Chapter 2: The Storm

Officially, the reason Sora and her father owned the small barn house on the surface was to welcome any visitors they might have from off-world. They were, after all, responsible for making and maintaining most of the Genii's interstellar contacts.

More often, however, the pair liked to use the house as their own personal retreat, watching as the twin moons of Genii Prime rose over the setting sun. For that purpose, they had a small exit hatch located on their roof, leading to two small indentures in the thick moss to allow comfortable seating.

Her father had always insisted that she would be the one to sit in the left chair, Sora remembered, claiming that the right one was nearer to the hatch and therefore easier to reach. She always knew better, though. Miratol, the closer of the two moons, usually rose to the left of the house, and Sora adored its soft, blue shimmering light. Had her father claimed the right chair, she would have had trouble seeing it past his larger frame.

As she sat in her chair now, watching Miratol make its way across the sky and finally descend past the horizon again a few minutes past midnight, she missed her father more then ever before. For the first time, she felt that she really understood that he was forever gone, and suddenly, despite their differences, despite how often they had argued and despite how often she had cursed his name, she really appreciated all he had done for her.

Sighing heavily, she climbed up and onto the roof, laying down there and holding on to a bar he had installed there for her to hold on when she was still a child, shortly after her mother had died of cancer. Ever since then, he had become overzealous in looking after her.

When her weight finally settled onto the soft plants inhabiting the roof, she heard a low, strange rustle underneath her back. Curiously, she knelt backwards on her seat and began to search the roof.

Hidden beneath two of the thick moss plates that protected the house from the rain was a single piece of paper, carefully folded to protect its content. From the looks of it, it could not be more then a day old.

She recognized her father's handwriting immediately, and only needed moments to work out the code he had used for the letter. The two of them had developed it together, many years ago, and, to the best of her knowledge, never shared it with anyone.

My dearest Sora,

If everything went as planned, I will no longer be alive by the time you read this letter. Kolya returned from an off-world trip two nights ago, and brought with him a new drug that is supposed to stop the Wraith from feeding on whoever is injected with it. They are still investigating the origin, but, against my objections, they have decided to test the chemical themselves.

For you to understand what happened next, I must first inform you of the developments of the last weeks. As you know, Kolya is an ambitious bastard, but recently, he has managed to gain Cowen's ear. I fear our chief no longer fights for the good of everyone, but instead aims to broaden his influence as the leader of the Genii, who single-handedly defeated the Wraith.

I continued to protest the testing of the new drug, fearing for the poor comrade who would most likely loose his life in the process, either to the chemical or to the Wraith. The moment Kolya suggested that I do it myself instead, then, I knew I had been tricked. To back out would make me a coward, unable to lead the people, and going through with it would open up my position rather violently.

This was a coup, my little love, that Kolya and Cowen carefully planned to overthrow me as the head of our military forces. The fact that they have no way to actually know the results of the test, unless I miraculously make it back, should be enough proof even for the biggest skeptic.

I hate the thought of leaving you behind like this, but I know I have raised a smart and confident young woman, and I could not be more proud of you. With my sacrifice, I hope to keep your honour intact, so that one day, you might take the position that was always to be yours. It will be your duty to free this galaxy from the influence of the Wraith and to steer our people back on the right track.

You must always allow your honour to guide you. Never go back on your ideals.

I love you, and may the Ancestors watch over you,

Your Father

Sora felt the tears freely slide down her face as she read and reread the letter countless of times, before a strange calm filled her. Belatedly, she realized that her left hand, which had not been holding the letter, was bloody from where her nails had dug into her skin.

When she finally stood back up, the sun rose again, bathing the land in a pale orange light. Her father had been murdered by the man they had both trusted more then anyone else in the world, the man who they had pledged their service to, and who had in return vowed to free them from the Wraith. Sora would make sure her fathers last wish and his biggest dream would be fulfilled.

