"MajorCarter," Teal'c called out.
With the help of the Portland PD, they had gained full access to the offices of Hert Flowers. MajorCarter had led DetectiveRiley straight to the rooms on the top level while CaptainMurphy had her men search the rest of the offices for anything of any importance that would help them locate Nathan Redfield, now the goa'uld, Akh.
MajorCarter was stepping out of the vault with a stack of gold metal sheets precariously balanced in her good hand. She looked up at the jaffa's call and took a step towards him, but had to stop again to keep the metal sheets from falling. DetectiveRiley quickly relieved her of the burden. "Thanks. Make sure these get to Daniel," MajorCarter told him and then walked over to Teal'c. "Find something?"
"I believe I have." Teal'c handed her the folder of papers he had discovered at the desk. It was an inventory of one of the company's warehouses, but it didn't contain flowers. While no pictures were available to confirm his suspicion, the jaffa had helped DanielJackson with enough 'research projects' to know the items were ancient artifacts, the majority of them being Egyptian in origin, and one in particular that he was quite familiar with.
"Holy Hannah," MajorCarter murmured, scanning the list herself. "They must have been collecting these for several generations." Then she found what had caught the jaffa's attention. "This item here, it could easily be a ribbon device."
"I believe it is," Teal'c confidently stated.
Nodding, MajorCarter looked up and around the busy room. Seeing CaptainMurphy walk in, MajorCarter motioned her head for the Captain to join them.
"Find something?"
"There's a good chance they went to this warehouse," MajorCarter told her, showing her the address on the inventory list.
"Look, Major, we need a lot more to go on than just chance."
MajorCarter's lips thinned in anger. There were few times in which Teal'c had ever seen the Major so upset, and in a surprisingly hard voice, MajorCarter ordered, "Get some people over there to watch the perimeter until we can join them. But they're not to do anything, even if they see people leaving. It's best if your guys aren't seen at all if they can help it."
For one solid minute CaptainMurphy just glared back at the Major, then raising her radio she stepped away to put the order through.
MajorCarter took a rather shaky breath and Teal'c noticed a shiver run through the Major's body. He quickly took back the paper sheets so as not to reveal her weakness to anyone else. MajorCarter barely noticed, but moved towards one of the large windows to look outside in quiet reflection.
Teal'c joined her, silently determined to support her any way he could. Before they had been separated, O'Neill had ordered him to protect MajorCarter and DanielJackson, and he would; whether by physical protection or mental support, it did not matter. The jaffa knew how important image could be when one was in charge.
Teal'c scanned the room with a quick glance, before he also looked out the window in contemplation. DanielJackson had related to him the events that had occurred here, but the jaffa found it rather hard to believe. Yet there below them was the banner, now flapping loose in the wind, and a vehicle with its top damaged. Grudgingly, he supposed it could have happened.
"I still can't believe it," Sam whispered. She looked over at him with worry in her eyes. "Do you, Teal'c?"
Yet before he could respond, CaptainMurphy had returned, and giving him a rather odd look, questioned, "Teal'c? Kind of a strange last name isn't it, Murray?" She shook her head, a look of amusement briefly crossing her face. "Guess you're a lot like MacGyver in that sense."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow in question. "How do you mean?"
"You go by your first name, he goes by his last."
"Captain Murphy," MajorCarter queried, the look of curiosity returning to her tired eyes. "Do you happen to know MacGyver's first name?"
"Sure. It gets written down every time he gets himself arrested," Captain Murphy replied in an offhand manner, but the look in her eyes was guarded and suspicious.
"What is it?"
"If with all your fancy high connections you don't know, then I'm not about to tell you. I noticed you left off mentioning him to your superior back at the hospital." She didn't give the Major time to respond, but with a huff of disdain, asked, "Do you need anything else, or are you ready to check out this warehouse of yours?"
"No. Let's go."
When they arrived at the building, the patrols previously dispatched reported that it had been quiet the entire time they were there. "We may already be too late," Teal'c murmured with concern.
"Let's hope not." MajorCarter replied. Then, turning to CaptainMurphy, she instructed, "Have your men go in, but if there's any sign of people they're to use the gas grenades. We can figure out who's who afterwards." The Major had a grim enough expression on her face that CaptainMurphy didn't question the peculiar order.
Unfortunately, as Teal'c had feared, they were too late. As soon as the warehouse had been confirmed empty, they all went inside. There they found a large vehicle bent on its side with two wheels no longer connected as they should be. Several of the crates in the warehouse were also destroyed, leaving curious white bits of debris littered across the floor.
