Part Five: Spirits


"And you are ok with this," Jack asked Ellie at the Gallup, New Mexico Amtrak station? "I can't take you on the military flight, but we can still get you on a plane from Albuquerque." He tried to assess her mood. Clearly, something had disturbed her on the drive down from Window Rock.

"I'll be fine, Jack. This is my choice. You have a meeting tomorrow. I'll meet you at the hotel." She smiled up at him and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Don't worry so much. I'm a big girl." Ellie turned to go to her platform. Jack grabbed her hand and pulled her in to him.

"You're ok, Ellie Thorsdaughter." He grinned and then cupped her face for the kiss. She returned it. This woman was starting to grow on him. Jack liked strong, intelligent, independent women. That description sure fit her. And she was still very sweet, especially to him. "Remember, the hotel is called, 'the Mirage.' And, it's already paid. I get done in the afternoon. Leave me a message for when I get in. I'll call on my way over."

"I got it, Jack. What are you going to do with the car?" She nodded over to the truck.

"I'll leave it at the airport. We can get it on the way back." He hesitated. "I didn't feel right asking you to drive it four hundred miles after what you just went through today. Don't worry about it. I'll get a car from Nellis and we'll leave it at Kirtland on the way home." She smiled at that idea. "Yes, I promised the Grand Canyon and the Grand Canyon will be delivered." He chuckled. It was time. Ellie picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder. "I can get that for you." She just shook her head and waved on her way off. Jack watched her get on. Then he turned to leave, but thought about it again. Then Jack followed her to the platform. She was gone. He shrugged and made his way back to the lot with a smile on his face. She had possibilities.


Monday morning at Nellis AF Base outside of Las Vegas, Jack picked over the items on the conference table in front of him. They represented the latest and greatest of the finds from the dig on Velona, P8S-423. Just because that great big and honkin' space gun was gone, didn't mean that other cool stuff wasn't left behind. Orlin's planet was a treasure trove of stuff beneath the surface. The surface was toast. But Daniel established that the civilization had been there for three thousand years before the catastrophe four hundred years ago. The scientists were working overtime to find what they could. And now, he was expected to have a look and endure meetings to prioritize the next level of effort. Being a colonel meant a certain amount of administrative work. Going off world was a perquisite these days. He was getting older. The knees and the back kept reassuring him of his fate. Soon enough he would have to take a desk job or retire.

"Sir, I don't think we can ignore the possibilities of..." Carter's colleague droned on and on. Jack wanted to cut to the chase. Sam saw his eyes glaze over. Here it comes she thought. Yep.

"Ack, look can't you folks put together a better rating list to make a decision? How are we going to solve this thing? We've got long-term and short-term problems. First, we have to decide what we want to achieve. We want to defend Earth. What capabilities do we need to achieve our goals? It seems to me that the stuff that can be used for weapons should get the priority. We need weapons and we need ships. Ships take longer. Then establish risk and criticality standards. The next time the Goa'uld come pounding on the Gate, we had better have something ready. So rate which of these are the riskiest to adapt and which are the most critical to have. Things that go boom seem to be critical to me. What can we use fastest and what after that? In other words, this thing," Jack picked up an object.

"If I have only so much money and the goal of the exercise is to prove feasibility, like building super-weapons, then I would concentrate on mission enabling technologies and elements. In addition, I want you to pick three that work well for Spec Ops missions. Is anything here that would make a big honkin' space gun.? Those enable my mission. If on the other hand, I need to build the whole thing not just demonstrate feasibility, like building spacecraft, then I would concentrate on the highest risk and criticality. And then there are cases in between. So, pick two more of these to backwards engineer for our spacecraft development program." Jack closed his folder. "Talk amongst yourselves. Let's take a break. Then tell me which ones you picked and why." He got up and walked out to make a call to the hotel. Everyone stood up as he left since the Colonel was the ranking officer.

"Wow, Sam, I don't think I have ever seen him so focused." Daniel poured a cup of coffee for Major Carter. "He was in rare form today. I wonder what's up?"

"Oh, he's like this in science meetings. The Colonel really knows how to manage these folks. That's why General Hammond sent him. Colonel O'Neill rides along until he has to focus everyone back to the real issues. Then he strikes. I've gotten used to it. There are just so many interesting avenues now and only so much money."

Major Carter turned to greet a colleague. Conversation flew around the possibilities for meeting the goals of short-term and longer-term development. Eventually, the scientists reached a consensus just as O'Neill returned. He didn't look happy. Teal'c saw the change immediately. Something was up.

"Sir, we have made our selections," Major Carter began. O'Neill was only half-listening. "Based on what you want, we think that in the next six months we could have two really good weapons ready for off world missions and be well on the way to a third which could also be used on a ship. With your approval, I shall have the reports finalized and sent on to General Hammond."

