Author's Notes & Disclaimer– Elizabeth Weir belongs on Atlantis

Author's Notes & Disclaimer– Elizabeth Weir belongs on Atlantis. She needs to come home. I don't own anything, no offense to the cast, crew or creators of the show. I just need to find a way to bring Elizabeth home in a way that I think, honors the character. This story idea came to me when I saw the very first brief spoilers for "Ghost In The Machine."

Special thanks goes to Suzotchka, fearless leader of the SEW Crew and my friend. She beta'ed this story for me and helps keep the momentum going!

And, special thanks go to the Sparky thread at GW who helps feed the muse on a regular basis. Long live Elizabeth! Sparky is eternal!

CHAPTER ONE – A Mystery Discovered

"Sheppard, what's your ETA?"

"Teyla and I just left the mainland. We'll be there in twenty minutes. What's the problem, Rodney?" John nudged the jumper, causing it to pick up speed. Rodney didn't sound worried, but considering what they had been through in the last year and half, getting back to Atlantis quicker seemed a wise move.

"Don't panic. We've picked up an unusual energy reading in one of the unexplored areas of the city and finally got a lock on its location. It's a room that doesn't show up on the city schematics, so we're excited to get in there and check it out."

John sighed. Teyla's visit with her people had taken all day. The remaining Athosians, once they'd been rescued with Teyla and her newborn son, had found a safe location on the mainland to make a small settlement. He was tired and in no mood to play "gene boy" for one of Rodney's research missions.

"Rodney, can this wait until tomorrow? It's been a long day, I was looking forward to a little R&R when I got back." He sent a quick, apologetic look over to Teyla. She, however, wasn't listening, focusing instead on softly singing little Katel to sleep.

"Sorry, Colonel. That's the interesting part. The only person, it seems, who can open this room is you."

"Come off it McKay, I'm not the only one with the gene."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." John could hear Rodney's sarcasm dripping through the radio. "It isn't that simple."

Sighing, John thought, 'It never is'. "Okay, so why does it have to be me?"

Rodney actually sounded excited as he replied. "Because. The room security setting has been genetically encoded."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"What that means, is that the room requires a unique genetic code before it will allow anyone to access it."

A cold chill ran down John's spine. "The access panel has been genetically coded with my DNA? How in the hell is that possible?"

"No idea. It's going to be fun figuring that one out, huh?"

John nudged the jumper even faster. "Remind me to smack you upside the head when I get there, Rodney."

"Right. Just hurry up, will ya?"