Their eyes met as their simultaneous declaration sank in.

"You..." they both began.

"I..."

Sheppard's hands slid upwards, from her shoulders to her face, pulling her face closer to his so she could read everything in his eyes. They stood there for a heartbeat, each reading the truth in one another's eyes. Then his mouth came down on hers in a searing, blindingly passionate kiss. Heat exploded between them and it was as if, suddenly, everything in the universe finally made sense. Each could swear that they felt the gentle brush of the other's mind against their own - a more intimate embrace than anything physical.

In a perfect melding of body, soul and mind, they made love, exploding together in a shattering climax that left both of them shaken, trembling and sobbing. Never before had either of them experienced anything so profound. So perfect. Sheppard held her trembling body close to his as he rolled onto his side, taking her with him as he curled his own trembling form around hers. Neither spoke for long minutes as their breathing slowly began to return to normal. Each let the tears flow freely as they contemplated the new direction their relationship had taken.

"What do we do now?" she asked, after their bodies cooled and their breathing returned to normal.

"About?" he murmured.

"Us. What we've done. How many regs have we violated here? You know it's going to complicate... everything."

He shrugged, reaching up to caress her cheek. "It doesn't have to, does it?"

"No?"

"Logan...we were already so close before... everyone knows that. I won't let this change how I behave on the job and I know you won't either. I'm not going to demand that you give up going on missions, although I'd worry a whole lot less if you did, but then I always did."

"Ditto," she chuckled softly.

"No one has to know that anything has changed between us. If we're both willing and able to conduct ourselves the same as we always have, then what we do in the privacy of our own quarters..." Looking around the interior of the jumper, "...or jumpers...is nobody's business but our own."

"Do you really think that no one is going to notice? Especially with that shit-eating smirk on your face?" she arched an eyebrow at him.

"You put that shit-eating smirk on my face, you know, and, if I do say so myself, you're wearing one of your own!" he kissed her soundly, threatening to ignite the heat simmering between them under the surface.

"Do you really think we can pull it off?" she asked when they came up for air.

"Yes, I do. I think we have to unless we want to find ourselves shipped off to different commands, back on Earth, or in forced retirement. I don't see anything wrong with wanting...us... and our careers, do you?"

"No... But, you know if push came to shove, I'd resign in a heartbeat rather than give you up."

Sheppard felt his stern warriors heart melt as he looked at her. "I would, too...no question."

TWO WEEKS LATER

"You're what?!" Logan and Sheppard squawked together.

"It's time," Tom repeated.

"Why?" they asked.

"Stop that, you two!" he growled.

"Sorry," they did it again.

"Look, I've been here for two months already, I never planned on staying that long. I wanted to make sure the two of you were alright, and to tell you how proud I am of you...Now I've seen for myself... Look, it's just time for me to go home and let you guys get on with your lives and your work. Now that I know exactly what it is that you're doing..."

"You don't have to go," Sheppard assured him.

"We love having you here," Logan chimed in.

"And I love hearing you say that. But I do have a life of my own, you know, and it's high time I got back to it."

"Dad..."

"No son, no arguments. But there is one thing the two of you can do to make an old man happy."

"Who's the old man?" Logan asked.

"Me! And you know it!"

"You're not an old man!" she countered. "But you know we'd do anything for you."

"Good, good, glad to hear it."

"So what is it, Dad?"

Tom looked the both of them square in the eye, first one, then the other. "You can admit to each other how you really feel."

Logan and Sheppard exchanged glances. "Sir?" they replied in unison.

"You know that has always driven me a little batty," he rolled his eyes at them. "Now, I mean it. You owe it to each other and frankly, you owe it to me too."

"Dad..."

"Now, I don't want to hear about regulations, and I know that's strange coming from an old Colonel like me, but dammit... I love you two, and I want you to be happy. It doesn't have to go any farther than this room, but it needs to be said."

"Dad..."

"Son, I've seen the way you are together and it's a damn sight different than before. Now TELL HER!"

"I already have!" Sheppard finally blurted out.

Tom gaped open-mouthed at his son. "Beg pardon?"

"It's true...Dad..." Logan blushed.

