Please see first chapter for disclaimer, rating, warnings, pairings, etc.

Part 10/?

-Chapter 9-

The Valley of the Kings

The first tour of the Valley of the Kings started almost an hour after the expedition began their work. Most of the tourists were excited to see work going on during their visit, and many pictures were snapped. Elizabeth ignored them all, one hand on her hat as she craned her head back to look up. "Hmm," she said.

Rodney plopped down on a nearby rock, planting his elbows on his knees as his head drooped downward. "Ugh," he groaned. "Why do I get the feeling we're searching for something that doesn't exist? Or something that disappeared a thousand years ago? Like – the Loch Ness monster or something?"

Ronon turned from where he'd been studying the closed-off entrance to Rameses the Great's tomb. "I've been in Loch Ness," he said, deadpan. "There's definitely something down there."

"Yeah – like fish and shipwrecks!" McKay protested.

"Something bigger. Saw it myself. That thing is the size of a house, and trust me – you don't want to see its teeth." Ronon saw Teyla looking at him curiously, and he winked. She looked away, smiling. He was happy to see her smile again. After last night, he wasn't sure she would. Despite her brave face, he knew the experience had to be terrifying. "Trust me, McKay. All those Nessie watchers know what they're talking about."

Rodney studied him with narrow-eyed suspicion, obviously trying to figure out if he was being played with. Ronon kept his expression perfectly smooth, casually turning back to the tomb entrance as he heard the scientist mutter something about airheads and swallowing too much salt water.

Chuckling, Ronon went to stand next to Weir, who was still studying the upper ridges of the cliff face. "What do you see?"

Elizabeth sighed gustily. "Nothing much," she admitted ruefully. "Unfortunately."

"We'll find it," Teyla said. "I just know we will."

"Well, that's one of us," McKay muttered.

On his way past, Sheppard gently slapped his new friend across the back of the head. "Hey, what's with all the negativity? We need to think positively. If we're convinced we're not going to find it, we won't. If we're convinced we're going to find it, even if we don't we'll know we really tried."

"Aren't you the epitome of enthusiasm," Rodney growled. But he obligingly stood and once more began to help them comb the area.

To the chorus of the tour guides yelling out information, the expedition continued their meticulous search of the Valley. Everything was mapped out neatly, though the area seemed rather helter-skelter, with tomb entrances everywhere. Ronon supposed the ancient tomb builders knew where everything was, and the knowledge had just been lost over time. At least now it made sense – no wonder it took so long to find lost tombs in this chaos.

Teyla came astride of him, holding out a water bottle. Ronon thanked her and eagerly took it, gulping it down. The bottle was sweating, and the water inside was cool. "How—?"

She chuckled. "A cooler. I brought some of our bottled water with us – it gets very hot here. Dehydration is a major factor in any sort of excavation in Egypt. And – well, since you're some kind of merman with the ability to walk on land, I thought you'd appreciate some water." Laughing, she playfully ducked away from the water he flung at her off his fingertips. "Sorry."

"It's okay." Ronon squinted up at the rock face before them, keen eyes searching the area for any sign of a feather-like carving or natural formation. "The feather of Maat," he mused aloud.

"One of the ancient Egyptian goddesses. She always wore a feather in her headdress." Teyla took her hat off long enough to smooth her wet hand over her hair before replacing it. "The shadows are starting to move. As long as we stay on this side, we should be in the shade pretty soon."

That was certainly an improvement over the whole valley being soaked in sunshine. "What if we're looking in the wrong place?" Ronon asked. "Isn't there another valley?"

"The Valley of the Queens," Teyla said, nodding. "Known to the Egyptians as the Valley of the Monkeys because of a well-preserved decorative painting in one of the tombs. But – I'm positive the carving on that tablet said the Valley of the Kings." She dug around in her pocket, then pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. Unfolding it, she held it out to him. "Here. I copied it so I wouldn't forget it – I'm lucky I remembered to slip it in my purse last night. Now then, the very first line says, 'In the land of the great, where the Pharaoh is reborn every morn.' That means the Valley of the Kings, because Egyptian kings were buried in this valley. Only queens, princesses, and princes were buried in the Valley of the Queens." She tapped her cheek with one slender finger, her eyes thoughtful.

"'Find the honored feather of Maat. There lies Atlantis's Child.'" Ronon finished off the quotation as he folded up the paper and handed it back to her. "Does that mean that one of the inhabitants of Atlantis temporarily ruled Egypt as a pharaoh?"

Elizabeth, who at that moment had been walking by, stopped in her tracks. Turning, she looked at them with wide eyes. "I'd never thought of that," she whispered.

Teyla blinked a few times. "Me neither," she said. "I always figured the Atlantians would be considered honored guests to the Egyptians. And maybe that would give them reason to bury an Atlantian here. But – if an Atlantian actually ruled, even if it was only for a few days. . ." She stopped, her breath short.

Ronon arched his eyebrows. "It was just a theory." The only things he knew about ancient Egyptian culture and traditions was what he'd learned from Teyla, and the occasional tour he'd taken before he met up with the expedition. He'd thrown out the thought, kind of as a joke, and now suddenly everyone was taking him seriously!

