jeriendhal | "A Slight Detour" Part Seven (Reply)

Frelling stupid planet, Terinu thought irritably, hopping from branch to branch as he paralleled the trail the big guy was pacing down below him. Too many trees, not enough corridors or alleys. Why couldn't they have found a nice, civilized planet to break down near, where he could safely disappear into the crowds, instead of this near unpopulated frelling forest?

He didn't care much for the company either. The Colonel reminded him too much of Leeza's cousin, all jokes and smiles until something didn't go his way. This Teal'c guy wasn't much more comforting. He was like some of Marva's bully boys, the really quiet ones that seemed almost halfway safe to talk to, who could shoot a man dead and then go back to drinking their coffee.

Teal'c halted, and gestured for Terinu to come down to his level. The Ferin boy dropped out of the tree, hanging upside down by his tail in front of the large human.

"Yeah?"

"I wished to ask, are you familiar in the use of energy weapons?" Teal'c said solemnly. Actually he said everything solemnly.

I am an energy weapon. "Yeah," he admitted.

The big man reached into his holster and pulled what Terinu assumed was a hand gun of some sort. Assuming it wasn't just some sort of weird sculpture of a snake, which was what it looked like. Teal'c pressed a button on the side, and the thing hummed with the sound of harnessed energy, and snapped up like a cobra preparing the strike. Definitely a weapon.

"This is a Zat'nikatel, or 'Zat' if you find that unpronounceable," Teal'c explained, "If you fire and strike an enemy with it once, they will be in great pain, possibly knocked unconscious. Fire it at the same target twice, and they will be killed. Fire a third time, and their body will be completely disintegrated." He touched the side button again and the zat folded back down, and then he handed it to Terinu. "Do not use it unless you believe it to be absolutely necessary."

"Uh, thanks," Terinu replied. He let go of the tree limb and flipped upright as he dropped to the ground, landing on his feet. Slipping the zat into the pocket of his tunic, he asked, "Aren't you going to need it?"

"I have other weapons," Teal'c said, hefting his big energy rifle. "You, on the other hand, appear to only have your sword, which would be insufficient if we encounter any Gou'ald or their servants on this world."

Terinu blinked. "You trust me with it?"

"If I do give you the opportunity to take the weapon, I will never know whether to trust you or not," Teal'c replied.

"I guess that makes sense." Teal'c resumed walking, and Terinu chose to follow him on the ground. "Could I ask you a question?"

"I will answer to the best of my ability, so long as it does not compromise Stargate Command operations."

Terinu guessed that meant yes. "What the frell is that thing in your forehead?"

"It is the symbol of the System Lord Apophis, granted to me when he chose me to be his First Prime," Teal'c answered.

"It looks like somebody just poured molten gold into your head."

"They did, after opening the skin with a ritual knife."

Terinu winced. "That must've hurt!"

"It was excruciating," Teal'c answered, in the same tone he probably used to discuss the weather.

Terinu stopped in the middle of the path. "Wait a minute, I thought the System Lords were those Gou'ald that your Colonel was talking about."

Teal'c nodded. "That is correct."

"And you used to work for them?"

"Indeed. Apophis, like all the System Lords, portrayed himself as a god to my people. We followed him without question. I killed many in his name, for his glory, and only slowly did I come to question his wisdom and infallibility. But it was only when I encountered O'Neill that I came to realize that there were others in the universe that might challenge the power of the System Lords, and free my people from the bondage of ignorance and the worship of false gods."

"What did he do?"

"He showed me his digital watch."

Terinu gave Teal'c a sharp look, but there wasn't anything resembling humor on the human's face, so he shrugged and walked on. The big man seemed content to continue their patrol in silence, though he remained alert, examining every turn in the path as if it might conceal an enemy.

Teal'c made a sharp gesture for Terinu to stop, then pointed up towards the tree branches. The young Ferin didn't have to be told twice. He leaped up into the concealing branches, as Teal'c took cover in the brush alongside the path.

"Jaffa, kree!" a voice called out, and a squad of soldiers dressed in ornate grey armor and carrying metal staves came hiking up the path. Like Teal'c there were symbols on the forehead, tattooed fortunately, not gold engraved, and they didn't look particularly friendly. Fortunately they didn't pause in their march or bother to look up, and they disappeared over a small ridge within a few minutes.

When they were gone Terinu dropped out of the trees and rejoined Teal'c, who emerged from the brushes looking concerned.

"Bad guys?" he asked.

"Indeed," Teal'c confirmed. He pulled a comm from the breast pocket of his uniform jacket and flipped it on. "Teal'c to O'Neill. There are indeed Jaffa warriors on this planet. We just encountered a squad made up of Serpent, Setesh, and Horus guards."

Any sign of Anubis?

"Not directly," Teal'c said, "but he is most likely the best candidate to bring such disparate forces together."

Copy that, O'Neill replied, Okay, the nature walks are over. We all better meet back at the Stargate and plan our next move. Carter, Daniel, you copy that?

Copy that, Sir, Carter replied.

Daniel?

There was a lengthy pause.

Daniel, you copy? O'Neill's voice sounded notably more anxious, anybody else receiving him?

Negative, Sir.

"I am not," Teal'c confirmed.

Damn. Teal'c, you and the kid hustle back to the Gate to protect Carter and Captain Blake. Lance and I will try and scout out Daniel and Fox McCloud's last reported position.

We can protect ourselves, Sir.

You can't watch for bad guys and try and fix the Gate the same time. That's an order.

Yes, Sir.

"We will return shortly," Teal'c said, and put his comm back in his pocket. "Come," he said to Terinu, "we must hurry."

"Forget it." Terinu planted his feet and crossed his arms over his chest. "Rufus is a friend of mine. I gotta find him if I can, and two search parties have a better chance than one."

Teal'c frowned and said, "I consider Daniel Jackson a friend as well, but we have our orders. Colonel O'Neill is quite experienced, and I am confident that he can locate Daniel and Ru-Ofanus. More importantly, there is a possibility that the patrol that just passed us may come near Major Carter and Captain Blake's position."

Terinu chewed his lip for a moment and then spat out, "Frell it. You'd better be right." Together they jogged back up the path, ears open for the enemy that might lay ahead.

TBC