Lt. Cadman: Ma’am.

Col Carter: Sit down Lieutenant, please.

Lt. Cadman: Thank you ma’am.

Woolsey: We have a few follow up questions about your report on the recent incident involving our wraith prisoner.

Lt. Cadman: I’m happy to answer any questions.

Col Carter: Very good Lieutenant, thank you.

Woolsey: We’ve verified who was in the room when the inciting incident occurred. The IOA wants to verify who made physical contact with the wraith that morning. Let’s start with Colonel Sheppard, did he at any point come into contact with the wraith? ~ Transcript excerpt, interview with First Lieutenant Cadman, Atlantis Expedition.

The sound of Dr. McKay’s voice was cut off as he closed the door behind them. The wraith continued to type away on his keyboard, while the four marines watched him warily. Lieutenant Cadman lifted her cup to her lips and took a sip of the almost hot coffee, it was a little bitter but still better than nothing. She flicked her eyes to the wraith and then took in each of her companions.

Second Lieutenant Herrel gazed off into space, sipping absently at his coffee. Cadman privately suspected the man had been attending the officers’ game the previous night. He seemed sluggish and distracted, which was actually par for the course with him. He had expressed, when too deep in his cups, that guard duty was beneath his rank and that attitude reflected in his stance and lack of attention. She had tried to point out, quietly, that due to the classified nature of the Stargate Program, there were very few low rank soldiers with the clearance to be assigned to Atlantis.

Lieutenant Armin was new to Atlantis, having been assigned to the expedition only a month prior. She had not worked with him before, but he seemed competent. Like her he was watching both the wraith and fellow soldiers, only sipping from his coffee when one of the others had both hands on their weapons. Technically, they should not have food or drink while on guard duty, but the hours were long and generally speaking command looked the other way so long as the disregard for regulations was not blatant and caused no problems with the functioning of the city.

Across the room, in position for crossfire if necessary Teffler caught her eye and winked broadly. The Lieutenant was cocky and blatantly flirted with her at every opportunity. Cadman only put up with it because she knew he had no interest in her at all. They had worked together long enough that they had an easy rhythm going between them, he knew she was reading the room, and waited for her to set her coffee on the table behind a computer tower and return her hand to her P90 before taking a sip of his own.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

From the hall the sound of the transporter doors shattered the quiet of the room, seeming far louder than usual in the morning stillness without Dr. McKay’s constant monologuing. The wraith paused and tilted his head, listening. Cadman trained her P90 on him, for a moment she thought a flicker of a smile ghosted across his face, but she must have imagined it for the wraith’s face was an expressionless mask as he returned to his work.

“I don’t like it,” Ronon spoke as he and Lt. Colonel Sheppard strode into the room, sweeping his arms in a broad sweeping gesture taking in most of the room and the wraith with his head still held attentively at his screen.

Sheppard was shaking his head, “We’ve been over this Chewie. The wraith helped Jeannie and Rodney, and he wants the Asurans gone as much as we do, if not more. He’s helping with the code and he’s watched at every moment. Until we settle this Asuran problem he’s staying here.”

Sheppard’s eyes flicked across the room, taking in the guards. Cadman straightened, grateful her coffee was sitting out of sight behind the computer tower. His gaze transferred to the wraith, seemingly uncaring for the behavior of the lowly humans buzzing around him, but it seemed to Cadman that perhaps his shoulders were a little more tense than they had been when Katie Brown entered the room.

“In case you’ve forgotten Sheppard,” Ronon growled. “He ate someone only days ago.”

He stopped next to the cart of plants and gestured wildly at the wraith.

“He’s a monster, that eats people. You know we can’t trust him,” Ronon continued.

Sheppard sighed, running a hand through his rumpled hair. When he spoke his voice had the weariness of someone who had given the same argument many times and grown weary of explaining himself. “I don’t trust him. No one here trusts him. Everything he does is double and triple checked before it’s allowed to go live.”

“Speaking of,” Sheppard shifted the conversation to other subjects, meeting Cadman’s gaze, “where’s Rodney gotten himself off to?”

“He’s, um, saying good morning to Doctor Brown.”

Sheppard took in the cart of uncatalogued plants from a recent botany expedition and the cup of cooling coffee marked with a lipstick stain sitting on it. He turned his gaze in the direction of the doctor’s office.

“Oh,” he said adroitly.

Behind him Ronon made a sound that was disturbingly close to a growl as he glared at the wraith. The wraith gave no indication it was aware of Ronon’s attention, but Cadman had come to recognize that he was hyper aware of the situational proximity of potential threats. She had no doubt that he was more attuned to the conversation than his codes at the moment.

Sheppard leaned over the desk to write a message out on a sticky note which he placed on McKay’s screen. McKay would read the message when he removed it to return to work. Probably. A mischievous expression darted over his face, he glanced at the pad of the sticky notes and then at the wraith’s leather clad back. She had the distinct impression that he was considering a kick me sign for the wraith. He shook his head and dropped the pad back on McKay’s desk. He caught her eye as he straightened and flashed her a conspiratorial grin.