Episode Thirteen: Past Problems

[Andy Buchanan]

OOC: nothing like having a crazy man in your team...

1530
Erta
Clearing

"Do you know what?" Andy said as things began to get out of control, "Just who the hell is god around here, anyway?"

Before anybody could say, or do anything to stop him, the young British Army Sergeant had jumped up onto a couple of crates, giving him enough height over the rest of the village to make him very noticeable.

"Right, you lot," he said in a surprisingly well-projected and almost entirely accent-free voice, "I demand that you cease this foolishness and over-reaction at once!" He levelled a finger at the carcass of the sheep which he had discreetly put out of sight. "If you would but give me a moment to explain my actions rather than act with such foolishness, you might fare better in the upcoming months."

Andy's encroaching MPD be praised. He was getting totally into the role of Apollo this time round. Gone was the stuttering hesitation, gone was the shyness and instead, the man standing on the crates could quite easily be mistaken for an imperious 'god'.

"You are all people of the land," he said, aware now that he had most people's attention. "And as such, you must understand that there is life and there is death. And the cycle continues regardless of blessings of the gods or otherwise. The sacred beast's time had come and I requested the assistance of these people - and particularly this brave, noble woman..." At those words, he levelled his finger at Silea and gave her a radiant smile that was part flirtatious, part apologetic. "...to find the beast whose time in this life was full. But do not despair, my people, for I have already blessed another of the flock to bring you good luck and good times. Now cease this squalling at once and begin the celebrations!"

Andy almost fell off the crate at this point, but regained his balance with remarkable aplomb. He continued to look around the village for a moment or two, suddenly coming back down to earth with a bit of a bump.

"Yeah," he finished, rather lamely. "Celebrate and all that."

He half-jumped, half-fell off the crate and slunk off to stand beside the rest of SD-1, his face crimson and his head pounding.

"About that medication, Will," he said, a half-grin on his face. "Maybe we really ought to talk about it..."

<Tag: Y'all>

[Troy Loveridge]

1605
Erta
Village Square

With Andy off hiding the sheep from the agitated villagers, SD-1 and Silea regrouped. "Sir this is not good. Could we have broken some kind of taboo?" Cutty asked. Looking around the crazed mob of villagers, one would guess the team had broken a lot more than that. "Whatever we did Cutty, they don't seem to like it. Stand your ground, but hold fire for the time being." So far the team had seen no evidence of any weapons systems with the village more advanced than the simple bow and arrow, but if they charged, sheer numbers alone might allow them to overrun the team. "Oh frak…this isn’t going to end well…" Will added.

Silea offered her best explanation of the situation. "It appears that this golden sheep was a gift from Apollo to show his favor of the village. They are saying that the other villages will take advantage of them now that they no longer have his favor." Having known the villagers prior to this mission as trading partners, Silea's word was the best they had, and all they had to operate with. "Any way we can get back in their favor?" Troy replied.

Andy returned to the village, having hidden the sheep, and the instant he appeared he drew attention from the ecstatic villagers. "I’m guessing they’re not Apollo fans, here?" Will inquired. Silea took a long look at Andy, then a second. "Remarkable, this is a slight resemblance. I wouldn't have noticed it though, of it wasn't for this. They didn't really see him before, so they are saying that Apollo has manifested to show his displeasure over what has happened. I would say that we should go home, but I have a feeling that you would want to make things right."

Her revelation did explain the reaction of the villagers. None of them had noticed Andy when they'd first entered the village, probably due to the religious fanfare going on at the local shrine. But now he had been spotted, all hell had broken lose. Now I'm seriously considering some plastic surgery for that man..

Taking the initiative, Andy jumped onto a crate, and addressed the startled crowd. "Right, you lot, I demand that you cease this foolishness and over-reaction at once! If you would but give me a moment to explain my actions rather than act with such foolishness, you might fare better in the upcoming months." Slowly, the villagers ceased their fleeing and began to turn and face the engineer, who continued his monologue. "You are all people of the land, and as such, you must understand that there is life and there is death. And the cycle continues regardless of blessings of the gods or otherwise. The sacred beast's time had come and I requested the assistance of these people - and particularly this brave, noble woman...to find the beast whose time in this life was full. But do not despair, my people, for I have already blessed another of the flock to bring you good luck and good times. Now cease this squalling at once and begin the celebrations!"

