STARGATE SG-1 29 Hall of the Two Truths (22 page)

Jack suddenly didn’t feel like asking any more questions, and thankfully the Goa’uld didn’t either. It wasn’t long before he recognized the slow steady breathing of Carter’s sleep.

At least there was no ventilator this time.

Because you trust her the most
.

Yeah. It was going to be one hell of a long night.

NEBTHET didn’t need Aset’s critical commentary to know, this time, that things had gone wrong. In retrospect, perhaps it had been a mistake to leave O’Neill his weapon. The analysis of his thoughts and memories had made them confident that he would trust Carter implicitly. It was why she had been selected as the avatar for his Observer. He had been incredibly difficult to read, though, and they had been short on time. Perhaps they should have delved deeper. They must have missed something.

Still, NebtHet had to give Tayet credit for improvisation. She effectively played into O’Neill’s assumption that Carter had been taken by a Goa’uld, right down to a convincing, if distasteful, display of glowing eyes, and had salvaged the situation. She had even been able to get them back on the right path eventually. Nevertheless, this most certainly was not the way they had expected O’Neill to behave.

The same could be said for Carter, although Anat had managed, in spite of everything, to still guide her to the Pit of Mutu. NebtHet hoped the injury to Anat’s face was not too severe.

The other two seemed to be proceeding as anticipated, although for how much longer, she could not now predict. SG-1 was far different than she had envisioned.

Her eyes drifted momentarily to the screen which displayed the chaapa’ai. It sat in its chamber, motionless and mute. She had not yet heard from Jenmar, and it troubled her. Upon further reflection, their last conversation had been disquieting, as if the trust that had existed between them had been tarnished in some way.

Perhaps she should have shared more of her plan with him. Jenmar truly understood the ideals to which the Djedu aspired, more so, even, than some who had followed her for millennia. No one was more deserving of the privilege of taking the final step to ascension. In retrospect, she might have entrusted him with more knowledge than she had. When he returned, she would rectify any misunderstanding on the matter.

The monitor in the bottom right corner flashed a live feed of O’Neill and Tayet walking at a steady pace across the Plain of Rosetjau. The colonel cradled his weapon like one might an infant, but at least it was no longer pointed directly at Tayet. It would be several hours still before they reached their destination, but NebtHet had a good feeling now. In spite of the temporary setbacks, this would work. Already she had learned so much by watching SG-1. She could only imagine what their next encounters would reveal.

A thrill of anticipation rippled through her.

A good feeling, indeed.

IF JACK never saw another blade of grass in his life, he’d be a happy man. The stuff was so damned high that he felt like a rat in a maze and definitely at a strategic disadvantage. Worse, he kept losing sight of Carter. Or Tayet. Or whoever the hell she was. The path had so many twists and turns, even when he stayed right on her six she was still out of sight more times than she wasn’t. He might have untied her hands, but he still didn’t trust her.

“How much longer until we’re out of this stuff?” He batted away a swaying stalk that had blown in his face. They’d been at this for what seemed like hours.

“I can’t say.”

Again with the careful syntax. Wonderful. “Is there anything you
can
say?”

“As with many endeavors, Colonel, there is as much to be gained in the effort as in the conclusion. The journey will be exactly as long as it needs to be.”

More with the Zen. Daniel would eat this stuff up. “So, we’re almost there, then?” For just a second he caught Carter’s smile, until he remembered that it wasn’t really hers. He had to quit doing that.

Silence was probably best. She wasn’t giving up any more information anyway. Besides, it was easier to remember it wasn’t Carter if the damn snake wasn’t using her voice.

Jack sensed the movement in the grass before he heard it. Carter — he couldn’t help himself, it was technically still her in there somewhere — must have too, because she stopped short, signaling for him to do the same. For a moment he thought maybe it was only the eerie whispering of the grasses brushing against each other in the breeze, but then he heard something else — something that wasn’t the random rustle of stem against stem.

The sound had been ever so soft, yet deliberate. Like the careful placement of a foot on grass. There was no mistaking it for the wind or anything else. He glanced at Carter to see if she’d heard it. By the look on her face, she had.

Jack crept closer to her so she could hear his whisper. “Any idea what kinds of things live around here? Are we talking cute little killer rabbits or harmless Giant Sloths?” He’d learned a long time ago that size really didn’t matter. At least not when it came to an enemy.

“This is Duat. It is possible for anything to exist.”

Okay. No help there. Whatever it was, there was no point in sticking around like sitting ducks.

“Let’s keep moving — but quietly.” Running might make whatever it was just that much more interested in them.

With every turn of the path, Jack half expected to find someone or something blocking their way, but it remained clear. After a while he tapped Carter’s arm and signaled her to stop. Straining his ears, the only thing he heard was the eerie whispering of the grasses. Maybe whatever it was had gotten bored, and moved off.

Then he heard it again. Carter did too. He could tell by the way her eyes widened in fear. So much for giving it the slip. There was no question now, the thing was stalking them.

He motioned for Carter to pick up the pace. There was no point in stealth now. Staying ahead of it was their only hope, and at that a slim one. The tall, reedy grass didn’t offer much in terms of a defensive position if and when it decided to attack.

As soon as they began to move faster, so did their pursuer. The sound of it running, off to one side and then switching to the other, mirrored their own jogging steps. If Jack had to guess, he’d say it was toying with them. As close as it was, it could have attacked any time. The fact that it hadn’t was almost as disturbing as how closely it was trailing them.

What the hell was it, anyway?

A blurred mass erupted from the brush and slammed into Carter before disappearing into the tall grass. He caught her as she stumbled toward him, but by the time she’d righted herself and he could bring his weapon up, the creature was long gone.

