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WIP Amnesty
This is one of those interesting livejournal navel-gazing activities--I can't imagine anyone doing this on lists. And I thought I was going to need "WIP Amnesty Day Amnesty" but instead, here's a story that I've been forced to acknowledge. Back in early S3 Alias, when it wasn't pretty much impossible that Jack and Sark might be working together, and Lazarus Lazarey hadn't lost his evil hand and risen from the grave.
Alliance
Unfinished WIP
by Vanzetti
His quarry was a challenge, and a year in solitary had done nothing for Jack's skills. He was as careful as he could be, but as the window slid shut behind him, he could feel the draft from it on his skin.
"It would only be fair if I killed you. Don't you agree, Agent Bristow?"
He turned to see the young man and the gun held loosely in his hand; he hadn't been asleep after all. Three-thirty in the morning and Sark was sitting up, still dressed in a crumpled suit. If Jack was lucky, there would be a nearly empty bottle of liquor somewhere in the apartment.
"If you were going to shoot me, you'd have done it already."
"I might just hurt you. That would be fair as well."
"Stop feeling sorry for yourself, Sark. We have an hour and fifty-three minutes before your new friends come to check on you."
"And what do you suggest we do with that hour and fifty-three minutes?" Sark's tone remained unchanged though the whole exchange. The same light, mocking voice Jack remembered. Jack remembered exactly what it had taken to make that voice break.
"They showed you the video, I take it," he said.
"They showed me a video, certainly. A video showing my father's death, and his murderer. I must say that it came as something of a surprise; I'd always assumed that it would be Irina who killed any relatives I had left. Like mother, like daughter, I suppose." The gun came up as soon as Jack shifted his weight forward. "Don't."
"Someone gave the order, Sark."
"Because Sydney Bristow is pure in heart and would never murder an aging, unarmed diplomat in cold blood. Naturally. What do you want, Bristow? Tell me and get out."
"An alliance." At Sark's expression he continued in a hurry. "An alliance of convenience. I want to know who Sydney was working for, during those two years. You, I presume, want the money the Covenant took from you. You might care who had Lazarey assassinated. I wouldn't want to assume an emotional attachment on your part."
The expression on Sark's face was unfamiliar. "You want me to betray the Covenant."
"I want to know who's behind them."
"Under the circumstances, they're hardly likely to admit me to the inner sanctum."
"They kept you alive for a reason. Would you have done that?"
A flash of laughter in Sark's eyes. "Would you?" He lowered the gun but didn't put it away.
Jack didn't let himself show the relief he felt. "No one will trace our contact. You'll pass me whatever information they give you through Sydney."
"Through Sydney?" Sark's voice rose in disbelief.
"Under the circumstances, I believe that she's unlikely to harm you."
"That's because under the circumstances I have no intention of letting her within a hundred yards of me," Sark shot back. "I'm sure she was a darling child, Bristow, but your daughter's a menace."
"Do you want to destroy the Covenant?" Sark didn't say anything. "Then we'll do it my way."
"No, Bristow, we'll do it my way." Sark's tone was final. "I'm the one risking my neck, and I'm not about to trust myself to the hands of a woman who was working for the very people I'm about to betray. Not unless you can account for every minute of the time she was missing and explain why she's back now. Can you?"
"I've run every test there is, Sark. She's not subject to any kind of interference."
"Not good enough," Sark said flatly. "I'll get you what I can, but if Sydney learns that we're working together the deal is off."
"How do you intend to communicate with me? You'll be in the field. Sydney will be in the field. That represents the best opportunity for us to exchange information."
"Without being identified by our respective organizations, you mean? What are you hiding from the CIA?"
"You will not need that information."
Sark's mouth twisted: not a smile, Jack thought. "You're asking me to take a great deal on faith."
"There was a chance that you might have raised the alarm tonight."
If Sark was considering doing so, the thought didn't show on his face. After a long pause, "Very well," he said. "We have an agreement. I'll find out what I can."
"And how do you intend to communicate with me, since you refuse to use Sydney as an intermediary?"
For the second time, amusement flashed across Sark's face. "Don't worry about that. You'll know when I have something."
[not to be continued]
I'm rather sorry to consign this to the graveyard of WIPs: it has a few lines I liked, and in principle I feel that Sark and Jack in the same room is a good thing. Perhaps in some other story.
Alliance
Unfinished WIP
by Vanzetti
His quarry was a challenge, and a year in solitary had done nothing for Jack's skills. He was as careful as he could be, but as the window slid shut behind him, he could feel the draft from it on his skin.
"It would only be fair if I killed you. Don't you agree, Agent Bristow?"