"He told you?"

"And she told me."

A slow, lopsided grin crept across Tom Sheppard's face. "Is that right?"

They nodded together. "Yep!"

"When?"

"Two weeks ago," they replied.

"And?"

"And what, sir?" they asked.

"Good Lord you two are dense sometimes! You love her, she loves you...and?"

They exchanged curious glances and shrugged. "And we're very happy about it," they announced in unison.

"Well that's all well and good, kids, but what are you gonna do about it?" he prodded.

Logan shrugged and looked away.

"What do you expect us to say, Dad? Neither one of us is ready to give up our careers, or to walk away from this place..."

"So you're going to walk away from each other?" he gasped.

"No!" they cried.

"Ahhhh...Okay, so what the brass doesn't know, won't hurt anyone... Think you can keep that up?"

"I don't see why not. We always have before."

"You weren't...in love... before..."

"Maybe we were. Maybe we always were. But, in any case, our personal feelings have never interfered with our duties before. Even when we were sent to different duty stations."

"True enough. I guess this means I can't expect grandkids any time soon?" he teased.

"No sir!" Logan blushed.

"It's a little too early for us to even start thinking about...that..." Sheppard stammered.

"Fine, fine... As long as you two are happy, that's all I care about."

"We are," they replied in unison.

Early the next morning, the entire senior staff assembled in the control room to bid Colonel Tom Sheppard farewell. Out of respect, all the members of the military stood at attention and saluted as he descended the stairs with Logan and Sheppard on either side of him. He was deeply moved by the show of respect, and struggled to keep a lid on his emotions as he turned back and returned the salute.

"Take care kids," he hugged the two of them one last time. "I love you both very much."

"Love you, too, Dad," they replied, again in unison.

Tom shook his head and walked through the gate. Logan and Sheppard did their level best not to break down as he disappeared into the event horizon. With a quick glance at one another, they turned around and ascended the stairs to begin their busy workday, emotions firmly in check.

LATER THAT DAY

"You found ANOTHER one? Still intact?" Logan gaped at Daniel.

"Intact yes, untouched, no."

"Meaning?" Sheppard prodded.

"Someone beat us to it and they've begun setting up camp, as it were."

"I take it this is someone we know?" Caldwell asked.

"Yep!"

"Anyone we like?" Sheppard asked warily.

"Nope!"

Awwww, crap..." Sheppard muttered.

Logan's eyes widened. "Not the..."

"Genii." Daniel finished for them both.

"How the hell did THEY find it?" Sheppard groused.

"They were in the mood for bragging, but not for sharing," Mitchell said.

"We can't let them have it!" McKay sputtered. "Do you have any idea the damage they could do if they managed to access the ancient database?!"

"Uh, yes, Doctor, I think we do." Caldwell growled.

"The good news, for now, is that the ZPM's appear to be completely depleted and, so far, they don't have an adequate power source to power the city or it's systems." Carter informed them.

"Yet." Sheppard muttered.

"We have to take that city," Caldwell announced.

"Which may not be as easy as it sounds." Daniel began. "Now that they know WE know it's there, and that we want it..."

"They've already called for reinforcements to defend it," Sheppard finished for him.

"Only one way in or out and they have the advantage," Mitchell added.

"One more problem," McKay said. "They need only minimum power to activate the gate's shield. If they can do that, we won't have ANY way to get past it."

"Then we better come up with a plan FAST people. Colonel's, you gather every off-world team we have between Atlantis and Genoa and have them ready to move within the hour. Doctor Zelenka, prep a UAV. If that doesn't get through, no one goes. I'm going to contact General O'Neill and see if he can send us a few teams from Earth. And one other thing... Unless there is no other option, this is NOT shoot-to-kill. We've managed to keep a modicum of peace between ourselves and the Genii for a while now. Taking this city from them will piss them off enough, there's no need to make it worse by killing in order to do so. Zats and stunners only, unless absolutely necessary. Are we clear?"

"Clear, sir!" came the unanimous response.

