Author's Notes: Thank you for all the lovely reviews! The Silani are shocking like the Genii, aren't they? Oh dear... well, this chapter should clarify a couple of differences. Hopefully.
NB: Damn site ate my hash signs! Excuse the ugly dividers...
If I Die
Chapter Nine - The Hallan
Ford stood with one hip propping himself against a table, military training refusing him taking a seat. He watched McKay and Rahul busy beside the weapon, Rahul pointing out particular wires or small contraptions whose purpose Ford could only guess, whilst McKay made various expressive noises and babbled about flux capacitors and buffer streams. He'd long since given up trying to contribute, every suggestion shot down by a perfunctory: "Of course not," from McKay. Now he stood, and watched, and counted the minutes. Was ignored by the other scientists who treated him like some invisible, immovable object to be worked around.
"Hello."
Ford turned to the direction of the voice. On the other side of the bench stood a lanky Silani, barely fifteen years old. His head tilted at the same angle as his people, but he displayed the awkwardness of youth, the insecure grasp of his own rapidly growing body.
Kids. He could handle kids. He liked kids. Much more so than arrogant, genius scientists.
"Hi," he offered, then stretched out his hand across the table. The boy looked at him as though he were some strange, foreign object. Ford waved his hand, and after a second the boy grasped it, and gave an awkward shake. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Ford."
"Devla." The boy stood nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "You're from the Great Circle."
"You've heard about us, huh? News sure travels fast around here."
"No one has ever come through the Great Circle before. Not since the Wraith."
"I guess we're good gossip, huh." Ford considered the teenager for a moment, then the lab around him, the security on the door and the reverential distance the scientists seemed to keep from where the boy stood. "Are you, um," he hesitated, winced as he said: "Do you come here often?"
The boy shrugged, casually. "I can go where I want, in the council halls. As long as I don't go into the city. My father says it's unsafe."
"Your father?"
"He is Antu Marikar, leader of the council." Devla puffed out his chest proudly, and Ford wondered why he hadn't seen the family resemblance earlier – the same straight, long nose, the same high cheekbones, the same large, dark eyes. "The other people you came with, they're with him now."
"Yeah," Ford agreed.
"But not you?" The boy glanced across at the scaffolding. "You stay with that one, the scientist?"
"Yes," he replied, wondering whether the term 'babysitting' would translate.
Devla stared at him for several seconds, then pulled back with a nervous energy, appearing on the other side of the bench a second later. He hopped up onto the table beside Ford, continuing to indulge in an open stare as he considered every aspect of the stranger's uniform.
One hand reached out hesitantly, pointed. "Is that a weapon?"
Ford glanced down to his gun. "Yes. To protect ourselves."
Devla nodded sagely. "Everybody needs protecting. That's why you're here, isn't it? So your scientist can help us make our own weapon. Big enough to protect the whole City." There was a note of something beneath his voice, something furtive, secretive.
"Devla," Ford began, then hesitated, wary of alienating the boy. Repeated the words: "Everybody needs protecting."
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They had returned to the room of earlier, its table now cleared of food, although the jugs of water remained. Several of the councilor members had rejoined the group, sitting beside Marikar on one side of the table, while Sheppard and Teyla took chairs opposite. The minister had previously sent instructions to his people for books and papers on Silan's history, and they now littered the table top. Sheppard had attempted small talk, feigning interest over the discussion of agriculture and construction techniques but his attention had drifted, distracted by thoughts of the weapon below his feet.
Shouldn't have left McKay there. Ford's good, but not that good. Can't reign that man's mouth in. Rodney will say something he shouldn't and then we'll have ten kinds of hell raining on us.
He caught Teyla casting him mildly recriminatory looks as she tried to cover for his distraction, all pleasant smiles and open body language. The Athosian was better at coping with Marikar's sales pitch but both sides remained reserved, withholding information more than they offered it.
Agriculture. Construction. Trade. Medicine. Words bandied about the table, a discussion for which Elizabeth was more suited.
If O'Neill had warned him about politics before he'd accepted the mission…
A lull in the conversation provided an opportunity. Sheppard cleared his throat, leaned forward with his elbows on the table. "Look, Marikar, I realize we have a lot to offer each other." He gestured at the paperwork. "That's pretty apparent. Lots of opportunities for both our peoples."
