Black and White
Chapter Six.
Disclaimers as per previous chapters
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"Understood." John Sheppard turned off the console, his face grim. He could not bear to hear the numb and shocked tone in Elizabeth Weir's voice any more. He could only too clearly picture the control room after his terrible news had been received. Atlantis would truly be in mourning now.
He straightened and turned to Teyla who had been watching him, her brows furrowed with concern.
"There is no shortage of volunteers wanting to come through the 'gate and help investigate what happened – especially Dr. Mckay, but I've vetoed that on safety grounds. We'll have a bit more of a root around ourselves.
"Teyla – please invite Tygosi to the 'jumper. If Dex is right he is going to be a tad reluctant to come onto our ground so take the rest of the team. Act friendly."
A little while later, Sheppard waited outside the Puddle Jumper as his team approached with Tygosi. There were smiles on everyone's faces and weapons were being held in stand down but the tension in the air was still palpable. A group of villagers were watching them from a distance.
"Chief Tygosi." Sheppard greeted him warmly. "Thank you for agreeing to come to our craft. This is where we are trying to gather all the information about the Wraith attack. You told us that it had been many years since the Wraith had carried off any of your people?"
"I am happy to help you at this time of loss and sorrow," the old man replied. "Yes, it has been many seasons since the evil ones have come– we have been blessed." John noticed that the Chief would not look into his eyes.
"Well, it's just that we have noticed that you are missing many of your people – the young adults, those that the Wraith prefer to take."
"Ah, Dr Beckett's party noticed the same." Tygosi nodded his head. "I explained that it is the time of the Elevos migration – the herds are moving from winter to summer pasture. Our hunters and preservers of food have gone deep into the forests to harvest this bounty."
"You are lying, old man." Ronon growled, the Satedan looking at his most intimidating. "If your people were hunters your feet would be shod with leather not bark that has to be renewed each season. Your clothes," he reached forward lifting a piece of Tygosi's tunic, "would be made of soft hide not tough plant fibre. Your tools, " he held out a handful of broken wooden shards, "would be bone – you are lying."
The elder's face crumpled, his eyes flared with terror. Teyla stepped forward.
"On our journeys we have found that people deal with the coming of the Wraith in many different ways." She spoke softly, reassuringly. " Some have a ritual of death to avoid reaching the age at which the Wraith come, some sacrifice those that have committed crimes against their community, others move from place to place seeking a home that may be free of the scourge. And some just have to endure the loss of sons and daughters each generation. But none give their people willingly, help the Wraith to feed!"
Tygosi let out a moan and covered his face with his hands.
"They promised," he whispered, "they promised that they would leave our village alone for many generations if we helped them."
"Who promised?" John Sheppard had moved quickly forward, gripping the chief's wrists so that he had to look into his face.
"The Wraith. The Wraith from the Mountain of Fire. They wanted someone from the City of the Ancients. They said that it would be easier to lure the Healer rather than the Warrior. They said he would not be killed!" Tygosi moaned urgently at the look of anger in Sheppard's face.
John released the man's wrists and stepped back. Oh Hell! The Wraith know that Atlantis was not destroyed! But Beckett and his party may not have been taken for food. They might still be alive – but why? It suddenly came to him as he realised what Tygosi had said. The Healer rather than the Warrior!
"The gene," he muttered, "the ATA gene – how did the Wraith know that Beckett and I have got the darned thing? Why do they want him?"
He turned back to Tygosi. "We know that the Wraith are here, on this planet. Where is this Mountain of Fire? Is it a volcano?"
"No." Tygosi replied seeming very relieved that John had not harmed him. "It lies in an area that has seen the ground buckle and burn – we can no longer reach it. But the old tales said it was a place of wonder that could send great beams of light high into the sky to destroy our enemies."
"Damn!" Sheppard swore, that sounded exactly like a high-energy weapon of the Ancients. Weapons and the Wraith never made a good combination.
"Err Sir! Colonel Sheppard?" One of his team who had been processing data within the Puddle Jumper called out. "I'm getting a reading of a rapidly building pulse of energy located to the south of here!"
Sheppard and the others instinctively turned to look southwards towards the mountain range that could be seen lying across the horizon. They were in time to see a huge burst of golden fire erupt vertically from one of the peaks. It streamed high into atmosphere for a few dazzling seconds and was followed by an enormous explosion as something that had been hanging in a low orbit was torn apart by the beam.
John Sheppard stared, his senses numbed by the sight.
Doc, what has happened to you?
TBC
AN: Apologies but this will be the last update until about January 4th. I'm in half a dozen places over the next two weeks and none of those are near a keyboard let alone a modem!