It took Commander Kolya merely one week to identify the strangers' base of operation. The Hoffans, who had developed the drug used in the ploy to kill her father, had gladly told the story of advanced strangers, who had come from a distant world and taken possession of the legendary city of the Ancestors. Apparently, they had advanced the Hoffan drug as much as they had helped the Genii with their weapon, but had refused to help in mass production. Again, Kolya claimed, they had shied away from the conflict with the Wraith, and thereby had allowed them to continue to exist.

Sora could certainly relate to the strangers' decision. While widespread distribution of the drug might eventually kill the Wraith, the expected loss of life, both short term due to the side effects of the compound, and long term, when the Wraith began to wipe out those who had survived the treatment, were horrifying.

What surprised Sora, however, was the fact that they claimed to live in the legendary city of the Ancients. While the gate address had been passed down through the generations on many planets, nobody had ever managed to successfully establish contact. Most had assumed the city to be destroyed by the Wraith, or sealed forever.

If the strangers had really accessed the city, they were either much more advanced then Sora had previously estimated them to be, or had some kind of relation to the Ancestors. Either way, there was more to them that met the eye. In any case, however, the Hoffans had warned Kolya against an assault, claiming that anybody passing through the Stargate without the proper code would be instantly struck down by the shield of the Ancestors, even though one could now achieve a lock after dialing.

Sora did not doubt their locations, however. Plenty of the technology the strangers had used had clearly been designed by the Ancestors, and retrospectively, she knew the only place that would house so many of the artifacts after tens of thousands of years of Wraith domination would be the lost city.

She herself, meanwhile, had instead travelled to the planet of the youths, as Teyla had called it. Their leader, Keras, had spoken highly of the team, describing them as open, friendly and quick to help. Sora could not help but shake the feeling that there was something they were not telling her, however, especially since neither him nor Teyla had ever told her why the Wraith had not come to the planet for so long. Teyla had simply called it a happy accident. In the end, however, she did not care for their secret.

Two weeks later, Kolya's efforts paid of completely. One of his newly acquired contacts, Smeadon, the leader of the Manerians, had informed Cowen that the strangers had pressured his people into granting them sanctuary while they temporarily evacuated their city. To him, the threats they had issued against him had been the final push he needed to support the Genii over the Atlanteans.

"Girl, come here." Kolya growled at her the moment he stepped back into the barracks from his meeting with their Chief. "Cowen has ordered us to prepare for an invasion of Atlantis." Sora nodded, having expected the order. She knew Kolya did not like her, most likely because she was a constant threat to his position. While the Genii did not inherit postings based on family alone, her father had made a lot of important friends and contacts, and every one of them knew that she was as good as he had been. Even Cowen, apparently, felt some guilt over what he had done. One of his first acts after he had instated Kolya was to promote her to be Kolya's second in command.

While she was thankful for the freedom the position allowed her, she loathed working for the two men responsible for her father's death. For now, she would continue, but only until she had the chance to truly break free.

"You will accompany me to Manara, where we will assess the status of the evacuation and gather any intel we might need to penetrate the city's protections." Kolya continued impassionately. "From our information, the evacuation will be completed within the hour. As soon as it is, we will return here to launch an attack."

Sora came to attention. "Yes Commander."

He nodded, seemingly satisfied. "As soon as we enter the city, we will secure any explosives we can find. Secondary objectives are their medicine and ships, as well as any targets of opportunity. All remaining Atlanteans are to be treated as hostile. Inform the men to prepare, then meet me at the gate."

"Commander," Sora began hesitantly, "any hostages we take might be of use. We do not know the layout of the city. Keeping a guide will speed the mission up considerably."

Of course, more importantly, she did not want to weaken any enemies of the Wraith, especially since she was planning on finding a new camp to fight for.

Kolya waved his hand, dismissively. "Something will work out. Inform the men, now."

Sora hastily sped off, not willing to provoke the man further. While she believed that she might be able to hold her own against him with any weapon he might choose, she was currently his political inferior. The strike force, about fifteen men altogether, chosen to be both available and expendable, had already assembled in the barracks. Neither had family, so they spent most of their days, and all of their nights in together.

