(The regular disclaimer. This is a fanfiction. I do not claim any ownership over the Stargate universe. This little story is just written for my own amusement and as a tribute to a great setting. All honors to the ones which have actually created the Stargate universe.)
Compassion For A Meal
From the time he woke up that morning the old wraith officer knew he would need to feed before the day was done. A healthy adult Wraith which did not sustain any wounds to heal needed only feed every three or four weeks to avoid the discomfort of hunger, it had been half again that time since the officer's last meal. Since his race had come out of hibernation early food had been scarce and most, like the officer tried to make the humans gathered at each culling last as long as possible, but there was a limit as to how long a Wraith could hold of feeding. And as the officer rose from the bench he had been resting on he noted that the gnawing discomfort which had been growing in his insides the last week had turned to pain.
The officer went about his day as he would any other. He was a trusted bridge officer, in charge of the hull regeneration controls during battle, and even now when the Hive was peacefully drifting through space the old Wraith needed to keep his mind on his job. But it was a difficult task. Just the knowledge that before he again sat down and closed his eyes to let sleep rejuvenate his mind like stolen life force rejuvenated his body he would get to take his fill and end this gnawing hunger made his right had itch and his mind wander to to culling pens and cocoons containing the Hive's provisions. Other officers noted the old Wraith's swollen feeding slit and his hungry eyes and gave him a wide space, they had all felt hunger before, and knew it made a Wraith unpredictable, the Hive's worshipers stayed as far away from the hungry officer as they could, who knew if they might not end up as lunch if they where not careful.
Slowly, far to slowly for the old officer's tastes the day went to and end and he was let off duty. Quickly he walked though the Hiveship's many pulsating, mazelike hallways to return to his own sparse quarters. Once there the officer sent a telepathic command to a warrior drone about fetching him a young healthy human from the ship's culling pens. After the order was given the old Wraith busied himself with reading some long overdue reports on the computer terminal built into the wall above his plain wood desk. Not before long however the door to his private quarters slid aside to reveal a large, bulky drone, one of his strong green hands firmly holding a terrified human female by the arm. The woman was crying and struggling, but her feeble attempts at escape was to no avail, she could never match the strength of the huge drone.
The drone uttered no sound, he merely threw the human girl into the waiting officer's room and, with his orders fulfilled turned to leave. The young woman landed in a heap on the floor, but quickly scurried to her feet and tried to run for the door, but the portal was already closed.
"I assure you, human, that there is no escape."
The officer said, his multi toned voice carrying a hint of amusement over the human's efforts, this one was feisty, good, her defiance and spirit would sweeten her taste. The human woman turned towards the old Wraith, pressing her back against the door, trying to get as far away from the white haired monster as she could.
"Please, do not harm me, please..."
The girl sobbed.
"I do not wish to die."
Calmly the officer closed the distance between himself and his future dinner. With a low purring voice he said.
"I am sure whatever beast constituted your last meal did not wish to die either, but such is the law of nature young one, it is eat or be eaten all down the food chain, and I just happen to be higher on that chain than you."
The woman looked as if she was about to protest, but instead she just lowered her head, she knew she could not win here, she knew that she was going to die, and angering this old Wraith would only make that death more painful. Shivering the woman looked up at her executioner. The officer noted that his meal was beautiful for a human, with soft, pale skin, long dark hair to her waist, now a mass of tangles after weeks of captivity and expressive green eyes. Yes had it not been for the food shortage the old Wraith would have been tempted to take this one as a personal worshiper. Feeling generous the Wraith touched the woman's chin, seeing her pulling back from his hand as expected.
"Listen woman, your fate was decided the moment you where hit with our culling rays, however you are fortunate, I only wish sustenance, not to see you suffer. If you do not resist, I will make this as quick as I can."
