The sun shone through the balcony of treetops, illuminating the
forest floor below in a beautiful display of wildlife and plants. Small
creatures skittered around, intimidated by the new beings that had entered
their environment. Plants seemed to shrink away slightly as they passed, as
if they too were afraid.
Colonel Jack O'Neill barely managed to avoid crushing a small animal beneath his booted foot, and had tilted his cap beak out of his line of sight. He cocked his head at the animal, which scurried away in terror, and O'Neill watched it go, turning his head to his second in command.
She was looking up at the beautiful scenery above them, large leaves of luscious greens hung over their heads, and branches that were clearly homes to birds of some exotic variety. Major Samantha Carter wore the smile of an intrigued child, out in a new place for the first time, seeing everything anew with amazed curiousity.
Striding just behind her was the large form of the Jaffa Teal'c, who simply eyed the creatures with a mild interest. His eyes moved around searchingly, as if he expected something to leap out at them and attack. His hand hovered near to his zat gun. The large alien had no need to worry... there had been no signs of any sort of advanced form of life on this planet... well, anything like humans or the Jaffa.
Or the Kelownan.
Jonas Quinn brought up the rear, a loose satchel hanging over his shoulder, his eyes following the slightest movement, his ears catching the smallest sound. He was amazed by this strange new place, and it showed. The young alien had not experienced such wonders as the rest of SG-1... and that showed too. He was smiling broadly, looking up at a branch as a wildly coloured bird landed softly in a tree. It cawed softly, and looked down watchfully at the four travellers.
"Well, Carter," Jack began, taking a sip from his canteen, "so far all I've seen is bugs, furry... things, and birds."
Carter came up to walk beside him, her golden hair shining in the stream of sunlight that filtered through the trees. "Yes, sir?"
O'Neill rolled his eyes. How come no one ever understood his meanings? "So why are we here?"
Jonas jogged up to them then, overtaking Teal'c, and taking great care not to trip on anything. He was sometimes slightly awkward... something that O'Neill wouldn't say was entirely his fault.
"I think this is fascinating," the Kelownan noted, smiling at the happy figure of Sam, who nodded slowly.
Why were they always in agreement, and ganging up on him?
"How so?" Jack ventured to inquire, prepared for the overly thought- out explanation that would come from Jonas.
"Well think about it," Jonas began, gesturing to his surroundings with his hand. "This whole planet is filled with new life that we've never even seen." He laughed quietly, looking down at a grumbling mammal of some kind. "We can take samples or something. There has to be some sort of civilisation in the area."
Jack, once again, rolled his eyes, thankful for the low peak that shadowed them. "The MALP didn't show any signs of civilisation, Jonas."
"But the MALP didn't venture out this far," Jonas told him with a pleading smile.
The alien was after new information, as always, ready to grab hold of it, and memorise it thoroughly, as he normally did. The Kelownan had to have some sort of photographic memory to remember half the things he did manage to bring into everyday conversation; the weather; archaeology; nature; culture. There was always something new and exciting for him to take in.
"Well maybe we've just managed to find a world where nothing has reached our level of intelligence," Jack said to him with a certain edge of sarcasm, looking back over his shoulder at the stalking Teal'c.
The large Jaffa was watching something in the nearby tree line with interest.
"I wouldn't say these creatures aren't intelligent, Colonel," Jonas corrected, hopping over a small log with surprising spryness.
Jack raised an eyebrow. "Fine. I take it back. We're walking around in a forest of four-legged Einsteins."
Carter smiled.
Jonas frowned.
Jack knew exactly what he was thinking. 'Why does he always have to be so sarcastic?'
Everyone thought it from time to time, and always in reference to Colonel O'Neill.
"I have to agree with Jonas," Sam said then, her hand rested on her P- 90. Her fingers hovered nowhere near the trigger however.
Jack snapped his head in the direction of the woman, and he found himself suddenly unsurprised at the banding together of the 'Intelligent'.
Jonas and Sam were always agreeing on things... as were Teal'c and O'Neill. It was your typical brain versus brawn competition, and everyone was a contender. They all had their own little roles, their own opinions, and their own plan.
The thing was, they never all matched.