As she informed them of the plan, she attached her gun holster to her hip. Most of the other men carried large automated rifles, intended to overpower the enemy with superior firepower. Herself and Kolya, as the two commanding officers, had opted instead to have their hands free, especially since both of them excelled in unarmed combat. The only other exception was Ladon, their chief science officer, and the only one of them that had only completed the basic training all Genii were required to attend.

After a few moments of contemplation, she additionally slipped her father's knife into her uniform, noting that the handle was still slightly loose after she had manipulated it. Nobody would pay any heed to the weapon, however, and it was essential to her plan.

When they arrived at Manara, one of Smeadons security guards was waiting for them by the gate. The politician had managed to lure their prey away from the public eye and into a council chamber, where he was currently entertaining him. Apparently, Sora noted as they arrived, they had already managed to get a nice serving of alcohol into him, since the Athosian was slurring and swaying quiet heavily.

Unfortunately, however, Smeadon had also kept his advisors and fellow council members in the room. Even though he dismissed them the moment she and Kolya stepped into the room, all of them had seen her face and would most likely remember it for years to come. Non of them would ever talk to her again, if they had anything to hide.

While Kolya circled their target, to get a look at his face, Sora approached him from behind. As he gestured wildly, completely oblivious to the impeding danger, she grabbed his finger and twisted it ruthlessly, simultaneously wrapping her other arm around his neck.

Extracting intelligence had always been her specialty, and even though she detested violence, she had to admit it had its uses. Currently, for example, she was demonstrating Kolya that she had absolutely no mercy for her enemies. She just hoped the poor fellow in her arms was drunk enough to forget most of his ordeal by tomorrow.

To her surprise, Smeadon actually involved himself, and quickly began searching through the Athosian's clothes. In his left breast pocket, he eventually found a small, silver device. A large number of buttons, most of them carrying numbers on them, adorned the top. He barely spared the device a look before passing it to Kolya.

"Tell me the sequence of numbers to enter on this device." Kolya completely ignored the man's rambling.

"I can't tell you that."

Sora had to give the man credit for even trying, but she knew that failure was not an option yet. She tightened her arm and leaned down to his ear.

"It's not worth dying for."

She made sure to lower her voice, as if talking to him privately, but at the same time spoke loud enough for Kolya to hear, as well.

"You don't-don't understand." The Athosian was clearly panicked, now. "It's my hand that you need to put in the code. That's how it works."

In light of her plans, she had hoped for some resistance from the Athosian, considering he was keeping a vital secret for the Atlanteans, but she had dealt with enough drunk men to know he would crumble shortly. Immediately, however, was worse then she had expected.

Kolya smiled. To the man, it probably seamed comforting, but Sora felt nothing but dread for the man. "And the shield of the Atlantis Stargate will be lowered?"

"Yes, yes." Apparently, he thought his ordeal was almost over. "What is this? Who are they?"

Again, Kolya ignored the man, but instead ordered Sora to escort him to the gate. Smeaden answered, meanwhile, even though Sora had no idea why he would do that. He obviously did not care for the man, and he did not help break his will.

"They're friends, Doran."

Sora made sure to remember the man's name. Perhaps she might have use for him later, either to inform the Atlanteans of their leak, or to put more pressure on him.

"Make sure he will enter the code." Kolya continued, as if uninterrupted.

Sora smiled ferally. "He will." And hopefully, she added silently, nobody will be around to stop me from warning them.

She released the man's neck, and simultaneously twisted his arm to his back, forcing him to stand with a small, but most likely painful tug. As she led him out the door, she had to fight to keep him steady. Apparently, he had consumed enough alcohol not only to loosen his tongue, but to cause his motor function to fail, as well.

Two guards Kolya had insisted on bringing to the planet joined them directly outside the door. Sora scowled at them as they observed her struggling to move her captive along the path. About half way to the gate, the Athosian collapsed completely, falling forward into the mud and forcing Sora to let go of his arm. Had she not, his weight alone would have dragged her into the muddy earth.

For several moments, she struggled to lift his now completely unresponsive form back up, before gleeful laughter reminded her of the presence of the other two Genii. "Soldiers. Give me a hand here."

