“Can we put a hold on the extreme pessimism until we actually get to the site?” Sheppard brushed sweat out of his eyes with the back of his hand. “Please?”
“I think they’re little grazing animals,” Ronon said. “These look like hoofprints.”
“So, probably not really scary.”
“Famous last words,” Daniel said.
There was a sudden rustling in the grass, coming rapidly toward them. Daniel drew his own pistol despite Rodney’s warnings, although he didn’t thumb the safety off. Ronon and Teyla turned toward the sound, backing warily away.
Several small brown forms exploded out of the grass and raced across their path, hooves beating the ground. Everyone stared after them for a moment as they vanished into the sea of tall grass on the other side.
John adjusted his sunglasses, as if they might have been affecting his vision. “Were those horses?”
“Really short horses,” Ronon said. “With fangs.”
“They did not have fangs,” Rodney said.
“You’re right, they didn’t.”
“I think we will all be fine,” Teyla said. “Let us see what we can make of Dr. Jackson’s archaeological site.”
“It doesn’t look like much,” Rodney said, squinting at the structure. There was definitely a manmade building there, its rectangular lines too regular for anything but a purposeful construction. It was half buried by vegetation, the wind having heaped up the soil against one side of it, leaving the lee side clear enough to distinguish beneath the tangle of scrubby brush. “Under all that dirt, we’re looking at, what, a metal box?”
John shrugged. “What do you want, a sign saying ‘the Ancients were here’?”
“That would be nice.”
“There’s nothing here the Ancients could have used to build with,” Daniel said. “It would have been easier to use metal than to bring in stone.”
“Well, yes, of course, but anybody could have.” Rodney was crouching down in front of one wall of the structure, brushing away the weeds.
“It’s Ancient, right?” Daniel said without needing to see past him.
“It’s built in an Ancient style, and this is Ancient lettering, but technically it’s still possible that—”
“McKay,” John said.
“All right, yes, it’s Ancient. There’s something weird about this door, though, it looks like maybe somebody tried to pry it open.”
Daniel crouched to see, and Rodney leaned back out of his way somewhat grudgingly. The metal was definitely scored in what he didn’t think could be an intentional part of its design. “I think you’re right,” he said. “Relic hunters?” He glanced up at Teyla for confirmation.
“It is possible,” she said. “The devices of the Ancestors are very valuable to those with the ability to use them. There are groups who move from world to world scavenging what they can from Culled civilizations. They would certainly have taken any relics of the Ancestors they could find in hopes of being able to sell them to someone who had a use for them.”
“And so much for finding anything useful to us,” Rodney said.
“Okay, what part of ‘we probably aren’t going to find any weapons’ was I unclear about? I’m just asking because—”
Daniel broke off at a louder rustling in the grass. Another herd of the miniature horses thundered past, kicking up dust as they went. There was a whirring of wings, and a flock of birds arrowed through the underbrush, past them and gone.
“People,” Ronon said. “We have a problem.”
“I told you something would turn out to have fangs,” Rodney muttered, and then his expression changed as he turned. On the horizon, there was a smear of black and a flickering brightness, and above them the wavering mirage of rising heat. The wind was blowing toward them across the sea of grass, hot and heavy with smoke.
“Let’s get back to the jumper,” John said.
Ronon shook his head and caught him by the arm. “There’s not time.”
“Ronon is right,” Teyla said, her eyes on the rising smoke. “We would not reach the jumper.” Even as she spoke, Daniel could see new patches of flame breaking out ahead of the racing wall of fire, sparks leaping toward them on the wind.
John turned to Rodney. “Can you get that door open?”
“How fast?”
“Fast.”
“Then, no.”
“Don’t open the door,” Daniel said quickly. “If we can’t get it closed again, the fire could ruin the interior of the site.”
“Also us!”
“Move,” Ronon said, grabbing Rodney by the arm and pulling him up. Teyla caught Daniel’s arm to urge him forward, but he hardly needed the encouragement to run.
Ronon was setting their direction, not directly away from the fire but angling away from it toward the river. The smell of smoke was stronger, but Daniel resisted the urge to turn and look over his shoulder. Ronon was well out ahead of them, clearly having to slow himself down even so, and he did turn back to make sure they were all following. His expression wasn’t reassuring. “Pick up the pace.”
“Not getting enough of a workout?” John called back from behind him.
“You can do better,” Ronon said.
Rodney sounded breathless when he spoke, although he was keeping up as well as Daniel. Clearly his years in Pegasus had given him plenty of practice at running away. “Please do joke about our imminent fiery demise.”
“We’re not going to — hey!” Ronon went down, sprawling as if he’d tripped over something, but there was something odd about the way he was twisting trying to get up — he was tangled in a net, Daniel realized abruptly, a waist-high, broad woven net stretched between stakes.
“What the hell?” John demanded, slowing his pace to avoid running into the net himself. Ronon was already cutting himself free when Teyla spun, brandishing her sticks. John raised his P90, his arm tensing as if he were struggling with the urge to fire.
The attack came from the side, and for a moment Daniel thought “dinosaur,” and then, “really big bird,” and then, “I should be getting out of its way.” He threw himself to one side at the same time as the creature skidded to a halt, screeching and backing up, ducking its head to inspect them. It was built like an ostrich, but taller and far stockier, with a beak the size of Daniel’s head and wickedly sharp claws.
It had a net draped across its body. Entangled in the same net, he thought for a moment, but the edges didn’t look torn, the drape of the net too purposeful. As if it were carrying the net, or wearing it.
“Hey, it’s okay,” he said, putting his hands out, “we’re not going to hurt you.”
“Teyla, can you take this thing?” Ronon asked. He was up by now, his pistol leveled at the giant bird.
“I believe so,” Teyla said. “It would be unwise to shoot.”
“It’s just a really big bird,” John said, backing slowly away from the creature with his hands held up in front of him. “Nice birdie. How about we all just… ”
There was the thunder of feet, and another of the enormous birds came into view, this one even bigger, slowing but not stopping as it saw them. It raised its head and made a deep chattering noise, its eyes on the smaller one. Daniel could feel another gust of hot wind from behind them.
As if coming to agreement, both creatures lowered their heads and charged, the larger one heading for Ronon, the smaller for John. “Run!” John yelled.
Teyla swept low with her sticks, trying to knock the feet out from under the one charging John. It screamed and struck at John, its beak coming down like an axe. John swore and threw himself out of the way, and it raised one foot to rake at him.
Daniel threw himself against it with all his weight, and it staggered. It flailed out with its wings, and he saw not entirely to his surprise that the wingtips ended in long, bony fingers. They grabbed for him, trying to entangle them in the net.