Tag #23 – Whispers of the Dark
Daniel stood over Apophis in the dark room, clenching his hands into tight fists to halt the nervous shaking. Finally, his wife's rapist was at his mercy and would have no choice but to give Sha're back to Daniel if he ever wanted his freedom.
"Not that you would ever set him free," a vaguely familiar voice whispered over his shoulder. "If he does not hope for his freedom from you, you must make him fear you."
"Our minds, our knowledge, our very being is so much greater, so much more," Apophis sneered at him, the haughty air seeming pathetic in the darkness of the room, in his restrained posture and his broken body.
"He thinks he controls you," the voice urged. "Show him that you are in control."
Daniel slowly let the edges of a smirk touch his lips. In a soft, sing-song tone, he breathed, "I know where your child is."
A distinct surge of satisfaction hit him as Apophis immediately lost his sneer. Those dark eyes looked away quickly, fixing on the ceiling yet unable to escape Daniel's unnerving, unblinking stare. "My son," the Goa'uld rumbled in wonder, but not without a touch of fear.
"Yes. I brought him into the world with my own hands on Abydos," Daniel continued, relishing the anger he could see on the fallen system lord's face.
Apophis continued to stare at the ceiling, but he couldn't avoid the poisonous words. "He was taken by Heru'ur," he said flatly, flinching.
"No," Daniel corrected, shaking his head slightly but not moving his gaze from Apophis. "By me."
As if against his will, Apophis' turned back to meet Daniel's eyes. For a long, long moment, Daniel savored the fear and devastation in the face of his enemy. Then, quietly, Apophis muttered, "I have no use for the child now."
Daniel remained silent, all satisfaction from seeing his enemy brought to his knees gone in an instant. "You should kill him," the voice suggested. "Slowly and painfully."
"Amounet," Apophis said, his smile reforming. "I knew from the moment I laid eyes on her, she was a vessel for a queen."
In some distant part of his mind, Daniel was aware that Apophis' statement could be considered a backhanded compliment, but he didn't care. Leaning down next to his enemy's head, Daniel lowered his voice to a deadly whisper. "If you don't tell me where she is…I'll kill you right here."
Apophis stared right back, unable to do anything else, dark eyes full of fear. "You have neither the strength nor the will," he finally replied, voice sharp with the accent of nervousness.
"He thinks you're bluffing. Show him, Daniel."
Daniel prepared to step back and "borrow" one of the guard's weapons, but before he could do more than think about it, Sam's voice rang out behind him. "Daniel!"
Daniel hesitated, then turned to look at her as she entered, anger filling him at the interruption. If I can't kill him, at least let him be in PAIN!
As he moved to acknowledge Sam, Apophis suddenly arched his back and cried out in agony, drawing Daniel's attention back to the helpless parasite. Dark, delicious enjoyment washed over him as he focused all his willpower on making Apophis suffer.
Sam would not just stand there forever, so reluctantly he leaned back, taking his time to appreciate every microsecond of anguish his enemy experienced. Finally, he turned away and stormed out of the room, past the guards and Sam, into the hall so he wouldn't be tempted any longer. He leaned up against the wall, regaining his composure, and barely heard Sam as she touched his arm and said something about the Tok'ra coming before taking off again. He spared one last glance at Apophis, who seemed to have passed out, before following his friend's footsteps down the corridor.