Daniel Jackson was in his element. He walked through town eager to meet the town's Soothsayer. It was only an hour ago they arrived by a strange ghost (and suspiciously Ancient technology related) artefact called an Infini-map. It was a map created to transport and navigate the Ghost Zone. The Ghost Zone was a dimension or realm that acted like limbo for ghosts who do not move on. It can be accessed by natural or artificial portals that opened to the real world. It was a strange discovery however not unwelcomed. This gave the opportunity for Daniel to sink his teeth to explore a new culture and a new world of possibilities. Recently the Stargate program was becoming much more focused on acquiring technology and the mining of naquada which drove him to sit in his office and complete translation and journals. While he enjoyed the work, it was not the same as experiencing a live culture.

He stopped a few times along the way, admiring how the walls of the huge open cavern curved up towards the ceiling or how crooked and narrow the cold ice stone streets were. He studied the strange houses that the Far Frozen lived, which were quite large and evenly spaced. He noted some looked quite ancient, like something out of ancient Egypt or ancient Rome. Others look Romanesque, others looked like a mimicry of a French Chateaux and some looked quite modern. It was a strange collection of eclectic designed houses that somehow worked within the monochrome of white ice.

The townspeople's dress took more of a consistent tone of style that heavily reminded him of ancient Greek or ancient Roman design. However, there were a sprinkling other period styles added in which always made him look twice. He videotaped his surroundings on his walk, preferring to write down his observations later on.

"Don't you think that this is amazing Teal'c?" he asked enthusiastically as he focus on a Far Frozen wearing a 15th century gown.

Teal'c, who followed close by, observing quietly the surroundings, "Indeed. It seems quite… bizarre." The Jaffa looked curiously at a juvenile Far Frozen who seemed to batter her eye lashes at him from above her fan.

"It's like they just take ideas from different time periods and put them together! I never seen anything like it!" Daniel exclaimed before spying the Soothsayer's house, "Oh I think it's here! Well Frostbite said I can't miss it so hopefully it's the right one."

Daniel put the video camera away and made a beeline to a small brick cottage. He saw that the door was already open. He glanced at Teal'c who was behind him before knocking on the door as he stepped in. He was about to call out when he saw that he stepped into a living room. Within this space was sitting an old bent female Far Frozen and in front of her were Far Frozen children.

"Come in, come in, no need to knock," the old woman reprimanded, "Alright children that is all for today."

The group of kids gave a collective groan of disappointment.

"Tomorrow I shall tell you about Freezeburn the Mighty and how he battled 100 Hydrosheeks. Now off you go."

The children rose to their feet chatting excitedly amongst themselves. They scuttled away from the two humans eager to be away from strangers despite their intense curiosity.

"Come, come!" she ordered gesturing with her bony clawed hands, once all the children finally left.

"You didn't need to do that," Daniel approached the old woman, "I would have liked to hear about Freezeburn the Mighty."

"I am sure you would but it is a tale for another time. Please sit, I do not like when people stand."

Daniel saw the female Far Frozen clearly as he moved closer. She was a small creature, with balding white fur, revealing grey wrinkly skin that stretched over her bony body. Her neck was lined in wood and bone necklaces and her clothers were simple brown woolen tunic and pants. She sat on a rug, made with fur. On her l lap she wore a woven woolen blanket and her head was covered in a brown beanie.

She looked up at him with milky eyes startling him. She was blind.

Both Daniel and Teal'c exchanged looks before sitting down in front of her on the warm woolen rugs. She closed her eyes for a moment before opening them.

"Overworlders, my name is Fractal. I am a Soothsayer, Oracle, Wisewoman, Storyteller or whichever title fancies you," she introduced herself.

Daniel blinked in surprised before looking at Teal'c. The Jaffa gave him a silent look before they both turned back to the Soothsayer.

"Hi my name is Daniel Jackson and this is my friend Teal'c. We are from Earth… erh the Overworld, as you call it," Daniel replied, "How did you know-"

"That it was you, Overworlder, even though I am blind?" the Far Frozen interrupted and smiled, "I may no longer have my eyesight but I See far beyond that which one can see."

Daniel nodded. He cleared his throat and asked respectfully, "I wish to know about your culture."

"Oh? Many seek knowledge but rarely understand it," the crone turned to him, "Perhaps you have the understanding to grasp the knowledge."

"I'm part of a group of explorers that wish to learn the world and the universe around us. We gain knowledge to understand," he replied.

She smiled, her wrinkled lips spread across her face, "Knowledge is its own dangerous power. Promised, exclusive and sequestered."

"It won't be misused. We only use it to help others and fight against the Goa'uld," Daniel argued, "However I understand how dangerous knowledge can be."

The woman gave an amused chuckle, "Very well young one. I shall start from the beginning."

She looked down and grasped a wooden cup that was by her feet. In her feeble hands she raised the cup to her lips and took a tentative sip of liquid inside. She nursed the cup in her hands seemingly paying it more attention then the visitors. Daniel patiently waited despite his eagerness and was soon rewarded.

"We were once an ancient and powerful race. We were at war with an eternal foe but we held the off for a very long time. We lived among the stars on strange worlds, with technology beyond imagination. Once we mastered the stars we sought to master dimensions. We met other races who were just as advanced as we were. We formed alliances and assisted each other in sharing technology and preserving peace. We all were striving for longevity of our people as if we all knew that our burning light would eventually be snuffed out."

She paused and closed her eyes, "Then a cataclysmic event almost wiped us all out. Whether it was from our ancient enemy or if it was something else entirely I cannot say. With imminent death, only the most clever of us used our technology to dimension jump."

She opened up her eyes looking at her cup unseeingly, "That is how the Far Frozen was born. We are not of this dimension but we remain forever changed by it. We soon forgot our technology, our knowledge and ourselves. We are now just memories of a forgotten civilization from a place far away, unable to return."

Daniel stared at her entranced by her story. She looked at him with unseen eyes as if searching for something, "Yes I think you do understand."

"The Infini-map," Daniel said after a moment, "What is it?"

"A gift from long ago. From a race who was researching other realms as well. They tried to apply logic and technology to reach a higher existence but failed. To travel vertically, one must disconnect themselves entirely from their own realm to travel through the barriers. We chose to travel horizontally, and found technology to tear through barriers and our ancestors adapted the Infini-map to explore these realms."

Daniel stares at her with realization and spoke in another language, "Heart and mind speak a location time. The Ancients… they were the ones who gave you the Infini-map!"

She looked at him as ideas started to form his mind. He gestured trying to gather his thoughts, "That means your race was friends… equal to the Ancients."

He looked at Teal'c then at the old woman his mind piecing the information together. It was finally clear as it all fell into place and vibrated in excitement, "You… oh my god! You were part of the alliance between the four races! Ancient, Asgard, Nox and-and Furlings…" He trailed, his blue eyes searching for confirmation in the Soothsayer's face.

She smiled gently, "Perhaps. Our history is skewed by time and our culture diluted by the Overworld. We are but mere shells of our former selves, but our hunger for knowledge and desire for perfection lives on."

"This is amazing! Even if you have changed over the centuries, you are still existing and living on in this realm. Maybe you can still help us? Maybe you can help us with the Goa'uld-"

The woman reached out and grasped his hand. Her tough leathery fingers felt icy and rough. As a reaction to the cold he tried to pull away but she held firm.

"Darkness and sadness are your constant companions, yet your light shines bright," she said after a moment, "You will find your place among the stars where your light will shine the brightest but will burn the quickest."

He stared at her, his mouth gaping like a fish.

