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Kai was groggy as she blinked her eyes open. She was laying in a hospital bed and there was a steady beeping nearby. The last time she had been in a hospital things hadn't gone well for her. The memories were welling up inside of her tearing through her like broken glass. Whatever they had given her made it difficult to think and focus. Memories of the past were dangerously distracting. She tore herself free of them, forcing herself to focus on the present.

Her awareness was coming back faster now and she tensed, rolling herself up to her shaky feet. She swayed, steadying herself on the bed beside her. Adrenaline shot through her system as she recognized how weak she was. She needed to get somewhere safe where she could heal.

"Wait, wait!" a strangely accented voice called loudly from across the room, making Kai flinch. "You're fine. You're safe."

Tubes and wires were connected to her pulling at her like angry hands, making her feel claustrophobic. She had to blink a few times to clear her hazy vision. She looked around in confusion. A tall man with a warm smile suddenly stood before her. He was holding his hands up so she would know he wasn't a threat. But Kai wasn't wearing any of her gear anymore, she was entirely unarmed, and that made everything feel like a threat. She was wearing a loose white hospital gown. Her scarf had been removed from her head and face and was now draped loosely around her shoulders.

"You're safe," he repeated again. "You're in the infirmary. You're very ill," the man's voice was soothing.

Looking around Kai could see that she was in fact in an infirmary, but it was more advanced than any she had ever seen. She remembered then her new friends from Atlantis who had promised her medical help. She had been adamant they not bring her here, but it seemed when she had lost conscious they had gone against her wishes. She had been careful not to ask too many details of their homeworld. She hadn't wanted them to feel like she was a threat. Now she was regretting that decision. Any information about her location would help her assess the severity of her situation. She may have evaded the Wraith, but that didn't mean Atlantis wasn't just as dangerous to someone like her.

"Aye, there you go," Doctor Beckett said as he watched the woman slowly relax. "I know you've been through a lot, but you're safe here. I promise you."

Kai nodded slowly, exaggerating how out of it she was as she quickly assessed her surroundings. There were four possible exits. The most obvious of which was the glass double doors approximately seven yards to her right. There were two uniformed men in position on either side of them. Their uniforms confirmed this was Atlantis. Though the closest, the guards presence would make that exit the most difficult. She wasn't up for a fight just yet.

Finally, she met the man's eyes. His smile was warm and stretched across his entire face. "Would you be willing to sit and let me take a look at you?" he asked, gesturing back to the bed.

Kai nodded slowly. She was still tense, but with no visible threat she knew the best she could do was let the man help her. He was wearing a white lab coat and reminded her of the doctors from her own planet. It was after all what she had bargained for. She frowned as she remembered the bargain she had made. She was fairly certain she had completed dismantling the Wraith with their Doctor Zelenka, but the last hour before she had lost consciousness was foggy at best. Given the Atlantian's had gotten what they wanted she was surprised to have woken up at all. In her world she would have received nothing for her trouble but a bullet in the head.

The Doctor reached up and touched his ear piece. "Doctor Weir," he called into it. "Our guest has woken."

Kai's hearing was sharp enough she was able to hear the leader of Atlantis's reply over the personal comm. "Understood Carson. I'm on my way."

Doctor Beckett stepped over to the bed. "Please," he said gesturing back to the bed.

Kai climbed onto bed willingly. The Doctor began his examination. He listened to her heart and lungs. She disliked being touched but she understood the necessity. The Doctor however was one of the least threatening people she had ever met before. He had a gentle aura around him, he was a true healer at heart. It had been a long time since Kai had met someone like him.

"How long have I been here?" she asked a after a few moments of silence. She didn't want the Doctor to know how tense she was, and forced herself into polite chit chat that normally irritated her.

"Oh, just a couple days love," Beckett replied as he turned to examine the machines around her.

The doors hissed open and Kai jerked towards the sound. Her eyes quickly flitted over the room until they came to land on the IV tree beside her. It was going to be the easiest thing to turn into a weapon if that became necessary.

