Devil's Hotline
Chapter 10
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
"…and that leads us to how we all got here." Jack finished, taking a moment to shift into a more comfortable position that didn't leave his butt numb before glancing back at Bra'tac. The elderly man sat in front of him in something of a troubled silence, his face an expressionless mask that gave nothing away. Next to Jack, Daniel shifted uneasily, perhaps picking up on the old jaffa's vibe.
Not much had happened since the group of jaffa had come and taken Sam and Mara from the cell. Not even a single jaffa had made an appearance since the two woman's departure, and it was almost unnerving being left alone for so long with out even a passing jaffa to pester in Jack's time in the cell. Teal'c was the only one who seemed to remained unperturbed, having not so much as twitched since taking watch for returning Jaffa.
"Is any of this starting to making sense?"
Jack had asked this question several times already. It seemed that Bra'tac's idea of what a demon was versus the real thing was highly contrasting, and the old elder had stubbornly refused to believe half of the story Jack had told him, even with Daniel and Teal'c there to validate his tale.
The old jaffa's face twisted into a scowl, and Jack let out an exaggerated sigh, his head falling back against the annoying yellow wall with a soft 'thunk'. Looks like this time was no different.
"I still do not believe that the one you refer to as 'Mara' is in fact a demon, Colonel O'Neil."
Resisting the sudden urge to strangle Bra'tac, (after all, the man was still an ally. Besides, what good would it do to strangle an alien who had a snake that would heal any wounds? If he was going to hurt someone, Jack wanted it to last. Huh. Perhaps he really was qualified for a demon's contract, after all.) Jack took a deep breath, looking over at Daniel for help.
"Daniel? You want to help me out here? I don't know how else to explain it to him."
Apparently, the definition of a 'demon' was somewhat different to jaffa then it was to humans, even when both races had come face to face with a real one.
"Ah…well, you see…" With Bra'tac's attention suddenly on him, Daniel fought to come up with the words that might help explain Mara's nature. It didn't help that SG-1 had had experience with people with otherworldly abilities in the past, most of which traveled down the grape vine to numerous allies and enemies across the galaxy.
In a sense, I suppose it's only reasonable he doubts us. The blue eyed archeologist thought gloomily. Considering some of the things he's probably heard about us, Bra'tac must think Mara is nothing more then some sort of alien or mutant or something similar. It doesn't matter to him that Mara's origins are from Earth, and not some distant planet.
With these thoughts in mind, Daniel continued. "Abydos and Earth are…similar in the fact that they both have demons, Bra'tac. I suppose it just seems to vary on the form they take. She may not look it, but Mara is capable of at least some sort of…" The man paused, hands waving in odd gestures as he fought to come up with the right term. "…abilities that no other human on Earth should be able to do."
The disbelieving look didn't fade from the old master's face. "Then she is a…how do you say….mutant? A mutant, not a demon."
Jack threw his hands in the air, bringing both the archeologist and the jaffa master's attention to him. "Ah for crying out loud! She isn't some X-Men reject, Bra'tac! She popped out of a damned CD, tore my living room to shreds, knew who and what I was at first glance, and some how got into a top secret military base that already has a long waiting line for entry, with no questions or background checks or anything, and then got herself placed on my team! Alien? Fine, maybe. I might be able to believe that with the whole 'sneak into base' thing. Mutant? Sure! Shooting laser balls around my living room is acceptable, then. But all that on top of everything else? Bra'tac, I may not be a superstitious man, but even I can tell when something is supernatural instead of extraterrestrial. And Lt. Marla Jotun is one of them."
His rant done, the silver haired colonel crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back once more with a deep scowl on his features, brown eyes glinting with irritation.
Bra'tac's expression became thoughtful, and for a second, the two Tau'ri locked in the cell grew hopeful, wondering if perhaps something in Jack's rant had broken through the jaffa's stubborn head. And then….
"Colonel O'Neil, what is this 'X-Men' you speak of?"
