The Daedalus arrived just a few hours after Daniel and Woolsey left on their mission. Not surprisingly, Colonel Steven Caldwell appeared in the Archaeology and Anthropology department a short time later. Elizabeth sat at her station, scowling at the screen as she skimmed through information. She had discovered an uncanny ability to speed-read Ancient, something that Daniel also possessed. While he was accustomed to it, the complete understanding that came as she looked at the symbols was a bit disconcerting. She supposed she should have been grateful for it, but it still reminded her of a very dark period in her life.

The slow silence around her finally pulled her from her thoughts. She straightened and found herself staring into Steven Caldwell's serious brown eyes. Under the watchful gaze of everyone in the lab, he stepped forward and stared at her. "I heard the news, but. . . ."

Elizabeth quirked an eyebrow at him. "It's good to see you, too, Colonel Caldwell."

"Don't 'Colonel Caldwell' me." His words might have seemed harsh, but the grin on his face softened them. "It's good to see you again, Elizabeth."

She smiled and then suddenly became aware of the stares. Making a quick choice, she stepped away from her desk and led him into Daniel's office. With the door closed, the department could stare but not hear every word they said. Caldwell blinked at the move, but he didn't ask. Instead, he motioned to her and smiled awkwardly. "I'm glad you're back."

"Me, too." Elizabeth walked to Daniel's desk and leaned against it. "It's been tough."

"Believe me, I know." He glanced over his shoulder, and the curious onlookers shifted to go back to their work. "Don't let the stares and whispers keep you away."

"I won't."

After another long moment, he shifted. "So, working with Dr. Jackson now?" His eyes narrowed at the smile that crossed her face. "Do I sense more than just professional respect for the good doctor?"

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps." She narrowed her own eyes. "What about you, Steven? Have things changed for you?"

"No." He folded his arms and settled into his stance. "Like usual, I'm married to my ship."

"Dare I ask where that came from?"

"Probably better not to." He rolled his eyes wryly. She could only imagine how he felt. The Daedalus was one of the ships involved in the strikes against the Replicators that led to her capture and "death." "Before I leave again, you'll have to tell me the whole story."

Elizabeth nodded. "I look forward to it."

He left a few moments later, saying something about Dr. Keller wanting him to try using a Goa'uld healing device on Colonel Sheppard's shoulder. While the conversation had been awkward, Elizabeth was glad to see her friend again. She remembered playing chess with the colonel, his flirtatious warning that he was "a career military strategist." She'd heard stories in the time she'd been back of the various roles that the Daedalus had filled in recent years. The ship's commander was almost as legendary around Atlantis as SG-1 was on Earth. The ship had survived encounter after encounter with the Wraith, and her commanding officer understood Elizabeth's plight better than most.

Feeling like she'd been given a special gift by seeing her friend while Daniel was off world, Elizabeth settled behind her computer terminal and went back to work. The day passed slowly, and she barely noticed when others began leaving for the day. She needed to find the Soura. In finding them, she would learn why they brought her back from the brink of death. Not that she was complaining. A quick glance at Daniel's office brought a smile to her face as she imagined him there, surrounded with that warm light he favored. Daniel's office was a place of comfort and safety, where he—and, now, she—escaped and hid from the rigors of life. It smelled of coffee and dust and that indefinable spice that was Daniel Jackson, something Elizabeth had come to fully appreciate.

Her eyes began to droop, and she straightened in her chair as she forced them open. The sun had set several hours ago, but she had so much of the Ancient database to comb through. Since the Soura had freely shared technology and knowledge with the Ancients, any section of the database could hold a reference, that one little key that would unlock the mystery. She just needed a few more hours. . . .

"No!" The shout rang through the air as Elizabeth launched herself. She felt the bullets impact her torso, felt herself fly backward and land on Dimas. She'd followed Diem to this place and had seen his intentions for the first time. Dimas tried to cushion her landing, but he smacked his head on a rock and lay stunned. Elizabeth forced herself to breathe through the pain, knowing she couldn't do anything at the moment. Still, she managed to inch herself off of Dimas and toward the gate.

Diem stepped into her line of sight, a smug grin on his face. "Did you think you would stop me, Elizabeth? Have you forgotten you're a newcomer amongst us? That you do not truly understand who we are and what we want? Atlantis will pay for what they have done to us, and the Coalition will be my weapon." He lifted the gun and pulled the trigger. Elizabeth cringed, but she heard the sickening impact of the bullet against Dimas's head just a few feet away.