“You okay?”

She seemed flustered, but unharmed. “Yeah, thanks. But I really think —”

Jack knew it was behind him by the look on her face. Wheeling, he lay down a spray of bullets, sweeping the path behind him, but all he saw was the slightest movement of a tail as it disappeared into the grass.

“Go!” he shouted at Carter. “Go, go, go!”

She ran. He was right behind her. And the creature was right behind him. It jumped back and forth across the path from the shelter of the tall grass, obviously having given up on stealth mode. It moved too quickly for him to see clearly, and what he could see didn’t make any sense.

“Keep going!” Jack shouted as he stopped and turned to face it. He brought up his site and took aim. Any second —

It caught him from behind. Razors raked his back and spun him around, sending him sprawling on the ground. The air left his lungs as he hit. For a moment the world dimmed.

The impact had jarred his P90 from his hands and it took a few seconds for Jack to realize that he was lying there, defenseless. The next blow would come at any moment.

Except it didn’t. Which gave him just enough time to get to his feet and curl his finger around the trigger. Keeping his site on the spot where the creature had disappeared, Jack carefully walked backward along the path. No way was he giving that thing his back again.

He ached all over. And his back stung like hell. Even so, it could have been worse, and the fact that it wasn’t bugged him. Something that powerful should have taken him out the moment he had him on the ground. Just as it should have taken out Carter when it knocked her down. Something about it just didn’t fit.

He nearly backed into Carter as he rounded a curve. She was waiting for him.

“Colonel, your back —” she exclaimed in dismay. At least the stinging had died down a little. Except it was replaced by a warm trickle of something that he really hoped was sweat and not blood.

“It’s just a flesh wound,” he joked, grimly. “Whatever that thing is, it’s got a wicked set of claws. What is it, some kind of cat?”

“As I suspected, it is the Ammit.”

“The Ammit? What the hell is that?”

“She is the Devourer, the creature that waits for the outcome of the weighing of the heart and consumes the hearts of those who are not worthy. Without your heart, it is impossible to enter into the afterlife.”

The thing was more likely to send him
to
the afterlife than be waiting for him there. “So, not a cat, then.”

“It’s part lion, part hippopotamus, and part crocodile.” She was still looking at his back with concern.

“Cuddly,” Jack deadpanned.

She gave him one of Carter’s patented tolerant looks. He really wished she’d quit that.

“Let’s keep moving.” He wasn’t sure what he wanted to get away from more — the creature, or Carter. “That thing will be back any minute.”

She shook her head. “No. Listen. It’s gone.”

Carter was right. The only sound now was of the swaying grasses. Still, it seemed unlikely that it would just take off.

“May I see your back?”

Reluctantly, Jack turned. The burning sensation was tolerable — just.

“I don’t think it intended to kill you.” She took the canteen from him. Even though he knew what was coming, it still hurt like hell when she poured the water over the wound. “If it had, you wouldn’t have survived the attack.”

“My lucky day,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Actually, Colonel, it is.” She handed him back the canteen. “I believe the Ammit has decided you are worthy of continuing your journey to the final judgment. Not everyone who enters Duat makes it to the Hall of the Two Truths. This is actually a good thing.”

Right. Try telling that to his back.

“Maybe next time it could just drop off a nice fruit basket,” Jack grumbled. “Understatement goes a long way.”

There was nothing understated about the corpse they found twenty minutes later. To Jack’s great relief, it was neither Teal’c nor Daniel. Whoever the guy was, his heart was missing from his chest. It did not look as if it had been a painless death.

“The Ammit,” Carter confirmed, after examining the body.

“Yeah. I got that.”

She stood up and looked around. “We should go and let the carrion eaters have their meal.” A group of agitated crow-like birds were fussing in the grass nearby.

When Jack hesitated for a moment, she studied him. “
Do not concern yourself with burying him, Colonel.
” It was the first time the snake had spoken in a while. “
When a man loses his heart, there is little point in salvaging what’s left of him.
”

“Don’t tell the Tinman,” he muttered.

“
Tinman?
”

Carter would have gotten it. “Never mind.” He stepped around the body. “Let’s just get the hell out of here, okay?”

He pushed past her and back onto the trail, wanting nothing more than to put some distance between himself and the man with no heart.

THE SHADOWS had lengthened considerably by the time Daniel opened his eyes. For a moment he couldn’t grasp where he was, but then he spotted the old woman stirring on the ground a few feet away and it all came rushing back. So, not a nightmare after all.

It took longer than Daniel would have liked to prepare for the next leg of the journey. His muscles protested with every movement, even for something as simple as bending down to fill the canteen with water. The Goa’uld was awake and she watched him silently, accepting the food he offered her without comment or thanks. He didn’t know whether it was because she simply didn’t have the strength to speak or whether, having made her assessment of him once, she felt it unnecessary to add anything further. Either way, Daniel was glad she kept quiet. He didn’t feel much like talking himself.

When they were finished with what had passed for a meal, Daniel helped the old woman to her feet. She sagged immediately against him. Right. More carrying. At least it wasn’t as hot as it had been before, and the ground here was firm and easier to negotiate. Large boulders and jagged outcroppings punctuated the landscape while small, low-growing plants hugged the dusty ground. The place was more Mojave than Sahara, which at this point was about the best he could hope for.

Even though the terrain was more hospitable than before, the fact remained that the old woman was a dead weight. The brief rest hadn’t been exactly restorative and his muscles still trembled with fatigue as he lifted her. Exactly how much longer he could keep this up, Daniel didn’t know. Maybe they’d both end up as vulture food in the end.