The villagers kept up their honor guard routine, trailing behind the group as they made their way to the ruins. McKay had managed to engage Melosh in conversation about the site, giving Sheppard a chance to speak quietly with Teyla. "So, he and his friends just dialed the gate to a random address and walked through? Doesn't sound like the brightest penny in the change jar."
Teyla shook her head, understanding the gist of his comment if not the specifics. "Not all of us are lucky enough to have MALPs," she said, a little briskly. "And it was rare to find an address that connected to an unknown world. But if it had not been for men like Melosh, our people would have never traveled the stars at all."
"I'm sorry. You're right." He hid his amusement at the fact that Teyla was so quick to defend the man when it was so obvious, to everyone but Melosh, that she did not return his affections.
She seemed mollified by his apology. "Risks were necessary if we wished to discover new trading partners or perhaps even a safe harbor from the Wraith. It is not required or even encouraged, but sometimes a group of young people would feel the need to take such risks for the thrill of what they might accomplish. Are there not people who do the same on your planet?"
Sheppard grinned. "Yeah, we call them teenagers."
She eyed him, a small smile touching her lips. "The Atlantis expedition is made up of these teenagers?"
Sheppard opened his mouth and then snapped it shut again. She had him there. He gave her a mischievous grin instead. "Well, at least now you know why he never came back to fulfill his 'promise'."
Teyla glared at him and started to reply but was interrupted by Melosh's return as he broke off his conversation with McKay to approach them.
He eyed Sheppard coldly. "You have known Teyla long?"
Sheppard smiled, recognizing jealousy when he saw it. "Long enough."
Teyla interrupted them before things could escalate. "It must have been difficult, being trapped here all these years away from our people."
"I have missed our people. Some, more than others," Melosh smiled at her indulgently. "But being able to serve the gods has compensated for many things."
"So you're like a priest?" asked Sheppard.
"Something like that." He tipped his head at Teyla, changing the subject. "You and your friends are now trapped here as well."
"Oh, we can dial the gate," said Rodney. His face fell as Sheppard shot him a glare and he realized he might have let something slip that he shouldn't have.
"Truly? You can leave this place?" Melosh asked Teyla.
Realizing the cat was already out of the bag, Teyla answered honestly, "Yes. There is a device in our ship that allows us to dial the gate."
"How does it work?"
Teyla shot Sheppard a glance, not sure how much he wanted to reveal.
"You have to have something special in your blood to use it," said Sheppard, not being entirely truthful. While only those with the gene could fly the jumper, anyone could activate the DHD once it was powered.
Melosh looked him up and down. "And you are one of those with the special blood?"
"Yeah, that's me, I'm special," quipped Sheppard.
The former Athosian studied him through squinted eyes, reassessing the colonel's value. It gave Sheppard an uneasy feeling but he kept it to himself.
"The ruins of the gods," he announced, waving his arms toward the wide expanse of rubble that now stood in front of them.
As most of the team fanned out to explore, it didn't surprise anyone that he chose to stick close to Teyla.
Melosh, though, seemed surprised when Teyla began translating some of the ancient symbols carved on some of the ruins. "When did you learn the language of the gods?" he asked in pleased astonishment. She continued to study the symbols but glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "I know," he said forestalling her response, "Many things have changed."
"Well?" Sheppard asked, trailing behind the scientist as he made a circuit of the area.
Rodney shook his head, pointing the device he held toward the ground at their feet. "I don't see anything that would indicate an underground chamber. The linguists and anthropologists will have a field day though." He indicated the symbols that covered one side of almost every stone.
Sheppard looked around at the expanse. "It would take them years to put it back together."
As Rodney continued to scan, they eventually circled around to rejoin Teyla who was looking at some stone steps at the edge of the ruins. A well-worn path could be seen leading from them, up the mountain. "Where does this path go?" she asked.
Melosh smiled happily. "To the temple of the gods. I knew you would be drawn there, just as I was."
McKay raised a surprised eyebrow at the readings as he swung his hand unit towards the highest point of the path that could be seen and the device began to beep happily. "Are we allowed to, um…" He searched his mind for suitably primitive phrasing that would get him what he wanted. "…worship at the temple of the gods?" he asked, managing to keep most of the sarcasm out of his voice in the process.
"The gods are always happy to have new followers," Melosh said. He cast an eye skyward at the rapidly building cloud cover. "But I believe it will storm soon and it is not good to get caught on the mountainside during that time. Stay with me tonight as my guests and I will take you in the morning.
Sheppard glanced at Rodney who was obviously excited by whatever readings he was picking up. "We'll need to get in touch with our people," said Sheppard.
Melosh looked surprised that they had that ability as well, but quickly recovered. "Of course."
-o-
"There are some very interesting readings coming from the mountain," Rodney was reporting to Weir.
"Interesting as in 'ZPM', or interesting as in 'Genii underground bunker'?" she asked.
"I'm not sure yet," the scientist admitted. "Just the fact that I'm able to pick them up from this distance despite the interference suggests -- well, I'm not sure -- but it definitely suggests something. The most interesting thing, though, is that our own instruments detect nothing. I can only pick up readings using the Ancient technology. From the expanse of the ruins, there was obviously a vast Ancient outpost on this planet. The chances that they left behind something of significance…"
"Colonel?" inquired Weir. "You did have a less than warm welcome."
