Chapter 23: You were supposed to be back hours ago!
I have to say that sharing dinner with the nobles of that planet was possibly the most disgusting display of decadence and ... well poor table manners that I'd ever seen. The villagers clearly lacked a sufficient diet and I was outraged at the appalling waste I could see before me. I was seated beside the Lord Protector's son Tavius and John was sitting opposite me beside his daughter Mara. That was in line with what I'd discussed with John earlier which just made me feel all the more apprehensive. Interestingly, although Otho was present, he did not sit at the table with the royal court. The division of classes on the planet was blatantly clear, between the villagers and those who lived in the Tower but also within the Tower itself.
"I've never heard of anyone called Lieutenant Colonel before," Mara flirted outrageously with John even though she knew he was unavailable. "What does it mean?"
"It's not his name, you simpleton. It's his rank," Tavius said derogatively. Tavius gave no outward sign that he was interested in anything about me.
"My apologies," Mara said in embarrassment.
"That's alright," John excused. "Don't usually stand on ceremony anyway. How about you just call me John?" John looked across at me with an expression that clearly begged for me to get him out of there. I shrugged in response – he was the one who'd thought we should try to blend in.
"Alright, John," Mara smiled again. She was so ... sweet it was making me sick. I glared across at her but she seemed oblivious to my mood – perhaps Mara wasn't quite as dumb as she was making out.
"It's obvious to anyone with eyes to see that you're a military man," Tavius said with an air of distaste. "I find it ... odd that you would bring your wife on what is clearly a military assignment."
"I'm not just his wife," I replied on my own behalf. "I could demonstrate ... if you don't mind being beaten by a woman." I smiled fiercely, amused when Tavius looked horrified at the idea. He turned back to John, clearly still wanting to get across whatever point he was trying to make.
"You being military makes me wonder," Tavius said condescendingly. "Why is it you question the actions of my father's soldiers? Do you not agree that discipline is necessary?"
"I guess I just don't think whipping people is a good motivator," John drawled, appearing unaffected when a few people around the table laughed.
"The villagers are mindless brutes," Tavius stated. "They understand nothing else."
"Maybe 'cause they've never known anything else," John pointed out.
"I don't think that any of us would deny that the peasants can be difficult," the Lord Protector spoke for the first time. "But how much worse would it be if they fell victim to the Wraith?"
"You protect 'em with these, uh, lights," John took the opportunity to find out more about their command of the cities defence systems. "Like the one that hit the village today?"
"Of course," the Lord Protector replied.
"Where do they come from?" John asked him curiously.
"The Lord Protector calls them forth with his mind," Tavius bragged mysteriously.
"But from where?" John persisted. "I mean, they rise up from the ground, but has anybody bothered to go down there and check it out?"
"You mean the catacombs?" Mara asked distastefully.
"Yeah," John turned back to look at her. "Whatever you call them."
"They're dark and filthy," Mara protested with a grimace. "Why would anyone want to go down there?"
The Lord Protector suddenly grasped his stomach, gasping and groaning in pain. Otho hurried to him and assisted him to his feet - Mara also jumped up from the table and ran around to her father. Only Tavius seemed unaffected by his fathers' plight.
Otho ordered the servants to take the Lord Protector to his quarters, despite his protests that it was nothing. John walked over to Otho and they watched the Lord Protector leave the room.
"What's wrong with him?" John asked in apparent concern.
"He will be alright," Otho carefully neglected to actually answer the question. "It isn't the first time this has happened." Otho then turned and followed the Lord Protector out of the room.
Back in our room, I threw myself onto my stomach tiredly across the bed. "That was the most ... disgusting display I ever hope to see," I said hotly. "Did you see all that food ... and the villagers practically starving to death! It's a disgrace!"
"It is," John agreed. "And there's nothing we can do about it right now."
"I know," I rolled over onto my back and stared up at the ceiling. "What now?" I looked over at John.
John approached the bed and leant across me with his weight on his palms. He kissed first one side of my lips and then the other before moving down and stringing kisses across the cleavage revealed by my dress.
