Not Quite the Lord of the Rings
part three, First Contact
The short hairs on the back of Jack O'Neill's neck were standing up; it took every ounce of his military discipline not to turn around and look back. They were being followed, just as Teal'c had suspected. Whoever or whatever it was, it was damned stealthy.
At the first turning in their survey, O'Neill called a halt. The four of them shed their packs and stretched. The Elf that had been so carefully following them squatted down in the bushes, unperceived though their eyes passed over her. O'Neill wandered away to the right, speaking something about 'attending to the call'. Teal'c moved off in the other direction as if to investigate a thicket of young trees. Morlothiel was about to follow O'Neill when the activity of the last two members of the team attracted her attention.
"What is that, Sam?" Daniel knelt down on the grass, peering intently at something on the ground.
Sam leaned over to take a look, then hunkered down next to him. "I've never seen anything like it." She extended her hand as if to touch it, but Daniel grabbed her arm and held her.
"No! What if it's dangerous?"
"It doesn't look dangerous. It's pretty." Sam leaned closer to see better. Her head completely blocked Morlothiel's view of the object of interest.
"Too pretty, if you ask me," Daniel answered, pulling Sam back.
Morlothiel's interest was peaking. She craned her neck, trying to see around the crouching figures of Daniel and Sam. What could have caught their attention so? But try as she might, she couldn't see anything.
Daniel let go of Sam's arm when she threatened to break off his fingers. She reached down to pick something up, then suddenly let out a cry of surprise and pain.
"Sam! Oh, my god..." Daniel threw himself down beside where the woman had fallen. Alarmed, Morlothiel stood up, drawing her sword. Whatever it was, she could not leave these two to be injured while their warriors were away. She came out of the swath of grasses where she had been hiding, prepared to fight.
There came no more warning than the sound of a shadow, and suddenly the Elf was surrounded. Teal'c and O'Neill were behind her and to each side, and Daniel and Sam were now standing in front of her. All except Daniel held an intimidating object in their hands. Morlothiel froze.
Large grey eyes fixed upon O'Neill, and the tip of the gleaming sword dropped toward the ground. In a clear voice, Morlothiel spoke, "To cause harm to your companions is not my intention."
"I know. We don't want to hurt you, either." The black circle of the barrel of O'Neill's P90 moved slightly as he redirected the weapon. "What say we get introduced? I'm Colonel Jack O'Neill. That's Teal'c; Major Carter; Doctor Jackson."
"Daniel," said Daniel, indicating himself with his hands. "We are peaceful explorers."
Morlothiel said nothing and did not move. She held O'Neill with her gaze.
O'Neill stared back. "What?" he said finally, when no one had moved for a full minute.
"You speak for your people, but I cannot judge the truth of your words." She turned her eyes toward Carter and Daniel. "You have tricked me with falsehood into revealing myself. These are the actions of the Enemy. Yet you do not behave as His creatures do, nor have you attempted to slay me. Therefore, I will wait."
O'Neill let his P90 hang from its harness and removed his field goggles. "Look, I'm sorry we tricked you. We've had dealings with some nasty invisible creatures before, and we have to be careful."
Brown eyes. Morlothiel met them with her own. She sheathed her sword with a fluid movement, then offered them an elaborate bow. "I can see now that we are not enemies. I will therefore freely offer my names, and trust that you will use no sorcery with them." O'Neill's eyebrows shot up at this, but he said nothing. "I was called Morlothiel in the North that is now sunk beneath the sea, and DÃnfaloth in the Uttermost West. You may address me as you wish."
O'Neill scrunched up his brow. "You can call me Jack. Can I call you 'Morry'? I'm kinda bad with long names..."
Morlothiel gave a small smile. "For short speech, you may call me 'Loth."
"Loth?" O'Neill tasted the name experimentally.
"Yes. The meaning of that word is far more complimentary than your first choice."
"Oh." To the surprise of his companions, a visible flush reddened O'Neill's neck. He cast a glance toward Daniel and said out of the corner of his mouth, "Did I just call her something bad?"
"I... don't know, Jack," Daniel answered, who was wracking his memory for a reference. "Not in any of the languages I know, anyway."