Jumping down from the crate, he returned to the team, obviously embarrassed by the out-of-character outburst. In response, the villagers had calmed down, and were now quietly whispering among themselves. The Sergeant may very well have diffused the situation, but for how long Troy was unsure. Now the team was faced with another challenge - replacing the slain sheep to confirm with the villagers that the word of 'Apollo' was true.

Lowering his voice, Troy whispered to the team. "Anyone bring some gold spraypaint...?"

< Tag SD-1 >

[Penthesilea]

1606
Erta
Village Square

No matter how outrageous Andy's performance was, it did seem to be working. The villagers seemed to be calming down somewhat, but it did not mean that things were less tense. Silea still had her weapon drawn and would remain that way until they were safely off this planet. She was beginning to feel like traveling with the Tau'ri was more hassle every time. They certainly were magnets for trouble. "I still think we should leave. Before any more harm is done, to them or ourselves." she paused a moment as if thinking, "Mostly them."

"Anyone bring some gold spraypaint...?" Silea looked at Troy with an odd eye. "Surly you jest, you're crazy think we can do that."

[John "Cutty" Cutter]

1606
Erta
Village Square

John stood ready for anything. He listened as Troy and Silea spoke and noted she had drawn a weapon. She had done nothing but help since she had joined them, but John was still suspicious. Remembering their first meeting, he still had some doubts to her sincerity.

He was still upset about Honey heading back to Earth. His mind wandered as he thought of her. He knew she had a better job Earthside, but it made no difference. Besides, he was military personel, and as such, basically property of the US Marine Corps.

<Tag>

[Will O'Malley]

1606
Erta
Village Square

As all seemed to go to hell, Andy raised his voice - calling out to all of them, "Do you know what?" Andy said as things began to get out of control, "Just who the hell is god around here, anyway?"

The fellow BA-man jumped atop some crates, making sure he was balanced before sliding into a monologue.
"Right, you lot," his Welsh accent nearly gone, "I demand that you cease this foolishness and over-reaction at once!" he pointed at the sheep, "If you would but give me a moment to explain my actions rather than act with such foolishness, you might fare better in the upcoming months. You are all people of the land," he said, the eyes of the crowd focused upon Andy, "And as such, you must understand that there is life and there is death. And the cycle continues regardless of blessings of the gods or otherwise. The sacred beast's time had come and I requested the assistance of these people - and particularly this brave, noble woman..." now he pointed at Silea - a look on the man's face that forced Will to conceal a sigh, "...to find the beast whose time in this life was full. But do not despair, my people, for I have already blessed another of the flock to bring you good luck and good times. Now cease this squalling at once and begin the celebrations!"

Apparently caught up in the excitement of his own words - Buchanan nearly fell off the crates - before regaining his composure and concluded, "Yeah," he croaked, sounding more like Andy, "Celebrate and all that."

Hitting the ground beside SD-1, Will's eyebrows were drawn together in slight pity for the man - as the redness overtook Andy's face.

"About that medication, Will," he said, a half-grin on his face. "Maybe we really ought to talk about it..."

O'Malley snickered lightly, his mind dawning on the Andy he had first met on SD-1 months ago - when they both joined the team. They had all changed signifigantly since that time...but Andy's transformation was nearly unfathomable. Part of Will frowned with worry that MPD was starting to come into play...but that couldn't be the case...could it? With MPD, the personalities are normally not-aware of each other. There didn't appear to be any times when Andy looked around - unaware of where he was and what just happened - which was good. That was in favor of him just changing because of his surroundings. A person can't really change - just different parts of their personality are accented louder then others...but what did that mean for Andy? He was amplified Andy. Super Andy. Not that shy and quiet Buchanan he had first met on that rather wet planet.

"Bloody hell, I didn't know you could hide your accent that well," the CMO smirked at his teammate, "I'll only frak around with your meds if you start gnawing on a Zat, or there are blank parts of your memory," Will promised, a new seriousness in his voice.

"I still think we should leave. Before any more harm is done, to them or ourselves." Silea paused, "Mostly them."
"We just accidentally killed their 'gift from Apollo' - I think we should do something to make amends with them...staying on good terms with these people seems like a good idea. They're nice enough, and would probably make a great alley someday," Will paused to think, "Even though they don't have much to benefit us in any way..." he trailed, scratching the back of his neck, "Bah - I don't know..."