"Guess that means he found it," Sam wryly commented.
DetectiveRiley raised an eyebrow in question. "Found what?"
A look of pain creased MajorCarter's face as she realized she'd let something slip, but the jaffa thought it was rather obvious that something other than the standard tau'ri explosive devices had been used here. Turning calmly to the Detective, Teal'c replied, "A weapon of some magnitude."
"And you didn't think you should mention this before?" CaptainMurphy demanded.
For a second, the jaffa was worried MajorCarter was too tired to suitably deal with the accusation, but the anger from the Captain seemed to renew MajorCarter's strength. "There was only a slim chance the weapon was even here. I didn't want to bore you with details."
DetectiveRiley rocked back on his feet and Teal'c considered placing himself between the two angry women, but then MajorCarter's eyes lit up they way they often did right before she suggested a solution to a rather difficult problem.
"Check for any accident reports within the last 30 minutes."
There were three, one inside the city, and two from nearby counties. One of which was of a truck that had crashed into a fire hydrant.
"That's them," MajorCarter immediately determined.
"You think our guys might have fought back and crashed the car?" CaptainMurphy guessed.
Teal'c highly doubted that was what the Major was thinking, but she still replied with a small nod. Before they could asked anything else she crisply ordered, "Let's go, before we miss them again."
Watching MajorCarter move towards the warehouse doors, the jaffa politely inclined his head towards the others and quickly followed after her. Behind him, he heard DetectiveRiley ask with concern, "Think anyone will be hurt?"
"It's a strong possibility," CaptainMurphy replied, both of them following at Teal'c's heels. "Have an ambulance ready, just in case. Although knowing MacGyver he'll get himself deeper in trouble before he gets himself out of it again."
*****
MacGyver sneezed.
"Getting a cold?" Jack quietly asked.
Mac rubbed at his nose, but the itch was still there. "I hope not."
They sat on the curb, soaked through to the bone thanks to the water that was still erupting a good ten feet into the air. They were just outside the city limits now with only the occasional house lining the road. One had its lights on, but thankfully no one had come outside yet. Mac hoped it stayed that way, for their sake.
Four of the six florists stood in front of them, keeping careful watch while the other two were out looking around in the hopes of stealing another vehicle. After the second tire had popped off the delivery van back at the warehouse they'd given up on fixing it, but a pickup truck had been conveniently parked in the lot next door. Neither Jack nor Mac had been surprised when almost immediately the group located an extra set of keys under the tire wheel.
Also not astonishing, they hadn't passed a single soul on their way out of the city. Mac suspected that even if it was the middle of the day and they passed a hundred people, no one would have noticed them anyway. Things were just getting worse by the minute. Nearby, the streetlamp flickered and then went out, coating them in darkness. At the same time Mac thought he saw the curtains in the nearby house twitch. Whomever they'd woken when their truck spontaneously went out of control and crashed, had probably already called in the accident. It was still uncertain just what they might have seen, and with the light out now, their odd little throng would look like nothing more than a group of people by the curb waiting for help to arrive.
Just don't come out of the house to lend a hand, Mac silently pleaded. The last thing they needed was another innocent bystander getting hurt.
"Mac?"
Turning to his would-be twin, Mac raised an eyebrow in question. Jack just nodded off to Mac's right. Following his gaze, MacGyver watched Akh pace, growling out something fierce in a language he didn't recognize. Apparently the goa'uld didn't like being wet, either.
Then MacGyver looked around their little area. The florists were too nervous to be paying complete attention -all they needed was a distraction and they could probably get away. Then Jack's nudge pointed him again to the right. Looking once more where Jack was indicating, Mac suddenly noticed a section of the sidewalk beside him that looked like it was moving.
With the light out it was hard to see, but soon enough Mac realized what gave the sidewalk its strange illusion was actually a highly active colony of ants. Lifting an eyebrow he glanced at Jack and the man gave him a rather mischievous grin, one which Mac eagerly returned.
Leaning down so it looked like he was just resting on his knees, Mac unobtrusively began to pull out a shoe lace. Hidden in the dark, no one noticed him slip one end of the lace over the boot cuff of the guy standing nearest to him, while he planted the other right in the middle of the ants. It'd work better if he could have seasoned the lace somehow to entice the ants along it, but with luck, they'd explore the new path open to them anyway.
