AN: Ok so I know it's been a while but here it is the fourth chapter! I have also decided to add some tiva to my story! So read and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing… -_- such a shame…..

(Elly's POV)

I looked out the window for about the millionth time at the Catskills scenery. How long has it been since I was last here? It feels like centuries. Old, half-forgotten memories flashed through my mind unbidden. I hadn't thought of any of these in a long, long time. I guess once you have started looking back it's too hard to just stop.

I watched as the trees went by, blurring together. It was only a matter of time till we got to the front gates of the temple.

"Tony?" I asked

"Yeah?" he responded.

"Do- do you think that they still have Dad?"

"I don't know Elly. I... hope not. But if they do, I hope we can find him."

I sighed, remembering the last time we saw dad. It was a few months before mom died.

"Please don't go, Daddy! Please!" I cried, hugging his leg.

"I have to, Buttercup. But don't worry! I'll be back in a few days."

"Pinky promise?"

"I pinky promise." we locked pinkies and shook firmly. Thus satisfied, I resumed hugging his leg.

"Bye Daddy!" Tony bounded down the stairs. "Bye Dad, have fun in Texas."

"Oh, I will, because business trips are always so much fun." he smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Ha-ha I know."

"Bye, Jr.," he ruffled Tony's hair. "Take care of your mom and baby sister for me, ok? Think you can do that?"

"You can count on it!" Tony was excited to have such an important job and puffed out his chest proudly.

"I love you guys." Dad bent down to hug us.

"How much do you love us?" I asked curiously.

"More than the world, the moon, and the stars."

"What would you do for us?" Tony asked.

"I would go to Pluto and back. Twice if I had to."

Tony and I were in awe. He'd go twice! "We love you dad."

"I love you guys too." he was laughing as he walked out the door.

I watched him drive away and blew kisses through the frosty glass even after I couldn't see him anymore. I imagined them flying through the air and landing in his car. I wasn't aware then that that would be the last time I ever saw him.

The next day we got a call telling us that our dad had disappeared. We looked for months. We called the police of every town we could think of where he might be, the FBI, the CIA, Interpol, and even hired a few private detectives. We were still looking when Mom died. I never stopped looking.

"You're thinking about Dad, aren't you?" Tony asked.

"Yeah... a little."

"Don't worry we'll find him. We did last time."

"I guess..."

He put his hand over mine reassuringly.

"I know we will."

"We're here." Tony said.

I looked up at the great gates; big stone arches with ornate gold doors. Each elegant curl of metal had been lovingly crafted by one of sensei's grateful former students. I know that whole (very interesting) story, just as I know that underneath the soft golden veneer is an impenetrable layer of electrified titanium macro polymer. The entire United States military probably couldn't get through these gates if they tried.

As if anybody could even get past the security to so much as touch the gate. Each guard had been trained in every form of martial arts known to man, as well as in the use of a myriad of weapons from light daggers to rocket propelled grenades to guided nuclear missiles. They were quick, quiet, and deadly, with solemn faces and graceful movements. I chuckled to myself a little. I remembered well when I suggested that the guards wear traditional ninja attire.

I still can't believe they ended up wearing it. One jumped down from the arches.

"Who are you?" He asked in a low threatening vice. He must be new.

"Elly and Tony DiNozzo," I said brightly. "We are old friends of sensei."

"Friends of sensei? You two? Please." he said mockingly, rolling his eyes at the other guards. One of them winked at me. Probie, he mouthed.

"You don't believe us?" I said in mock astonishment.

"Let's just say I'd like some proof." he shifted into fighters' stance and cracked his knuckles menacingly.

"You asked for it." I murmured.

I leapt out of the car and had him pinned in 8 seconds flat.

"Now, if you gentlemen will be so kind as to excuse me... I think I am going to see sensei."

I stepped over the probie, making sure he could see the profile of my high-heeled boot, and casually strolled over to the gates. The pass lock was kind of cool, really. There were a bunch of beautifully carved ancient symbols. All you had to do to gain entry was put them in their correct spaces and insert your diamond key.

After that was done I went back to the car and got in to wait while the gates swung open.

I heard Tony chuckle a bit.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's just kinda funny that you can still take down probies... in about eight seconds. You're getting a little rusty, E."

I rolled my eyes and he urged the car forward.

"You were flirting with him, weren't you?"

"Was not."

"Yeah, you were. You were doing that thing you do when you knock a guy down. Swinging your hair and all that."

"Ok, maybe a little." I grinned at my brother and watched him draw the next logical conclusion.

"Wait... you don't have a boyfriend, do you?"

We started to see the temple on the horizon. It was beautiful, sitting atop the crest of a hill with the mountains all around it disappearing into clouds in the distance. The road wound up to the outside walls, which stood as proud and tall as a classical palace. The inside is filled with shrines, houses, training areas, a bakery, stables, and many other things. I had a flashback to when I first saw the temple complex.

Mr. Sensei Sticks, Sir. Are we almost there?"

"Almost, young one."

"Are we ever gonna go home again?"

"Possibly. But not for a long time. The demons will be there."

"Why do they want us?"

"Because, young one, you will be the one to fulfill the prophesy."

"What prophesy?" Tony asked.

"In your family, there is a special gene that is passed down to every other generation."

"Jeans... like pants?" I asked.

Sensei chuckled a bit.

"No, like something that is passed down from your parents."

"What is it?" Tony asked.

"The Great Warrior trait."

"So what's the prophecy?"

"Many, many years ago, your great-great-great-grandmother Annabella DiNozzo defeated the great Cho-Chung. Before he died he saw that he would come again and wreak havoc on the earth. That time is coming in a few years. They wanted to destroy you before you could start your training. That is why they killed your mother. They thought that she would fulfill the prophecy."

