Jack lay on a hill overlooking the camp. He was using his binoculars to search the grounds for any sign of SG-1. For two days, he and the men he had brought through the gate had been engaging the camp guards in fierce firefights. According to government authorities, SG-1 returned home over a week ago after they had abandoned their efforts to negotiate for mining access. Intel from the local resistance movement placed SG-1 inside this camp. Jack had believed the resistance fighters even before he had seen the atrocities of the camp below. After two days of watching the bodies pile up, he knew he trusted the resistance more than the government.

"Lieutenant, take your men and plant claymores at the base of the fence as soon as it is dark. In the morning, we're launching our final assault. SG-1 will be home for lunch tomorrow." The young lieutenant gave him a “yes, sir” and a salute before he crawled off to tell his men the plan. It was a restless night for Jack. There were only three small skirmishes during the night, but his worry over the fate of his friends kept him awake.

As the suns rose behind the hill Jack gave the signal to attack. Jack hoped the glare of the suns would give them some protection from the targeting equipment possessed by the guards. It was a fierce battle and they were beginning to lose ground, just like the last three major attempts made by the SCG against this camp. Luckily, the resistance had finally decided this was their chance to finally make a noticeable difference. Just after the claymores blew, the resistance fighters began to attack from the rear of the compound. The joint attack from both sides of the compound brought down the gates. The few prisoners capable of fighting, picked up anything they could use as a weapon and began to attack the guards.

As the captured guards were placed in a cage in the center of the compound, Jack looked around for SG-1. He knew they would have attacked their captors as fiercely as the native prisoners. There was still no sign of his friends.

Jack ordered Lieutenant Thompson to assign five men to guard duty and have the others separate into teams to search the compound for SG-1. The resistance fighters were helping the native prisoners and keeping the guards under lock and key. Jack took three young airmen with him to search the closest and largest building.

Inside they found row after row of cells. Each cell had two bunks and ten to fifteen prisoners. Almost every cell had at least one dead prisoner lying near the door. There was no sign of food in any of the cells. Most of the survivors looked like walking skeletons.

In the twelfth cell, Jack saw the familiar gold tattoo of his friend, Teal'c. They blew the door, just as they had done for every other cell. Only a few of the prisoners moved towards the door, because they were either too weak or too scared. Jack was surprised that Teal'c also did not move towards the door.

"Teal'c old buddy, fancy meeting you here!" Jack attempted to lighten the moment with his usual brand of humor.

"It is good to see you also, O'Neill. I knew it was you who was fighting to free us." As Jack smiled at Teal'c, he saw Daniel propped up against the bars to his right.

"And Daniel is here too. Now all we have to do is find Carter and were as good as home." Neither man had made any attempt to stand, which was beginning to bother Jack. He took a moment to let his eyes adjust to the dim light of the cell so he could really look at them both.

"She was taken outside, O'Neill. We attempted to stop them but we were not successful. I am sorry." As Teal'c spoke, Jack finally got close enough to see the true extent of their injuries. Teal'c had two broken legs and a broken arm along with a long laceration across the right side of his scalp. Daniel's left leg was broken and his wrist was swollen, which meant it was probably also broken. His face was essentially one big bruise. Jack knew if he could look under their shirts, he would find more bruising. He knew there was a possibility of internal injuries.

"Captain, get four airmen and two stretchers. We need to get these men back to the SGC immediately."

"Yes, sir." The captain was running out as he saluted.

"Has Carter been hurt as bad as you two?" Daniel couldn't look at Jack. Even Teal'c seemed to be having a hard time remaining stoic.

"She's dead, Jack. We did everything we could to protect her but there were too many of them."

"She was attempting to protect a child. The girl's mother helped us when we arrived but she was ill. When she died five days ago, Colonel Carter accepted the responsibility of caring for the child." Teal'c did his best to maintain eye contact with Jack. He knew Colonel Carter had died with honor, and he wanted Jack to see the deep respect in his eyes. "When the girl grew ill, Colonel Carter tried to hide her from the guards but she was not successful." Jack's face had visibly paled as Teal'c spoke. They both heard Daniel choke back a sob.

"The guards came every morning to remove the dead and dying. They take them out in a cart and dump them like trash. They expect at least one person in each cell to be dead every morning. If no one is dead, they will occasionally kill someone. Cindy was the sickest so the guards decided to take her yesterday morning."

"Cindy?"

"That is the name Colonel Carter gave the child. Apparently the girl reminded her of a childhood friend named Cynthia."

"She fought the guards when they tried to take Cindy out of her arms. We both joined in, but as you can see, we lost." Daniel choked back another sob and lifted his head to look at Jack for the first time since Jack had entered the cell. "They killed Sam and took both her and Cindy." Daniel stopped trying to hide the tears running down his face.

