Long-overdue sg_challenges
Apologies for the long delay, but voting was greatly delayed for a few weeks there, so the awards weren't available. Awards banners are under the LJ-cut to save space on Friends pages.
Title: Puzzles
Rating: G
Challenge #31: "Dreams" ("Sleep" optional)
Warnings: Set during "Fallen," before SG-1 goes to Vis Uban.
Summary: "Sometimes he dreams of running."
Sometimes he dreams of running. He doesn't know what from, but he knows there are others with him. He can't see their faces. A giant stone ring, like the one in the ruins, looms up ahead but he never seems to get any closer.
Sometimes he dreams of digging. The sand is rough and sticks to everything, but he knows he has to find something. He has tools but he doesn't know what they are for. The faceless others are with him, standing in the shadows around him. He wonders what they are waiting for.
Sometimes he dreams of kneeling at a demon's feet. Its face is shadowed, but the eyes glow with an unholy fire. Its hand reaches out and burns his forehead, searing deep into his brain, and he can't move no matter how hard he tries. As the blood starts to trickle from his ears, he hears his voice tell the demon, "I love you."
Arrom doesn't sleep much anymore.
Title: Top Dog
Rating: PG
Challenge #32: "Nails" ("Paint" optional)
Warnings: Spoilers for my fic Paws In the Moonlight, in which Daniel becomes a werewolf.
Summary: Hammond catches a glimpse of Daniel's darker half.
Author's Note: Since we didn't get a Halloween challenge, I wrote this ficlet in the spirit of the holiday instead. I'm not really satisfied with it, but here you go.
It had only taken a split-second for the negotiations to go sour. After hours of pointless circling debate, the alien leaped up and drew a knife, throwing herself in Hammond's direction. The guards didn't even have time to draw their guns before thick blood spilled like paint on the briefing room table and carpet.
The alien shrieked in agony as razor-sharp nails latched onto her forearm, stopping the knife from ever reaching its target. "Varúlfur!" she screamed, blood streaming down her arm as Daniel pried the knife from her fingers.
"I think the negotiations are off," Daniel growled.
Hammond's face revealed nothing, but inwardly the attack had shaken him. If Doctor Jackson hadn't reacted so quickly... "Send her back to M7R-145," he ordered. "Then lock it out of the dialing computer."
The guards hesitated in approaching the now-hostile alien, keeping their guns trained on her. "Don't try anything stupid," one of them advised. She spat in his direction, and was rewarded with the promise of fangs at her neck.
"Do anything else to insult my packmates, and you will never make it home," Daniel said, his voice barely a whisper, carrying the promise that he wouldn't hesitate to kill her if she so much as sneezed. She hissed, but said nothing.
Hammond watched silently as Daniel "escorted" their visitor to the Gate. Not for the first time, he was thankful that the linguist's werewolf instincts recognized him as top dog. He wasn't sure he'd survive the challenge.
Title: Sinking (drabble)
Rating: PG
Challenge #33: "Night" ("Day" optional)
Warnings: Set during Atlantis 2x14 "Grace Under Pressure."
Summary: Hanging on by a thread.
More power. Need more power. Reroute… get the engines going.
So dark… is it night? No, daylight's up there. Haven't been down here this long. Can't hold tablet still… why am I…?
Oh God, oh God, oh God!
No. No. Calm. Wide open fields. Deep breaths. That's it. In, out, in out…
There. I can do this. I just need to concentrate.
My head hurts… where's the medical kit? Need to fix it.
No! Have to stop sinking first. Not bleeding that badly. Can fix it later. Have to fix the ship. Dammit. Can't do this on my own.
…Sam?
Title: Same Shit, Different Day (drabble-and-a-half)
Rating: PG-13 for the title (fic itself is G)
Challenge #34: "Angst" ("Sorrow" optional)
Warnings: None.
Summary: Oh, Daniel, it's always the same thing with you...
"Are you ever going to write anything?"
She rolled her eyes. "Maybe if you would cooperate for once, then yes. I've got two hundred prompts to write, and you never help with any! Why must this always be so difficult with you?"
"I don't know, maybe because you tend to treat me like a walking heap of angst," he shot back. "Granted, you're not as bad as some that I've seen, but just once I'd like to be in something happy rather than just sorrow, woe, pity me pity me."