"What's the matter, girl? Can't even lift a single body?"

Sora's head snapped up, and she fixed the left soldier with a glare. Abandoning her efforts, she straightened herself up, and marched over, deftly stepping into his personal space. The top of her head barely reached his chin, but her glare made him step back. Sora resolutely stepped after him, keeping close. "Commander Kolya may address me however he wishes, but you are addressing an officer of the Genii, and your direct superior, soldier. If I have to repeat myself, I will court-martial you. If I hear you laughing again, I will execute you for treason on the spot." She grabbed the front of his uniform and pulled him down, getting no resistance from him. "Am I making myself clear." She chanced a glance at the second man, and saw that her message had sunk in there, as well.

With her father as Commander, the man might have even laughed in her face. While his behaviour had been unacceptable, they would have never executed him for it. Kolya, on the other hand, was ruthless enough to go through with such a threat, probably without giving him a chance to explain himself.

When the two soldiers hefted the man up and carried him between them, Sora contemplated her options. They were fast approaching the Gate, where they would return to their home world. Once there, the whole strike force would prevent her from going through the gate alone.

On the other hand, she had her sidearm, while the other two were impaired with the body. Additionally, excluding Kolya, who could overpower her with sheer strength, she was easily the best close combat fighter the Genii had. Unfortunately, however, their cargo was also her biggest problem. For her plan to work, she would need the activation code to lower the Atlantis shield. If she could warn them, she could proof her worth and hopefully earn their trust. While the man slept of his intoxication, he was of no use to her.

For a moment, she contemplated taking him to another world, instead. The instant Kolya discovered him and her missing, however, he would know that she had betrayed him and guess her plan. Then, he would not hesitate to use any force against the remaining Atlanteans to insure their immediate cooperation. Most likely, a good portion of them would not survive the day.

With heavy heart, Sora passed the soldiers and began dialing the Gate for Genii Prime. She would have to look for another opportunity to escape Kolya's influence.

She did not get it. Kolya returned to their barracks only minutes after them, and had their forces in position for the assault moments later. They were dressed in wide robes and rags, stolen from one of the countless primitive farm worlds they traded with, while four of them carried a pair of stretchers between them.

Kolya, of all people, was currently hidden on one of them, although Sora had no idea why. To the best of her knowledge, he had not yet met any of the Atlanteans, so there was no risk he would be recognized. Sora, on the other hand, most likely would be, not that she minded.

"Commander, I should go first and confirm safe passage." Kolya looked at her, thought for a moment, and finally shook his head. "They might recognize you and figure out that we are coming. Even if they don't, you won't have time to radio back. We will have to risk going all at once, with you in the very back."

Two guards dragged their Athosian prisoner forward, and Kolya slaps him hard across the face. The man jerked back and groggily opened his eyes. "Sober yet?" Kolya smiled ferally . "Good. I need you to enter the code we talked about. Please, be cooperative. I am sure the lady would love to have another go. Agreed?"

The man's eyes darted over to Sora, who was casually leaning against the dialling device. When Kolya handed him the device, he gave a hesitant nod.

"Girl, let's hear your acting voice. We are under attack by the Wraith, and urgently need to return with our wounded."

Well aware of the plan, Sora scowled at him, but obediently dug out her radio. She nodded to Kolya, who nodded to the technician manning the dialling device, who finally began entering the address the Hoffans had provided for them.

"There's been an attack on Manara. We've got wounded incoming. Lower the shield."

Kolya had to give their prisoner another stern look from his stretcher, but then the man began fumbling with his authorization device. Sora suspected he did not have a lot of practice using it. Kolya, meanwhile, turned towards the guard in uniform manning the perimeter of the gate. "You know what you are to do."

Their leader, a tall, muscled brute who had worked with their Commander on many off world missions, nodded curtly. "Yes, Commander."

"I am sure I did everything correctly, but they are not lowering the shield." The Athosian looked panicked, and Sora could not blame him. Instead, she once again picked up the radio. "Please, before it's too late!"

"We are lowering the shield." A distorted male voice reported from the device.

