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"So let me get this straight, we're letting Bates and Zelenka bring home strays now?" Major John Sheppard leaned forward resting his hands against the smooth surface of the conference table. He had just returned from a mission and his blood was still up from the fight that had taken the life of one of his team members and injured another. John Sheppard was the type of man who took the safety of his people seriously, and as the highest ranking military officer on this mission the safety of every single person on the base was his responsibility.

Although Doctor Elizabeth Weir was a civilian, she was the leader of the Atlantis Expedition here in the Pegasus Galaxy. She sat back in her chair and regarded the Major thoughtfully. The Major was a man of principle but he could be impulsive. He was looking a little rough around the edges. His normally slightly disheveled dark hair was sticking up in odd places and his face was smudged with dirt and sweat. He had come straight from the gate up to her office for this meeting. Weir had never before considered the Major intimidating, he had an easy going nature and quick sense of humor that put those around him at ease. Standing before her in full combat gear with his temper snapping in his eyes however she could certainly see how intimidating the man could be.

She bridged her fingers and rested them against her lips as she studied him, waiting him out. When she didn't react to his desire for a fight John pushed back off the table and crossed his arms over his chest. He pressed his lips together determinedly but recognized the calm patience in Weir's eyes.

The two of them had been learning how to share the burden of command that had fallen onto their shoulders. Weir had begun this expedition with her military counterpart Colonel Sumner. She and Sumner had worked together for over a year preparing for this. After his death at the hands of the Wraith she was left with Major Sheppard as the highest ranking military commander.

The Major had only come into the project a week before stepping through the gate. Sumner had fought Weir on his addition, citing Sheppard's checkered military record, but Elizabeth had insisted. Sheppard had the gene as well as the combat experience to make him a real asset on the expedition. She had been right. The Major was an asset. All personnel who had gone into the field with him had nothing but good things to say. He was resourceful in the field, skilled at both combat, tactics, as well as an excellent negotiator with potential traders. His good looks and charming smile certainly helped with the latter. Behind the smiles and jokes however was a serious leader who cared deeply for his people and the success of the expedition.

Currently however, Elizabeth was facing exactly what Sumner had warned her about. Sheppard was idealistic. He could be passionate, headstrong, and didn't always follow the chain of command. Sheppard was staring her down now, that relentless determination glittering in his hazel eyes as he waited for her answer.

Elizabeth knew better then to bother going head to head against him when he was like this. Beside her, Bates was not as savvy in dealing with Sheppard.

Sergeant Bates leaned forward in his seat, his hackles rising. "Excuse me?" he snarled defensively.

Elizabeth sighed, the two of them were alpha males, each believing to have the best interest of the expedition at heart. John was commanding officer, but Bates was head of security for the base. They, as much as Elizabeth and John, needed to learn to work together instead of against each other.

"You heard me Sergeant," John snapped back.

Bates bristled beside Elizabeth and she resisted the urge to send them both to their rooms. "Major," she said, drawing Sheppard's focus onto her.

"Where are they?" John asked without waiting for what Elizabeth wanted.

"She," Elizabeth clarified. "She is in the infirmary."

Tension thrummed through Sheppard's body. The safety of everyone single person on this expedition was his responsibility. He had lost one of his team to the Wraith just that morning and he wasn't willing to risk their home to a stranger.

"The infirmary isn't secure. Are they under guard?" Sheppard snarled.

Bates made a noise of disgust in the back of his throat. "What do you take me for?" He challenged, all pretense of respect for his commanding officer gone in the wake of his temper. He was on hour twenty-six without sleep and he wasn't nearly as in control of his emotions as he should be.

Sheppard crossed his arms over his chest. "A little wet behind the ears actually," John replied glibly to the younger man.

Bates shoved himself to his feet. "Excuse me, sir?" he snarled leaning towards the other man. "You're one to talk about bringing home strays. What about your pet Athosian?" he challenged.

Sheppard's hands closed into fists. This was nothing like the situation with Teyla. She had proven her loyalty and was a useful member of his team. She had been instrumental in setting up trade relations with plenty of settlements.

Weir was good at reading people, but she had a soft heart. Bates hadn't spent enough time in the field to really understand the people of this galaxy. Between the two of them John didn't trust that they had a good handle on who this person was or what kind of a threat they might pose.

Elizabeth shoved herself to her feet before this could escalate any further. "That's enough, both of you," she said warning looking back and forth between the two males. "Bates sit down," she snapped.

Bates looked petulantly back and forth between Weir and Sheppard before slowly lowering himself back into his chair.