"Much as I'd like to let you enjoy this dress for a bit longer," I said breathlessly, "there's no way I'm doing anything remotely like this here. The door is made out of fabric and they could be watching us."
"True," John threw himself onto his back next to me. "In which case it'll look strange if we don't ... you know."
"Good point," I agreed, turning my head just in time to see the surprised look on his face. "So we should pretend we're all snuggled down here and when it seems everyone has gone to bed I can sneak out and search the lower levels of the city."
"No way," John sat up abruptly and looked down at me. "You are not searching the city alone."
"This is an Ancient city," I pointed out the obvious, "as big as Atlantis. I haven't come across anything new on the Wraith telepathy project in weeks and now here I am in a place that could very well hold the clues we're looking for. I can't pass up that opportunity!"
"Why do I always find myself doing this?" John asked tiredly, watching me get up and start unlacing my boots.
"Because you know I'm right and you just don't want to admit it," I replied. "You have to stay here anyway because I have no doubt Mara is gonna be coming to the door in a short while to proposition you."
"Doesn't that bother you?" John asked curiously.
"Do you have any inclination to take her up on the offer?" I looked at him seriously.
"God no!" John shuddered in distaste.
"Then no, it doesn't bother me," I replied. "Although I have to admit I'm a little insulted that Tavius had absolutely no interest in me or my ATA genes."
"Ah well," John admitted innocently. "That might have had something to do with the fact that I threatened him with bodily harm if he so much as breathed on you."
"You didn't," I laughed when John nodded almost proudly. "I wish I'd thought of that! I guess you'll just have to tell Mara we had a fight or something and I went somewhere else to sleep. And if you can find out something about what they're really up to bringing us here before you throw her out that'd be good."
"Yes Ma'am," John drawled, amused at my commanding tone.
"Now get me out of this dress," I turned and presented the back zippered section to him.
"Words I live to hear," he joked.
We had settled ourselves together on the bed for an hour before I judged it safe to leave the room. After kissing John quickly in farewell I made a production out of storming from the room with an angry expression. Once I'd made it past the main sections they seemed to occupy I targeted the same location where Rodney had found our weapon's research inventory and headed off. I was unhappy to discover that the transporters were not powered. Without them it was going to be a long walk.
The layout of this city was exactly the same as Atlantis – once I'd arrived at the right lab I attempted to use the gene to gain access but I wasn't surprised when it remained closed. There was no power getting to this section of the city either but it had been worth a try. I pulled my pack off my back and took out the portable power generator I'd been bringing to Rodney. Prying open the door control cover I changed the positions of two control crystals and then connected the power cables to each. I then used the third control to cross the other two and was rewarded when the door powered up and grated open.
Taking out my torch I shone it into the room from the open doorway.
"Damn," I thought in frustration. It was empty. Okay, time for plan B which was to look for the room where the Wraith weapon had been on Atlantis. I didn't expect to find another one of those here but hopefully some other equally powerful research project had been conducted from that room. Quickly packing up my gear I headed out for an even longer journey down to the depths of the city.
I'd jogged most of the way but it still took me over an hour to get there. If I didn't hurry it would be morning before I made it back to John.
I tried the same technique to open the door but this time it didn't work. I tried a few other things before realising that I needed some help from Rodney. I also realised that it was morning and I wasn't going to make it back to John in time.
"John," I whispered into my radio.
"Sabina, where are you?" John demanded harshly. "You were supposed to be back hours ago!"
"None of the transporters had power," I explained. "I had to hike down here and it's a long way."
"Get your arse back up here right now," John ordered.
"I need more time," I said. "I'm here now so it's pointless for me to return without actually getting into the room."
"You didn't even get in yet?" John asked incredulously.
"This is the second location I tried," I excused. "Besides, I'd like to see you come down here and open these doors when there's no power!"
"What do you need?" John asked briskly.
"I need Rodney" I requested. "Do you know where he is?"