That didn't make much difference to O'Neill. He usually had the last word. He was in charge.
He smiled subtlely.
"If you think about it, there's a hell of a lot here to analyse, sir. These alien creatures, for example, could provide us with answers to biological mysteries we've been scratching our heads over for years."
"Jonas is an alien," Jack interrupted suddenly, pointing at the Kelownan for emphasis, "but you didn't insist on 'analysing' him when he showed up. What makes these guys any different?"
Carter sighed. "That's not the same."
"Why not?"
Jonas had taken a slight offence to the Colonel's comment, and he showed it in his dark green eyes, the eyes that usually betrayed what the young man was feeling. "Because I can talk for one thing."
"Well they can talk," O'Neill pointed out at the sound of a bird's cry, "we just can't understand them."
"Colonel," Carter began in her annoyed tone.
It was at this point that they realised the sound of the Jaffa's heavy footfall had ceased. They turned in unison to see the dark-skinned man standing stock still about ten feet back, his eyes fixed on a point in the shadowy trees to the side.
"Teal'c?"
The Jaffa did not respond, yet continued to stare.
"Hey, big guy, what's up?" O'Neill called, walking up to his friend's side.
Teal'c stirred from his trance, and looked the Colonel in the eye. "We were being observed, O'Neill."
Carter and Jonas took interest, and moved toward them.
"By what?" Jack queried, a small alarm ringing inside his head.
Teal'c glanced over at the two other figures nearby, and said, "It was merely a creature. A reasonably large creature at that."
"Did you get a good look at it?" Jonas wondered, tilting his head curiously. He scratched the back of his neck lightly, and looked over at the trees.
"I did not. I simply sensed its eyes watching us," Teal'c told them.
O'Neill shrugged. "Just some 'intelligent' life form intrigued by us bipeds I guess."
Teal'c and O'Neill headed off again on their little trek, followed closely by Jonas and Carter, who were looking around in search of intrigued creatures.
* * *
It had taken them a half hour to reach the top of the reasonably steep hill, and now they were sitting in a small clearing, snacking on a small lunch of sorts. Ration packs had been dug out from their packs, and water canteens were laid beside the members of SG-1, who were beginning to feel the heat of the midday sun above... well, suns.
Jonas chewed on a banana contently, and let his eyes wander around the little cleared section of the forest, which was striking him as the largest collection of trees he had ever seen. It seemed to stretch for miles around. They hadn't seen any signs of an exit from this place. Even the Stargate had been set up within the forest.
The mention of a creature the size that Teal'c had explained was intriguing... merely because they had not seen any evidence of such an animal existing.
He took a drink of water, and disposed of the banana peel in his bag, knowing that it would be a mistake later when he had to clean it out back at the SGC.
"Don't you find it weird that none of us have seen any signs of the creature Teal'c told us about?" he ventured to say aloud after deliberating it for a while inside his head.
Sam looked him in the eye, and shrugged. "Maybe it's nocturnal."
"Aren't nocturnal things supposed to come out at night?" O'Neill noted, removing his cap, and shaking his head, pouring some of his water over his hair.
"Indeed they are, O'Neill," Teal'c agreed.
"Well," Sam began anew, "then maybe it's just scared. Frightened of the possibility of predators our size. You probably intimidated it the most, Teal'c. No offence, but you are rather..."
"Shockingly large?" O'Neill offered, and looked to Teal'c in a 'no hard feelings' kind of way.
"I see," Teal'c muttered, standing rigidly at the side of the clearing, his dark eyes taking in every small detail the forest offered.
"You probably saw what has to be the top of the food chain then," Jonas pointed out, looking around curiously. "Every other animal I've seen is too small to pose any real threat. And they all seem to be herbivores. I haven't seen any signs of carnivorous activity since we've been here."
"Maybe it lives in a big spooky cave," O'Neill teased.
Jonas sighed, rubbing a hand over his eyes impatiently. "I haven't any caves either, Colonel. I'm just saying we should be careful. The creature Teal'c saw was probably just marking out its territory."
"Nice," O'Neill whispered sarcastically, grimacing.
"If we step into its territory, I don't see any reason why it wouldn't attack."
