In the gym, Sheppard ducked as Ronon's staff whistled through the air just above his head. If that had made contact, he'd be nursing a concussion right now, so he decided it might be time to give his opponent a friendly warning.

'You might want to take it a little easy on me today, buddy. I have a city to run now, remember?' he quipped.

'Any excuse to try to win,' Ronon grunted, swinging his arm around and swiping his stick so it slapped Sheppard hard across the stomach.

The colonel sank to his knees in the middle of the sunburst pattern on the gym floor, clutching at his aching abdomen. 'No fair. I wasn't ready.'

'If I was the enemy, I wouldn't wait until I thought you were ready,' Ronan smirked, standing back and waiting for him to get up on his feet again.

'If you were the enemy, I'd have shot you by now,' Sheppard fired back, rising carefully and taking a few deep breaths to re-inflate his lungs.

They'd been sparring for no more than twenty minutes, but already he was feeling fatigued. He knew it would be down to the cumulative effect of his lack of sleep over the past six days, but he hated to admit he was below par. He raised his stick, ready to stave off Ronon's next assault.

'You been to see Elizabeth today?' the Satedan asked, out of the blue.

Sheppard dropped his arms to his side. 'Well, I watched her for a while this morning, but I'll probably visit her la –.'

As he spoke, Ronon swung his staff unexpectedly into the back of his calves, knocking his legs straight from under him. He thudded to the floor, the back of his skull making hard contact with the wooden surface and shaking his brain cells a little more than they were prepared to accommodate.

'You all right?' Ronon asked, still smirking.

For a moment or two, Sheppard kept his eyes closed, waiting for the throbbing to subside to a level where he thought it might be safe to let light back in again. When he did so, there were spots dancing in his vision.

'Thanks for going easy on me, Chewy!' he croaked, still not daring to move.

'If I don't push you, you'll get complacent,' Ronon grinned, reaching out his hand and tugging him back up to his feet.

'And if you push me too hard, I'll be in the infirmary,' Sheppard pointed out, swaying with the change in altitude. 'I'm beginning to think reading reports was the better option.'

'Your promotion's making you soft.'

Sheppard knew is friend was baiting him, but humoured him anyway. Ronon loved a good scrap and it was a great way to release his tension. It beat taking breakfast with a psychologist any day.

'Oh, you think so?' he asked, his face cracking into a smile. 'We'll see.'

He launched himself at Ronon, managing to catch his right arm with his staff. The Satedan sucked in a breath through his bared teeth, but it didn't slow him for long. He leapt into his trademark move, bringing his staff down toward Sheppard's shoulder. The colonel managed to block the shot, forcing Ronon back, then kicking him away with a foot to his stomach.

Ronon smiled, appreciative of his efforts. 'Maybe I was wrong,' he admitted, rushing at him again.

His sheer momentum almost bowled Sheppard over, and he had to take several hurried steps back to steady himself while Ronon span wildly, reining blow after blow on him, only some of which he got his staff in the way of. Eventually, Ronon span round behind him and cracked him across the shoulder blades, sending him spilling forward onto his knees again. His upper arms, ribs and shoulders throbbed, and he considered just staying put, but he forced himself back to his feet again and spun his staff in one hand with practiced skill. 'Okay, that was good...but I can still take you down whenever I want,' he challenged.

Ronon's grin grew fierce. 'Bring it on, Boss Man.'

Taking a deep breath, Sheppard tried to replicate Ronon's own style, spinning and clubbing for all he was worth. Unfortunately, Ronon anticipated each strike, blocking them one after another and biding his time until Sheppard was off balance, when he simply swiped his feet from under him.

Once again, Sheppard found himself staring up from the floor, his vision tilting erratically as his befuddled brain tried to make sense of his sudden change in position.

'Well, I may have been a little optimistic in my assessment,' he confessed, letting his head drop back to the floor.

'You give up?' Ronon asked, standing over him, spinning his staff as if waiting for the chance to whack him all over again.

Noticing his cheekbone stung, Sheppard reached up and touched tentatively at his face, finding it swollen and tender, the surface grazed and slightly bloody. He didn't even remember Ronon hitting him there, but things had got pretty wild so he wasn't surprised he'd missed it. 'Er...yeah. You win. Big surprise,' he grunted, sitting up and dabbing at his injury with the back of his hand.

'You all right?' Ronon asked, tossing him a towel.

'I will be,' he replied, gently pressing the cloth to his graze. When he pulled it away, there was a little blood, but not much. He guessed that meant it wasn't too bad.