"Okay, fine." She tossed him a chart and crossed her arms over her chest. "You have free rein. What do you want me to write?"
He looked at the chart, turned it upside-down, flipped it over, then looked back up at her and shrugged. "Hell if I know."
martyfan growled and resisted the urge to smack Daniel upside the head.
Title: On the Other Side
Rating: G
Challenge #35: "Bones" ("Death" optional)
Warnings: Crossover with Discworld, although hopefully you won't really need any background info. Not meant to be taken seriously.
Summary: Once again, Daniel runs into an old acquaintance.
YOU'RE LATE.
Daniel closed his eyes and sighed, shaking his head. "Not you again."
THIS IS THE THIRD TIME THIS YEAR.
Daniel sat down on the ground and propped his chin up on his hand. "Don't you ever get tired of doing this?"
OF COURSE NOT.
"I meant me specifically, not just in general," Daniel clarified. "It's always a false alarm."
YOUR HOURGLASS SEEMS TO BE BROKEN. The hourglass in the skeletal hand was indeed kaput, the grains of sand hanging completely still within the timepiece. Daniel's name was inscribed on the base.
"Huh. Wonder how that happened," Daniel mused. He looked up at the faded figures of his friends, frantically hauling his lifeless body towards the Stargate. They never seemed to get any further away, although he didn't feel like he was moving at all.
If the specter had a face, he would have scowled. WE REALLY MUST STOP MEETING LIKE THIS. I HAVE OTHER PEOPLE TO SEE TO.
"Not my fault," Daniel objected. "These things just happen. And it's never a pleasure to see you either. Uh, no offense."
NONE TAKEN. He raised his wrist, revealing a large silver watch strapped around the bones. WELL I CAN'T STAY AROUND ANY LONGER. THERE'S A SENATOR DUE TO DIE IN FIVE MINUTES.
Daniel stood up again as his surroundings rippled into the familiar sight of the Gateroom at the SGC. "I guess I'll be seeing you again sometime."
Death glared at him. I CERTAINLY HOPE NOT. He hopped onto Binky's back and galloped off in a huff.
Title: Honor Guard (drabble and a half)
Rating: G
Challenge #36: "Tears" ("Joy" optional)
Warnings: Set during "Forever In a Day," reference to "Children of the Gods."
Summary: "Two and a half years ago, when he promised they'd get Sha're back, he wasn't sure it was a promise he could keep."
Two and a half years ago, when he promised they'd get Sha're back, he wasn't sure it was a promise he could keep. But if they did, he'd always imagined the entire city of Nagada celebrating the return of their lost sister, her safe return to the sands of home, and the look of joy on Daniel's face that he hadn't seen since that fateful day when Apophis had taken her.
He'd never wanted to see the Abydonians mourning, gathered in the streets to pay their respects to their sister forever lost, reaching out to touch the trailing shroud as they passed. He'd never wanted to see Daniel shattered, hiding from the world in his tan robes, sunglasses concealing his eyes. He wanted to imagine that there were tears there, but Daniel remained silent as he escorted his wife to her final resting place.
There was nothing he could say.
Title: Many Lifetimes
Rating: G
Challenge #37: "Sight" ("Invisible" optional)
Warnings: SPOILERS for The Quest part 2! If you haven't seen the episode yet and wish to avoid spoilers, do NOT read this fic. Also contains references to the SGA episode "Before I Sleep."
Summary: When he wakes up, something is different.
Janus had been such a disappointment. The young scientist had shown promise, but with the sudden appearance of this primitive woman, he'd become obsessed with returning her to her own timeline. Time was something not even the Alterans should be tampering with, and it would only end in disaster.
He rather suspected that she had not gone through the Gate to Earth at all, but said nothing. The Alterans would never again return to their city, he knew. What did he care if she stayed behind to die?
Slowly, he became vaguely aware that he was sitting up, hands clasped over his head, bent over folded legs. Whispery voices teased at his ears, but his brain felt like it was running in slow-motion, not quite catching up to the conversation.
The Others did not understand why the Ori would become a threat. Noninterference would never prevail over such an unstoppable force. Even without a mortal body, he felt shunned from their presence, outcast from their society. Even Oma Desala, young as she was, would have little to do with him.
