountain."

"Jack," she rested her arm on his, not for support but as a friend. "I'm sorry for worrying you. I didn't know it would be so taxing."

He gave a lopsided grin. "What's another gray hair or two?"