PS4-887************

Acastus Kolya surveyed the room surrounding the stargate. It was somewhat similar in design to the one in Atlantis. Not as large, but it would suit their purposes, provided they could get the shield to operate. A hundred men now guarded the new Genii city they'd found. Adequate enough to repel a few Lantean teams, should they dare try to take the city from them. And if they could get the shield to work, then no other defense would be necessary. The Lanteans would simply vaporize against the shield the way Sheppard had done to an entire company of Genii soldiers years before. Now he, Kolya, was the one defending home turf against invaders, though he certainly wouldn't mind going up against Sheppard one more time.

Sheppard had bested him twice now. Three times if you counted his brother. He'd warned Jerud about underestimating the Lanteans, but he refused to listen. He'd been as arrogant as Acastus himself the first two times he'd faced off against them. He'd known Jerud would make some kind of attempt, but he did not learn about what he'd done until after the fact. Though he'd been told by one of the survivors of that ill-fated scheme that Sheppard had NOT been the one to take his brothers' life, he had still been present. In fact, his life had been taken by another in order to SAVE Sheppard when Jerud had him in the crosshairs of his weapon. A woman, by the name of Colonel Logan Devane, had fired the fatal shot. The woman kidnapped by his brother to lure Sheppard to his death.

While he could not exactly fault them for defending themselves, he could not entirely absolve them either. Jerud was his brother and he died trying to avenge Ascastus' good name. Foolish as he was, it was up to Acastus to avenge his brothers' death now. If that meant splattering those responsible against a closed shield, rather than by his own hand, so be it. But, there was still that nagging desire to see Sheppard and Devane on their knees before him when he took their lives.

Fifteen SG Teams stood ready in the Atlantis gateroom, ready for the assault on PS4-887. Caldwell gave the order for the UAV to launch and Zelenka sent the drone through the gate. Almost immediately, the UAV began transmitting data and video back to Atlantis, indicating that the shield was not up and there were no signs of humans anywhere in the immediate vicinity of the stargate.

Caldwell gave the order for teams to begin moving out. With Sheppard's team in the lead, the teams moved in, two-by-two. Sheppard's gut was screaming at him that it was a trap, that it shouldn't have been that easy for them to enter the city unmolested. Mitchell, following close behind, agreed wholeheartedly with his assessment.

Sheppard gave the order for everyone to hold their positions around the control room, taking a defensive stance against anyone who might attack from the different hallways leading into the control room. When the last team, led by Logan, arrived, Sheppard radioed back to Atlantis that they were all safe and accounted for, had met no resistance, as of yet, and would be spreading out to search the city for the Genii. Caldwell reminded him again to be cautious, knowing who they were dealing with.

"What do you think?" Mitchell asked Sheppard.

"I think it's a trap, that's what I think. If I know Kolya, and I DO, he's waiting for a chance to try and get the jump on us."

"And he'd love to get his hands on you, wouldn't he?" Mitchell arched an eyebrow at him.

"No question... Logan, too," Sheppard nodded.

"Well, we'll just have to make sure he doesn't, won't we?"

Sheppard nodded gravely. The fifteen teams slowly fanned out in an organized search pattern, careful to always keep the other teams in full view to avoid any divide and conquer scenarios Kolya might have planned for them, but soon enough, they reached a point where they could no longer do so. They'd covered every inch of space surrounding the main control area without turning up a sign of anyone.

While it would have been simpler, had they brought a ZPM to power the systems and use the city's sensors to root the Genii out, they didn't want to chance having that ZPM fall into the hands of their enemy, in the unlikely event they were overpowered by them. So, they conducted their search the old fashioned way.

Zat and stunner fire lit up the southeast corner of the city. Six teams had finally flushed out somewhere around fifty Genii soldiers. When the fire fight was over, all fifty had been incapacitated, and only two of the Lanteans had sustained minor injuries, grazing gunshot wounds. They set about disarming the unconscious men and then securing them with the tough plastic handcuffs they'd brought with them. Once that was accomplished, they set two teams to keep watch and the other four teams went to join the others to continue the search.

