A/N: I know it's all a bit odd in this village and it's not clear who is doing what yet, but things will all eventually explain themselves. I promise! Thanks to those of you reviewing, you are all very kind. :D
Chapter 12
The meeting convened in what appeared to be some kind of wooden barn, but it was currently lying almost empty. At one end, a relatively small mound of grain sat, and at its centre, the Frah's had gathered cross-legged on the floor in a circular arrangement.
Sheppard wasted no time in joining them. His legs had just about had all the work they could take just crossing from his room to this building, and rather than embarrass himself by collapsing, he sat quickly and savoured the chance to rest.
'Thank you all for gathering so quickly,' Frah Mussa said to his brethren. 'As you will no doubt have heard by now, one of the members of Colonel Sheppard's party has gone missing. It is their firm belief that foul play was involved.'
From the window Sheppard witnessed Sarayah approach and get turned away by someone who appeared to be one of the larger Frahs, a mountain of a man almost rivalling Ronon in physique. There was no physicality involved, just a clear rejection of her attempts to enter and a gesture that told her to leave in no uncertain terms.
She didn't argue, but neither did she go far, loitering in view and catching Sheppard's eye with her piercing and furious gaze. He looked away, too tired to play her games right now.
'I do not understand why you have insisted the villagers help in this search, Frah Mussa,' one of the gathered men said – an old man with fine wisps of long white hair kissing his shoulders. 'You have lived here long enough to know it is more than likely the work of the Divine One.'
'But another in our team was attacked at the same time, and no one heard any activity from the...Divine One,' Sheppard interrupted, drawing the man's aged pale blue eyes toward him. 'She was only yards from the camp. If it had appeared that way, it would have been seen and heard, wouldn't it?'
'It does seem odd that he did not make his presence felt at such close proximity. The light he emits alone should have been enough to draw the attention of the others out there with her. And when considering also the attack on Dr McKay...' Lisso agreed.
The elderly man nodded, just faintly, but then asked. 'But what has anyone here to gain by taking the woman? I can think of no reason why anyone from this village would wish her harm.'
'Frah Neggo, there are some in this village who might have committed desperate acts before coming here to be judged. Though it is not our business to evaluate others, we all know many of those here harbour dark deeds in their pasts. The possibility is not without merit,' Mussa said sternly.
'Even I have done things in my past I am ashamed of. Am I suspected, too?' Neggo asked, frowning angrily now at the colonel. Sheppard knew making these people take a stance and judge others went against everything they stood for. He seemed to be in the habit of re-writing societies' rules a lot where Sarayah was concerned.
'Look, I know I'm throwing your lives into chaos here, but Teyla is a valued member of my team, and if she's out there somewhere, lying injured and in need of help, I for one would like to find her.'
'As would I,' Frah Lisso responded, adding the weight of his support. 'So, if anyone has seen anything untoward or knows of anyone who left the village last night...'
Another of the Frahs spoke up now. 'We all retire to our quarters at night. The only person who we can safely say remained in her room at all times is Sarayah because many of us took turns to watch her door.'
Those words wrapped up Sheppard's feelings nicely. She was the only person in the village with an alibi, other than his own team. She'd set it up that way with her frightened little girl act. That couldn't be a coincidence.
'Is there any way in and out of the buildings other than the doors. Could she have slipped out of a window or something?'
'You believe Sarayah had a hand in this?' that same Frah asked. 'But I have just said she never left her room.'
'Not by the door, no.'
'Colonel Sheppard and Sarayah have had a ...difficult past,' Frah Mussa explained. 'It is only natural that his suspicions should fall on her.'
'Why...what has she done to him?' Frah Neggo demanded. 'Did Frah Picca not just say she is the only one amongst us to be accounted for?'
'I'm just asking questions, throwing ideas out there. I'm not accusing her of anything...yet,' Sheppard assured him.
