Surprise!

Tanya/Sheyla arrived at the excavation site. *Whoa! What is going on here? There is military...SAS even...all over?* Tanya 'exclaimed' as she parked her bicycle.

*I hope it is not because of me...*

*How could it be? They have no way of knowing about you. It's probably...maybe they found an old bomb from World War II? It happens sometimes, you know.*

*I still fear someone has realised what the stasis jar is...or perhaps something else has been found...something which obviously is a piece of advanced technology, even to ignorants!*

*Hey...there is no need to insult us! We have not done that bad! Sheyla, if what you say is true, then we should flee.*

*Agreed.*

They had just made the decision when one of the guards saw them and approached.

"Hey! Wait! Who are you? What are you doing here?" The young soldier said.

Tanya sighed. She took out her ID and showed it to him. "I am Tanya Peterson. I work here - I am one of Professor Johnson's students."

The soldier looked at the ID, then at Tanya. "OK," he smiled. "But I can't let you leave. We were told to keep everyone here."

Tanya rolled her eyes. "I see. I guess I'm going inside again, then. If you don't mind me asking...why are there military here?"

"I am not authorized to give you that information." He smiled a little apologetically. "Besides...I don't know. We weren't told either."

Tanya smiled to him, then walked through the gate in the fence. She was on her way to the trailer where they usually met before starting the work for the day.

*Well, I guess we are going to find out if they know anything.*

*Wait!*

*What now?*

*Don't go to the trailer. Go to the tent with the artifacts you found in the room my stasis jar was in.*

*What do you want in there?" Tanya wondered as she wandered over to the place.

*I need something...something which will help us get away.*

*You're not going to kill anyone, are you?*

*No, don't worry.*

Just as they were about to enter the tent, Tony - one of the other students - saw them.

"Hi, Tanya. We're all in the trailer - they told us to stay there."

"Hi. We will not be allowed to work? Then I'm going home!"

"Didn't they tell you? We're supposed to stay here. They won't let you go anywhere!"

"Watch me!" Tanya said, as she disappeared into the tent.

Tony looked after her for a few moments, then shook his head and returned to the trailer. He was not going to argue with Tanya when the place was crawling with SAS.

*Nice. Now they are sure to think something is wrong.*

*Sorry. I am starting to feel a little edgy...what is your plan?* Tanya said.

*We will use the hara'kesh to make any guards that try to stop us forget they are not allowed to let us go - and forget they even saw us.*

Sheyla picked up a strange ring and put it on. She was about to leave when she grabbed one of the hand devices and stuck it into her bag.

Tanya did not know what to say, so she kept quiet as Sheyla walked to the gate in the fence. The same guard as before told her to stop, but she just raised her hand. A beam of light came from the ring and the guard looked confused. He did not try to stop them, and a few minutes they were pedaling as fast as possible on their bicycle, away from the place.

*What did you do to him?* Tanya wondered.

*The hara'kesh can be used to make people confused, and to get them to blank out and forget all that has happened. He has not suffered any permanent damage, I assure you.*

*You can do something like that...with that strange ring? I always thought of you as a harmless, happy and friendly person...*

*I am...for the most part. Though I can do what it takes when it is necessary. This 'ring' is no normal piece of jewelry. It is a weapon, mostly used for torture, or for executions by assassins.*

*Nice! I thought only the hand device was a weapon, and that all the other stuff we found really were jewelry...or various other technological gadgets...never mind. What now? Soon they will wonder where I went and start looking for me.*

*Yes. We will have to take the 'tour of the world' now instead of wait a month.*

*And quickly...depending on what they know or suspect, they may close the airports. This reminds me...we need to get to a bank - as quickly as possible, to withdraw all our money. When they start looking for me they will close my bank account.*

They hurried to the nearest bank and got all their money, before they continued home.

Tanya pulled her large backpack out of the closet and started filling it with as much clothing and other stuff as she could. She then slid the laptop and its power supply down into it as well, and looked around.

*Do we need anything else?*

*The piece of paper with our destinations and the plans we have made. They must not be found. Also...the hand device from our bag...and the potsherd with my name and lineage on it...*

*Of course. I will put the hand device and the potsherd in our jacket, together with the hara'kesh - for easier access if we should need them quickly.*

*That is doubtful...but, as you say, it is better to be safe than sorry...*

Soon they had finished packing and ran out the door, almost bumping into the land lady.

