Betrothal
Chapter 3
Dr. Elizabeth Weir watched with amusement as Rodney argued with Halling. The scientist was dwarfed by the much larger Athosian, but McKay apparently disregarded Halling's looming presence, standing toe to toe and poking his finger in the man's chest. Credit had to be given to Halling's patience; the man just stood there, shaking his head, a frown on his face. Movement caught Elizabeth's attention, and suddenly, Colonel Sheppard was next to her. He followed her gaze to the two men below, and gave a small sigh. Rodney did not make anything easy.
Elizabeth turned to John, who was in his full off-world regalia. She fought the impulse to smooth his wild hair, then gave him a smile.
"This should be an easy mission for once, Colonel," she said. She watched as he thought her statement over, then shook his head.
"I don't like not having Teyla with us. It feels…wrong," John confessed. He was mildly surprised that the Athosian woman had not come down to see the team off. As the star gate whooshed into life, John and Elizabeth found their attention drawn to the gate room.
"At least you don't need to use a Jumper," Elizabeth said. Halling had assured John that the city was within a few minutes walking distance from the gate on Caldron, and a Jumper would not be necessary.
"Yeah, well, I don't like that either. What if we need to make a quick escape?" Without waiting for an answer, he switched his P-90 to his other hand, then keyed his headset.
"McKay. Leave Halling alone. Where's Ronon?" The runner suddenly entered the gate room, still strapping on his gear. McKay paused in his argument long enough to make a show of looking at his watch, then rolling his eyes. Resisting the urge to go down and slap Rodney, John focused his attention on Elizabeth.
"We'll contact you in eight hours, sooner if possible." He waited as she nodded, then gave a quick smile. He failed to see the troubled look on her face as he descended the stairs, and followed the other three men into the star gate.
Elizabeth felt a shiver slide down her back. This should be an easy mission, she had said. The why did it feel like she was sending her team into grave danger?
Caldron, like the many other worlds John and his team had explored, could have been a carbon copy of Earth. Probably England, John thought as they trudged down a dusty road towards the city. Trees lined the road, with occasional meadows breaking the monotony of the woods. As Halling promised, the city was only ten minutes from the gate. It seemed to be mid-morning; traffic on the road was non-existent. In fact, it seemed almost too quiet.
Halling led the way, his large steps sure and confident. John relaxed a bit as he saw the Athosian seemed unperturbed by the silence. McKay trailed along behind John, with Ronon bringing up the rear. Like John, Ronon seemed to be on edge, his eyes flicking from side to side.
Rodney was staring down at his scanner, mumbling to himself. Suddenly, the device starting beeping and flashing, bringing the physicist to a complete halt. Ronon stopped as well, giving McKay a grumpy look.
"Hey. Hey! I think there might be rolonium here too!" Rodney started turning in circles, his feet kicking up little puffs of dust. His eyes remained glued to the screen.
John put out a hand to halt Halling, then called over his shoulder, "Rodney. Let's meet these people first. Then you can give them your shopping list."
Dr. McKay looked up. "Right. Yes. Meet first, then shop. Gotcha." He tucked the device into his pocket, and regained his pace.
As the walls of the city grew larger, John was once again struck by the similarity to a castle in England. Or maybe France. The wall itself was perhaps thirty feet high, with turreted towers placed every hundred feet or so. The gate was open, but John couldn't see any movement within the protective walls. So far, no one had noticed the newcomers – there were no guards outside the stone walls.
'None on the wall, either,' he thought, a feeling of foreboding growing within him. Ronon, too, had drawn his weapon, and John heard him click the safety off. Halling had also paused, glancing around with a look of puzzlement of his face.
He turned to the others.
"Something is wrong. We should have been greeted by now," Halling said. The words were scarcely out of his mouth when they were surrounded by a troop of soldiers, armed with spears or crossbows. John and Ronon quickly raised their weapons.
Halling stepped forward. "Wait!" He called. "I am Halling of Athos. We come to trade with Caldron in peace. We mean you no harm."
A dark haired man stepped forward, his crossbow aimed squarely at Halling's chest. "Halling of Athos, I am Karcher of Caldron. I have orders to bring you and your company to the First Minister."
Halling looked confused for a second, then turned to John. "I have met the First Minister many times, Colonel Sheppard. He is an honest men; I am sure we can negotiate a trade treaty with him."
"How come none of these guys seem to know you, Halling?" John had not lowered his weapon, his eyes skimming from soldier to soldier.
"It has been more than a year since I last visited Caldron," Halling admitted. "I assume that some things have changed."
The soldier, Karcher, just gave a small, tight smile at Halling's words. Ronon caught the expression, and a rush of apprehension coursed through him. He raised his gun, his aim clearly on the Caldron man.
John mulled over Halling's words for a second, then he slowly lowered his weapon. With a small shrug of his shoulders, he motioned Ronon to do the same. Reluctantly, Ronon holstered his gun.