Exchanging a look with Jack they quietly watched as first one ant, than another, steadfastly made their way along the lace. Once one ant found it, the rest would follow, as was only natural for ants to do.
Now they just had to wait. Mac didn't think it'd take long, but a lot of it depended on whether or not the florist moved. "Hey, what are you doing?" A voice demanded and Mac cringed, quickly trying to make it seem as if he was retying his shoe.
After a second he retracted his hands and looked up at the suspicious man, feigning nervousness. "Nothing." They had all the florists' attentions now, but thankfully none of them had moved or disrupted the lace from it precarious position.
"Don't think about doing anything, demon, we're watching you," the man warned, although he looked a little uncertain with his gun.
"You think we're the demons?" Jack asked in surprise. He motioned a hand at Akh, exclaiming, "He's the one with the glowing eyes and inhuman voice!"
The goa'uld looked at them, but a rather confident smile graced the alien's lips. Mac noticed the purple pendant was glowing even brighter than before. The man who'd issued them the warning snapped back at Jack, "Don't feed us your lies, we're impervious to your tricks, demon."
Jack made a sound of disgust, and then Akh walked up to them, saying snidely, "They'll never believe you. They see and hear only what I wish them too." But then the goa'uld frowned. "Although I do not know why it did not work on Carter, or either of you."
"You drugged them?" a startled Mac questioned, yet somehow he felt it might have more to do with the piece of jewelry about the goa'uld's neck than any kind of intoxicating substance.
As if in confirmation of Mac's thoughts, Akh touched the glowing stone, saying with pride, "A gift from the Hereta."
Mac could only take the goa'uld's word at face value. He knew nothing of alien technology but he was sure Jack would know much more. Sure enough, the Colonel cautiously asked, "Work anything like nish'ta?"
Frowning again, the goa'uld replied, "It is not a drug, but exposure to nish'ta would explain your resilience."
Mac barely refrained from asking them what nish'ta was. Then, in the distance he heard the faint sound of a siren. It shut off a minute later, but out here, with everything so quiet, the sound had carried to them.
At the same time, the florists-turned-thieves pulled up in a new car. And just as the rest turned away, the man, who by this point should have had a growing portion of the ant colony up his pants, began to shake his leg in distracted annoyance. A second later his eyes went wide with sudden realization, and in a quick panic he started dancing around, frantically brushing at his leg as if he could brush the ants off through the cloth.
"Hey! What are you doing?" One of his companions yelled as the man carelessly bumped into them.
With one look at Jack, Mac quickly rose to his feet and the two of them made a dash for the darkened property lot behind them. MacGyver was a man of many talents with a reputation for being quick and nimble, both physically and mentally, so he was somewhat alarmed when only a few feet away, his feet seemed to catch on something and he tripped, falling flat on his face. Simultaneously, amid many shouts of confusion, bullets rang out over his head.
Mac saw Jack hit the ground a second after his own precarious decent, but not for any reasons of faulty footing. The Colonel cried out in pain, then loudly exclaimed, "For crying out loud! That's the third time!"
Jack was clutching his side, and while it was too dark to see, Mac just knew one of the bullets must have hit the Colonel, and most likely in the exact same spot as the still current wound. There was no use trying to get away now. Mac rolled over as rough hands grabbed his arms, pulling him up.
"Put them in the vehicle," Akh ordered. "I want the rest of you to wait here and delay the rest. They'll look like the police, but don't be fooled. You must delay them long enough for our escape if we're to prevent the end of the world."
"That's crazy!" Jack bit out. He looked like he wanted to say more, but most of his energy was going towards dealing with his freshly injured side.
Equally agitated, Mac yelled out in the hope of getting them to understand, "He's lying to you! The people coming really are cops. He's the demon!" They paid him no mind, as if they couldn't even hear him. Then Mac was rather ungracefully shoved into the back seat of the waiting car with Jack pushed in beside him.
Akh and one of the florists got in the front. The goa'uld turned around to face them, a superiorly smug smile on his face. "I told you, they hear and see only what I wish them to." Then his expression turned dangerous. "I do not need you both alive. Try to run again and I will kill one of you."
"As if you're not going to already," Jack grumbled, but then grunted, his face twisting with pain.
"Jack, just sit still," Mac quietly told him. They'd get another chance for escape. The question in MacGyver's mind was if it'd do any good.