As he gazed around at the agitated faces surrounding him, Sheppard could feel their support slipping away. Here he was, a virtual stranger, coming into their lives and throwing their systems and practices into chaos, asking them to make assessments and judgments they had long since washed their hands of in favour of divine intervention. If he'd done this back on Earth, asked people of faith to change their ways just to help him, he would have been laughed out of town by now. The fact these guys were still sitting down and listening to him spoke volumes for their patience and tolerance.
'I know I'm asking a lot of you people, but I would really appreciate any information you can give me.'
'There is a way out of the buildings, but not one Sarayah would be aware of,' Frah Mussa told him, much to the apparent dismay of the others gathered there. A rumble of displeasure erupted among them, as if he had passed on a secret meant for no one else's ears.
Frah Mussa held up his hand to silence them. 'I believe Colonel Sheppard can be trusted with this information, and I am making the decision to elucidate for him. On my head be it.'
Though it was more than apparent the others still didn't approve, they fell silent and allowed him to continue.
'There are tunnels beneath the buildings of this village that form a network of escape routes should the Wraith come in ships and attack the planet. We have had no need to use them in many generations, but all Frahs are aware of them so they will be able to steer others to safety in a culling.'
'But none of the others in the village know?' Sheppard clarified.
'No. They have no need of the information. We will keep them safe should the Wraith come...and they have not come here for many revolutions, not since their vessel was destroyed above Guedeseo.'
'Actually,' all eyes now turned to Frah Picca, who had spoken up quite sheepishly. 'Sarayah is possibly aware of the tunnels.'
'Why would she be?' Neggo growled, his old voice rattling with annoyance.
'She asked me to help her learn to read our writings. I saw no harm and picked out some texts, one of which told a tale of villagers escaping from the Wraith through the tunnel network. She asked if it was true, but I told her it was nothing more than a story. I had thought that was the end of the matter.'
'You lied to her?'
Picca looked suitable ashamed at the accusation. 'Yes, but it was only to protect the secret.'
'Well, unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have worked,' Sheppard pointed out. 'I think someone used them to get into my room two nights ago, and I'm assuming none of you gentlemen felt the need to be quite so stealthy.'
'Are you certain?' Mussa asked, clearly shocked by the revelation.
'Absolutely...and there's only one person I know in this village who would want to do something like that.'
'But that doesn't prove she is involved in the kidnapping of your friend,' Neggo pointed out.
'Unless the tunnels stretch far outside the village...which I assume they do. If she's been messing around in my room, then you can be sure she knows those tunnels go further.'
Of course she did, and if the tunnels ran direct from the village to the 'gate, without the difficult terrain to negotiate, and at the speeds he knew Sarayah could run, that probably explained how she had managed to abduct Teyla, hide her, and make it back to the village before the alarm was raised with him.
The Frahs all spoke among themselves in a low whisper, considering their next move. Sheppard could tell they were unimpressed with being drawn into his argument with Sarayah. He was causing havoc, throwing their simple lives into disarray. Trouble followed him like a constant shadow, always clinging at his heels. Now he was wrecking these peoples' lives, too. How many more innocents would have to pay for his stubborn refusal to give ground to Sarayah?
He looked out of the window and found her still staring at him, her eyes drilling into him and speaking of the unspeakable things she wanted to do to him for defying her yet again. The meeting was coming to an end...he could feel that...and soon he would have to go out there and face her. Suddenly, sending Ronon out of the village without him didn't seem like such a hot idea. No, he decided, Teyla needed Ronon's tracking skills more than he needed his fists. He could handle Sarayah. He had his guns and a radio; he was set. But how he wished that radio would strike up with an announcement from Carter that they'd found Teyla, fixed the gate and they could go home.
Without warning, a cracking noise rocked the whole room, and Sheppard felt a shower of dust and light rubble fall on him. Instinctively covering his head, he became aware of the brilliant blue glow the moment he dared open his eyes. The air was alive with static and a hum that buzzed right through him, strange but oddly familiar. He lifted his head, seeing the other Frahs looking similarly stunned, but gradually they all scrambled to their knees and began to pray to the twisting, spinning light in front of them.
