Disclaimer: Not mine

Litman was already in the room when Elizabeth entered. He'd obviously been informed that Elizabeth had said that she held the ancient gene.

"So you are the one I should have been after from the beginning. I must say I am surprised that you allowed your precious John to come to harm knowing the truth."

Elizabeth stared at him hard. She didn't falter once as she stepped forward to him.

"And I'll have to live with that for the rest of my life. But now I want to discuss helping you."

Litman smiled and led her away to a side room, which was filled of ancient technology. Elizabeth stared in awe. She'd never seen so much technology in one room. Even in Atlantis.

Litman took her hand and led her to the nearest table. He picked something up and handed it to her.

"Activate it"

Elizabeth held it. She didn't know how she had to do this. Whether it was done by mental ability or whether she just had to hold it.

She held it for a few minutes before Litman snatched it from her hand and threw it back on the table.

"Liar. You said you possessed the gene"

Elizabeth nodded

"I do possess it. Let me try something else"

Litman picked something else up and slapped it in her hand. Elizabeth closed her eyes. She had to activate it, she didn't know what would happen if she didn't.

She thought it was about to activate when it was hit from her hand and she landed with a thump on the floor. Litman stood over her.

"You are a liar. For that I will kill Sheppard."

Elizabeth shook her head

"I'm not lying. I do possess the gene"

Litman looked her up and down.

"You are not a descendent of the Ancestors."

He dragged her up off the floor and pulled her back into the banquet hall just as the room filled with smoke.

Ronon had been trying to weaken the bars on his cell since the guards had taken Elizabeth again. He'd tried everything he knew and it finally looked like he was getting there. The bars where starting to wobble. The room was free from guards so there was no chance of him being stopped. The only guards where stood at the top of the stairs, Ronon knew that he could take them if he could escape. He just needed to get out of that damn cell first.

He managed, eventually, to snap one of the bars. He stood up and tried to kick it though. He succeeded. One bar down. Teyla was looking over at him. She knew he was worried about what was happening to Elizabeth. She was too. Elizabeth was still the closest friend she had and she had selflessly given her life to protect hers.

"Ronon"

Ronon turned and faced her.

"What?"

Teyla stared at him sadly.

"I know you are worried, but...but you cannot take on all the guards yourself."

Ronon sighed and lent against the bars facing her.

"I can't leave her alone up there. I can't let her go through it."

Teyla nodded slowly

"I do understand. I do honestly."

She looked down at where John was laying just a few cells over from her and then to the other personal who were in the cells connected to them at the back, before looking back at Rodney and Ronon.

Elizabeth had given her life not just for Teyla, but for all of those which were currently here.

Teyla couldn't help but feel proud of her friend. She'd always known Elizabeth was strong but she hadn't know just how strong she really was.

The door to the cells opened and Teyla held her breath, wondering how bad Elizabeth would look. She already looked like she'd been run though the mill a few times since being here.

She heard at least six sets of feet come down the stairs that was unusual; it would only take two guards at most to drag Elizabeth down the stairs. Teyla tensed as she heard them come closer and closer. She held her breath. What was going through her head was scaring her half to death. Ronon had already picked up the bar he'd kicked through, obviously ready to use it if he needed to.

They owners of the footsteps eventually came into view. They were carrying P-90's and wearing Atlantis military gear. Teyla didn't realise she'd been holding her breath but when she saw Lorne step into the room she breathed a long sigh of utter relief.

"Major Lorne"

Lorne rushed over to her cell and smiled

"Teyla, thank God we've found you."

His eyes then slid over to where John was lying. He gestured for one of the other Marines and they threw him over a set of keys, which they had obviously taken off one of the guards.

Lorne quickly unlocked the cell John was laying in before throwing the keys back to one of the Marines with the order to unlock the other cells.

He rushed to John's side and checked his pulse. He smiled when he felt it, faint but there.

He and another Marine lifted John to his feet just as St Bates entered the room.

