Chapter Three
Gereth and his people had prepared a meal for the visitors, and the atmosphere seemed calm, if a little uncertain on both sides. Despite the stiff breeze, the assembled villagers and guests ranged themselves around the camp-like fire in the middle of the settlement. Elizabeth seemed to have struck up a rapport with Gereth, although the man kept looking warily at the other members of the team.
Suddenly, Gereth lifted the wooden platter in front of him – he'd eaten his food from it – and with a brief roar, he flipped it upside down and threw it on the ground in front of him. Rodney almost shrieked, and the rest of the team were definitely startled. Sheppard gripped his P90 firmly, and Ronon's hand reached to his thigh. Gereth stared at them all for a moment, and then let out a roar of laughter.
"Behesh! Iktu, behesh!" he laughed, clapping his hands together and then holding them out widely in an embracing gesture. His eyes flashed wildly, and he stood up. Gesturing to the guests and the food, he nodded, "Iktu. Behesh."
Sheppard glanced at the others, and then grinned, and nodded at Gereth. "Thanks. Lovely meal." Gereth nodded and laughed. Everyone relaxed a little, and Rodney took a deep breath, reaching out cautiously to grip Elizabeth's hand for a moment.
Gereth put his hand on Sheppard's shoulder, and pulled a little. "Chikwa, merec latu neeshwa."
Sheppard frowned, and licked his lips warily as other villagers put hands on Teyla and Ronon.
Gereth pointed to the other end of the village and made an arch with his hands. "Merec latu neeshwa." He beckoned the standing Sheppard, Teyla and Ronon to follow him. Rodney and Elizabeth made to stand, but other hands pushed them back.
"Inifra wayma," Gereth stated, holding an upheld palm towards Rodney and Elizabeth, "Latu jinwa." He turned and started walking away, other villagers prompting Sheppard, Teyla and Ronon to move.
"I think he wants to take us to the cave!" Shepard called. "Give us four hours, OK, Rodney?"
Rodney flapped a bit, still pinned by the deterrent of a villager beside him, "Yeah, four hours. Gotcha." He made a couple of involuntary attempts to get up and stay with the others, but seeing Elizabeth sitting calmly, he took another deep breath and slumped on his log seat.
"What are we supposed to do now? Why didn't Gereth take us all?" Rodney rubbed his thumbs over his forefingers nervously.
Elizabeth smiled reassuringly. "Perhaps only a certain number of people can enter the caves. Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be fine. We'll just…" she glanced at the stony-faced villagers around her, "We'll just sit tight."
A sudden flash of lightening caused everyone to glance up at the ever-darkening skies, then a huge clap of thunder crackled around them.
"Oh great. Another storm." Rodney sighed, shivering in the ever-strengthening wind.
Elizabeth was about to reply diplomatically, when she and Rodney felt strong arms on them, hauling them off their seats. They both began to protest and struggle a little, attempting to free themselves, but the arms grew stronger and Rodney found himself with one arm pinned behind his back.
"Sheppard! We're being kidnapped or something! Get back here!" Rodney began to shout into his radio, but one of the villagers grabbed the headset and threw it on the ground.
"What's going on? Get your hands off us!" Elizabeth demanded, but the villagers were dragging them to the outskirts of the settlement and beyond. Rodney could only growl as they were led towards a small hut outside the boundary of the village, and thrown through the open door. The strong arms quickly bound the door shut - at least, Rodney found he could not open the door, and he and Elizabeth were alone inside the bare structure.
Rubbing his arms, Rodney shouted at the door, "Let us out, you… peasants! You won't get away with this!" He turned, to see Elizabeth tapping her earpiece.
"Colonel Sheppard? Can you hear me? This is Weir." She cocked her head to one side, but they came no reply.
"Oh, they've got us all sewn up!" Rodney shouted. "Sheppard and the others will be trussed like chickens, and we'll be left here to rot." He began pacing. "This is so typical."
"Rodney." Elizabeth said calmly, "Come here. Shouting and pacing won't do us any good. We need to figure something out." She held out a hand to him, and Rodney eyed it suspiciously. He sighed.
"Yeah… OK… you're right. We need to think." Rodney crossed the gap between them and wrapped his arms around her. He took another deep breath, "Sorry. Damn, you shouldn't have been involved in this." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, and ran a hand through the thick locks of hair at her collar. "Why didn't we see this coming?"
Elizabeth shrugged, and snuggled closer into Rodney's embrace. "Perhaps my presence has something to do with it."
Rodney pulled away until he could see her hazel-green eyes, "No, no, no, no, no. I'm sure it wasn't anything to do with you being here." He kissed her, fast and firm. "Could be something to do with the storm."
Elizabeth smiled and nodded. "Yes. That could be it. We…" She paused, and sniffed. "Rodney…" her voice held panic.
TBC