He transported himself to an isolated planet, far from the watching eyes of the Others, and focused on returning to human form.
He raised his head a little, opening his eyes, faintly startled to find his sight clear despite the absence of his glasses. Two figures knelt in front of him. "How you doing, sunshine?" one asked.
Arthur had been so young, so new to the ways of the universe. He had wondered if the boy would truly be of any consequence after all. Then had come the test of the sword, and the gathering of the knights, and he knew that it was right. These humans would help him keep the secret of the Sangraal, hide it away from the Ancients and the Ori alike.
He'd created the mantle to render himself and his works invisible, but even that would not be enough. So he hid the clues, creating a quest that only the truly determined and worthy would be able to complete. Concealed in numerous primitive villages, isolated from Earth through the Stargate, he knew that the secret would be safe. Galahad, Bors, and Perceval would see to it.
"He was right," he murmured, clasping his hands in a gesture that felt both comforting and alien all at once. He stared at the twice-familiar face in front of him. "You do look like Perceval."
Title: Some of These Apples
Rating: PG
Challenge #38: "Plant" ("Grow" optional)
Warnings: Humor. Wizard of Oz reference. Slightly surreal, but not really bizarre.
Summary: Jack always complains about the trees. Turnabout is fair play...
Jack was bored again. Carter was off taking soil samples and babbling something about naquada and thingamajigs, Daniel was off poking around in a pile of rocks that had markings from ancient something-or-other, and Teal'c was out patrolling to make sure there were no snakes in this garden.
He sighed, and wished that he had thought to bring along a yo-yo or a deck of cards. He let his P90 dangle on its strap as he leaned against a sturdy tree. "Damn trees, they're everywhere we go," he muttered to himself, knocking its bark with his knuckles.
"Excuse us for growing here, then," the tree boomed in his ear.
"Waaah!" Jack leapt away, grabbing his gun and pointing it at his former backrest. "You're alive?"
The tree harrumphed. "Of course I am!" It glared at him - quite strange, since it didn't seem to have any eyes. "You've never seen a talking tree before?"
"Uh...well, no, not really." Jack felt like an utter moron. Here he was, millions of lightyears from Earth, talking to a plant and worrying about its feelings. "I keep forgetting I'm not in Kansas," he said lamely.
"Humans!" the tree scoffed. "Just stay out of my branches, you uncivilized monkey."
"Hey!" He couldn't just stand by and let the foliage insult him, could he?
"Jack."
"What?"
"Jack!"
Jack opened his eyes. Daniel was standing over him, one eyebrow raised. "Sorry that we bored you to sleep, but we're ready to head back home."
"Ah. Right. Lead on, then." As he got up, he shot a suspicious glance at the tree he'd been sleeping against, wanting to poke it just to make sure, but he restrained himself. Just in case.
Title: Must Go Faster
Rating: PG-13
Challenge #39: "Attack" ("Ambush" optional)
Warnings: A little gruesome but not really graphic. No spoilers.
Summary: While on a mission with SG-4, Daniel learns what it means to be hunted.
"OH SHIT!"
Once, Daniel had thought that he could not possibly run any faster than Jack made him during basic training. Even while being shot at, his speed rarely improved. He just couldn't do it.
He was quickly finding out that it simply wasn't the case.
"Get to the Gate! MOVE!"
The heavy pounding shook the ground, an ear-splitting roar scorching the air from just above his shoulder. He didn't dare turn around to fire again, certain that it was right behind him, reaching down to snap him up like a Daniel-shaped French fry. There was a short burst of scattered gunfire off to his left, cut short by a panicked scream that quickly gave way to silence as the shooter was attacked.
Daniel ran faster.
"Shit shit shit shit..."
A tree root sprang up and snagged his foot, sending him tumbling into a ditch. One of the members of SG-4 bolted past, and a shadow loomed over him. Daniel lay flat in the ditch as the massive foot crashed down over top of him, the enormous weight promising death to anyone unlucky enough to be caught on flat ground. Then it lifted, just in time for him to see a massive head swing down and grab the helpless soldier by the torso, ripping him in half and spraying blood all over the archaeologist.