"Maybe we just look appetising for the big fella," the Colonel said, standing. "But enough chit chat, hey, kids? Whadda ya' say we get this show on the road again? I want to be back at the Stargate for nightfall."
Jonas sighed once again, and stood from his position on a rock, picking up his water canteen.
Sam followed him, and said quietly to him, "Don't let him get to you. He's just cranky."
"Yeah," Jonas agreed in an equal volume, "I noticed."
* * *
"It doesn't mean there was a civilisation here," Colonel O'Neill whined.
Jonas and Carter were stood before a large... well, to be blunt, rock. It was a rock. It only had the two so intrigued because this particular rock was covered from head to toe in symbols of some kind.
They looked like children's recess doodles... or cave drawings.
To say the least, O'Neill couldn't care less.
But he knew Jonas would want to take a good look at it... or try and decipher it.
"If there isn't, or wasn't, some sort of civilisation here, then where did this come from, Colonel?" Jonas asked loudly, removing his notebook from his pack. He was looking at the drawings intently, lost in his own little world of discovery.
O'Neill shrugged.
"Jonas is right, sir. Something had to have existed with the means to create this... this, relic." Carter turned to face him, her own cap shielding her blue eyes from the sun that still shone through with intensity. She had put it on shortly after heading out after their lunch stop. It had seemed to get hotter along the way.
"It's not necessarily a relic," O'Neill grumbled impatiently, eager to get back underway.
Jonas turned then, having sensed the boredom in the Colonel's voice, and said, "Why don't you and Teal'c go on ahead? If you find anything, you can radio me, or vice versa. I'd like to stay here and try to translate this... if I can. You can pick me up on the way back."
O'Neill sighed. "Fine. Carter, stay with Jonas."
"Yes, sir," she acknowledged with a nod.
Jonas smiled gratefully, and watched the two larger men pace off into the trees.
* * *
Jack walked ahead of Teal'c hearing his companion's footfalls on the less than evident path. If there had been an intelligent civilisation here, wouldn't there be a footpath through here or something? Something that led you far from tripping on roots, or animals.
"O'Neill, should we not be turning back if we are to return to Earth by nightfall?" Teal'c queried in his own stoic way, coming up beside the Colonel.
O'Neill turned his head to the Jaffa, and groaned, looking up at the sky. "Just a little while longer. To tell you the truth, Jonas is sorta driving me nuts lately. The longer I'm out of his way, the better. I don't wanna end up doing something I might regret."
"I see," Teal'c added quietly, taking up his place behind O'Neill once again, and looking about their surroundings quizzically.
Jack had no idea what it was about the Kelownan that was bugging him so much lately, but he figured it had something to with the fact that the alien was a lot smarter than he was... a hell of a lot smarter.
In fact, Dr. Fraiser had unintentionally proved that fact by declaring that one of the traits that made Jonas so unique was his ability to absorb knowledge a lot faster and easier than the average human being.
Great, so now I'm average, he thought to himself with a frown. He liked to think of himself as above average... but he supposed it wasn't up to him to decide who was and who wasn't.
Glancing back at his friend and teammate, O'Neill strode on warily, the thought of some giant carnivore more than a little daunting.
* * *
Jonas touched a hand gently to the stone, and let out a deep breath of amazement. Whatever this was, it was fascinating. The Colonel could have been right... maybe it was just a big rock with some random markings on it. But, to Jonas, it seemed as though someone had been here to do it, someone with some level of intelligence.
"How's it coming?" Sam asked, walking over from the edge of the small clearing, her P-90 swinging on its strap close to her body. She removed her cap, and let the slight breeze blow through her fluffy blonde hair.
Jonas looked her in the eye, and smiled, a little bemused. "Well, if you mean 'have I translated anything yet', then no I haven't." He shrugged. "Maybe the Colonel was right."
Sam sighed. "Just because he says something over and over, don't let him convince you that he's right. On the odd occasion, he is... but this isn't one of them. Trust me." She patted him on the shoulder. "You'll figure it out."
He nodded thankfully, and glanced down to his book again, and then to his watch. His eyes turned skyward, seeing the close approach of dusk, making him say, "Teal'c and the Colonel will be back soon."