Sheppard felt no such compulsion; he was more disturbed by the fact that several chunks of the roof continued to fall, narrowly missing them. The light blinked out as suddenly as it appeared, sending another dusting down into the room, and leaving the structure groaning in distress.
'I think I may have made a mistake, Colonel Sheppard. I no longer believe the Divine One is warning you...I believe he has chosen you – to become one of us. Never before has it appeared to one person so many times without claiming them. I think it has chosen you for a purpose,' Frah Mussa breathed.
Sheppard shook his head, giving the Frah a crooked smile. 'No divine being in its right mind would choose me above you guys –' Another downfall of rubble stopped him in mid sentence and set them all choking. 'We have to get out of here,' Sheppard choked. 'Everyone get to the door...NOW!'
He scrambled to his feet, grabbing Frah Neggo and dragging the frail old man along with him as he bolted for the exit. In the last seconds as the doorway loomed close, he heard the telltale cracks of failing roof trusses and launched himself for the opening, twisting onto his back to shield the older man from the brunt of the fall.
His ears were filled with the sound of splintering wood and falling masonry, dust rising and filling his eyes, nose and lungs in a choking blanket of pulverised debris. He was vaguely aware of Neggo crawling free from his grip as he was engulfed by the coughing fit of all coughing fits, rolling onto his knees and trying not to rub his irritated eyes as they streamed channels of cleansing tears down his dirt-encrusted cheeks. Next, he felt hands upon him, dragging him clear just as the sound of a huge chunk of building collapsing rang out behind him.
Then, someone was shaking him, and a voice broke through the chaos. 'What have you been telling them about me? What lies have you sewn now?'
He couldn't have answered Sarayah even if he wanted to, the coughs rattling out of him in quick succession thanks to the dust irritating the tissue lining his throat. He grasped at her hands trying to pull them away from his shirt so he could distance himself from her. 'Get...' he immediately broke out coughing again, 'y' hands...off!'
Thankfully, a few of the less shocked Frahs stepped forward to separate them. 'Leave him be, Sarayah. Can you not see the state he is in?' he heard Lisso protest.
'Why was I not called to the meeting? I thought nothing was hidden in your village...no one is judged, isn't that your motto?'
'You were not the only one not invited, Sarayah,' Frah Mussa chimed in, positioning his bulk between the woman and the colonel.
Someone brought water and poured some of it onto Sheppard's eyes to flush out the gritty dust before allowing him to wash out his mouth and drink. Now, he could see Sarayah a little better he recognised the anger in her expression. They were pushing her too hard...they needed to back off before she lost it.
'It was a meeting about our presence in the village,' he lied, trying to defend them. 'The Frahs think my people and I are a disruptive influence, they were just asking us to try to fit in more.'
'Lies!' she hissed. 'If you are not judging me, why was I not asked to help in the hunt for Teyla?'
'You have already expressed your discomfort around the colonel and his people...we did not believe you would want to help,' Frah Mussa told her, placing a hand on her shoulder and gently but firmly tugging her way from Sheppard. 'The events of the past day have been quite stressful for all of us; perhaps you would like to talk to me, Sarayah? Do you feel unburdening yourself would help sooth your temper?'
Why didn't he just stand on a box with a banner saying ,"Sarayah did it!". The fury blazing in her eyes told Sheppard she knew what they were accusing her of, and he sensed a desperation rising in her. That wasn't good. Sarayah was unpredictable at the best of times. If she thought she was cornered, who knew what she would do? But the words had been spoken and the damage they had caused couldn't be undone. He watched her walk away through stinging, unfocused eyes, recognising the tension in her poise. She wanted to lash out, but she was holding it in, repressing her true nature because now was not the right time to unleash her anger.