When their prisoner finally stopped fidgeting and looked up at Kolya hopefully, displaying the green light now shining on the device, the Commander smiled. "By tonight, we will have everything we need to finally free ourselves of the Wraith, and anyone else who seeks to stand above the Genii. Forward."

As commanded, Sora was the last one through the gate, although she was barely half a stepped behind the rest of the group. As she was about to cross the event horizon, a shot rang out behind her.

The young woman forced herself not to look back. She had suspected this was going to happen. The man was of no further use to the Genii, since he would have no relevant information for them to extract. Sending him back was out of the question, since he would warn his people immediately, so Kolya would have had to imprison him, sparring manpower to guard and feed him.

On the other side of the gate, Sora quickly passed by the group to get to the front. She doubted she could make much of a difference, anymore, but at least she wanted to see what was going on.

"What happened." Sora suspected it was the same voice she had just heard over the radio.

She stepped up, but made sure to keep her head down. While she was sure the two did not recognize her, they would have already sounded an alarm otherwise, she did not want to risk them seeing that she was not panicked. "They were everywhere. I can't believe they didn't kill us all."

The guard blinked at her, before scanning the room. "Who?"

Two shots rang from behind her, and Sora could not help but jump slightly when the two Atlanteans crumbled before her. Kolya stepped up to her, his uniform proudly on display, while the rest of the team quickly exposes theirs, getting rid of the wide rags they had drapped over it.

"Secure the room." Kolya ordered calmly, not minding the two corpses at his feet.

Sora glared at him and followed him away from the men. "These men could have been overpowered. We need the Atlanteans to be co-operative." She did, in particular, of course.

Kolya studied her for a moment, but said nothing. "Secure the room." He repeated instead.

When non of the man moved, Sora turned to them. As second in command, it would be her task to make sure they did their jobs. "Cover the entrances."

As the man finally started moving, Sora took some time to observe Kolya. The man had climbed the main staircase, and was currently overlooking the gate room with a satisfied smirk. He enjoyed the situation, she suspected.

A commotion on her left drew her attention. The men had picked up Dr. McKay and a woman, who were now held at gunpoint. Both were loudly demanding an explanation.

She moved towards them, training her gun on them and slowing her pace just enough to arrive after Kolya. "Doctor Elizabeth Weir." Kolya gloated.

"Yes." Clearly, the Atlantean leader still had a different idea about who was in charge.

Kolya did not mind. "And you must be Doctor McKay."

When the scientist did not answer, Sora confirmed his identity in his stead. "That's him." She forced a bit of contempt into her voice.

"Where is Major Sheppard?" Kolya questioned the pair. "I would like to know the whereabouts of Major Sheppard."

"You seem to know a lot about us. Who are you?" Doctor Weir ignored his question.

Before Kolya had a chance to answer, McKay answered for him, staring at Sora as he did. "They're Genii."

She smiled slightly, knowing that it would not be enough to mean anything. Of course, the man would have recognized her.

Kolya, meanwhile, had an answer of his own. "There's only one thing you need to know, Doctor Weir. As of right now, we are in control of Atlantis."

Sora almost groaned. How much more clicheé could the man get? Obviously, he had control over the city, for now. Did he have to gloat?

The group moved up the stairs and into the control room. Sora watched as Kolya immediately headed for the balcony, taking in the view of the city underneath, as if he had just singlehandedly conquered it. Sora mentally scoffed. They had overcome a pair of guards and captured two, admittedly high ranking, base officials. She would hardly call that a conquest.

"Who are you?" Kolya had moved back inside and was questioned by Doctor Weir.

"Commander Acastus Kolya of the Genii. This Atlantis is extraordinary - more than I ever imagined."

So he had actually been enjoying the view, Sora realized astonished. At least, that's what he wanted them to believe.

She listened absentmindedly while Kolya assured Doctor Weir of the well-being of her people, explained how they had entered the city and made his demands, while observing the room.