"But... if it's passed down every other generation couldn't they just count?" I asked.

"They didn't know she already had a daughter. There are many things that they don't know, fortunately for us."

"They killed our mommy just because she could have a baby? That's not fair!"

"We are here." He said.

I looked up in awe. "This place is ginormous!"

I heard sensei laughing but I didn't care.

Tony and I got out of the car and stood before the Great Hall. I looked up and suddenly wondered whether this place was home to me. Even as a child I had thought of it only as a temporary safe space, one where I was simply pausing for a while before moving on. Is that what a home is to a wandering lady assassin? I shook my head. Thinking about the meaning of my life in a time like this won't help me at all.

I took a deep breath and pushed through the grand front doors, stepping carefully into the shadowy hall. I scanned the room as my eyes adjusted. The stained glass of the windows cast faint colored lights onto the stones that made up the floor. Sensei was in the far corner of the hall, watching a number of (apparently inexperienced) fighters locked in combat. Occasionally he would step in to murmur a suggestion to one or adjust the stance of another. This was a scene I knew well. Tony and I approached slowly to avoid disturbing them.

Sensei had nodded to acknowledge us when we first entered, but as we drew nearer he looked up sharply and then left his students to hurry towards us. His face was troubled.

"Good afternoon, Elanora," he said formally. He was the only one who ever called me Elanora. "Is everything all right? Can I be of any assistance?"

Have I mentioned that sensei is blind? Just a piece of trivia. It also shows how remarkable it is that he could read my emotions from across the room.

"If it is not too much to ask, we'd like a moment of your time, Sensei."

He made a sign to his students indicating that they should carry on. The three of us walked out a side door and towards the garden.

Once we had moved a reasonable distance away from the buildings I started talking.

"They are coming back for me, Sensei." I said quietly.

"Oh?" Sensei asked.

"They found me. Just like we always knew they would."

"Where? How?"

"I was in a bazaar in a Saudi Arabian town when I saw... something. It was just a hint, a breath maybe, I'm not sure what it was exactly... at any rate it was enough to get me on the alert. I barely had time to slip out before the market was-" I caught my breath. Calm, Elly. "-firebombed. I believe they were using firebombs. The cloth in the tents took to the fire and the whole place went up in smoke before my eyes."

"How dreadful. You were unhurt, though?"

"I was just fine. But Anna, she... she was not unharmed."

I watched their faces twist in horror as the full meaning of what I said hit them.

"Oh, my dear," Sensei reached for my hand.

"E, you... you didn't tell me," Tony's voice was strangled.

"I couldn't. Sensei, what are we going to do?"

"We will have to find the rest of your team…is anyone left?"

"No, it's just Tony and I. They got everyone else."

"That is tragic."

"I just can't believe they're all gone. Anna, Izzy, Bella, Angy, Danni, Antonio, Danny, Cat, Marco, Vinny, Paolo, Nikki, Erica, Lia... they're all gone!" I was practically screaming at this point and shaking with sobs. "They were our family! The only family we had left! And now...? We're alone! We've- we've always been alone."

Tony came over and hugged me. I clung to him for dear life.

"I miss them, Tony." I said quietly.

"I miss them too."

Back in Dc

(McGee's PoV)

Tony has been missing for about two days. A farmer driving home noticed the car abandoned in the middle of nowhere and reported it to the police. We searched the scene and tore the car apart looking for evidence, but couldn't find anything to indicate what had happened.

Everyone was beginning to get worried. Tony has always been flaky, but this was ridiculous. No matter how annoying he is, I don't actually want anything bad to happen to the guy. You'd think he would have at least called by now if something had come up.

I've been wondering whether someone is going to report him missing soon. When I mentioned it earlier, Ziva got cranky and started snapping at me. I haven't suggested it again.

I understand what she's feeling, though. Once somebody is reported missing, it is official that something is wrong. We join the ranks of the uncertain and worried people we come into contact with so often at our job. When we report Tony as missing, he slips into a void. Until then, he's just being flaky Tony.

I was working through lunch, on paperwork and research for the case. This one was difficult, as the petty officer was apparently a man with few friends and relatives and no enemies or secrets that anybody knew of. He hadn't even been reported missing. I was going through he bank records. Recently he had taken out a lot of money. That could be a lead. I reached for my sandwich.

My hand couldn't find it. I patted around the desk for a few seconds before looking up. A goat stared back at me impassively with half my sandwich hanging out of its mouth. I gaped and it leisurely turned and wandered away.

(Ziva's PoV)

I missed him. I really, truly, wholeheartedly missed him. It was stupid. He has always been so childish and annoying, and yet there was nothing I wanted more than for him to come back safe and sound. Without his dumb jokes and wicked grin the bullpen seemed strangely empty.

I wouldn't let myself think that something had happened to him. However dumb and incompetent he appeared, he was an NCIS special agent and his training would keep him alive no matter how dire the situation. Granted, he has not received training anywhere near as thorough as mine is and he left his gun in his desk. Also, he has a rather slow reaction time and if caught unaware...

I shook my head and looked back at the computer screen. If I kept worrying like this I'd never get all of my work done. It had not been very long since he had left. A phone call might come in at any moment with a perfectly reasonable explanation for his absence.

Why am I so frightened for him anyway? He is a rather obnoxious coworker of mine, nothing more. We've never even thought of each other that way. So why do I feel as though-

Suddenly McGee gave a yell and jumped up from his desk. I looked up in surprise. He ran past my desk, half bent over and roaring for help. I quickly stood, wondering whether he was ill.

Then I saw that he was chasing what appeared to be a small goat. It desperately ran towards the elevator, looking panicked and holding part of a sandwich in its mouth.

What the hell?

AN: Well there it is! Please review!