There was something that sounded suspiciously like a strangled laugh from Daniel's direction, and Jack sent a heated glare the brown haired man's way. The archeologist covered his mouth with both hands, but the laughter that glittered in his friends azure eyes didn't go unnoticed by Jack.
The brown eyed man sighed, letting his head thump once more against the glaring yellow wall. Maybe if he banged his head enough, he could cause some sort of brain damage or something that would allow Jack to escape the stupid questions being asked. At least until Carter and Mara got back, and he was dragged off to a torture session or something. Usually that meant a sarcophagus in the end. They could heal him up all gung ho, torture him again, and by the time he returned, Bra'tac could have his fill with Mara herself.
Now he remembered why he left all the talking to Daniel.
"…Ask Teal'c about 'em." Jack muttered dryly, his mood continuing to sour as the jaffa in question cast the colonel a sharp look, as if to say, you dare include me in your problem? before returning his gaze once more to the hallway outside the bars.
Sensing that Jack had suddenly lost interest in any and all forms of communication that involved vocal cords, the occupants of the cell lapsed into silence, loosing themselves to their thoughts as they waited for the return of Carter and Mara. After several minutes of the uncomfortable silence, Daniel spoke up. "It sure is taking them a while, isn't it?" He asked, his voice soft as he shifted his position, glancing out through the bars with a small, concerned frown on his face. "Think they're alright?"
Jack grunted. "I'm sure they're about as fine as anyone can be, giving their situation." He grumbled. "I just want to know if we'll be seeing them any time soon." The colonel was more anxious then he let on. It didn't help that there weren't any guards this time around. At least under normal circumstances, there was a patrol or two of guards that passed every now and then that Jack could pester to his heart's content. But this time, without any enemy jaffa, he had few other options aside from bugging his comrades to really release any tension. And somehow, Jack got the feeling that the action would not be appreciated.
His arms crossed over his broad chest and his stance as intimidating as possible to those who would glance in at him, Teal'c suddenly tensed. "Colonel O'Neil, someone is approaching."
Both Jack and Daniel perked up at the utterance, and both men moved to stand, Bra'tac following suit silently a heartbeat later. The colonel moved to Teal'c's side, looking through the bars and down either side of the hallway. Nothing was in sight.
"Teal'c, what are you-" Jack paused mid sentence, his eyes narrowing slightly as he heard the faint sound of footsteps coming from the corridor. Slowly, almost agonizingly so, it grew louder, and two people rounded a corner.
Daniel, whose gaze was blocked by Teal'c and Jack, stood on his toes in the hopes of catching a glance at whoever was approaching. "Jack? Who is it? What do you see? Is it Sam and Mara?"
Jack remained silent for a few seconds longer before speaking up. "No. It isn't." He growled, his hands clenching into tight fists once more. For a brief second, Daniel grew worried that the man might try to punch the beams of energy holding them within in his frustration, but instead the colonel turned, an expression that couldn't seem to decide on whether it was a scowl or a frown on his face. "No, it's some jaffa…and a kid…"
His voice was troubled as Jack moved past Daniel, returning to his wall and leaning up against it, his arms crossed over his chest once more.
Daniel blinked, blue eyes startled as he looked from Jack to the bars before returning his gaze to Jack. "A kid? You mean like a child?"
Jack sent him a look. "No Daniel. A kid as in a young goat." He said sarcastically. "Of course a child!"
The footfall was now easily audible now, and the group of four turned their attention to the outside hallway once more.
"What's a kid doing in a Ha'tac?"
"Something tells me we're about to find out."
Jack's words seemed to hang in the air ominously as the remaining members of SG-1 waited for the jaffa and child in question to appear. And soon enough, the duo did come into view, a gauntleted hand wrapped tightly, perhaps painfully even, around the slim arm of the child the jaffa led.
Jack wasn't sure if he was surprised or not when the two came to a halt in front of their cell, rather then continuing past and further down the hall. What, does this ship only have one prison cell? Was what he wanted to say, but for some reason, Jack found himself holding back.