There were still three more Genii in the room, as well as Kolya and herself, but while Sora had kept her weapon out and trimmed on the prisoners, most of the men had relaxed. They were no threat, of course, being completely unarmed and with minimal combat experience, but Sora kept hoping for a chance to set them free. Weir had assured Kolya that Sheppard was still on the mainland, but the woman had a lousy poker face. Despite being taken prisoner, Weir still had hope that the situation would change.

Movement from Doctor McKay brought her attention back to the discussion.

"Elizabeth, just give him what he needs. He needs the C4, the medical supplies and the Wraith data device - just give them to him. None of that's worth dying for," the scientist stated, much to calmly in her opinion.

Sora smirked when she saw him pressing a button, masking the movement as if he was leaning on the console. Smart man – he was obviously informing somebody of their plan. For Sora, that meant that, somewhere out there, there was still somebody on the side of Atlantis moving freely.

Unfortunately, one of the guards staying behind had noticed the movement as well, and, when he stepped forward to take a closer look, alerted Kolya.

"Step away from the console."

Sora watched, slightly amused as Doctor McKay jumped back. "I was leaning. I was just leaning." She doubted he was fooling anybody in the room.

Moments later, at Kolya's order, she followed Weir through the bright halls of the city of the Ancestors to secure their loot. Thankfully, Kolya had not specified which guards she was to take, so she could handpick two of them, that would at least recognize her authority as second in command.

As such, while Weir unpacked the Wraith data device, she could actually talk to her privately.

"Where is Teyla Emmagan?" She would most likely be the most sympathetic to Sora's cause.

Weir looked up at her sharply. "You know Teyla?"

"Is she here? In the city?" Sora questioned, foregoing the obvious answer.

"No, she isn't." Weir must have seen her disappointment. "You must be Sora. I read the Genii mission report - I'm sorry about your father."

"He'll be avenged."

"Teyla didn't kill him." Weir injected sharply.

Sora chanced a glance at her two escorts. If they strained their ears, they might be able to hear her. "I will have justice. Revenge must be had."

"There can not be revenge and justice at once, Sora." Weir lectured her.

"When the cause is just, revenge is justice."

Weir looked up at her disappointedly. "And you really think killing Teyla is just?"

Before Sora had a chance to retort, one of their escorts had wandered over. "How much longer does this take? Commander Kolya is expecting us back in the Gate room?"

Sora stared at the soldier hard. She would have liked to berate him for his disrespected, but doing so in hostile environment was against regulations and would cast doubt on her position. In fact, it might be exactly what Kolya needed to boot her out. Also, he was right.

She questioningly glanced over at Weir.

"All of the information we downloaded from the Wraith ship is still on this device." The Atlantean leader explained as she handed over the drive.

As Weir led the group back through the city's endless corridors, Sora wondered about their mode of transportation. She had caught a few glimpses of the city's long piers stretching out in all directions. Walking everywhere seemed impractical, but neither did she see ships flying over the city, nor did she suspect the city housed that many of the flying machines.

"How do you normally get around?" Sora had caught up to the woman and walked close, lowering her voice so the guards did not hear her. After all, any information might turn out to be a tactical advantage.

Weir looked back at her. "What do you mean?"

After Sora had explained her reasoning, Weir turned to look at her. When her eyes widened slightly, Sora reached out and gently pulled her along by the elbow. "Do not stop. You will simply attract attention to us."

To her relief, Weir complied immediately. "I don't understand."

Sora was unsure if she was referring to her question or to her behaviour. Before she had a chance to answer, however, Weir swiped her hand over a console on the wall, and reopened the wall to the control room.

As they entered the room, Weir immediately hurried to McKay's side. There was strength in numbers, of course, but Sora was surprised to see real concern in her eyes as she examined the stab wound in his arm. Kolya, certainly, could not care less if any one of his men were harmed, unless they were unable to fullfill their duties.

Meanwhile, she had reluctantly wandered over to the Commander, giving him a brief nod to show that they had gotten their device. At the same time, one of their soldiers, who she herself had dispatched to secure the C4, hurried back towards them.

"Commander!" He carried a strange, black box with an antenna attached to its top. Clearly, it was not created by the Ancestors, but more likely by the strangers."The C4 was missing, but we found this in its place."