Elizabeth exhaled. As headstrong as she knew Sheppard could be, she trusted his temper more than Bates's. She had named Bates head of security early on. The man was competent and shrewd, but Sumner had spouted off too much in front of Bates regarding Sheppard. The man didn't seem to fully respect his superior and it was quickly becoming a problem.

Elizabeth turned to Sheppard. "Major, Sergeant Bates and his team encountered Kai Zian during a firefight with the Wraith on MV1-579. Despite being incredibly ill she aided the team. Following the confrontation they negotiated a trade in exchange for medical care."

Sheppard scowled back and forth between the two people. He stepped forward and flipped through the mission report. "What could she have possibly offered you to think it was a good idea to bring her back here?" Sheppard challenged, narrowing his eyes at Bates.

Elizabeth leaned forward. "I'm the one who approved the negotiation. She offered to receive care in the field and was in fact adamant about not returning with us. Had she not been so ill she collapsed while aiding us, we would have sent Carson through the gate. However, since Sergeant Bates insisted she provide us with her part of the negotiation first, she collapsed before they were able to radio Carson." Elizabeth's feelings regarding Bates' decision to push the ill woman were clear by the Doctor's tone.

"So she's still unconscious?" Major Sheppard asked scowling.

Weir nodded briskly, stiffening at his tone.

"So she has no idea she's here?" he clarified.

The two of them shook their heads. Sheppard exhaled, feeling a brief moment of relief to know it at least wasn't some kind of trap. Time would tell what kind of holy hell this woman might rain down on them, but for the moment everyone was safe. He scanned the mission report while the two sat back in their chairs. His frown deepened as he read on.

"She dismantled a Dart?" he exclaimed lowering the papers.

A triumphant smile spread across Weir's face. "Yes. We weren't able to get all of it, but she got us the power cells and compression coils. Zelenka is working on seeing if there is way to convert their power. I'm hoping to get McKay working on it once he is checked out."

Sheppard nodded numbly as he looked back at the papers in his hand as his tension faded. Even he would have agreed to the trade. Gaining a new form of energy might help them get more of the cities systems up and running. As it was they were operating in minimal power. They had the Athosians and all the members of the expedition crammed into two hallways of quarters in order to conserve power while they worked to clear more of the ancient city.

"Well if that's all, I have other duties to attend to," Bates said agitatedly as he climbed to his feet without being dismissed.

Sheppard waved him off, distracted by the report.

Elizabeth however stood up and stepped in front of the Sergeant. He looked down at her. Elizabeth lifted her chin refusing to allow the military man to think he could intimidate her. "If you ever refer to another member of this expedition or one of our allies in such a disrespectful way again I will have you removed from your post. Do you understand Sergeant?" She growled authoritatively.

Weir's reprimand was sharp, but still calm and clear. Sheppard cut his eyes to Bates. He had intended to sort out his disrespect of Teyla in private. To his surprise Weir took care of it for him perhaps a bit quieter than he had intended but it was effective nonetheless. Bates glanced back and forth between the two leaders before he nodded briskly and excused himself.

Weir turned to go when Sheppard called out to her as one particular point on the mission report caught his eye. "She killed five Wraith herself," he clarified. He lowered the file to the table and looked Elizabeth straight in the eye as a bad feeling went over him. He had fought the Wraith hand to hand himself and he knew how tough those bastards could be. Five would be a stretch even for him.

Elizabeth frowned, her mind already shifting to the next item she needed to focus on. "What was that?"

"According to Bates' mission report this-"

"Kai Zian," Weir supplied. Annoyance coloring her tone that Sheppard couldn't seem to remember their new allies name.

Sheppard nodded and stressed her name. "Kai Zian killed five Wraith that had Bates and his team pinned down."

Elizabeth shook her head. "He must have written it wrong. I believe it was just five Wraith there total. When you meet her you'll understand."

Sheppard nodded slowly thinking he needed to do just that. "Yeah," he agreed standing up. "That must be it."

Elizabeth had picked up her tablet and was scanning over some files. "Where are you off to?" she asked distractedly.

Sheppard rested a hand on his hip and motioned over his shoulder. "Just to get cleaned up. You know, check on McKay. Write up my mission report...catch a shower."

Weir nodded and Sheppard slipped out of the door. Without hesitation he headed straight for the infirmary. His long strides carried him briskly through the complex. As soon as he was alone he touched the comm in his ear. "Ford, Teyla," he called into it.

"Yes sir," Lieutenant Ford cane back quickly.

"Meet me in the infirmary," Sheppard ordered.

"On my way," the kid replied.

"I am already here with Rodney," Teyla responded, her voice was calm as always, but John had gotten to know the Athosian leader well enough to hear the unasked question in her voice. Ford would follow his orders, Teyla wanted to know what was happening. It was one of the reasons he trusted her when he trusted so few.