"We are trapped here, young one," she continued as if she never said anything strange in the past 10 seconds, "We cannot aid you here nor can we provide technology that will aid you in your battles. You must turn to the ones who provided us aid and gifted us the Infini-map. They have vast technology and knowledge, left behind once they found a way to live forever."

"But the ghost technology, we can adapt it to our world!"

She let his hand go and frowned, "Oh but at what cost? Ectoplasm does not exist the Overworld but it must come from somewhere."

He looked at her pleadingly, "We need as many allies as we can. We have been lucky in defeating them so far, but soon our luck will run out. We need your help."

She shook her head and looked over to the far corner unseeing, "You must find your own path, without the ghosts from this Zone," she replied, "You place us all in danger by involving us."

"But the Goa'uld Nun is a ghost. We need help in defeating him," Daniel pointed out, "We don't have the means of stopping him."

She turned back to him, "You must leave the boy out of this fight."

Daniel paused derailed from his train of thought, "What?"

"He will suffer."

Daniel exchanged looks with Teal'c before glancing back at the old crone, "Are you talking about Phantom?"

Her eyes narrowed, "Darkness surrounds us, even now. Hope comes from the most unlikely of places."

Daniel blinked, "Is something going to happen… happen to Phantom?"

"I have grown tired, young one. My energy is not what it used to be. I need rest."

With that she moved to stand. Daniel held back his annoyance but soon his compassion for the old woman overrode his impatience and helped the woman to her feet. She nodded in thanks and shuffled to her cot that was on far wall of the room.

"If something is going to happen to us we need to know," Daniel approached the unanswered question when she sat on the bed.

She laid down, settling into her bed, her eyes beginning to droop, "I only See things young one, only what fate allows. Visions are fleeting and may never come to pass. But take heed, the future is not set in stone. Be on your way young one, I am weary."

Slurring towards the end, sleep claimed her and she fell into a quiet slumber. Daniel looked at Teal'c who returned a confused but worried look before quietly leaving the cottage.

Sam was glad she had winter uniforms when she felt a slight chilling breeze on her cheek. She walked down the ice cobbled streets which were surprisingly not slippery.

She was in awe at the mere existence of such a place and fascinated that life existed for ghosts. She didn't even know ghosts could produce offspring with the common conception that ghosts are mere echoes of a person. She wondered if had to do with Ectoplasm being a catalyst for a ghost to project itself, and perhaps projected the desire for a child. Or maybe ghosts had genetic material other than Ectoplasm like Phantom had that allowed them to reproduce. She made a mental note to ask Frostbite later on to satisfy the hunger for knowledge, even if the subject could lead to some embarrassment.

She left her P-90 in her room and opted to take her ghost tech side arm (courtesy of the Doctors Fenton) and standard issue knife. She could see that this place was quite open and friendly but she wasn't as trusting enough not to take some self-defense measures. After all there were some doubts cast on Phantom's status in their community and an indicated mistrust of humans, if Blizzard could be believed.

Thankfully the village was small and it was a short walk back through the ice tunnels to appear in Avalanche's workshop. She scanned the large workshop and the adjoined vehicle bay to find the Far Frozen creature, but it was quiet. She walked in curiously looking at the rows of metal desks. All the desk space was cluttered with parts and scraps that looked familiar or alien. On the back wall was large machinery that looked like it was used for cutting, bending and shaping metals. On the far corner there were metal alloys and materials waiting to be used.

She realised she was on an elevated foundation with a small set of stairs that led down into the vehicle bay. There were a row of hovercraft like vehicles similar to the one they arrived in. There was also a row of smaller hovercrafts that look to hold one person. They look similar to the forest speeder from Starwars except the two prongs at the front were thicker and the body looked chunkier and sleeker. They were made of the same metal alloy as the hovercrafts giving it a silver look. On the far side of the bay were large square containers that looked that it could hold large amounts of goods and half wondered what was inside.

The whole workshop was, carved out of the glacier with a few icicles hanging down from the ceiling. It gave the place a bright and airy feel despite how busy the workshop seemed.

"Hello there!" Avalanche's face poked out from behind a hovercraft, "Major Samantha Carter was it?"

Sam gave a polite smile, "Sam is fine. Major is my rank and Samantha is what my Dad says when I am in big trouble."

Avalanche gave a wide smile, "Haha! Call me Lan then. I never really liked my name, I mean I don't know why my parents called me Avalanche as I am not a mighty warrior or Icesmith like other Far Frozen but I love machines and building them too! I mean my parents use to scold me for dismantling all the household appliances but I just wanted to see how it all worked and-

Avalanche paused at Sam's distracted expression. He rubbed the back of his neck, "I am I talking too much aren't I? Yeah, I'm talking too much" He flushed in embarrassment, "Sorry. I talk too much when I'm nervous or excited. I never spoken to a human before so I am both nervous and excited… and I will shut up now."

Sam gave a smile hoping to put the creature at ease and attempted to break the ice (no pun intended), "I can see why your parents called you Avalanche."

Lan stared at her in bewilderment before his wide smile returned. He laughed, "I think you're right!"

Sam could see Lan visibly relax before he spoke, "Our Liege says you are here to learn about our technology?"

She nodded her excitement swelling up, "Yes. We recently learnt about this place and the potential power Ectoplasm has. It wasn't until we met some humans using advanced technology that I thought Ectoplasm was what made up ghosts exclusively. It seems it can be condensed and used as an energy source."

Lan nodded, "Oh yes. It is apart of us and our life here in this realm. We gather Ectoplasm from plant life and use it to power our machines."

Sam frowned, "where do you get the plants from?"

"We go on exhibitions to other local islands outside of our home to gather plant life. We are careful not to over do it otherwise we are forced to travel further and much more dangerous territories. Ghosts here are very territorial and will viciously defend their place of being."

"Do you have any samples of these plants I could look at?" Sam asked with interest.

"Of course!"

He led her over to some computer equipment on the elevated platform. He quickly cleared deskspace to make way for some samples of plant life he retrieved from a nearby cupboard. She saw that he had collected different colours and species of plant, many of the leaves and stems look exotic.

"How do these exist?" she asked, "Plants are living. They have no memories to exist with. I don't understand."

Avalanche smiled and returned, "What do you know about the Ghost Zone?"

"It is a place unlike our world. It doesn't follow any physics, scientific rules and only make sense when Ectoplasm is used to create some sort of order. I have studied some theories about Ectoplasm, and how it is a catalyst for ghosts to project their will and power to their surroundings. Ghost are made up of Ectoplasm. It is speculated that Ectoplasm is the manifestation of a human soul, given solid substance," Sam replied marking off each point with her fingers.

Lan grinned, "Wow you know quite a lot. Ectoplasm is a type of energy used here in the Ghost Zone. We are all made up of it. It is speculative that it comes directly from souls, and actually no one really knows what it is. It is often taught to us since we're young that ghosts are often echoes and memories of what once was. We as a race, once existed a long time ago, but now exist as a memory. While our own desires drive us, we are bound by our own limitations of obsession."

"Yes Phantom mentioned that ghosts are obsessed with something," Sam muttered in thought, "I don't really see an obsession with your people to be honest."

Lan nodded, "Its not apparent at first but you will find that we are obsessed with knowledge and perfection. We desire knowledge and pursue perfection in all things, including Icesmithing and dueling. We are a race of warrior scholars and desire knowledge to benefit our race so we travel the world and bring knowledge back to benefit our people. That is why you see the mishmash of styles and cultures from the Overworld. We also push our forms to its limits, to achieve ultimate prowess in battle."