'You should probably get that cleaned up.'

'Nah. It'll be fine,' the colonel assured him, pushing up to his feet.

'I might go check how Teyla is,' Ronon said, towelling himself off. 'She seemed pretty upset when she left your office.'

'I don't know. I think it might be better if we give her some space,' Sheppard suggested, feeling awkward as he remembered their disagreement. He'd really overstepped the mark with her, but hoped she just needed more time to get over it.

'You ready to tell me what you argued about?' Ronon asked him, heading over to one of the window seats and sitting down.

Deciding he needed a rest himself, Sheppard joined him, popping one leg up onto the seat and resting his elbow on his knee as he held the towel to his graze. 'I accused her of setting up a meeting between me and Dr Heightmeyer this morning, but apparently she had nothing to do with it.'

'You mean what happened at breakfast? I thought you decided to sit with her yourself.'

'No. I think it was what could be termed 'an ambush',' he replied, turning his gaze to the window. Once again, he felt compelled to check the sky as far as he could see, just to convince himself there was nothing untoward approaching them.

'So you thought Teyla had spoken to Heightmeyer and told her she was worried about you?'

'Yeah.'

'Well, she is worried about you, but I don't think she'd go to Heightmeyer behind your back.'

'No. That's pretty much what she said...with added volume and the tears.'

Ronon nodded, his expression unusually serious. 'She's feeling the strain herself right now. We all are.'

'I know. I doubt I would have turned on her the way I did if I weren't as worried about things as I am.' He looked at his friend now, wondering whether or not to put his next question to him. But he valued Ronon's opinion as a military man; he was a good judge of what was and wasn't dangerous. 'So, what do you think of all this business with Elizabeth?'

Ronon squinted at him. 'All what business?'

'Her abduction by the Asurans. Why, what did you think I meant?'

'Nothing,' the Satedan replied, his expression giving nothing away.

Sheppard wondered if McKay had let something slip from their interview with her the other day. It was bad enough that people at the SGC and the IOA were analysing what she'd meant, without everyone on Atlantis doing the same. 'So,' he said, continuing where he'd left off, 'what do you think?'

'I think what they did stinks – and so does the fact she's back on Atlantis.'

Sheppard frowned. 'What d'you mean?'

'Smells like a trap.'

Sheppard's heart sank. That meant his whole team was experiencing misgivings about Elizabeth's return. They couldn't all be wrong, could they?

'You think they tampered with her nanites?'

Ronon shrugged. 'Don't know much about how that stuff works, but I can't think of any other reason they would have left her somewhere for us to find.'

The two men held each other's gaze while Sheppard mulled over his friend's words. He certainly wasn't thinking anything he hadn't considered himself. He forced the other question that had been simmering at the back of his mind past his lips. 'Do you think she's consciously deceiving us?'

Ronon paused, then shook his head. 'I don't think so. All I know is there's trouble coming. I can feel it.'

'I know what you mean. I get up every morning wondering if today's the day the crap will hit the fan.'

'I wish I could say something to make you feel better, but I'm not much good at that stuff,' Ronon said, standing up. 'Everyone's on edge. I even saw McKay chatting to Heightmeyer this morning. I couldn't make up my mind which one to feel most sorry for.'

Sheppard laughed. 'Yeah. I know what you mean. But who counsels Heightmeyer after a session with Rodney?'

Ronon grinned, sauntering away to the door. 'Catch you later, buddy,' he called back as he exited, the door sliding shut behind him.

Sheppard sat still, feeling the aches in his body developing and throbbing to remind him he was alive and...well...still human. It made him wonder how Elizabeth felt, knowing how much damage she'd sustained, but not being able to feel any effects. It wasn't natural, and the fact the only thing holding her together were a few hundred minute robots had to be scary. It occurred to him then that Elizabeth might have suggested Heightmeyer speak to him if they had been in contact at all. He could well believe Elizabeth was concerned enough about him to think he needed to talk to someone. And she knew the pressures he was facing better than anyone...

Not wishing to repeat his mistake with Teyla, he decided to pay her a visit and allay any fears for his stability she might be harbouring. Was he feeling the pressure? Damn right he was, but he wasn't about to fold just yet. There was a lot more mileage left in him before he called it a day.

*****

Feeling a pang of guilt at the smile Elizabeth gave him when he stepped in through her door, Sheppard hung back several feet, pushing his hands into his pockets and avoiding her gaze like a naughty schoolboy.

'I wasn't expecting to see you just yet,' she said brightly. 'I thought I was an 'end of the day' project.'

