A Shot In the Dark
Rating T
A/N: A huge thank you to JenRar for the beta. I wasn't paying close attention to the gun Michael was using in this episode, but I think I got the right one. Please forgive me if it's not. Spoiler alert for "Rough Trade" if you haven't seen it yet and don't want to risk ruining it, see it first please and thank you. Would love to know what you think.
Michael's POV:
I bring the Beryl M96 assault rifle down onto my shoulder and press my eye to the scope. With the night vision attachment, I easily find and zero in on Nikita. The laser sight shows clearly on the exposed skin of her chest. I know it won't be long, so I wait, barely holding my impatience in check, for her to realize I have her tagged. It is time for Nikita to be brought down to size. To come face to face with the fact, she is not the only lethal weapon in action tonight.
I can feel her eyes on me, daring me, even as I pull the trigger. In less time than it's taken for both of us to draw another breath, I have obliterated the life of one of Han's thugs. The realization of how close he came to ending Nikita's life is a sudden reality for me, and I can see for her as well. I watch her pupils dilate in the scope, before the brief recognition disappears from her demeanor. Not a tremor. She's a machine.
But what does that mean for me? With that shot, I am once again committed. Not to Percy, as I have so long believed, but to her. Nikita. She's under my skin as much as an operative of the Division can allow. Six years is a long time to have to hide one's true allegiance. Especially from one's self. Yet, it's the only way I can continue to protect her, and, I suspect, Alex as well. She reminds me so of Nikita. That can't be a coincidence.
Lifting the Beryl M96 off my shoulder, I step back into the shadows and away into the night. Nikita can handle Han from here. I need to be back for when Percy learns of his capture. Nikita has her focus, and I have mine. Even though it's becoming more and more apparent our end game will be entwined, it's not time yet. We both have too much still to be done.
Nikita's POV:
I realize the laser sight is aimed at me at the same time I sense him. Michael. He's like a persistent rash or a cherished safety blanket. I can't decide which. I don't attempt to move, anticipating the impact that will end my life. I can't even muster up surprise that my end is coming from Michael's hands.
I hear it. Just the faintest snick as he pulls the trigger, and barely a second later, one of Viktor Han's men drops behind me. Shifting my gaze from the assault rifle to the man who controls it, my eyes briefly lock with Michael's. I refuse to accept what I see there; however, as the adage goes, his actions speak louder than his words.
Michael's lip service remains to Percy. Yet, once again, he's saved me. Why? My heart questions, but my mind is quicker. The door slams shut on the brief evocation of emotion, and reason reasserts itself. It's not the right time. It can never be. Amanda would be proud.
He's gone before I can blink. I get back to dealing with Viktor. Six years, and it's the same four players in the game, but this time, I know which regime is about to suffer a blow. I'll be delivering it without any doubts. I know this time exactly who Viktor's capture will affect. Percy.
Michael gets an assist on this victory. Hell, to be honest, he's been there for all of them lately. This game of cat and mouse is tiresome. He's going to have to decide. I could use having him on the inside to protect Alex. Then a thought hits me, even as I haul a recovering Viktor Han into a car; Michael and I may be on the same side after all. That revelation alone might kill Percy. I tuck away the thought as I maneuver the car at top speed into the waiting night. Complete this assault, and then I'll come back to this one.
Finis