Chapter 2-Excalibur

John stiffened and jerked back. "You are joking right?" It sounded more like a plea than a question. Saphides squeezed Sheppard's shoulder slightly. "No my young Sheppard. I most certainly am not."

Teyla watch Sheppard's face turn to one of shock to a hardened mask quickly. She saw Saphides look with concern at Sheppard and whispered something.

Saphides then stood and addressed the room. "Dear guests. Lt Col Sheppard and I have some matters to discuss. Please continue."

Sheppard turned to his team. "Rodney, Teyla, Ronan, please," he said as he tilted his head toward the door. Ronan and Teyla stood up. "What? I haven't had dessert," McKay exclaimed. He jumped when Ronan kicked him under the table. "Oh alright!" He grabbed a small cake as Teyla looked on disapprovingly. Something was wrong. Sheppard could not hide his concern.

All eyes followed in painful silence. Therus led the group off to a side hall. They entered a room. Although not ornate, it was elegantly decorated in pale blue, cream and gold. "Nice." Rodney muttered as he shoved the last piece of cake in his mouth. "Please sit down," Saphides said with a smile. "Therus, would you please ask the attendant to bring some wine to wash our pallet?" They sat at a table cut from a great tree. It was somewhat oval but the edges were not even.

"Yes Guardian," Therus stepped out quietly then returned a second later.

"What is going on Colonel Sheppard" McKay asked.

"I d..I don't know," Sheppard stammered. Teyla raised her eyebrow. Something was definitely wrong.

"Please let me explain. I am afraid I have shocked your commander," Saphides said as he sat next to Sheppard. "You undoubtedly have been wondering why everyone has been rudely staring at Colonel Sheppard."

"It had crossed my mind," Rodney said.

"Yes doctor. I do apologize for our rudeness. It is that we have anticipated Colonel Sheppard's arrival for quite some time now."

"Why?" asked Ronon bluntly.

Saphides smiled and looked at Sheppard. "You have good friends." Sheppard merely nodded.

"Well you see. We hope your friend and commander is the one to fulfill our prophecy. Since the beginning of this millennia we have eagerly waited."

Rodney stared at Sheppard in disbelief. He looked at Saphides suspiciously. "What prophecy?"

"Sheppard the son of Evander shall return from Terra after 10 millennia and lead his people to victory."

"What!?" Rodney sputtered, "He is the son of whom?"

Ronon was grinning from ear to ear. "Perfect," he said looking at a flustered McKay.

Teyla said nothing but looked on in amazement as she heard this unexpected news.

"How do you know he is the son of anybody?" McKay continued now with his typical skepticism. "This could all just be coincidental."

"No Dr. McKay." Saphides said kindly but to McKay came off as patronizing. "Coincidences are merely our illusions created to explain the improbable sequences that we cannot explain."

"Whatever. I still ask how you know he is the son of…of."

"Evander," Ronon said still grinning.

"We cannot be certain until he places his hands on the Eye of the Armentarii."

"How will that tell you anything?" Sheppard asked warily as he bit the bottom of his lip. The Eye of anything did not like something he wanted to place his hands on.

"Only the descendant of Evander can unlock the knowledge held within. Colonel Sheppard certainly is a descendant of Ilian, the queen of Evander."

"Queen?" Sheppard said looking ill. "How do you know that I descend from this Ilian?" He did not like the way this was going. His head was spinning. Okay. We all have to have descendants, but no one knows who the hell their 10 thousand year old grandparents were.

"If you notice your chair glows green like mine. Therus's glows blue. The others do not glow. Only those descended from the line of Remus have this effect and only one or two from each generation exhibit the unique characteristic required. Ilian and her four brothers and those that descend from them are of this line."

"Did not Evander have other descendants?" Teyla asked.

"No. Evander and Ilian had only one child. Evander was also an only child from line of the Armentarii. Besides. He is the one who encoded the Eye and other instruments. We from the line of Remus cannot use them."

McKay still looked stunned. He noticed the chair for the first time and noticed that Sheppard's did indeed glow green as did that of Saphides. Therus's glowed blue. He looked at his own. Nothing.

"Why does Dr. McKay's not glow at all?" Teyla asked as if reading McKay's mind. He looked at her annoyed.

