38 Minutes Challenge by Shadow Side
Apr. 9th, 2005 02:59 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
alinak.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
sga_flashfic"Utilitarianism, Genii-Style"
Author: Shadow Side
Challenge: 38 Minutes
Archive: Will go to Wraithbait once challenge period ends
Setting: Just before The Siege
Spoilers: The Siege II
Rating: G
Timing: 38 minutes exactly, [01:45am - 02:23am, BST] excluding spell-check/beta
Beta:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
davechicken - many thanks!
Word Count: 1046
Summary: The Wraith attack on the Genii homeworld begins, and Kolya is torn over where he ought to be...
*author waves* Hi, all! Am new to this comm, so thought I would introduce myself: Female, British, Student, and an unashamed Genii sympathiser. Seriously. My wardrobe never used to have any khaki in it, and now... *vbeg* I am posting from my *real* LJ, but I usually go by the pen-name Shadow Side, hence this post's heading.
-----------------------------------------
They never expected things to begin so quickly. Even with the prior warning obtained from the Atlanteans - before relations deteriorated somewhat - it was predicted that there would be more time to prepare, more time to allow for an entire culture to go into shutdown. The fact was, it was lucky that they got any warning at all. When the news broke out, there wasn't a Genii alive who didn't recognise the severity of the threat...
The Wraith were coming.
The first Kolya heard of it was when the reactors were all put into shutdown, and the scientists suddenly found themselves with too much time on their hands. It was Cowan himself who gave the order. Their only chance was to reduce energy emissions to the barest minimum, and hope that the Wraith did not realise that the 'simple farmers' on the planet's surface were, in fact, a front for the result of what was perhaps the greatest survival story in galactic history.
Or so Kolya thought. As far as he was concerned, fooling the Wraith into missing the existence of so many people was something of an achievement.
Day by day, the hive ship drew closer, as more and more of the Genii bunker went into blackout mode. With all the power facilities off-line, much of the great city remained in darkness, empty of life, holding nothing but echoes. Would those places be occupied again? Could every one of the plans put in place for a threat like this actually triumph over those who sought to wipe the last of the Genii from the face of the galaxy?
Keeping order became more problematic, as what was now known as zero day approached, and Kolya, like many others, was dispatched to part of the underground complex to ensure that everything ran smoothly until the danger had passed - and, most importantly, to guard one of the hatchways. Heading along a walkway, squad at his back, gun at his side, Kolya couldn't help but think that all this passivity seemed... wrong, somehow. They were just supposed to sit down here, hiding, until the scary Wraith went away. This was what the great Genii were reduced to...
His face was textbook impassive, but behind his eyes there raged a great deal of thought. Kolya knew that, no matter what, the Wraith could overwhelm the bunker if they found it, and that by sacrificing the lives of a few hundred on the surface, thousands more would be protected. Once the Wraith had gone by, once the Genii passed their great test... it would all be easier. The Wraith might not return for years, and when they did... they could well face a full armada, the best his people could come up with. All the scientists needed, to get those atomic weapons ready for use, was more time.
And Kolya looked forward to that day with great anticipation. Just to see those ships of theirs falling from the sky, shattered and broken, as his people had once been. It wasn't merely poetic justice. It was right, in every sense of the word.
When the attack began, an odd silence descended over the whole bunker. With everything inactive, it was finally possible to stand and hear nothing... no churning, or clunking, or technological operation of any kind. Not even any voices. It was as though even speech had come to be perceived as dangerous.
Kolya stood at the edge of the walkway, staring out into the almost-darkness, listening to the explosions begin on the surface above, and wanting - really, really wanting, to be up there too. It seemed like madness, but what he knew he wanted was to be on the surface, fighting the Wraith, facing them down and feeling all the accumulated hatred in his heart channel out into the battle. He'd never seen one, face-to-face. Not once. And even knowing what he did - how resilient they were, how deadly and relentless - part of him wanted... needed... to be fighting them.
Another explosion echoed, resounding around the great cavern, seeming to go on forever, and causing the walkway to shake. As it died down, Kolya heard hurried footfalls, turning to see a single figure, running in the direction of the hatchway.
"Hold it!" he called.
The figure skidded to a halt, turning. "We have to get out of here," came the gasped response. It was a man - more a lad, really, maybe in his early twenties, a pistol at his side. "They're coming. We have to move!"
