A/N New fic starts here. This first chapter is a little shorter than usual, but it ends in the right place, and any more words would be waffle.
Please review, let me know if I should carry on with this. Thank you Luvvies.

PANOPLY OF FEAR
Chapter 1
Medical Investigation

Mother Teresa of Calcutta said, "The biggest disease today is not leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted


Aaron Hotchner was exhausted. Since coming back to work after his abduction, he never seemed to have quite enough energy to last to the end of the day. So far there hadn't been any cases. He wasn't sure how he would manage if he had to miss out on a night's sleep. ProPlus, probably, and lots of coffee. Not very good for a unit chief. He stood up and crossed to the window and stood with his hands in his pockets, watching his team as they worked. Reid seemed to be ok. He had recovered from a particularly nasty gun shot wound, and apart from getting breathless sometimes if he had to run, he was fine now.

Or so he said. Reid always knew what answers were the right ones to give. He would never volunteer information that would put him in less than perfect favourable light with his boss. Hotch noticed he didn't shower at work any more. Maybe the scarring was bad. Reid was sitting at Emily's desk, and he looked up at Hotch at that moment and gave him a brilliant smile. Aaron smiled back – a tiny twitch at the corner of his mouth. Reid was saying something to Emily, but he couldn't make out what it was. Still grinning, Reid turned back to his work. Aaron had noticed that he and Emily spending a lot of time together now. He sighed and slowly walked back to his desk and sat down with his head in his hands. He had thought at one point that he and Emily...

Ah well. Guess the best man won that one...

He opened the bottom drawer of his desk and took out a small bottle of Scotch. He looked at it for a moment, just trying to decide whether to or not, when there was a knock at the door. He jumped guiltily and closed the drawer a little quicker than was necessary.

"Come in!"

"We have a case." Jareau said.

-0-0-0-

Sitting at the table with his team, Aaron suddenly felt better. At Jareau's words, he had felt a rush of excitement. Maybe it was the inactivity making him tired. Whatever it was bringing him down, he felt ready for this.

David Rossi was the last one in. He was still walking with a stick, and given the nature of his injuries, Hotch was impressed that he could even walk at all. Dave had bought Reid, Aaron and himself tickets for a fortnight in Naples. It had taken a bit of persuasion to get Strauss to agree, but a tweak of his little finger, and she had come round. They were going in three weeks time.

Two weeks in a beautiful country with Dave and Spence. That was going to be fun! Aaron had never felt so ready for a holiday in his life. That last case he had almost died, they had told him. In fact, he had died for a few moments on several occasions, and it had been touch and go. Dave and Spence had sustained severe injuries too.

It had been a bad case. It still hurt to lie on his back, and if he stood in the wind, his face hurt where it had been plated. His hair was just growing back over the scar on the back of his head, and his cracked shin hurt all the time.

Aaron waited until Dave had painfully taken his seat, and he nodded to Jareau.

-0-0-0-

"Scientists at the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, have been trying to create a vaccine for Ebola." Jareau began, ignoring the puzzled looks on the faces in front of her. "Thousands of people in Africa have died of it in recent years, but it burns itself out very quickly – it tends to kill the host before it has a chance to spread. The biggest fear they have is that a strain will emerge that will spread, and with no vaccine, it will grow to pandemic proportions and ninety percent of the world's population could be dead within a week. They have had encouraging results with mice, and were now starting to work with primates."

"Wait a minute!" Morgan interrupted. "We aren't medical Investigators!"

Hotch raised his hand to silence him and nodded at Jareau to continue. Morgan scowled at Hotch but said nothing.

"The monkeys had been injected with a new strain of the disease. They were trying to find a vaccine for it, which would work on all haemorrhagic fevers, and they wanted to be ready with it as soon as there was an outbreak." She said to the horrified team. "Someone has stolen one of the monkeys, named Maureen, and is using it in a terror campaign."

"Is the monkey contagious?" Emily asked.

"They aren't certain." Jareau answered. "The virus is only transmitted by droplet or via body fluids. So a bite would probably prove fatal. But the nature of this particular virus is that it can metamorphose into pathogens with other methods of transmission."