Within hours the Lanteans had flushed out and subdued forty other Genii. By the time they reached the westernmost point of the city, the Lanteans were so spread out they could no longer maintain visual contact with the other teams. A sudden commotion in a room at the end of a long hallway sent Logan running to back up the other two teams. As soon as she burst through the door, a small explosion detonated around the doorway, sending debris raining down. Logan dove out of the way, landing in a heap on top of Daniel, Teal'c and Sheppard.

Once the dust settled, they could see that the entrance was blocked by rubble from the explosion. The nine of them sprang to their feet, assuming a defensive circle and raising their weapons to fire at anything that moved. On the other side of the debris, they could hear Bates shouting orders.

Sheppard keyed his miecand called out to Bates.

"Okay people, we tripped one trap, let's assume there are others and proceed accordingly. Bates, you are in charge out there, you know what to do. Acknowledge."

"Understood sir," came Bates' reply.

"How do you want to..."

A single gunshot wound rang out from above, striking Teal'c in the shoulder. Teal'c went down to one knee as the others looked up to see where the shot might have come from. The smoke from the rubble was still hanging in the air, obstructing their view.

"Who wants to be next?" Kolya shouted.

Sheppard's jaw tightened. "Kolya," he whispered to the others.

"A tactic we learned from you, Sheppard...I think you know that my people have the advantage, and unless you'd like to see another of your team go down, I suggest you disarm yourselves right now."

"Haven't we talked about your overconfidence before, Kolya?" Shepaprd snarked. "You have to know that we've taken control of the city."

"Out there you have. But, as you can see, you are now separated from the rest of your people. It'll take some time for them to be able to dig through the rubble to help you, so, you see in here, WE hold the high ground."

"Perfect trap," Mitchell whispered to Sheppard.

"Yeah, yeah," he whispered back.

"You have my word that no more shots will be fired, provided you cooperate."

"I don't have a whole lot of faith in your word, Kolya," Sheppard replied.

"Nevertheless, it appears you have no other choice."

Teal'c was bleeding profusely, and in desperate need of a tourniquet. Logan moved to help him, but was stopped by a sharp bark from Kolya. "Move and he dies!"

Logan looked over at Sheppard, Carter and Mitchell helplessly. She would follow their lead. A long look passed between the four Colonel's before they signaled the others to lower their weapons. Kolya smiled victoriously as he stepped from the smoky shadows and slowly walked toward Sheppard.

"I wish I could say it was nice to see you again, Kolya," Sheppard snarked.

"Yet I couldn't be happier to see you...Colonel..."

Kolya studied each one of them carefully before speaking again. His eyes finally rested on both Carter and Logan. He'd been unable to determine before which one of them might be the Colonel Devane he was looking for, but now, at close range, he could read the names stitched on their uniforms.

"Colonel Carter, I don't believe I've heard your name before...but you, Colonel Devane..." stepping in front of Logan. "You, I HAVE heard of."

Sheppard stiffened but tried not to let it show.

"My reputation preceeds me?" she quipped.

"Indeed. I haven't had the pleasure, but I believe you were well acquainted with my brother, Jerud."

"Yes, I had the displeasure of meeting him," she nodded.

"And yet, he was apparently quite taken with you..." he looked her up and down. "I must admit, I can see why now," he leered.

In an effort to deflect attention from Logan, Mitchell coughed and cleared his throat to speak. "Well, you have our attention, so what is it you want?"

Kolya glanced over at Mitchell and read the name on his uniform. "Colonel...Mitchell... I am unfamiliar with your name as well. You were not in Atlantis during my visit there."

"Nope."

"Nor were you... Jackson...What rank do you hold?" Kolya eyed him curiously.

"I don't," Jackson replied.

"Let me guess... A doctor, like McKay here?"

"Not exactly," Daniel shrugged.

"And this one..." eyeing Teal'c, who had since gotten to his feet.

"He's not like Dr. McKay either," Mitchell said.

"I can see that... He doesn't appear to be like any of you..."

"Which is why you shot him first..." Sheppard stated.

"Very perceptive," he smirked, before turning his attention to the next person in line. "Teyla Emmagan, I believe?"

Teyla nodded but did not speak.

"Now that we've all exchanged pleasantries, can we get on with it?" Sheppard snapped.

