The Tegan Chronicles
Intuition and Lies 37
Tegan stood there in her Air Force blue BDU bottoms and regulation black t-shirt. She watched as Senator McKenzie approached the group with a smug smile on his face. She wanted to reach out and smack it off his lips.
"Major Kiser, I meant to tell you earlier how glad I am to see you're doing so well."
Tegan wondered if politicians were even capable of speaking the truth.
"I really don't think all of this is necessary." He waved his hand in the air. "I'm sure your physical therapist and your doctor could simply tell me you're not fit for duty"
He looked briefly at Janet. "I mean there's no need to disgrace yourself, and I'd really hate to see you get hurt. You can just give me the prosthetic and I can take care of everything else."
"In your dreams, Senator." She smiled.
"Suit yourself Major."
"I have one question."
"Yes?" He waited patiently.
"Where's Jessica Kiser?"
He was surprised it wasn't a question regarding what he expected her to be able to accomplish. He thought for a second before the light bulb clicked. "She handed in her resignation three weeks ago."
Tegan gave a partial nod before heading to the treadmill where she'd run her one and a half miles. This was going to be easier than the hilly terrain she was used to traversing.
Senator McKenzie handed a stop watch off to his lackey. "Ready?"
Tegan nodded.
"Go."
Jack was running a second stop watch to make sure McKenzie didn't pull a fast one. When she hit the one-point-five mile mark Jack smiled. "Impressive Kiser, you shaved a full three seconds off your best time."
Tegan nodded and moved to the hardwood floor. That was the easy part, and somehow everyone was completely aware of just how hard the next two challenges were going to be. Tegan looked up at Sam. "You want to count me off?"
"Sure." Sam got down and put her knees on Tegan's feet with just enough weight to keep them on the floor when she would sit up.
"Ready." Tegan focused on Sam and tried to ignore the pain in her arm.
"Go." Senator McKenzie's lackey started his stopwatch.
"One, two, three, four... thirty-nine, forty, forty-one... forty-five, forty-six – "
"Time."
Tegan wanted to tell him to eat that, but she still had her biggest obstacle in front of her; pushups. "Ready."
"Go."
Again Sam counted her off, and this time she only used the pain to fuel her. "Thirty-nine, forty, forty-one."
"Time."
"Well done Kiser." Jack congratulated her as she stood.
"She still has to prove herself on the shooting range."
Tegan paled slightly, her arm was hurting so bad, from the three weeks of solid training and just having finished the physical fitness test, she thought she was going to vomit. She'd completely forgotten about weapons proficiency and hadn't touched a gun in over four months.
"No sweat." Jack reassured her as they approached the elevator bay several paces behind McKenzie.
After donning her protective eye and ear gear, Tegan picked up the P-90 and turned to face the target. She used her shoulder the gauge the weight before flipping the safety off. She pulled the trigger. "Fuck!"
Janet cringed, it wasn't a word she was used to hearing from Tegan, and she knew it was laced with pain.
She'd missed the target not even hitting the area surrounding the black silhouette on the paper. The gun had kicked causing the prosthetic to shove back into her raw stump.
"I think we've seen enough Major." Senator McKenzie didn't even hide his gloating.
"Give her another chance, she hasn't even held a gun since she lost her arm." Jack rallied for her.
"Fine." He turned his attention to Tegan. "You miss again..."
"I won't." She growled.
She bit her lower lip and prepared for the next shot. This time she held the trigger firing off ten rounds dead center before letting off. She pulled her ear protection off and turned to McKenzie as the target came toward them on the automated pulley system.
"Not bad." He looked over her record. "Let's see how you handle a M9."
Tegan grinned, trading weapons, the hand gun would be a piece of cake.
"No need to use your right hand, it says in your jacket your proficient with both hands." He watched her grin fade. "I'm only interested in how well you do with the prosthetic."
"Oh come on McKenzie, Air Force regulations don't require her to be able to shoot with both." Jack argued.
"I'm just looking out for her well being Colonel." He glanced at Jack. "I'd hate for some Goa'uld to cut her right arm off and she not be able to save her own life because she can't shoot with her new arm."
Tegan held the M9 in her left hand and casually pointed it toward Senator McKenzie. "Are you really sure you want me holding a gun in this hand? I mean alien technology and all, you just never know."
"Is that a threat Major?"
"Of course not, besides..." She grinned. "Safety's still on."
She slipped her headgear back on and aimed quickly emptying the entire clip in the center of mass just like she always had.
"I guess SG1 is staying exactly like it is." General Hammond commented as Tegan handed her equipment off to the Staff Sergeant manning the firing range.
"For now." McKenzie brooded. "But you all had better watch your step."
"Senator." Tegan spoke as he turned to leave.
"Yes?"
"Next time you threaten to dismantle SG1 the safety won't be on."
"Now that's a threat." Daniel spoke before McKenzie could.
"No," Tegan corrected, "I want to be perfectly clear. It's not a threat, it's a promise."
He looked around at the smiling faces of her teammates then glanced up at the surveillance camera. "Sergeant, I'd like a copy of that recording."
"What recording?" He watched Senator McKenzie point to the camera. "Oh, that recording. I'm afraid that camera's broken, has been for six months. I put in a service request, but budget cuts and all."
McKenzie turned back to Tegan. "You'd better watch your step."
"When's re-election?"
"I mean it."
"Not nearly as much as I meant what I said."