Saphides looked at him curiously. "You possess the gene?"

"Well yes sort of."

"He has received gene therapy. He did not come of it naturally." Teyla added ever helpful.

McKay squirmed a little.

"I see. On Ilium and the kingdoms other planets, only those with the natural blood of the ancestors can activate instruments. This was a primary defense for us to ensure the Enemy and others could not use our technology against us."

Other planets! Sheppard's mind screamed.

"Do only some possess the gene?" Teyla asked again.

"About 20 percent of our people from this world about the same on the others. Only the Guardians and of course the King have very specific genes for very specific defenses and purposes."

"Why did not Evander leave his knowledge so that all could have it?" Ronon asked.

Saphides looked down. "It was a very confusing time. Evander was hunted by the Enemy for his knowledge. He and the other Ancestors left what knowledge they could. However, as I said, he was hunted. Though he possessed great knowledge gathered from all of the Ancestors and the Enemy, it could not be used right away. There was too much information and too little time. He had to leave it safe so that others could follow and use the information. It was difficult to know who to trust. Many were under the influence of the Enemy. So he stored it and encoded it so that only his heir could decipher it. The council decided that this was the best course. Ilian and her brothers stayed behind to assist the humans on this planet. Evander and their infant son raced to Atlantis to journey to Earth and preserve that knowledge. Some of his generals accompanied him to lay the foundation for the future."

"Why did Evander and not Ilian go to Earth?"

"Ilian would rule and her brothers would guard the throne. Evander was thought to have the knowledge in his mind. The Enemy did not know that it had been stored. For him to have stayed, would have endangered thousands if not more as they hunted him. Ilian had a strong bond with her brothers and this would ensure that all would be protected. She was also gifted with a tactical mind to aid in defense as best she could if it had come to that. We have her journals. It was not an easy decision for either of them. She mourned her husband and child whom she hardly knew."

"Was Evander the King of the Ancestors?" Ronon asked.

Saphides looked shocked then smiled. "No no. The Ancestors had no King. He was King of the worlds of this system, but a great leader among the Ancestors. He however, often did not see their view as they did. He knew the Enemy was bent on destroying them, but they hoped for peaceful resolutions until it was too late. While they fought and negotiated, he fought and gathered what he could secretly."

"The family of Evander and Ilian had been amongst these worlds for a long time, protecting them. Unlike so many of the Ancestors they worked with the humans to build defenses and improve technology. They were natural leaders, and they had won the hearts of the people of these worlds, so they choose them to rule when the previous human line had ended."

"The princess falls in love with the knight in shining armor." McKay said sarcastically, not wanting to believe the story.

"Nobility was not an Ancient, as you call them, creation. We humans, gave their line that distinction. However, many non-guardian families have the gene. Most have at least one in their clan. There is no distinction of class if you care to see. Certain instruments can only be operated by those with the gene, but we have alternatives for those that do not possess it. However, the presence of the gene has become fewer as our population has grown. Only the Guardian families possess the strongest form. The king would possess the strongest of all. Being the descendant of both."

"What do you mean?" Sheppard asked.

"Well, tomorrow you will see that our military aircraft can only be operated by those who carry the blood of the Ancestors. However, we have many aircraft and transporters that can be operated by anyone.

Sheppard still felt sick. "Look, how do you know I am this guy? Prophecy or no. I tend to lean to what McKay said earlier. This could all just be a mistake."

Saphides sighed. I hope not. We have waited for so long. So many suffer now across the galaxy. "It could be. Only the Eye of the Armentarii can determine this. However, there is some training required before it can be held. As I said, the Eye contains all the information acquired by Evander. There is however, a small test. The dagger of Evander was left behind. All who wanted to claim their lineage to him could try. Any who passed could be trained. The dagger will only be removed by the heir but this makes him only the heir apparent. The knowledge must be transferred first"

"How many have passed?" Sheppard asked hopefully.

"None. As the prophecy states, the heir will come from what you call Earth."

Sheppard's shoulders slumped. McKay looked around. "You mean that Colonel Sheppard has to pull Excalibur out of a rock and he is king. Oh good one."

"Rodney," Sheppard growled. "Let's not patronize our allies."

