Будь проклят Комитет

Posted on Fri Jul 3rd, 2026 @ 4:59pm by Major (майо́р) Lyudmila "Mila" Sorokova & Colonel (полко́вник) Irina Zaitseva
Edited on on Mon Jul 6th, 2026 @ 12:38pm

Mission: Down Time
Location: Colonel Zaitseva's Office
Timeline: current
1519 words - 3 OF Standard Post Measure

[ON]

Irina Zaitseva did not rise when the office door opened. Major Lyudmila Sorokova stepped into the space and shut the door, having come immediately upon receiving the order to do so. One did not keep Colonel Zaitseva waiting.

Her superior officer’s space was austere, almost aggressively so. The space held a steel desk with a wooden top that had seen better days, two chairs, and portrait of the General Secretary on the wall. The only splash of color in the space was the revolutionary red and gold from her homeland’s flag. An electric samovar steamed quietly in the corner, untouched – and in this place, it was the only nostalgic nod from ‘home.’

The sound of measured page turning from the mission dossier forced Mila’s attention back to the small woman sitting behind her desk.

“Colonel Zaitseva.” Mila said by way of ‘greetings.’

"Major Sorokova." Irina responded after a suitably uncomfortable pause. “Sit.”

Mila noted that it was not an invitation. She lowered herself into the chair, back straight, hands resting on her thighs, and waited. There was always so much waiting.

Zaitseva continued reading for several more seconds before closing the folder with deliberate care before focusing her attention on the woman sitting across the desk from her.

"Your personnel file has always interested me, Major."

Mila sat motionless, outwardly as placid and still as Lake Baikal frozen over at the heart of winter. She had learned quickly to never give away anything in the presence of an officer such as Zaitseva.

"I've often wondered how a girl from Udachny became one of the finest special operations officers in the Soviet Union."

Mila did not grace her with a response. There had not been a question in Zaitseva’s utterance, and her personnel file was not the issue at hand here. Patience, it would seem, was the strategy of the day.

"You were fourteen when your father died." Another statement…another “Look how much I know about you,” statement. Typical knowledge is power чушь собачья (chush' sobach'ya – bullshit).

Mila wanted this snake to get to the point, so she took her shot and interject, “Yes, Colonel. Mind collapse. Deep shaft.”

Irina pressed her lips together at Mila’s response. Nonetheless…"The compensation barely covered the funeral."

Mila's face remained composed, though her fingers pressed ever so slightly against her trouser leg.

"And your brother..." Irina glanced at another folder. "...Mikhail chose to return to the mine."

"He did. He was sponsored to Kuzbass State Technical University, where he studied mining engineering."

"A difficult life." Irina replied.

"It is honest work." Mila countered.

"Oh, I've no doubt." The colonel closed the personnel file.

"And your mother?" A pause. "She still lives in Udachny?"

Mila did not answer immediately. Colonel Zaitseva was not engaging in casual conversation, and that she was listing the surviving members of her family meant that something was wrong. "Yes."

"I understand she has not adjusted well to widowhood." Irina purred, watching Mila’s face for any sign of expression to leak through.

"I fail to see the relevance." Mila countered lamely.

Irina smiled politely. "You are not an unintelligent woman, Major Sorokova. I'm sure you do see the relevance here."

The silence stretched. Then, as if changing the subject entirely— "I've reviewed the debriefings of the Abydos mission. Your mission commanding officer, Raynor believes that allowing the Goa'uld to leave alive was strategically beneficial."

"That was his assessment." Mila countered in a dry tone which revealed nothing of her personal thoughts on the subject.

"And yours?"

Damn. Well, she knew it was coming. Mila answered without hesitation.

"I believed Zeus should have been killed."

"So why wasn't he?"

Irina did not allow Mila any time for a response – after all, it wasn’t the moment for ‘answers.’

"You state..." she began, reading almost lazily from memory, "...that you had direct line of sight on the Goa'uld known as Zeus."

"Yes, Colonel."

"And yet...he remains alive."

"Yes, Colonel." Mila answered immediately.

Silence settled between them. Irina regarded Mila with cool, unreadable eyes for a moment before continuing. She often would use silence to fill in the gaps – to allow the subject the opportunity to imagine what was coming.

"I am simply attempting to reconcile two facts. You are one of the finest operators this Directorate possesses." Another pause. "And yet you failed to eliminate the enemy."