"I don't like this, but we'll meet with your First Minister," John said. Karcher said nothing, just waved at his men, and their weapons drooped slightly. He turned and headed into the castle walls. John and the team followed, surrounded by the guards.
They tramped through a marketplace, which should have been bustling with activity, but was strangely silent. The only noise John could hear was the clomping of their boots. Within a few minutes, they had arrived at a large stone manor house. Two guards armed with spears were perched outside the entryway. John and the others climbed the steps and entered the impressive building.
Karcher led the team down a long hallway , stopping at a heavy wooden door. As he opened the door, John could see a large dais on the far end of the room. On the raised platform was a throne; on the throne was a man. He gave Halling a quick glance, noting the look of confusion on the Athosian's face. Behind him, he could feel the tension rolling off Ronon. Even McKay was unusually subdued.
John stopped short of entering the room. Raising his weapon, he took aim at Karcher.
"I want to know what's going on right now," John ordered. To his satisfaction, both Ronon and Rodney had raised their weapons, McKay's hand shaking slightly. Halling was focusing on the throne, trying to make out the features of the man. Suddenly, he let out a gasp, and took two steps backward – right into John's line of fire.
Karcher reacted instantly, grabbing Halling and holding a knife to his throat. John swore as he heard Ronon let off a round of fire, then saw two guards fall to the floor. Next to him, Rodney was yelling something about putting your hands up, and for one crazy second, he almost laughed.
"Drop your weapons or I'll kill the Athosian," Karcher snarled. John was snapped back to reality as Karcher's knife drew a thin line of blood across Halling's throat. Slowly, he lowered his weapon to the ground, Rodney and Ronon following suit.
Karcher gave a small shake of his head and two guards retrieved the weapons. Quickly, they searched the four men, removing hidden knives and guns. He pushed Halling into the room, then gestured for John and the others to follow.
The man on the throne had not moved, had not made a sound. John eyed him warily as they approached the dais. Next to him, Halling was clenching his fists, anger radiating off him in great waves.
They stopped at the foot of the platform, and John could see that the Caldronian was about thirty or so years old. Long dark hair framed his face, and his eyes were as black as night. They focused their cold gaze on the members of SGA-1, then settled on Halling.
"So, Halling of Athos. It has been a long time." The man's voice was harsh, like a rasp on steel. In the faint light, John could see a crooked white scar crossed his throat. The wound seemed very old.
Halling said nothing. John took a small step forward.
"I'm Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard. This is Dr. Rodney McKay and Ronon Dex. You already seem to know Halling. We come here in peace, First Minister, to….." John was cut off by Halling's furious voice.
"He is not the First Minister!" Halling glared at the man on the throne. The man gazed back steadily at Halling, then chuckled.
"Oh, but you are wrong, Halling. I am the First Minister. You see, my father passed away last year…quite unexpectedly." The man rose slowly, descending down the steps. He was quite tall, dressed in elegant clothing. A small rapier hung at his side.
He paused next to Halling. "Where is she?" he hissed into the Athosian's ear. Halling winced, but remained silent. Slowly, the man removed his sword, bringing it up to waver slightly in front of Halling's eyes.
"I asked you a question, Athosian. Where is she? Answer me or lose an eye," the man threatened. Still, Halling remained silent.
"Who is she?" Rodney blurted out, and John turned an angry glare on the scientist. Rodney just shrugged, his confusion clear on his face.
The man quickly walked to Rodney's side. "I seek Teyla Emmagen. Do you know of her?" he rasped. Before Rodney could form an answer, Halling spoke.
"She is dead, Keir." John felt the shock of Halling's statement in his gut, and it took all of his willpower not to flinch. "The Wraith captured her during a culling."
The man, Keir, paced slowly around Rodney. To Sheppard's relief, the nervous scientist managed to remain silent. Swallowing hard, Rodney stared back at the Caldronian, a sheen of sweat glazing his face. Next to him, Ronon was glaring hard at Keir, his face unreadable.
"I don't believe you, Halling," Keir spoke softly. He stared at John, then Ronon, and finally, Rodney, for what seemed like hours, and then snorted.
"It's obvious you are protecting her. I can tell she lives just by the anger in this one's eyes," Keir nodded towards John.
Keir climbed the steps of the dais, settling on to the throne. "Take them," he ordered.
John started to climb the steps towards Keir, but his progress was halted by a rain of arrows. He froze as the shafts embedded themselves around him, one mere millimeters from his foot.
Immediately, twelve guards emerged and grabbed John and the others. Karcher reappeared and took Halling's arms. Ronon, moving like lightening, started tossing guards as quickly as they attacked him. As he spun to free Rodney, who was fighting off two guards of his own, a guard slammed him over the head with a crossbow, and Ronon dropped to the floor. John watched in dismay as Rodney fell next, then pain resounded through his skull, and darkness rushed in.
