Set in the city center, the capital didn't look all that different from the surrounding structures, size notwithstanding. The same perfectly aligned beams-just a lot more of them. Their clean, elegant lines reminded John of a long-ago assignment in the Far East.
After the wagon came to a halt beside the sprawling capital, the warriors disembarked, and the Atlantis team followed their lead. John reached out to grab the back of Rodney's vest when the scientist performed a less than flawless dismount.
"I will inform Cestan of your presence," said Kellec, with a slight bow of his head. "In the meantime, Merise will show you to the training field. Our warrior apprentices are working on an exercise which you may find interesting."
The chief warrior vanished into the capital through a set of double doors, leaving John and his team to look to Merise for direction. The earlier drama at the Hall of Tribute came to mind. They weren't going to just waltz into the seat of leadership without so much as a question about their weapons, were they?
She made no attempt to disarm them, though. Instead, offering only a "follow me," she led them up a stone walkway to another entrance. Once inside, John was again impressed by the level of detail in the decor, from the carved patterns along the walls to the woven mats on the floors. As they walked, some of the warriors left the group, until only two remained to share guide duty with Merise.
"Kellec mentioned the training field," Ronon said. "Is this place the headquarters of your military as well as your government?"
Judging by her expression, Merise didn't quite understand the question. "Governor Cestan is here, and the warriors serve the governor. What use would we be were we elsewhere?"
"So you all live and train here, in this capital building?" John asked.
He received a nod in reply. "Is it different for your people?"
Come to think of it, it wasn't, at least not on Atlantis.
Two flights of stairs and another door led them onto a long balcony overlooking an open courtyard in the middle of the complex. On a neatly-trimmed grass field that could have stood in for any parade ground John had ever seen, about two dozen men and women worked with whips. They completed a prescribed set of motions in perfect sync, similar to the way Teyla began her staff-fighting classes.
"How very lion-tamer Zen," Rodney observed, already sounding impatient. "How long is your governor likely to be? Because we-"
"Cool it, Rodney," John cut him off, giving Merise an apologetic look. "I take it these are new recruits?"
The Falnori showed no reaction to either John's attempt at tact or Rodney's lack thereof. "They are soldiers who have proven their ability and loyalty, and therefore have been selected to become warriors. Few are chosen for such a high honor."
So the whip-wielders they'd met were the elite troops. John wondered what kinds of weapons the rank and file carried.
"Ali." The first glimmer of a smile graced Merise's features as she looked over the railing. "They are about to begin."
In the courtyard, the apprentices had started setting up a row of body-sized bolts of cloth. Training dummies, probably. As the others watched, one apprentice stepped up to face a dummy, holding his whip out to his side, away from his body. All of a sudden, he seemed more focused-and more apprehensive. John leaned forward on the railing, his curiosity tweaked.
In a blur of motion, the whip blazed through the air, striking the dummy with a sharp crack-and the cloth was consumed by a blinding flash.
"Holy-" John jerked back in shock. Below, the apprentices whistled and clapped their comrade on the back. Only a pile of loose ash remained where the dummy had stood.
Rodney's mouth opened and closed twice before any actual sound came out. "How the hell did that happen?" he finally managed.
Either John was imagining things, or Merise looked just a bit smug. "It is a difficult skill to master," she commented. "You can understand why we would not entrust it to all of our soldiers."
For once, Ronon looked well and truly impressed. "The end of the whip can be lit."
"No." Rodney was using his surrounded-by-idiots voice again. Combined with his obvious astonishment at what he'd just witnessed, it made for an odd tone. "Simply flicking a lighter couldn't do that. It didn't burn conventionally at all. It's like the dummy was instantly incinerated."
"An electric charge?" John suggested.
"Better, but still woefully inadequate. No electric charge strong enough to put out that kind of heat could be packaged that way. The whip is so small, and there would have to be some method of controlling it…" Rodney's eyes fell to the whip at Merise's belt, and he paled. "God-you could have taken my hand off with that thing earlier!"
Now the warrior's expression was downright cunning. "If I had so chosen, I could have done much more."
A little late, John got the picture. They hadn't been brought up here just to kill time. This was a demonstration, and a none-too-subtle message.
Swallowing convulsively, Rodney said, "Okay, good to know. Thanks for, ah, restraining yourself."
Another apprentice faced the next dummy squarely, fingers alternately flexing and curling around the handle of her whip. Her thumb flicked against the handle, creating a barely-detectable hum in the air, just before she lashed out. Again, the dummy went up in smoke. Triumphant, the apprentice released the apparent on-off switch before returning the whip to her belt.
"Some kind of superheating effect," Rodney mumbled to himself, watching with equal parts awe and alarm. "The power requirements alone-"
"I see you have been fully introduced to our war„Hors.
The voice was resonant and originated from somewhere behind them. Everyone turned, the warriors bowing low.
"Governor," Merise murmured, her gaze downcast.
Cestan was, strangely enough, more powerfully built than most of his warriors. His black hair, graying at the temples, almost reached his shoulders, and he stood a couple of inches taller than John. Not as tall as Ronon, though, which was somehow reassuring.
"I welcome you to Falnor," the governor greeted as the warriors rose and moved to flank him. "Kellec tells me that you have come through the Stargate."
"We have." John went through the introductions again, and Cestan acknowledged each team member with a nod. "We got off to a bad start, what with the trespassing in the Hall and everything, so we'd like to formally apologize for that."
"I believe your error can be forgiven." Fixing John with a probing gaze, Cestan clasped his hands in front of him, placidly ignoring the surprise displayed by his warriors. "If you did not knowingly cause offense."
"We did not," Teyla hurried to assure him. "We had no knowledge of your people's existence, let alone your customs. We intended to explore the facility in search of technology we believe may be present inside."
"Specifically, an energy source," Rodney jumped in. At least he hadn't mentioned weapons right off the bat. "You know the one. You're already using it."
John blinked, not sure what had prompted that leap of logic.
"It's a reasonable conclusion," Rodney insisted when the rest of the group stared at him. "Those whips are powered by something I don't recognize, something that's messing with my scans the same way the transport in the Hall did."
Only then did John notice that the scanner hanging unobtrusively at the scientist's side was active. When he put his mind to it, Rodney could be pretty damned sneaky.
Fortunately, their host didn't appear insulted. "You speak of the adarite," he said simply.
"Adarite?" Ronon repeated.
"An ore found in the mountains. To our knowledge, it is unique to this world." Cestan glanced from the crazily flashing scanner to Rodney's face and back again. "Kellec did say that you were children of the Ancestors, as we are," he mused. "I admit that I did not fully believe it until now."