Murphy's Ninth Law: "Chaos will win over Order, because it is better organized."
It was only by the training and years of conditioning that O'Neill
didn't jump clear of his skin when his radio suddenly crackled in his
ear. Teal'c saluted him with a single eyebrow, making Jack feel all the
more ridiculous. He shot his dark friend a dirty look, then thumbed the
transmitter.
"Report, Major."
"Sir. We're nearly finished here. We just need to run system's checks
and we'll be ready to light this candle. We could use Teal'c's help."
"Affirmative. I'm sending him in now. I want those shields up and that
ship airborne as soon as possible. Radio me when we are ready to go. I
want to be home in time for supper."
There came a click, as if Carter was about to respond, then another
voice cut in over her words. "Go? Colonel O'Neill, we cannot go until
we locate that which we came to find!"
"Oh, but we can. 'Why', do you ask?" added Jack, with venomous sarcasm,
"Because I said so, and it says 'Colonel' on my uniform. That's why."
"But... we've come all this way! We're here now, and the beacon is mere kilometers..."
"Do I need to remind you that we were fired upon by a Goa'uld on your
'top- secret- nobody- knows- but- us- chickens' mission? Reality check,
Sullen: It's not a secret anymore. I'm not risking the lives of my team
any further on this fiasco. We'll get back to the SGC, report what
we've seen, then return with back-up and find your precious beacon.
Maybe."
So'len sputtered with indignation. "With respect, Colonel, this is my mission... the work of my life! I--"
"We are not having this conversation over the radio. Keep this channel clear! Carter!"
"Yes, Sir!"
Fuming, Jack nodded to Teal'c, and they both began to make their way
back to the ship. Focused on his anger at So'len's single-mindedness,
he was taken by surprise when Teal'c whirled and armed his staff
weapon, a fluid and deadly motion. The air all around them was suddenly
full of fire.
O'Neill dove to the ground, bursts of staff-fire singing the air and
striking the ground with deafening blasts. Teal'c danced around,
narrowly dodging the criss-crossing lines of power. Finally, he threw
himself down in the small wallow that O'Neill had found, little more
than a declivity overgrown with grass.
Jack yelled into his radio. "Carter! Get those shields up and get that
ship in the air! We've got company!" He twisted about, trying to bring
up his P90 to return fire, but they were pinned down. The ground right
before his eyes erupted, spraying him with burning pebbles.
"...Sir? We...take off and bring weapons to bear..." the broadcast
broke and chittered, fouled by the deadly rain. "... Ring transporter
not functioning yet! Repeat: The ring transporter is not ..."
"Take off!! Get clear and don't come down 'til we take care of business!"
The ship rose with a groan, the shields shimmering as blast after blast
splattered uselessly against the hull. The massive shadow fell over
O'Neill and Teal'c. Jack managed to clear the dirt from his eyes in
time to see the weapons riding on the underbelly of the ship emerge and
swivel, launching retina-piercing stars in the direction of the
weapon's fire that was holding them down. Chrysanthemums bloomed in
fiery glory; the ground shook and more debris rained down, hot and
smoking. The wind carried the smoke over O'Neill and Teal'c, carrying
the odor of charred metal and flesh.
The snipers firing from the trees redoubled their efforts, trying to
keep the two men pinned. But Teal'c and O'Neill took advantage of the
smoke and chaos to split up, rolling and crawling to new positions.
Each time a blast came toward their abandoned hollow, Jack's P90
coughed and another jaffa dropped. Teal'c traded volleys with a
stubborn marksman, slowly blasting away the cover that they each were
hiding behind.
Movement flitted across O'Neill's vision as he lay, one cheek pillowed
on his shoulder as he took aim at his next target. It drew his eyes
even as he fired. The jaffa that he had missed now raised his weapon,
firing at something in the air between the scoutship and O'Neill's
position. He seemed to have forgotten completely about O'Neill and
Teal'c. Jack squeezed off a round which insured that the jaffa never
repeated that mistake.
The other jaffa were now firing toward the air as well, beating a slow
retreat. The cargo ship began dropping salvos of fire to encourage
their haste.
Jack turned his attention to the sky. A thin line of smoke and sparks
made visible what he had not seen earlier, and he realized that his
midnight visitor had returned. One of the jaffa must have gotten a
lucky shot. A barely-detectable whine reached his ears, and as he
watched the object spiraled toward the ground and ploughed up a furrow
in the soft soil where the scoutship had once rested.
"Teal'c, Carter! Pursue and neutralize!" Jack slapped a new magazine
into his P90, then ran back. He doubted that anything could have
survived that crash, but he needed to see what it was.
The jaffa had retreated, but O'Neill moved with excess caution, running
crouched and holding his weapon steady before him. Once he reached the
trough left behind by the scoutship, he threw himself down and crawled
with elbows until he reached the thing that had fallen from the sky. It
was still smoking, spitting an occasional spark. It appeared to be an
oval disk made of metal, about the size of a child's sled. There was a
sizable hole blasted through it, and inside delicate mechanisms slowly
fused in the heat. Jack prodded it with the barrel of his gun.
A groan came from further along the furrow, and Jack now saw a trail
where someone appeared to have dragged themselves some distance. He
approached carefully, now hearing what sounded like colourful curses
being muttered in an unfamiliar language.
Not far from the wreckage he found what he was looking for. A boy or a
young man, clothing torn and burned. One of his legs was twisted and
bloody. He looked back at O'Neill with a daring glimmer in his eye, the
device on his hand glowing and pointed straight at Jack's heart.