Rodney woke slowly. He had no recollection of going to sleep, or of laying down for that matter, but this didn't alarm him. What alarmed him was the way his eyes felt like grit, how his skin was like crinkled paper, and he came to the conclusion that his body was best used by someone else. There was no way he would be able to rise, and yet he did, forcing himself up on one hand while trying to adjust his vision to the sight around him. His shirt was missing. He rubbed at his bare chest in miserable disgust, winced, and raised one arm. That was enough for him to plant it firmly to his side and groan, feeling depressed that he was awake and that it was just too damn hot to go back to sleep. Of course freeing himself from this place would be easy enough, he just had to go to what passed as the town square and expose his pits.

There was a rustle, and a dark man entered, the one that had spoken with Sheppard during their little hike. He smiled, his white teeth gleaming, and gave a nod while holding up one finger. Rodney didn't move, just frowned. A bucket appeared, maybe four centimeters deep with water. A small flask appeared beside it.

Rodney wasted no time. He downed the flask, and contemplated downing the bucket as well, but an odd odor stopped him. He dipped his hands in, assumed the odor was some sort of soap, and cleaned himself as best he could. It was unfortunate that his pants seemed to be missing as well, so were his boxers for that matter, but he decided he was too hot for clothing anyway, and had absolutely no desire to go out into the sun. Naked in his tent was fine for him.

At least until Sheppard arrived. He crouched under the flap and entered without warning. "Hey, good, you're . . . whoa!" Bare skin flashed as Sheppard turned back to the flap quickly, hearing Rodney snatch up the pitiful excuse for a sheet he'd apparently slept under and wrap it around his lower body. "You're . . . up."

"Yeah."

"Good." He turned back slowly, as if fearing a lie. "They're gonna bring you some clothes."

"Where's ours?"

"Dunno. You get some wonderful threads, though." Sheppard smiled and pulled at his cotton-hemp-looking shirt and pants. "Good color. Seems to be all the rage."

"Or that's the only material on entire the planet." He eyed the white cloth, which was identical to the dress of their captors, or whatever they were.

Sheppard nodded and stepped aside as Rodney's own clothing arrived, neither man surprised to see the identical loose pants, shirt and robe. He obediently faced away while Rodney dressed.

"So . . ." Rodney said over the shuffling, "any clue why were here and not back repairing the jumper?"

"Not really, no."

"I guess walking back is out of the question."

"I'm thinking so."

Rodney nodded and stood there. Sheppard faced him, and stood there.

They both stood for quite a while.

Sheppard broke the silence. "I don't think they're coming back for us."

"Should we go out then?" He sounded like he really didn't want to.

"As much as I love the summer, this heat is a bit much."

"We should find out where we are though."

"We should."

"You're being very non-committal."

"That's because there's something very sharp poking in my back." Sheppard slowly shifted his weight to one side, and a tall man stepped in. He held a large staff with a pointed end, made of some sort of wood. The pointed end was not, and it was held closer to Sheppard than his comfort zone allowed.

"I see you have cleaned. Food will be presented shortly. You may have only one bowl for now, but two when Mira has descended for Moshna to cleanse the sky." This man was new to them, and his deep voice was resonant and soothing, making an odd contrast to the weapon he was holding.

"Moshna – what?" Rodney stared in confusion, his limited patience showing.

"You will see. Now, you must follow me."

"No," Sheppard said, his eyes glued to the weapon that no longer threatened, but hovered, "what we really need is to get back to our ship. We crash landed, I guess," he sent Rodney a pointed look, "I didn't mean to shoot at you, I just thought . . . look, why don't you just let us go back to our ship, we can repair it, and get out of your hair before Moshna . . . cleanses the sky."

"You know what that is?" Rodney whispered.

"I'm guessing he means that huge moon," Sheppard muttered. "Stands to reason we get one meal in the day, and two afer the work is done."

"Right. Of course."

Sheppard raised his brows, waiting for an answer.

The large man pulled his already substantial height even taller. "It is not possible."

"Why not?"

"We have need of you. You can be of great service to us."

"Yeah, I think you're looking for something similar to a voluntary action. Now granted, there has been voluntary action, but it seems to be all on your part."

The man tilted his head slightly. "You talk very strangely." There was a tinge of humor in his voice.

"Well, you . . . actually sound like you're from South Africa or something, which is a bit disturbing seeing as how we're in another . . . never mind. Look, all I want to know is what's going on here. We deserve that at least, right?"

The man considered, and gave a nod. He slowly lowered himself onto a mat in the corner of the tent, setting his weapon to his side. Other than some sort of wooden box and Rodney's makeshift bed, the mat was the only object in the room. "You are obviously not from here, therefore it is quite possible you have not heard of our plight." He nodded to the flap that concealed the activity outside. "This is Satureen. It is the largest seeker colony founded by the Tal'Ran."

Sheppard joined McKay, who was now sitting on his bed. He winced at the stiffness of it. "And the Tal'Ran are . . ."

"They are the governing body."

"I though Tal'Ran was the name for the trenches."

"Everything is Tal'Ran. Tal'Ran is everything."

"How very zen of you." Rodney broke in, and leaned forward impatiently. "Exactly what do you expect us to do here?"

He looked surprised. "It is a seeker colony. You will help us find water, of course."

Rodney leaned back and slapped his legs. "OH, yeah. Right." He jerked his thumb. "Unfortunately I left my divining rod back in the jumper, so if you'll just let me, uh . . ."

"You will remain here." The musical voice boded no argument.

"Yeah." He pressed his lips together and rubbed his leg nervously.

Sheppard clasped his hands together, which wasn't easy considering the long sleeves he now sported, and leaned forward. "Listen, there's no reason why we can't just help you. We have the means to search this entire planet for water, if you'll let us."

The man's eyes darkened in distrust. "Many have said that. A few have tried. Those that tried raped our planet and made circumstance more difficult for us. We must choose our help wisely."

"I understand, but we can . . ."

"You will work, as we do. You will sweat with us. You will dig, and you will go underground. If you prove to be vigilant, we will accept your offer."

It was the odd twist of a helpful offer that Sheppard couldn't quite get his head around. "And what if the offer no longer stands?"

"Then you will die here, under Mira's rule."

"Oh come on, that's hardly fair!" Rodney exclaimed.

"Mira will decide. She governs all life."

"Okay, I'm assuming Mira's the sun, or suns," Rodney muttered to Sheppard. "Doesn't help our case much, though."

Sheppard wasn't finished trying. "What makes you so sure someone will come looking for us, anyway?"

"You have said so. In your actions."

"You were convinced from the moment you saw us."

He gave a nod. "Your kind will search for you."

"We could be thousands of light years from our kind."

"That is a short range ship. Your kind is nearby."

"Well, maybe we're fugitives." Rodney took a stance and tilted his chin importantly. "Maybe they don't want us back."

"Again, judging by your discarded clothing, no. You are not fugitives."

He deflated. "So we're hostages."

The man stood. "We need help, and we are running out of time. When your people find you, we will talk. They will help us in exchange for your lives."

"Look, if this search is for water for a dying people, I already said . . ."

"And I said we will talk more when your people arrive. Now please, follow me."