*****
As Sam felt her head begin to drop she snapped it back up again. She was dreadfully tired and the short ride to the accident scene was enough to lull her body into a façade of relaxation. Blinking hard, she looked around to see where they were. It was dark here, with only a few houses spotting the edge of the road and most of the street lamps off. Sam frowned.
Detective Riley looked out his window also perplexed. "Do you think the power's out?"
They could see where the water from the broken fire hydrant was still gushing out over the wrecked truck. No one was in sight, but they were no less cautious as Riley pulled the car to a stop. Three other cars pulled up beside them and slowly everyone got out.
"Remember," Sam warned, "absolutely no gun fire."
Captain Murphy was quick to organize her men into searching the area, and Sam was just as grateful to let her. With Riley and Teal'c beside her, Sam dared to get wet to look inside the abandoned truck. A quick glance didn't show anything out of the ordinary and an examination of the back turned up empty. If there'd been any blood it'd have been washed away by the water, but at least there were no dead bodies left behind.
A sharp sound echoed through the air as a bullet impacted the bed of the truck an inch away from her hand. Sam turned sharply around to see where it had come from, but Teal'c and Riley were already pulling her to safety behind the bed of the truck but directly into the full spray of water.
Other shots echoed through the night while everyone took cover. Riley pulled out his gun preparing to shoot back, but Sam quickly pushed it down, exclaiming, "No! Not that way." Looking around, Sam could see several shadows that could be their shooters. "T- Murray, see if you can spot Nathan."
"I am not familiar with his new appearance," Teal'c informed her.
Riley looked at the jaffa in surprise. "You don't know what he looks like?"
"I do," Sam replied, internally sighing. She'd forgotten Teal'c wouldn't have seen Akh as Nathan. "Just look for a purple pendent," she told them, then repeated that over the radio.
As reports came back negative, Riley cautiously looked over the edge of their cover. He wiped the water from his eyes and squinting into the darkness told them, "Looks like there's four of them."
"Five," Teal'c corrected. "NathanRedfield is not among them."
Sam felt her hopes drop. If Akh wasn't here then neither was the Colonel or MacGyver. They'd missed them, again! Internally, Sam shook herself; she needed to focus on handling this situation first! "Lieutenant Kamino," she questioned into the radio, "what's your status?"
"My men are falling into position now, but our perps look ready to move," Kamino replied.
Then Murphy questioned, "Would it be safe for us to shoot over their heads? Keep them distracted?"
If the goa'uld wasn't here then they were in no danger of him sending their own bullets back at them, but Sam wasn't going to tell them that. She wasn't exactly keen on killing Nathan's family if it could be avoided. "Do it."
They couldn't see much with the spray of water constantly in their faces, but they could hear everything as it happened. On their way here Captain Murphy had suggested that the SWAT team should hold back, her idea was paying off now as the team secured the shooters without a single injury to either side.
When the all clear came over the radio, Sam pushed herself to her feet. For a second her legs wobbled and she thought she might collapse, but Teal'c's strong hand had her under the arm, unobtrusively lending his support. Sam smiled at him in gratitude, and then as soon as she was sure her body wouldn't quit on her, she made her way over to the line up of prisoners.
"Where are they?" Sam demanded.
The police had them sitting on a curb with their hands handcuffed behind their backs. Now that the situation was over, most of them seemed quite afraid; one was even shaking his leg with a nervous twitch, but another boldly retorted, "We will never tell you, no matter what you do to us!"
For a long moment Sam just stared down at them, anger and frustration giving her the fuel she needed. "I know Nathan is the head of your family, but he's not himself right now."
"I don't care what you say to me. It is you who took the Key! It is you who is trying to end the world."
Then Teal'c stepped up to the man, his tall looming presence causing the florist to shrink back in fear. "If fact, we are not. If NathanRedfield is allowed to continue on his current path, it is he who will prove this world's destruction. You must tell us where he has gone."
But no matter how afraid they were, their lips were sealed. Sam wasn't even sure it was entirely of their own volition. The thought nagged at her tired mind, but she impatiently pushed it away.
Behind her Murphy sharply asked, "End of the world? What the hell are they talking about?"
Carter turned to the woman, meeting a mix of expressions from the surrounding cops. "They've been brain washed," she told them, forcing her mind to come up with a plausible explanation, or so she hoped. "It's a side effect of the device. We're not going to get anything from them."
Murphy's eyes narrowed in suspicion, but the woman didn't push the issue, asking instead, "So where do we go from here?"
Sam wasn't sure, but she didn't want to admit that. "They couldn't have gotten too far. It's probable they're heading away from the city. A few road blocks should turn up something."