Carter nodded in agreement, and then let her blue eyes wander to the side of the clearing. She raised her gun slightly, and without turning back, quietly said to Jonas, "Stay here."
"What is it?" he asked, closing the book, after jotting down some notes, and taking a few quick sketches. He quickly deposited the book inside his satchel, and let his hand hover near his firearm.
"Probably nothing," Sam mumbled, "but I thought I heard something."
Feeling a little spooked all of a sudden, especially at the possibility of unexpected company, Jonas let his hand rest gently on the handle of his gun. He did not pull it from the holster, only waited at the ready as Sam moved off into the woods.
He heard her slow movement within the trees, and looked on after her with a worried expression.
* * *
Sam Carter lowered her gun for a moment, clicking on her radio, and saying into it, "Colonel O'Neill, this is Major Carter, come in."
There was a click, and a quick response, "This is O'Neill."
"I think we have company here at the clearing," Sam continued, looking around. "But I can't find anything. I wasn't imagining it though, sir."
"Alright, we're on our way back. Hold your position," O'Neill instructed.
"Understood," she replied, "Carter out." She released the button on her radio, and moved to turn back, hearing a flutter from above.
Raising her P-90, and looking up, she saw the bright bird skitter from the tree overhead.
That was when she heard the cry from the clearing.
She whirled instantly, gun at the ready.
There it was again. She picked out the word help in amongst the panicked shouts, and the single gunshot.
"Jonas!"
She started back for the clearing at a dead run, jumping agilely over fallen branches and exposed roots, her heart racing in her chest.
"Jonas!" she called again, receiving no response.
She skidded into the clearing shortly after that, and her breath came in ragged bursts, even as she looked around wildly, her eyes scanning for her friend. There was no sign.
Well... almost.
It was then that Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c burst through the nearby tree line, startling the Major.
"We heard a shot," O'Neill explained.
Carter moved over to the place where she had left Jonas, and crouched down.
"Where's Jonas?" O'Neill asked, panting a little as he crossed the distance to stand over her, looking down on her from beneath his peaked cap.
She rubbed her damp fingers together, spreading the scarlet blood. She let her head hang.
"He's gone, sir."
Colonel Jack O'Neill barely managed to avoid crushing a small animal beneath his booted foot, and had tilted his cap beak out of his line of sight. He cocked his head at the animal, which scurried away in terror, and O'Neill watched it go, turning his head to his second in command.
She was looking up at the beautiful scenery above them, large leaves of luscious greens hung over their heads, and branches that were clearly homes to birds of some exotic variety. Major Samantha Carter wore the smile of an intrigued child, out in a new place for the first time, seeing everything anew with amazed curiousity.
Striding just behind her was the large form of the Jaffa Teal'c, who simply eyed the creatures with a mild interest. His eyes moved around searchingly, as if he expected something to leap out at them and attack. His hand hovered near to his zat gun. The large alien had no need to worry... there had been no signs of any sort of advanced form of life on this planet... well, anything like humans or the Jaffa.
Or the Kelownan.
Jonas Quinn brought up the rear, a loose satchel hanging over his shoulder, his eyes following the slightest movement, his ears catching the smallest sound. He was amazed by this strange new place, and it showed. The young alien had not experienced such wonders as the rest of SG-1... and that showed too. He was smiling broadly, looking up at a branch as a wildly coloured bird landed softly in a tree. It cawed softly, and looked down watchfully at the four travellers.
"Well, Carter," Jack began, taking a sip from his canteen, "so far all I've seen is bugs, furry... things, and birds."
Carter came up to walk beside him, her golden hair shining in the stream of sunlight that filtered through the trees. "Yes, sir?"
O'Neill rolled his eyes. How come no one ever understood his meanings? "So why are we here?"
Jonas jogged up to them then, overtaking Teal'c, and taking great care not to trip on anything. He was sometimes slightly awkward... something that O'Neill wouldn't say was entirely his fault.
"I think this is fascinating," the Kelownan noted, smiling at the happy figure of Sam, who nodded slowly.
Why were they always in agreement, and ganging up on him?
