As soon as the briefing broke up, Lorne followed Anna from the conference room. She kept her back straight, but he knew her well enough to see that she was scared. Absolutely shaking-in-her-boots scared. As much as her involvement angered him, her willingness to volunteer in spite of her fear made him proud.

By the time they gained the armory, Sheppard had assembled the three Marines that would accompany Anna. Lorne kept his mouth shut and merely found gear for her. She donned the TAC vest without a word and followed him from the room. Beckett met her in the infirmary and gave her a medical pack as well as a few other pieces of equipment. When the doc left them alone, Lorne pulled the curtains around the bed and faced Anna.

She looked so different from the woman he knew. Rather than the elegant scientist that lived her life peacefully, she resembled a soldier now. The TAC vest with all of its pockets hid her figure, and she'd pulled her gorgeous hair into a tight bun at the back of her head. Her mask, the one she used when they were first getting to know each other, had fallen into place. Part of him grieved that she'd been forced to change into this stranger.

He put his hands on her shoulders and, not satisfied with the contact, slid them up her neck to cradle her head. "Remember you have people here who care about you."

She smiled and wrapped her hands around his wrists.. "I know."

Suddenly, that wasn't enough. Lorne stared at her, trying to memorize her face. Just in case. Rather than dwelling on the thought, he figured he should finally let her know how he felt. He leaned in and kissed her, waiting for her to respond.

And, she did, though not like he was expecting. Anna's hands suddenly tightened, and she swayed slightly. While she returned the kiss, neither of them allowed it to get too passionate. This wasn't about passion. This was about a steady relationship that was strong enough to survive whatever would come their way.

When Lorne pulled away, Anna stayed close to him, her grip on his arms not loosening right away. He grinned at the realization that she'd gone weak in the knees and rubbed her face with his thumbs. "I love you."

She flushed and returned the grin. "I love you, too."

They spent a moment basking in the other's presence, and then Lorne let her go regretfully. He waited until she'd regained her composure and jerked back the curtain that had given them privacy. Beckett didn't give them a second glance. Anna walked out of the infirmary before him, and he trailed her all the way to the control room.

SGA SGA SGA SGA

Sheppard waited in front of the Stargate with the three Marines he'd chosen for the mission. All of them knew the stakes, and all of them understood what needed to happen and what might happen. But, without a word, they also agreed to bring Anna Travis back safely. She was Major Lorne's girl, and that afforded her their protection.

The transporter opened, and Anna appeared, followed closely by Lorne. Sheppard studied the two. Lorne looked resigned and calm, but Sheppard wasn't fooled by the exterior. And Anna seemed different. Hard. Not the vulnerable scientist he knew. This version of her had tapped into the strength that surviving a Goa'uld such as Nephthys required, and she'd put it to good use.

"You're clear on your mission, Doc?" Sheppard wanted to minimize as many casualties as possible.

"Yes, Sir." Anna sounded so much like Lorne at that moment that Sheppard eyed the major over her shoulder. "Get in, get captured, get Nephthys, get rescued."

"Well said." Sheppard looked up into the control room "Dial it up."

Chuck began dialing as Anna joined the Marines in front of the gate. Sheppard watched as the team established a pecking order in those few moments. While she had the guts to face down Nephthys, Anna still wasn't military. Yet, she commanded respect. Her experiences commanded respect. As the gate established a wormhole, Sheppard cleared his throat. "Just. . .no heroics. Okay?"

Anna nodded once and spoke for all of her team. "Understood, Sir."

Sheppard studied her for a minute, praying that Elizabeth hadn't made the wrong choice in authorizing this mission. "Move out."

The Marines formed a protective circle around Anna and led her toward the gate. Just before she disappeared, however, she stopped and turned around. Sheppard almost spoke, but he realized that she wasn't asking a question. Her eyes were on Lorne, and she was speaking only to him at that moment. Rather than interrupt, Sheppard went to the control room and began organizing his end of the mission.

The gate disengaged moments later, and the control room fell into its normal chatter. To them, this was another important but normal mission. They didn't carry the weight that Sheppard and Lorne did. Anna was just another doctor on just another mission, and they couldn't know that Atlantis had taken a massive risk in sending her to face Nephthys. Sheppard preferred it that way. He finished giving orders and headed for the transporters.

"Sir." Lorne stopped in front of him, hands behind his back and chin high. "With all due respect, if you leave me behind, I will go AWOL."

Sheppard blinked. When had Lorne strayed from the dutiful soldier and second-in-command that everyone knew? Then, he grinned. "Wouldn't dream of it, Major."

"Thank you, Sir." Lorne followed him into the transporter.

Sheppard pressed the map on Atlantis and waited to speak until they appeared in the corridor leading to the armory. "Just invite me to the wedding."

"Planning on it, Sir." Lorne left Sheppard standing in the transporter, staring openmouthed behind him. He hadn't noticed a ring on Anna's finger when she left. When had Lorne moved from dating to marriage?

Sheppard finally followed, finding Lorne with his men in the armory. The major had erased all signs of worry from his face, and Sheppard understood. Lorne was a military man with years of experience. He was also one of the most controlled individuals on Atlantis. If anyone could handle allowing his girlfriend to be captured by a Goa'uld, it would be Evan Lorne.