By now, Sheppard and McKay had joined them. "Cook's tour is off for lunch," the latter informed them. "Don't you think it's time we followed suit?"

"Wait, wait." Elizabeth waved her hand distractedly, pacing back and forth in a tidy line across the sand. "My gosh. If that's true – and an Atlantian ruled Egypt. . ."

"It makes sense," Teyla said. "Obviously the Egyptians and the Atlantians had some sort of tie. The Atlantians especially, if I remember correctly, were exceptional traders. People came from everywhere to do business with them. It would make sense that the Egyptians, who were all but the supreme military power at that time, would form some sort of bond with the Atlantians. Perhaps a friendship with 'Lantian royalty. . ." She stopped. "Conjecture, conjecture, have to watch the conjecture," she muttered to herself.

"But wait!" Elizabeth said. The two women were on a roll, now. Ronon was quite content to sit back, watch, listen, and enjoy himself. "The tablet I found on Santorini specifically cited Egypt as the location they planned to escape to after the disaster happened."

"Which means they must have known about it ahead of time, somehow," Teyla mused.

"Exactly!" Weir clapped her hands excitedly. "Now then, if the escaping Atlantians still wanted to retain some of their power in the world, it would make sense for them to join the Egyptians in some way or another. Becoming the pharaoh, one of the most powerful men on Earth at the time, would be the perfect way to do that."

"Other than bringing Atlantis back," Teyla agreed.

"If Atlantis still exists!" Rodney chimed in. "I mean – it's been how many years? Don't you think it's been destroyed by now? If nothing else, the elements had to have done a lot of damage to it!"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No," she said firmly. "I refuse to think about that right now. We don't even know where it is. I admit the possibility of its being destroyed is something to consider. But at this moment, we need to concentrate on this part of our work. If we go running ahead of ourselves, we're bound to miss something. And the stakes are higher than ever now. We can't miss anything."

Sheppard ran his hand through his hair. "So now we're not just looking for an Atlantian, we're looking for Egyptian royalty, too?"

Weir shrugged. "Perhaps. Like Teyla said, this is all conjecture. None of this is substantiated, and we could be way off track."

"But it makes sense," Ronon said. "You both said so."

Teyla's lips briefly quirked into a tired, half-amused smile. "Thank you for having so much faith in us, Ronon," she said.

He shrugged. "You're the experts," he said. "I shouldn't claim to know anything, at least not in this locale. In the water. . . But that's something else entirely. You both really seem to know what you're talking about. And we're a team, for better or worse, right?"

Weir smiled at him, her expression sunny despite the serious atmosphere. "Right," she said. "Thank you, Ronon."

Rodney cleared his throat. "Cook's tour left? The place is empty? It's noon? Lunch? Anyone?"

A laugh bubbled free from Teyla's lips. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to stop for a while."

"Half an hour," Elizabeth agreed. "Then we've got to search again."

"The Valley closes at six," Sheppard said. "We have until then."

Weir sighed. "Six more hours. Hopefully we'll find something in that time."

Something big, everyone else thought to themselves. The something we're looking for.

Teyla looked around, knowing she was only seeing a fraction of the Valley. This is going to take forever.

-To Be Continued-

Bunnylass: I know! Rodney is just so much fun to write, I love working on the scenes with him. That is what I was going for! Empire has taken a darker turn as of late, so I always try to slip a bit of levity in there to lighten things up. Thanks! Now that they're getting down to the interesting stuff, searching and then hopefully excavating in the Valley, I've been getting excited, too! Hmm – perhaps. -wink- Even though a few of them are carrying weapons, they're all hoping it won't be necessary. Hopefully there won't be any more trouble. . . But we know how that goes. LOL I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you so much for the review!

bailey1ak: Thank you! I figured it would be safest for everyone if the girls' room was between the guys', with a door open so the slightest sound will be noticed. I love writing Rodney! I try very hard to keep him in character, so I'm glad you found his wanting to change rooms like him. I like seeing Ronon as a protector, too. He's determined to keep the team safe, and I think everyone is hoping he will. LOL I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you so much for the review!

SpaceMonkey0941: Yes! LOL I loved writing that part, it was just so much fun. Ronon's determined to keep them safe, and I think everyone's hoping he will. Even though they're all hoping the weapons and extra precaution won't be necessary – but we know how that goes! I promise it won't be too much longer before it's obvious who the opposition is! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you so much for the review! -hugs-

The City of Atlantis: Thank you! I agree, too – fortune hunters, thieves, and murderers are always bad news: especially if their hunches are right. I'm glad you liked Rodney's line at the end, and everyone's reactions. It was a lot of fun to write! Plus I like to keep a little levity in there, particularly since Empire is taking a slightly darker turn than it seemed in the beginning. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you so much for the review!

TheWelcomeStranger: Yes, we are! In the next few chapters, different sides of everyone will start coming out – including Rodney, whose back-story is in the next chapter! I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter immensely, and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint! Thank you so much for the review!

Alexiel974: Thank you! I'm glad you liked Teyla as a professor, I've always wanted to cast her in such a role in one of my fics. I'm very glad you find my AU interesting; I hope I don't disappoint you with future chapters! Thank you so much for all your reviews, and for translating one of my stories! -hugs- Thank you again so much for everything, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!