*****
Jack stared out the windshield, watching as all the streetlights flickered off further and further ahead of them down the road. If that was any indication, things were getting worse. He twisted in his seat to look out the back window. The area was silent and dark except at the end of the street where the lights were coming back on, now a safe distance from their position.
Worried, he met Mac's gaze, and the other man nodded in silent agreement. "It's happening faster than last time," MacGyver whispered.
Sweet, Jack internally grumbled. On the bright side, the wound in his side had already sealed up. If good ol' Doc Frasier saw him now she'd have a hissy fit, but other than the growing headache, there was no indication that his body had lost too much blood from the events of the last couple days. It was the only redeeming quality of their particular curse.
They were unlucky enough to get hurt, and lucky enough to recover quickly. Jack sighed, but then had to clench his teeth in pain as the car came to a sudden stop. The engine spit out several ear piercing squeals and even in the dark they could see the smoke rising from under the hood.
"This is unreal!" their driver exclaimed.
"Get out," the goa'uld ordered. Even though he now wore the ribbon device, Akh was still using the gun, and he motioned it at them as he stepped out of the car. Outside, everything looked vacant with only the edges of the horizon glowing from distant lights. Jack guessed the power was out for a couple of square miles around them, except on one side where a string of blue lights cut through the night.
"What is that?" The florist questioned.
Akh smiled. "Our destination."
Jack groaned. Of course the car would break down right next to an airport. The goa'uld made short work of the chain fence blocking their path then sent the florist on ahead to see what was there.
The airport wasn't big, only one runway and five hangers off to the side. A small tower sat in the near distance, its windows darkened to be able to see outside and a red light on top to warn aircraft of the tower's position. At one end of the runway was what looked like someone's private jet, waiting to take off.
Walking back, the florist told them, "There's a lot of people down there. I don't think we could get a plane without being noticed."
The goa'uld turned to Jack and Mac, a thoughtful look on his face. "Which of you is MacGyver?"
"I am," Mac replied.
"Can you fly a plane?"
Mac hesitated, so Jack resolutely stated, "I can. I'm Colonel Jack O'Neill, Air Force."
The goa'uld frowned at him. "Is it the Air Force that controls the Chaapa'ai?"
"Yes, and you're not going to get anywhere near it. Even if you tried using us as hostages, it wouldn't do you any good," Jack bluntly told him.
To his surprise, Akh didn't seem surprised or even concerned by Jack's words. He turned back to his subordinate, telling him, "We need a diversion."
Then all of a sudden all the lights everywhere went out. While they didn't have a good view of the surrounding city, there was a noticeable difference as the night went from the grey black of a city sky, to the deep darkness that usually only occurs in the total absence of civilization. Even the tower lights were completely shut off. Only the blue lights of the runway remained on.
Jack felt Mac's hand on his arm. It was too dark to see anything more than shadows which meant it was also a good chance to try and escape. He heard the goa'uld angrily demand, "Is this your doing?" Somehow Jack had a feeling Akh wasn't talking to the florist. A purple glow marked where the goa'uld stood. Mac was tugging Jack in the opposite direction. He had just turned away when the wave of energy knocked them to the ground. His side protested loudly, and with an audible groan, Jack rolled over to watch the purple glow approach, and then brighten till all three of them were bathed in its light.
"I warned you before," Akh angrily growled out, raising the hand with the ribbon device and aiming it at Mac.
Jack hastily got up, ready to launch himself at the goa'uld in a full tackle, but before he could, the ground started to violently shake, forcing everyone down.
Earthquakes don't make a lot of sound, especially if you're not around anything that can easily fall or crash, but the constant jerking motion and disorientation was enough to put a ringing in the Colonel's ears. As the land settled back into place, Jack shook off the lightheadedness, and quickly got back to his feet.
He couldn't risk Akh getting a hit off with the ribbon device. Yet as soon as his hands touched the goa'uld, he knew it was a mistake. The purple pendent burst to life and energy like raw lightning surged through his body. Falling back in pain he clutched his hands protectively to his chest. The sensation dissipated quickly yet when Jack looked at his hands he fully expected to find them burnt. It was hard to tell in the purple light, but his fingers still moved, grudgingly, and they looked whole.
The goa'uld laughed, getting to his feet as he arrogantly looked down at Jack. "For all you might know about the Chaapa'ai, you obviously know very little about the power of the Hereta."