"Anyone bring some gold spraypaint...?" Troy asked.
Will shook his head, "Sorry, I left it with my emergency art kit in my other pants."
"Surly you jest, you're crazy think we can do that." Silea quickly shot out.
"Honestly I think we could amaze these people with glitter glue, puffy paint, and jiggly eyes..." Will mumbled in a low voice, "I shoulda brought the Christmas ornament mum sent me..."

<Tag SD-1+Silea>

[Troy Loveridge]

OOC: The mission seems to have gone as lifeless as the sacrificed sheep I'll move us to conclusion, if anyone would like to post after me feel free!

1606
Erta
Village Square

Troy's inquires as to the possible presence of gold spray in the teams field inventory turned up negative. "Sorry," Will replied. "I left it with my emergency art kit in my other pants." The team laughed, but Silea wasn't quite down with the joke. "Surly you jest, you're crazy think we can do that."

She was correct; Troy was in fact joking when he'd made the suggestion, but it did get his mind racing. While literally painting a sheep gold would be a foolhardy plan unlikely to work, the team may just have at it's disposal other means of creating the illusion. At the top of his mental list was the currently prototype Chimera holographic projector device, engineered from Asgard technology, and slated to be presented to the world by Samantha Carter at an upcoming science fair. The technology still wasn't finalized, but it just might be enough...

"One thing you'll soon learn," Troy said, turning to Silea. "Is that crazy is my middle name.... well, actually it's Francis, but you get the point." Having said this, Troy was unsure if the expression would be lost on the Amazonian Queen. Next to him, Will continued to hypothesize their decorated sheep. "Honestly I think we could amaze these people with glitter glue, puffy paint, and jiggly eyes... I shoulda brought the Christmas ornament mum sent me..."


1924
Erta
Clearing

Hours later - after much divine talking from Sergeant 'Apollo' Buchanan - the team guided the villagers of Erta back into the clearing where they'd slain the golden sheep. Covertly, a team from the Delta Site had commuted through the gate, cleared the site of the blood spatter from the spear, and from a concealed location nearby, were controlled the Chimera holographic projector.

Coming into the clearing, the team was met with both the village of the holographic sheep standing proudly in the middle of the clearing, and the cries of relief from the once startled villagers. By the looks of it, someone had dragged the lead sheep from the Babe DVD into the projected, and moved the color settings to make it appear to bear a golden hue. Trying to contain his building laughter, Troy tried to not imagine a small singing pig walking into the clearing...

< Tag SD-1 >

[Penthesilea]

1924
Erta
Clearing


Silea smiled admirably, for they had done a good job of getting out of a messy situation. And this was a great start in bring her people closer to the Tau’ri. It would take small steps to undo past wrongs on both parts. Silea could tell that some on SD-1 still did not trust her, and really the feeling was sort of mutual. She knew this mission would have been a lot harder if some of the team had been here. Like Hatfield, as she recalled his name. She still had a grudge with him over what he did when their peoples first met, and she had to admit she did miss seeing the woman with the sunshine hair.

Since she had done what was asked of her, by introducing the Ertans to SD-1, she bid them good-bye, as she left though the Stargate back to Nemea.

2000
Nemea
Amazon Camp

She knew something was wrong when she saw the smoke coming from the camp. A couple Nemeans were on their way there and stopped for her. ”Hail, Penthesilea. We wondered if you had left with the others for you were not part of the dead.” one had said. Silea was very confused, ”What has happened?” she asked, greatly concerned over the ‘dead’ part. ”There was an uprising among your people. One of our own was there and escaped. She said that more than enough Amazons talked about their displeasure of being here and took advantage of your absence. It was Cleite that started it, she said to the others that were loyal to you that they could either join or die. Some remained loyal until the end. We’ve been busy trying to put out the fire. Not much is left of your village.”

Silea took this new with great sadness and said some words to herself in honour of those that were loyal and died for it. ”Do you know where Cleite planned to go?” she asked, she remembered that it was Cleite herself that convinced her to leave and go on this mission with the Tau’ri. A silent fire burned within her that would unleash the next she saw the traitor. ”No, she wouldn’t say. They just left.”

Silea thought of what she was to do, she could go after Cleite by herself, and the others that had goen with her. No, she was alone. No longer a Queen.

Silea helped with the cleanup of what was left of her village and took shelter in the nearest Neman village. Tomorrow, she would call up the Tau’ri with a proposition. There was much she had to offer them, and she needed them just as much. No matter how dismal her life seemed at the moment, she would never give up.


(OOC: There's my bit....kinda explains why she stays with you guys on the next mission...hehe....hope its ok....:BIC)