Kolya took the device, before looking at her. She shrugged. "From the design, I suspect it is a radio, but it might just as well be a beacon, a detonator or something completely different. However, I suspect it was intended for you, so you best ask."

"Ah, yes." Kolya smiled ferally. "I believe Doctor McKay will be most cooperative."

Sora followed him half way as he approached their prisoners, before standing at the edge of the room. From there, she could hear what was being said, without actually appearing to listen.

"It's a radio. The arrow points to the 'talk' button."

As one, Weir, Kolya and Sora rolled their eyes. To her surprise, the Commander did not snap back, but instead activated the communicator.

Delighted, she could just make our Major Sheppard's voice coming from the small device. By all accounts, he would be an important ally.

"However, Doctor McKay recently shared with me there's a plan in action to save the city."

Sora abruptly tuned back in, her eyes darting over to the scientist and the small scratch on his arm. Apparently, she had overestimated him, if that was all it took to make him cave in.

"He did?!" At least, Sheppard's surprise gave her some hope for the man.

"He did. My understanding is there is one final grounding station that needs to be deactivated. Uncouple the grounding rods at Station Three, assist with the reactivation of the shield, and you and your friends can leave here unharmed."

Sora's eyes widened. Taking the city had never been part of his plan, and as a result, her own did not account for it.

"Why raid a city when you can seize it, Major? Atlantis will be ours or the ocean's. You choose." Unfortunately, Kolya's plan made sense.

For several long moments, everything was silent. Sora held her breath. She knew Kolya long enough to know that, once he had committed to a new path, he would not be swayed. Should Sheppard choose to fight him openly, the Commander would lash out against anything in his way. Most likely, both their two prisoners would not survive the day or even the hour.

"All right, Kolya. Give me some time to get there."

"Five minutes, Sheppard."

McKay opened his mouth to protest, but thankfully stayed silent when Weir's hand clamped down on his lower arm. "He can make it." From the distance, Sora had to read the older woman's lips to understand what she whispered.

When Kolya did not wait for a reply, but instead turned to walk into the adjacent office. Judging by its setup and the close proximity to the control room, Sora suspected it belonged to Weir. The woman seemed to fit the spartan but tasteful design.

"Sora?" Weir had turned to her and was looking at her expectantly. Sora made sure that no expression leaked into her features before turning. "Yes, Doctor Weir?"

"Do you think you could take me in to see Commander Kolya?"

Sora stared at her. "I am not sure that is wise, yet. Give him time to cool down."

"Unfortunately," Weir countered, "time is not on our side. Even if Major Sheppard makes it to the grounding station, there is still a storm approaching."

Sora inspected the other woman for a long moment. In the end, she had to trust her that she knew what she was doing. By all accounts they had managed to gather, Doctor Weir was an accomplished diplomat. If anyone could get through to Kolya, it would be her.

"All right, follow me." She finally decided. "But do not expect much."

"Thank you for seeing me." Doctor Weir began as she entered the office. "This city was designed to be inhabited by the Ancients and their direct descendants and although, yes, while there is limited functionality for those who do not possess the Ancient gene, it is only those who have it who can revive the city to its true potential."

Sora's eyebrows rose. So far, all accounts she had heard implied that the strangers had come to Atlantis by accident, but had no special connection to the Ancestors.

"And you have this gene?" Kolya was clearly sceptical.

"No, but many of my team do. The Wraith are slowly waking. Soon this entire galaxy will be embroiled in a war the likes of which our generations have never seen." Weir argued.

Sora winced slightly. Kolya was sure to twist that statement in a way Weir would not like. Rhetorically, he was no Cowen, but Sora had no doubt that he would not miss an opportunity like that.

"A war that you expedited." And there it was.

"Disagreements like ours will no longer matter." Weir cut her losses. "The only thing of any consequence will be how prepared we are and what defence we are able to mount. Now, this city holds many secrets which will help us win that war - but only if my team are here to discover them. So, fine, take whatever you need for your people, but if you don't leave us this city you're only hurting yourselves in the long run."