Sheppard put the exchange out of his mind as he prepped and walked to the Jumper bay. Lorne followed behind, and the seven men and Teyla settled into their respective seats in the Puddle Jumper. Following this closely behind Anna's team risked an element of discovery, but it was necessary. If Nephthys showed up and captured Anna, they had to be in a position to follow her. With Jeneb's gate buried, the odds that a ship would appear increased exponentially.

On the other side of the wormhole, Sheppard cloaked the Jumper and headed for orbit. Rodney monitored Anna's subcutaneous tracker and actually stayed quiet, for a change. While his men lounged in the back of the Jumper, Lorne stood next to Ronon, the only sign of tension showing in the fist he kept clenched.

Once in orbit, McKay began scanning the surrounding area. "Aha!"

"I don't like the sound of that, Rodney." Sheppard brought up the HUD and blinked. A Goa'uld mothership orbited the planet. "Can they see us?"

"I don't think so."

"You don't think?"

"Well, they can't see their own ships when they're cloaked." McKay stared. "We've never had to face down a Goa'uld ship in a Puddle Jumper before."

"True." Sheppard circled the ship and found a spot. "Let's settle in, guys. It looks like it'll be a bit of a wait." He nudged the Jumper into a spot on the mothership and set it down gently. Then, he deployed drive pods and felt the Jumper lock in place. With a resigned sigh, he leaned back, put his hands behind his head, and decided to take a nap.

SGA SGA SGA SGA

Anna tried to put Evan out of her mind when she stepped through the gate, but it wasn't that easy. Her lips still tingled at the thought of his kiss, and she tried not to flush. She wasn't a weak-in-the-knees kind of woman, yet that's exactly what happened when he kissed her. If it wasn't for her grip on his hands, she would have ended up on the floor. And his words. Anna knew she should focus on why she'd come to this planet, but she also knew she needed to reason out this new depth of emotion and. . . . Commitment? Had she really committed to Evan in those few moments? Without saying as much, she knew she had. For the last month, she had wondered how she would react when Evan decided to take their relationship past the distant "seeing each other" that it had been. Would she panic, thinking back to Jim Barringer and that horrifying experience? No, she hadn't panicked, but she hadn't been able to think, either. Jim Barringer hadn't entered her mind until after she'd stepped through the Stargate.

As they neared the village, Anna closed her mind to thoughts of Evan. She understood the risks that this mission required, and she'd tried to tell him as much just before stepping through the Stargate. Now, it was time for her to trust Sheppard's plan as much as Evan had trusted her to stay safe.

"People from Atlantis!" The greeting brought her head around, and the Marines barely refrained from holding the village's representative at gunpoint. The man, dressed in medieval-style clothing, stared. "We were expecting Dr. Beckett."

Anna stepped forward. "Dr. Beckett was unable to come. Some things requiring his attention came up on Atlantis. I'm Dr. Travis-Anna, if you like. I work with Dr. Beckett."

"Oh." The man nodded, looking slightly crestfallen. He recovered nicely, though. "I am Morin, and I am glad you have come. We have been visited by a man who claims to have received power from a god. He will certainly want to meet the people from the city of the Ancients."

"Power from a god?" Anna glanced at the Marines with her and received a nod in reply. "Lead the way."

As they walked into the village, her heart pounded in her chest. She wasn't ready for this. She wasn't ready to face down Nephthys-if that's who was here. If it wasn't, she didn't know if she'd survive the trip to Jeneb. Nephthys knew her, no matter the body the snake inhabited. Nephthys understood the way Anna's mind worked and the weaknesses to exploit.

Not anymore, her mind reminded her in Evan's voice. She could see his face, staring at her as if to remind her that she was a different woman than before. Nephthys couldn't know that her relationship with Evan had instilled strength and determination. Anna had a reason to return to Atlantis.

Morin stopped at a small house with a crowd gathered inside. Anna peeked in and tensed at what she saw. A man dressed in travel-stained robes held a Goa'uld healing device above the arm of a small child. She leaned toward Morin. "What happened?"

"He was playing near the river and fell." Morin shrugged. "His playmates said they heard a snap when he landed on his arm."

Anna winced. She'd busted an arm in the past, and she knew the pain involved. The healing device would minimize that pain and shorten recovery time considerably.

Finally, the man using the device sat back and made a show of presenting the boy's healed arm to the crowd. "See? Just as I have told you, I have also demonstrated. This is the power that Nephthys has given to me."

Anna tensed and kept herself in place as the man's eyes swept over the crowd. When he saw her, he rose and headed her way. "You are not of this world?"

Morin stepped forward. "No, my lord. She, and the men with her, are from the city of the Ancients."

For the first time in her life, Anna wanted to pound someone into the ground. Morin was merely doing his job, however, and she couldn't blame him for that. She could, however, bristle at the respect he paid to this snake.

The Goa'uld circle her, the Marines with her barely allowing him enough room. "You are a beautiful woman." He eyed the soldiers. "These are your guards?"

"Yes." Anna stared at him, forcing herself to keep her fear hidden. "And they will not hesitate to kill you should any harm come to me."

"Then you must be of importance if the people from the great city sent guards to protect you." He grinned condescendingly. "You will come with me."

One of the Marines stepped forward. "Not so fast."

With the speed that only a snake could have, the Goa'uld drew a zat and shot each of the Marines before they could get a shot off. He turned back to Anna and held the weapon under her chin. "You will come with me. Now."

~TBC~