Perhaps he didn't want to scare the little girl in front of him any more then necessary. The child was young-perhaps six or seven in age, though Jack had never been one for judging based on appearances-and looked more then a little scared. Her looks were…unusual, to say the least, bordering on exotic with her dark skin and bright-was it white?-hair. Large violet eyes darted in a frenzied, panicked manner, and the child squirmed under Jack's gaze, as though trying to avoid his stare. Every now and then, she tugged at her captive arm, perhaps hoping that in the ten seconds since her last pull, the jaffa would have lightened his grip around her enough that she might escape.
In the hand that was currently free from gripping a child, the jaffa wielded a zat, and he now pointed it at both Teal'c and Daniel, a silent order for both men to move away from the bars of the cell. They did as bid, and the bars dissipated just long enough for the armored man to shove, practically throw, the little girl inside before reappearing once more.
The child knocked into Daniel, and the archeologist, being the man he was, gently placed his hands on the girl's shoulders, steadying the small child and automatically going about trying to calm her down. "Hey…hey…it's alright, calm down now. No one here is going to hurt you…" He soothed.
Jack straightened from where he was leaned up against the wall, his face darkening into a frightening scowl. His arms dropped to his sides, and the man marched past Daniel and the newest resident and to the bars on the cell, murder in his eyes as he glared at the jaffa on the other side. "What the hell is your problem!?" He snarled. "What'd the kid do that you'd lock her up for? And where the hell are Carter and Jotun?" He roared, earning himself nothing more then a small, terrified cry from the oddly dressed girl in Daniel's arms.
Ignoring Daniel's coos as the archeologist fought to calm the little girl down, Jack glared sourly at the jaffa. The armored man didn't respond, his eyes not even focusing on Jack before moving to turn. It only seemed to further enrage Jack. "Hey…hey! I'm talking to you! Get your ass back here you maggot-ridden, festering piece of sh-"
"Jack."
Jack's mouth slammed shut with an audible 'click' as Daniel's upset voice greeted his ears, settling instead for glowering at the retreating figure of the jaffa's back. "What…the hell…is wrong with the jaffa in this ship!?" He hissed, hearing Teal'c's low rumble of agreement somewhere behind him. Was he the only one to notice how that guy's eyes seemed to be glazed over? It was like the man hadn't even been aware of what he was doing, like he was in a trance, or under…a…spell…
Jack paused in his musings, slowly turning to regard SG-1's newest companion with suspicious brown eyes. The dark skinned child gazed back with innocent violet eyes, wet with tears that threatened to fall down her cheeks. At his stare, the little girl flinched, and a whimper escaped her throat.
No…some how Jack doubted that the child cowering fearfully in Daniel's arms was a demon. The small amount of experience with Mara was making him paranoid.
"Jack!"
Once again, Daniel's voice pulled the silver haired colonel from his thoughts, and brown eyes blinked as a pair of angry blue eyes met his. "What?"
"Stop with the 'Scary Colonel' face. You're scaring her." As if to prove his point, the little girl whimpered again, before turning, wrapping her arms around Daniel's neck, (the man was kneeling. When had that happen?) and burying her face into the collar of his jacket.
Another point for 'Lady Killer' Jackson. Was no woman resistant to his charm?
Shaking his head to rid himself of such thoughts, Jack sighed, running a hand through his own white hair. "Right, right. Sorry about that." He muttered. Time to put on a happy face for kiddo. Taking a deep breath, Jack closed his eyes, releasing the breath in a sigh and shoving his anger off to one side. Planting a smile on his face, brown eyes opened once more, and Jack squatted down, knees popping in protest. He ignored them.
He looked over at Daniel, who, aside from looking a little disgruntled from the child suddenly flinging herself onto him, looked back with curiosity. "So, who is she?" Jack asked, a small part of him taking note of Teal'c at his back and Bra'tac off to one side, both jaffa giving the two men and child space, perhaps in the hopes of easing off some of the little girl's fear.