"How so?" Jack ventured to inquire, prepared for the overly thought- out explanation that would come from Jonas.
"Well think about it," Jonas began, gesturing to his surroundings with his hand. "This whole planet is filled with new life that we've never even seen." He laughed quietly, looking down at a grumbling mammal of some kind. "We can take samples or something. There has to be some sort of civilisation in the area."
Jack, once again, rolled his eyes, thankful for the low peak that shadowed them. "The MALP didn't show any signs of civilisation, Jonas."
"But the MALP didn't venture out this far," Jonas told him with a pleading smile.
The alien was after new information, as always, ready to grab hold of it, and memorise it thoroughly, as he normally did. The Kelownan had to have some sort of photographic memory to remember half the things he did manage to bring into everyday conversation; the weather; archaeology; nature; culture. There was always something new and exciting for him to take in.
"Well maybe we've just managed to find a world where nothing has reached our level of intelligence," Jack said to him with a certain edge of sarcasm, looking back over his shoulder at the stalking Teal'c.
The large Jaffa was watching something in the nearby tree line with interest.
"I wouldn't say these creatures aren't intelligent, Colonel," Jonas corrected, hopping over a small log with surprising spryness.
Jack raised an eyebrow. "Fine. I take it back. We're walking around in a forest of four-legged Einsteins."
Carter smiled.
Jonas frowned.
Jack knew exactly what he was thinking. 'Why does he always have to be so sarcastic?'
Everyone thought it from time to time, and always in reference to Colonel O'Neill.
"I have to agree with Jonas," Sam said then, her hand rested on her P- 90. Her fingers hovered nowhere near the trigger however.
Jack snapped his head in the direction of the woman, and he found himself suddenly unsurprised at the banding together of the 'Intelligent'.
Jonas and Sam were always agreeing on things... as were Teal'c and O'Neill. It was your typical brain versus brawn competition, and everyone was a contender. They all had their own little roles, their own opinions, and their own plan.
The thing was, they never all matched.
That didn't make much difference to O'Neill. He usually had the last word. He was in charge.
He smiled subtlely.
"If you think about it, there's a hell of a lot here to analyse, sir. These alien creatures, for example, could provide us with answers to biological mysteries we've been scratching our heads over for years."
"Jonas is an alien," Jack interrupted suddenly, pointing at the Kelownan for emphasis, "but you didn't insist on 'analysing' him when he showed up. What makes these guys any different?"
Carter sighed. "That's not the same."
"Why not?"
Jonas had taken a slight offence to the Colonel's comment, and he showed it in his dark green eyes, the eyes that usually betrayed what the young man was feeling. "Because I can talk for one thing."
"Well they can talk," O'Neill pointed out at the sound of a bird's cry, "we just can't understand them."
"Colonel," Carter began in her annoyed tone.
It was at this point that they realised the sound of the Jaffa's heavy footfall had ceased. They turned in unison to see the dark-skinned man standing stock still about ten feet back, his eyes fixed on a point in the shadowy trees to the side.
"Teal'c?"
The Jaffa did not respond, yet continued to stare.
"Hey, big guy, what's up?" O'Neill called, walking up to his friend's side.
Teal'c stirred from his trance, and looked the Colonel in the eye. "We were being observed, O'Neill."
Carter and Jonas took interest, and moved toward them.
"By what?" Jack queried, a small alarm ringing inside his head.
Teal'c glanced over at the two other figures nearby, and said, "It was merely a creature. A reasonably large creature at that."
"Did you get a good look at it?" Jonas wondered, tilting his head curiously. He scratched the back of his neck lightly, and looked over at the trees.
"I did not. I simply sensed its eyes watching us," Teal'c told them.
O'Neill shrugged. "Just some 'intelligent' life form intrigued by us bipeds I guess."
Teal'c and O'Neill headed off again on their little trek, followed closely by Jonas and Carter, who were looking around in search of intrigued creatures.
* * *
It had taken them a half hour to reach the top of the reasonably steep hill, and now they were sitting in a small clearing, snacking on a small lunch of sorts. Ration packs had been dug out from their packs, and water canteens were laid beside the members of SG-1, who were beginning to feel the heat of the midday sun above... well, suns.