"You know, when it became clear that we would not be able to power the city's defensive systems, all I really cared about was getting my hands on the two of you..." indicating Sheppard and Logan. "Imagine my delight at actually capturing two of the most wanted enemies of the Genii, as well as the ever amusing Dr. McKay?"

"We're so happy you're pleased," Mitchell snarked.

"I'm sure."

"There's just one problem with your plan though..." Carter pointed out.

"And what's that?" he arched an eyebrow at her.

"You're never going to make it out of here with your prizes," Mitchell finished for her.

"I'm aware of that," Kolya nodded. "But, as helpful as the good doctor here might be to my people, and perhaps these others as well, I will still be considered a hero to my people for bringing down their enemy."

"Uh-huh... And they're going to find out about this...how?" Mitchell asked.

"You didn't kill any of my men, this time. I can only assume that is some misguided attempt on your part at portraying yourselves as merciful and benevolent. My men will tell the Genii that I was able to kill you, before your people killed me."

"Uh-huh... This is all assuming, of course, that we plan on returning your men to the Genii, rather than holding them as prisoners of war," Mitchell told him.

Kolya smiled, his eyes cold and dark as he turned to face Sheppard. "You know what, Sheppard? I really don't care anymore. I have the two people I want most. I may even allow the others to go..."

"I'm the only one you really want, Kolya. The others have nothing to do with OUR fight," Sheppard insisted.

"True enough, however..." moving over to stand in front of Logan again. "Colonel Devane here has her own debt to pay to me, doesn't she?"

Logan stared back at him calmly, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of rattling her.

Sheppard tried to remain calm. "Your brother USED her to get to me. She's an innocent victim in all of this."

"She's a warrior, just like you Sheppard. Although... she is a lot easier on the eyes," he smirked.

"Can you guys stop talking about me like I'm not here?" she complained.

"My apologies, Colonel Devane, I'll speak directly to you from here on." Kolya signaled his men, who moved in and herded the others away from Sheppard and Logan.

"You could at least let one of us help our wounded man," Logan said.

"Very well... Teyla can do the honors. You see, I CAN be reasonable."

Sheppard snorted sarcastically. "Sure you can."

Kolya whirled around and pointed a gun at Sheppard, eliciting a quiet gasp from Logan. "Colonel Sheppard, Colonel Devane, I'd like the two of you to get down on your knees, please."

"No!" they snapped simultaneously.

"But, I even said 'please'," he shrugged.

"No," they repeated.

"And here I thought you had agreed to cooperate."

"Cooperation doesn't mean bowing down before you," Sheppard growled.

"It does to me, now... get on your knees," he snarled menacingly.

"You'll have to shoot me first," Sheppard told him.

Kolya fired his gun without blinking, striking Sheppard in the thigh. Logan and the others cried out as she dropped to the floor beside the writhing Sheppard.

"B*stard!" she shouted, tearing off her sleeve and wrapping it around his bleeding leg to staunch the flow of blood.

Kolya smiled menacingly. "He did tell me to."

Though they were both on the floor, neither of them was in a kneeling position. Logan sat crosslegged, with Sheppard's leg in her lap, as she applied pressure to the wound. She could tell that the bullet, fortunately, wasn't a very high caliber one, or it would have done a lot more damage.

"Feel better?" Carter asked.

"A little," Kolya grinned.

"Nothing like shooting an unarmed man to make YOU feel like a man," Logan seethed.

"Careful now, you might hurt my feelings." Kolya warned.

"If that's the only thing I hurt, you can consider yourself lucky!" she snapped.

Kolya laughed. "You ARE spunky! Between that and your beauty, it's no wonder my brother found you so intriguing."

"Leave her alone," Daniel growled.

"Ah, so it's not just Sheppard who feels so protective of her. What about this one here?" he pointed at Carter.

Daniel and Mitchell both eased their bodies in front of Carter, while McKay and Lorne crowded closer to Teyla. It wasn't as if Kolya hadn't used or threatened women before.

The sounds of men digging on the other side of the crumbled doorway were getting louder. Kolya looked over, then turned back to face them.

"It would seem that we're becoming short of time, so I'll have to start wrapping this up..."