"No one leaves the bunker," Kolya replied, flatly, aware that his squad was moving into place behind him. "So long as we remain here, the Wraith will most likely fail to detect us."
"No, no!" the boy cried. "They're too close already! It's not safe anymore! I... I... I won't let you stop me!"
"If this was merely a case of letting you get yourself killed, I wouldn't waste my time," said Kolya, voice cold. "But if you open the hatch, you risk giving us all away." He raised his arm, gun pointed at the young Genii. "Stand down."
"No!" yelled the boy. "Cowan is a fool! This will get us all killed!"
His eyes were wide, desperate, hands shaking as he reached for his own weapon. "I'm going. I'm going and you won't keep me here!"
Turning, the young man moved to run on again. In seconds, he'd be at the hatch... so terribly close to wrecking everything...
There was no time for another warning. Kolya fired, catching the fleeing youth squarely in the back, causing him to drop slowly to his knees. Then, after a moment, the boy slumped almost gracefully forwards, hitting the floor with a soft thud...
And silence returned.
Unblinking, Kolya turned back to where he had been, gaze on the dark city again. Why did it have to be like this? Why couldn't they fight? Why had he just been forced to shoot one of his own people in more or less cold blood?
Why else... but for the greater good?
The Genii would endure because of sacrifices made on this day. They would endure, and they would thrive.
Kolya wondered if the Atlanteans would ever be able to say the same.
Author: Shadow Side
Challenge: 38 Minutes
Archive: Will go to Wraithbait once challenge period ends
Setting: Just before The Siege
Spoilers: The Siege II
Rating: G
Timing: 38 minutes exactly, [01:45am - 02:23am, BST] excluding spell-check/beta
Beta:
davechicken - many thanks!Word Count: 1046
Summary: The Wraith attack on the Genii homeworld begins, and Kolya is torn over where he ought to be...
*author waves* Hi, all! Am new to this comm, so thought I would introduce myself: Female, British, Student, and an unashamed Genii sympathiser. Seriously. My wardrobe never used to have any khaki in it, and now... *vbeg* I am posting from my *real* LJ, but I usually go by the pen-name Shadow Side, hence this post's heading.
-----------------------------------------
They never expected things to begin so quickly. Even with the prior warning obtained from the Atlanteans - before relations deteriorated somewhat - it was predicted that there would be more time to prepare, more time to allow for an entire culture to go into shutdown. The fact was, it was lucky that they got any warning at all. When the news broke out, there wasn't a Genii alive who didn't recognise the severity of the threat...
The Wraith were coming.
The first Kolya heard of it was when the reactors were all put into shutdown, and the scientists suddenly found themselves with too much time on their hands. It was Cowan himself who gave the order. Their only chance was to reduce energy emissions to the barest minimum, and hope that the Wraith did not realise that the 'simple farmers' on the planet's surface were, in fact, a front for the result of what was perhaps the greatest survival story in galactic history.
Or so Kolya thought. As far as he was concerned, fooling the Wraith into missing the existence of so many people was something of an achievement.
Day by day, the hive ship drew closer, as more and more of the Genii bunker went into blackout mode. With all the power facilities off-line, much of the great city remained in darkness, empty of life, holding nothing but echoes. Would those places be occupied again? Could every one of the plans put in place for a threat like this actually triumph over those who sought to wipe the last of the Genii from the face of the galaxy?
Keeping order became more problematic, as what was now known as zero day approached, and Kolya, like many others, was dispatched to part of the underground complex to ensure that everything ran smoothly until the danger had passed - and, most importantly, to guard one of the hatchways. Heading along a walkway, squad at his back, gun at his side, Kolya couldn't help but think that all this passivity seemed... wrong, somehow. They were just supposed to sit down here, hiding, until the scary Wraith went away. This was what the great Genii were reduced to...
His face was textbook impassive, but behind his eyes there raged a great deal of thought. Kolya knew that, no matter what, the Wraith could overwhelm the bunker if they found it, and that by sacrificing the lives of a few hundred on the surface, thousands more would be protected. Once the Wraith had gone by, once the Genii passed their great test... it would all be easier. The Wraith might not return for years, and when they did... they could well face a full armada, the best his people could come up with. All the scientists needed, to get those atomic weapons ready for use, was more time.
And Kolya looked forward to that day with great anticipation. Just to see those ships of theirs falling from the sky, shattered and broken, as his people had once been. It wasn't merely poetic justice. It was right, in every sense of the word.
