The Stargate Atlantis team encounter a society where high priests of the local cult are able to protect the society from attacks by the Wraith using technology left behind by the Ancients. However, the genetic ability to use these weapons has faded over successive generations, leaving the people increasingly vulnerable to attack. With the Wraith growing ever bolder, the team must balance the need to protect the people against the Wraith and to free them from the dominance of their high priests.