Lauren heard the familiar beep sound at 0400 hours. Unlike most on the Atlantis, she was not asleep. Lauren preferred the graveyard shift because it gave her time to pursue her side interests. The day shift had too many people stumbling into Sickbay giving her little to no time to do her thing. Reaching into her desk, Lauren pulled out her personal PaDD. It was a gift from Lt. Commander Jessica Teller and full of goodies that kept her under the radar. Aedan Teller had two sides and the non-OMAP CEO allowed her to do what she needed to do.

Lauren picked up a stylus as she clicked open the message.

Encrypted Transmission: Priority Alpha
Origin: [REDACTED]
Destination: Shan.Lauren@OMAPindustriesmedicaldivision

Stellar Coordinates: Sector 9.4472, Vector -3.118, Grid Ref: XZ-77.114.4
Celestial Marker: Fourth planet of the Ilythos Binary, designated Erevos-IV.
Approach Path: Align trajectory with pulsar beacon at RA 17h 33m, Dec -34° 15’.

Clandestine Addendum (cipher-layer key: Wright-09):
“Trust no transmission unless it bears his seal. When the constellations fracture into three, follow the silence—not the light.”

End of Transmission
Signal auto-purge in 12.3 seconds.

Lauren jotted down the information and read it again memorizing the important facts. The message was obscure enough no one would understand it but encrypted enough that it would appear odd if tagged. This was why it would be auto-purged. It gave her plausible deniability if discovered. Checking her watch, Lauren stood up and walked into the main area of sickbay. “I gotta run to the bridge. Comm me if anything comes up,” she said. Nothing was going to come up. Sick bay was dead and the few patients in it were being monitored by the nursing staff.

Entering the turbo, Lauren brought up the senior staff roster. Seeing the XO on the bridge only made this easier. Taking the turbo to the bridge, the doors opened to exactly what she expected. The green command staff logging in hours when things were as dead as Sickbay. Jen was sitting in the command seat and Lauren walked up without a second thought. “Sir can I have a moment,” she requested. With everyone in bed, the ready room was empty and a perfect place to get the signature she needed.

Lauren Shan doctor.