"It's okay," Beckett soothed stepping up beside her as though his nearness would soothe her. It did exactly the opposite. It only served to remind Kai there were two potential enemies in the room and they had her surrounded.

"Kai," Doctor Weir greeted stepping towards her. "I'm so happy to see you're awake." The leader's smile seemed genuine and Kai forced herself to lock down her muscles. She was not in any immediate danger, she was still very sick, and the best course of action would be to see how this played out. Doctor Weir so far had kept to her word, other than bringing her here.

Kai smiled warmly at the other woman. They had met on The Planet. Sergeant Bates had brought the leader of their expedition in to negotiate their deal. It had been reckless in her mind, bringing someone so important into an unsecured area with Wraith nearby. When she had suggested that Sergeant Bates had nearly bit her head off. The young Sergeant certainly had a lot to learn about strategy.

Given Sergeant Bates attitude she had been surprised to find the leader of Atlantis quite warm. The two had chatted briefly while working out their negotiations. It seemed Doctor Weir was as intrigued to meet Kai as Kai was about the people who had found the lost city.

"Doctor Weir," Kai greeted. "I take it our negotiations did not hold."

Doctor Weir arched a brow.

"The last thing I remember was taking out the last of the compression coils with Doctor Zelenka," Kai explained. "And then you were going to bring your doctor to me," Kai clarified. She needed to find out if she was actually a prisoner here. It was possible the guards at the door were always stationed there, but it didn't seem likely.

Elizabeth smiled down at the small woman. "You collapsed before we could get our Doctor to you. The Wraith overran the area and I'm afraid we had to make a split second decision."

"They saved your life," Doctor Beckett chimed in helpfully from behind Kai.

"I'm very grateful," Kai said quickly.

Doctor Weir smiled. "I know Doctor Beckett has told me it will be a while before you are up to full strength and are capable of being back out on your own. I was wondering if in the mean time you would be willing to consult with Doctor Zelenka on our new power source?"

Kai smiled. "I'd be happy to," she agreed. Every instinct told her to get out of this place. That she was trapped. And yet, she could feel how taxed her body already was after just the brief encounter. Finding a way to make herself useful among these people might allow her enough time to heal before she had to move on.

Doctor Weir must have seen something on her face because her eyes flickered to Beckett. "Well I'll leave you to rest. I'm sure Doctor Zelenka will be thrilled when I tell him you've agreed."

Beckett stepped forward. "Perhaps tell Radek Ms. Zian will need a day or two before she's ready to be badgered with questions."

"Of course," Elizabeth said with a warm smile. She reached out and touched Kai's arm.

Not expecting the sudden motion Kai froze, instinctively bracing for an attack. Elizabeth's smile faltered and she quickly lowered her hand. "I'm so sorry," she said quickly. "Please, rest and feel better."

Beckett and Kai watched Doctor Weir until the doors hissed closed behind her.

"Look," Beckett said in a low voice. "I know it's probably not my place, but I couldn't help noticing some of your reactions. And you..." he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Scars. I don't know what happened to you in the past, but I promise you, you are safe here."

Kai nodded wishing his words could be true. "Thank you Doctor Beckett."

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John groaned as he lay flat on his back on the mats in the gym. Teyla  had just executed a perfect throw, sending him over her shoulder and slapping him across the low back with her bantos rod on the way by. The area was throbbing painfully and he allowed himself a few moments to catch his breath.

"You are not your self today Major," Teyla said in the maddeningly calm voice of hers.

"How is this any different from any other day you kick my ass?" John griped, rubbing his low back painfully. It was definitely going to leave a mark.

"You're distracted today," she observed.

"Well, I guess I'm a little off my game," he agreed climbing back to his feet. He moved stiffly for a few steps as he attempted to walk it off. He hadn't had his ass routinely kicked so badly since basic. There was a lot Teyla could teach him and his men.