"Hello, Tanya. You're in a hurry! I thought you were at work?"

"I was." She tried furiously to come up with an excuse. "...but...the city...it had suddenly found out that we did not have the proper permits...the permission to dig ran out last week or something. The dig will have to be closed until Professor Johnson can get the paper work in order...there will be no work for the rest of the week...or next week either. So...I am going home to visit my parents."

"Oh! Well, I guess it is always nice to get a surprise-holiday...weren't you home visiting your parents last week?"

"Yes...but that was only for a few days. And mostly to attend my brother's birthday party. I didn't get to visit my parents very much...talk to them, you know...anyway. Listen, Mrs. Wilkins...I have to hurry if I am to catch my train."

"Of course, dear. Have a nice holiday."

"Thank you. Bye!"

They hurried to the bus stop, and waited for the next bus to the railway station. It soon arrived and they jumped on.

*Where do we go? Do we attempt to get on a plane or do we assume the airports are closed or at least under surveillance?* Tanya asked.

*That is something you know better than I - if you believe it is likely they are watching the airports, we should avoid them. Are there any other way out of the country?*

*Yes...we could take a ferry from Harwich. It is not far away. We could then sail to either Holland or Denmark.*

*Would we be safe once we got there?*

Tanya considered this. *No...I am afraid not. Both countries are small and heavily populated...and technologically advanced. I would be difficult to hide, and their airports would have received instructions to look for us as well.*

*Then that is not a good idea.*

*No...it is not. Hah! I know what we should do! We take the train to France, through the Channel tunnel. France is a much larger country and we will have an easier time hiding or sneaking out of the country and on to Egypt.*

*Then that is what we will do. Can we take a train directly from here?*

*No, we will have to go to London and board the Eurostar. Then we can go to Calais or continue on to Paris or somewhere. It is probably safer to get off the train immediately we get to France and change to some of the smaller, local trains - or perhaps rent a car.*

They got off the bus at the railway station and went to buy a ticket. Seeing the train for London arriving at the station, they ran quickly and got on it.

*OK. We should get there with plenty of time to spare - the Eurostar leaves London at 3:30pm.* Tanya relaxed back in the seat and closed her eyes for a moment. It seemed they would be able to make it.

-
SGC. Same day. About 3:30pm UK time/8:30am US Mountain time.

Having been informed of the events in Britain, Jack O'Neill had decided to join the teams going there to catch the Goa'uld. He had just arrived in Stargate Command.

The nearest Daedalus-class battle-cruiser - the Apollo, had been recalled and was ready to beam them all to Britain as soon as everyone was ready.

O'Neill was being briefed on the latest events by General Landry, when the door opened and Walter Harriman stuck his head inside. "We have just received word from SG-1 that the Goa'uld has been spotted on an Eurostar train. It seems sending out her photograph worked. The ticket collector know where she is sitting, but has not approached her other than to check her ticket. They will be at Ashford station in just under 30 minutes, where they will hold the train and we will try to capture her."

"Sounds good. Thank you." Landry turned to O'Neill. Seems it is time to go. Good luck!"

"Thanks!" O'Neill got up to go and joined the others, when he heard the announcement of an off-world activation."

"Ah. That must be the rest of your group arriving." Landry noted.

"The rest of our group? That better not be snakeheads!"

"Jack...relax. We need the Tok'ra on this one. I know they are not on your list of favourite people, but try not to make this mission any more difficult than it already is, will you?"

O'Neill grumbled something, then nodded. "I will try. It's not just up to me, you know..."

They signalled the Apollo and were beamed to the ship and then on to a cleared room at Ashford Station. There they met up with SG-1 and Captain Adams.

"The train will be here in just under 15 minutes." Adams said. "We know the Goa'uld is on the train and we will meet with the ticket controller when the train arrives. The Goa'uld is probably in possession of a hara'kesh and a hand device, so everyone is to proceed with caution."

A group was chosen to board the train in an effort to surround and capture the Goa'uld. If she somehow made it off the train, there would be guards with tranquilizer darts posted everywhere.