"He's on his way to the city via an outside entrance," John reported. "If you hurry you should be able to get him on the radio before he gets too far."
"Okay," I said thankfully. "Do you think you can stall until I can make it back up there?"
"I'll have to, won't I?" John said grimly. "Just be careful and check in with me in an hour."
"Rodney," I called on the radio. "Do you read?"
"Sabina," Rodney said impatiently. "Where are you, cause I could really use those things I asked for right about now?"
"I'm in the city, standing outside the door that on Atlantis hid the Wraith weapon," I said quickly. "I could really use your help."
"Couldn't everyone," Rodney complained. "I don't think I can make it to your location from here – what do you need?"
"I powered up the door and manipulated the crystals just like you showed me," I explained, "but the door just won't open."
"Okay, tell me what else you see inside the door control panel," Rodney demanded.
I described them as best I could, enough for Rodney to be able to talk me through a different method for getting in. It still didn't work but then I thought of putting my hand on the sensor pad too – the door opened right away after that.
"Thanks Rodney," I said happily.
"If there's nothing else I've got to lower myself into a dark hole now, hoping that an earthquake doesn't bury me alive," Rodney complained.
"Good luck with that," I called out before signing off. I shone my torch inside this room and gasped when I realised it was exactly the same as the one on Atlantis, complete with giant wall puzzle.
"Ah crap!" I said aloud. I was much more proficient in Ancient now, to the point that I could read most of the writing without having to pour over a bunch of books. This would still take me at least an hour though so I radioed back to John early to let him know.
"You've got a bit of time," John said. "Beckett's coming to look at the Lord Protector. Don't touch anything that looks anything like that Wraith weapon," John ordered.
"I won't," I agreed fervently.
An hour later I had a translation written out and I'd decided which symbols needed to be turned. It was a lot harder to do by myself but eventually I turned the last circle into position and was rewarded by the sound of the wall sliding open.
Torch at the ready I cautiously looked inside, relieved that the room didn't contain another wraith weapon. There was a long table in the middle of the room that was empty save a familiar circular device.
"Yes!" I punched the air happily. Pulling out the second empty pack I'd brought along just in case I carefully packed the device inside. Tidying up the rest of my gear I shouldered both packs and pulled out my radio to report in to John.
"John? ... John do you read? ... Colonel Sheppard do you copy?" Feeling worried that John hadn't responded I tried next to contact Rodney. Also no response. What was going on?
Running out of the room I started the long journey back up to the main level of the city. "Ronan, Teyla, do you copy?" I called as I continued running.
"Sabina," Teyla acknowledged immediately. "Are you with Colonel Sheppard?"
"No," I replied. "I was hoping you were in contact with him."
"No," Teyla replied. "We lost contact some minutes ago and have been unable to raise Doctor McKay either."
"I'm on my way back up to the Gateroom level," I said. "I'll let you know if I find out anything."
Realising that John had somehow gotten himself into trouble again, I increased the pace as much as I was able, clutching my radio in my hand. I'd made it back to the populated area and was surprised that no one seemed to be around.
Since I hadn't been able to talk to John I wasn't sure whether he'd been able to find out what was really going on with the ATA gene. So when I saw the room full of scrolls and books I decided it was worth a quick look around. Many of the scrolls were about genealogy – they'd traced back the royal family twenty generations and documented the presence and strength of the ATA gene as well as all the matches that had been made to ensure the gene survived.
On scroll in particular caught my attention. It was a copy of an earlier text when the Ancients had only just deserted the city to rejoin Atlantis at the height of the war. One of the Ancients had documented the successful integration of the gene into the general population. Before I could read any more John's voice finally came through my radio – he was trying to contact Rodney. I hadn't realised how tense I'd been about his situation until I felt myself relax when it sounded like he was okay.
"Rodney, come in," John requested.
"Sheppard," Rodney said in surprised delight. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," John dismissed the concern. "Listen, I need you to pull the ZPM and cut the power right away or Ronon and Teyla are dead."
"I already know all that," Rodney replied. "Look, unfortunately I'm cut off from the ZedPM."