Jonas chewed on a banana contently, and let his eyes wander around the little cleared section of the forest, which was striking him as the largest collection of trees he had ever seen. It seemed to stretch for miles around. They hadn't seen any signs of an exit from this place. Even the Stargate had been set up within the forest.
The mention of a creature the size that Teal'c had explained was intriguing... merely because they had not seen any evidence of such an animal existing.
He took a drink of water, and disposed of the banana peel in his bag, knowing that it would be a mistake later when he had to clean it out back at the SGC.
"Don't you find it weird that none of us have seen any signs of the creature Teal'c told us about?" he ventured to say aloud after deliberating it for a while inside his head.
Sam looked him in the eye, and shrugged. "Maybe it's nocturnal."
"Aren't nocturnal things supposed to come out at night?" O'Neill noted, removing his cap, and shaking his head, pouring some of his water over his hair.
"Indeed they are, O'Neill," Teal'c agreed.
"Well," Sam began anew, "then maybe it's just scared. Frightened of the possibility of predators our size. You probably intimidated it the most, Teal'c. No offence, but you are rather..."
"Shockingly large?" O'Neill offered, and looked to Teal'c in a 'no hard feelings' kind of way.
"I see," Teal'c muttered, standing rigidly at the side of the clearing, his dark eyes taking in every small detail the forest offered.
"You probably saw what has to be the top of the food chain then," Jonas pointed out, looking around curiously. "Every other animal I've seen is too small to pose any real threat. And they all seem to be herbivores. I haven't seen any signs of carnivorous activity since we've been here."
"Maybe it lives in a big spooky cave," O'Neill teased.
Jonas sighed, rubbing a hand over his eyes impatiently. "I haven't any caves either, Colonel. I'm just saying we should be careful. The creature Teal'c saw was probably just marking out its territory."
"Nice," O'Neill whispered sarcastically, grimacing.
"If we step into its territory, I don't see any reason why it wouldn't attack."
"Maybe we just look appetising for the big fella," the Colonel said, standing. "But enough chit chat, hey, kids? Whadda ya' say we get this show on the road again? I want to be back at the Stargate for nightfall."
Jonas sighed once again, and stood from his position on a rock, picking up his water canteen.
Sam followed him, and said quietly to him, "Don't let him get to you. He's just cranky."
"Yeah," Jonas agreed in an equal volume, "I noticed."
* * *
"It doesn't mean there was a civilisation here," Colonel O'Neill whined.
Jonas and Carter were stood before a large... well, to be blunt, rock. It was a rock. It only had the two so intrigued because this particular rock was covered from head to toe in symbols of some kind.
They looked like children's recess doodles... or cave drawings.
To say the least, O'Neill couldn't care less.
But he knew Jonas would want to take a good look at it... or try and decipher it.
"If there isn't, or wasn't, some sort of civilisation here, then where did this come from, Colonel?" Jonas asked loudly, removing his notebook from his pack. He was looking at the drawings intently, lost in his own little world of discovery.
O'Neill shrugged.
"Jonas is right, sir. Something had to have existed with the means to create this... this, relic." Carter turned to face him, her own cap shielding her blue eyes from the sun that still shone through with intensity. She had put it on shortly after heading out after their lunch stop. It had seemed to get hotter along the way.
"It's not necessarily a relic," O'Neill grumbled impatiently, eager to get back underway.
Jonas turned then, having sensed the boredom in the Colonel's voice, and said, "Why don't you and Teal'c go on ahead? If you find anything, you can radio me, or vice versa. I'd like to stay here and try to translate this... if I can. You can pick me up on the way back."
O'Neill sighed. "Fine. Carter, stay with Jonas."
"Yes, sir," she acknowledged with a nod.
Jonas smiled gratefully, and watched the two larger men pace off into the trees.
* * *
Jack walked ahead of Teal'c hearing his companion's footfalls on the less than evident path. If there had been an intelligent civilisation here, wouldn't there be a footpath through here or something? Something that led you far from tripping on roots, or animals.
"O'Neill, should we not be turning back if we are to return to Earth by nightfall?" Teal'c queried in his own stoic way, coming up beside the Colonel.
