May 24 2005
Norfolk, Virginia, near dusk
Off in the distance, the sun was setting, and three federal agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service were celebrating.
They had foiled a terrorist attack on the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, and taken out the thugs sent to kill them and allow the attack to proceed. The agents, and the thousands of Naval officers and personnel and civilians working in the Shipyard would live to see another day.
Except one would die, right there and then.
The terrorist, hidden on another rooftop, put the female in his sights. He found a clear shot, and prepared to pull the trigger.
Sorry, Caitlin...
BLAM
He looked through the scope, expecting to see the bullet sear through her skull, ending her miserable life, bringing anguish to that bastard Gibbs, and bringing himself inexpressible joy...
Through his scope, he instead saw something bounce off her forehead, causing the female to stagger back a couple of meters.
The agents looked outwards, trying to find the source of the shot.
The terrorist momentarily was in shock, but shook it off to take another shot. He lined the female up in his sights, again. He must have missed. There was no way he had hit her the first time. She should be dead.
So he lined her up in his sights. You fucking bitch...
BLAM
The bullet bounced off her forehead. AGAIN. This time she fell backwards, hitting the ground butt-first, but unharmed.
"Gibbs?" she screamed.
"Kate?" the younger agent screamed. "KATE?"
"I'm...I'm alright...I think," she replied, frightened out of her mind. "Tony?"
"I'm here," he said. The older agent - Gibbs - sighted something on another rooftop. Something gleaming.
"DOWN" Gibbs yelled. Kate moved to a laying position.
"Boss?" yelled Tony DiNozzo, still standing.
It was the last thing he said.
BLAM
A bullet from the rooftop seared through his skull, killing DiNozzo instantly. His body hit the ground.
"TONNNYYYY" Kate screamed. Blood was pouring out of DiNozzo's skull, his eyes wide open.
Gibbs crawled over as fast as he could, then checked for a pulse, finding none, and pulled Tony's eyelids shut.
"He's...gone." Gibbs said quietly. Kate, now in shock, couldn't speak. She was sobbing.
Overhead, an FBI helicopter had sighted the terrorist and was moving in for the kill.
"Shooter on the roof sighted. Permission to move in, over." "Permission granted."
But as the sniper in the helicopter lined the terrorist up in his sight, the target disappeared. Literally. He pushed a button on his wrist watch, and vanished in plain sight.
On the other rooftop, Gibbs was reaching out to Kate, but found himself bumping up against some kind of invisible shield. He couldn't get within a foot of her.
"Kate?" The young agent was somewhat in shock, still sobbing, and - though she nor Gibbs knew it - was using her aura to protect herself. She had the so-called metagene, and it had saved her life.
Two days from now, Kate will be formally diagnosed as having the metagene, a condition affecting roughly one out of every 100 people that, in effect, gives the bearer a superpower (or powers). Generally, the metagene lays dormant until activated when the bearer is undergoing extraordinary physiological stress - such as what Kate had gone through for the past hour. The activity on the rooftop, and the accompanying stress, effectively served as a catalyst to activate the metagene - and right now Kate was nearing a complete breakdown.
Gibbs knew enough about metahumans and the various sources of their powers to recognize what had happened to Kate. He knew that he literally couldn't touch her, that whatever was going on he would have to talk her through it. But that would have to wait momentarily.
His first call was to his probationary agent, Tim McGee, holed up in the street.
"McGee!" Gibbs said, with urgency. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah," the young agent said. "I'm hit, but okay. What's going on up-"
BLAM
Another bullet tore through McGee's skull, killing him instantly.
The terrorist had struck, again. More shots rang out, before he ripped the phone from McGee's still hand.
"Gibbs."
"Ari?"
"Gibbs. I tried to kill Caitlin, I killed DiNozzo, I killed McGee. I am coming for you, and coming back to finish the job with Kate. I am coming for my father, and before you die I will tell you that I will come for Israel, for America and you and he will watch it all and suffer."
Gibbs was looking down towards the street, seeing the bodies of McGee and the other NCIS and FBI agents who were near him. All shot through the head.
Kate was beginning to snap out of her shock, and making her way over towards Gibbs, crawling on the ground.
"Ari...you bastard. You goddamn bastard.." Gibbs said, through gritted teeth. Kate had now joined him; he reached over to touch her shoulder. The aura or 'field' had now shrunk to two inches from her skin.
"I suggest that whatever you have done to protect...that bitch Caitlin...from my hand you hide behind with her. I am on the move. I will never stop until my objective is achieved. I have allies, powerful allies. You cannot...WILL NOT...stop us. No one will, Gibbs. Not your corpses. Not your President. Especially not your arrogant Justice League. And my hand for today is not yet stayed. Call the rest of your team...if you can."
Ari Haswari hung up, and - to Gibbs' and Kate's shock - he literally vanished from the scene.
The FBI helicopter that showed up then was a bit too late to take a shot at the terrorist, but not too late to pick up the two NCIS agents.
Gibbs took Kate's hand - though it was like holding a massive glove, due to the aura - and led her on board the helicopter. Once both were seatbelted in, the copter took off.
In the air, Gibbs tried to call NCIS headquarters in Washington. No connection.
"Sir, we're under orders to take you to the FBI field office here in Norfolk," the pilot said.
"FBI? What about NCIS?" Gibbs.
"The NCIS field office was bombed, maybe 10 minutes ago," the pilot replied. "Massive casualties. FBI is being heavily guarded-"
"Under orders from whom?" Gibbs.
"NCIS Director Morrow," said the pilot. "They're expecting some sort of attack there any time now. He wants you and your agent in a safe place."
Kate - trying to make sense of everything - had been half-listening to the conversation. When she heard 'safe place', she thought of her team's other two members, back in Washington.
"Abby. Ducky."