Attention readers - I had to do a major rewrite on chapter two. I didn't realize where the story would take me when I started it back in 2014. So, this is practically like a new chapter that fits into the new timeline. Sorry about the confusion and I hope you like the changes I made. This is what happens when I start a story and do not finish it until four years later. Therefore I have decided not to post any of my new stories until they are finished so I can avoid things like this happening again.
As always Highlander belongs to Davis-Panzer Productions, NCIS belongs to CBS. Any misspelling and punctuation errors are all mine own. I am Dyslexic and have done my best to make this story as readable as possible. Thanks to my hubby (Steve) and fan-fiction author wajag trying to help me along with Ghotit a writing program for Dyslexics. I am, sure you will find mistakes with my use of commas. Commas and I have a contemptuous relationship at best. This Fan-Fiction is for entertainment purposes only and has not been professionally edited.
A newly Rewritten Chapter 2 of Hide and Seek
Gibbs noticed a familiar looking red-haired woman among the people who were gathering around the perimeter of the police tape. After studying her for a moment, he started walking towards this woman. Once at the edge of the crime scene tape, he called out the name Becky. She gazed up to see who had said one of her aliases and gave Gibbs a sad look, then turned around to leave. "Becky stop, I am coming to you." He yelled to the woman he hadn't seen almost in 15 years. After rushing to her side, he quickly took her hand and guided her away from the others.
"Out of all the people I expected to see tonight I never thought I see you again Jethro. I am glad it was you who got the call. I guess from the logo in your jacket and hat you're still with NCIS." Rebecca said with a big smile on her face as she instantly recognized Gibbs. "It's been a few years since Aberdeen, but you look great. It helps to see a friendly face."
"Becky, you are still as lovely the last time I saw you in 1999, what are you doing here?" Gibbs spoke at almost a whisper he had an expression of surprise and awe.
She mustered up a sexy smile for him, "Jethro. I did tell you that I was Immortal and that means I don't age, and I'm going by Rebecca Trent these days."
Gibbs smiled down at his old friend but then got serious. "Do you have any idea what happened here? And why is their blood on your dress?"
"There was a Quickening." Rebecca softly replied. "Jethro, I knew all the men who died here today. When I found them I couldn't help but reach out and touch each of them" Gibbs then noticed that tears were running down Becky's cheeks. Pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket, he gently wiped her tears away. Then he held her close, and so she could rest her head on his wide shoulders. They stayed there for a long moment until Gibbs sighed and pulled away.
"We can use the men's fingerprints to identify them, but can you please explain to me how you knew them?
"Sam, Major Alvarado has been a close friend of mine for several hundred years, and two of Midshipmen were new Immortals, Sam, and I was training. Midshipmen Martin and Andrews were our students. Elder Immortals often find new Immortals and teach them how to survive in the game. So after they graduated from the Naval Academy, they could fight their own fights and had a chance to grow stronger and live another day."
Then Gibbs gave her one of his quiet smiles before asking her, "Gee Becky, can you tell me just how many of you guys are out there?" His voice was soft, gentle and low.
"Not as many as you think, Jethro. Midshipmen Martin and Andrews have only been Immortal for a short time, but Midshipmen Williams and Berkley were just plain vanilla mortals. I have no idea why anyone would kill them unless…" She took a gulp of air and paused at the thoughts of what had happened.
"Unless what? Becky tell me what's wrong?" He gently brushed away new tears on her face.
"Unless they got in the way. The bastard beheaded everyone, and he used one of my swords. It is lying among the bodies. After you ME examines the bodies, I am sure they will show the men were probably shot or stabbed before they died. Someone is going rogue and breaking the rules of the game. There were few Immortals that Sam couldn't beat, so something is very wrong with this picture." Tears continued to stream down her cheek once again." Jethro, your guys shouldn't be involved in this… this… hideous act wasn't caused by a mortal. Someone had to have caught Sam off guard or they had help. I have to call someone right away. The damage here is the result of three Quickening's that happened almost simultaneously, but the question is how could one Immortal do that if he didn't have help? I bet that rogue watcher helped the killer."
"I wouldn't even have known about your people if I didn't me you back in 1999. Ducky confirmed your story, but until you killed that annoying Irishman I didn't really believe you."
"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that Jenny died, even though she dumped you, I knew you cared for her." Rebecca's voice was strained as she tried to get her emotions under control.
"Don't go changing the subject Becky, do you know who killed these men? And why is the crime scene look like something out of a disaster movie?
"It's complicated Jethro and like I already mentioned everyone here calls me Rebecca Trent." Rebecca tried to look more stoic.
"Okay it's complicated, then Becky, make this uncomplicated for me, so I understand what happened here." Gibbs ice blue eyes shimmer the n moonlight.
