"Colonel Mitchell!"

"Son of a bitch!" Cam bit down hard on his bottom lip and ran a hand across the right side of his chest. Bruised but not broken, he mused ruefully as other aches and pains started to make themselves known.

Coming to a stop beside the broken remains of the wooden podium, Teal'c knelt down next to Cam and tried to assess his injuries. "Are you injured, Colonel Mitchell?"

"Bruised ribs, couple of cuts. I'll survive. Where's Sam?"

"Attempting to provide assistance. She believes the quake originated in the ocean just off the peninsula."

"Wherever it was, it was close. What about Jackson and Vala?"

"Unknown."

Cam reached for his radio but stopped when he found it missing and part of his TAC vest ripped open. "I thought these things were made to last? Try yours."

"I have."

"Nothing?"

"I shall try again once you have been extricated from the remains of the podium."

Cam made a quick assessment of the damage. There had been five of them on the podium when the quake struck and brought it tumbling down. He could see Taphir off to his right, sprawled on the ground, but being tended to by one of his aides. And beside him were the three other delegates, all sitting up and brushing themselves down. The podium suffered the most amount of damage. Sturdy legs had supported a raised platform that could only be reached by a ladder. When the quake hit, Cam felt the podium shift beneath him, and then in an instant the whole structure shifted to the left and started its eventual and graceless slide to the ground. He remembered stumbling into the handrail and then on to the floor as the other delegates came tumbling towards him.

"Teal'c!"

Cam looked past Teal'c and saw Sam running up towards them. "We've got a ground rupture in the vicinity of the aqueduct!" She pulled up and braced her arms on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath. "I'm almost certain now the quake was offshore, which means there is a high probability this region could be hit by a tsunami. We need to get these people to higher ground."

"What about those in the city?"

"Too many of them and not enough of us. This whole region has been subjected to quakes and tsunamis for generations, so there's a good chance they've worked out some type of emergency plan."

"And the rupture?" Teal'c asked.

"I don't know for sure. The section near us is fairly shallow, but I managed to track it most of the way towards the peninsula with my field glasses before I lost it. It gets wider. I think this whole region must be sitting on an active fault line."

Sam stood up straight just as Taphir hobbled over with the assistance of his aide. He nodded to each of them in turn, and then said somberly, "I am pleased you are all well."

"Likewise," Cam said with a nod.

"Taphir, a ground rupture has opened up between the peninsula and here. It might be wise to start moving your people to higher ground."

"Colonel Carter, we have no facilities beyond the city. Development of any kind was forbidden while Lord Mot ruled this world. Our city and the mining facility to the west are all there is. We have no place to move."

"I'm worried the offshore quake might have triggered a tsunami."

"Tsunami?"

"A string of long waves that are generated by the displacement of large volumes of water. In this case as the direct result of an offshore earthquake."

"Ah! You mean a tidal crest? A wall of water."

"Close enough."

Taphir nodded knowingly. "We have encountered such a phenomenon in the past, but the city has been protected by the peninsula. I have sent a messenger to the city to appraise the situation there. We will know shortly if the tide has crested."

~oOo~

Vala jumped out of the boat and into three feet of water. "Just perfect, " she muttered to no one in particular because Daniel was asleep again. Her attempt at steering the boat away from the island had become a futile one, and with night only a few hours away she knew her best course of action was to make a camp back on the shore.

"You know, darling, this is nothing like those quaint little brochures Samantha picked up from the travel agent. Baa-haa-mas, I think she called the island. All cocktails and posh frocks. I hardly call traipsing through muddy water on an alien planet with an unconscious teammate the perfect vacation."

"Me either," came Daniel's slurred response from behind her.

"Oh, good. You're awake again. As you can see, I'm wading us ashore. Or, to be more precise, I'm risking my life by walking in water that contains who knows what type of deadly marine life. I could be taken like one of those teenagers in whatever movie Teal'c made us watch last week."

"Jaws?"

"Uh huh."

"You watched that crap?"

"One of us had to. And you fell asleep!"

"Bad horror movies have that effect on me. I wouldn't waste your time worrying about something grabbing you. Whatever marine life there was would have either been dumped on the island or tried swim to deeper water."

"Oh. So, I'm safe here but once we hit land I could be eaten by a land shark?"

"A what?"

"Well, I can only guess that if you toss a shark on the land it becomes-"

"Vala?"

"Yes, darling?"

"Did you try your radio?"

"You've already asked..." She looked quizzically at him, remembering he likely had a concussion. "Yes. Somewhere between hauling you to the beach and launching the Prometheus."

Daniel groaned. "Do I want to know?"

"Why I called this poor excuse for a worm-eaten boat the Prometheus?"

"Go on. It's not like I have a choice."

"No. Let's call this saving rights. Almost like bragging rights, only I get to explain to my captive audience of one why I had to steal this tiny boat and launch it in the direction of expected salvation. Similar situation, only in this case we have a single oar instead of a fully functioning hyperdrive."

"Expected salvation?" The boat rocked slightly as Daniel struggled to sit up. "You were going to trade the Prometheus for weapons grade naquadah!"

"Let's not quibble over the details, but instead reflect upon my ingenuity-"

"For stealing ships!"

"I was going to say for getting us out of trouble." Vala was jerked to a sudden halt as the hull of the boat scraped the sea bottom. "Well, that was a refreshing little walk."

TBC