Fic: Revisions #2: On Behalf Of The Lunatic Fringe
Title: Revisions: On Behalf Of The Lunatic Fringe
Author: Pepper
Rating: PG
Season: One
Related SG-1 Episode(s): 105 The First Commandment
Featured Character(s): Jack, Daniel, Sam
Pairing(s): Sam/Jack
Summary: Episode addition.
A/N: See notes for 'Revisions: Conjecture'.
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"Well, what did you see in him?"
They were chatting again. His pet scientists forgot, all too easily, that they were in potentially dangerous situations whenever something interested them. Now they were talking about Carter's ex-fiancé, trying to pin down the reason for his sudden delusions of godhood.
"I dunno - I guess I've always had a soft spot for the lunatic fringe."
Part of him wanted to tell them to shut up, to remind them that they were sneaking up on a madman, for god's sake - but to be honest, he was kinda interested in what made his 2IC tick. She was relatively reserved with him - understandably, as he was her commanding officer - but she and Daniel had taken to one another like brother and sister. The lunatic fringe, eh? Sounded familiar. It didn't sound like the sort of thing that would appeal to his respectful, proper Captain, but he'd begun to suspect that a different creature lurked underneath her scientific-stroke-military facade. He'd seen the motorbike, heard rumors of the leather pants, and met the psycho ex-fiancé. Ooh, maybe there was a tattoo...?
"He was - he was charming."
"Well that's good - charming is good."
He'd been surprised to hear about her engagement to Hanson. General Hammond had briefed him just before they came out here, giving him a heads-up, just in case. He'd met the guy a few times around the SGC, and hadn't liked him - perhaps because he'd recognized something of himself in the man. A few more years of black ops, a few more bad moments overseas, a few more marks on his conscience, and he might well have ended up the same: angry, bitter, and suspicious of everyone and everything. He'd been well on the way before that first Abydos mission, in fact. Daniel, and subsequently his team, had saved him.
"I dunno, I should be more surprised by this than I am, but I'm not. You know, he had this in him, Daniel. Too many years of black ops."
Ouch. Were they even aware of their Colonel - their black ops trained Colonel - walking right behind them?
"Well that's typical of our government's evaluation of soldiers: the crazier they are, the more extreme the situation they seem to be put into."
Daniel glanced back. Oh, they knew he was here all right. Yeah. He got no respect. Well, fuck you, too, Spacemonkey. KP duty and third watch for you tonight, no matter how much you complain.
"He wasn't happy when I broke off the engagement, but he seemed like he'd really pulled himself together when we met up at Stargate Command."
How weird must that have been for her? At least he never ran into any old girlfriends in the military - he'd never really dated Air Force, and of course he'd been married for ten years. Not that he had anything against Air Force women, per se - Carter, for instance, was extremely... Not that he could... Or would ever think of her like...
Oh, look. Trees.
"Apparently not."
Mercifully, Teal'c put an end to the conversation at that point, dragging them back to the mission at hand. Jack pushed irritably past the science half of his team, and put his thoughts aside with great relief.
"Whatcha got, Teal'c?"
"This way."
From the ridge, they could see the quarry, the people working themselves like slaves - and the unfortunate souls tied to posts, Connor amongst them. It looked like a Biblical scene, or maybe like something from Ra's reign in Ancient Egypt - no doubt Daniel would know. Lunatic fringe, indeed... Could he ever have got this bad? Well, Jack admitted privately to himself, he had a pretty dark side, and given enough of a run-up, and an extreme case of heat exhaustion, he had it in him to be this bad. Worse, even. Involuntarily, his mind went back to something Carter had said: "He likes control." How bad had it been for her? He squelched his sudden protective urge and shook his head, sighing.
Yeah. He was so gonna kick Hanson's ass before the end of this.
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THE END