Round 15, Hour 48
Mar. 27th, 2011 07:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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fic_rush_48This is your final hour.
Make it count.
Make it count.
And here, in hopes of inspiring others, is the only bit of writing I've managed all weekend:
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Tempus Pullus
“What did you say it’s supposed to be?”
“Well, according to the legend the elder was telling me, the ritual meal is supposed to grant us protection against the evil of the tempus pullus.”
“The what?”
“You don’t have to shout like that, Jack,” Daniel said patiently. “The Time Chicken.”
“The what?”
“The Time Chicken. Apparently it’s an important creature in their mythology. If proper measures aren’t taken, the locals believe that time itself will begin to disappear. Their storytelling tradition has dozens of stories about the dangers of the tempus pullus – there’s one that’s kind of like our Rip Van Winkle, where the careless protagonist loses his entire life during one short nap, and another in which an obsessive but easily distracted poet never actually finishes his great saga of the gods because he never gets around to it, and – ”
“That has to be the biggest bunch of crap yet,” Jack said vehemently. “Teal’c, have you ever heard anything like this before?”
“I have not.”
“Sir, it doesn’t sound all that dangerous. Okay, it sounds, um . . . ”
“Ridiculous?” suggested Daniel.
“Sure. That’s it. Ridiculous. But not dangerous.” The smells from the Place of Ritual were getting stronger. It was hard to concentrate. “Really, it won’t take that much to humour them.”
“Okay! Okay! We can re-set our watches, if it means that much. How much . . . ”
“Um, one local ‘hora’ works out to forty-eight minutes and three seconds, Earth time.”
“And – ” Daniel glanced at the rest of the team. He could see the agreement in their eyes. “About the other part of the ritual . . . ”
“What we’re trying to say, sir, is that maybe this would be a good time to lighten up on the rule about sticking to MREs. We really don’t want to offend the elders. I’m sure General Hammond will understand.”
Jack was still glowering, but the decision had been taken out of his hands. Without a word, Teal’c turned and strode away from them, towards the Place of Ritual. Daniel followed. Sam cocked her head to one side.
“Okay, fine, Carter.”
She beamed and hurried after the other two. Jack followed, trying to look gruff. It wasn’t easy. Particularly not when he was determined to get there ahead of Teal’c, if he could manage it without actually running. As if he’d let them get to the fried chicken first. Hah.
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Date: 2011-03-27 11:05 pm (UTC)I'll be sticking around this hour since my body isn't used to BST yet. Managed about 250 words this last hour.
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Date: 2011-03-27 11:05 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2011-03-27 11:11 pm (UTC)*penguins dance and wave glowsticks*
I may be done writing. We'll see. I didn't get anything done except a few
dozengames of Minesweeper last hour. It's definitely time for a martini icon, if not an actual martini. *ponders*no subject
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Date: 2011-03-27 11:27 pm (UTC)I appear to be finished with writing. I'll work on advertising what I did write instead.
And make that martini. :-)
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Date: 2011-03-27 11:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 11:34 pm (UTC)(reposted with appropriate icon)
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Date: 2011-03-27 11:36 pm (UTC)No-One Here But Us Chickens
“Doctor…? Miss…?” Benton bent down to peer into the dark, dank tunnel entrance, glowstick outstretched. All it illuminated, however, was an endless stretch of moss-covered brickwork with yet more darkness at the end of it.
He had no idea where the others were; all he knew was that that…thing had taken them by surprise. The Doctor had yelled something about running, there had been some shooting, and the next thing he knew he was wandering these abandoned underground passages, alone.
“Is there anyone there…?” he called, but the only reply he received was the echo of his own voice, fading into the distance.
And then he heard it; the chilling scrape of claw on stone…behind him! He froze for a second, scarcely daring to breathe, listening for the terrifying cry that he knew would haunt his dreams forever.
There it was: “Waaak-kluk-kluk-kluk-kluk-kluk…”
He spun, rifle at the ready, as the thing rushed at him again, all feathers and wattles and burning eyes. He fired, but the creature faded out the same way it had before, even before the bullets reached it. It disappeared completely, only for him to hear it reappear behind him, to feel its stinking hot breath on the back of his neck…
Benton reached for a grenade. It’d take him out too, in this narrow tunnel, but if this really was the end, he was going to take that overgrown feather duster with him…
Just as he inserted his finger into the metal pull-ring, an authoritative, patrician voice rang out and a figure rushed into the end of the tunnel: “Don’t be ridiculous, Sergeant!”
“Brigadier!”
“Who else would it be?” The Brigadier looked up at the hulking, clucking monstrosity that filled the tunnel and nodded confidently. “And I’ve found some allies.”
“The Doctor and Jo, sir?” Benton asked hopefully, backing away from the creature.
“No, Sergeant.” A host of small, black and white shapes waddled into the tunnel behind them, closing in on the Time Chicken. It tried to fade from view again, but something happened; the creature’s outline flickered a little, but it remained where it was. The Brigadier turned to the small black entities that had by now filled the tunnel: “Chap with the wings there!” They did not need telling twice, quickly surging to the attack. It was all over very quickly. Benton almost felt sorry for the monstrous chicken.
“Penguins, sir?” he asked in astonishment.
“Not just penguins, Sergeant,” replied the Brigadier. “As far as I can make out, they’re Quantum Ninja Penguins. The Doctor will be able to tell us all about them, I’m sure.”
“Yes, probably, sir,” Benton decided. He couldn’t in all honesty say it was the strangest thing he’d ever witnessed while serving with UNIT, but it was definitely up there.
END…?
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Date: 2011-03-28 02:31 am (UTC)Brergggahahhahahahahhahahah. <- roughly the sound I'm making as a result.
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Date: 2011-03-28 03:40 am (UTC)LMFAO!
♥ Benton
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Date: 2011-03-28 05:29 am (UTC)Poor Benton!
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Date: 2011-03-28 05:13 pm (UTC)Glad you liked it! :)
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