Teyla moved across the room. She set her rods down and picked up a towel, dabbing at the sweat on her brow. He thought it was nice of her to at least pretend their sparring session had taken something out of her. "Is it still Kai Zian that has you so concerned?"

"Well call me crazy but I don't like the idea of having a stranger roaming our halls when we got families and kids."

"Major Sheppard," Lieutenant Ford's voice crackled over their comms.

"Sheppard here," John responded touching his ear.

"Major," John could hear the young lieutenant's tension even through the comm. "Sir, she's awake."

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It seemed the other people on the base weren't able to hear through the double doors that separated her from the rest of the infirmary. They didn't seem to anticipate that she would be able to either and she didn't feel the need to broadcast that fact. It was a serious tactical advantage. She was especially glad for it, when an authoritative looking man stepped up to the guards outside her door.

"Sir," the two men greeted snapping off salutes.

The man nodded to them and stepped up close to the one on the right. "What can you tell me?" he asked tightly. So the guards were stationed there for her.

Their voices were slightly muffled by the door, but Kai could hear the tension in his voice. She let her eyes drift closed as she focused on the sound of their voices.

"Major," the man said. "She woke up about an hour ago. Beckett has been running tests. Weir was down earlier and asked her to consult with Doctor Zelenka once she regains her strength."

"Anything else?" The man asked. She wanted to know if he was looking at her, but she kept her eyes closed. If he thought she was sleeping he was less likely to feel threatened by her presence. Although judging by his tone, it may already be too late for that.

"No sir," the young man reported. "She's been quiet."

She didn't hear any response from the man, but the doors hissed open a second later.

"Ah, back again Major Sheppard," Doctor Beckett greeted from the other room.

"Yeah, I heard our friend had woken up, wanted to come up and introduce myself," his voice was gravely and close to the bed.

"Well, she's been napping on and off for the last few hours. She's still very weak. Perhaps if you came back la-"

Kai opened her eyes. "It's okay, Doctor Beckett," she said in a low voice. "A diversion would be wonderful. I'm going to start going stir crazy in here."She coughed once allowing the pain the movement caused her to show in her eyes to highlight her illness. She wheezed for a moment before leaning back against her pillows and rested her eyes on Major John Sheppard for the first time.

He was almost a foot taller than her. He was wearing combat boots and pants, though he wasn't in formal gear as he wore a simple black t-shirt that hugged a muscular frame. She could see the definition in his chest and arms that told her he was more than just a figure head. The way he moved around the room told her he was a fighter who went into the field. There was a gun strapped in a custom thigh holster on the right side of his body which told her he was more than likely right handed. There was a knife on the outside of the holster, but it was a backup weapon. The handgun was his primary. His face had smile lines but his eyes were hardened from a lifetime of battle. He had unruly dark hair that stuck up in odd places. He crossed his arms over his chest and leveled his gaze on her as he waited for her to finish her inspection of him.

"Aye," Beckett agreed, but he still looked mutinous. "Don't push yourself," and he leveled a severe look at Major Sheppard, completely oblivious to the silent exchange that was happening.

Sheppard held up his hands and flashed the doctor a reassuring smile he didn't feel. It was interesting that the doctor had grown so protective of the strange woman in such a short period of time.

Sheppard turned back to the woman. She was sitting up in bed, her legs crossed pretzel style. It made her look unassuming and young, but there was no mistaking the shrewd gaze that had seemed to look right through him. It only strengthened his resolve that the woman was hiding something. She had appraised him in just a matter of seconds, but it had been done with clinical efficiency. He hadn't missed when her gaze had touched on his gun.

Kai had less than a minute to decide how she was going to play this. She figured her best bet was going to be direct. The Major didn't look like the type of man who would be swayed easily by a pretty smile, nor like he was likely to buy into a helpless damsel act either.

"I'm Major-"

"John Sheppard," Kai finished for him. "Yes, I've heard," she said.