"Oh yeah right. You buy this story? Doesn't it sound ludicrous to you? Come on. You a king?!"

Sheppard glared at McKay. His hazel eyes flared in anger. "This whole damn expedition sounds ludicrous Rodney. The Wraith sound ludicrous. Replicators sound ludicrous. Anything outside of what we know sounds completely ludicrous! So yes dammit it does!!" His voice rose with each sentence and McKay shrunk slightly in his chair but said nothing.

Teyla watched Sheppard. She knew why he was angry and less patient with McKay. The weight of their salvation would fall on him if this was true, regardless of how far fetched it sounded. Yet she had heard of a great warrior King who left and whose heir would return even as far as Athosia. She did not think he would be from another galaxy. Could it be him? Surely not. She felt shame for hoping it was, as she knew what a terrible burden this might be.

Saphides said nothing but watched the exchange. They had waited all this time for him, but he had never known them or the responsibility that would fall to him. He understood his reluctance. He did not look eager, which was good. Yet, he was everything Saphides expected him to be. The dark hair, the tall thin frame similar to the Armentarii as described in Evander's journals. The green and brown eyes were piercing and intense similar to the description of Evander in Ilian's journal. This was him. He was young, healthy, and superior in intelligence although he covered this with a sharp wit, and relaxed demeanor. He was a warrior already. Trained to kill and make difficult decisions. An aviator. All the pieces. Yet he understood why this man before him did not want to believe this was true. His thoughts were interrupted by Sheppard who said softly. "Where's the dagger?"

Saphides gently nodded in approval. Decisively this great hope of theirs had made the decision. "In the throne room."

Sheppard stood. He was no fool. A chance at any knowledge was too important. He remembered what he told O'Neill in the helicopter in what seemed a lifetime ago. What an ass. Little did I know how much it was about me. This is what you get, you cocky son of a bitch. The thing is, he knew he had to know. As much as it scared the hell out of him, they were here and they had to defeat the Wraith. He could figure out the other stuff later. Like the king stuff. The Guardians seemed to do a well enough job. Just need the knowledge. "Okay. Lets go get Excalibur." Everyone stood without a word and they followed Saphides back to the great hall.

"John are you sure?" Teyla asked quietly.

He shrugged. "Only one way to find out Teyla. Need to find out if we want to have these people as allies. If they have enough technology for aircraft, then yeah it is worth a risk."

They entered the room they had been in before. Everyone had finished eating but remained. The throne room. He had not even noticed the actual throne before. Getting slack John, he chided himself. Saphides stood in front of everyone. "Lt Col John Sheppard of Earth has agreed to test his hand on the dagger of Evander." Still silence. "Let it be known that all families are represented here by at least one member regardless of whether they carry the blood of the ancestors. All shall bear witness to these events. Are there any that disagree?" No one said anything. Saphides turned to Sheppard. "Please follow me." They sure had been confident that he would try it. What would have happened to the party if he hadn't?

Sheppard stepped behind Saphides and walked up four steps and up to a throne in the middle of a small dais.

God please don't let it be me, Sheppard found himself thinking. But he wanted that knowledge. Something pulled him to having to know. It was an itch he felt in his mind since the dreams a few days ago and it was really strong. Saphides gestured toward the throne and pointed out a small silver dagger embedded near the front top. The blade was very thin and slightly wavy. The hilt of it was crystal. It looked like ice.

He did not hear what Saphides had told the crowd, but he saw numerous people line up to attempt to retrieve the blade. Ronon, Teyla, and Rodney even were asked to try. And with each turn, nothing happened.

"Anytime you are ready," Saphides finally urged quietly. Sheppard stepped forward. He tried to swallow but his mouth was too dry. He could hear his heart pounding and was surprised no one else could hear it. As his hand reached out, the dagger began to glow first blue then green. He could feel it vibrating reaching out to him before he even touched it. It was like the feeling of his hand on the throttle of the jumper, but even more intense. He placed his hand on it and felt warmness spread up his arm as the hilt of the dagger turned golden in his hand. He did not hear the gasp in the room because he was so focused on the eerie connection he had to this dagger. He put his fingers around the hilt and slowly eased it out of the chair.