Daniel gave a half shrug. "I don't know. I haven't asked her yet." He responded, gently grasping the arms around his neck and prying the wild haired child off his neck. "You're alright, calm down….Jack's a friend…a scary friend at times," he glared at Jack, as though daring the colonel to say otherwise. "But a friend none the less." He gave the child a reassuring smile, who returned it with a wavering one of her own. "So, what's your name?"
The little girl rubbed her eyes, sniffing somewhat as she slowly grew a little more at ease in her new environment. "H-hild…." She stuttered, a trace of an almost unnoticeable accent in her voice. It was a little surprising that she had responded to him. The child was the first person on the ship to show any signs of understanding English.
"Hild?" Brown eyebrows rose in surprise, and Jack sent his friend a look.
"What? Something wrong with the name?"
Daniel blinked, taking in the raised eyebrows from both Teal'c and Jack, and the uncomfortable look on the child-Hild's face, as though she believed herself to have said something wrong. Quickly, the blue eyed man shook his head. "Ah, nothing is wrong with it. I just found it somewhat surprising." The archeologist looked from Hild to Jack. "You see, Hild is Norse in origin-er…that is to say, Hildr is Norse."
Jack's brows furrowed together. "What, you mean like Thor and his buddies? He glanced down at the small child next to him, the little girl staring back with wide, unnerving violet eyes. He looked back at Daniel, a small frown on his face. "Is that something we should be worried about?"
Daniel shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not sure." He said. "I just happened to come across the name in my research over Mara. From what I recall, Hildr was a Valkyrie. Her very name meant 'battle'." Jack's stare became curious, and it quickly multiplied as Teal'c and Hild turned to regard him as well. "Of course, it could all be a simple coincidence. Perhaps Hild is from one of the planets under the Asgard's protection."
Jack's expression became thoughtful. "In which case, we're left to wonder what a Goa'uld would be doing kidnapping kids off one of Thor's planets." He looked once more at the dark skinned child, planting a large, if somewhat strained, smile on his face. "Heyy….'Thor' wouldn't happen to ring any bells in that pretty little head of yours by any chance, would it?" He asked, keeping his tone of voice as open and friendly as possible. The last thing he needed to do was scare the kid any more. After all, Daniel had just calmed her down, and Jack would be damned if he spent the rest of his stay in the cell with a little girl screaming her ears off at him.
Too bad the colonel didn't notice how close to 'damned' he already was.
Hild tilted her head to one side in thought, bringing a finger to her lip to add to the affect. Well, it seemed that Mara's bunch certainly were a lively group, if anything else. A Valkyrie? Her? It was all she could do not to break down into a hysterical fit of laughter right then and there when the man with the glasses-Daniel, if she'd heard correctly-had gone into his brief little history lesson.
He must have been an anthropologist, or perhaps an archeologist. Oh how she loved those types. It was always so cute, the things they came up with looking at a bunch of old stones. Tall Dark and Silent standing near him was something else too. A jaffa? Dealing with demons? Did miracles never cease? And then there was the Old Man off to one side as well, but one look at his scowling face and wardrobe was enough for Hild to realize that the older jaffa was only along with this group for the ride.
She turned her attention once more to the silver haired colonel in front of her. "He sounds….kind of familiar…." She said, scrunching her face in a tight frown, as though she was trying to recall the name with all her might. While it would be fun to stir up some chaos between several alien races, Hild had not come to the cell with such a purpose in mind.
Rather, she'd come to examine the one Mara had made a deal with. And she had to admit, whether Jack O'Neil was in Nidhogg's database or not, Hild liked what she saw.
The man was a warrior, plain and simple. It was obvious in every move he made, every word he spoke. Even when Jack was trying hard to make what he mistook for a child feel at ease, Hild could sense the violent aura that radiated from within. The Colonel, Jack would call it-the beast that instinctively took over in dire situations. It made Hild all warm and fuzzy inside whenever she looked at him. Another time, another place, Jack would have made a wonderful little minion on the mortal plane.
