On the Run

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

Chapter 3

Daniel's goal was to make it to the Gate without running into any of the raiders. He figured that it would take him a couple of hours at the most and would be able to bring back a rescue squad to get Abbott out of there.

Of course the laws of the Universe said not so fast.

About half a klick from where he had left the surviving members of SG-7, he ran into one of the attackers (he assumed that it was one of the raiders, since he looked pissed and was armed for war, though he did not have a horse with him).

The native man saw Daniel and let out a war cry before rushing at him, screaming, hoping to intimidate the off-worlder.

It was a bit off-putting, having another human run at him with a sword in hand. However, Daniel had been around the block a few times and gotten the t-shirts to prove it. He wasn't about to be intimidated by an alien who reminded him of Genghis Khan.

Daniel quietly observed them man rushing blindly towards him, refusing to move his position. When the man got within maybe fifteen feet, shot him once with his Zat, that he held loosely in his hand, knocking the man out.

"Indiana Jones would approve," Daniel observed, smirking a little. He had always wanted to do that. The only bad thing was that no one else was around to appreciate the moment with him.

Moving swiftly, he secured his attacker, using a pair of zip ties on his arms and legs. He then ripped off a square of the man's tunic, with the help of his knife, and stuffed it in the guy's mouth when he woke up. He noted that on his attacker there was a brand, not a tattoo, on the guy's neck. Thinking hard, he recognized the characters as "si wang," which meant Death, showing their allegiance to Yen-Lo-Wang, the god of death, the caretaker of the fifth floor of Hell in Chinese mythology.

Lovely.

He picked up the man's sword, hefting it, noting its weight and balance. The sword, a Dao, with a single sharp edge on its slightly curved blade and a wooden handle wrapped in heavy canvas, wasn't bad, but it wasn't overly elegant. With a few practice swipes, he liked the feel of the sword. It was well balanced and functional. He appreciated its simplicity in design, functionality over ornamentation.

Clearly it was primarily a weapon to be used and not a show piece. While he didn't especially like curved blades, he knew how to use one. It would do, for now.

He did not want to have to use a sword against a mortal. In fact he had made a vow, many years before, that he would not use a sword as a weapon against a non-Immortal and kill the person. While he recognized that in the very near future that vow would probably get broken, it was his hope that he wouldn't have to. However, as the Universe had pointed out many time, he didn't always get what he wanted.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Daniel ran through the trees, doing his very best to remain as quiet as possible, his sword out and ready in case he was suddenly confronted by the enemy.

The forest he was in looked like any typical forest on Earth. Lots of trees, close together, occasionally broken up by a possible deer run, or whatever was the local equivalent. The floor was littered with old, dead leaves and bushes, complete with thorns, possibly designed by Satan himself. He had accidentally stepped in one and the sharp barbs tore through his pants. They burned more than a normal thorn would and his leg went slightly numb; he figured that they were possibly poisonous, but not enough that his immortal healing couldn't keep up with it.

He knew he had to get to the Stargate as quickly as possible for Abbott's sake. Daniel figured that they had run at least a mile into the forest, away from the village, which was about two miles from the Gate. If he remembered his basic geometry from years ago, a2 + b2 = c2, therefore, the Gate was approximately 2.25 miles from Abbott's and Lopez's position.

Now if he wasn't concerned about possibly enemies lurking behind every bush and tree, he could have made the run in less than twenty minutes (his last PT test had him doing two miles in 15:06). However, this wasn't an easy run around a track. This was across alien terrain with hostiles about and he didn't want to get caught.

As quietly as he could, he ran among the trees, hating every time his foot found a twig and snapped it or rustled the leaves, creating way more sound than he wanted. His stray sounds seemed to be magnified, alerting anyone of his presence.

He went on for a few more minutes, mindful that he had to hurry.

A blood-curdling scream caught him by surprise. The next thing he knew, a body hit him hard, knocking him to the ground. Somehow he managed to keep his grip on his sword, but he lost his Zat in the chaos.

A/N: So what do you think? Crap or not? Feel free to hit the shiny review button and let me know. Just please, if you don't like it or feel it should be improved somehow, let your criticisms be constructive and not flames.