For the first thirty seconds after Daisy's speech Alex's thoughts were racing too fast to keep track of. He kept remembering little things Daisy had said when they spoke, little pauses in what Veria had said, things that might have been clues if he had been paying better attention. He wanted to say he didn't understand why Daisy had done this, but that would be a lie wouldn't it? He had seen the reports Daisy had either gotten her hands on or deduced the contents of. She'd worked with people in the SGC and at Area 51 under the NID's management. She clearly knew what they were up against. And she'd judged Earth's defenders as inadequate.

It was an uncomfortable truth that a lot of people in the SGC knew in their heart of hearts. They had gotten lucky. They had gotten lucky so many times. And luck didn't last forever. That was why he was here in this game because he wanted to contribute more, to try in every way he could to make a difference, to hopefully be prepared enough that next time wouldn't just be luck.

So he knew why she was doing this. To anyone who knew about the SGC she might as well have said it outright. What he didn't understand was why this specifically. Why out of everything she could do with her prodigious talents she'd chosen this.

Well... there was one way he might be able to get an answer to that question.