The ghost gave a shy grin, "That is why most of us regard the Great One as such. He has defeated the ultimate Ghost who would enslave us all and for this he has shown great skill and power in battle."

Sam absorbed all the knowledge eagerly, her mind already forming theories and questions to channel her curiosity, "I suppose this obsession that everyone has here, is it genetic or area based?"

"Genetic."

"You have genetic materials? Can you really reproduce, even if you are ghosts?" she asked eagerly, hopefully it didn't come across as awkward.

Avalanche scratched his head, "Erh our village doctor could answer all that. He takes care of any new cubs and our medical facilities are the best around here."

"Oh I will see if I can talk to him before we leave here," Sam nodded undeterred. She lined up her next question, "Does this obsession that the Far Frozen have affect everyone as a whole or does it go down to individuals?"

"Both. We all have this obsession to be knowledgeable and strong, however individually people will be stronger in traits than others. For example, Blizzard is one of the best Warriors in our village and is obsessed with bettering herself in this area. I, on the other hand is a total dunce with fighting. However, I am quite obsessed with pursuing knowledge with technology and so have been creating and maintaining technology for the village."

Sam was amazed as to how far this obsession thing went. She never thought how deep an obsession was ingrained in a ghost, as much as breathing is to her. She wondered if Phantom had an obsession. He claimed that he didn't have one but it seemed that all ghosts are not exempt from this rule. She decided to keep a closer eye on him to see if he had any obsessive habits. They had to be quite subtle if they hadn't noticed it thus far.

"So the plants we use," Lan steered back to their current topic, interrupting her thoughts, "Are echoes or someone's memories of plant life that was strong enough to exist here. So far no one has laid claim to the lands outside our own and so we harvest a few shrubs, break them down into their basic compounds and compact them into a core. Ectoplasm is quite malleable and easy to manipulate, so doing this is easy."

Lan demonstrated his points by extracting ectoplasm from inside the plant by snapping the stem and pouring its contents into a petri dish. Sam watched on in curiosity as Lan went over Ectoplasm properties, either enforcing Dr Fenton's theories or discrediting them.

Jack looked at the time on his watch. 5:00 PM the numbers glowed green back at him. He was glad he synced the times up earlier this morning to the local time. Even though they were not on another planet with its own cycles. Day and night just happened here, without any planetary function what so ever. There was no sun or moon as if the whole area mimicked what is was like which was just plain weird. He looked at his other watch that he kept in his pocket (which he started to do since the Goa'uld loved to take his watches) that displayed local Colorado Springs time 7:00 PM. He was trying to remember if he had set is tape recorder to tape the latest Simpsons episode but he couldn't nail that particular memory, so he just hoped he did.

Throughout the rest of the afternoon, he kept in radio contact with them, checking in every 30 minutes. They were all happy learning new things, which he couldn't really begin to grasp so he let them be. It was rare to go on a peaceful mission without any drama the ended with his team in danger. He wanted to however know where Phantom went. The ghost didn't have a radio despite being told it was standard procedure (the ghost left it in their guest rooms) and didn't tell any of them where he went.

Phantom wasn't with any of his team. His instinct was to go and organize a search party for the ghost boy in an instant. If his team was in trouble, he needed to make sure that they ended up safe. However, he held off a little bit knowing that the Ghost Zone was Phantom's home. He was most familiar with the going-ons here and was far more suited than any of them to exist here. Still it didn't settle his nerves and when his long search in the castle turned out fruitless he decided to organize a search party.

He was about radio his team when Frostbite approached him.

"Colonel Jack O'Neill," the giant yeti creature greeted. His voice echoed along the ice walls.

"Frostbite," Jack acknowledged, "You wouldn't happen to know where a certain ghost member of my team went?"

Frostbite grinned his teeth sharp, "Actually I do. He is at our medical facility seeing our doctor."

Jack froze, "What happened?"

Frostbite shook his head placing his hands up in the universal gesture of surrender, "Nothing. Phantom visited Dr. Freeze on his own accord. I did not realize the Great One has suffered a grievous injury in the past few days and his injuries have not healed properly."

Jack peered at the large creature naturally suspicious, "He seems fine to me."

"Yes well, his injuries run deeper. His very core was damaged hence why he had experienced human traits while being a ghost," Frostbite sighed, "Human medicine only does so much, not that we are not grateful for your assistance, however ghosts are much more unique and require different types of healing."

"Where is he?" Jack demanded.

"At our medical facility. I can take you there if you like?"

Jack nodded, "Let me round up my team first. We can meet them at the fountain in the centre of the village."

Frostbite nodded and led the Colonel out. He radioed his team and told them to meet in front of the fountain. After a short walk from the castle to the middle of the town they soon stood next to a frozen fountain. It was a simple fountain with a large snake like creature that was to spout water from its mouth. Instead it was a frozen trickle of water that seemingly splashed against the frozen surface of the fountain pool. It was interesting for a moment before Jack dismissed it completely.

Soon his team joined him with expectant and slightly concerned faces.

"Come this way," Frostbite gestured to a path the led from the fountain to a large square commercial building. Frostbite took the lead as they all followed.

"Apparently Phantom checked himself into the medical facility of this place," Jack explained, "He didn't take his radio with him and so I don't really know where he is. After this is over, I am going to talk with him about that."

"Why is he here?" Daniel asked.

"Maybe because I don't know what is wrong with him," Carter replied with a little frustration, "I am only learning about ghosts now and there is more to ghosts than I first thought. He probably realized this too and decided to get their help. It wouldn't surprise me that they have the technology, they are very advanced."

Jack nodded feeling better that his second in command could confirm what Frostbite told him.

"Do you think something is going on?" Daniel asked carefully looking at him.

Jack suppressed a sigh, "It may be nothing but there is more going on here than just for us to get the Infini-map."

"Like how Frostbite nominated Phantom to fight Blizzard to prove her wrong?" Daniel replied, "And will not lend us the Infini-map unless Phantom goes through with it?"

Jack nodded his face grimacing, "We don't have time to play politics while Nun is running around with a superweapon. Especially using kids as political pawns."

"I agree with you sir, but these people view him like a war hero. He's not a child to them but a person with a lot of power," Sam replied.

"Except to people like Blizzard," Daniel pointed out.

"He's just 15. I don't care how god damn powerful he is! He is still just a kid," Jack snapped.

They entered the ice building and were greeted to a large room. Inside was a reception area. It looked very human, where a Far Frozen person was sitting behind the desk and there were rows of metal chairs allowing for visitors to wait. There were a stack of reading material in one corner and in other corners held pot plants that looked to be sculpted from ice. It felt very familiar and yet off. The Far Frozen occupants were looking at them with wary curiosity. Many nodded their head and bowed to their leader.

Frostbite approached the young Far Frozen behind the desk. She looked to be typing at a computer. She was petite with the usual snow white fur, thin black rim glasses framed her eyes and her ice horns were small and twisted out of the sides.

"Good afternoon. Is Dr. Freeze available?"

The girl had a bored look on her face but soon saw who was addressing her. She stood up instantly, her blue eyes wide as dinner plates, "My Liege!" she squeaked, "Um yes… he is in Medical Bay 4, sir."

She bowed awkwardly before stiffening back up, her face was frozen in fear.

"At ease, Snowflake." Frostbite raised his ice claw hand in the hopes of easing the girl's unease, "I will head there now."

She nodded before Frostbite lead them to an entry way beside the desk. Snowflake seemed to deflate as they exited the room.