"Sir we've got to get moving"

Lorne nodded and then looked around doing a double take.

"Where's Dr Weir?"

Ronon was already bouncing up the stairs being followed by St Bates who grabbed his arm.

"Do you know where she is?"

Ronon stopped and shook his head

"Teyla does"

Bates nodded as Teyla joined them at the top of the stairs. She rushed along the corridors looking desperately for the room she had been taken into. She stopped and rushed back to a door she had passed a few seconds before.

"Here, this is where she was taken. This is where she will be"

Bates nodded and took out some smoke canisters before turning back to Ronon and Teyla

"You two should head back to the Jumper. We'll take it from here"

Ronon shook his head

"I'm not leaving here without her."

Bates and Lorne nodded before opening the door quickly and throwing in the smoke canisters.

Elizabeth coughed as the smoke choked her lungs and blocked her vision. She broke away from Litman, knowing he wouldn't be able to find her again in all this smoke. She stumbled to the floor in all the confusion. She could hear people coming into the room. She could hear voices, they sounded familiar. She kept her face close to the floor, trying to stay under the smoke as she'd been taught when she felt someone grabbing her by the waist. She tried to get away but the grip tightened

"Elizabeth"

She knew the voice. She lifted her head a little.

"Ronon?"

She was dragged to her feet, her head was immediately buried in his chest, and that told her straight way that it was Ronon. The feel of him, the smell of him. It was all Ronon. She pulled herself tighter into his chest as he pulled her out of the room.

The smoke hurt her eyes and reminded her of the poker games her dad used to have when she was little. She smiled at the memory as she left the room and looked up at Ronon who grabbed her hand started to pull her out of the building following Bates and Lornes' lead. The team ran out to the Jumper, which was obviously cloaked. In the back Carson was there already, he was hovering over John. Checking his pulse, his pupils and other various things. Ronon walked Elizabeth to a chair, sat her down as Lorne ran to the front of the Jumper, and started to fly it. The rest of the team ran into another Jumper, which was being piloted, by one of the Marines from the Daedalus. They hit the sky and Elizabeth started thinking that they had got away easily. Something didn't feel right, part of her knew that it was possible that they had got rid of all opposition when they were storming the building but she knew there should have been some type of opposition when they tried to leave. As if on cue something shook the small Jumper and Lorne rose the ship up higher. Ronon grabbed hold of Elizabeth has she was nearly thrown forward by the blast. Ronon grabbed hold of the back of Lornes chair

"Get some control of this thing."

Lorne nodded

"I know, I'm trying. The bastards must be shooting blind cos we're cloaked"

Ronon nodded

"Just get us either to the Stargate or into Space. We can't hang around here"

Lorne nodded. He knew Ronon was giving him orders but he also knew how much he wanted to get off this planet. It was not surprising he was acting a little in control.

As the two Jumpers neared the Stargate Lorne cursed

"Damn it, Lt Richards hold up. I repeat do not activate the Stargate"

Ronon walked away from Elizabeth and to Lornes side. He looked out of the window and saw that the Molinas had the 'Gate surrounded. They knew if they activated the 'Gate they would either be shot out of the sky or the Molinas would try and storm Atlantis.

Ronon cursed and gripped the back of Lorne's chair hard.

"Fly up into space."

Lorne nodded, knowing it was the only option.

"Lt Richards we're going to go up."

"Sorry Sir, can you repeat that"

"Lt we are going up into space. We can't use the Stargate. I want to see if we can contact the Daedalus up there."

"Yes sir"

The two Jumpers took off into space. Luckily, the Molinas didn't have space travel capabilities so they didn't have to worry about being ambushed up there.

Lorne fiddled with one of the controls inside the Jumper activating the long-range radio.

"Colonel Caldwell this is Jumper one, please respond"

There was no response, just the crackle of the radio. Lorne tried again, this time he got a response

"Major Lorne, where the hell are you?"

"I'm sorry sir; we've been cut off from the Stargate by the Molinas. We need a ride back to Atlantis."