"I am on my way..." John hesitated. The comm station was specifically set aside for his team's use, but that didn't mean someone else wasn't listening. If Weir thought he wasn't letting this go because he didn't trust her judgement it was going to quickly become an issue between them. "Stay sharp," he allowed himself to add.

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The two armed guards standing outside the door of the infirmary nodded respectfully to Major Sheppard. He stepped into the dimly lit room, it was quiet with only the machines hooked up to their guest beeping quietly. Doctor Beckett had given her a private room. Whether that was for security or because they had brought an unknown illness into the city remained to be seen.

John wasn't sure what he expected, but the woman laying unconscious on the gurney was not it. He remembered Weir saying he would understand how she couldn't have taken out the Wraith when he saw her, but there had been a part of him that hadn't believed her. Now he did.

Kai Zian was much smaller than he expected. A couple inches shorter than Teyla and petite. Teyla was lovely, but she looked like a fighter. This woman was too slight to be anyone's idea of a combatant. Her skin was sallow beneath the fluorescent lights overhead. Dark lashes fanned across pale cheeks that were sprinkled with freckles. She was too thin, her bones and muscle stood out like her skin had been stretched too tight over them.

Kai Zian certainly didn't look like a threat.

She wore a headscarf still. It was loosely draped around her, covering her hair and resting over her shoulders. John had seen many women wear them on his tours in Afghanistan, but never one quite like this. It was black and from a distance seemed plain but up close he could see it was intricately embroidered with a complicated scroll pattern. Given the technological advancement of most of the civilizations he had encountered he couldn't imagine it's worth.

Behind him the door slid open with a hiss and Doctor Carson Beckett stepped in beside him.

"Oh hello Major," he greeted in his cheerful Scottish brogue. He picked up the clipboard from the end of the bed and started flipping through the pages. "Come to inquire after our mysterious guest?"

Sheppard crossed his arms over his chest. "Something like that, yeah," he allowed. His eyes flickered back to the door. Ford was just outside and Teyla was just beyond that, sitting with McKay as he waited for Carson to check his bruised wrist.

"What do we know Doc?" Sheppard asked

"Well, we know she is suffering from one of the most severe cases of pneumonia I have ever seen. It's a wonder she was still on her feet at all given how badly her chest x-rays look."

Sheppard nodded thoughtfully. "Anything else of note?"

Beckett looked down at the clipboard in his hand. "I can tell you that there has been prolonged, systemic trauma in this poor woman's life."

Sheppard turned his eyes back to the sleeping woman.

"She's suffering from severe malnutrition and dehydration. It'll be a while before she gets back on her feet. It's a good thing we scooped her up."

"Yeah," Sheppard agreed distractedly. "Good thing. What's with the scarf?" Sheppard asked as he watched Beckett adjust the IV.

Beckett looked down as though he just noticed it. "Some religious significance I believe. Weir just said to keep it with her. She doesn't want to cause offense to our new friend."

"Right," Sheppard agreed. "How long until she wakes up Doc?"

Beckett shrugged. "There's no way of knowing I'm afraid. A day or two maybe? It depends on how well her body responds to the treatments. Physiologically she is similar to us, but not exactly the same. We'll just have to wait and see."

There was an exclamation from the other side of the infirmary.

"If you'll excuse me Major," Beckett said ducking away.

Sheppard stood over the unconscious woman frowning. Teyla stepped silently up beside him.

"How's Rodney?" he asked. He almost felt bad for leaving Teyla to deal with him, but then he heard Rodney begin dressing Carson down for making him wait and John decided he didn't feel that bad.

"Doctor Beckett is looking at him now. I believe he will be fine."

"Good," Sheppard nodded, it looked like Rodney had only bruised his wrist, but it was good to get it checked out before their team was called off world again.

Teyla looked down at the woman on the bed. "Who is this?" she asked in a low tone.

"Someone Bates and Weir brought back," Sheppard replied tightly. "She apparently brought us engine parts from a Wraith dart."

"She's a scientist?" Teyla asked in surprise turning back to the sickly looking woman.

"Or at least one hell of a mechanic," Sheppard quipped running a hand over his face.

"And you do not trust her?" Teyla asked cautiously.

Sheppard shook his head. "I don't know..."

"You should trust your instincts John," Teyla advised

Sheppard took Teyla's arm and led her further away from the bed. "Bates' report stated she took out five Wraith by herself."

Teyla's eyebrows lifted. "Five?" she looked down at the small woman with a new found respect.

"Weir claims he must have misreported. That she's exactly as she appears but-"

Teyla nodded in understanding. "Then we shall keep a close eye on her," Teyla promised.

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