The four men under the captain's command entered the cell. Daniel and Teal'c were placed on the stretchers as carefully as possible. Teal'c didn't make a sound but Daniel groaned with protest as the pain shot through his body.

"If you hadn't gotten here this morning we would have been next. Thanks, Jack."

"You're welcome, Daniel. Too bad I was still a day too late." Jack hung his head as Daniel and Teal'c were carried out of the prison. All of the cells had been opened, but most of the prisoners just sat in the cells staring at nothing. Jack left them to the care of the resistance fighters.

"General O'Neill?" Jack reached up to his radio.

"This is General O'Neill. Report."

"General, I'm afraid we've found something you should see." Jack knew what it must be, but he knew he couldn't avoid it.

"I'm on my way." If the lieutenant was surprised Jack didn't ask for directions, he didn't mention it. Jack moved over towards the large pit behind the compound where a group of SGC men stood.

"Lieutenant, report."

"It's one of several mass graves, sir. It looks like there are at least twelve graves already filled and covered. Based on what we see it looks like our attacks have disrupted their usual process." Jack could see what the lieutenant meant. The bodies on top were still clothed while the ones lower down were nude. The guards had no longer taken the time to strip the dead of their “treasures.” Jack estimated several hundred bodies must be contained in this one grave. His quick math estimating the total dead made him furious. The resistance had just earned the assistance of the USAF, as long as Jack O'Neill had a say in the decision!

As Jack surveyed the scene and the men standing around him, he recalled the film footage of the WWII concentration camps. He had always known it was horrific but until this moment, he hadn't appreciated how awful it must have been to see those camps as they were liberated. The stories his buddy told of the Bosnia camps hadn't delivered the same blow as standing in the midst of this hell. As much as he wanted to lose it right then and there, he knew the soldiers standing around him were looking to him for support and his job demanded that he deal with this, at least until he was alone.

As Jack looked into the pit, he saw a USAF standard issue sock sticking out from under several bodies. “Damn those bastards” he thought. They cared more about her boots than her! He resisted the urge to throw up as he thought about Carter lying amongst the dead.

"Lieutenant, get Colonel Carter's body out of there and return her to the SGC."

"Colonel Carter, sir?" The lieutenant paled. He had worked with Sam on several off world projects since he joined the SGC a year ago. He respected her and secretly had a little crush on her, like most men on the base.

"Yes." Jack nodded in the direction of the sock covered foot. "There should be a child with her, a girl. Please bring them both back to the SGC. And find out what help the resistance movement needs." Jack made his way back to the stargate. He left Ferretti in charge and stepped through to the SGC.

Jack went straight to the shower. His assistant tried to tell him who had called and what issues arose while he was gone, but Jack just walked away from his prattle. As the water ran over his face, he thought about Carter. “If there isn't enough room for both Sam and the girl near Sam's mom, then I can get one of the empty plots near Charlie for the girl.” Jack believed every dead child deserved a proper burial, but this girl was special to Jack because Carter had given her own life trying to save her. Jack knew he would have to call Mark and Pete. He would try to contact the Tok'ra as soon as he pulled himself together. He knew Jacob was going to blame him, not because it was Jack's fault but because Jacob would need someone to blame and Jack would be a convenient target. As the water cooled, Jack turned off the shower and reluctantly dressed in fresh BDUs.

Jack went to his office, just to make sure nothing truly important had happened while he was unsuccessfully trying to save Carter. The red phone was still sitting silently where he had left it, and his desk was covered in piles of boring reports about junk he couldn't force himself to care about now. Jack left his office and went to the control room.

"Sergeant, send a message to the last known Tok'ra base. Tell them Earth needs Jacob Carter to report immediately. It's an emergency. Be sure every departing SG team knows that message and passes it on to any possible Tok'ra they encounter."

The sergeant wasn't able to suppress his shock at the General's words. It had to mean the rumors about Colonel Carter were true. She must really be dead! Jack didn't wait around for his reaction or an acknowledgement of his order. No one spoke to Jack as he moved through the SGC towards the infirmary. The rumors of Colonel Carter’s death had moved quickly through the small family of the SGC and no one wanted to risk Jack's expected wrath.

"Daniel? How are you feeling?" Daniel looked up at Jack. He would have said something about the haunted hollow look on Jack's face except he was pretty sure he looked even worse.

"Not too bad, considering."

"Teal'c, you doing alright?"

"I will heal." Jack nodded his head.

"How long until Doc releases you?" Jack figured they would be stuck there for quite a while. The new doc liked to keep people longer than even Fraiser had dared.

"I doubt she'll keep us too long since it seems to be quickly filling up with refugees from the prison." Jack hadn't even noticed how full the infirmary had gotten.

"Why are they here? I thought the resistance was taking care of them."