"Good job, Carter. Okay. I think we can call this meeting a success. Forward a plain text copy to me and to the base commander. I have to go." Colonel O'Neill shook hands with the lead officer at Area 51's research team and departed with Teal'c in tow.

"O'Neill, what has transpired?" The stoic Jaffa could see Jack's agitation.

"Probably nothing, I hope." Jack frowned. His personal life should remain personal. But this whole incident with Ellie being followed like that made him edgy. She had not checked-in to the hotel. And it was well past time for her to have arrived. "Listen, T, I don't want to let this get around, but a friend of mine might be missing. It's just a feeling. Nothing about what's been going on for the past few days has made any sense. Do me a favor. Stick around for another day. Is Daniel or Sam taking you to see the town?"

"Indeed. Daniel Jackson has promised to escort me to a place called the 'Strip.' There is a room where females do battle in a ring of Jell-O...naked." One eyebrow cocked up and a pleased look crossed his face.

"Oooooh, sweet." Jack grunted.

"Will you attend, O'Neill?"

"Um, no, not this time, T. But stay on the cell phones." Jack patted Teal'c's shoulder. "You have fun." He walked over to Sam.

"Sir, I hope you don't mind, but I am going to stay another day to review some more of these items." Carter saw something else bothered Jack. "Sir?"

"Carter, I just asked Teal'c and Daniel to stay for another day. Just be available on the cell phone, ok?" Jack saw her nod. "Fine. Have fun with your new toys, Carter." And he was out the door.


The Navajo, or the Dinee as they call themselves, have a saying that Coyote is always waiting out there, just out of sight. And Coyote is always hungry. The belagana tourist had taken the wrong vacation. She was not in harmony with her new life. But like a Navajo, she had survived. They said she was smart. A smart person should have some idea who was trying to kill her. And why. If she wasn't a fool, was she a liar?

The skinwalkers were after her. That was for sure. The old man knew about these unnatural beings. Officially, he was a hataalii, or ceremonial singer who cures. But, he knew the about the Navajo Wolves and their witchcraft. If there was good, and harmony, and beauty on the east side of reality, then there must be evil, chaos, and ugliness to the west. He knew the Teachings. He practiced both sides. He was a yenaldooshi or witch to those who knew.

In the Beginning, the Holy People (no, not gods) were sent by the Creator to share with the people the twelve teachings. This is called The Blessing Way or the way of Harmony/Balance/Beauty. The Navajo word is Hozho. The Holy People traveled on a sacred path called the Rainbow. The Holy People needed messengers to go back and forth between the different clans and gave these messengers certain skills. These skills included, the ability to run faster than the fastest deer and to change shape to whatever animal whose skin they were wearing at that time. They also had the ability to immobilize, which was very important. At that time there were unnatural beasts that roamed the countryside and killed any living thing they came across. These were a few of their skills.

When the Holy People gave these gifts to the messengers it was understood that they were bestowed temporarily. There would come a time that these gifts were to be returned. The Holy People gave the instructions to all the people and prepared to leave on the Rainbow Path. They called the messengers from the four directions. Most of them came when called. But some, in their selfishness, refused to return the gifts and hid from the Holy People. Now, this was the birth of the Naagloshii. This is the dark side of Dinee spirituality. These selfish ones learned new and dark ways to exploit their gifts. The Naagloshii found that they could appear as shadows and started using the skins of night animals to prowl around during the night. They found ways to curse people and cause great suffering and death. At night their eyes glowed. It was said if you see the face of a Naagloshii, it had to kill you. If you see one and know who it is, they will die. If you see them and you don't know them, they have to kill you to keep you from finding out who they are. They use a mixture that some call corpse powder which they blow into your face. Your tongue turns black. You go into convulsions and eventually die. They can also cause bones to go into your skin that have certain curses, which cause great pain and suffering, sometimes madness, and nearly always death unless treated. They will go to a graveyard and "sing" a body out of the grave. The Naagloshii are known to use ch'indii (evil spirits) in their ceremonies. The Dinee have learned ways to protect themselves against this evil and one has to be on guard, always.

This belagana woman was foolish. And now she would suffer. The old man held the human bone pellet just dug out of her arm. Shooting a corpse bone into someone would curse them. He blew corpse powder on her. Using corpse powder was the opposite of using pollen to give blessings. She would be a skinwalker soon enough, when the time was right. There was plenty of time. Sitting here in Chilchinbito Canyon country there was always time. A bone-jarring ride into the backcountry southeast of Kayenta was the only way in. Then someone would have to know how to navigate up the arroyo or dry creek through the junipers and sagebrush. Ridges framed the landscape. Going up the ridge meant heavy brush until the sheep trail showed the way to the bottom of the narrow wash. In that wash were the remains of the little rock slides. In this protected bottom, the winds had only smoothed the tracks of those who came to carry the woman away.


Sources:

Search:Wikipedia Area 51.

mapquestdotcom search on Kayenta, AZ for a map