Late the next night. . .

Elizabeth stood in the control room looking worriedly at the gate. Sheppard's team had left for their mission fourteen hours earlier. They were supposed to have checked in four hours ago. Elizabeth was concerned, but knew that the team could have just forgotten what time it was, or have gotten lost or caught up in something (you know how Rodney can get when he finds something interesting), or-

She knew that John would not have let any of those things happen, but she was still worried. She was going to send Major Lorne and a team of marines through the gate, but that had to wait for light. It was dark on the planet as well as in Atlantis. As soon as morning came they would dial up the gate and see what had become of their top team.

Elizabeth told the night shift to inform her immediately of any gate activity, via the radio. She then left the control room and began walking the halls. Her mind was so filled with thoughts of worry that she did not even realize where her feet were taking her. She looked out before her, shocked to see she was at the balcony, their balcony.

Only, something was different. When she looked up at the sky, she noticed that clouds must have appeared, for no stars were visible. And even more noticeable, the breeze that had been present every night that summer was gone. Elizabeth became very unsettled at this, and felt the bad feeling sink to her stomach. She knew something was wrong and couldn't help but think that it had something to do with Sheppard and his team. She took a deep breath and went back inside.

Major Lorne and his team would be through the gate as soon as it was light on the planet. She would tell them to be extra cautious; no one knew what had gone wrong or what awaited them there. Suddenly Elizabeth felt as if the dark held too many unknowns. The little sleep she got that night occurred with the light on.