'Well, I just checked in with Dr Keller for an update on your condition, and she said you were bored so I thought I'd see if I could help.'

'I see. So you thought gracing me with your sparkling personality would alleviate the tedium?' she asked with a smirk, peering up at him through her long lashes.

'Yeah, something like that,' he replied, feeling his cheeks burn. Somehow, knowing how she felt now made her flirting a little more difficult to deal with. He missed the uncomplicated chats they used to have, the ones where feelings were hidden and didn't get in the way to mess things up.

'Have you heard anything from the IOA about what they have planned for me?' she asked, her smile melting away.

'I have, but I'm not at liberty to tell you what they said,' he half apologised. 'Needless to say, it wasn't a straight forward chat; you know how much they like to discuss and analyse things.'

'That I do,' she nodded. 'In all honesty, I'm expecting them to tell you to shut down the nanites.'

He gazed into her huge green eyes seeing the pain that thought brought to her. 'I don't think it'll come to that, Elizabeth. They're not in the habit of handing out death sentences lightly.'

'I wish I shared your optimism, but considering the threat my nanites pose to everyone on Atlantis, they may have to make that call.'

'They'll find another way,' he promised her.

'What, like locking me away in an isolation cell for the rest of my natural life. I really don't see that as a better option.'

'Well, Rodney's working on something else – but I'm not at liberty to divulge the details of that, either,' he told her, hoping even that glimmer of hope would bring the smile back to her face.

She did smile, but it wasn't exactly brimming with happiness. 'Rodney can't fix everything, John. I think this little problem may be beyond even him.'

'Well, if he can't do it alone we can bring in help. Sam Carter has a lot of experience with Replicator technology. I bet if we put the two of them in a room to thrash this out they'd soon have it figured.'

'If Colonel Carter didn't kill him first. My understanding is the two of them don't often see eye to eye.'

'Well, no, I heard that, too. But I think they could keep this professional enough to solve your problem before they came to blows.'

'Hmmm, perhaps.'

John pulled up a chair and sat down across from her, maintaining just enough distance so that she couldn't touch him without getting out of her seat. 'This must all be very scary for you, Elizabeth. How're you coping?'

'Oh, I'm all right. I spoke with Dr Heightmeyer yesterday and got a lot of things off my chest. I'm feeling more relaxed now.'

So she had spoken to Heightmeyer. Now he suspected she had set the doctor on his tail. 'That's good. I'm glad it helped.'

'Yeah. I told her some things in confidence that I'd like her to share with people if I don't survive this, and she's promised to pass those messages on.'

'Now, don't talk like that. Everything's going to be fine,' he assured her.

'Well, it's nice that you want me to feel that way, but you'll excuse me if I don't completely share your optimism,' she sighed, pushing her hair behind her ear as she looked at him. 'It's time to start being realistic, John. There's a good chance I won't get through this, and you need to prepare yourself for that prospect.'

'I suppose you think I should see Heightmeyer and get some therapy,' he quipped, hoping to draw her out on the topic.

She frowned and shook her head. 'I don't see you as the therapy type. But you do have to get your head around the fact that this place needs a new leader. Perhaps you should apply for the permanent position.'

'Are you kidding? A couple of days of dealing with the IOA is enough for any sane man.'

She smirked now, trying hard not to laugh as she asked. 'What does that say about me?'

Sheppard sputtered a laugh out into his chest. 'That didn't sound quite the way I meant it to,' he confessed. 'You're the sanest person I know.'

'What? Even with these damned nanites in my head?' she asked. Then, she flinched, touching at her temple.

Sheppard felt his heart leap into his throat, certain this wasn't a good sign. 'Headache?'

She stared blankly ahead of her, focussing on nothing at all. Sheppard wanted to jump up and shake her, but couldn't. All he could do was raise his voice.

'Elizabeth!'

She remained in a trance for a few seconds longer before he repeated her name and she finally snapped back to him.

'Yes...sorry,' she apologised, still rubbing her head.

'Headache,' he asked again.

'Yeah – it's not bad. I'll just ask Keller for another mild painkiller and it'll soon be better.'

'You've had this before?' Angry that no one had told him about it, Sheppard glanced toward the door. 'Funny. Dr Keller never mentioned that.'

'Well, she should have. You should pick her up on it. Now you're in charge everyone should keep you apprised of everything, no matter how insignificant it seems,' she told him, still rubbing deep circles on her temple.

'I guess people are still getting used to my change in role. I'm sure she didn't mean to leave me out of the loop.'