Diem stood over her, smirking at her. "Look at you now." He knelt. "You're nothing but a human and cannot betray me the way you betrayed Koracen and the others. Soon, I will discover the weapons of my brethren and turn the Ancients' weapons against them. I will be unstoppable." Rising to his full height, he lifted his chin. "Besides, you won't be a problem after today. You cannot survive long, and I hope your death is as painful as humanly possible." Clearly dismissing her, Diem walked to the gate and began dialing.

Elizabeth swallowed the nausea and the sickening feeling of bleeding out inside. She pushed herself up on her elbow and managed to catch sight of the DHD as Diem walked through the gate. The symbols flashed one more time before her eyes, and she fell backward as she lost her strength.

Elizabeth jerked awake, her neck aching badly as she scowled at the computer screen just a few inches from her nose. She'd been reading a section of the Ancient database that detailed the various gate addresses. Now, she stared at one about halfway down the screen.

Then, she bolted from the room. A pen and notepad from her desk hit the floor, but she didn't notice it. Running all the way to the central tower of the city winded her, and she slowed to a walk for the final leg of the journey to the control room. She had barely caught her breath when she found John standing over Chuck's shoulder. "How late are they?" John asked.

Chuck glanced up to answer but caught sight of her. "Dr. Weir?"

Elizabeth smiled at him, but the urgency of her mission was too great. "John, do you have a moment?"

John squeezed Chuck's shoulder. "Keep trying to reach them." He led the way across the bridge connecting the control room with what used to be her office. "Elizabeth?"

She stared at him, realizing just how tired he looked. "John, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He waved his good hand. "What did you need?"

"I have a gate address for Diem." She spoke softly but quickly. "Right after he shot me, I saw the address of the world where he went, and it wasn't where the Soura left the rest of us like I thought it was. I guess I just forgot in the midst of all the pain and returning to Atlantis after Carson performed surgery on me. But the big thing isn't that I remembered the gate address. It's that the gate address is in the database, listed as a remote outpost devoted to the development of offensive and defensive technology."

John's eyes widened. "You're sure?"

"Yes."

John whirled. "Chuck, get Dr. McKay up here. And prep a MALP. Keep trying to contact Mr. Woolsey and Dr. Jackson, as well. We need to know where they're at before we follow this new lead." Turning back to Elizabeth, he actually smiled. "Good work, Elizabeth."

She nodded as exhaustion slammed into her. Her head ached, and her stomach informed her that she hadn't eaten since breakfast. Glancing at her watch, she was startled to realize it was after midnight. Leaning on the railing, she frowned. "John?" When he looked at her, she shrugged. "Mr. Woolsey and Daniel aren't back?"

He shook his head, and the panic that slammed into her banished all thoughts of eating. In that moment, she understood that Daniel Jackson meant more to her than any other man ever had, including Simon. If anything happened to him. . . .She shook her head and forced the thought from her mind. He would be alright. He had to be!

oOo

Daniel glared at Ramius, his eyes narrowed slightly as his mind whirled. Why would Kelore and Shiana let them go if Ramius was going to arrest them at the gate? Had something been revealed behind closed doors during the short amount of time that they'd used to travel back to the gate? That just wasn't enough time to work out any kind of strategy. No, Ramius had to be acting alone. But why? What was Ramius's motivation in acting alone? What did he gain by usurping power from the Coalition, unless he planned to use his position on the Tribunal to wrest power from Kelore and Shiana? If that happened, he'd be the undisputed leader of a multi-planet alliance. From what Daniel understood of Tribunal politics, the only way to gain a seat on the Tribunal was if a former Tribunal member died.

Then, it clicked. Daniel stared at Ramius. "You're Diem!"

Woolsey wrenched his head around to stare at Daniel. "I beg your pardon?"

Ramius-Diem grinned wickedly. "I had heard rumors from my intelligence network that the people of Atlantis were smart, but I did not know you knew my true name."

Woolsey blinked. "He's right?"

"Yes, Mr. Woolsey." Diem cocked his head to one side. "The good doctor, here, has uncovered my true motivation. That leads me to wonder just how he knows what he knows." He stepped toward Daniel, who glared at him with a stubborn expression on his face. "It's a shame I can't simply 'interrogate' you as I once could. However, you humans have invented such wonderful torture methods. I'm certain I'll get the information out of you."

Daniel held Diem's gaze. He'd faced down Adria and various other over-inflated bad guys over the years. Another one didn't intimidate him. "You can try."

Diem laughed. "So confident."