The floor here was tiled in metal rather than ice, and was polished to a shine. They passed other closed doors that were made of the same metal alloy. Small wall displays were anchored next to the door at eye high, like out of some sci-fi movie. Jack gripped his P-90 rifle that was clipped to his uniform as Frostbite stopped in front of the door and typed in something on the display. The door opened and Frostbite disappeared into the room. He took point trusting his team to follow his lead.

The room was large, with various machinery and large looking computers lining the room. There were a few control panels lining the room that had buttons and screens light up silently showing nonsensical information. He stopped abruptly when he saw Phantom floating inside a large cylindrical container. It looked he was immersed in a grey liquid and had a breathing mask on. He controlled the urge to shoot the glass and get Phantom out of there, and opted to glare at Frostbite who turned to them.

"This is our very advanced medical facility. We can heal and cure many ghost ailments that we come across. Since we love to fight a lot, this becomes very handy."

"What is Phantom doing in there?" Jack demanded ignoring the introduction, "Get him out."

"The Great One is going through some intensive healing at the moment, hence why he is in our healing tank." A new voice answered.

Frostbite's face lit up and gestured to the new entrant, "May I introduce Dr. Freeze. He is our Chief Medical Office here and is our leading scientist on the field of medicine."

The Doctor in question was a slim creature compared to other Far Frozen with snow white fur and grey skin underneath. His hands were smooth with well-manicured claws and his skin on his face was also smooth. His eyes were a bright green and his mouth relaxed into a smile. His horns were sculpted from ice and were smooth simple spikes. He wore a brown tunic with grey pants and a white lab coat over the top.

Jack's glared instantly taking a dislike to him. He hated scientists (except for his ones of course) and especially pompous ones.

"Great," he snarked not caring if he was rude before turning back to Frostbite, "Now please get my team member out of your tank."

Frostbite looked surprised, "But he needs healing…"

Jack opened his mouth to push his point but Daniel cut him off, "Can you let us know why he is in there?"

Jack bit back a snarky comment at Daniel, knowing that he was probably being unreasonable. Daniel was the diplomat of the group and he trusted his longtime friend to find a more peaceful solution. Even if he sometimes just wanted to blow it all to hell and get his team safely away.

Dr. Freeze (what's the hell is up with these names?) nodded, "Phantom came to me earlier today and explain to me what was wrong with him, including the unique condition he has. Phantom is… a unique being in where he carries human genetic material as well as ghost material."

He saw Carter look at the doctor with interest, probably confirming what she had found with the scientists on home base. He knew that the eggheads were going bonkers over Phantom's DNA but he didn't know why… until now.

"His DNA was damaged. He told me he was grievously injured when he was attacked with Ecto-weapons from other Overworlders. Ever since his body has been trying to heal on its own, which is a normal process, but it is taking a lot longer to heal due to the extensive damage. He looks fine but he is quite weak and the usage of his powers since has weakened him further."

"So what you stick him in a tube, like some sort of science experiment?" Jack growled, still not happy about the situation.

Frostbite raised his claws trying to ease him, "You misunderstand Colonel O'Neill. We heal our people in these tanks. The tanks bump up our natural healing tenfold. Without these tanks, many of us would cease to exist."

"Yes, the Arena is a sacred pit of stupidity where we maim and spill blood to each other in the name of sport," Dr Freeze sneered.

Frostbite sighed as if he had heard the opinion before, "Yes well, we cannot go against our natures doctor."

"How long does this last?" Carter asked.

"I plan to heal him until tomorrow morning," Dr Freeze replied, "To give him a chance to defend himself against Blizzard."

Jack noticed that Frostbite's expression hardened. He glanced at the doctor who glared accusingly at his leader. Trouble in paradise it seemed. His anger returned when his suspicious that they were placed in some power play and that a member of his team was used as some sort of political pawn grew.

"I don't want Phantom to participate," Jack declared causing Frostbite to look at him in surprise while Dr. Freeze seemed to look at him appraisingly.

"It is too late. The tournament will be going ahead," Frostbite said and for the first time Jack saw the jovial leader being very serious.

"I don't care. Leave my team out of it!" Jack snapped, "We came here for your help and not to be involved in your politics."

Frostbite frowned and shook his head, "I don't have a choice."

"That's bull-"

"What is going on here?" Daniel interrupted, "Why is it so important for him to fight?"

Frostbite sighed before sitting down on a nearby metal chair, "My people… have doubts about my leadership. They question the Great One's station, his deeds in saving us and our home. My decision to welcome him, mentor him and give him an honoury place among our kind without the Trials has caused mistrust and undermining of my governance over the people. There has been rumours of a resistance and they are grooming my second in command to challenge me for leadership. Unfortunately, in me welcoming you here has fueled more favor to their side and they soon have the numbers to usurp me and establish their own panel of advisors. As it has been our way for millennia."

Frostbite looked at Phantom's sleeping form with kindness, "I do not understand why my people do not see the efforts and sacrifices made by him. He may not have helped us directly always but his deeds are far reaching, bringing stability beyond our own borders. We pride ourselves on knowledge and yet we a willfully ignorant of things that do not fit our own narrative."

He looked back to them, "I fear once Blizzard is in power, we will focus on war mongering and reject the peace that I have been building for centuries. This will cause trouble for Phantom in the long run and for other ghosts who live close by."

The Far Frozen leader look at Jack imploringly, "I am sorry to have offend you and seemingly placed someone close to you in danger. Phantom has the potential to be very powerful. He is capable in defeating Blizzard. I need to win the trust back of my people by solidifying Phantom's place among us. If this is resolved Blizzard will lose her standing and the faction will lose support."

"Why don't you fight her yourself?" Jack glared, "Why do you need kids to fight your battles?"

Frostbite looked at him in shock, "I don't- he's not…"

"What is it with all these god damn people and so determined not to see him as a child?" Jack growled glaring at Frostbite as if everything was the creature's fault.

Frostbite regained his composure, "I am able to fight, as I have done in the past with this faction. However, like a Hydrosheek, when you cut off one head, 3 more appear. I am afraid this wont end until Phantom proves himself."

"Why didn't you do something like this in the first place?" Daniel asked frowning.

Frostbite sighed, "That is the problem with hindsight, you have clear vision when you look back. At the time I did not think it necessary. His deeds were proof enough and I did not want to involve Phantom in our own politics."

"Until now," Jack snapped.

"Unavoidable I am afraid. You ask of me to provide you the means of travel to destroy a great foe, and yet my people object to the lending of the Infini-map. I could lend it Phantom directly but that has now expired. If I were to freely lend you the Infini-map, Blizzard will have grounds to challenge and userp me. She will sequester the map away and you will lose your chance. I feel this is the best outcome where I can avoid war and you are free to borrow the map again."

"But you freely lent us the Infini-map in the first place," Danel argued before trailing off as he was losing himself in his thoughts, "Before Blizzard objected… someone you invited to the meeting and no one else, at the last moment."

Jack looked at Daniel before glaring at the large creature. With this memory jogged, his anger was fueled.

"That's it we're leaving! Get him out of there!"

Frostbite stood abruptly, "No! You can't!"

"The hell I can't!" Jack snarled, "Get. Him. Out."

"My people need him!"

"No, you need him. Maybe this would have worked before, but he is part of my team. I am here on his good faith, but it seems you deceived us. Deceived him!"

"It was not my intention. The faction has been pushing hard against mine recently. I need to stay in power. You do not realize the war we will go into if I do not defeat their champion!" Frostbite said pleadingly, "Please! I will explain this all to Phantom once he is awake. He would agree!"

There was a pregnant pause.

"Jack," Daniel said quietly.

"Daniel," Jack gave a warning tone.

"Jack."

