Phase 2: Launch

"Okay," I said under my breath, spreading the paper out on my desk and rereading the puzzle. "Fill in the blanks in the following number sequence. To get the final answer you will need to convert the missing numbers in some way. 5, 15, 20, 2, 18, 5, --, 9, 14, --, 19, --, --, 5, 23, 18, --. Give your answer to the secret hiding place."

I looked carefully at each number, trying to work out some kind of pattern to the sequence. After a few minutes I realised that the first two numbers added together equalled the third and if the fourth number was subtracted it would give the fifth number. Deciding the sequence was number plus number equals number minus number equals number plus number equals number etcetera I applied that to all the numbers in the puzzle.

"5 plus 15 equals 20 minus 2 equals 18 plus 5 equals 23 minus 9 equals 14 plus 5 equals 19 minus 1 equals 18 plus 5 equals 23 minus 18 equals 5," I worked aloud, writing each number down as I calculated it. If I was correct then the missing numbers were 23, 5, 1, 18, and 5.

"Convert them in some way?" I mused, thinking about the various ways I could convert numbers. I'd already done mathematical conversions to get the missing numbers. What else could I do? I thought for a moment and then an idea came to me. Reciting the letters of the alphabet as I ticked off the numbers 1 to 26 in my head gave me W E A R E ... weare? No ... 'we are'!

"What the hell does that mean?" I asked the empty room. Not receiving any answer I made my way to our quarters to 'give my answer' to the secret hiding place. Assuming that meant our wall safe I swiped a hand over the spot but for the first time it didn't open. I tried focussing my thought sharply at the safe but that didn't work either. Feeling just a bit ridiculous I said aloud "we are" and watched in disbelief as the safe opened to reveal an empty space save for a piece of paper and a small square piece of metal.

Putting the metal in my palm I squinted at it closely. There were faint ancient carvings on one side and the edges had a kind of routed appearance like they might slot in somewhere else. I couldn't see anything I could possibly do with the piece right then so I put it back in the safe and turned to the paper I'd found.

"Ask Teyla," I read aloud. Ask Teyla what? Deciding I wanted to know what was going on before I bothered anyone else I headed off to the commissary after tapping into the sensor system to find the instigator of this little mystery.

"What are you up to?" I threw myself into the seat across from John and speared him with a narrow glance.

"Me?" John said innocently. "Don't know what you're talking about."

"The puzzle Rodney gave me," I replied stubbornly, handing John the puzzle I'd gotten from Rodney.

"Real paper," John commented, turning the page this way and that like he'd never seen it before. "We don't get much of that in Atlantis these days."

"Did you write that?" I ignored his innocent act.

"This is maths," John said with a distasteful expression. "What would I know about that?"

"Don't do the dumb soldier routine with me," I replied. "I'm pretty sure you're behind this but I can't confirm it – how the hell could I have known you for almost two years and not have seen your handwriting?" I complained.

"I'm not the love letter type?" John suggested, holding in a grin with some difficulty.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" I accused.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," John insisted, doing a pretty good job of making me doubt myself.

"It had to be you," I insisted. "It says 'secret hiding place' – no one else knows about the wall safe!"

"I'd like to help you," John ignored my accusation, "but I'm enjoying your frustration too much." He ducked away with a laugh when I leaned in to whack his arm.

"This had better not be about my birthday," I warned, "because you promised not to rope anyone else in."

"Did Rodney say anything about your birthday?" John asked seriously.

"No," I admitted.

"There you go then," John replied easily. "I'd love to stay and watch you ... sweat ... but I've got a briefing to get to." After sweeping a fond hand down my pony tail John walked jauntily away, leaving me sitting there bemused.

Resigned to being led along whatever path John had put me on (it had to be John, despite his innocent act - who else would go to this much effort?), I got up and headed out to find Teyla.

"Hi Teyla," I found her talking with Dr Weir in the Control Room. "Have you got a minute?"

"Of course," Teyla agreed, following me to a corner of the room for as much privacy as I could achieve.

"I ah ...," I hesitated before ploughing on, "have you got something for me?"

"You solved the first puzzle," Teyla said with a smile. "You have earned this," she held out another envelope.

"Thanks ... I think," I replied, looking warily at the innocent looking object.

"You are welcome," Teyla replied with ease. Although she seemed somewhat curious about the mystery, it was not Teyla's way to put pressure on a friend to reveal personal information. Rather she allowed space for things to be revealed in their own time. I suspected Teyla knew a lot more about what was going on in Atlantis than the rest of us for that reason alone.

"Did John give you this?" I asked.

"The envelope turned up in my quarters along with instructions for its distribution," Teyla avoided answering my question. "You will have to speak to Colonel Sheppard to confirm its origin."

"I thought you'd say something like that," I smiled ruefully. I left Teyla faintly amused at my absorbed behaviour as I wandered off, opening the envelope as I walked. The same confident scrawl greeted me ... I read.

"I am the essence of innumerable biographies,

I am philosophy teaching by examples,

I am a distillation of rumour,

I lie at the root of all science,

I belong to the winner,

In all my volumes vast I have but one page,

There is no life that does not contribute to me.

What am I? Give your answer to the secret hiding place."

"What the?" I said aloud, stopping short as I frowned down at the offending page. First number sequences, now word riddles? Assuming that John was behind all of this, the range of material he'd already used kind of surprised me. Of course I knew that John Sheppard was an extremely intelligent man – but it was one of his best kept secrets. Ask anyone involved in any of the harrowing missions and situations team Sheppard had been a part of since arriving on Atlantis and they'd all say that Rodney was the one who'd come up with the plan that saved the day. But if you looked back and carefully assessed each situation you'd be surprised to find that, a lot of the time it was actually John, seeding Rodney's brilliance with the initial idea, who continually got us all out of trouble.

I took the latest puzzle back with me to the lab ... I should have been working on the latest Ancient doohickie for Rodney but I couldn't ignore the riddle screaming out for me to solve it.

Phase 2 authors note:

Any ideas? As per Chapter 1 I'll give a couple of days for thinking/solving before I reveal the answer and my sources for this one.

Number sequence puzzles are pretty common on a lot of quizzes, including Mensa. I made the one in Phase 1 up from scratch, and added the converting bit myself so I can't really credit it to anyone but myself ... probably explains why it wasn't that hard to solve!

Re the ref to Shep's handwriting I put that in because I can't recall any time in the show when he actually had a pen in his hand - it all seems to be data pads and electronic stuff or print outs of things. For some reason it amused me to have Sabina never having seen his handwriting!