Sateda (episode)

"Sateda" is the fourth episode of the third season of Stargate Atlantis.

Plot
During an off-world reconnaissance mission, Sheppard's team discover a primitive village. One of the villagers sees Ronon and shouts 'Wraithbringer!'. The villagers, armed with crossbows, open fire on the team, catching McKay in the posterior; Teyla, Ronon, and Sheppard return warning shots as they retreat; unfortunately, all three are hit with tranquilizer darts, leaving only Rodney to escape back to Atlantis.

Teyla, Ronon, and Sheppard awaken in an open-air cage, where Ronon is challenged by the village leader, Keturah. Among their village Ronon is called "the Wraithbringer". He has been to this planet before, when he was on the run from the Wraith; after arriving near death, he was nursed back to health by the villagers, unaware that he was implanted with a Wraith tracking device. Soon after his arrival, the Wraith attacked, burning the village and culling many of the inhabitants.

The Wraith left Keturah with a contact device and the promise that his people would be spared from future cullings if, should he ever reappear, they turned Ronon in.

Back on Atlantis, an unnamed Major unsuccessfully attempts to extract information from Rodney, who is under the effects of a considerable amount of morphine.

Ronon attempts to convince the village leader to let Sheppard and Teyla go, eventually holding a knife against his own throat. His rather forceful apology and promise to try to make up for what happen convinces the villagers to let his companions go.

When the two return to Atlantis, they find an assembled team preparing to come to rescue them. They return to the planet immediately, but in the intervening time the village was destroyed and the inhabitants are all either dead or culled. Ronon is among those taken back to the Hive, where he is once again implanted with the tracking device and released onto a planet. The Hive King promises that this is where he will die. Ronon materialises on the surface and has a flashback to a retreat he had to order during the last days of his planet's defense against the Wraith. Then, he runs, trying to find shelter and weaponry.

A dart flies over the city, dropping a young Wraith commander into one of the streets.

On Atlantis, Sheppard and Teyla assure the other rescue team members that Ronon is probably still alive, as the Wraith will most likely want to return to hunting him for sport. Teyla proposes that they attempt to intercept the subspace signal and find out where he is, and McKay starts to work on calibrating the long-range sensors to pick it up.

Inside a building on the planet's surface, Ronon finds an assortment of broken objects, among them a long, jagged pieces of broken glass and a variety of pipes. He has a flashback to his own home during the siege, and remembers a woman (presumably his partner), who died in an explosion. Using a torn bedsheet, he ties the metal shard to the stick to make a primitive knife, and then moves downstairs into the cellar when he hears the door open. The Wraith follows him, closes the door to make the darkness total, and then begins to search. Almost immediately, Ronon leaps out and attacks, wrestling with his pursuer before killing him.

Back on Atlantis, Sheppard finds McKay finishing the calibration of the sensors; there are seven subspace transmitters broadcasting from various planets in the Pegasus Galaxy, but McKay is confident that he knows which one is Ronon – one signal is coming from Sateda, Ronon's home world.

Ronon continues to run, and eventually retreats into the city's sewers, followed by a Wraith probe. As the Wraith walks in the sewers following the GPS tracker on Ronon, he finally comes to his exact location. Confused, the Wraith looks up where Ronon points a blaster down and shoots him point blank. Another shot is made to the probe, cutting off the video feed to the Wraith leader. Ronon then begins salvaging weapons and equipment left over from his world's final battle against the Wraith, all while he has disturbing flashbacks of the time where he was a soldier trying to fight off the Wraith. Eventually, the Wraith start sending squads of troops to hunt him down, but Ronon easily kills all of them. Eventually, the Wraith leader sends a large battalion to hunt Ronon down.

The situation looks hopeless for Ronon until Sheppard and the rest of the team arrive on a cloaked Jumper. They assist him in killing the Wraith troops, and Ronon taunts the Wraith leader, challenging him to come himself. Remembering his flashbacks, Ronon decides to stop running from his past and face it head on.

Ronon and the Wraith leader fight hand to hand, with Ronon obviously outmatched by the Wraith's superior strength. McKay and Beckett, having had enough (they'd wanted to help earlier but their fighting over who would go ended when all of the other Wraith are already dead and they're informed of that), fly in and uncloak the Jumper, and Beckett shoots and kill the Wraith leader with a drone weapon. Ronon thanks the team for helping him (even hugging Beckett), and after having the tracking device removed, returns with the rest of the team to Atlantis.

Notable Quotes
Mckay: You know it's incredible how much we take for granted the simple things in life...like sitting. Sheppard: Yeah, must be a real pain in the ass for you... Mckay: ...and how long did it take you to work that up? Sheppard: Longer than I'll admit.

Mckay: (Sedated) Excuse me, why am I lying here? Beckett: You have an arrow, Rodney, in your gluteus maximus. Mckay: (Sedated) Oh. Well, that sounds painful. Gluteus maximus. Glueteus... maximus. Oh my God. That's my ass isn't it? Beckett: Aye.

Ronon gets beaten down and is about to be fed upon when the Jumper decloaks in front of him surprising everyone Beckett: If he doesn't like it he can sue me. (closes his eyes and concentrates) Ronon: I win! Beckett fires a drone into the Wraith, killing him

Ronon: to McKay and Beckett Which one of you killed that Wraith? McKay and Beckett smile, unaware that Ronon threatened to kill anyone who killed that particular Wraith before him. Beckett: That would be me. McKay: My idea. Ronon gets up and approaches the two in a threatning manner worring them Beckett: What, don't tell me your not happy that he's dead?! Sheppard: I had him in my sights but Ronon threatened to kill me if I did. McKay: (extremly nervous) It was all Beckett's idea! ''For a second Ronon looks like he's going to pound Beckett for killing the Wraith... then he surprises everyone by simply hugging him'' Ronon: Thanks, Doc.