His mouth lowered in regret. “Let’s just say that I know what it’s like to lose people you care for. You’re young yet, and so it’s very hard to fathom, but the pain will fade in time.” When she said nothing, he added, “Do you want to tell me about it?”
If she spoke the truth, would they punish her? Her mother had always taught her that a lie was like theft, for it took from others as surely as stealing. She had given the payment of storytelling to Teyla for bringing her to this marvelous place. No matter the consequence, she must give truth to those who had treated her with such kindness. Truly, no punishment they could mete out could be as bad as what she would face upon her return to Dalera.
They circled each other slowly, warriors of different worlds, each taking the other’s measure in full before committing to the attack. Normally it was Major Sheppard who struck first, but this time it was Teyla, sensing an opportunity and swinging her staffs simultaneously toward his midsection.
Sheppard blocked the first move easily, the second less easily. After a few moments he tired of being on the defensive and spun, crouching low and sweeping one staff out to catch her in the legs. It knocked her off-balance for only a second, but it was enough to shift the momentum of the match in his direction.
That was acceptable. For the moment. Teyla continued to deflect his blows, even as their speed increased and he drove her backward in a wide arc. It would take time, but Teyla was both patient and observant, two traits that she had found useful when facing off against the Major. While he was in good condition, he tended to pour all of his energy into the fight from the start. Eventually he would tire, and his focus would slip, just enough for her to take advantage.
It wasn’t obvious. A flick of his eyes — which had previously been trained on hers. She had faced him sufficient times to recognize it. The moment was coming. There—
Lying on the floor with her foot placed carefully but firmly on his chest, Sheppard cursed under his breath. “Damn it.”
From his observation post on the bench, where he’d been sprawled since his own defeat a few minutes ago, Lieutenant Ford whistled. “That was one slick move.”
Teyla sensed that the Major was caught somewhere between irritation and bemusement at ending up in this position yet again. “Your skills are steadily improving,” she told him, dropping to the floor to sit beside him.
His eyebrow arched in a manner that she had found common to the men of Earth. They often tended to think they were being patronized, regardless of whether or not they indeed were. Despite his knowledge in many things, Dr McKay in particular seemed most susceptible to this.
“Because it took you fifteen minutes to have me flat on my back instead of ten?”
“You expend too much effort too soon.” Teyla smiled. “It inevitably dulls your focus.”
“Holding you off generally requires that much effort,” Sheppard replied in defense. He sent his staffs skittering toward the bench against the wall.
Recognizing his frustration, she folded her legs beneath her, and said, “You like to run along the piers, do you not?”
“I wouldn’t say I like it, but it keeps me in shape.” He pushed himself up on his elbows, watching her. “You’re telling me this is a distance run and not a dash.”
“I am.”
“All right, message received.” There was a note of grudging acceptance in his voice, and she knew he would not disregard her advice.
Teyla enjoyed instructing the members of the Atlantis expedition. Fostering a bridge between their peoples seemed to her a noble pursuit, and many of the Marines had shown real aptitude for the fighting style. In truth, she looked forward to sparring against Major Sheppard the most. He listened and learned on a deeper level, and on occasion his resolve and unpredictability would challenge her in refreshing ways. It was another of his many contradictions.
The Major pushed himself upright, climbed to his feet, and offered her a hand up. “Penny for your thoughts?” he said. Perplexed, Teyla went to speak, but his soft laugh stopped her. “A penny is another form of currency.”
The assigning of a token to the value of goods or services was not new to Teyla. Using such tokens to decide one’s fate was, however, a novel concept. “Is it also used for making decisions?”
If the Major had not been wiping sweat from his brow, she suspected she would have seen his smile. “Not exactly,” he replied, accepting a water bottle from Lieutenant Ford. “You’re still bugged by McKay’s wanting to make the world — well, one world, at least — a better place for all?”
Teyla, too, had accepted a bottle from the Lieutenant. Taking several mouthfuls of water gave her time to consider her reply. “Until the Wraith come.”
“That does kinda have a leveling effect.”
“The Athosians have traded with many worlds. We see no purpose in imposing our ways upon others.” She turned to him. “Is it common for your people to differ widely in their beliefs?”
Sheppard’s lips twisted ruefully. “On Earth there are very few completely unified beliefs about anything. It’s part of our charm.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Ford said quietly. His tone warned Teyla that the Major’s sardonic streak had crept through into his last comment.
“At first, I understood that it was as Dr McKay reminded us in the meeting. Your people came to Atlantis hoping to find ways to defeat an enemy to your world, the Goa’uld.”
“Well, that’s part of it.”
“I had assumed that you had developed a warrior class in order to fight this enemy, but I have since come to understand that few on your planet have knowledge of the Goa’uld. Your battle skills were developed to defend against peoples — nations — on Earth who would impose their will upon one other. Yet you, who are of this warrior class, take the view that it is better to leave the Dalerans to their ways, while Dr McKay, who is not a warrior, believes otherwise.”
Sheppard tilted his head in a restrained shrug. “Rodney’s a theoretical scientist, not an historian.”
“Does your history teach you to respect the ways of others?”
“Not exactly. It records the consequences when people don’t. Studying the history of conflict is required in our military. I’ve also had a couple of chances to see the results of changing regimes firsthand, and I know it’s not pretty. I’m more of a live and let live kinda guy.”
She found that self-assessment fitting. “I have wondered if the Ancestors would approve of such an evolution of their ideas. They would not have desired to be represented as all-powerful, as the Dalerans have come to believe.”
“I wouldn’t bet money on that.”
Disturbed by his remark, Teyla said, “I do not understand.”
The Major hesitated, as if weighing a choice, then charged ahead. “I’m not convinced that the Ancients were wholly benevolent. For one thing, they bailed out on several occasions, either abandoning one galaxy for another, or ascending. And Ascended or unascended, they weren’t exactly concerned about the welfare of those they left behind. They had no problem with trapping and studying that shadow energy being that Jinto found. I mean, that’s tantamount to abandoning a caged animal. And they set up a Stargate on that foggy James Herbert world with no regard for the thousands, possibly millions of the misty little inhabitants the ‘gate killed every time someone used it.”
“Perhaps the Ancestors were unaware—”
His look forestalled her. It seemed most unlikely that the Ancestors had no knowledge of the nature of the life form on M5S-224. Indeed, for what other purpose could the Stargate have existed on that world unless to study the energy beings?
“Based on the reports I’ve read, the Ancients were researching non-corporeal life-forms long before they left our galaxy. After they ascended, they made some cardinal rule about not helping others.”
“That seems…”Her voice trailed off.