The Weapon
Chapter 5
The guard surrendered easily. Sheppard opened the door quickly and stepped outside. The guard, one of the people he recognised from their first arrival in the village two days ago, had no time even to cry out in surprise before Sheppard was standing behind him, hand firmly pressed over his mouth. The knife in his hand was held just far enough away from the guard's throat that he needn't worry about accidentally cutting the man. He had no intention of killing him, only making sure he did not sound the alarm. "We're leaving," he whispered into the guard's ear.
The guard nodded and a whimper forced its way out of his throat. Sheppard tightened his grip on the man's mouth, "We're not going to hurt you," he said, "We just want to get out of here. Do what we say and we'll let you go."
The guard nodded again, and Sheppard loosened his grip, but did not let go. He kept the knife hovering close to the guard's throat. He beckoned with his head to Teyla and Ford, who were standing in the doorway. Teyla removed the guard's bow, arrows and knife while Ford disappeared back inside the cabin to retrieve McKay.
Once they emerged from the hut, McKay looking slightly dazed as though he was still half asleep, Teyla handed the guard's knife to McKay, keeping the bow for herself. Ford had taken the second blade given to them by Daynen.
They walked quietly out of the village. Behind the shutters of the cottages, there was no sign of light or movement. So far so good. Teyla took the lead, followed by Sheppard and the guard, with Ford and McKay taking up the rear. As they stepped out of the village into the forest, everyone allowed themselves a silent sigh of relief, before carrying on through the trees.
The forest looked very different at night. During the day it was dark and cool, a welcome relief from the heat outside, especially after a day searching the city. At night however, the darkness was almost complete, the only light being the occasional shaft of weak moonlight that filtered through the leaves. Despite this, they walked on without light, Teyla managing to lead them safely through the maze of trees seemingly without even stumbling on the branches and fallen wood that was scattered around the floor. The others found it impossible to avoid them and tripped and stumbled far too many times in the darkness.
The further they moved from the village, the more they relaxed, allowing occasional whispered words as they travelled further and further from their captors. Still though, they travelled in darkness. It was difficult, but it was not worth attracting unwanted attention for the sake of a flashlight. They moved quickly, everyone acutely aware that despite their apparent success at escaping the village undetected, it was possible that they had been seen, or that someone had looked out of their window to find the guard not there and gone to investigate. There were any number of things that could have gone wrong with the plan, but all they could do was hope for the best and keep moving. Soon they would be out of the forest and on their way to the Stargate.
Once the trees began to thin out and more moonlight showed through, it became easier to believe that they might actually make it. Less trees meant that they had less cover, but it also meant that anyone from the village trying to recapture them would be easier to see. Sheppard looked around. They were far enough out of the forest now that the trees around them seemed not even to be part of the dark area that they had passed through. There was no sign of anyone around them. If the villagers had noticed that they were gone, they were far enough behind them not to be seen. Or well enough hidden.
Now that they could see the ground more easily and were less likely to trip, they increased their speed. A short distance away, Sheppard spied the towers of the city, but they turned to the left, heading to the Stargate without having to enter the dead area. It was just as well, none of them wanted to see it again as long as they lived. They had spent far too much time there already.
The closer they came to the 'gate, the faster they moved, as though something was physically drawing them closer to it, to safety. To home.
They entered the old farmland, the fields made of weeds and crops and thigh high grass. They waded through eagerly, not wanting to slow down now that they were so close and then, finally, they could see the gate.
Ford jogged forwards to activate the 'gate, passing Sheppard who was still holding the guard's shoulder. Even this close to escape, there was still a chance that something could go wrong, and he didn't want to take any chances.
Then, as though that thought had caused it, something did go wrong. A cry behind them, Sheppard turned and barely had time to duck as an arrow flew past his ear, close enough that he could feel the wind that it caused. "Get down!" he yelled, "They've found us!"
There was nowhere to hide, no shelter from the villagers and their arrows except for through the gate. He thought of their weapons, probably locked away in Jareil's hut and hoped that the villagers hadn't decided to try them out.
Concentrating on avoiding the arrows being fired from behind them, Sheppard barely noticed that the gate had opened. He heard Ford explaining the situation over his radio and Atlantis lowered their shield. Ford and Teyla, closest to the gate, hesitated, waiting for Sheppard and McKay. "Go!" yelled Sheppard, waving in the direction of the gate as he moved forwards, crouched low to avoid the reign of arrows. He watched them step safely through the gate and turned to check McKay's position, just in time to see the scientist hit by an arrow in his left thigh.
McKay cried out in pain as the metal tip of the arrow pierced his leg. He fell to the ground and tried valiantly to climb back to his feet. Unable to stand, he crawled forwards, practically dragging his injured leg behind him.
"McKay!" yelled Sheppard, running back to try to help him. McKay continued crawling forwards. Sheppard reached the other man in a matter of seconds and helped him to his feet. He placed the scientist's left arm around his neck and held it there, holding him up as they moved forwards. The gate was still open. There was still time.
But it was impossible to move quickly enough. He glanced at McKay. The look of determination on his face was incredible, but determination alone wasn't going to get them through the gate. He shifted his gaze back to their target, only to find Jareil and three of his guards blocking their way.
Jareil held up his hand and the others ceased fire. He smiled victoriously.
"Damn it Jareil, let us go!" shouted Sheppard.
Jareil shook his head, "I am sorry, but your friend is far too important to us. You, on the other hand, we do not need. You may return home to your people."
He stepped aside, allowing a clear path between Sheppard and the gate. Sheppard shook his head, "No, not without McKay."
McKay shifted as though he was trying to get away, but Sheppard held on to him, refusing to let him fall to the ground, "Go," McKay whispered, struggling to remain lucid when the pain in his leg left him fighting the urge to pass out.
"No, we leave together or not at all,"
A hint of a grateful smile passed over McKay's face and he nodded, then lost consciousness.