But, such was life, and as Jack looked over to Daniel with something of a concerned frown, Hild hid her grin.
The two humans shared a look with each other, before turning their attention once more to the child. "Do you know what you're doing here?" Daniel asked. The odd haired child simply shook her head, biting her lip and looking up at the vision impaired man with scared indigo eyes. "Hmm…"
Jack shifted his position somewhat, moving away from Hild and closer to Daniel. Wrapping a friendly arm around the archeologists shoulders, the colonel lead Daniel a small distance away from the little girl, trusting Teal'c or Bra'tac to keep an eye on the child. "Maybe she's a future host?" He whispered, glancing over his shoulder at the kid, who was now openly staring a Teal'c with large, fascinated eyes. Huh. Not five minutes ago, the kid looked like she was going to die of fright. Gotta love the way kids can adapt to change…
Daniel shrugged helplessly. "I'm not sure Jack. I mean, if she really is from one of the protected planets, why would a Goa'uld go through all the trouble of getting her? Wouldn't it be just as easy to go to one of the 'unprotected' planets and grab a host?" He asked. "And even then, why someone so young? Granted, her feature are rather…" He paused, risking a glance back at the child before turning once more to Jack. "…unique, and I guess I can understand the appeal for someone like that, knowing how vain the goa'uld can be, but still…" He trailed off, brows furrowing together in an expression that mirrored Jack's own.
The colonel nodded, sharing his own theories with his younger friend. "Yeah, I hear you. You've got a point there. Hell, for all we know, she could be a freaking mutant or something." It would be just their luck too. First a demon, next a mutant. What else could SG-1 add to their little group?
Jack sucked in a deep breath, letting it out in a stressed sigh. Running a hand through his short hair, he said, "Damn it all. This is only bringing up more questions. We aren't making any progress at all." His arm fell from Daniel's shoulders, and the soldier turned to glare at the humming bars of the cell. "And where the hell are Carter and Jotun?"
The man was tired of waiting around for his other team mates to show up. He was tired of being stuck in a cell, and coming up with more questions the things that seemed to have no answers. He was tired of strange jaffa and mysterious goa'ulds and demons that wouldn't listen to his advice. He wanted them back, safe and sound, and he wanted to get the hell out of the cell. He wanted to go home to an unbugged house, grab a nice, cold beer, and sit down on his couch with a good hockey game playing out in front of him on his TV.
He'd get his wish soon enough.
~*~
At least, as soon as Carter and Jotun found their way back to the cell Jack and the others were located in.
"Damn it all to the ninth layer of hell, another cross section. Which way do we go?"
"We went left last time. Let's keep going straight this time."
"What? Screw that. I distinctly remember taking several lefts and rights going to that stupid chamber. I say we take a right."
"Yes, because you can remember every turn we made while I was knocked out. If we keep making turns, we're going to wind up going in circles."
"Eh, wouldn't make that much a difference. We're already beyond lost in this hell hole."
"Yes, but at least that way, we wouldn't accidentally run into any jaffa that those goa'ulds no doubt sent after us."
The bantering between the two women continued as Carter and Mara ran down another corridor, Sam in the lead and Mara close on her heels as the human and demon fought to recall which way they had come from. It was not going well, to say the least.
"Son of a…don't these ships have maps? You know, like the kind you'd find in a mall? Those helpful little post up maps that say 'you are here' and all that?"
Sam glared back at her companion. The input was not helping the situation. "No, I don't believe they do. The closest thing a Ha'tac might have to a map would be located in the control room, and considering how heavily guarded that place will be with two prisoners running amok, I don't think we want to go there." Another crossway, and, acting on a whim, the short haired major darted down the right hallway, Mara continuing forward for a brief moment before registering the change in direction and shifting to chase after Sam.
"Damn it! Warn a girl when you're going to change direction like that!" Mara's complaint went virtually ignored by Sam, the major too busy focusing on the corridors and who might just be waiting around that next corner rather then bother coming up with a retort to throw back at the demon.