Lorne was certain he could hear Caldwell sighing on the other end of the radio before responding

"We'll set co-ordinates for your position and be there as soon as possible."

"Thank you sir"

Daedalus

It took a while, Ronon lost track of actually how long it took, but eventually the Daedalus arrived and the two Jumpers where beam aboard. They were all immediately taken to the infirmary with Carson giving orders to the other medical staff. A few resented being told what to do on their own ship by an outsider but the rest where happy to follow Carson's lead, after all he was more qualified than any of them.

John was taken and worked on for a long time until Carson came to where Elizabeth, Ronon, Rodney and Teyla were waiting and told them that John was in a coma. Elizabeth became very quiet, placing her head on Ronon's shoulder. Ronon slipped his arm around her shoulders and let her rest on him.

Soon after two nurses came over to Elizabeth and Teyla, they led them over to an examination area and cleaned their wounds. Teyla's wounds weren't as bad as Elizabeth but they still caused her a great amount of pain. Rodney waited around for Teyla to get cleaned up before walking her back to some temporary quarters they had set aside for the team so they could get some rest.

Ronon also waited for Elizabeth. He could see that she had become withdrawn since hearing John was in a coma. He knew she blamed herself for John taking the beating. They'd tortured him because he refused to let anything happen to Elizabeth. If Ronon was honest with himself, he knew John would have done it for anyone but part of him couldn't help but wonder if John still had feelings for Elizabeth. He wouldn't blame him.

When the nurse was finished, Ronon took Elizabeth's arm and led her back to her temporary quarters. She didn't say anything to him as they walked there slowly. He opened the door and let her walk in. Elizabeth had already, like Teyla, changed out of the dress that she had been forced to wear and borrowed some Daedalus uniform. She didn't feel like sleeping in the uniform so decided to slip off her top and trousers before sliding into the bed.

She looked over at Ronon who was still stood by the doorway, looking at her.

"Ronon you need to rest. Come here"

Ronon obeyed her request and walked over to her. He slipped off his own shirt and slid in next to Elizabeth. He wrapped his arms around her lightly, avoiding her broken ribs and the cuts on her face.

"Are you okay?"

Elizabeth nodded and snuggled closer to him.

Ronon wasn't typically a man who could be described as soft but there was something about Elizabeth which had changed him. Granted Teyla had changed him as well but Elizabeth had changed him more, without even trying. He knew she didn't need his protection, she was very capable of looking after herself but he wanted to protect her. He wanted to wrap her up in his arms and keep her away from any harm.

Ronon placed a kiss to the top of her head and close his eyes.

Ronon woke up a few hours later by a radio announcement informing all crew that they would soon be docking on Atlantis.

Ronon slipped out of the bed and stretched before putting his shirt back on. He then sat on the edge of the bed and placed a piece of Elizabeth's hair at the back of her ear.

"Elizabeth. We're back. We're on Atlantis."

Elizabeth stirred and flickered her eyes open. She closed her eyes again and sighed

"Tell them to leave me here"

Ronon smiled and wrapped the covers around her before picking her up and dragging her close to him. This woke Elizabeth up.

"Fine. I'm awoke"

Ronon smiled and placed her back down on the bed. Before when Elizabeth wouldn't wake he, in a act that could either be seen as funny or as annoying, had picked her up and took her to the shoulder and woke her up with cold water splashing onto her skin. Elizabeth had threatened him after that, saying if he did it again he would find himself back in his own room, all alone.

Ronon never really believed the threat but it gave him something to fear, just in case.

He sat on the bed and watched her as she got dressed and sorted her hair. She still seemed slightly withdrawn but better than she was before. Maybe all she needed was some rest and a chance to think through things.

Teyla sighed and uncurled herself from around Rodney as she heard the radio announcement that Atlantis was docking. She had been curled up on Rodney has he, unconsciously, ran his fingers through her hair as he talked about something scientific which she would never understand.