"There's gotta be something you can do," John insisted.
"Yeah, I'm workin' on it!" Rodney protested.
"Well, work faster!" John demanded impatiently.
"John?" I broke into the conversation to report in.
"Sabina, what's your position?" John asked briskly.
"I'm in Otho's office, near the Control Room," I replied. "What do you want me to do?"
"Get as close to the Control Room as you can without being detected," John instructed. "I'll meet up with you once I've done one more thing."
"Acknowledged," I said, reluctantly turning off my radio just in case it gave away my position. I thought about just reading the rest of the scroll first but I wasn't sure how long John would be and he tended to get ... grumpy when it was obvious I'd done what he asked only after I'd finished what I'd been doing. Instead I rolled the scroll back up and stuck it in my pack to read back on Atlantis ... I could always return it later if we established a trade agreement with the royal family.
I peaked around the corner and discovered that the corridor leading to the Control Room was just as deserted as the rest of the populated area had been. I made my way cautiously forward until I could spy the room without being seen. As luck would have it something was going on in the throne room below and no one was in the Control Room either.
I crept to the edge and looked down to see Otho reclined in the command chair with his eyes closed. What the hell had John been thinking giving that guy the ATA gene therapy?! The room began to shake and I wondered exactly what plan John and Rodney had come up with. Otho was still concentrating on something when the power cut out and the chair returned to its upright position. He looked around in bewilderment just as John, Carson and Mara walked in.
"You," Otho accused. "This is your doing." He turned to the guards and yelled "Seize them!"
"You're only Lord Protector if you can control the Chair," John reminded everyone in the room as he walked towards Otho. "You said it yourself. It's over." John turned to the members of the court and added "you don't have to bow down to this man, or Tavius, or anyone else."
I watched in disbelief as behind John's back Otho pulled a knife from his belt.
"John!," I jumped up and yelled. "Behind you!"
Otho ran towards John with the knife extended. John turned just in time and ducked away. Otho turned and slashed at Johns middle but John jumped backwards to avoid the blow. Otho tried again but this time John grabbed his wrist with one hand and ripped the knife out of Otho's hand, slashing Otho across the palm in the process. Otho cried out in pain as John stood ready to defend the next attack. Otho looked down at the blood rapidly appearing on his palm and then up at John.
"Tavius was right about one thing," he smiled at John. "I do have a fair knowledge of poisons." His knees buckled and he collapsed to the floor, obviously dead.
It was easy after that to extradite ourselves out of the royal court and reunite with the rest of team Sheppard. Mara and Tavius stepped forward to provide some leadership until the long term governing of the city and surrounding villages could be agreed on. John managed to secure a deal for drones and Jumpers in exchange for medicine and the promise of future help.
We'd packed everything into the Jumper and were all set to head off for Atlantis before anyone remembered to ask me whether I'd been successful.
"Did you find anything?" Rodney asked curiously.
"Not much," I said unhappily, pausing before continuing with a grin. "Only another weapons research inventory device!"
"Well done," Teyla congratulated me.
"Well let's hope it's got something different on it than the one we've already got," I replied.
"Did I tell you I got drones and Jumpers?" John tried to brag to Rodney, part of their ongoing battle for supremacy.
"Yes you did," Rodney said snidely, "about twenty times already."
"I got the throne too," John teased. "Turned it down of course."
"And what about the girl, did you get her too?" Rodney forgot himself, flushing red when he saw the look I was directing at him. "I mean ..." he trailed off miserably.
"Already got one of those," John beamed at Rodney happily, enjoying his discomfort. "Did I tell you about the dress?"
"Yes!" we all chorused, just as John flew the Jumper through the Stargate.
Authors Note:
And there ends The Tower - I know Rodney said he was cut off but clearly he had access to many areas and it doesn't seem inconceivable that Sabina would have had access from within the Tower too.
For the next four chapters I've kind of written my own episode (says with some trepidation) ... I'll be editing and posting it tomorrow. Thanks for reading!