Rebecca took a deep breath and explained in a quiet calm voice. "I was here with the entire unit all afternoon. Major Alvarado and four of the cadets decided to stay late for extra practice. Sam had asked me to stay, but we both could feel another immortal was around here. I told Sam I was going to do a sweep of the perimeter to see if I could find the other Immortal, see if they were a friend or foe. Everyone has to pass through security to get on campus, so I thought maybe we just had a friendly visitor."
"What were you all practicing?" Gibbs looked deeply into her gaze, trying to help Becky gain control of her emotions.
"Sam and I are two of the faculty members that are involved in one of the extracurricular activities here on campus. We are involved in the Sandhurst Military Skills Competition. This is a military skills competition is held each year at West Point to demonstrate the Midshipman proficiency of using various types of armaments. Although the art of sword fighting is no longer a required, some of the Midshipman wanted to add it into the event. So we have been training the two other men along with our students on the art of using a sword. That way it gave an allusion that our students were just one of the group and didn't stand out from the other Midshipman.
"So you have been involved the Sandhurst Military Skills Competition for a few years?" Questioned Gibbs.
Yes, so while Sam and the students continued their lesson I felt the presence of another Immortal was near the practice field. Looping around the area, I couldn't find anyone, so I began walking toward the practice field. That's when I saw the Quickening. I shielded my eyes from the bright light and as soon as it ended, I ran there hoping I could still catch the killer or killers. But they were gone, it's as if they disappeared into thin air."
"Ok remind me what the hell is a Quickening?"
"Don't you remember the one you and Ducky saw back in 1999?"
Gibbs took a deep breath and rolled his eyes, he had no idea how he was going to write this one up without sounding like he was mentally unstable. "Somehow I was hoping it was all a bad dream, and you disappeared when the dust settled. I wasn't sure what had happened, and Ducky told me he saw you leave, and it was best to just leave you alone. Ducky told me it was silly for me to ask questions when I wasn't prepared to accept the answers. Last time we met you told me that your people couldn't die, but you killed one, and now I've got five headless bodies in that field. Someone took their heads like some bizarre trophy. Plus then there was a lightning storm and possible twister that contaminated my crime scene." His voice was deep and husky filled with bewilderment. Gibbs wasn't a man who believed in the unexplainable. No, he liked things neat and tidy with answers he could put down in a report. Not something supernatural, he preferred things that could be solved in one of Abby's test tubes. "How do you suggest I explain this to the director? Who do you think killed those men? I can't say their heads were chopped off by someone who can live forever. They'll lock both of us up in the psych ward."
"Slow down Gibbs" Rebecca put one of her hands on his face as she stroked his cheek. Her fingers were soft and just the distraction he didn't need. "Jethro, when I met Ducky, and you back in Scotland I did tell you everything. That Immortals hunt each other, and we cut off each other's heads in order to release the power of the Quickening."
"I was hoping that all of that was a fabrication and not reality."
"Sorry, I did try to be honest to you, plus Ducky did tell you he had known another Immortal back in his medical school day's."
"Becky, I don't know if I can protect you. This isn't a black ops held in another country. This happened in the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis Maryland. I have to put this in an official record, so your involvement in this could cause problems for you. Do you realize no one's going to buy that there are people fighting with swords and go around chopping each other's heads off." Gibbs slightly raised his voice, so his team looked at their boss still holding the beautiful redhead in his arms.
"Jethro, I wasn't involved in this, but yes, I knew all the victims. Sam was my very old friend, and the perpetrator used swords that have my fingerprints on them."
"How the hell did one of your swords get used at a homicide?
"I'm in charge of training the Midshipmen on how to use a sword. Like I said the Midshipmen are no longer required to know swordsmanship but a few of the students enjoy learning this ancient art. All the practice swords are officially mine since I am the sword Mistress."
"Great, so will all the sword's that you have handled be the only swords up there?"
"I'm afraid so."
"Okay let's just skip that for the moment. Please remind me why this place looks like a battlefield?" Gibbs looked around taking in all the destruction.
"To mortal eyes, it looks like there was a lightning storm that was reported by half the base."
"Lightning without rain, right?" Gibbs asked with a look of amazement in his eyes as he remembered seeing a Quickening fifteen years ago.
"Well, sort of. When a two Immortals fight, the winner takes all the other Immortal's power and knowledge, the transference is called the Quickening. It usually assumes the form of Lightning, fire or other types of electrical discharges that can cause electrical things to explode. The excess power is often discharged into the earth and causes what you see here. From the examination of the crime scene, I think the damage is the result of three Quickening's that happened almost simultaneously. Sam, Midshipman Martin, and Andrews must have been tied up, knocked out or in someway rendered incapacitated. Williams and Berkley were collateral damage and were decapitated probably after they were killed. I image after the Quickening the Immortal took their heads, so it would look like he was just some weird serial killer. What I don't understand is how he could have taken that many quickening so close together and disappeared so quickly? Sam and Midshipmen Martin and Andrews were all good fighters with a sword."