The two Tok'ra - Johan/Malek and Freya/Anise - had been given US Air Force uniforms to better blend in with the others. Freya, who was currently in control, seemed to be somewhat unhappy with her clothing. She attempted to first tighten it, then open it. Nothing seemed to make her happy. Daniel grinned friendly at her. She smiled back.

It had been decided that Freya/Anise would be in the group boarding the train, together with SG-1 and Captain Adams. Malek would observe from the outside together with O'Neill.

After taking up their places, O'Neill and Malek waited in silence for a little while.

"You know," O'Neill said, breaking the silence. "I had kinda hoped something like this wouldn't happen - that we were free of all snakes in the galaxy..."

"If by 'snakes' you refer to Goa'uld, then your hope was premature. While all the System Lord's and most of the more important Goa'uld are gone, there are many thousands of prim'ta in Jaffa who do not rely on tretonin. Any one of those will attempt to take a host and rise to power as it matures. Of course, there are likely only a few queens left, making the problem smaller than it could have been."

"Good. Hopefully the last of their kind will be gone soon." O'Neill said, looking pointedly at Malek.

"If you are including the Tok'ra among the 'snakes' you hope will soon be relegated to the realms of history, I am afraid I must disappoint you. While we do not have a queen, and admittedly are few - for symbiotes we are also quite young. There are likely to still be Tok'ra in 7-8000 years, unless you have knowledge of something you have not shared with your allies and which will cause the death of even more Tok'ra than your reckless behaviour has up until now."

"Wow...did you rehearse that?"

Before they could continue their squabble, the train rolled into the station and stopped. Guards were posted at all the doors and no one was allowed to get off. SG-1, Adams, and Freya/Anise boarded the train and met with the ticket controller who had reported seeing Tanya.

Adams took out a picture of Tanya and showed it to the man. "You are certain this is the person?"

Looking at the photo, the controller smiled. "Oh...yeah, it's her all right. Like I would forget seeing someone like her. It's not every day there's such a hottie on the train."

Vala rolled her eyes, but surprisingly kept quiet. The group hurried towards the seat the controller had indicated as being Tanya's.

Tanya was sitting at the very end of one of the carriages, just inside the doors to the passage way. She and Sheyla were discussing their plans, when suddenly the symbiote froze and looked up.

*What is it?*

*Another symbiote...most likely a Goa'uld.* She indicated the group coming towards them from the other end of the carriage. *I believe it is the woman nearest to us...* Sheyla had gotten up while she spoke, grabbed her jacket, and now quickly left through the nearby door. The group behind them increased their speed.

*Damn...those guys are US Air Force...there are Goa'uld in the US Air Force?* Tanya wondered as Sheyla looked out the exit doors of the train. There was a guard beside each. She did not waste any time answering her host, but ran through the next carriage. Looking around, she saw no way out. In desperation she ended up running into a toilet and locking door behind her.

Quickly surveying the room, she grabbed the trash bin and tried to smash the window with it. It did not budge.

*Probably some type of plastic or armed glass.* Tanya offered.

Sheyla pulled the hand device from their pocket and put it on. She then aimed a strong shock wave towards the window, blowing it out of its frame. The recoil pushed them against the wall, but they were not harmed.

Sheyla quickly recovered and jumped out the window just as they sensed a symbiote on the other side of the toilet door.

They had only run a short distance when they again felt a symbiote, this time ahead of them. Panicking, Sheyla looked around her for a place to hide.

"The Goa'uld is just over there!" Johan shouted at O'Neill, pointing towards Sheyla.

O'Neill glared shortly at him for forgetting to say 'the fugitive', then spun around. "Where?"

"There! The young woman with the hand device!"

The nearby guards saw her at the same time O'Neill did, and reacted quickly. They fired their tranquilizer darts at her, just as she raised the hand with the hand device towards them.

Sheyla looked down at the two darts that had hit her, feeling herself and her host slowing down. Using all her strength and will power, she reached down and pulled one of them out before she joined her host in unconsciousness. They fell to the ground, their head hitting a bench as they fell.

"Phew. For a moment I thought the darts wouldn't work..." O'Neill sounded relieved.

"Of course they worked!" Anise said, having just jumped out of the train. "It is a new formulae we made specifically to tranquilize Goa'uld quickly...it will even keep the symbiote unconscious longer than the host...useful for interrogations."

