In retrospect, I guess I should have realized something was wrong. Daniel had been keeping his distance, not only mentally, but physically as well. I just assumed it was because he was still feeling revulsion, when he thought of me killing Seth with a hand device. It will be a long time before I forget the look on his face, then. He was truly horrified.

Still, should I not have noticed? Of course, I was away from the base for some days, just following the confrontation with Seth. I spent the time with my Dad, and with Mark and his family. It was nice to pretend to have a normal life, to be a normal family again. Nice to see my Dad get along with Mark, well, mostly get along with him, no one can ask for miracles. Selmak has truly done an impressive job.

Regardless, I should have noticed when I returned to the SGC, and not just assumed Daniel was staying away because I reminded him of the Goa'uld. Daniel is my friend, and he would not have behaved like that. All considered, I feel I am to blame for this.

True, many things happened at this time, and I pushed any concern I might have had aside. I got promoted, but the ceremony was interrupted. By Thor. Apparently the Goa'uld had decided we were getting to be too much trouble - what, with blowing Apophis's fleet out of the sky... and then there were the killing of Hathor and Ra - and had decided it was time to remove the threat... that is, whack us.

The Asgard offered to help us - in a way, by negotiating a treaty with the Goa'uld to include Earth in the Protected Planets Treaty. There was a hitch, of course - we would not be permitted gate travel.

In the end, it did not matter, because the negotiation did not get far. Daniel had approached the Goa'uld representatives, secretly, shortly after they had arrived, telling them all about the Asgard’s plan, as well as the fact that the Asgard fleet was occupied elsewhere, and could not help Earth.

We were all shocked. Why would Daniel do this? Daniel!? It was only seconds later when we realized why - when Daniel's eyes glowed and he proudly told us what fools we had been. It was not Daniel, of course, but Seth.

Apparently, when I had used the hand device to make a shockwave that pushed Seth into the floor, the symbiote had not died immediately. Daniel must have gone too close, feeling sympathy for the host, no doubt. Seth had seen his chance and taken it, jumping into Daniel.

How Seth had gloated! How furious the other Goa'uld had been over the deception!

We talked to the Asgard, of course, only to learn they were quite displeased. This could create significant problems for the rest of their protected planets. Also, regrettably, they could not help us. As expected. We were so screwed.

In a desperate gamble, we broke a rule thought, even by the Goa'uld, to be inviolate. We arrested the System Lord representatives - and Seth, of course. Stopped them from leaving, hoping their threats of an attack from the other System Lords were a ruse.

It was not, of course. The Goa'uld attacked mere days later, not breaking off the attack when we attempted to negotiate for the lives of their representatives.

Martouf and Lantash had arrived, bringing a warning from the Tok'ra, after some of their operatives had reported that an attack was underway. The constant dial-ins from the Goa'uld stranded them with us for more than a day.

It had not been an exaggeration when Thor said the combined forces of the System Lords would make Apophis's attack last year seem laughable.

Earth had fallen in less than a day. All major cities had been destroyed by orbital bombardment. The population dead - or enslaved.

Then, with the forces of the System Lords breaking through our last defences, we - the Colonel, Teal'c, Martouf/Lantash, and myself, as well as a few others - made it through the Stargate at the last moment.

We fled to the Alpha site, but we had not been there for long, before motherships arrived.

Hoping that the Tok'ra would be able to remove Seth from Daniel, we had brought him with us when we escaped. Now he laughed, and taunted us. Back in the cell at the SGC, he had taken the address for the Alpha site from Daniel's mind, and given it to the System Lord representatives. He had no doubt hoped it would gain him power, but now he just enjoyed that our refuge was destroyed.

We should have killed the System Lord representatives before we left, but we had other, more important things on our minds.

Now we suffered for this error. We had to flee again, Martouf/Lantash leading us first to a stop-over world, and then to their Tok'ra base.

That is where we are now. Thirty humans - we are all that made it away. The last free Tau'ri.

I had never imagined it would come to this. Never imagined we would actually lose the planet.

At least Daniel is free of Seth. The Tok'ra removed the Goa'uld, but Daniel is not quite himself yet. The effects of having been host to a Goa'uld, is still evident in him. I can see it in his eyes, which lack the life which is usually there.

It does not help that Seth caused Earth's destruction. I know Daniel feels responsible, despite the fact that there was nothing he could have done. No way he could have stopped the Goa'uld from doing what he did. I hope Daniel will one day stop blaming himself, and go back to being the Daniel we knew, again.

We are now refugees, living, hiding with the Tok'ra. Here we will probably remain, until and unless we find a way to take back our world.

Just thinking of freeing Earth is laughable, but we cannot give up. Will not give up.

There must be a way.



THE END.