"Daniel."

"Jack"

Jack bit back a frustrated growl before grimacing at the large furball creature. He held up his hand, "Give us 5 minutes."

Frostbite deflated a little before nodding and stepped away to join the doctor to give them some privacy.

Jack gave out a long sigh as his team formed a tight group around him. He looked at Daniel.

"Must I ask, why?" Jack said irritably. He couldn't care less for any arguments in the Far Frozen's favor. He wanted to abort the mission and take them all out of here, but out of respect he dredged up some patience and gave a hard stare to the archeologist. Jack had to give the man credit, he didn't seem fazed at all by his mood. Rather he got down to business looking at him seriously.

"Because they are the Furlings Jack," Daniel replied in a quiet but serious tone.

He shook his head and stared at him in disbelief, "What?"

"How?" Carter asked with a puzzled expression.

"According to their Soothsayer they were part of the treaty of the 4 races. We know that the Ancients, Nox and Asgard still exist, well at least we can see evidence. But the Furlings disappeared entirely. It appears that these people used technology to jump dimensions and became stuck here. It seems they worked closely with the Ancients, hence the Infini-map."

"Ok so they are a long lost civilization, but they lied to us," Jack pointed out.

"Sir," Carter pipped in, "Despite what has happened, their technology would greatly help us with Nun. Even here I can see that they are better equipped to help Phantom more than I ever could. We should at least take the opportunity to learn what we can, while we can."

Jack looked at her, "But they liiiieeeed."

"Right sir," Carter acknowledged, "Frostbite is running with his own agenda right now, but this opportunity is too good to pass up. The Doctors Fentons' work doesn't hold a candle compared to the knowledge that Avalanche can provide."

"We should try and negotiate. It would be better for us in the long run to be allied, especially with one of the 4 treaty races. Even if they are stuck here, they know a lot of things that I only have begun to learn about them," Daniel added his two cents.

Jack sighed. It was true they needed the technology, not only for easy infiltration (with the infini-map) but for knowledge on how to dismantle Nun's weapon. And it would be cool to be allied with another great civilization that were on par with the Asgard but it didn't mean he liked it any less.

"O'Neill," Teal'c addressed.

Jack looked at him, secretly hoping for some back up on his initial decision.

"We should carry on as we have been. They are a warring race. They will not hesitate to use force where necessary."

Jack hid his disappointment by Teal'c words. A split second later he realized what his friend was saying to him and the bad feeling in his gut grew.

Daniel turned to the Jaffa, "They have been very accommodating."

Teal'c looked unfazed and turned his attention to him, "They have been accommodating us because our complacency is of value to them. Frostbite wishes for Phantom to fight to restore the order that is seemingly unbalanced. If we are to be a roadblock, he will not hesitate to remove us from his path. His leadership is on the line."

Jack took his advice with a nod and his mouth twisted in distain. Teal'c gave voice to what he felt in his gut. He weighed up his decision before he turned back around. Frostbite noticed and perked up with interest. The yeti creature approach them slowly. Jack noted that the Far Frozen was careful and deliberate to appear as non-threatening as possible. In fact the more he thought about it Teal'c hit the nail on the head, Frostbite wanted them to go along with it but with claims of being in peak fighting condition he didn't doubt that they would get their way eventually.

He hated when things don't go his way.

Jack glared at Frostbite, "I don't give a damn about you and your politics. When Phantom wakes up tomorrow, you are going to tell him everything, with us there. If I had my way, we would be long gone by now with Phantom, but my team thinks that it is worth forming an alliance with your people. Don't make them liars."

Frostbite nodded looking resigned, "Politics has never been very comfortable for me. I prefer to keep my people happy. I never intended to jeopardize our fragile alliance. I sincerely apologize."

Jack sighed. With his anger cooled down he was more civil, "When is Phantom going to wake up?"

"He is due to wake mid-morning. Shall I call for you when he does?" Dr. Freeze pipped up.

"Before," Jack requested.

"Let us head back," Frostbite said wearily, "Tomorrow is a big day."

Phantom grinned as he brushed his snowy white hair with a comb. He felt energetic and alive. The tank had done wonders for him because he felt so good for the first time in days. He had a quick shower after his night in the healing tank was enjoying feeling normal again.

Ha! Normal!

He grinned as he looked in the mirror. His pale skin had a healthy unearthly glow, his eyes were a sizzling green and his powers were in easy reach, tingling underneath the surface of his skin. While his transformation was still stuck, he couldn't help but be ecstatic by how good he felt.

When he first approached Dr. Freeze (he laughed out loud when he first head his name), the doctor examined him and had indicated it would take a few sessions in the tank. However, the doctor did indicate that the first healing should jump start his own natural healing abilities, even if it was much slower than the tank.

He left the small bathroom to rejoin his friends. SG-1 were there when he woke up (so glad he requested to be healed fully clothed. He didn't think he could live it down if he was floating in a tank with everything on display) and they were weary with Frostbite and Dr. Freeze. It was soon told to him what happened last night and the light that was shed on the fight that was to happen today.

He floated up to them with a large grin on his face catching them off guard it seems because they were staring at him. Soon Daniel and Sam mirrored with his expression, Jack relaxed and Teal'c looked the same as ever but gave him a small nod.

"Someone woke up on the right side of the bed this morning," Jack quipped.

"You have no idea how good I feel right now!" Phantom exclaimed, "I didn't realize how bad I felt before. I feel like I can take on the world!"

Jack's expression turned serious, "Are you sure about this?"

Phantom grinned putting his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest, "No sweat. I dealt with bad ghosts all the time and this is meant to be a battle until someone is unconscious. Well not that Blizzard is bad, per se, but I understand why."

Phantom deflated a little. Normally he wouldn't be so gun-ho about fighting. He'd rather find a peaceful solution, although he has been quick to the punch lately when he sees a ghost back home. However, he wouldn't hesitate to defend himself and his friends. A part of him wanted his friends not to worry about him and cause any more friction between Frostbite and SG-1 and another hidden part of him needed some talking-in to.

He looked over to Frostbite and couldn't help but be disappointed about what had happened. He knew the reasons as Dr. Freeze candidly told him the political situation yesterday while he was receiving a medical examination. This morning's telling from SG-1 was no surprise (Jack was mad that Dr. Freeze didn't mentioned that talk last night) and he saw the small shame in Frostbite's eyes. His stomach churned with that expression, unsure how he was supposed to feel. Frostbite was the only ghost who saw him as he was and believed in him where many didn't.

Putting those thoughts aside, Frostbite led the group out of the facility and down the narrow ice cobbled streets of the village. They reached to the edge of the town, and entered one of the tunnels that were carved into the cavern wall. They followed the large Far Frozen leader through the narrow white tunnels until they stood outside in the open wastelands.

Phantom felt dwarfed by the enormous glacier now that they were standing right next to it. He turned his attention to a large cylinder structure in the distance. No surprise it was made of ice, as if someone had a giant block of it and carved it down to make it. There were no archways of any obvious Ancient Roman designs, rather the walls were seamless and tall.

As they drew closer Phantom could see a few entryways at the base with clear ice panels that wrapped around the base. There was a large out door square around the entrance, where there were a few stalls with fan memorabilia being sold. There were a few other Far Frozen milling about as they were entering or exiting the Arena. Over the entry way there was a large sign carved from ice. It had his and Blizzard's face, side profile as if they were going to butt heads at any moment. Both faces had mean looking expressions and some writing he didn't understand were carved below, probably announcing the event.

"Oh come on!" Phantom exclaimed waving his arms, "They got my face wrong, I don't look like that!"