"The resistance told Lieutenant Thompson that they couldn't care for so many seriously malnourished and injured people. He got Doc's permission to bring through 50 of the most seriously ill." Jack was furious, not that the SGC was offering assistance, but that the new Doc would make such a monumental decision without his input. It was about time she learned her place and Jack was in just the mood to do it.

"I'll be back." Jack's stride told Daniel all he needed to know about what Jack was getting ready to do.

"Jack, take it easy on her! She did have one of the airmen look for you!" Jack never paused as he walked out, barely registering Daniel's words.

"Doc?" Jack had been directed to one of the small isolation rooms as he searched for the new chief medical officer of the SGC.

"Over here, General. Shhhhhhh." The doctor put her finger up to her lips as she motioned him over. As Jack approached he saw the doctor was soothing a young girl of about three as the child made that “sucking the snot back up my nose because I just finished howling” noise kids seem to make as they finish crying. "It'll be ok, sweetheart." The girl's eyes were growing heavy as the doctor continued to rub her small thin arm and speak softly. Jack just watched as the girl fell asleep. The doctor checked the IV before taking a step back. She nodded toward the nurse who was checking the IV of another patient two beds over. The nurse acknowledged her unspoken order to keep an eye on the girl. Jack and the doctor walked back towards the main infirmary.

"What can I do for you, General?"

"I wanted to discuss all these refugees filling up the infirmary."

"I'm sorry I didn't have the chance to discuss it with you first. I did try to find you, but I was told you were not to be disturbed. The resistance movement on the planet was not capable of caring for most of these people. They would have died without our intervention."

"In the future, I had damn well better be consulted before you let dozens of aliens into the SGC. This is supposed to be a secure facility."

"I understand that, sir. I won't let it happen again. Is there anything else, sir?"

"How are Dr. Jackson and Teal'c?" Jack of course timed his question so he finished just as they stepped up to the beds occupied by Daniel and Teal'c.

"Their breaks have been set. They both sustained numerous contusions and lacerations, but I have not detected any sign of internal bleeding. I am going to let them stay in their rooms here on base for the night so they can rest. The infirmary is packed and I'm sure they won't get any sleep if they are forced to stay here all night. I'll have a nurse check on them a couple times during the night to be sure their condition doesn't worsen."

"Good. If these two give you any trouble you just let me know." Jack tried to give Daniel a smirk but it died on his lips. The pain of loss etched on Daniel's face brought Jack back to reality.

"Yes, sir. I wish my report on Colonel Carter was as positive." Jack turned his shocked expression towards the doctor. She was taller than Fraiser, but not as tall as Carter. Her face held little emotion as she spoke. Jack was sure Fraiser wouldn't have been able to speak so casually about Sam, especially a dead Sam.

"Don't tell me you've already done an autopsy?"

"An autopsy? I thought you had been told, sir. Colonel Carter and the child she held in her arms were alive when they were brought through the gate. They were barely alive but alive none the less."

"Alive?" Jack sat on the edge of Daniel's bed. His legs gave out as the doctors words registered. Daniel sat up and grabbed Jack's arm. Teal'c scooted closer to the edge of his bed so he could hear every part of the conversation.

"The child we just left was the one Colonel Carter held as she was brought into the infirmary. The child was dehydrated and probably has pneumonia but once she got some IV fluids she began to perk up. I expect her to fully recover if the antibiotic therapy works like I expect."

"And Carter?"

"She was severely beaten. She has numerous broken bones, internal bleeding, and a serious concussion. Based on her files this concussion isn't the first."

"Yeah, she bounces back from those real quick." Jack's face radiated pride as he spoke of Sam's strength and her ability to overcome the odds repeatedly.

"It's harder to recover from each concussion. Eventually she won't be able to fully recover. I hope this isn't the eventually but all we can do is wait and see. Her bones have been set and she should be out of surgery within the hour. I'll let you know as soon as she's out."

"I want to see her as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir." The doctor moved off towards the mass of patients still waiting for her.

"Thank God, Jack. I can't believe she made it."

"And she saved the child also. This makes our injuries well worth the pain." Teal'c lay back against the pillows piled behind his head.

"Yeah, I guess it does. Jack, are you alright?" Daniel could see the tears running down Jack's cheeks. It wasn't like Jack to cry in public. Jack hadn't shed one tear over her death but her resurrection was too overwhelming. He couldn't hold it in.

"I thought we'd lost her. I thought it was over."

"It?"

"Yeah, it." Jack didn't say anything else. Daniel knew better then to push. Daniel lay back as Jack continued to sit on the edge of Daniel's bed. Jack quickly regained his composure and the three friends made small talk while they waited for the doctor to return with news about Sam. None of them doubted she would pull through. Sam was without a doubt, a fighter, and this battle was winnable.