Double-Dealing
A/N: And the ball keeps rolling… Did anyone catch Atlantis last night? (What an odd question… everyone should be watching it…) What was up with Simon's hair? Did he try to copy Weir's hair but failed miserably? Other than that, great episode! SG-1 had a great ep as well!
Disclaimer: SG-1 is not mine… blah blah blah… you know the rest!
Chapter Seven: Having A Blast!
Jack kept waving to the cheering people. Sam couldn't help but blow kisses to them. Daniel, without his glasses, kept smiling at the mass of blurry heads.
"Hey, where'd Bob go?" Jack said.
"He went down to greet the King and Queen," Sam replied, "There they are. I am amazed they can create such intricate carriages."
"All I can see is a ball of silver," Daniel muttered.
Jack smirked as he combed his fake beard, which became a kind of habit for him now.
"Sir, I think Balibob is signaling us to come down," Carter said.
Daniel and Jack turned from the crowd and looked at her.
"I have to keep in character," she said.
"Right…"
Daniel went to the door and tried to open it. It wouldn't budge for some reason. He tried again, but it didn't open.
"Daniel? Son? We have to go now," Jack said.
"Well, it's not opening, dad," Daniel retorted.
"Let me give it a try."
Jack pushed against the door, but nothing happened.
"Give me a hand here," Jack said.
Both began to ram at the door, but they had no effect on it.
"Sir, Daniel, I think we have a bigger problem here," Sam said.
They turned and saw Sam crouching over something.
"What—It's a bomb!" Daniel shouted as he saw what Sam was observing.
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Teal'c looked down from the balcony and saw Balibob's signal for them to go to the main stage.
"It is time to go," he said to the King, Queen, and Princess as he opened the door for them.
"Thank you," King Zaffaloft, with the Queen in hand, said as they passed him.
Teal'c nodded in respect. He waited for Princess Lyra to leave the balcony. She was gazing out at the crowd, searching for something—or someone. Finally, she turned to Teal'c.
"Oh, my apologies, good knight," she said as she walked out the door.
Suddenly, a hand seized her arm. She looked up at the one who grabbed her. She gasped. The man's face was masked, but his piercing blue eyes were clearly visible.
"Lyra," he said.
"I-I…" she began, struggling to get her words out.
"Princess Lyra!" Teal'c said as he approached the guard.
She turned to Teal'c and hastily replied, "I tripped and he was just helping me. Thank you, sir."
The guard released his grip on her arm and nodded. He then nodded at Teal'c and headed down the stairs.
"Are you sure you are alright, Princess?" Teal'c inquired.
She nodded and smiled.
"Let us go then," Teal'c said as he escorted her downstairs.
He noted that the guard who helped the Princess was nowhere to be seen.
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"What is taking them so long?" Balibob whispered to Teal'c, who had just arrived on the main stage with Princess Lyra.
"I do not know… However, did you see a guard come down the stairs before us?"
"A guard? Why would I see a guard? The only people I want to see down here are those people up there!" Balibob whispered louder.
Teal'c nodded and was about to issue a warning about the suspicious man before he was interrupted by Jack's voice. Teal'c took out the radio communicator.
"O'neill, is there a problem?"
"Well, if you call having a bomb about to blow you up a problem, then yes, there is a slight problem," Jack said.
"Tell him to come down here!" Balibob hissed, having apparently ignored the fact that they were being threatened by a bomb.
"Can you not open the door?" Teal'c asked.
"No, it seems to be jammed or locked. Get Bob to open the damned thing," Jack ordered.
"Very well," Teal'c replied.
"Carter'll try dismantling the bomb while we wait."
Teal'c put the communicator away and looked at Balibob expectantly.
"What?" he said.
"The key."
"Fine fine," Balibob said as he pulled the key from one of this many pockets.
"Is there something wrong?" King Zaffaloft asked.
"No, nothing is wrong," Balibob reassured.
"It is only that King Ful'ardi, Queen Kukinis, and Prince Narcassous are on the balcony trying to disarm a bomb," Teal'c said sternly.
King Zaffaloft nodded and thought about it for a moment.
"Then, we should not worry the crowd. The Queen, the Princess, and I will try our best to keep them calm while you do what you must do," he said.
"Good, because the crowd is getting restless," Balibob said.
The crowd was indeed getting restless. Their loud cheers began to turn into loud boos and screams. They even began throwing things like vegetables, dirty rags, and the like.
"Let us go," Teal'c said as he was about to turn to the stairs when he noticed someone in the crowd again.
It was the hooded man he saw earlier. He was moving through the crowd, looking up at them now and then. Teal'c had noticed something was strange about him… the scar! He had only barely saw it the last time when the hood fell off, but now, he was certain that this was the man who lead the Underground Merchants; he was Altair.
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Jack had done everything from ramming against the door to throwing Daniel against it. He now paced back and forth in front it, willing it to open.
"Sir," Teal'c said through the radio, "I believe I have found the suspect, but he is currently fleeing through the crowd."
Jack nodded, "Roger that. I guess you'll have to go after him."
"Understood. I have sent Balibob to unlock the door."
With that, Jack put his communicator back and sighed heavily.
"Now what?" Daniel asked.
"Well, that just means the only chance of us surviving is if Carter can unarm the bomb," Jack said.
"I'm glad you have such confidence in me sir," Sam said, not looking up from the explosive device.
"Always have."
"So, it shouldn't be a problem right Sam?" Daniel said, "The technological level of these people doesn't seem too advanced."
"It's simple enough. The only problem is that we don't have the right equipment to successfully stop it from going off."
"Does that thing have a timer?" Jack asked suddenly.
"It certainly does, sir, and it looks like we have a grand total of four whole minutes to do something about it," Sam replied.
"Well, let's get cracking, shall we?"
A/N: And cut! How will our lovable team get out of this one? What ridiculously cunning plan will Sam concoct? Will Teal'c find the suspect Altair? All this and more will be answered… gradually later! (You thought I was gonna say 'next time' weren't you? C'mon, admit it!)