DISCLAIMER: You know the drill.... I do not own any part of ALIAS yada yada yada (but I do wish that I did own Michael) All the characters are products of JJ Abram's genius mind yada yada yada So please don't sue cuz I need the money for college
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***VAUGHN'S HOUSE***
Vaughn continued to glance anxiously at the clock on the bureau wondering what was taking Lauren so long. She had said that she was only going to the supermarket, but too much time had elapsed for that to actually have been the case. A wide range of thoughts ran in the back of his mind discerning all of the possible scenarios, which all included Lauren taking part in some Covenant activity.
While deep in concentration, Vaughn barely heard the faint jingle of the keys at the door. He attempted to relax himself when he heard the familiar sound of the front door being opened and then closed. He could make out the rustle of plastic bags assuming that it was Lauren unpacking the groceries.
After a short period of silence, Lauren appeared at the bedroom door. Vaughn managed to flash a small smile in her direction. She made her way into the room and went to the drawer to take out some nightwear. Vaughn maintained his attention on the television screen as Lauren undressed. Upon finishing, she laid herself next to Vaughn on the bed.
Vaughn attempted to withstand her presence as long as possible as he tried to block out her closeness by focusing solely on the television. However, the disgust became unbearable, and he knew he needed to put some distance between Lauren and him. He came up with a logical excuse to get out of the room.
"I'm going to go do some paperwork in the study. I won't be gone for long."
Lauren smiled at him and laid back on the bed. She grabbed the remote and changed the channel to something of her liking. Once she was satisfied, she placed the remote down and focused on the program of her choice. Upon seeing that she was being kept entertained, Vaughn walked out and went to his study.
He grabbed his briefcase that was next to his computer and placed it on his desk. He prepared to put in his combination when he realized that the numbers were already in place. Vaughn tried to remember whether or not he had left the combination set on his briefcase after he had placed the portfolio into it.
The more unlikely it seemed, the more Vaughn became aware of the actual explanation... Lauren. She must have somehow known the combination to his briefcase. He had been made. Vaughn grew angry at himself wondering how he had allowed himself to get caught within the span of a day. It was because of reasons like this that he had never been very good at being an undercover agent.
Vaughn knew he had to get in contact with Dixon and let him know of the developments. If Lauren knew the truth, there was no telling what she would do with him. He quietly made his way into the kitchen and grabbed the phone. He made sure that he could still hear the television in the bedroom before dialing.
The phone rang five times before it was finally picked up.
"This is Marcus Dixon."
"Dixon we have a problem. She kno....."
Before he could finish his sentence, he felt something heavy hit his head from behind. He fell to the ground as a result of the sudden impact. As Vaughn bordered on the state of consciousness, he could hear Dixon's voice in the distance calling from the receiver. It was after a minute that he finally heard his attacker.
"You are certainly going to pay for that love."
With those words, Vaughn could not keep fighting the wave of darkness that suddenly washed over him. The world around him finally turned black.
Vaughn silently groaned as he gradually came to. His eyelids felt heavy while his head was still throbbing from the blow. He attempted to rub the area that hurt only to find that he could not move his arms. He realized that he had been left in shackles. It was in that moment that he noticed just how stiff his arms were from being kept up by the chains.
He surveyed his surroundings while still in a slight daze. He took in the dark, damp room. The coldness of the room became more evident when Vaughn took notice of the fact that he was shirtless. They probably tore it off to prep him for the upcoming torture sessions.
Before he could decide what they were going to do with him, the heavy metal door creaked open. Vaughn squinted at the sudden brightness allowing him to only make out two silhouettes in the doorway. Once the door was closed, he could easily tell who was standing in front of him.
"Last time we met, I believe we were several thousand feet above the ground."
Sark sneered at his captive while Lauren stood to the side looking on. Sark walked around Vaughn in much the same way that a predator would circle his prey. Sark found it difficult to hide the delight he felt at the opportunity to finally show Michael Vaughn that no one crossed his path without facing the consequences.