And it was probably a good thing the blue eyed woman was keeping her attention elsewhere too. For as the short haired blonde disappeared around another corner, there was a surprised yelp, and before Mara could turn down the corner to see what had caused Sam's small outcry, the major reappeared around the same corner, almost running into the demon. "Not that way!" Sam cried, running past Mara with a new burst of speed that left the blonde demon gaping in confusion.
"Wha-"
"Jaffa, Kree!"
"Oh. Never mind then." Deciding it was probably in her best interest to follow after the shorter major, Mara wheeled around and ran the other way, just as a group of five jaffa rounded the corner Sam had gone down not even five seconds ago. Staff blasts chased after the curly haired woman, and Mara put on an extra burst of speed, quickly catching up with Sam just as the astrophysicist rounded another corner, disappearing from sight.
As Mara turned down the same hallway, Sam looked back at her, the woman's face stressed. "We don't have time for this. We need to find the others before we're overwhelmed!" She snarled, activating her zat and sending the demon in her company a look that clearly stated Mara should do the same.
The demon slowed her pace, grabbing the alien weapon from where it rested on her person and fiddling with the object as she fought to figure out how to activate it. The weapon popped into it's more 'active' state, and Mara looked up, a victorious grin on her face. Just in time to see Sam, a look of alarm on her face, rush towards her and tackle the demon to the ground.
A staff blast whizzed through the space Mara's head had been just seconds ago, and dazed, the demon barely registered Sam's screaming in her ears.
"…ot! Are you trying to get you head blown off? Don't stop in the middle of an open hallway with no shelter when jaffa are firing at you!" The major dragged Mara to her feet, her hand wrapped tightly around one of Mara's wrists as she half-led, half-dragged the demon behind another corner. Using the corner's angle for cover, the blue eyed woman released her grip on Mara, focusing all of her attention to the opposing jaffa.
Firing several rounds into the crowd, Sam let a small part of her mind wander. She was not in the best of moods. But then, when one suddenly found herself wandering lost through a ship the size of a small town, with nothing but a demon for a companion, Sam suspected that her mood was reasonable. She also now had a small understanding of why Jack couldn't stand looking out after the civilian scientists who occasionally joined them on missions. It was more then a little frustrating dealing with a person-even a person who was, in fact, a demon-who didn't seem to have enough common sense to know that stopping for whatever reason, be it to activate a weapon or something else entirely, while being chased by enemy units was a very bad idea.
If-when-she got through this, Sam would never be able to look at another civilian employed by the SGC the same way again. But then again…maybe being around a demon simply brought out the worst in her. Bah, whatever the reason, at least she could take out her aggression on the jaffa in front of her. She'd already downed two of the original five, and if Sam had any say in the matter, the other three wouldn't be far behind them.
Another jaffa dropped, and Sam risked a glance to Mara, who was kneeling behind the major, zat in hand and a look of heavy concentration on her face as she carefully took aim at the enemy. Well, at the very least, I now know she can fire a zat. Sam thought to herself, briefly recalling Bra'tac's unhappy rant about Mara's aim with a gun. We'll just have to make sure she sticks to the weapons with less kick from now on. At least until we can get some sort of training into her.
Another jaffa dropped, and Sam finished off the last of the five. The two women paused, allowing themselves a moment to simply catch their breaths as the last of the electrical energy from the zat faded from the fallen men. Then Sam sighed, straightening from her somewhat crouched position. Looking over at Mara with sharp blue eyes she said, "Come on, lets go. I'd rather be long gone before any other groups come across this bunch." She turned, glancing down each of the adjoining hallways before choosing a direction and heading down it.
"Hold on for a second."
The major paused, looking over her shoulder at Mara, who, now standing, was gazing intently at the five fallen men. A wave of weariness swept through the blue eyed woman, and Sam frowned. "Why? What is it?"
Mara glanced over at her, the demon's own face lined with a strange, curious expression. "I want to try something." She murmured, waving the major over to her side before approaching one of the unconscious men.