He turned to see the young man and the gun held loosely in his hand; he hadn't been asleep after all. Three-thirty in the morning and Sark was sitting up, still dressed in a crumpled suit. If Jack was lucky, there would be a nearly empty bottle of liquor somewhere in the apartment.
"If you were going to shoot me, you'd have done it already."
"I might just hurt you. That would be fair as well."
"Stop feeling sorry for yourself, Sark. We have an hour and fifty-three minutes before your new friends come to check on you."
"And what do you suggest we do with that hour and fifty-three minutes?" Sark's tone remained unchanged though the whole exchange. The same light, mocking voice Jack remembered. Jack remembered exactly what it had taken to make that voice break.
"They showed you the video, I take it," he said.
"They showed me a video, certainly. A video showing my father's death, and his murderer. I must say that it came as something of a surprise; I'd always assumed that it would be Irina who killed any relatives I had left. Like mother, like daughter, I suppose." The gun came up as soon as Jack shifted his weight forward. "Don't."
"Someone gave the order, Sark."
"Because Sydney Bristow is pure in heart and would never murder an aging, unarmed diplomat in cold blood. Naturally. What do you want, Bristow? Tell me and get out."
"An alliance." At Sark's expression he continued in a hurry. "An alliance of convenience. I want to know who Sydney was working for, during those two years. You, I presume, want the money the Covenant took from you. You might care who had Lazarey assassinated. I wouldn't want to assume an emotional attachment on your part."
The expression on Sark's face was unfamiliar. "You want me to betray the Covenant."
"I want to know who's behind them."
"Under the circumstances, they're hardly likely to admit me to the inner sanctum."
"They kept you alive for a reason. Would you have done that?"
A flash of laughter in Sark's eyes. "Would you?" He lowered the gun but didn't put it away.
Jack didn't let himself show the relief he felt. "No one will trace our contact. You'll pass me whatever information they give you through Sydney."
"Through Sydney?" Sark's voice rose in disbelief.
"Under the circumstances, I believe that she's unlikely to harm you."
"That's because under the circumstances I have no intention of letting her within a hundred yards of me," Sark shot back. "I'm sure she was a darling child, Bristow, but your daughter's a menace."
"Do you want to destroy the Covenant?" Sark didn't say anything. "Then we'll do it my way."
"No, Bristow, we'll do it my way." Sark's tone was final. "I'm the one risking my neck, and I'm not about to trust myself to the hands of a woman who was working for the very people I'm about to betray. Not unless you can account for every minute of the time she was missing and explain why she's back now. Can you?"
"I've run every test there is, Sark. She's not subject to any kind of interference."
"Not good enough," Sark said flatly. "I'll get you what I can, but if Sydney learns that we're working together the deal is off."
"How do you intend to communicate with me? You'll be in the field. Sydney will be in the field. That represents the best opportunity for us to exchange information."
"Without being identified by our respective organizations, you mean? What are you hiding from the CIA?"
"You will not need that information."
Sark's mouth twisted: not a smile, Jack thought. "You're asking me to take a great deal on faith."
"There was a chance that you might have raised the alarm tonight."
If Sark was considering doing so, the thought didn't show on his face. After a long pause, "Very well," he said. "We have an agreement. I'll find out what I can."
"And how do you intend to communicate with me, since you refuse to use Sydney as an intermediary?"
For the second time, amusement flashed across Sark's face. "Don't worry about that. You'll know when I have something."
[not to be continued]
I'm rather sorry to consign this to the graveyard of WIPs: it has a few lines I liked, and in principle I feel that Sark and Jack in the same room is a good thing. Perhaps in some other story.
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Re:
And thanks for the kind word regarding AWP. I'm fond of it myself.
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I think I love you. Best line in a long time. :o)
And Jack and Sark in one room makes for some of the best tension and snark apart from Sarkney I've seen written in a long while as well. Excellent dialogues, wonderful setting.
Uhm ... just a thought, but ... this'd actually be quite a good missing scene. It doesn't necessarily need continuation (even though it'd be more than lovely). You could simply leave it that way and call it a missing scene. And what an utterly PERFECT missing scene it'd make.
Would be perfectly set before Mexico, for example.
Just a thought. This is simply too wonderful to be buried as a WIP.
Re:
I suppose it could be a missing scene, but it sets up expectations which the show never lives up to. It's not entirely impossible that Sark was in contact with Jack, but at this stage it appears very, very unlikely. (I did have few lines of a post-Mexico scene to add to this, but it just wasn't going to work out--it would have required an enormous edifice of plot to support it.)
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Yeah, Jack and Sark in the same room is a Very Good Thing! Hopefully you'll have the opportunity to write more of their interactions at a later date :)
With regards to this piece, I just have to say your mastery of voice and dialogue makes me go green with envy. Every word, pitch perfect.
Brava!
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