"So..... how does it feel?"
Vaughn merely looked at him with a cold stare. He showed no signs of giving any type of response provoking Sark to dig just a little deeper.
"Silent treatment. I see... maybe I should elaborate. How does it feel to know that you have been taken for a fool?"
Vaughn readjusted his jaw slightly and pulled the chains around his wrists. He found himself only inches away from Sark, but he still could not get close enough due to the restraints. Upon noticing that he had struck a nerve, Sark closed the distance between he and Lauren. He stood behind her and began stroking her cheek while still maintaining eye contact with Vaughn.
"Can't say that I blame you though..... she is rather delightful in the lovemaking department."
With that statement, Sark pulled Lauren in for a deep kiss. Lauren was initially caught by surprise and tried to resist, but any form of resistance soon disappeared as she returned the kiss passionately.
Vaughn diverted his glance and felt the bile rise in the back of his throat. After the display of affection had ended, the wave of nausea was still coursing through his body. He heard footsteps approach him as he glanced up only to find Sark in front of him again grinning evilly.
"Jealous are we?"
Vaughn's icy stare bore through Sark's eyes as his lips curled in disgust. Vaughn felt the anger course through his veins. He decided to turn the tables and return one sarcastic remark with another.
"You know Sark.... I shouldn't be surprised that you go after damaged goods, but I find it hard to believe that you also go for the leftovers as well."
Sark's smile quickly disappeared as it soon became an infuriated scowl. Not willing to take backtalk from his prisoner, Sark crossed the distance between them and landed a blow in Vaughn's stomach.
Vaughn felt the air leave his body immediately. Before he could fully recover, he felt Sark smash another punch only this time on his face. Vaughn could sense the metallic taste of blood on his tongue as his vision blurred momentarily.
A fit of coughs went though his body as he gasped to regain the loss of air. Meanwhile, Sark shook his hand in the air trying to ease the pain from his blows.
"I'll have you reminded that here...... you are under my control. So if I was you, I'd implement the sarcasm at a more convenient time..... one in which you have the upper-hand."
Even if Vaughn wanted to make a comeback, his voice was still caught in his throat following the blow to his stomach. He gave a sideways glance at Lauren, who had yet to say anything. She merely looked on with a blank face that was completely unreadable by Vaughn.
"Well.... pardon the brevity of my visit, but I have things to take care off. However, you do not have to worry..... I will be leaving you capable hands."
As Sark walked out with Lauren right behind him, a large heavy set man walked in. He easily towered over Vaughn as he made slow strides toward the captive. Vaughn was so focused on the large size of the man that he failed to pick up on the fact that the man was carrying links of heavy chains in his hands.
Vaughn finally noticed them when the large man swung them in the air as he got closer to Vaughn. It was in that moment that the first signs of fear appeared in Vaughn's eyes. The chains sliced through the air until they finally making contact with Vaughn's skin. The sudden yell filled the room and traveled down the hallway.
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Sydney found herself doing 70 in a 50mph zone. Her knuckles were turning white as she gripped the steering wheel tightly. Although she was passing the other cars easily, she felt that she could not get there fast enough. After finally arriving at headquarters, she parked her car carelessly and did not even check to make sure she had locked it as she walked away hurriedly.
The only thing that Dixon had told was that something had happened with the Lauren issue. He did not want to give further details over the phone and asked her to come to the office immediately. Although Dixon had tried to hide it, she could sense the worry in his voice. It was in that moment that she knew that something had happened to Vaughn.
She rushed towards the debriefing room only to find that everyone else had gotten there before her, including Marshall who had been left out of the first meeting. They had been waiting for her arrival to start. She quickly made her way to her seat and looked up at Dixon. She silently prayed that he was going to say something that had nothing to do with Vaughn's safety. However, in this instance, it did not seem her prayers would be answered.
"I have called all of you here tonight because complications have arisen in relation to Lauren Reed."