"You believe your people - who are not even of this galaxy - are closer to the Ancients than we are? Your arrogance is astounding." Kolya sneered. "We will take this city, we will mount a defence, and we will win - with or without your help, Doctor Weir."

Before the Atlantean had a chance to answer, one of their soldiers stepped into the room. "Sir, he's at the grounding station."

Kolya nodded and stood, quickly leaving the room to advise the men he had placed there one more time.

"He's just standing there, sir."

"Hold your position. Do not approach until he's finished." Kolya commanded.

"Yes, sir."

"Use lethal force only if necessary."

Sora frowned. By all accounts, Sheppard was too valuable in their fight to be executed like that, and going back on their word would undermine the Genii's reputation. More importantly for her personally, it would, by extension, undermine her reputation as well.

"You told him he would be unharmed." She whispered to Kolya, her voice just loud enough to be heard by their two prisoners as well.

"Let's hope he doesn't put up much of a fight."

Once again, Sora was reminded that Kolya was a cruel man, who enjoyed the bloodshed most others heavy-heartedly tolerated.

For the following minutes, the whole room listened breathlessly to the silence of the radio.

"He's stopped - he's not at the control panel any more. He's looking around." One of the soldiers reported via radio.

"Hold your fire." Kolya renewed his order.

McKay protested loudly, but was quickly silenced by one of the guards pressing down on his wounded arm.

Another nerve recking few minutes later, the communicator sprang to life once again. "Let me tell you what you did wrong here, Kolya." Sheppards voice rang through the Genii device. "A: you lost two of your men. B: you damaged the switch before I could separate the grounding rods, which I'm sure you're gonna get an earful from McKay for; and C: you lost all of what little credibility you had with me."

Sora did not have to look at the Commander's face to know that he was furious.

To her surprise, however, McKay spoke first. Apparently, when it came to his beloved city, the man knew no fear. "D'you have any idea of how big a setback that is? I may not even be able to activate the shield. I mean, I can't possibly..:" The guard once again attempted to quiet him, but now, the scientist had talked himself into rage. "Get off me!"

"You killed two of my men." Kolya growled into the radio.

"I guess we're even!" Sheppard sounded almost chipper.

Sora turned her attention away from their dispute.

"I don't like even."

McKay had retreated into himself. Earlier, she would have suspected he was in denial, but now, he was most likely all ready planning how to fix the destroyed interface.

"I'm not finished yet!"

Doctor Weir, meanwhile, was completely focused on Kolya, starring him in the face without blinking. She was trying to read him, Sora knew, to get a feeling for his goals and his next moves.

"Neither am I. Say goodbye to Doctor Weir."

As Kolya pointed his gun at Doctor Weir, most of the Genii soldiers tensed, as well. All of them knew that desperate people took immense risks, and would not care about their odds of survival.

"The city has a self-destruct button. You hurt her, I'll activate it. Nobody'll get Atlantis." Sora did not listen to Kolya's reply. She knew as well as Kolya that Sheppards threat was empty and therefore would not delay the Genii.

"Even if it exists, Major, you need at least two senior personnel to activate it - and I'm about to take one of them out of the equation."

Her own weapon had cleared its holster, as well. For the first time, Sora cursed her position in the room. While she could easily read Kolya's face, she had no choice but to point her weapon in the opposite direction. If she stood behind the Commander or on the opposite site of the circle, she could point it at him.

"Kolya?!" The radio crackled again. "Kolya?!" I'll give you a ship! I'll fly it out of here for you myself!" Sheppard bargained. "Kolya! Kolya! Kolya, don't do this!"

As it was, she had to rely on her speed. She could not let Weir die, so if Kolya decided to fire, she would have to swing around and take him down before he squeezed the trigger. Fortunately, she was faster then he was – a lot faster, but making this shot would still be difficult.

Getting herself and the two Atlanteans out of the room afterwards, with the Genii soldiers then most likely attacking her, would be almost impossible, however. She would have to rely on the risk of friendly fire to prevent them from targeting her efficiently.

Tensing slightly, Sora prepared herself to spring into action.