She had been very comfortable on Rodney's chest but now she was going to have to go back on Atlantis and face all the questions about what happened before she could get that comfortable again, at which point Rodney would be called away by someone to help with something in the lab. Teyla was thinking of making it clear to all the scientists, especially the few female scientists who seemed to have a crush on Rodney that he was spoken for and she could kick their asses if they disrupted their time together, which was limited at the best of times.

Teyla got off the bed and stretched her tired muscles as Rodney slipped from the bed himself and slipped on his jacket.

Atlantis

As soon as John was settled in the infirmary, Elizabeth was at his side. One of her hands covering his as she sat silently praying. Ronon was sat with her, reluctant to leave her alone. A few hours later Carson ordered Elizabeth to get some sleep, she had been reluctant but Ronon had dragged her off to her room. Elizabeth didn't fight against him, she was just too tired. Ronon got her into bed and then got in himself. He dropped his head on the pillow behind him and wrapped one arm around Elizabeth who was now curled up at his side. He pulled her closer and rested his chin on her head. She'd been through a lot the last few days and he wouldn't blame her if she just decided to sleep for the next week. He knew he could certainly do with a weeks sleep.

"Ronon?"

Ronon nodded and kissed her head again.

"Yeah"

Elizabeth sat up slightly and looked at him. She drew her finger down his cheek. He grabbed her finger and held her hand. Elizabeth lifted his hand and kissed it. Her voice was muffled when she spoke but he understood what she said. It stopped his heart beating for a moment when he heard her saying it, she'd never said it to him before and a part of him wondered if she actually meant it. She was going through some things. She'd been easily mixed up lately.

Ronon closed his eyes and cleared his throat.

"Do you mean it?"

Elizabeth looked him square in the eyes, he'd always thought her eyes were her best feature, even though she had other 'attributes' which he took pleasure in enjoying, they were so honest. They gave away a lot about her and when he looked in them, he could see that she was telling the truth. Ronon closed the distance between them and kissed her lips, his own lips slid from hers and down her neck. He grazed her neck with his teeth before sliding back up to her lips and kissing her with passion. He moved away from her lips and kissed her three more times, once on the lips, once on the cheek and once on the forehead before sliding back down onto the bed and pulling her down with him.

One month later

Elizabeth grabbed the pillow behind her as she reached her own orgasm just a few moments after Ronon reached his. Elizabeth turned her head and bit her wrist to try to muffle the sound but her whimpers could still be heard, causing Ronon to smile. He loved making her feel like this, he loved how she made him feel, so it was really a mutual relationship. Ronon slowly and gently let himself fall to her side, his arm around her waist. Some of her ribs were still broken and he didn't want to cause her more pain then she was already in. He ran his finger up and down her side and slid down her body in order to place kisses on her toned stomach. Elizabeth smiled at the feeling of his lips. He'd just returned to Atlantis from a week long mission with Teyla and Lorne's team. When he'd come to her room after being checked over at the infirmary he'd made it obvious how much he'd missed her. Twice.

With Ronon on a mission and Elizabeth on Atlantis, she'd been spending a lot of her, limited, free time in the infirmary just watching John. Waiting for him to wake up. Once his eyes had flickered open but that had amounted to nothing. Carson said it was sometimes common for that to happen. That had left Elizabeth a little upset but she'd started feeling better about two hours later when Ronon arrived back on Atlantis. She'd sent him and the team off to the infirmary to get checked out and then returned back to her quarters to do some work.

Elizabeth sat looking at a recent report from Bates. Her attention though was not on the report. Elizabeth sighed and stretched her legs from the uncomfortable position they were in.

She gathered up the papers, which were spread over her bed and moved them to one side before picking up her laptop and closing the programme she was running. She opened up a game of solitaire and started to play, cursing the cards she got but resisting the urge to hit the deal button.
She sat playing for a few moments and was about to put on some music when there was a knock on the door. Sighing she closed her laptop and placed it on her desk as she walked to the door and opened it. She saw Ronon on the other side, smirking, his arms pressed either side of the door as he lent in.