Sheppard struggled to a sitting position, desperately trying to put his body between Kolya and Logan as Kolya strode purposefully towards them. He raised his gun and pointed at Sheppard.

"No!" cried Logan, pushing Sheppard back down and throwing herself over him protectively.

"NO!" the others cried collectively.

Suddenly a bright light flashed through the room and Kolya disappeared, then one by one, each of his men also disappeared into the light. The nine of them looked around in wonder, confused as to what had just happened. Their radios lit up and the sound of Caldwell's voice came over the receivers.

"Colonel Sheppard, this is Caldwell. We have Kolya and his men with us on board the Daedalus."

They all looked at each other and smiled. "Colonel Caldwell, this is Devane... If we'd known you were coming, we'd have baked a cake," she quipped.

"Thought of it after you left. I had a feeling you might need a little backup."

"Yes we did... We're barricaded in and have wounded down here, Colonel. Can you transport Colonel Sheppard and Teal'c out of here for immediate medical attention?"

"Consider it done." Moments later, they were all on board the Daedalus, and except for Sheppard and Teal'c, were beginning their debriefing.

"He wasn't pleased, that's for sure."

"Your timing couldn't have been better, sir." Mitchell informed him. "Kolya was about to shoot Colonels Sheppard and Devane right before you transported him out."

"I figured as much. He was too stunned and well... amazed... by the ship to say much of anything. He was immediately escorted to the brig and placed in a separate cell from his men."

"Good. Permission to go and shoot HIM in the leg, sir?" Logan said.

"Denied, Colonel, but I understand the sentiment."

"I'm pretty sure we rounded up all the Genii, sir. I'd like to keep my team here with the others, just to make sure." Mitchell said.

"That's fine. Once Sheppard and Teal'c have been tended to, we're going to send you all back down to the city. It's faster to travel to Atlantis by gate than ship. Colonel Devane, your team can return to Atlantis, along with Sheppard's, now that the Genii have been handled. We don't want to leave our own world unprotected."

"Yes sir."

"Colonel Caldwell?" Daniel began. "What are you going to do with the Genii?"

Caldwell shrugged. "We'll send the majority back... These ten, along with Kolya? We'll probably hold onto them...At least for a while."

Logan smiled, unabashedly pleased with Caldwell's decision.

After debriefing, Logan hurried down to the ship'S infirmary to check on Sheppard and Teal'c. Both had been stabilized and were being prepared for transport to the city. Logan gave Teal'c a quick kiss on the forehead as they wheeled him out of the room. Two female medics were hovering over - OR rather, FLIRTING - with Sheppard. They looked enormously disappointed when Logan ordered them out of the room as well. Once the door closed, an irate Logan whirled on Sheppard.

"You'll have to SHOOT me?!" she yelled.

"It sounded good at the time," he shrugged meekly.

"You big dumb oaf!" she hollered. "If you EVER do anything like that again, I'll...I'll..."

"What?" he asked.

"I'll shoot you myself!" she said, getting right up in his face.

Sheppard reached up with both hands, grabbed her face and pulled her down on top of him, covering her mouth with his own.

Logan pulled back to look him in the eye. "And don't think that's going to get you out of trouble..."

He cut her off by planting another passionate kiss on her mouth. She struggled for a moment, then gave herself over to the magnificent sensation of his hands and mouth on hers. God, he was good. Logan allowed his hands to roam freely up and down her body for a few moments before reluctantly tearing herself away. Even under minor sedation, his passion for her was evident. She knew they'd be coming for him at any moment, so she threw a blanket over him to cloak the evidence of his arousal from anyone else.

"Even with a bullet in your leg?" she grinned wickedly.

"Even with one in my head, woman..." he growled seductively.

"Behave!" she giggled.

The door opened behind her and the same two medics entered. "They're ready to transport him now, ma'am."

"I'll be right behind you," she assured him.

As they were wheeling him out the door, she heard one of them ask him: "Did you get cold, Colonel Sheppard?"

Logan grinned, thinking about the promise his kisses held for later. She'd wanted to go and see Kolya before heading back to the city, but she decided, after seeing Sheppard, that she could wait a while longer.