"Of course you have..." O'Neill grumbled, too low for anyone to hear.

Meanwhile, Anise had relieved Sheyla of both her hand device and the hara'kesh. She had kneeled down and was examining the woman's head.

"The damage seems to be superficial. The symbiote will easily heal it when she awakes."

"Good. And then you get the snake out of her." O'Neill said. Not waiting for a reply, he motioned to two guards that they should pick up the young woman. They carried her into an empty room at the station. When everyone was in there O'Neill signalled the Apollo and they were beamed up, then down to the SGC.

Upon arrival Tanya/Sheyla were taken to an isolation room in the infirmary.

"When do you expect her to wake up?" Dr. Lam asked.

"The host should awake in about 90 minutes - the symbiote about an hour later. The drug is made specifically to work strongest on the symbiote." Anise explained.

"You will inform us the moment the host becomes conscious. We need to get as much information as possible before the symbiote wakes up." Malek added.

Dr. Lam looked over at Landry. "She is my patient now. She hit her head when she fell - I will not allow you to interrogate her until she is strong enough."

"It is just 'a bump on the head' - as you would say. The symbiote will remedy it as soon as it awakes. Even now they are healing faster than a normal human would." Anise pointed out.

"I am sorry, Doctor Lam, but I will have to agree with the Tok'ra. We need to know as much as possible before the Goa'uld wakes up. Just make sure Miss Peterson will be as comfortable as possible." Landry said.

Looking less than happy, Dr. Lam nodded. She turned to her patient as the others left to examine the contents of her backpack and clothing for any clues to the symbiotes identity and plans.

"Prepare an MRI - despite what the others say, I want to make sure she has no serious damage." Dr. Lam told one of her nurses.

-
SG-1, Landry, O'Neill, and the two Tok'ra were seated in a conference room.

"What have you been able to learn about the Goa'uld?" Landry asked.

"For one thing, she was loaded...we found 9000 British pounds in her money belt." Mitchell commented. "From what Adams's research has found, she apparently won them, in Blackjack at a casino in London."

"Unusual strategy for a Goa'uld...but sneaky." Daniel said, smiling.

"The host is Tanya Peterson. She is 25 years old and has just finished her PhD in archaeology. She is from Ealing - a London suburb, where her parents still live. We believe Miss Peterson must have either deliberately or accidentally broken the stasis jar open. This happened almost 3 weeks ago, and she has been a host since. The Goa'uld has managed to pretend to be her - to a degree where no one, not even her parents, suspected anything...we found a list of flight destinations in her backpack. It seems to be an evenly-spaced grid laid over the planet. This is probably what she needed the money for. She is obviously looking for something."

"The chaapa'ai." Anise said. "She is looking for a way off this planet. Travelling to those destinations around the planet enables her to get close enough to sense it."

"Reasonable assumption, I guess." Daniel said.

"Any idea who the Goa'uld is?" O'Neill asked.

"No. We did not find the shard missing from the jar in her backpack." Daniel said.

"I would have thought she would have brought it, since she went to the trouble of taking it from the dig." Mitchell said.

Vala looked at Mitchell. "I think she did...didn't she have a jacket? Where is it? Perhaps the shard is in one of the pockets."

"You're right, she did. It must still be in my office, together with the backpack. I remember everything was brought there." Daniel broke in.

"Good. Doctor Jackson - go and get the jacket, then join the rest of us in the Goa'uld's isolation room."

When they came down to the infirmary, they met Dr. Lam just outside the door to the isolation room.

"Be careful...she is not happy."

"That's not surprising - given that she has a snake in her head, dammit!" O'Neill said.

They entered the room, to see Tanya sitting up in the bed looking very agitated.

"Who are you people? What have you done to my poor Sheyla? Why is she still unconscious?"

"You're sure the snake is still asleep?" O'Neill asked, turning to Dr. Lam.

"Yes. We are monitoring the vital signs of both. The symbiote is still unconscious."

"Are you a Goa'uld?" Tanya demanded, looking at Anise, then Malek. "We will never surrender, even in death!"