The tyrannosaurus screamed victoriously, pleased at the meal it had caught in its ambush. Then it began to eat, crunching bone and rending flesh in a way that made Daniel never want to use a blender ever again. Trembling, he crawled towards the cover of the trees, heading for the Gate and praying that the others had survived.
Title: Trust
Rating: PG
Challenge #40: "Breaking" ("Glass" optional)
Warnings: MAJOR SPOILERS for The Shroud!
Summary: Jack has to make a choice.
Author's Note: I told myself I wouldn't write something for this episode so soon, since not everyone has seen it. But I couldn't think of anything else. Sorry, guys.
"Jack, give the command."
He hesitated, tapping his fingers on the console. Daniel had been compromised. He was a damn Prior for God's sake. SG-1 hadn't contacted him since they had arrived, and who knows what Daniel had done after he beamed aboard the Ori ship. Was Adria twisting his mind further? What had happened to SG-1? Were they even still alive?
"Please!" Over the radio, Daniel's voice was breaking from some terrible strain. "I'm running out of strength to do this!"
Jack looked out at the active Supergate through the glass viewport. Only he had the power to turn it off, bringing either victory or ultimate defeat. There was no proof whatsoever that Daniel was still Daniel. Had he even cloaked the ship at all, or would it be destroyed the moment the Gate shut down? Could Daniel really be trusted, after literally becoming one of the enemy?
But it was Daniel.
Jack opened a channel. "Daedelus, this is General Jack O'Neill."
Title: Wasp
Rating: G
Challenge #41: "Cold" ("Sneezing" optional)
Warnings: Set during The Shroud but subtle enough that it's not overly spoilery. A little dark.
Summary: Sam contemplates an unpleasant thought.
In the early days, I couldn't help but think of him as a clumsy, sneezing geek. To him, the world was full of wonder and knowledge to be shared. Nothing was dangerous. That's probably why he got himself killed so often, throwing himself headlong into situations that he didn't even seem to realize were dangerous.
I've watched him over the years, cracking under the strain but never quite breaking, letting the harsh fires forge him into a soldier until he almost lost himself, like a deadly wasp emerging from the shattered remains of a harmless caterpillar. Sometimes I wonder if he hates who he's become, or if he accepts the metamorphosis.
As I look into the cold, clouded blue eyes of the man in the chair, I wonder if he was ever the caterpillar at all.
Title: Puzzles
Rating: G
Challenge #31: "Dreams" ("Sleep" optional)
Warnings: Set during "Fallen," before SG-1 goes to Vis Uban.
Summary: "Sometimes he dreams of running."
Sometimes he dreams of running. He doesn't know what from, but he knows there are others with him. He can't see their faces. A giant stone ring, like the one in the ruins, looms up ahead but he never seems to get any closer.
Sometimes he dreams of digging. The sand is rough and sticks to everything, but he knows he has to find something. He has tools but he doesn't know what they are for. The faceless others are with him, standing in the shadows around him. He wonders what they are waiting for.
Sometimes he dreams of kneeling at a demon's feet. Its face is shadowed, but the eyes glow with an unholy fire. Its hand reaches out and burns his forehead, searing deep into his brain, and he can't move no matter how hard he tries. As the blood starts to trickle from his ears, he hears his voice tell the demon, "I love you."
Arrom doesn't sleep much anymore.
Title: Top Dog
Rating: PG
Challenge #32: "Nails" ("Paint" optional)
Warnings: Spoilers for my fic Paws In the Moonlight, in which Daniel becomes a werewolf.
Summary: Hammond catches a glimpse of Daniel's darker half.
Author's Note: Since we didn't get a Halloween challenge, I wrote this ficlet in the spirit of the holiday instead. I'm not really satisfied with it, but here you go.
It had only taken a split-second for the negotiations to go sour. After hours of pointless circling debate, the alien leaped up and drew a knife, throwing herself in Hammond's direction. The guards didn't even have time to draw their guns before thick blood spilled like paint on the briefing room table and carpet.
The alien shrieked in agony as razor-sharp nails latched onto her forearm, stopping the knife from ever reaching its target. "Varúlfur!" she screamed, blood streaming down her arm as Daniel pried the knife from her fingers.
"I think the negotiations are off," Daniel growled.
Hammond's face revealed nothing, but inwardly the attack had shaken him. If Doctor Jackson hadn't reacted so quickly... "Send her back to M7R-145," he ordered. "Then lock it out of the dialing computer."