"Looks accurate to me," Frostbite raised his eyebrow.

"Oh come on Frostbite! My nose is not that long and I don't scowl!"

"Hmm I would say that you have made that scowling face before," Jack pipped in.

He turned and looked at the Colonel glaring, "What? When?"

"Once back at the base when Teal'c ate the last jello cup," Jack replied.

"What?!" Phantom gaped, "I wasn't scowling, I was just mad that I missed out!"

"What about the time when the Biology department wanted to take some extra tissue samples from you?" Sam pointed out.

"I just don't like it when I get jabbed with needles!" Phantom said defensively, "That wasn't scowling!"

"You were definitely moody every time I borrowed the Infini-map," Daniel added.

"I. Don't. Scowl!" Phantom snapped before folding his arms making a point to turn and float away from them.

Phantom didn't see the amused looks behind him.

As they entered they were greeted by a spacious interior. The whole inside was carved from ice right down to the public benches and the potted plants that were placed in the middle and off to the sides. The interior looked to curve along the structure with light streaming in from the clear large ice panel windows that stretched up a couple of stories. The whole area looked bright and airy but its sheer size looked too extravagant for the small village.

"The Arena was built by our ancestors, "Frostbite explained as walked down the interior, "Before we discovered the mine nearby, we made all of our structures from pure ice, without any metal supports. It was designed and meticulously created by Icesmiths and it took months to complete. The Arena was originally built to be a ballet theatre, but the bloody sport of stabbing each other appealed to us a lot more."

Frostbite led them away from the main exit to another side door. Here they entered a smaller room which was very basic and had a chair in the corner. The small room held an opposite door in which Frostbite wasted no time to enter. On the otherside was a large area with rows of metal cabinets that looks to be lockers as well as ice benches in the middle for seating.

"Over the centuries we have made our own adaptations and changes to different areas of the Arena. So you may find some Overworld themes that are out of place," Frostbite explained, "Here is where the competitors prepare for the battles ahead."

Frostbite walked over to a nearby metal cupboard and pulled out some metal armor and other metal miscellaneous items. He approached Phantom and gave it to him. To his credit he initially took the brunt of the heavy items but soon was at ease in carrying such a heavy load.

"What's this?" Phantom asked dreading the answer.

"Battle armour of course," Frostbite said cheerfully, "A warrior must be suited up for battle."

"But I don't need this!" he protested.

"How else are you going to fend off Tigerruffs and Glydors? They are quite ferocious," Frostbite said mater-of-factly, "Unless…"

He turned back around and pulled out what looked to be swords, shield and spears. He dumped the load on Phantom who looked engulfed by the sheer volume of what he was holding rather than the weight.

"Maybe you're more the offensive type? Try some of these swords and pikes. Short swords are my favourite. You can get in close and stab your enemy with a good thrust," Frostbite enthused, pretending to hold a sword and stabbing an invisible foe.

"How are you holding all that up?" Sam asked, unable to help herself any longer. She leaned and puzzled over him as he gritted his teeth.

"Really? I'm going into a battle for my life and all you can think about how much I can hold?" he said dryly.

Sam had the grace to be embarrassed, "Well I never thought about how strong ghosts can be. It seems you are holding about half a ton. Perhaps?"

Phantom grinned, "This is nothing! I can hold way more than this."

"You must be a hit with the ladies at the local ghost gym," Jack quipped.

"Ghost gym? Really?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"Well unless ghosts can change their physique at will and add muscles," Sam pondered, "I doubt anyone here gets muscles how we do it back home."

Phantom held a puzzled expression. He had never thought about that before.

"Growing things at will seems quite… handy," Jack replied causally.

Phantom suddenly flushed in embarrassment.

"Perhaps they grow spirit carrots, O'Neil," Teal'c added in.

Phantom choked out in surprise, his whole face turning red. The rest of the team were caught unawares in Teal'c verbal ambush. Sam barked out a laugh and Daniel raised his eyebrows.

"How… specific, T" Jack responded, looking at the Jaffa.

Teal'c nodded, "I feel carrots are a good analogy to many things."

"Like what?" Sam asked.

"Don't answer that T!" Jack interrupted, "I don't want to know. Shame on you Carter!"

"What?" Sam shrugged innocently, "I like carrots. Especially big ones."

Daniel let out a laugh as Jack suddenly flushed red, "Carter!"

Phantom dumped his load of armour as Frostbite looked between the group in confusion, "I do not understand Great One. Why are they getting embarrassed over carrots?"

"Erh… never mind. Let's just get on with this fight," Phantom tried to push past his embarrassment, "I don't need any armour."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I just want to get this over and done with," Phantom said irritably.

"Of course. You are the Great One," Frostbite conceded.

The crowd roared as Phantom entered the Arena. The seating curved around and upwards like the Roman Coliseum, with seats sectioned off by stairs, very similar to a typical sports stadium. He saw the stands jam packed with Far Frozen faces who were cheering and waving banners and flags. He saw many for Blizzard and a few for him but there were some he couldn't distinguish because of the Far Frozen language.

He glanced over to the front row seats where SG-1 were told to sit and watch. He was a bit nevous about the whole thing. He never properly fought in front of the team before and had a childish feeling of wanting to impress them. He wanted to prove to them that he could hold his own in a fight. Frostbite was sitting up on the leader's chair like a Roman emperor. The balcony had blue and gold cloth draped across it with banners containing a picture of icicles that look like teeth hung on either side of the seat. Phantom realized that the banners held Frostbite's house symbol as he had seen the same icons at his palace.

He saw two Far Frozen approach him. One he instantly recognized as Blizzard and the other he had never met before. He waited patiently as they reached him deciding to observe them. The other Far Frozen was a large but older looking creature with course and rugged fur and his eyes were blue in color. He had a jagged scar over his left eye and look to be blinded. Two thick ice bull horns rose up from his skull.

He held a look of distain on his face, "This is the Great One, erh?"

"Yes this whelp is he," Blizzard muttered.

"Ya know, I am right here and can answer the question," Phantom drawled.

"Oh I am sorry little cub, the adults are talking," she sneered.

He glared at her and said sarcastically, "Ha, ha, cute. Did you get that from big and ugly over here?"

The large Far Frozen growled, "I am Hoarfrost, you whelp! You are not worthy to step on these sacred grounds! Blizzard will crush you and take what is rightfully hers, the Far Frozen leadership!"

Phantom sighed hating how he had to care about politics. He didn't even care about the politics in his own town! "Yeah whatever. Look can we hurry this preliminary banter please. We have some bigger snakes to fry."

"You will show some respect, whelp!" Blizzard snarled. Hoarfrost placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.

Phantom rolled his eyes. Honestly.

Blizzard gnashed her pointy teeth as Hoarfrost looked stoic. A section of the floor opened and a weapon's rack rose up from the depths.

"You may choose a weapon for this match. Choose well," Hoarfrost boomed.

Blizzard instantly chose a spear. Phantom looked at the selection of weapons with a grimace. His Mom insisted he learn how to use weapons since she was a black belt in… well everything. She tried to teach him years ago how to use staffs and duel weapons but found himself taking to hand-to-hand combat a lot more. Jazz was more proficient with using weapons.

He finally picked out a spear and twirled it around a few times to get a feel for its balance. Memories prickled at the back of his mind as he placed the blunt end down onto the ice floor.

Blizzard smirked, "Are you sure you can handle it little cub?"

He huffed in annoyance refusing to take the bait. He drew himself into a fighting stance holding the spear with his right hand. She looked determined and fell into a fighting stance, both hands gripping her spear.