"The natives have basically ignored us since Melosh took control of the situation and I don't think he'd let any harm come to Teyla," said Sheppard, cocking an eye in her direction.
"What do you think, Teyla? You know this Melosh better than anyone."
"It has been many years since I have seen him and even then, we were little more than children." She thought about it for a moment. "I have always known him to be an honorable person, if somewhat reckless at times."
Sheppard snorted. "Typical teenage boy showing off for his girlfriend."
"Very well," said Weir. "I want regular checks, though."
"Ummmm, that might be a bit of a problem," said Rodney, wincing.
"And why's that?"
"The interference will only get worse the closer we get to the source, i.e. the mountain, so chances are we won't be able to get through on the radios."
"Colonel," began Weir, obviously rethinking the situation.
"Melosh says the hike will take half a day. If we start first thing in the morning, we can be there, check things out, spend the night and be back by tomorrow afternoon." He caught Rodney's mouth opening for what was sure to be an argument that such a short trip wouldn't give him nearly enough time, and gave him a headshake as a warning. "If we find anything really interesting, we can always go back the next day or bring in a team to investigate," he said, half to Weir and half to the scientist. He knew there was a good chance Weir wouldn't approve the mission at all if they were going to be out of touch for too long. The ten thousand year old Wraith that had claimed the lives of Gaul and Abrams had made her a little gun shy when it came to being out of touch with her teams for any length of time.
There was a long pause. "I don't like this…"
"But you're going to let us go anyway," interpreted Sheppard.
"Yes," agreed Weir, though she didn't sound happy about it. "But if we don't hear from you by thirteen hundred tomorrow, I'm sending in the cavalry."
"Understood. We'll call you before we head out tomorrow. Sheppard out." He looked around at his teammates. "Well, looks like we get to go hiking tomorrow."
Rodney looked less than thrilled as he suddenly realized that physical exertion on his part would be involved.
"I will tell Melosh," said Teyla, leaving.
Ronon just cocked his head, puzzled. "What's a cavalry?
-o-
Ronon was sitting on his cot, leaning back against the wall, and cleaning underneath his fingernails with a large knife. He was muttering to himself about people who would come to the rescue riding on the backs of animals. Animals were for eating, not for sitting on.
Rodney was also sitting on his cot, testing the firmness of the bedding by bouncing up and down on it slightly. "Do you have any idea what this is going to do to my back?" he complained.
"Suck it up, McKay," said Ronon, not bothering to look up from his current task.
Rodney narrowed his eyes. "You might be used to these types of conditions, Crocodile Dundee…" he began.
"Who's Crocodile Dundee?" interrupted Ronon, suspiciously, twirling the knife suggestively in his hand.
"Oh, um," the scientist's eyes were drawn to the knife as the blade reflected the light, and suddenly he didn't look happy to have the runner's undivided attention.
Sheppard bailed him out. "You'd like him -- wrestled wild, man-eating beasts with his bare hands."
As the runner grunted and returned to his manicure, the door opened and Teyla entered.
"Nice of you to join us," quipped the Colonel. "Did you have a nice dinner?" Teyla had been invited to dine with Melosh privately while the rest of them had been sent to their assigned hut and fed something that he politely referred to as inedible. Even McKay and Ronon had opted for an MRE and powerbars rather than to eat the odiferous gruel-like substance the natives had provided them.
"Dinner was fine, thank you," said Teyla, moving aside a pack so that she could reach her jacket.
"Where are you going?"
"Melosh wished to show me a nearby spring."
"It's dark out." Sheppard made a grab for his own jacket. "We'll go with."
"I think it would be better if you did not."
He paused. "So you haven't you told him yet?"
"It is not that easy…"
"Sure it is," said Sheppard. "You just say, 'Hey Melosh, you're a great guy but I'm not interested'."
"Or how about 'I just need some space'," Rodney suggested.
"'You're not my type'," volunteered Sheppard.
"'It's not me, it's you'," returned Rodney.
Sheppard frowned at him. "Isn't that supposed to be the other way around?"
"Not the way I usually hear it."
Ronon was still paring his nails, deep in thought. "'You've got better hair than me'."
All three of his teammates turned to stare at him.
"What?" he asked them, his knife pausing momentarily before he returned to his task.
Teyla shook her head. "I do not wish to hurt him."
"Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind," said Sheppard
Rodney looked at him in disbelief. "You're quoting Nick Lowe lyrics now?"
"I don't even want to know how you knew that," replied the colonel.
"Enough!" said Teyla, tired of their banter over what she considered a serious subject. "This is my problem. I will handle it as I believe best." She stormed out the door.
"Teyla," began Sheppard, ready to apologize, but the door slammed in his face. He jerked back a bit, surprised by her show of pique and a little worried that they had gone too far in their teasing.
"Huh, that's new," said Rodney
"What's new?" Sheppard asked grumpily as he sat back down on his cot.
"I'm usually the one getting the door slammed in my face by woman. It's just interesting to see if from a different perspective.
"Shut up, Rodney."