The room was silent for a split second then erupted in a roar of cheers. Oh God, he thought. The itch was suddenly gone, replaced by his own feelings of panic that he checked quickly.

Teyla watched wide eyed. It was him! How could it be him? Her friend all this time. She felt elation and joy and fear. She feared for him. She saw it for a split second in his eyes when he looked at her then it was gone behind the warrior's mask.

"The heir of Evander has returned!!" Saphides exclaimed when the roaring died down. "Sheppard the son of Evander, shall return from Terra and lead his people to victory!!"

Sheppard wanted to get out. He did not know what to do. This was way out of his league. He glanced at Ronon who was grinning, then Rodney who was just gaping with his mouth open. He caught Teyla's eye as she looked at him intently. He looked at Saphides with a pleading look of get me out of here. The old man turned to him and nodded very slightly.

"Please, please. He must still prepare for the trial. He must rest so that he can begin his training for the transfer. As you know by the book of Evander, the heir can only be king once the knowledge held in the Eye is transferred. Only then can the coronation occur."

Trial, coronation? Sheppard wanted out of there quick. Thankfully Saphides touched his arm and led him to another chamber. This one had no table but plenty of very comfortable looking chairs. He immediately sat down in the nearest one before his legs gave way. He still held the dagger in his hand. No one said anything, not even McKay. Saphides sat next to Sheppard quietly and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you alright Col Sheppard?"

Sheppard looked up quickly. "Not really."

Saphides nodded his head in understanding. "I understand that this has come as quite a shock."

"No kidding. I thought we were just making allies. Seeing what we could trade. How we could help each other. I didn't think that I would end up…well… end up with this!"

Sheppard stood up and looked out the window. He handed the dagger to Saphides who held it with awe despite the fact that it no longer glowed.

"What are the chances that the dagger is wrong? I mean. Maybe that's where it stops."

Saphides stood up and walked to Sheppard's side. "It could be a mistake I suppose. But, I do not believe so."

"Well, if there could not be a mistake why does the transfer have to happen to be King?" Sheppard asked still looking out the window. He caught a glimpse of the ocean past some rolling hills. Maybe good surfing. The breeze blew through his hair gently and he breathed in deeply. Fresh, cool, calm like Atlantis. He would not acknowledge it out loud, but he felt at home here too. This city was trying to speak to him the same way Atlantis did. He just did not answer. Not ready to answer.

Saphides watched the future king breathe in the air. He could sense him relax momentarily. "I do not know. I only know that is what the Book of Evander says. He did not leave an explanation for the process, only the process. We would not presume to debate it. However, it is quite clear only the heir would remove the dagger. It did not even glow for those that posses the gene as you call it." He looked at Sheppard kindly then quietly said, "I know that you do not want this."

Sheppard closed his eyes. No I don't. But I have to. Don't know why, but just have to. He had grown up with a strong sense of what was the right thing to do. Strong values that did not always agree with the larger society, like sometimes disobeying orders, because he would leave no one behind. He knew that he could not turn back now. Something in him said that stopping now, would be leaving a whole lot behind. Sheppard looked around at his team. He had forgotten they were there. "I guess we better send a report to Dr. Weir."

"You will of course stay with us as our guests?"

Sheppard had not thought of that. "We need to report to our chief of the events. We are free to go aren't we," he asked suspiciously.

"Yes of course!" Saphides said offended.

Sheppard shook his head. "I am sorry Saphides. I did not mean to offend you. I'm just tired and we're use to dealing with people who want to keep us prisoners. We'll give her a report, gather a few belongings and return to stay at least long enough to sort this out. Is that acceptable?"

"Yes my lord," Saphides said with a small bow. "I am sorry. I forget that this day has been quite trying."

Sheppard nodded. Yeah understatement of the year. "Is there a way to get to the Stargate without going through all those people?"

"Yes. I will have Therus take you and prepare your accommodations. I will call for the coaches."

"No we'll walk." He needed to think and let things sink in. "We'll call you in a couple of hours," Sheppard said as Therus led them out.

Sheppard was grateful once they left the grounds for the quiet walk back to the gate. It took a half hour to walk the mile or so and eerily no one said a word.

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