"Time is unlimited. The first person who gets knocked unconscious loses, understood?" Hoarfrost gravelly voice barked.

Blizzard and Phantom nodded.

"Wait until the horn sounds," Hoarfrost instructed as he turned away and left them facing each other.

"Do you even know how to use a spear?" she scoffed eyeing his stance after a small moment of silence.

Phantom regarded her for a moment before giving her a smirk. She frowned gripping her weapon harder.

A loud deep horn sounded.

"Nope!"

In one movement he changed his grip and raised the spear over his head. Her eyes widen as he threw the spear at her like a javelin. She easily moved out of the way and turned to him opening her mouth to say something, but his left hand was already charged with ice power and with practiced aim, he encased her legs in ice.

Off balance by the sudden ice, she lost precious seconds which allowed him to shoot a quick Ecto-beam at her hand. Her grip was lost and the spear tumbled away. She growled and glared at him.

"You little snot!"

Suddenly the ice around her legs cracked and exploded. As soon as she was free, she charged at him with fury in her eyes. Her hands glowed with ice power. She curled her hands into fists, bumping them together in front her before horizontally pulling them away. Her power created a spear identical to the one she had lost. By the time she had finished forming it, she was upon him and thrusted the spear at him. He had enough time to dodge before she thrusted again.

Phantom ducked as she swung over his head, he quickly formed an ice shield and raised it up to catch a hit from above. She kept up the advance stabbing at him very quickly as he fought to keep pace with her, trying not to get skewered. The shield he made proved heavier than he thought, due to being made from ice. He found his movements slowed with each advanced strike. Blizzard seemed to sense this as she was relentless with her attack.

She suddenly changed tactics and shot ice beneath his feet. A split second later he slipped and allowed the opening she needed and jabbed forward. He let out a yelp as he was pierced on the side of his ribs. The crowd roared.

"Danny!" he could hear Jack yell.

He clutched at his side and looked down to saw green blood smeared on his hand. He looked over to see SG-1 on their feet, their expressions were filled with worry. He looked up to his opponent, Blizzard, who was held a triumphant look. She pulled back into a more casual posture, her eyes glowing with glee. She allowed herself a smirk and looked down at him as he picked himself up from the floor.

She laughed taunting, "Give up now oh Great One. You are in way over your head! I already drew first blood and we barely begun!"

Phantom panted allowing himself some reprieve while Blizzard gloated over him. He tossed the heavy shield away. He berated himself for underestimating her. She was leagues above him in combat and for a moment felt despair at the enormity of the task before him.

Focus Danny! Now what would Mom do?

Kick her butt, kick everyone else's butt here, and be home in time to make dinner.

Ok… bad motivational speech…

Blizzard pulled into stance, "You are proof that our Liege is not fit to rule anymore! Once I defeat you, I will make sure Overworlders do not bother us again."

"Oh yeah?" Phantom decided to take the bait to stall for time. He stood and called his powers and could feel it humming under his skin. Already he could feel the itchiness on the side of his chest, as the wound healed.

"Oh yes. I will bring glory to our people and reform the empire. We shall conquer this realm, and then conquer the Overworld."

He snorted as he pulled himself into a familiar fighting stance, "Yeah right. You and what army? The Overworld is big and the Ghost Zone is even bigger."

"Machines of course!" she grinned, "Our technology is very advanced."

He couldn't help but roll his eyes, "Really a robot army? I mean Technus already tried that! Can you get any more cliché?"

She scowled, "Laugh now, but you will not be laughing when I destroy you!"

"Get in line," Phantom snarked, "There are many ghosts who want to take over the world. And also another cliché line. Did you go to villain school or something?"

She growled before her spear launched at him. He dodged it before she jabbed again but missed. He allow his power to increase his speed and soon he was missing all her attacks, much to her chargin. She eased up and started to predict his movements, following his pattern of weaving but was met with quick bursts of intangibility in different areas of his body. The crowd was applauding at the tense display of battle.

Frustrated she changed tactics and she swung her spear in a wide horizontal arc. He ducked. She drew back to thrust forward. He saw this and quickly stepped to the side as the spear launched at him, barely missing his chest. Seeing the ice spear beside him, he grabbed it using his Ecto powers around his fists, he melted the pole.

She pulled back with a snarl and threw the short stick away. She pulled into a fighting stance, her fists charged with ice power. In an instant, her fists were covered in sharp looking ice blades. Phantom gulped, the visual was disturbingly similar to the scene in Terminator 2.

She moved in throwing a punch (or was it a stab). He dodged and shot an Ecto-beam when she was close. Suddenly ice power was summoned on her torso and blocked the beam with a shower of ice. Shocked at the display of the usage of ice power, he was distracted enough for her to trip him onto his back. The crown howled.

The wind was momentarily knocked out of him and in the next moment saw an ice blade in his field view. Instinctually he rolled to the side and heard a clang sound whistling near his ear. A second later his brain caught up. In one movement he rolled to all fours used a touch of ecto power from his hands, he propelled himself quickly up and off the ground. Cheering and gasping was heard in the background.

A moment later, she had stabbed at the ground again where he was. He used his floating ability to balance himself to land properly on the ground (he so didn't want to stack it in the middle of battle). In the next moment, she was running at him again, her right fist pulled back to stab. He was once again on the defense as she aggressively jabbed at him with her fists. He dodged and managed to block one punch to shoot off an Ecto-beam in close quarters. Once again ice formed in front of her skin and shattered under the blast deflecting any potential damage. He tried this a few times but was met with the same results.

Not wanting to be in the same position, he went intangible and stepped through her. She tried to stop her forward momentum to turn but she was too slow. Phantom became solid powering up his fists with Ecto-energy. She was in mid turn when he shot a powerful beam with both hands.

She instinctively raised an ice shield to block but it was shattered as the beam overcame it and she was blasted away in a thin trail of smoke. The crowd sympathized with the pain of the shot. He wasted no time in any usual banter, knowing that Blizzard was a much better fighter than he was. She was much more proficient with weapons and hand-to-hand and he was by himself in this fight. No Sam and Tucker to back him up with any team tactics. His only hope at this point was to catch her off guard with his own power and tactics. He hoped it would be enough.

He leapt up both of his fists encased with Ecto-energy and formed another powerful beam from both of his fists. He thought he got her again but saw she rolled away at the last moment. He floated up and flew down at her when she was up on her feet. His tail whipped behind him, flying at full speed with his fists out in front. When he was closer, he saw her determined expression before a field of blue encased his vision.

Pain traveled up his fists as he smacked against a hard icy surface. He instantly it as his own kinetic energy reverberated back from the ice wall and bounced him off. The crowd seemed to groan with him as he felt to the ground.

"Pathetic cub!" he heard her cry. He opened his eyes to see her holding her lost metal spear. She leapt up at him to stab him where he lay. He threw his hands up in a moment and managed to erect a square shield over him, deflecting her attack harmlessly.

She was deflected away but instantly landed neatly on her feet and was already charging at him again. He managed to get to his knees before she jabbed at him again. He used the ecto-shield to deflect it momentarily. Blizzard saw she had the advantage and started to hammer down the spear. Phantom gritted his teeth against the onslaught as the force of the blows started to take its toll. He then expanded his shield to encase him before allowing himself to his feet.

Undeterred by his shield she pulled back her spear with her left hand and used her right hand shot out thick icicles in rapid succession. They thumped against his shields shattering on impact. Phantom stood still concentrating. She soon stopped her attack seeing it was futile before re-gripping her spear. She started to circle him and he tracked her with his eyes.