Sheppard nodded.

"I'm Kai Zian," she said extending her hand to him. "Though I'm sure you already know that."

He closed his large hand over her own and despite how weak she appeared he noted her grip was still firm and she stared into his eyes, waiting him out. Finally he let go of her hand and resumed his stance at the end of her bed.

"I'm highest ranking Military officer on the base. As such the safety of everyone here is my responsibility. Therefore I thought it would be good for you and I to become better acquainted if you're going to stick around while you heal up. If you feel up to it I have a few questions."

She nodded Demurely. It was nice of him to ask, but they both knew it was just a formality. "Of course Major."

"Now, care to tell me what was it you were doing on an uninhabited planet crawling with Wraith?"

Kai was surprised with how direct the Major was straight off the bat, but she appreciated it. She had found the other military commander to be fairly easy to manipulate. This one was going to be tougher. It meant he was more capable of defending this base, but it also meant he would be more difficult to fool. The sooner she healed up and got out of here the better.

"I was left there by my people," Kai replied. While she had been caught off guard with having to come up with a story for Weir and Bates, she had perfected her new history laying in bed over the last hour.

"Why?" Sheppard asked.

Kai looked down at her hands. "For the Wraith," she said in a low voice.

"Judging by your gear, it looks like you've been there a while. How have you managed to evade the Wraith that long?"

"Luck mostly," Kai responded honestly. "I kept to the woods and avoided them. It wasn't until the rainy season hit and I got sick that I risked going into the ruin. By that time I knew I was in trouble."

"How long were you there?"

Kai looked down at her hands and instead of telling the lie that was on the tip of her tongue, she found herself telling the painful truth. "I had stopped counting."

John pulled up at that. He had been in his fair share of survival situations, even a POW for a short time in Afghanistan. He knew better than anyone what it meant when someone in that situation stopped counting. He pressed his lips together and nodded, feeling a brief surge of guilt for pushing her.

The haunted look in her grey eyes made the man in him want to stop and leave it there, but the Major needed to ask more questions. He had to be sure. "According to the report, you took out five Wraith that had the squad pinned down. How did you manage that?"

"I don't believe I took all five of them down. I had a good defensive position and fired the shots that remain in my gun. I was able to kill a couple that I had already wounded before I was attacked and Sergeant Bates saved me before the Wraith was able to feed."

Sheppard nodded.

"And you offered the trade of medical care for a Wraith power source?"

"Well, Sergeant Bates told me he was there seeking trade partners. He was after food or a power source. So I made the offer. He contacted Doctor Weir and she came through and we made the deal. She brought Doctor Zelenka to help and we managed to get several of the large fuel cells and compression coils before I passed out. That's the last thing I remember."

John nodded. Her story certainly all made sense, but there was a niggling feeling in the back of his head that he just couldn't shake.

Beckett came in. He was carrying a tray with several bottles for injections. "Sorry to interrupt," he said, though the disapproving look he leveled at the Major said otherwise. "I just have to administer Ms. Zian's medications."

Kai smiled at the man. "Please call me Kai," she said.

"Aye," the doctor agreed with a warm smile.

"Was there anything else you needed to know Major?" Kai asked, blinking up at him innocently as Beckett worked beside her.

"Bugger," Beckett snapped as he carelessly knocked one of the glass bottles from the tray.

Before he could blink Kai's hand lashed out and she caught it in midair. Realizing what she had done Kai immediately released the smooth glass surface, letting it fall to the ground and shattering.

"Blast," she muttered. "I'm sorry Doctor, I thought I could get it," she said quickly trying to cover her mistake. She really was out of it. It had been a sloppy mistake and she was almost afraid to meet the major's eyes again.

Beckett smiled at her. "It's okay lass. You were close," he said nudging her with a smile.

Kai turned back to the Major. His shrews eyes were staring at her. "No, I think I've seen enough," he said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes and he left the two of them in the infirmary. 

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