Malek and Anise looked at each other, somewhat surprised. Before they could say anything, Daniel ran into the room. holding up the shard from the stasis jar. "Take a look at this...I don't think it's a Goa'uld we are dealing with."

"I concur. The situation does not seem to be what we thought." Anise turned to Tanya. "We are not Goa'uld, we are Tok'ra."

"You are Tok'ra? So are we! Wait...can you prove it? Before you answer that...is Sheyla going to be all right?"

"We are allied to the them...to the Tok'ra." Daniel said. "I assure you - they really are Tok'ra."

"You need not worry, Tanya. Your symbiote...Sheyla?...willl wake up soon. She is merely under the effect of a drug we have created specifically to sedate symbiotes."

"Doctor Jackson, what does it say on the potsherd? We need to know if 'Sheyla' really is a Tok'ra." Landry said.

"It is highly doubtful that the host would speak favourably of a Goa'uld, and be worried for her. I think we can assume she is a Tok'ra." Anise pointed out.

"True. Still, I would like to see what is written on the fragment." Malek said.

Daniel handed it to him. "Here."

"What does it say?" Mitchell wondered.

"Sheyla of the Tok'ra, of the house of Egeria." Malek read. "And it has the secret mark Egeria used."

"So now you believe me? That Sheyla is a Tok'ra?" Tanya asked.

"Yes." Malek said.

"Thank you. That is most gracious of you!" Tanya said sarcastically. Moments later her eyes glowed, as Sheyla woke up and came to the fore.

She had a blank look for a few moments, as she spoke with her host, then she looked up at first Anise, then Malek.

"Tanya informs me that you are Tok'ra."

"We are." Malek said.

"We too are Tok'ra...I had feared all the Tok'ra had been killed...we would very much like to join you."

"You shall be most welcome." Malek smiled at her. "I fear our numbers have grown few, but some of us still survives."

"Listen, it's all well and good, this happy little family reunion...but before you continue I would like a word with Miss Peterson - if you don't mind." O'Neill said, glowering at the Tok'ra.

"Of course. You have but to ask." Sheyla bowed her head and Tanya was given control.

"You wanted to speak with me?"

"Yes...assuming you are you...never mind..." O'Neill added quickly, as the other Tok'ra gave him an angry look. "I just wanted to know...are you really sure you want to keep the snake?"

"Snake?" Tanya asked, confused. "What snake?"

"The symbiote...Sheyla." Daniel said quickly, giving O'Neill a sharp look.

"Sheyla is not a snake! Of course I want to keep her - what a ridiculous question! She is my best friend..." Tanya grinned. "Though I will admit it took me a little while to get used to at first." She turned to Dr. Lam. "Are we free to get out of bed? Sheyla has taken care of the bump on my head."

"Yes, I guess you are...that reminds me...I did an MRI, to make sure there was no serious damage from the fall - there isn't, by the way - but there is something...strange..."

"What do you mean...strange?" Tanya wondered.

"Not you...the symbiote, Sheyla." Dr. Lam took a print-out from a folder. It was an MRI-scan. "I ended up doing an extra imaging/scan to get the whole picture...take a look. The symbiote is much longer than what I have seen before...and it seems to be connected to...to the hosts reproductive organs. I've never seen anything like it before." She handed the picture to Malek, who looked at it with a shocked expression.

"What's up?" O'Neill demanded.

"She...she is a queen!" Malek managed to get out. Anise snatched the print-out, then looked just as surprised - and happy.

"Yes...Sheyla is a queen." Tanya confirmed.

"What! Like...like Hathor?" O'Neill sounded distinctly less than enthused. Daniel paled visibly at the memory of Hathor, and discreetly edged further away from them.

"Yes. Except this queen is a Tok'ra...Egeria's daughter!" Malek said, smiling happily.

Ever practical, Anise turned to Tanya. "Sheyla need to be updated on the events of the last 800 years. We should begin her education immediately. Then...as Malek said, we have grown far too few. As a queen we expect you to increase our population."

"That sounds reasonable." Sheyla said, having been given control. She smiled a bit naughty, "I believe I will need a mate to fulfill my duties...Anise, do you happen to know any cute, single Tok'ra men?" She threw Malek a quick sideways glance.

Disgusted, O'Neill left the room, leaving the Tok'ra to discuss their suddenly much brighter future.