"You can't hide there forever cub!" she taunted, "The little ice mouse must come out sometime!"

"Oh yeah? Just watch me. The only condition is that you have to make me unconscious," he smirked, "There is no time limit!"

"You insolent brat!" she growled, "You think I cannot break through that thing you call a shield? I will show you the power of the Far Frozen!"

Her fists glowed and her eyes burned with power. She then touched the ground. Icicles formed along the ground snakeing towards him. He instantly focused his shield to the front of him and leapt away. Icicles shot out like jousting poles breaking his shielding and knocking him away. He dodged, finding footing on the surface of a few formed icicles and used them to launch himself about. The trail followed him around the arena, unable to get away from the attack. He shot ecto-beams at a few but they icicles were too thick to break with a lone shot. He gave up and concentrated on dodging.

Blizzard let out a furious roar from her position. Her eyes burned white hot and suddenly the number of icicles doubled. Phantom dodged what he could but saw that he wasn't keeping up. One icicle caught him on his arm, knocking him off balance. The next second, another icicle pierced his shoulder dragging him upwards, impaling him. He let out a throaty scream as liquid agony spread from his shoulder. Then white hot pain exploded from his right leg and he cried out. His vision swam. The crowd seemed distant and far away. His heavy ragged breathing and involuntary whimpering filled his ears. He held on to his conscious through sheer determination. His world was pain but soon his mind regained his senses and he focused a figure before him.

Blizzard.

"Slippery little ice worm aren't you?" She sneered as she floated up to meet his position from the ground her eyes alight with hunger, "You are mine now. Know that falling to me is a great honor, oh Great One. I shall put you out of your misery."

Her fist charged with ice energy. He closed his eyes and smiled.

She paused, "Smiling in the face of your defeat… you must be a crazy cub!"

"Who says I am smiling at my defeat?"

Puzzled she heard his voice behind her, she whipped around to see two fists coming at her. She was launched away by a double punch by his clone. Phantom quickly flew over to his double and grimaced at the state of body trying not to think about it too much. He floated under his own body positioning his shoulders behind his back.

"This is gonna hurt!"

With a large burst of power, he shot up and moved his own body off the spikes. They both shrieked in pain and for a moment he became disorientated. The crowd roared in delight. He soon focused enough through the pain to grab his wounded body and float safely to the ground. He felt weak and knew he was running on limited time with the duplication ability. He quickly tore off pieces his own shirt to tie it around his leg and his arm, stemming the green blood gushing out of the wounds. Involuntarily he pulled himself together into one body, and pain was renewed with the sudden readjustment.

He yelled out and laid there on his back unable to move. He fought through the pain, his breathing sharp and ragged filled his ears. Determined he willed himself to roll on his non-injured side. He leaned on his right arm and struggled into a sitting position. Dizziness washed over him and he closed his eyes hoping the world would stop spinning.

He tried not to think about his blood pooling beneath him as he leaned on he moved to bend is left leg but found himself quite weak and his good leg wasn't willing to cooperate. He took a short break fighting to get his panting under control. He knew he was in a bad way. The ice attack was unexpected and it was by sheer luck he had cloned himself before hand in preparation for another attack. He wouldn't have the energy to clone himself while he was impaled.

He sat there knowing he was utterly spent. He couldn't dodge any of her attacks or use any more powers without exhausting himself. His mind kicked into gear and ran through a few scenarios in his head, survival instincts were pushing him past his pain and exhaustion. With a pang, he wished he had Sam and Tucker with him. He watched Blizzard climb to her feet and looked at him with admiration as she approached him. He slowed his breathing to deep breaths, his pain threshold increased, his heart beat dulled in his ears and he realized that the crowd chatter was low.

He looked over to the SG team seeing their distressed expressions and winced internally in how they had to see it. He smiled at them knowing they were there supporting him, despite the situation that he found himself in. He locked eyes with Jack who was ready to run out there and help him at the drop of hat. The Colonel. He was the only one who cared about him as Phantom. Who saw him through the freaky ghost powers and truly accepted him.

And you lied to them. To him.

He looked away as a pang of guilt stabbed him. He felt wretched.

"You are a determined little cub," a voice floated above him. He looked up and saw Blizzard. Her expression was hard but not cold, "You have spunk, I give you that. But that is not enough to defeat me I'm afraid."

He frowned at the ground.

I've got to do something… do something right for them. I don't care… I don't care if they hate me in the end… as long as we beat Nun, that's all that matters!

"I can see what our Liege sees in you. Such potential. But in the end you are still a cub with much to learn. No match against a seasoned fighter like me."

Phantom looked back up at her, "Just hurry up, will ya?"

She huffed, "Impatient brat aren't you. Fine."

She held out her hand, charged with ice power.

He closed his eyes and the charge elevated to a high pitch whine.

"I'm sorry cub."

He took a deep breath summoning all of his power.

I'm not.

He opened his bright neon eyes and screamed. The quiet of the stadium was suddenly filled with a loud shrieking of an unearthly wail. In an instant Blizzard was caught at point-blank range of the blast, and was knocked high and away from him. In seconds, waves of power vibrated in the air splashing against objects and structures In front of him. Ice started to crack and break as Far Frozen spectators covered their ears. A loud snap rang out and a large deep crack appeared on one section of the stands. Confused by the noise and the structure they were on, the Far Frozen started to flee from the stadium by floating away or running out of the exits of the structure.

He suddenly felt arms around him and he instantly stopped in shock.

"Danny, stop!" a raspy voice panted by his ear.

He took in a deep breath, suddenly realizing he had no air. Dizziness hit him and his strength left him. He sagged against the person who held him and he found himself laying on his back. He looked up to see Colonel Jack O'Neill, his face full of concern. He saw other faces behind him with equal concern etch on their faces. His gaze lingered on Sam, her bright expression was filled with distress and pity. Then to Teal'c, who was normally stoic, his eyes shone with concern and his face pulled with worry. Then to Daniel who stared at him determination and anxiety. Phantom wondered suddenly wondered why they were here, his thoughts felt jumbled and were escaping further and further away from him.

"Danny!" Jack barked.

He jumped suddenly jolting him from the pull of darkness that promised rest.

"Stay with me."

"Jack," he rasped out, his voice was so hoarse it sounded strange.

"What the hell were you thinking!" Jack growled, "I mean I know you would bring the stadium down with your skill but not literally."

He smiled at the attempted joke feeling himself drifting off.

"I couldn't let her win. We need Frostbite… we need the infini-map… to beat… Nun."

"But not at the expense of yourself. We can always find another way," Jack berated.

"Thank you Colonel," A familiar voice sounded.

Phantom looked over to see Dr. Freeze with a few other Far Frozen. He suddenly looked at the two Far Frozen orderlies, suddenly seeing them with sharpness that wasn't there before. He could see that they wary and hesitant to step any closer, allowing Dr. Freeze to examine his leg.

"Can we get him to one of your tanks, perhaps now?" Jack asked sharply.

"Looks clean." Dr Freeze said ignoring him, "Let's put him on a stretcher and get him to the medical bay quickly!"

He was laid down on a stretcher and felt himself being carried, floating along the ground. Knowing he was safe, he closed his eyes and knew no more.

To be continued…

A/N: Yes this was a very long one. I decided to nail this all in one chapter. I know that the arena in the DP show was just a platform… but I would like to think of that was a training arena (since Danny was training with his ice powers). The real stuff is in a colosseum where real contestants fight it out.

I've forgotten how much fun the fight scenes are! Hmmm... I think that tells me that I need to write more action scenes ;) .

I really need a beta reader.