The human female closed her eyes, she knew that she was out of options. There was no escape and her death was a certainty, tired she merely nodded. The old Wraith noted with satisfaction the look of resignation in his human victim's eyes. With sustenance so close the Wraith growled and ripped the fabric of the woman's dress away from her chest, exposing soft, pale skin and a pair of shapely breasts. In the next moment he raised his right hand and slammed it against the terrified woman's now bare chest. The officer felt his feeding slit opening and cut into his victim's flesh, then came the rush of pleasure and exhilarating rush as the woman's life force begun to flow into him. The Wraith threw his head back and roared in pleasure. The hunger which had gnawed at him like a growing fire in his insides subsided. The room was filled with the old Wraith's growls, the human woman's desperate screams and the soft suckling sound the officer's feeding slit made as it drained the life out of it's owners victim.
The pleasure of the feeding was almost to much, the stolen life force filled him with warmth and vitality. The Wraith was tempted to slow his feeding, to take the time to enjoy this sensation which had become a far to rare occurrence of late, but he decided against it, he saw no reason to make his victim suffer more than was necessary. It was then that the Wraith noticed that the human female had slumped against him, she now more or less lay over his feeding hand, her own arms wrapped around his waist. The woman was not screaming anymore, she was to weak to do so, but with her remaining strength she held onto the Wraith as she mewled softly in the intense agony the feeding caused.
The slender arms wrapped around him caused the old Wraith pause. He did not know what moved him so about it, the woman was terrified, in pain and dying and now she sought comfort in the only one who was there, even if that person was the monster which was killing her. The Wraith knew this behavior was common among humans, if a human hurt another badly enough, the victim might seek comfort in their attacker, if no one else was available, but he had never experienced such a contact nor heard about it ever happening between a human and a Wraith. Most humans felt a so basic and instinctual fear of the white haired aliens that even on the brink of death, they would never do anything but recoil from the monsters. But this woman hung from the officer's arms, desperately clinging to him. Surprised by a rush of emotion the Wraith stopped feeding.
The old Wraith was close to six thousand years old, he had seen more humans than he could count die before his eyes, some sobbing and pleading, others silently accepting their fates, non had moved him. The officer did not like to kill, but nor was he ashamed of being what he was, and taking what he needed to live. Did a bird of pray feel guilty over eating a mouse? No, then why should he. But this woman moved him, the soft pressure of her now weak and wrinkled arms, the soft, mewling whimpers. She had reached out for him, a Wraith for comfort to ease her final, horrible minutes of life, and such a act greatly disturbed the ancient creature. Taking a deep breath the old Wraith came to a startling realization, he could not kill this woman. Inside he berated himself for his choice. Wraith could feel friendship and camaraderie for his bothers, appreciation and pride of overship for his worshipers and a kind of fearful respect or even love for his Queen, but compassion was considered a sign of weakness. It was a useless emotion. Why would he feel it for this small human female, his dinner? What he did when feeding on her was a natural thing. And yet, the tiny pressure of her arms around his waist and the knowledge that in her pain addled panic it was him she reached for softened the ancient monster's cold heart. Taking a deep breath he begun to push the human woman's life force back into her body until she again looked as young and healthy as when she had been thrown into his quarters. The officer withdrew his bloody feeding hand and gathered the human woman up into his arms. With care he placed her on the bench he used to sleep on.
"I will not kill you, I have decided you will best serve me as my worshiper, now, you are in shock, you need to rest human, to let your body recover from the strein of the feeding. Sleep, and do not fear, you are safe, for now."
The officer said in as soft a voice as he could manage, as he took some scraps of cloth from a nearby cabinet and bound the gaping wound in the woman's chest. As he did so he shook his head. This woman was his quota for the month, he would not starve to death before he was allowed to feed again, but the next few weeks would be...painful, he did not look forward to the growing hunger he knew would come. As the Wraith stood to walk back to his desk and the unread reports the woman weakly grabbed his hand. She was still rather out of it and she looked at the officer with glazed eyes.
"Do not go...please."
Sighing the Wraith sat back down, his hand encasing the human woman's small fingers. He did not know why he would let this girl call hum back like that. But as he looked into the woman's face as she fell asleep, somehow he did not regret his decision to let her live. He was angry at himself for his weakness, and he knew he should just eat the woman now and spare himself weeks of pain, but for some reason he knew he could not, he would not let this human woman be harmed. Shaking his head the Wraith's yellow eyes gaze out of the small window in his quarters, out into space beyond. One thing was certain at least, his life just got allot more complicated.