When the attack began, an odd silence descended over the whole bunker. With everything inactive, it was finally possible to stand and hear nothing... no churning, or clunking, or technological operation of any kind. Not even any voices. It was as though even speech had come to be perceived as dangerous.
Kolya stood at the edge of the walkway, staring out into the almost-darkness, listening to the explosions begin on the surface above, and wanting - really, really wanting, to be up there too. It seemed like madness, but what he knew he wanted was to be on the surface, fighting the Wraith, facing them down and feeling all the accumulated hatred in his heart channel out into the battle. He'd never seen one, face-to-face. Not once. And even knowing what he did - how resilient they were, how deadly and relentless - part of him wanted... needed... to be fighting them.
Another explosion echoed, resounding around the great cavern, seeming to go on forever, and causing the walkway to shake. As it died down, Kolya heard hurried footfalls, turning to see a single figure, running in the direction of the hatchway.
"Hold it!" he called.
The figure skidded to a halt, turning. "We have to get out of here," came the gasped response. It was a man - more a lad, really, maybe in his early twenties, a pistol at his side. "They're coming. We have to move!"
"No one leaves the bunker," Kolya replied, flatly, aware that his squad was moving into place behind him. "So long as we remain here, the Wraith will most likely fail to detect us."
"No, no!" the boy cried. "They're too close already! It's not safe anymore! I... I... I won't let you stop me!"
"If this was merely a case of letting you get yourself killed, I wouldn't waste my time," said Kolya, voice cold. "But if you open the hatch, you risk giving us all away." He raised his arm, gun pointed at the young Genii. "Stand down."
"No!" yelled the boy. "Cowan is a fool! This will get us all killed!"
His eyes were wide, desperate, hands shaking as he reached for his own weapon. "I'm going. I'm going and you won't keep me here!"
Turning, the young man moved to run on again. In seconds, he'd be at the hatch... so terribly close to wrecking everything...
There was no time for another warning. Kolya fired, catching the fleeing youth squarely in the back, causing him to drop slowly to his knees. Then, after a moment, the boy slumped almost gracefully forwards, hitting the floor with a soft thud...
And silence returned.
Unblinking, Kolya turned back to where he had been, gaze on the dark city again. Why did it have to be like this? Why couldn't they fight? Why had he just been forced to shoot one of his own people in more or less cold blood?
Why else... but for the greater good?
The Genii would endure because of sacrifices made on this day. They would endure, and they would thrive.
Kolya wondered if the Atlanteans would ever be able to say the same.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 02:12 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 02:36 am (UTC)*thinks about knives some more*
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 10:06 am (UTC)Really liked this, it really had the atmosphere of the bunker and the character of Kolya down perfect for me.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 11:54 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 02:59 pm (UTC)This is such a different fic than I'm use to reading. I thank you for that! Very fresha. And yeah, I agree with casspeach--the atmosphere of the bunker--I felt as if I were really there.
Kolya's just one of those villians that you love to hate, but in your fic you brought him one step closer to our understanding.. that he has to do what he has to do..otherwise everyone's compromised.
Such a great fic. Sad, but great. The ending lines are just, utterly, magnificently fantastic. Just like a "POW!" in your face.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 11:57 pm (UTC)Heh, I've got past the 'love to hate' part and now I just think he's wonderful. Which at times is quite alarming... *eg*
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 05:48 pm (UTC)The one quibble I have... Does Kolya have to shoot the guy in the back? I mean, take out one of his knees and he's as good as immobile, without necessarily *killing* the idiot.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-10 12:00 am (UTC)That was something I would obviously have considered very carefully if I'd had more than 38 minutes! I guess it could have gone differently, although what I was going for was a sense that Kolya has to do whatever it takes to protect his people - even if it means killing one to save many. Hence the title.
But yes, that was a tricky one to decide.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-10 03:49 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 10:26 pm (UTC)I like yours better.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-09 11:58 pm (UTC)Yes. That title would have been... weird!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-10 01:03 am (UTC)Anyway, very cool. Very different. I liked it.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-10 01:05 am (UTC)And yes, he does. I am currently on a drive to write as much Kolya-fic as possible... hence why I appear to have written nothing *but* so far...
*eg*
(no subject)
Date: 2010-05-22 09:56 am (UTC)