'You look tired, John. If you have enough spare time to visit me, maybe you should be using it to get some rest,' she advised him. 'I might try to get some sleep myself.' She hopped up on the bed, her feet swinging as she looked at him with barely masked concern.

'You got any other symptoms I should know about before I go see Keller about those painkillers?' he asked.

'No, just that and the tiredness. She said it was probably just a side effect of having the nanites functioning in place of real tissue. Some kind of compatibility issue they're still fighting out in there.'

That didn't ring true to him. She'd been fine until today, not showing any sign of excessive tiredness at all, the exact opposite in fact. 'Well. She's the expert,' he muttered, pushing up out of the chair. 'I'll leave you to get some rest.'

'Thanks...and don't forget the Tylenol.'

'I won't,' he promised, heading out into the corridor. Once the door had closed, he asked the guards to be extra vigilant before heading off to find Keller.

The young doctor was working at her desk when he knocked on the doorframe and entered without waiting for an invitation. 'Why didn't you tell me about the headache?'

'Oh, Colonel...er, you mean Elizabeth's headache?'

He fought hard with the urge to roll his eyes. 'Yes, of course I mean Elizabeth's headache.'

'Well,' she said, standing up and nervously approaching him, 'It wasn't that bad and a dose of Tylenol soon sent it packing. It didn't seem important enough to bother you with.'

'Everything that happens to Elizabeth is important,' he snapped. Then, to avoid misinterpretation, he added, 'She has Replicator nanites in her brain. If she gets a headache, I need to know about it.'

'Of course. I didn't mean to keep it from you. Sorry.'

He saw she meant the apology sincerely, so calmed down before continuing. 'Did you find any cause for it?'

'Nothing,' she said, shaking her head as she picked up the data file from her desk and called up the relevant files. 'I ran several scans and the nanites are still acting in the way they always have been. No change.'

'So...it's just a headache. Possibly caused by stress?'

'I'd say there's a good chance that's the case. I certainly wouldn't want to be in her shoes right now. Or it could just be the fact that she has nanites in her brain instead of normal tissue. We've never done this procedure with anyone before, so it's hard to know what to expect, but I don't think it's out of the question that they might cause the odd ache or pain.'

'As long as that's all it is,' he said, feeling a wave of relief wash over him.

'There is one other possibility,' Keller said, looking sheepish. 'But I don't want to sound like the doomsayer here when it's probably nothing.'

That sense of relief was immediately gone. 'What?' he demanded.

'Well, it could quite plausibly be her immune system trying to reject the nanites. They are a foreign body after all. As yet, there's no other symptoms to suggest that's the case, but it's a definite possibility.'

He was no medical expert, but he knew that didn't sound good. 'Is that serious?'

'Normally, the body rejecting something that's been implanted to keep it alive would be disastrous. But when the thing keeping you alive is nanites...I don't think she'll come to any harm. They are programmed to keep her alive, after all.'

'Yeah...I suppose...' he mused, turning to face the feedback of the Isolation room playing out on a screen in her office. 'But I think it might be an idea to step things up a little until we know exactly what we're dealing with. I want someone watching feedback from her room around the clock, not just checking in on her every thirty minutes. And the first sign of any further problems, or anything unusual in her behaviour, I want to know about it. Okay?'

'Absolutely,' she nodded, wide-eyed and serious as he handed out his orders. 'I'll get that set up right away.

'Thanks. Oh, and Elizabeth has another headache. She's asking for painkillers and says she feels tired.'

'Really? Again? I think I'd better go examine her. Thanks for letting me know.'

'No problem. Oh, and just one other thing, you didn't discuss my lack of sleep with Dr Heightmeyer, did you?'

She shook her head, her mouth twisted down in thought. 'Nope. I really haven't had time to discuss anything with Kate for the past few days. We're treating so many people injured when the satellite weapon hit the city, and now with Elizabeth here, well...I'm having trouble finding time for sleep myself, to be honest.'

'You'd better make sure you take care of yourself, Doc. We can't afford to have the CMO fall ill, can we?'

'Don't worry. I'm not about to collapse just yet. I'd better get those pills to Elizabeth and check her out.' She squeezed his forearm as she passed him on her way to the medicine cabinets.

He turned and watched Elizabeth for a moment longer, thinking over the way her reappearance was affecting him and his connections with the rest of his team. Rodney was freaking at his friendliness, Teyla believed he'd lost trust in her, and Ronon thought he was going soft. As he thought about them all, the sudden realisation of just who had spoken to Heightmeyer on his behalf struck him. Then, he stormed out to tell the guilty party just what he thought of their interference.