Sheppard allowed himself to be guided back to his own room with promises he would be watched as he rested. After ascertaining the location of the tunnel exit nearest the 'gate from Frah Mussa, he radioed the latest information through to Carter, advising her it might be wise to search the tunnels as they would provide the ideal hiding place for Teyla to be kept in since Sarayah hadn't had time to get any further away than that before heading back to her dwelling. Sam asked him if he wanted a guard at the village, but he insisted they all stay out on the search. It was broad daylight, and there were dozens of people about, carrying out their various duties. Even Sarayah couldn't think that was a good moment to strike...could she? Well, maybe she would, but he still needed as many people looking for Teyla as possible. He had his weapons; he could look after himself.
At least he could if he made sure she couldn't sneak in again. Forcing himself back up to his feet, he scoured the floor finding the faint outline of a hatch right at the end of his bed. It was practically invisible if he hadn't known to look for it. He used the finger hole cleverly concealed within a natural knot in the wood to pull it open, finding it lifted with relative ease. The hinges had clearly been recently greased to ensure they wouldn't creak; when he wiped his finger along them he found them thick with some kind of animal fat.
Wiping his hands on his trousers and grabbing his pack, Sheppard pulled out his torch and shone it down there, highlighting the footprints lining the damp ground, but no dirt at all on the ladder leading up to the hatch. She'd taken off her shoes to make sure she left no tracks, but, now he was down at floor level, he could see slight marks in the dust beneath his bed as he shone his light under it. She had crept right underneath him as he'd slept to take his sweatband. The thought made him shudder, and before he could settle, he dragged the nightstand from beside one of the other beds on top of the hatch to keep it shut. Okay, so it wasn't heavy enough to stop her if she really wanted to get in , but at least he'd hear her coming.
That done, he lay back on the bed and tried to get some rest, his mind drifting back to the look on Sarayah's face when Frah Mussa had asked if she needed to talk. The insinuation of those words had been clear for all there to hear, and he had to wonder how long it would be before the community felt the aftermath of the Frah's careless allegation.
oooOOOooo
After trying unsuccessfully once again to re-route power via different circuits in case they were missing a fault, Rodney sat back and gave a heartfelt sigh. His anger at their situation had left him now, replaced by confusion, desperation and disconsolation. He and Sam should have been all over this thing. Between them, they knew just about everything there was to know about 'gate technology, and Zelenka and a team of their best scientists were also working on the problem back on Atlantis via simulations constructed from their transmitted data, but they were no further along now than when he'd first attempted to fix it.
'This is insane!' he whined. 'We've tried everything to ensure power and communications between the DHD and the 'gate are aligned and nothing works.'
'Then we obviously haven't tried everything,' Sam pointed out patiently, continuing her analysis of the latest results. 'Everything works as we would expect, right up to the moment we punch in for a connection, then...nothing. We've stripped the DHD down and reassembled it from pretty much scratch, so perhaps we should be focusing on the 'gate itself. Something is stopping the message getting through...and as far as I can tell, it isn't the DHD.'
McKay stood up, dusting off his trousers and giving her a lop-sided smile. 'Are you suggesting we take the gate apart and reassemble that? Because I think we're gonna need help!'
'No. I don't think it's anything physically wrong with it. Ancient tech is pretty sturdy, and the 'gate isn't even showing any signs of damage. I suppose there's a slight chance that, in the whole of the gate system, one might turn out to be a dud, but with something this crucial, I don't think they would leave it to chance.'
'So you think something is stopping the signal getting through? Like that anomaly? Thing is, I checked the connection when that thing was miles away from here and still couldn't get through.'
Sam stood up now, too, hands on hips and staring at the 'gate as if waiting for some kind of divine inspiration.