The guards hesitated in approaching the now-hostile alien, keeping their guns trained on her. "Don't try anything stupid," one of them advised. She spat in his direction, and was rewarded with the promise of fangs at her neck.
"Do anything else to insult my packmates, and you will never make it home," Daniel said, his voice barely a whisper, carrying the promise that he wouldn't hesitate to kill her if she so much as sneezed. She hissed, but said nothing.
Hammond watched silently as Daniel "escorted" their visitor to the Gate. Not for the first time, he was thankful that the linguist's werewolf instincts recognized him as top dog. He wasn't sure he'd survive the challenge.
Title: Sinking (drabble)
Rating: PG
Challenge #33: "Night" ("Day" optional)
Warnings: Set during Atlantis 2x14 "Grace Under Pressure."
Summary: Hanging on by a thread.
More power. Need more power. Reroute… get the engines going.
So dark… is it night? No, daylight's up there. Haven't been down here this long. Can't hold tablet still… why am I…?
Oh God, oh God, oh God!
No. No. Calm. Wide open fields. Deep breaths. That's it. In, out, in out…
There. I can do this. I just need to concentrate.
My head hurts… where's the medical kit? Need to fix it.
No! Have to stop sinking first. Not bleeding that badly. Can fix it later. Have to fix the ship. Dammit. Can't do this on my own.
…Sam?
Title: Same Shit, Different Day (drabble-and-a-half)
Rating: PG-13 for the title (fic itself is G)
Challenge #34: "Angst" ("Sorrow" optional)
Warnings: None.
Summary: Oh, Daniel, it's always the same thing with you...
"Are you ever going to write anything?"
She rolled her eyes. "Maybe if you would cooperate for once, then yes. I've got two hundred prompts to write, and you never help with any! Why must this always be so difficult with you?"
"I don't know, maybe because you tend to treat me like a walking heap of angst," he shot back. "Granted, you're not as bad as some that I've seen, but just once I'd like to be in something happy rather than just sorrow, woe, pity me pity me."
"Okay, fine." She tossed him a chart and crossed her arms over her chest. "You have free rein. What do you want me to write?"
He looked at the chart, turned it upside-down, flipped it over, then looked back up at her and shrugged. "Hell if I know."
martyfan growled and resisted the urge to smack Daniel upside the head.
Title: On the Other Side
Rating: G
Challenge #35: "Bones" ("Death" optional)
Warnings: Crossover with Discworld, although hopefully you won't really need any background info. Not meant to be taken seriously.
Summary: Once again, Daniel runs into an old acquaintance.
YOU'RE LATE.
Daniel closed his eyes and sighed, shaking his head. "Not you again."
THIS IS THE THIRD TIME THIS YEAR.
Daniel sat down on the ground and propped his chin up on his hand. "Don't you ever get tired of doing this?"
OF COURSE NOT.
"I meant me specifically, not just in general," Daniel clarified. "It's always a false alarm."
YOUR HOURGLASS SEEMS TO BE BROKEN. The hourglass in the skeletal hand was indeed kaput, the grains of sand hanging completely still within the timepiece. Daniel's name was inscribed on the base.
"Huh. Wonder how that happened," Daniel mused. He looked up at the faded figures of his friends, frantically hauling his lifeless body towards the Stargate. They never seemed to get any further away, although he didn't feel like he was moving at all.
If the specter had a face, he would have scowled. WE REALLY MUST STOP MEETING LIKE THIS. I HAVE OTHER PEOPLE TO SEE TO.
"Not my fault," Daniel objected. "These things just happen. And it's never a pleasure to see you either. Uh, no offense."
NONE TAKEN. He raised his wrist, revealing a large silver watch strapped around the bones. WELL I CAN'T STAY AROUND ANY LONGER. THERE'S A SENATOR DUE TO DIE IN FIVE MINUTES.
Daniel stood up again as his surroundings rippled into the familiar sight of the Gateroom at the SGC. "I guess I'll be seeing you again sometime."
Death glared at him. I CERTAINLY HOPE NOT. He hopped onto Binky's back and galloped off in a huff.
Title: Honor Guard (drabble and a half)
Rating: G
Challenge #36: "Tears" ("Joy" optional)
Warnings: Set during "Forever In a Day," reference to "Children of the Gods."
