A/N: This story sort of came through a conversation with my guy. He provided me with an idea that I am now relaying out on paper…sort of. Remember R&R – can't fix what you don't know is broken right?

Update: Chapter 1&2 are beta-ed and have been added to. Much thanks to my beta Annie for finding mistakes I didn't even know were there.

Title: Bound To Happen

Author: Lady Valmar

Genre: General/Canon, Suspense/Mystery, Friendship.

Rating: T-M (15+)

Pairings: None

Beta: Annie

Archive: SGAHC, FF, Jumper Bay, ancientarchives

Not yet archived: gateworld, Atlantica, Helio: Atlantis

Inspiration: A dream I had and the game Primal

Summary: Mysterious blipping energy readings lead to Sheppard being strapped to an altar, his team being held prisoner by the unground natives, and the introduction to an enemy to contend with.

Key episode spoilers (that I know of): S1. S2 - Intruder, Tower, Instinct, Conversion, and Michael. Some allusion to Season 3, though few.

Warning: Whumping – The entire Team (cause I just love that). Dark in some places, funny in others. One more thing, Sheppard and Rodney's language once in awhile is foul.

Disclaimer: I don't own Stargate Atlantis. : ( The only thing I can proclaim to own is just this story and any original themes, concepts, ideas or characters in it. So please refrain from infringing or stealing my stuff.

… .LV. …

Bound To Happen

By Lady Valmar

Chapter 1: Introduction

Light filtered through the room, sifting in and out, as dust cascaded down. A man with short, disheveled hair awoke with a start. His entire muscular frame ached from end to end, but he didn't need to think hard as to why. He was lying prostrate on a kind of altar, though he couldn't remember having been strapped down. The disgruntled man's name was Lt. Col. John Sheppard.

His eyes caught sight of his surroundings. There were walls covered in mud and the occasional "cave-man" scribble, which told him, he was underground. The room was slightly larger than a Puddle Jumper and a half.

It made his predicament no less calming, and John figured if he had been claustrophobic, this would have been a nightmare. Not that it wasn't at the moment, a nightmare.

Struggling to lift his head, he gazed downwards. His legs were spread and bound at the ankle. Tilting his head back, he saw that his arms were pulled up above his head and bound at the wrists.

A small dry leaf drifted into a cast of light before resting on his chest. Addressing the leaf, Sheppard sighed. "Well leaf, guess its just you and me…" Just as the words had left his mouth, it drifted into a corner of the hole, somewhere beyond his eyesight.

"Guess not. Stupid Leaf! Damn it Rodney! Where hell are you guys?" Sheppard shouted at the corner he thought the leaf might be hiding near.

Well, so much for an escape plan. Isn't it ironic that I should be the one strapped down to an altar, thought Sheppard, as he grumbled at the whole scenario that had gotten him in this predicament in the first place.

Tugging at his left wrist, then his right to no avail, Sheppard sighed and closed his eyes.

Previously (Part 1)

The first thing that came to mind was how cold the weather was. It wasn't like he wasn't used to cold air, as Atlantis was on a Ocean, but something about the way the trees shuddered upon their first few tentative steps into the small forestry near the gate, spelled freezing.

Call it intuition or his spidey-sense tingling, somehow Sheppard had known from the start of this mission that something wasn't right. The Ancient database hadn't had much more than basic information on climate, fauna, animal life and some interesting clues as to some unique statues. The whole thing made him uneasy.

Rodney had been gung-ho from the start, convinced they would find something useful, as any hidden gate address must mean something the Ancients didn't want their general populous knowing about. Meaning it might be something Atlantis could use…

When he thought about it, a weapon that could be used against the Wraith didn't sound bad at all. Still, he highly doubted this address had been hidden because of weapons development. No, he had the impression it had been hidden to keep people safe. As to what and why, he couldn't answer those questions right now.

Then there was the tiny village centered just about a klick and a half from the Stargate. An odd place to put a village considering the Wraith threat. The forest hid them sufficiently, but still, it just seemed strange. The natives reminded him of the people that Athar had taken care of, only these villagers were extremely cautious and secretive, almost as if they had something to hide or keep hidden.

That had been when Rodney had discovered a unique energy reading, Sheppard had to convince the ruling elders of the village to allow his team access to their land. They'd called it their Burial Necropolis or something but he hadn't been paying too much attention. At the time he'd been keeping an eye on Ronon, who seemed tense and suspicious, making him just that much more concerned.

If Ronon felt uneasy even in the slightest, then he was going to keep a closer eye out.

There wasn't anything out of the ordinary, and the villagers weren't advanced in technology in the least bit. In fact the MALP that had been sent through made them more scared than anything.

Despite that knowledge, the goosebumps erupting on his skin and the constant wind howling through the trees, did nothing to comfort his unease.

Every time Rodney had shouted – "The signal is stronger now, keep going" or something along those lines, he felt his gut twist. Maybe it was just nerves. After all, they'd been through too much drama in the past few weeks to suddenly find themselves in another one.

Well it could happen, he guessed.

He just hoped Rodney would find something soon. All this walking, though he'd never admit it out loud, had really started to bother his legs. The night before he'd run with Ronon and gotten a kink in his left thigh just above the knee. The more he walked, the more it seemed determined to bother him.

Just his luck, right? Right.

Thankfully, he always carried a small pillbox of aspirin in his flak vest for such an occasion. Reaching in, he pulled out one and swallowed it dry. The taste of pasty metallic slid down his throat. It wasn't bad.

Settling into a slow pace, as Rodney waved his scanner around and made some more adjustments, he turned to see Ronon and Teyla chatting next a stump.

Turning back to Rodney, Sheppard scrubbed a hand over his face. This was getting ridiculous.

"Wait… this direction. The signal is getting stronger. If I can just get closer to it I could possibly pinpoint its location easier, saving time on our little scenery hike," announced Rodney.

Sheppard just snorted. "Fine, but let's try not to make this any longer than necessary. I'm giving you until 0200 hours Atlantean time and then we leave."

"That's hardly fair," protested Rodney, glaring back.

"No, it isn't, but I'm not going to waste more time tracking something you can't seem to find. Understood?" snapped Sheppard. So he was on edge. Didn't mean he was going to let his guard down.

So another hour tops, he thought. It would be nice to be back early, in Atlantis, for once. Kick back, eat some popcorn and maybe watch some random movie. Visions of Nah…that'd be wishful thinking. I just know something's going to happen.

Following Rodney, Sheppard scratched his neck and looked around, hoping that at least this mission would go smoothly. For once, that'd be nice.

Boy, would he ever be wrong…

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A/N: I'm hoping you caught the foreshadowing I threw in. I'm still working on my technique but I hope it adds to the story.