Rodney took a moment to admire the woman while she was lost in thought. He'd got used to having Sam around on Atlantis now, and hadn't embarrassed himself in front of her once recently. His relationship with Katie had helped to keep a lid on his infatuation, though now she and he were no longer an item, he often found his mind wandering to his Sam Carter fantasies again. Still, relieved as he had originally been to find Sam couldn't solve the problem any better than he could, he now decided he would quite happily swallow his pride if she could pull some kind of miracle out of her ass.
Apparently, things back at the village were going no better. Sheppard's message to them had been concise and calm, but the colonel couldn't fool him. Those times when he was so direct and humourless were the times when he was seriously worried, and Rodney understood his concerns. People who challenged Sarayah's integrity rarely came away from the experience unscathed. And he couldn't help but feel the only reason Sheppard had insisted he was safe was because he wanted all available people searching the tunnel network for clues of Teyla's whereabouts. It was just like him to put everyone else first.
He'd seen the same thought in Carter's eyes, too. She might not have worked with Sheppard for as long as he had, but Sam was good at reading people...it was probably a woman thing. They were almost psychic when it came to things like that...not that he believed in psychics, but, well, women seemed to be able to read his mind as if it were printed out in large type and posted on a billboard. This was one time he was kind of glad he was only good at the science stuff. The other troops had moved their search down into the tunnels, and with his claustrophobia, that would have been a waking nightmare, even with Sam for company.
Carter turned his way in time to catch the tail end of his dreamy look. Casting him a disparaging glance, she launched into a new theory.
'You said this planet was a research outpost, right?'
Rodney nodded, recalling what data had been intact in the files held on Atlantis. 'Yes, apparently they were working on something to make travelling the galaxy, perhaps beyond, much easier, but that's all I could glean. All the data held was corrupted and try as we did, Zelenka and I couldn't repair it.
'What if it was deliberately corrupted?'
Rodney frowned. 'Why would they do that? That doesn't make sense.'
She looked at the gate again, chewing the inside of her cheek in thought. 'It depends how important that research was. Perhaps if it fell into enemy hands it could be potentially devastating.'
For someone smart, Sam sometimes came up with the most crazy theories. 'So, they corrupted it so even they couldn't use the data?'
'If it really is corrupted,' she mused. 'Or maybe it just behaves that way if you try to access it before going through the correct protocols.'
'Maybe there's some kind of code that has to be entered first...' Rodney mused along with her. 'Then the files unlocks...hmmm, well, it's possible...certainly worth checking.'
'And if they coded the files, maybe – and this is just hypothetical of course – maybe they also added some kind of code to the 'gate...to ensure anyone following them here and trying to escape via the gate would be trapped here.'
'Like dialling 9 for an outside line?' Now that was a distinct possibility, a failsafe to stop their top-secret research falling into the wrong hands and being removed from the planet. But although they might be onto something, his heart sank again when he began calculating the possibilities of them finding the code to unlock the gate. 'But...but if that's the case, and we need to find the code the...the..'
'The permutations are astronomical, yes,' Sam nodded. 'So, I think our starting point has to be the Ancient research facility. Maybe, if we can wire up a naquadah generator, we can get the database there running for long enough to pick up some information that would at least give us a clue where to start.'
Rodney checked his watch. The next scheduled contact from Atlantis was in forty-five minutes. He could probably start running the figures...
'Okay, time for a break. We eat, we drink, we wait for contact and then once we have the generator we head to the facility.'
'We'll I could just make a start –'
'Rodney, take a break. That's an order,' Sam told him. 'We've been working on this for five hours now and I think we are both pretty much number blind. Besides, I'd hate for you to go hypoglycaemic on me.'
She sat down pulling an MRE from her pack as she smirked up at him, and he realised that he was actually feeling a little light-headed, though that could have been down to the bump he was still nursing. It was a good job Sam cared enough to remember his condition, because sometimes he got so consumed by his work he forgot.
He sat beside her, rummaging for his own meal and curling his nose as he got his first whiff of the contents. Well, it was either hypoglycaemia or potential food poisoning, and right now his grumbling stomach and woozy head said he should take the risk.