Marikar, in the midst of sorting through a file, stopped, straightened, his expression hardening. "But," he prompted, looking coldly at Sheppard.
He shrugged. "I think we should be honest. In the spirit of friendship."
"We have been shown our history," the bearded councilor put in. "You think we would deliberately conceal something?"
"I didn't say deliberately. And we appreciate everything you've told us so far."
"But," Marikar repeated, his shoulders tensed.
Sheppard hesitated, then plunged forward: "Maybe you should tell us why this weapon needs so much security around it?"
Teyla glanced at him, then back at the council. "Jawesh mentioned the city had enemies."
Stiffly: "I fail to see how that is relevant."
"Oh, I think it's relevant. You know it is, otherwise you wouldn't be so keen to hide it." Sheppard looked pointedly at the bodyguards stood in the doorway, and then back. "Look, Marikar, we're happy to ally with you against the Wraith, but we need some assurances that the weapon…" He stopped.
Marikar dipped his head slightly in affront. "You believe we would use the device on our own people?"
"I don't know what to believe. Like you keep saying, we need to get to know each other a little better." Sheppard splayed his hands on the table. "So let's share."
Marikar looked coldly at him, pursing his lips. "I do not believe this is necessary, but in the spirit of friendship, it seems I must."
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"We have enemies," Devla said, swinging legs that weren't quite long enough to touch the ground. "Foolish men who don't agree with what my father and the other councilors decide."
"Really?" Ford encouraged.
"They're stupid. The council chooses the best for all Silani. The Wraith will come again, and we need to be protected."
"Makes sense," he agreed, cautiously. "But you're saying not everybody thinks the same?"
"Fools." His lip twisted up in an echo of his father. "They say that the council makes bad decisions, that because of them, people starve, and get sick. They think we should be like we were before. But it's not true. There's food, and houses for everyone. They say the Wraith won't come back, and that my father is lying so everyone stays afraid." Devla tilted his head to look up at Ford. "But I heard the guards talking. They said you've fought the Wraith. Is that true?"
Ford hesitated. "Yes," he said, cautiously. "Yes. We've fought them a couple of times."
"Will they come back?"
Another difficult question. He considered the boy in front of him, not old enough to have left high school. Shoulders set determinedly, a flicker of fear in his eyes. Settled for: "The Wraith are a threat to everyone."
Devla seemed satisfied with this, nodding to himself.
"So, um," Aiden paused, wary of crossing the line, "What do these people do?"
"They ruin things, cause trouble," Devla explained, using the phrases in an echo of his father. "It's best that they stay out of the city. They can't get past the wall, anyway. One time," he added, conversationally, "they tried to kill my father."
Ford couldn't prevent some of his shock from showing. "Really?"
"He wasn't hurt badly." Devla's eyes darkened, and his gaze flicked to the floor. "He's a very important man. The Hallan want to control Silan, but he won't let them."
"The Hallan? That's the rebels, right?"
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"The Hallans live in exile outside the city," Marikar said, his tone one of reassurance. "They are not involved in Silani life or the decisions made by this council."
"And you're happy leaving things like that?"
The elderly councilor frowned in deep confusion. "What else would you suggest?"
Teyla glanced at Sheppard. "I believe the Major is concerned as to other uses of the weapon," she said, smoothly.
"Use the weapon on the Hallan?" A goateed councilor, whose hand had spent the past hour tugging on his facial hair. "There would be no need."
Marikar cut in. "Once the weapon is fixed it's presence will have proved the Hallan wrong. You have seen the Wraith. Travel through the Great Circle will confirm the Wraith's continued existence and their attacks on other worlds, that it is only a matter of time before they revisit Silan and repeat the destruction that nearly wiped out our ancestors. Our decision to rebuild the weapon will be proved to have been in the best interests of our world. The Hallan's supporters will desert them, and they will be powerless."
"And that's it?" Sheppard couldn't help but sound disbelieving. "Fix the weapon and you'll be happy?"
"In a manner of speaking, yes."
"You mentioned travel to other worlds," Teyla interjected. "You wish to know how to use the Stargate?"