A scuffle arose behind them, and Kelore's voice could be heard demanding to be let through. The soldiers parted in the narrow corridor, allowing Kelore and Shiana to slip through. Shiana frowned. "Ramius, what is the meaning of this? We released them to return to Atlantis."

Diem chuckled again. "Yes, well, things have changed." He waved a hand dismissively. "You couldn't begin to understand."

Daniel couldn't let that go. He spoke quietly. "Don't underestimate her or us, Diem." He watched as Diem turned and heard Shiana's gasp of surprise at the name. "The biggest problem with every other Replicator I've encountered, those from both galaxies, is that they're too overconfident for their own good."

Diem whirled. "What do you know of Replicators, Dr. Jackson?" he hissed, moving close to speak to him. "You know nothing of the betrayal we faced as the Ancients tried to wipe us out! You do not understand the betrayal I felt as I walked through that gate to find that your people had betrayed us yet again! That we were stuck, floating in space and unable to do anything. Your precious Dr. Weir had led us around the galaxy, promising us Ascension and that we could realize our greatest desires. She trusted you, and she betrayed us just as you did! Her death was painful and well-deserved. As yours will be!"

Daniel glared at the man less than an inch from his face. True insanity showed in Diem's eyes, something he'd seen in Replicator Carter's on the day he'd taken control of the entire Replicator collective. He'd died just after that, but Oma's intervention had left him with this new opportunity. Now, he figured he could bait the enemy a bit more and weaken him just a touch. "Oh, but you're wrong," he said calmly. "Dr. Weir didn't die. She survived, and she's the reason we found you." Maybe a stretch there, but well worth it, he thought.

As he'd expected, Diem's eyes bugged out of his head. "She. . . .No!"

Kelore shoved Daniel aside. "Ramius?"

Seeing that Diem's control had slipped, Daniel turned to Kelore. "Ramius is actually Diem. He murdered Dimas so he could take Dimas's place on the Tribunal."

Shiana and Kelore turned as one to Diem. Kelore motioned to the guards behind him. "Arrest him!"

Diem backed away before the startled guards could respond and disappeared into them. The guards rushed the area, shoving Woolsey and Daniel against the walls in their haste to get over one another. A couple fell, causing an even bigger traffic jam. Daniel glanced at Shiana, who had been rudely pinned against the wall next to him. The expression of utter devastation on her face tore at him, but he could do nothing. She'd allowed her anger to control her so long that she'd unleashed a bigger problem on the galaxy than she knew how to handle.

In the background, they heard the Stargate dial and a wormhole established. The guards finally sorted themselves out and rushed the chamber with the gate, but they were apparently too late. A few of them hurried through, but most of them were left standing in dumbfounded silence.

In the corridor, Kelore straightened his ruffled clothing and turned to Woolsey. "Mr. Woolsey, know that the Coalition will do everything in their power to track down Diem and bring him to justice."

Woolsey finally had a chance to speak and did so with a firm jaw. "So will Atlantis, Kelore. Trust me when I say you do not want to be in our way."

Kelore nodded dumbly and, with a tug on his jacket, Woolsey marched toward the gate. The guards stood back as Woolsey dialed the address of the gate they'd come through at first. Daniel followed warily, not quite trusting Kelore or Shiana. Both of them seemed too shell-shocked to do much, and he breathed a sigh of relief to get to the next planet.

As he dialed, Woolsey glanced at him. "How you figured that out, Dr. Jackson, is a mystery."

Daniel shrugged as the wormhole established. "There were too many inconsistencies. And I remembered what you said about a Tribunal member serving until death. That and 'Ramius's' actions led me to the conclusion."

"Still," Woolsey said as they walked toward the event horizon, "it wasn't much to go on, and it was certainly a gamble."

Daniel grinned at him. "I had over ten years on SG-1, Mr. Woolsey. That's enough to teach any man to gamble."

They stepped through to find the control room of Atlantis in an uproar, McKay and Zelenka babbling almost incoherently at one another, and an exhausted Elizabeth Weir smiling from her spot next to the two scientists. Her eyes found Daniel's, and he knew that he'd come home. Seeing her there settled the residual adrenaline faster than anything, and he couldn't wait to find some privacy just to hold her and tell her how much he cared about her.

But first things first. He followed Woolsey up the stairs and caught Elizabeth's hand between his thumb and index finger as the city's leader frowned. Woolsey sighed. "What happened?"

McKay turned an ecstatic expression to the two weary men. "What happened is that Elizabeth found Diem's hide out!" He jabbed a finger at the screen. "And just wait until you see what the MALP recorded!"

~TBC