By evening, or what passed for evening underground, Sam had a couple dozen mineral samples and a lot of mostly unhelpful information about the local technology to show for her day's work.
"Menandi seems very eager to answer my questions, and even more interested in asking me questions, but she doesn't know any more than Bodhus about the technology or how it works," Sam gave a frustrated sigh as she collapsed onto the couch of one of the rooms the team had been given for the night. "She has no idea what powers the lights or how they work. These caves, despite being deep underground are very livable, so they obviously have other technology tucked away for things like air circulation and climate control, but she doesn't even know where that technology is housed, much less how it works. She just writes it all off as 'magic' and says that the Accepted make it work."
Colonel O'Neill, perched on a stool across from her, turned to Daniel, who was examining the painted walls of the room, his enthusiasm for frescoes apparently undimmed by his afternoon with Bodhus in the Gate cavern.
"Daniel?" he prompted.
Without looking away from the wall, Daniel responded "Well, I think I've got a little information that we can work with. The frescoes in the Stargate chamber are a kind of historical log. The style is very Hellenistic, but there are some distinctly Indian influences that lead me to believe that this culture is descended from a transplanted Greco-Bactrian population, probably taken during one of the Magnesian dynasties--"
"Daniel," the Colonel said again. "Information we can use."
Daniel rolled his eyes before continuing. "Anyway, the history related in the frescoes goes all the way back to a time roughly three hundred years ago that Bodhus referred to as the Age of Rebellion. It's the point from which they date their history, and Bodhus says that before that time the ancestors of these people were slaves to the gods."
"So it's safe to say this was a goa'uld-occupied world at one point," the Colonel said, looking at Teal'c, who merely nodded.
"It's a pretty good bet that this planet was home to a goa'uld naquadah mine," offered Sam, sitting up. "Menandi took us to where naqudah is currently being mined for use by the Accepted. She doesn't know what they use it for. It could be anything from bombs to a simple power-source." She gestured at the bowl-shaped light affixed to the room's ceiling.
"Let's hope for power-source," the Colonel said evenly.
Sam grinned. "Judging by the sounds we heard in the mine tunnel, I'd say they've got some pretty heavy equipment, but we couldn't get a look at the actual mining operation. Only the Accepted are allowed into the mine itself."
"Big surprise," the Colonel rolled his eyes.
"What I find interesting," Daniel said, turning toward the rest of them, fresco momentarily forgotten, "is that according to Bodhus, the rebellion that eventually cast out the gods and made the people of this planet free was driven by a group well-known as being the most intelligent and learned of the slaves. Apparently they met in secret to avoid punishment by the gods, probably because of the usual goa'uld injunctions against reading and information."
Another nod from Teal'c.
"So the goa'uld on this planet got his butt kicked by the resident chess club." Colonel O'Neill looked as though this thought amused him.
"Here's the really interesting thing:" Daniel didn't even seem to have noticed the interruption, "according to the histories, this group of learned slaves possessed a special talent that gave them the ability to use the god's own magic against them."
That made the Colonel sit up straighter. "So the chess club figured out how to work some goa'uld technology and used it to free the planet." He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "That sounds promising."
"Well, here's the thing," Daniel held up both hands as if telling the Colonel not to get too excited just yet. "After they defeated the gods, this group founded a guild of selected individuals, all of whom were said to possess this special talent for the gods' magic."
"The Accepted," said Sam, and Daniel just nodded.
"So," Colonel O'Neill glanced from Sam to Daniel to Teal'c and back to Sam. "What does that make the Accepted? Besides the chess club."
"They could honestly be the only people with enough talent and education in the right areas to understand how the technology works," replied Daniel, more hopeful than convinced.
"That is unlikely, Daniel Jackson." The Colonel had opened his mouth to make some form of scathing reply, but Teal'c's baritone cut him off. "As you said yourself, one need not understand a device to use it. Yet the Accepted seem to intentionally keep their people in a state of ignorance."
"So they're keeping all the fun toys for themselves and using them to achieve power and status," the Colonel shrugged. "Nothing we haven't seen before."
"I don't think we know enough about the situation to be assigning motivations to the Accepted just yet, Jack," said Daniel. "I agree, it does look like they're keeping a lot of information from the rest of the people, but I'm not convinced they're doing it purely to secure power and status for themselves. You saw how Bodhus behaved toward Hariteia this morning."
"When she tried to stop us from talking about how our radios worked." Sam nodded.
"Exactly," replied Daniel. "Bodhus was gracious and respectful but not subservient to Hareteia. She obviously wanted us to stop asking questions about their 'magic,' and didn't like that you were trying to explain how our technology worked. But if she and the rest of the Accepted were using their horded technology to lord over their people, don't you think she would have just ordered that the subject be dropped or even denied us permission to stay?"
"I noted," said Teal'c, "that of all the officials who greeted us upon our arrival, only Hariteia appeared to be an Accepted. Would they not form a more substantial part of the governing body if they were indeed using their knowledge to gain power over others?"
"Exactly," Daniel said again, turning back to the wall.
"Well, whatever." Colonel O'Neill stood and stretched. "I'm turning in. It's been a long day of watching you take notes. Teal'c, take first watch just in case our hosts are hiding something more than the batteries for their lights. I'll relieve you in a few hours. We'll see if we can't dig up some more answers in the morning."
Sam unrolled her sleeping bag onto the floor--four separate rooms had been provided but none of them liked sleeping away from the others offworld--and began untying her boots.
"Sam, you said you were sure that machinery was being used for mining naquadah but that you couldn't tell what kind was being used." Daniel had turned away from the wall again, but he was gazing thoughtfully over Sam’s head instead of at her.
"The vibrations I could feel in the tunnel were made by something big, and there was definitely a regular rhythm to them.” Sam nodded. “Sure sounded like machinery to me, and nothing simple, either. Whatever was behind that door was pretty complex."
"When researching how various ancient cultures constructed their monuments, we could learn a lot about the process and tools they used just by looking at the sites where the stone had been quarried." Daniel tilted his head to one side and seemed to be scrutinizing the frescoes behind Sam. "I'll see if I can't get Bodhus to take me to an abandoned mining site tomorrow. There’ve got to be old, exhausted mines lying around. Maybe the Accepted don't keep those off limits once the mining equipment has been moved elsewhere."
"Bedtime, kids," the Colonel's voice issued from the huddle of his sleeping bag. "Daniel, you may have won the coin-toss, but this floor is cold and if you don't start using that couch soon, you may find that it's become occupied while you were busy staring at the walls."