Z is for Zat'nik'tel
Title: Z is for Zat'nik'tel
Fandom: Stargate SG-1
Character: Bra’tac
Rating: Gen
Orientation: Gen
Word Count: 530
Prompt: Dark Bingo Fill: “Broken Vows”
Notes: For SG-1 Gen Fic Day, Bra'tac Alphabet Soup
As a boy, Bra’tac remembered that his father had been a man of great faith, which he instilled in Bra’tac, encouraging his son to follow him on the warrior’s path. His father had carried the Zat'nik'tel with pride and instilled a reverence for the weapons of the gods in Bra’tac.
When he was of age to carry a symbiote within his body, Bra’tac took vows to serve the gods, to follow the commands of the first prime, to give his life if his god Apophis demanded it. As he undertook training with the masters, he firmly believed with all of his heart that he was travelling on the good and righteous path.
On the day that he was deemed skilled enough in his training and worthy of the honor to carry a weapon in service of his god, Bra'tac felt as if the honor might overwhelm him. When his training master held out the Zat'nik'tel to him, laid across his palms like an offering, young Bra’tac felt his heart swell with pride in all that he had accomplished to reach this day.
He took the gleaming weapon into his hands, glad that he did not tremble before his master. He touched the swooping curve of the body, traced the lines that had been artfully carved into it. He did not caress it, for that would be like a sacrilege. The weapon, meant to be an extension of the arm as it delivered the wrath of the god, resembled the form of the god that he served. It was to be a constant reminder as he carried it with him, this power of the god capable of delivering both punishment and death.
One day, Bra'tac would carry a staff weapon and join the others in the ranks of Jaffa serving Apophis. But the Zat'nik'tel and all that it symbolized would hold a place in his heart, a reminder of the vows he had made as a boy. His skill would carry him through the ranks until he became a first prime in his own right.
He did his duty faithfully, believing in his heart in what he did until the day when he came to know the god he followed was false. On that day, he set aside his Zat'nik'tel, because the reminder was no longer a bolster to his faith but rather a reminder of the folly of his youth, when he was blind and believed the lies and did the bidding of the false gods, carried out atrocities in their name. The Zat'nik'tel became a new symbol for him, one that made his heart ache and troubled his soul, for he had broken the vows of his youth.
Bra’tac could never look upon a Zat'nik'tel without a pang of guilt. If there was time for it, his mind would wander; his thoughts would turn to the consequences of breaking a vow made to a false god. If one gave one’s word to a liar, was it wrong to break that trust and go back on the promises made? It was a question that troubled him through the years as he took a leading role in destroying the false gods.
Fandom: Stargate SG-1
Character: Bra’tac
Rating: Gen
Orientation: Gen
Word Count: 530
Prompt: Dark Bingo Fill: “Broken Vows”
Notes: For SG-1 Gen Fic Day, Bra'tac Alphabet Soup
As a boy, Bra’tac remembered that his father had been a man of great faith, which he instilled in Bra’tac, encouraging his son to follow him on the warrior’s path. His father had carried the Zat'nik'tel with pride and instilled a reverence for the weapons of the gods in Bra’tac.
When he was of age to carry a symbiote within his body, Bra’tac took vows to serve the gods, to follow the commands of the first prime, to give his life if his god Apophis demanded it. As he undertook training with the masters, he firmly believed with all of his heart that he was travelling on the good and righteous path.
On the day that he was deemed skilled enough in his training and worthy of the honor to carry a weapon in service of his god, Bra'tac felt as if the honor might overwhelm him. When his training master held out the Zat'nik'tel to him, laid across his palms like an offering, young Bra’tac felt his heart swell with pride in all that he had accomplished to reach this day.
He took the gleaming weapon into his hands, glad that he did not tremble before his master. He touched the swooping curve of the body, traced the lines that had been artfully carved into it. He did not caress it, for that would be like a sacrilege. The weapon, meant to be an extension of the arm as it delivered the wrath of the god, resembled the form of the god that he served. It was to be a constant reminder as he carried it with him, this power of the god capable of delivering both punishment and death.
One day, Bra'tac would carry a staff weapon and join the others in the ranks of Jaffa serving Apophis. But the Zat'nik'tel and all that it symbolized would hold a place in his heart, a reminder of the vows he had made as a boy. His skill would carry him through the ranks until he became a first prime in his own right.
He did his duty faithfully, believing in his heart in what he did until the day when he came to know the god he followed was false. On that day, he set aside his Zat'nik'tel, because the reminder was no longer a bolster to his faith but rather a reminder of the folly of his youth, when he was blind and believed the lies and did the bidding of the false gods, carried out atrocities in their name. The Zat'nik'tel became a new symbol for him, one that made his heart ache and troubled his soul, for he had broken the vows of his youth.
Bra’tac could never look upon a Zat'nik'tel without a pang of guilt. If there was time for it, his mind would wander; his thoughts would turn to the consequences of breaking a vow made to a false god. If one gave one’s word to a liar, was it wrong to break that trust and go back on the promises made? It was a question that troubled him through the years as he took a leading role in destroying the false gods.