Jack felt Mac crouch down next him, worry practically radiating from the man. "I'm okay," Jack murmured, then with Mac's help he got up again. Jack turned hard eyes on the goa'uld. "So just what is it you intend to do?"
Akh's face darkened. "As pathetic as your species is, it must have been chance alone that you were able to kill the Hereta. Regardless, the message to my brother was sent. He will come, and we will go to meet him, and then we will watch the destruction of your planet."
"Well that sounds pleasant," Jack sarcastically grumbled.
With a perplexed expression, Mac repeated, "We will go to meet him?"
"In my ship. From what this host knows, I do not believe it has been disturbed as yet."
"Oh."
"One question," Jack stated, asking boldly, "What was the whole point of grabbing us? Why didn't you just go straight there? You'd have saved yourself a whole lot of trouble."
Akh gave him a rather nasty looked, and then replied, "Too much has changed. I would never have believed Ra would betray us, nor that the Shaya would so easily abandon their rightful rulers. If I am to claim any position of power then I will need information. I had presumed to find Major Carter with MacGyver. She obviously knows much of the happenings of the goa'uld. I assume you do as well."
"So what are we talking about here, the standard torture for information deal, or do you plan on switching hosts when you're done with that one? Because I've got to tell you, I'm not really partial-"
"Jack," Mac interrupted him, and then calmly told the goa'uld, "We'll get you to your ship, and tell you anything you want to know on the condition that you leave Earth alone."
Jack immediately opened his mouth to negate Mac's proposition, but catching the man's eye snapped it shut again in sudden understanding. There was absolutely no way Jack would ever help a goa'uld, he'd rather die first, but it wouldn't come to that, especially if the goa'uld intended them to fly to this hidden ship of his.
"You will tell me what I wish to know whether you want to or not," the goa'uld loftily retorted.
"I don't think so!" Jack exclaimed. "Either you promise to leave Earth alone, or we're not going any further. There are hundreds of goa'uld out there and you're so out of the loop you'd have no clue who to piss off or who not to. So you can kill us, big deal. I'd gladly give my life to save my planet."
"That goes for me as well," Mac added.
Regarding them with open mistrust, Akh finally replied, "Then you had best ensure my safety or my brother will destroy this planet."
Jack grimaced. "Fine."
Their little group took but a single collective step towards the lit runway before they realized something was wrong. "What happened to the other guy?" Mac curiously questioned, looking around.
They found him several feet away lying prostrate on the ground, his neck neatly broken on a sharp rock. "It must have happened in the earthquake," Jack commented. Akh didn't give the fallen florist much attention after that but prodded them onward. The man's death wasn't the only after effect of the earthquake. Jack could see uneven patches in the ground where the land had begun to rip from the quake's force. There was also a stir of movement as people with flashlights gathered outside the control tower.
The jet had been abandoned where it stood at the end of the runway. Perfect for their needs. As the three of them settled into the plane's cockpit Jack began to start it up.
Then Mac leaned over and quietly asked, "You can fly this, right?"
"Oh ya," Jack replied with a smirk. "I can fly anything. I've even flown a few spaceships from time to time."
MacGyver thinly smiled. "That's oddly comforting."
All Jack needed was the strip of blue lights to take off, and not unpredictably, they were the only thing on. He could see people running towards them, waving their arms trying to signal him to stop. Likewise, his headset came to life with some woman's voice frantically trying to tell him he wasn't clear to take off.
Not bothering to respond, Jack pushed the throttle and put the plane into motion. As they lifted off the ground Jack could finally see just how much of the city had lost power. Then suddenly a looming shadow descended almost directly on top of them. Several signals went off in the cockpit and the jet plane shook like it was about to come apart. Jack put it into a dive, narrowly missing a much bigger plane as it descended down towards the city.
Suddenly Jack knew just why the traffic controller had sounded so panicked. The air was clogged with planes, and from the looks of things only two airstrips were actually lit, their little one, and a much larger one not too far away.
"That was close," MacGyver murmured. Jack glanced over at the man to see him clutching his armrests with white knuckles, recalling with amusement Mac's odd fear of heights.
Jack just grinned. "Trust me. That was nothing." He looked behind him at the goa'uld, but Akh seemed rather undisturbed by their near miss. Feeling his disposition sour again, Jack coldly asked him, "So, where to?"
"Arizona."
******
Post Story Author's Note: Originally I had the next chapter set in California, but considering the direction my life has turned, this seemed more appropriate. ;)