"I was ordered to hold my fire."

"And you obeyed?"

"Yes." Mila answered immediately.

Irina nodded approvingly. "I expected nothing less." Her words dripped disappointment.

"This morning," Irina continued, "I received revised guidance from Moscow."

She slid a sealed document onto the desk but did not let go of it. "Our political leadership has concluded that opportunities to eliminate Goa'uld leadership are too valuable to surrender."

Mila’s hands touched the folder and was ready to pull it towards her so she could review the contents herself, but as Irina had not relinquished her control over the document, prudence dictated continued patience.

"If another opportunity presents itself..." Irina's voice remained calm. "...you are expected to take it."

Mila blinked. "Colonel Zaitseva…" Her tone was respectful, but noticeably firmer. "That could place a Soviet officer in direct violation of the established command structure."

"It could." Irina countered easily, the side of her mouth tugging in amusement.

"It could destroy trust between allied units."

"Possibly."

"It could make every joint operation more dangerous."

Irina merely watched her.

Mila continued. "Colonel, we cannot ask foreign officers to trust us while secretly instructing our personnel to ignore their lawful orders. We cannot build a coalition while behaving as though one does not exist."

"Correct, and Moscow is aware of this."

Mila looked at the sealed directive. "I cannot reconcile this order with my duty as an officer."

"You needn't reconcile it." Irina countered, watching the proverbial gears spinning in Mila’s mind.

"I swore to obey my commanding officers."

"You swore to defend the Soviet Union." The words hung between them.

For the first time since entering the office, Mila allowed a hint of frustration into her voice. "With respect, Colonel Zaitseva...Colonel Raynor placed himself at the same risk as every one of us through the Gate. He trusted me. He trusted all of us, and this directive asks me to betray that trust."

"It does."

Mila looked almost offended. "Then it is a disgrace."

The room became perfectly still. Most officers would have realized too late they'd spoken beyond their station. Irina simply regarded her.
"Careful, Major." Irina purred in a calm voice that conveyed anything but placidity.

"I am being careful." Mila answered through slightly gritted teeth.

"No." The colonel's tone cooled.

"You are being sincere." Irina leaned forward, continuing, "Do you imagine the Americans would hesitate if their interests diverged from ours?"

"I imagine professional officers honor their word."

Irina almost laughed. "How wonderfully military of you."

Silence. Then, softly—"You remind me of your father."

Mila's expression changed for the first time.

"He believed that honest work protected honest people." Another pause. "It did not."

The words landed like a hammer. "Your brother still works beneath thousands of tons of unstable earth." Irina spoke as though discussing weather. "Mines are dangerous places."

Mila said nothing.

"And your mother..." A faint shrug. "I understand life has been...unkind to her."

The implication was unmistakable.

Mila met the colonel's eyes. "If this is meant as a threat..."

"It is meant as perspective, comrade." Irina countered easily, her mouth spreading into a satisfied smile. One just had to know how to motivate, really…the rest just ironed itself out. "I would hate to see anyone in Moscow begin wondering whether your admirable devotion to coalition discipline exceeds your devotion to the Soviet state."

Mila looked down at the envelope but did not pick it up. Her voice, when it came, was quiet. "You are asking me to become an unreliable ally."

Irina's expression never changed. "I am asking you to remain a reliable Soviet."

Neither woman spoke.

Finally, Mila reached forward and took the envelope—not because she accepted the order—but because refusing to touch it would accomplish nothing.

Irina watched her stand.

As Mila reached the door, the colonel offered one last remark.

"Major, if another Goa'uld presents himself in your crosshairs..." A pause. "...do not make Moscow ask twice."

Mila came to attention, for there was no other acceptable option in this moment.

"Yes, Colonel." The words left a bitter taste in her mouth.

She turned smartly, opened the door, and stepped into the corridor. Only once it had closed behind her did the weight of the conversation settle in.

Every instinct Mila possessed told her that a soldier's greatest virtues were unity and obedience. Colonel Zaitseva, however, had just ensured that, if another Goa'uld ever stood in her sights, obedience itself would become the battlefield.

“Будь проклят Комитет.” (Bud' proklyat Komitet. – Damn the Committee.) It was the only comment she allowed herself. It encapsulated just about everything, really.


[OFF]

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Colonel Irina Zaitseva
Chief of Russian Military

&

Major Lyudmila "Mila" Sorokova
SG1 Member