Summary: "Two and a half years ago, when he promised they'd get Sha're back, he wasn't sure it was a promise he could keep."
Two and a half years ago, when he promised they'd get Sha're back, he wasn't sure it was a promise he could keep. But if they did, he'd always imagined the entire city of Nagada celebrating the return of their lost sister, her safe return to the sands of home, and the look of joy on Daniel's face that he hadn't seen since that fateful day when Apophis had taken her.
He'd never wanted to see the Abydonians mourning, gathered in the streets to pay their respects to their sister forever lost, reaching out to touch the trailing shroud as they passed. He'd never wanted to see Daniel shattered, hiding from the world in his tan robes, sunglasses concealing his eyes. He wanted to imagine that there were tears there, but Daniel remained silent as he escorted his wife to her final resting place.
There was nothing he could say.
Title: Many Lifetimes
Rating: G
Challenge #37: "Sight" ("Invisible" optional)
Warnings: SPOILERS for The Quest part 2! If you haven't seen the episode yet and wish to avoid spoilers, do NOT read this fic. Also contains references to the SGA episode "Before I Sleep."
Summary: When he wakes up, something is different.
Janus had been such a disappointment. The young scientist had shown promise, but with the sudden appearance of this primitive woman, he'd become obsessed with returning her to her own timeline. Time was something not even the Alterans should be tampering with, and it would only end in disaster.
He rather suspected that she had not gone through the Gate to Earth at all, but said nothing. The Alterans would never again return to their city, he knew. What did he care if she stayed behind to die?
Slowly, he became vaguely aware that he was sitting up, hands clasped over his head, bent over folded legs. Whispery voices teased at his ears, but his brain felt like it was running in slow-motion, not quite catching up to the conversation.
The Others did not understand why the Ori would become a threat. Noninterference would never prevail over such an unstoppable force. Even without a mortal body, he felt shunned from their presence, outcast from their society. Even Oma Desala, young as she was, would have little to do with him.
He transported himself to an isolated planet, far from the watching eyes of the Others, and focused on returning to human form.
He raised his head a little, opening his eyes, faintly startled to find his sight clear despite the absence of his glasses. Two figures knelt in front of him. "How you doing, sunshine?" one asked.
Arthur had been so young, so new to the ways of the universe. He had wondered if the boy would truly be of any consequence after all. Then had come the test of the sword, and the gathering of the knights, and he knew that it was right. These humans would help him keep the secret of the Sangraal, hide it away from the Ancients and the Ori alike.
He'd created the mantle to render himself and his works invisible, but even that would not be enough. So he hid the clues, creating a quest that only the truly determined and worthy would be able to complete. Concealed in numerous primitive villages, isolated from Earth through the Stargate, he knew that the secret would be safe. Galahad, Bors, and Perceval would see to it.
"He was right," he murmured, clasping his hands in a gesture that felt both comforting and alien all at once. He stared at the twice-familiar face in front of him. "You do look like Perceval."
Title: Some of These Apples
Rating: PG
Challenge #38: "Plant" ("Grow" optional)
Warnings: Humor. Wizard of Oz reference. Slightly surreal, but not really bizarre.
Summary: Jack always complains about the trees. Turnabout is fair play...
Jack was bored again. Carter was off taking soil samples and babbling something about naquada and thingamajigs, Daniel was off poking around in a pile of rocks that had markings from ancient something-or-other, and Teal'c was out patrolling to make sure there were no snakes in this garden.
He sighed, and wished that he had thought to bring along a yo-yo or a deck of cards. He let his P90 dangle on its strap as he leaned against a sturdy tree. "Damn trees, they're everywhere we go," he muttered to himself, knocking its bark with his knuckles.
"Excuse us for growing here, then," the tree boomed in his ear.
"Waaah!" Jack leapt away, grabbing his gun and pointing it at his former backrest. "You're alive?"
The tree harrumphed. "Of course I am!" It glared at him - quite strange, since it didn't seem to have any eyes. "You've never seen a talking tree before?"
"Uh...well, no, not really." Jack felt like an utter moron. Here he was, millions of lightyears from Earth, talking to a plant and worrying about its feelings. "I keep forgetting I'm not in Kansas," he said lamely.