"Of course. We have long known of it's purpose, but we have never been able to make it work. With your help we can." Marikar sat back in his chair, appraised Sheppard from a distance. "In the spirit of sharing, it would be only fair for you to share your knowledge."
"We've already offered to send a team of our scientists here," Sheppard pointed out.
"And their presence will be welcomed. But given the Wraith's threat against all people it would make sense that having protected our world, we would then offer this protection to others."
"In exchange for what?"
Marikar looked shocked. "For nothing more than unification in the fight against the Wraith. You suggest we would only offer the use of the weapon to gain something for ourselves?"
Exactly what I'm suggesting.
"Look," Sheppard said, struggling to maintain his diplomatic face, leaning across the table, "Maybe we're getting ahead of ourselves. Let's just concentrate on trying to fix the weapon, alright? I've got to hear from Doctor McKay before we can go any further."
"Of course." Marikar splayed his hands across the table, smiled widely. "We must be certain your people can help us."
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"Will your friend fix it?" Devla asked, watching McKay and Rahul busy in the heart of the scaffolding.
"The doc's a genius," Ford replied, confidently. "He can fix anything."
There was the sound of a crash from the direction of the two scientists, and a loud curse from McKay that Ford hoped didn't translate.
Devla frowned, his shoulders hardening. "You should hope he does."
Ford glanced at the boy beside him, surprised at his fierceness, caught a glimpse of hard eyes and an upturned nose. "Devla –"
The expression vanished abruptly, Devla seeming annoyed with his error, flashing a grin at Ford. "The Wraith are a danger to all."
One of the security guards was crossing the lab floor, walking towards McKay and Rahul. Hackles up, Ford slipped from the bench and started towards the scientists, with an absent: "I'll just be a minute," to Devla. The guard had stopped to speak with Rahul, their heads low, Rahul glancing at the door anxiously. McKay stood beside a table laden with mechanical devices he'd previously been fiddling with, but now he'd frozen, watching the two Silani's conversation worriedly.
"Doc?" Ford greeted him quietly. "Know what's going on?"
"No idea," McKay admitted. "It doesn't look good, does it?"
Aiden's hand slipped to his radio, fingering the talk button hesitantly. The hand of the guard reached out to stop him.
"You must rejoin your group."
"Why?" McKay pressed. "What's going on?"
"Rumors of an attack on the city." The guard nodded at Devla. "You should come also. Your father will wish to know you are safe."
The boy rolled his eyes theatrically, but a shadow of fear undercut any adolescent posturing, and he followed the guard obediently. McKay lingered beside the weapon before reluctantly pulling himself away.
"You will return," Rahul said, offering McKay a smile. "We will discuss the buffer capacity."
"Right," McKay responded, absently, before gathering himself enough to add: "Nice to meet you."
A head bob. "And you."
"Come," the guard repeated, urgently, and with one hand he ushered his small party towards the door.
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"We must go," Marikar said abruptly, pulling back from his conversation with a stony faced guard.
Sheppard pulled back his chair, Teyla doing the same. "What's happening?"
"News has reached us of a planned Hallan attack on the city. Their men have been spotted moving past the Great Circle."
"The Stargate?" Teyla queried, confused.
"It marks our border, an area controlled by neither side." Marikar was moving out through the door, pulling his robe about him, Sheppard and Teyla caught up in his wake. "They rarely cross the mountain's peak, save for small skirmishes with our troops. When they do, it is certain they plan to come to the city." He glanced back at his two visitors. "You will wait in a safer room, until this is over."
"Woah." Sheppard stopped in his tracks, staring at the councilor. "No offence, Marikar, but this is your battle, not ours, and I don't intend to leave my people in the firing line."
"Then you should come quickly," Marikar responded, tersely. "The attacks do not last long, and they have never breached the city walls. You can wait, and rest, and we will resume our talks once this is over."
Sheppard opened his mouth to protest, but the presence of three armed guards and the promise of more between him and the exit stopped his words. He glanced at Teyla, who inclined her head slightly in a nod.
"Come," Marikar repeated harshly, and turned, continuing his pace down the corridor.
His hand slipping back to his weapon, Sheppard gave a soft, bitter sigh, and then followed.
