Every Immortal on Gamma was "repaired" on Thor’s ship. There were still no answers as to who had built the ‘museums’ on PR3 569. No way to know who had collected the artifacts, most of which turned out to be from Earth. No way to know where the builders had disappeared to. No clue as to who had released the pathogen there. The planet had been marked dangerous for Immortals, and General Hammond and his SGA teams would monitor the pathogen in the air and soil there, in an effort to determine the life span of the virus.

Thor remained in orbit above Gamma, the council that consisted of the first four civilizations agreeing that the Immortals were still at risk. The Earth Defense Alliance vehemently denied any knowledge of NID activity, as did the US government. Both groups offered whatever assistance was needed, which Duncan not so graciously declined. The already strained relations with Earth became more so. Until the EDA came to terms with the existence of the NID, and took actions to stop them, Gamma and her allies would not trust their home world.

A  A  A  A  A  A

Casey was still weak. Dr. Montigue had been afraid that her Quickening would not recover any more than what it had. Daniel had called upon the Fire once again, and she was improving by the hour.

He was sitting beside her, his hand wrapped around hers. "Feeling better?" he asked when she began to shift impatiently in the bed.

"Much. I want to go home. I want to hold my baby."

"When the doctor says you can," he replied. He held her fingers to his lips.

"Are you all right?" she asked softly. He looked so tired, so…sad.

"I was so scared, Case. I thought…I was afraid…for awhile it didn’t look good. I thought I was really going to lose you."

"I’m here, Daniel, and I’m not going anywhere. As long as I have anything to say about it, I’ll be with you forever," she replied.

He gave a weak smile.

"When was the last time you slept?"

He thought for a minute, then shrugged.

"Lay down beside me, let me hold you while you sleep," she whispered.

Daniel stretched out beside her, his head cradled against her shoulder, his arm around her waist, holding tightly to her. The gentle rise and fall of her chest with each breath comforted him, the sweet smell of her skin, the warmth of her body wrapped him in a cocoon of security. Within minutes he was asleep.

She caressed his face, let her fingers move softly through his hair. She held him, aching for him, understanding full well the torment, the pain, he had endured. She rested her cheek against his forehead, not even aware when she drifted into sleep as well.

A  A  A  A  A  A

It felt as if it had been forever since the morning they had left on the mission to PR3 569. Emily greeted them with squeals and hugs. Casey took a casserole from the freezer for dinner while Daniel sat on the floor playing with his daughter.

He watched Casey moving around in the kitchen, preparing dinner, listened to her humming softly. It was as if the last two horrifying weeks had never happened. He put Emily in her playpen with her new toys.

She was standing at the counter, cookbook in front of her, frowning as she looked for the biscuit recipe she wanted. She felt his arms go around her, leaned back against him. His mouth was moving on her neck.

"Love you, Angel," he whispered.

"Love you, too, Sweetheart," she whispered in reply. She turned in his arms, looped hers around his neck, recognized the look of pain that still haunted his blue eyes. "I know, my heart," she said softly. "I remember how black the days looked, felt, when I thought I had lost you forever."

He held her tighter. "I need you so bad, babe."

"Later, my love, when Emmie is asleep."

"I missed you so much. I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t breathe-" he broke off, thinking about what Erin had told him about Casey’s state of mind, of heart, during…that… mission. Now he fully understood what his wife had endured, marveled at her strength.

"Daniel, honey, you’re hurting me," she said, his arms crushing her against his chest so tightly that she couldn’t take a breath.

"Oh god, babe, I’m sorry," he moaned.

She wreathed his face with her soft hands. "Shh…it’s okay. Everything is going to be okay now." She leaned up and kissed him, letting her kiss offer the comfort he needed, the reassurance he craved. She lit the fire inside him even as his caresses lit it in her.

"Daddee up!" Emily demanded from her playpen.

Casey smiled against his lips. "I do believe the Princess has spoken."

He smiled back, kissed her again, hugged her tight, then went to pick up his daughter. "Getting demanding, aren’t you, Princess?"

"She missed you, Sweetheart," Casey told him. She closed the cookbook. They could eat the beef stew without biscuits this once. She went and joined her husband and daughter on the floor, playing with them until the oven timer went off.

A  A  A  A  A  A

Her body bucked against him when his tongue began to tease that little platinum ring in her navel, the muscles rippling under his mouth. The Fire was burning, her need becoming an ache between her legs. She gently pushed against his head until he was where she wanted him, where she needed him to be. His tongue caressed her, sending her rocketing over the edge. She cried out as his fingers stroked her to completion. "Please, Daniel, let me taste you…let me worship you," she begged.

He moved up on the bed, moaned as she took him into her mouth. She made love to him, refused to stop, even when he tried to move away from her. She wrapped her arms around his hips, took him deep into her throat, smiled that secret smile when he cried out. His body hadn’t stopped trembling when he had her on her back once more, making love to her all over again with his mouth and hands. His body responded just as ardently to her gasps as hers did to his caresses. "In you, babe, now," he whispered.

She wrapped her legs and arms around him, pulled him close, held him tightly, sighed as he entered her, pushed deep into her body. "You fill me so completely…so fully…it feels wonderful," she whispered in his ear.

"You feel so good, babe," he whispered in return. He was moving slowly, each thrust deep and hard, his hips grinding against hers with every down stroke.

"Oh, Daniel," she sighed. Her thighs began to quiver, she began to whimper, then she was there, her back arching off of the bed with her climax, his name a soft cry on her lips. She tightened her arms around his shoulders. "Love me, Daniel…let me feel you throb," she whispered.

He quickened his pace, his body on fire, his mind full of nothing but his love for her and the sensations her sweet body was giving him. He cried out, pulling her up against him as he reached his second climax.

He rolled them over, held her tightly. "Love you, Angel," he said, his breath still coming in gasps.

"Love you, Sweetheart," she replied breathlessly. She relaxed against him, smiled when she felt his hand moving up and down her back. She snuggled deeper into his embrace, and fell asleep.

Daniel laid for several minutes, feeling the warmth of her skin, the gentle rise and fall of her chest against his own, her warm breath against his neck. She was alive and healthy and in his arms. He closed his eyes, and once again thanked the unknown entities who had helped him…guided him, so that her life could be saved. He tightened his arms around her, and drifted into sleep.