"Who has asked for us?" Hotch said. "The PD?"

"No, it's the Centre for Disease Control. Epidemiologist Doctor Jean Page. She's in charge. She is desperate for all the help she can get. This could possibly lead to pandemic proportions. We need to get this UnSub before he uses Maureen to kill."

"Maureen?" Morgan frowned. "Maureen the monkey?" No body laughed.

Hotch stood up. "Ok, JJ. Please inform Doctor Page we will take the case. Wheels up in thirty minutes. JJ, please get us all copies of everything you have, we'll continue this on the jet. Garcia, you too. This is going to need all of us."

The team dispersed quickly, except Dave.

"Not sure you'll want me on this, Aaron." He said. "I'm really not up to scratch." He lifted his stick up to emphasise the point.

"You don't get off that easily, David." Hotch said. "But I promise I won't send you off to chase the UnSub!"

Dave smiled. He would have hated to be left behind on this. "I can trip them up." He grinned, and hobbled out to get his bag.

-0-0-0-

The list of symptoms didn't make for happy reading. Just the initial flu like symptoms were bad enough, but the secondary symptoms were horrific. The team sat silently on the jet taking in the knowledge, and wishing that they didn't have to.

"It sounds like something made up for one of Garcia's films." Emily said. "It's horrible."

"My films are never this bad. You couldn't make this up!"

"The two thousand and one outbreak in the Sudan reported four hundred and twenty five cases, two hundred and twenty six of whom died." Reid said unemotionally, without looking up.

Emily stared at him, horrified. "Over fifty percent death rate!"

"In two thousand three, a hundred and twenty eight out of a hundred and forty two died."

"Oh my god! That's erm..."

"Ninety point one percent death rate."

"Right!" Hotch interjected before his team got carried away with terrifying statistics. "Let's look at the terrorist communications."

He watched as the team members found the page in their notes.

"They have threatened to release the virus in a poor area." Jareau said. "To 'abolish poverty' they say."

"They haven't specified an area." Reid said, still without looking up. Hotch started to watch him carefully. Reid was often reticent. Hotch wasn't sure if he was being less forthcoming than usual, or if it was just his imagination.

"What are their demands?" Morgan asked, breaking into Aaron's thoughts.

"There are no demands." Jareau said. "They are going to do it 'for the good of America'."

"Oh my god!" Garcia breathed.

"Have they given us a time frame?" Emily asked.

"No." Hotch said, reading from the notes, "It will take several days to extract the virus. Unfortunately, they have had three days already; Maureen was stolen last Friday, and the theft wasn't discovered until Monday morning."

"Any Security tapes?" Garcia asked.

"Plenty. But apparently you don't get to see their faces." Jareau answered.

"I should imagine Pen would like a look at those tapes." Emily said.

"I sure would." Garcia said. "First thing, if that's ok. If there's anything to find, I'll find it."

"Thank you Garcia." Hotch said. "When we land, I want us to get straight on it. Dave, you come with me and we'll take a look at the labs. Reid and Morgan, see what you can find on fringe human rights groups operating locally, and possibly animal rights groups, although that is less likely. JJ and Emily, chat with Dr Page and the police, draw up a list of possible target areas. We're coming into land. As soon as we can, get out to your assignments. This is extremely urgent. A lot of lives could depend on us today."

Aaron realised that he had split Spencer and Emily up. He couldn't say it wasn't deliberate. Subconsciously it may have been. He didn't want them to think he was being jealous or petty. He was sad about it, yes, but not jealous. He was fond of both of them. He liked to see his friends happy. He thought of changing the assignments, but that would draw attention to it. Annoyed with himself, he decided that the next assignment pairing, he would put them together, or he would work with one of them.

Damn it! Why did things have to be so complicated? Why did it feel as if his life was always going to hell in a hand basket?

He clipped the strap across his abdomen and sighed. The emotion in Aaron's eyes was not lost on Dave. As he fastened his seat belt he made a mental note to follow it up later.

Someone had to watch the watcher.

The team members put their notes away, and assumed landing position. There was a lot of adrenalin flowing, all seven members eager to get to work.