The weariness grew into a sharp sense of foreboding, but none the less Sam moved to the demon's side, the frown deepening as she watched Mara crouch down beside one of the jaffa. "What are you going to do?" She asked, her voice suspicious and guarded as she regarded the demon at her side.
One blood red eye turned to look up at her. "I want to try and enter this guy's subconscious." She said. "If I can get into his mind, I might be able to 'download', in a sense, a map of this place. This guy must know the structure of this ship like the back of his hand, him being a jaffa and all that." The demon chucked a thumb in the man's direction. "It'd make things a hell of a lot easier on us. We could find the others and get off this blasted ship that way."
Sam's brows furrowed together, her sapphire eyes shifting between the demon and jaffa in thought. "I heard an 'if' in there." The officer said after a moment of silence. "What does that mean?" Despite any misgivings she had towards the jaffa and his team, Sam wasn't sure she wanted the armored man to suffer from a demon rummaging around in his brain. The sudden, uncomfortable look that appeared on Mara's face didn't help her conviction much either.
"Uh, well…you see…I've…never really tried anything like this before." Mara explained, studying the floor as though it were the suddenly the most interesting thing in the world, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.
"What?" Sam's voice held a sharp edge to it, and her expression was stony as she glared at the demon.
The demon cringed at the look. "Um…"
As a demon holding a first-class license, Mara's abilities were vast and powerful. One such power at her disposal was the ability to manipulate the subconscious with nightmares. It was something of a unique trait, allowing the demon in question to influence the victim somewhat. When unconscious, Mara could easily access the vitim's mind, and while the power was mainly used to withdraw information on what the person feared most and use it against them in the form of a nightmarish beast, it could, technically, be used for other things.
Key word being 'technically'.
Mara had never before thought to use the ability for anything other then its original purpose. It was impossible to tell the consequences of using such a power to forcibly extract the information Mara needed on the jaffa in question. However, desperate times called for desperate measures, and as long as she got the information required, Mara couldn't give a damn about what might happen to the unfortunate man at her feet.
That's not to say that Sam shared the demon's perspective.
"Would you quit with the look?" Mara finally exclaimed after failing to come up with a proper explanation. "Why do you even care? He's you're enemy-if you'd been using that gun of yours, he'd already be dead by now." If anything, Sam's stony glare increased at her words, and Mara quickly looked away. "Fine. If I promise not to hurt him, will you get off my back? I swear, you humans and your damned consciouses." She muttered in disgust. "You're all as bad as those damned goddesses…" The demon trailed off, looking up at Sam once more. "Well?" She demanded. "We don't have all day here, Ma'am." She growled out.
Sam's expression darkened momentarily at the tone with which Mara addressed her by. Shifting her weight uneasily from one foot to the other, the major's gaze traveled from Mara to the jaffa, then to the various corridors and hallways. And while she knew she could easily spend all day arguing about the value of one person's life to the demon, Sam knew that in one respect, Mara was right. They were pressed for time. They needed leave and find the others before any more jaffa stumbled across them.
Sam grit her teeth, a small part of her hating herself for the decision that she was about to make. This was just as bad as that stupid 'possession' stunt from earlier. "…Fine…" She growled, the grip on her zat white knuckled. "So long as you don't maim him or anything like that…just…hurry it up." The major looked away, fuming and refusing to watch and see just what it was Mara was about to do to the poor man.
She silently vowed to get herself piss drunk upon returning home.
~*~
A/N: Damn…it feels like this chapter took longer then necessary to produce. Sorry about that. All I can say in my defense is that I recently bought a copy of Persona 4 for PS2, and have promptly fallen in love with the game. As to be expected, me being the Megaten fan I am. So, yeah. Once again, sorry about that. The next chapter should be when our blonde bombshells reunite with the boys and Hild.
Anyways, ten chapters….Holy mother of cow. I never would have expected this story to go on so far. Special thanks go out to Paladin13, VisualIdentificationZeta, and Latios151. Thanks guys. You're encouraging words really helped inspire me to keep going.