"Becky from what you are saying is going to make this homicide damn difficult to investigate without revealing the existence of Immortals. But if I do I'm sure the powers that be will lock me up and toss away the key. I can't say, this was caused by a fight between people who live forever." Gibbs wiped his left hand through his hair while still holding Rebecca's hand with his right.
"Jethro, this all is very strange because usually, the watchers clean up a mess like this. Can you check the wrist of the people standing by and see if any of them have a tattoo with a circle of dots with a Y in the middle?"
"NO! Frustration laced Gibbs' voice. "Okay now tell me who these Watchers are?"
"A secret society of men and women whose job is to observe and record but not interfere with the lives of Immortals. Plus often they clean up our messes to keep the media attention minimal."
"Do you think these Watchers were involved with this?"
"Its possible, there have been renegade watchers before who worked with evil Immortals. There was a faction of watchers founded in the 1990s who felt Immortals were an abomination and murdered them. I have to call my friend Joe to report what happened here."
"This situation just keeps getting better and better!" Gibbs tone became sarcastic "And how can I explain to my team that I know you?"
"Tell them the truth; say I'm an old friend. Jethro when I first met, I looked like the older woman, now its reversed."
"Are you saying I look old?" Gibbs jested a smile finally appearing on his face.
"No, you're as handsome and sexy as the day we met. Anyway since when are you in the habit of explaining all your romantic relationships to your team?" Rebecca reminded Gibbs.
"Oh, now you're saying we're lovers? Becky that was a one night stand a long time ago. I was in the middle of my second divorce and Jenny had just written me a Dear John, letter. Okay, I needed someone, and you were there for me."
"Jethro you're the only person I can trust and please start calling me Rebecca Trent."
"No, you're still my Becky. Well, look who just arrived, Ducky, do you remember him?"
"Of course, how is he doing? Ducky was always a very kind soul."
"Miss Trent. Gibbs smiled showing her he processed her new identity. "Ducky is as sharp as ever, and he'll know these men were Immortal as soon as he examines them. Is there anyone you can call? A lawyer maybe?"
"Yes, there is someone, I already called him, but your people will want to examine my phone. Correct? I called my friend on an untraceable burn phone used only for direr emergency."
Gibbs smiled, "Yes you're right, let's keep all this supernatural hi-jinks to ourselves for now, but if you find out that one of these watchers' is involved please let me know. You might be on the short list of suspects so call in your troops. Sorry, Becky, I'll do anything I can."
"Thank you, Jethro. "
"Can you give your statement, minus the supernatural events to Special Agent DiNozzo. He is the tall thin guy over there and do it as soon as we finish and please don't admit to anything or give an answer what they cannot understand by us mere mortals." Then Gibbs handed her his phone and kissed her on the cheek then walked back to join his team.
Rebecca dialed a number and quickly made a call.
"Dawson here," a cheerful voice answered,
"Joe, It's Rebecca, I'm in trouble and need a favor." She asked the old watcher.
"Well, hi, long time no see. It's so nice to hear from you. Why is something always going wrong when any of you call me?" The old watcher grumbled.
"Sorry Joe, we may have watcher's killing Immortals again."
"Wait before you go making any accusations have you got any proof? You do know everyone thinks you're dead except Major Alvarado. He is one of the good guys. So, there is no reason in hell anyone would want to kill either of you." The old watcher unhappily growl.
"Well, someone killed Sam, his students, and two mortals. They decapitated all five men and took their heads, leaving only the headless bodies behind, plus they used one of my swords."
"This is bad, Rebecca, maybe you should just get the hell out of there," Joe replied.
"I can't. Do me a favor look into this for me? I know you had a guy on Sam and me, maybe they saw something."
"Well, did you call anyone else like you know who? Adam Pierson was a grad student and in the Watchers when you supposedly died. He had privileged information that we didn't believe any Immortal knew. But as far as I knew, 'Adam' didn't know anything about your relocation." Joe questioned her.
"Joe, he found me years ago and he is coming here to help. I may have to go to DC to NCIS headquarters at the Navel Yard. NCIS wants me to make a statement."
"Why?" He yelled then took a deep breath as if he didn't want to know the answer.
"There was a triple Quickening and a double homicide right here at the Naval Academy. Five men were beheaded, and the perpetrators took the heads with them, and I'm a suspect." Rebecca blurted out as quickly as she could.
"Now ain't that just F-en wonderful" Joe sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
End of Chapter 2