Elizabeth smiled and lent against the doorframe.

"Hey"

Ronon continued to smirk and he leant in slightly further

"Hey. Are you going to let me in?"

Elizabeth bit the inside of her mouth and pretended to think. She raised her eyebrows and looked up at the ceiling.

"Mmm, I don't know."

Elizabeth looked back and him and smiled

"Give me one good reason"

Ronon dropped his arms, put his hands on her waist, and pushed her backwards into the room. He kissed her deeply as her arms made their way around his neck to pull him down and make the kiss hard. Ronon pulled away and smirked

"That a good enough reason?"

Elizabeth nodded and closed the distance between them. Ronon walked her backwards towards the bed, pushed her down and covered her body with his, only remembering some of her ribs bones when she gasped slightly in pain. Ronon quickly slid away from her and laid next to her on the bed.

"I forgot. I'm sorry"

Elizabeth took a moment before laying on him best she could.

"It's okay. Come here"

Ronon lifted his head a bit, as Elizabeth lowered her head. Their lips met again and Ronon rolled Elizabeth gently onto her back.

Elizabeth rolled onto her side and faced Ronon. She kissed him and slid into his side; Ronon wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer and whispering in her ear.

"Did you miss me?"

Elizabeth shrugged

"Well you know it's been so busy here that I've barely had time to notice you were gone"

Ronon glared at her, slightly worried that she was actually telling the truth.

"You better be joking"

Elizabeth smiled at him and nodded.

"Of course I am"

Ronon smiled and pulled her on top of him. His hands positioned themselves at the side of her face and smoothed down her hair. He was about to kiss her when Elizabeth radio crackled followed by a voice.

"Dr Weir?"

Elizabeth sighed, rolled off Ronon and picked up the radio.

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you Dr Weir but we've just had an off world activation"

Elizabeth nodded to herself, a habit she'd picked up, before responding

"Who was it?"

There was a pause, as if the technician was looking at the IDC

"It was Earth ma'am"

Elizabeth thought she'd heard him wrong

"Say again"

"It was a radio transmission and ZPM from Earth"

Elizabeth rubbed her forehead

"I'll be there in a moment"

Elizabeth put down the radio and turned to Ronon who was now sitting close behind her.

"Earth?"

Elizabeth nodded and got out of bed. She picked up her clothes and started to put them back on. Ronon sighed, slightly confused that Earth would waste a ZPM contacting Atlantis when they could have simply sent a message with the Daedalus.

"Why would they use the Stargate to contact you? I mean after all they've got the Daedalus now, wouldn't it have been easier to contact you that way?"

Elizabeth sighed and sat on the bed facing him.

"I don't know. Hopefully the radio transmission will explain it."

Elizabeth put on her shoes as Ronon shifted in the bed.

"Want me to come with you?"

Elizabeth shook her head and kissed him. She pulled back and smiled

"Get some rest. I'll let you know what's happening when you wake up"

Elizabeth stood up and left the room. She walked through the corridors until she reached the control room where Chuck was waiting for her. When he saw her walk into the control room Chuck stood up and walked over to her

"Dr Weir, sorry to wake you ma'am"

Elizabeth smiled

"It's okay Sergeant. I wasn't asleep yet anyway"

Chuck smiled, wondering if Ronon was the reason she wasn't sleeping when he called but he didn't say anything. He just walked with her over to his station where he sat down.

"The message is compressed and encrypted."

Elizabeth nodded

"Call Dr McKay and Colonel Sheppard, tell them..."

Elizabeth stopped and Chuck tensed. Elizabeth looked away for a moment and closed her eyes tight before looking back at Chuck

"Call Dr McKay, tell him we've been contacted by Earth and we need him to uncompress and decode the message. I'll be in my office"

Chuck nodded slowly and watched her disappear into her office, her head and shoulders slumped, before contacting Rodney.

TBC…