"Humans!" the tree scoffed. "Just stay out of my branches, you uncivilized monkey."
"Hey!" He couldn't just stand by and let the foliage insult him, could he?
"Jack."
"What?"
"Jack!"
Jack opened his eyes. Daniel was standing over him, one eyebrow raised. "Sorry that we bored you to sleep, but we're ready to head back home."
"Ah. Right. Lead on, then." As he got up, he shot a suspicious glance at the tree he'd been sleeping against, wanting to poke it just to make sure, but he restrained himself. Just in case.
Title: Must Go Faster
Rating: PG-13
Challenge #39: "Attack" ("Ambush" optional)
Warnings: A little gruesome but not really graphic. No spoilers.
Summary: While on a mission with SG-4, Daniel learns what it means to be hunted.
"OH SHIT!"
Once, Daniel had thought that he could not possibly run any faster than Jack made him during basic training. Even while being shot at, his speed rarely improved. He just couldn't do it.
He was quickly finding out that it simply wasn't the case.
"Get to the Gate! MOVE!"
The heavy pounding shook the ground, an ear-splitting roar scorching the air from just above his shoulder. He didn't dare turn around to fire again, certain that it was right behind him, reaching down to snap him up like a Daniel-shaped French fry. There was a short burst of scattered gunfire off to his left, cut short by a panicked scream that quickly gave way to silence as the shooter was attacked.
Daniel ran faster.
"Shit shit shit shit..."
A tree root sprang up and snagged his foot, sending him tumbling into a ditch. One of the members of SG-4 bolted past, and a shadow loomed over him. Daniel lay flat in the ditch as the massive foot crashed down over top of him, the enormous weight promising death to anyone unlucky enough to be caught on flat ground. Then it lifted, just in time for him to see a massive head swing down and grab the helpless soldier by the torso, ripping him in half and spraying blood all over the archaeologist.
The tyrannosaurus screamed victoriously, pleased at the meal it had caught in its ambush. Then it began to eat, crunching bone and rending flesh in a way that made Daniel never want to use a blender ever again. Trembling, he crawled towards the cover of the trees, heading for the Gate and praying that the others had survived.
Title: Trust
Rating: PG
Challenge #40: "Breaking" ("Glass" optional)
Warnings: MAJOR SPOILERS for The Shroud!
Summary: Jack has to make a choice.
Author's Note: I told myself I wouldn't write something for this episode so soon, since not everyone has seen it. But I couldn't think of anything else. Sorry, guys.
"Jack, give the command."
He hesitated, tapping his fingers on the console. Daniel had been compromised. He was a damn Prior for God's sake. SG-1 hadn't contacted him since they had arrived, and who knows what Daniel had done after he beamed aboard the Ori ship. Was Adria twisting his mind further? What had happened to SG-1? Were they even still alive?
"Please!" Over the radio, Daniel's voice was breaking from some terrible strain. "I'm running out of strength to do this!"
Jack looked out at the active Supergate through the glass viewport. Only he had the power to turn it off, bringing either victory or ultimate defeat. There was no proof whatsoever that Daniel was still Daniel. Had he even cloaked the ship at all, or would it be destroyed the moment the Gate shut down? Could Daniel really be trusted, after literally becoming one of the enemy?
But it was Daniel.
Jack opened a channel. "Daedelus, this is General Jack O'Neill."
Title: Wasp
Rating: G
Challenge #41: "Cold" ("Sneezing" optional)
Warnings: Set during The Shroud but subtle enough that it's not overly spoilery. A little dark.
Summary: Sam contemplates an unpleasant thought.
In the early days, I couldn't help but think of him as a clumsy, sneezing geek. To him, the world was full of wonder and knowledge to be shared. Nothing was dangerous. That's probably why he got himself killed so often, throwing himself headlong into situations that he didn't even seem to realize were dangerous.
I've watched him over the years, cracking under the strain but never quite breaking, letting the harsh fires forge him into a soldier until he almost lost himself, like a deadly wasp emerging from the shattered remains of a harmless caterpillar. Sometimes I wonder if he hates who he's become, or if he accepts the metamorphosis.
As I look into the cold, clouded blue eyes of the man in the chair, I wonder if he was ever the caterpillar at all.