O'Neill turned his head to the Jaffa, and groaned, looking up at the sky. "Just a little while longer. To tell you the truth, Jonas is sorta driving me nuts lately. The longer I'm out of his way, the better. I don't wanna end up doing something I might regret."
"I see," Teal'c added quietly, taking up his place behind O'Neill once again, and looking about their surroundings quizzically.
Jack had no idea what it was about the Kelownan that was bugging him so much lately, but he figured it had something to with the fact that the alien was a lot smarter than he was... a hell of a lot smarter.
In fact, Dr. Fraiser had unintentionally proved that fact by declaring that one of the traits that made Jonas so unique was his ability to absorb knowledge a lot faster and easier than the average human being.
Great, so now I'm average, he thought to himself with a frown. He liked to think of himself as above average... but he supposed it wasn't up to him to decide who was and who wasn't.
Glancing back at his friend and teammate, O'Neill strode on warily, the thought of some giant carnivore more than a little daunting.
* * *
Jonas touched a hand gently to the stone, and let out a deep breath of amazement. Whatever this was, it was fascinating. The Colonel could have been right... maybe it was just a big rock with some random markings on it. But, to Jonas, it seemed as though someone had been here to do it, someone with some level of intelligence.
"How's it coming?" Sam asked, walking over from the edge of the small clearing, her P-90 swinging on its strap close to her body. She removed her cap, and let the slight breeze blow through her fluffy blonde hair.
Jonas looked her in the eye, and smiled, a little bemused. "Well, if you mean 'have I translated anything yet', then no I haven't." He shrugged. "Maybe the Colonel was right."
Sam sighed. "Just because he says something over and over, don't let him convince you that he's right. On the odd occasion, he is... but this isn't one of them. Trust me." She patted him on the shoulder. "You'll figure it out."
He nodded thankfully, and glanced down to his book again, and then to his watch. His eyes turned skyward, seeing the close approach of dusk, making him say, "Teal'c and the Colonel will be back soon."
Carter nodded in agreement, and then let her blue eyes wander to the side of the clearing. She raised her gun slightly, and without turning back, quietly said to Jonas, "Stay here."
"What is it?" he asked, closing the book, after jotting down some notes, and taking a few quick sketches. He quickly deposited the book inside his satchel, and let his hand hover near his firearm.
"Probably nothing," Sam mumbled, "but I thought I heard something."
Feeling a little spooked all of a sudden, especially at the possibility of unexpected company, Jonas let his hand rest gently on the handle of his gun. He did not pull it from the holster, only waited at the ready as Sam moved off into the woods.
He heard her slow movement within the trees, and looked on after her with a worried expression.
* * *
Sam Carter lowered her gun for a moment, clicking on her radio, and saying into it, "Colonel O'Neill, this is Major Carter, come in."
There was a click, and a quick response, "This is O'Neill."
"I think we have company here at the clearing," Sam continued, looking around. "But I can't find anything. I wasn't imagining it though, sir."
"Alright, we're on our way back. Hold your position," O'Neill instructed.
"Understood," she replied, "Carter out." She released the button on her radio, and moved to turn back, hearing a flutter from above.
Raising her P-90, and looking up, she saw the bright bird skitter from the tree overhead.
That was when she heard the cry from the clearing.
She whirled instantly, gun at the ready.
There it was again. She picked out the word help in amongst the panicked shouts, and the single gunshot.
"Jonas!"
She started back for the clearing at a dead run, jumping agilely over fallen branches and exposed roots, her heart racing in her chest.
"Jonas!" she called again, receiving no response.
She skidded into the clearing shortly after that, and her breath came in ragged bursts, even as she looked around wildly, her eyes scanning for her friend. There was no sign.
Well... almost.
It was then that Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c burst through the nearby tree line, startling the Major.
"We heard a shot," O'Neill explained.
Carter moved over to the place where she had left Jonas, and crouched down.
"Where's Jonas?" O'Neill asked, panting a little as he crossed the distance to stand over her, looking down on her from beneath his peaked cap.
She rubbed her damp fingers together, spreading the scarlet blood. She let her head hang.
"He's gone, sir."