Before anyone could ask for him to elaborate, he pressed the button on a tape recorder that was sitting in front of him. After a few seconds of silence, a voice filled the room that evidently belonged to Vaughn. Sydney felt as though she had been punched in her gut the moment she heard Vaughn's voice interrupted by a large thud. It was obvious that he had been attacked by someone.
However, her concern soon gave way to anger when she could easily make out Lauren's voice in the background. Sydney gripped the arms of her chair tightly as a way to restrain herself. She noticed Dixon reach forward and press the stop button. Despite how much she wanted to do something, she held herself back and awaited Dixon's thoughts on the entire situation.
"Upon receiving the phone call, I immediately dispatched officers to Agent Vaughn's home. Unfortunately by the time they got there, the house had already been evacuated, and there were no absolutely no signs of Agent Vaughn anywhere."
Sydney felt herself clench her jaw realizing that Vaughn could be anywhere right now, and worse....... he could be hurt. She could not withhold her emotions any longer.
"So what are we going to do..... give up??? He is out there somewhere. We nee...."
Dixon immediately interrupted Sydney's sudden outburst. He understood her anger, but he had to make sure that chaos did not ensue during this crisis.
"Sydney, no one said anything about giving up. We are using our resources to the best of our abilities to determine Agent Vaughn's whereabouts, which is why Marshall was asked to offer his assistance. It may take us awhile, but we will find him."
Sydney could only smirk in disgust. She could not understand how Dixon could be so calm at a time like this knowing that one of his agents was now in the hands of the most powerful people in the Covenant. She was not prepared to let things slide that easily.
"The question is not whether we find him or not. The question is whether we find him in time or not."
With that, Sydney stormed out of the office frustrated by the ease with which Dixon was taking this in. A part of her knew that she was angry at Dixon for putting Vaughn up to this in the first place. She placed her hands at her waist and stared down at the ground. Her breathing was slightly heavy as her chest rose rapidly due to the anger.
As she struggled to compose herself, she realized that Weiss was approaching her. She finally evened out her breathing and raised her glance towards Weiss. She locked eyes with him and felt her eyes begin to water. Her mouth gradually formed a frown as she finally said something.
"Do you think Vaughn is going to be okay?"
Weiss stared at his saddened co-worker and could only shrug his shoulders while shaking his head. He knew that right now was not a time to sugarcoat the truth.
"I honestly...... I honestly don't know."
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The instant Vaughn regained consciousness was the very moment he regretted coming to because in that moment the pain in his body became more evident. Vaughn felt his vision fade in and out as the excruciating throbbing was becoming unbearable.
Vaughn decided to assess the damage done in order to determine the odds of his escape. Judging the general outlook, it seemed highly unlikely that he would be able to make it out alone. His left eye was completely swollen shut while blood continued to form down his lip. He was almost certain that at least two of his ribs were broken making breathing difficult.
In one blow, the chain had actually cut through his skin on the right side of his stomach. The wound was losing a lot of blood explaining his lightheadedness. There were other gashes but none were as deep as that one. At one point, Vaughn tried counting the bruises that were forming but soon lost count. To make matters even worse, his hands were still over his head chained in shackles.
Vaughn knew he would have to come to grips with the idea that maybe he would not be making it alive this time. He had cheated death so many times, and it seemed that this time death would end up catching up to him.
The heavy door once again creaked open only this time Vaughn did not even bother to look up. He was simply to overcome with exhaustion to accomplish even that little gesture.
"Oh my God."
Despite the fatigue throughout his body, he still managed to jerk slightly at the voice. Before he could fully understand what was going on, his hands fell to his sides as they were finally freed from the constricting shackles. His knees immediately buckled under the weight causing him to lean fully on the individual.
They made their way slowly out the door and through the hallway. Vaughn felt the pain in every step that he took. Despite the ache in his body, he still could not help but look at his unlikely rescuer.
"Why are you doing this?"
Lauren glanced at him quickly before returning her gaze down the hallway.
"Because not everything between us was a complete lie."
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I know what you're thinking.... LAUREN GOOD?!?!?!?!? WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!?!? Don't worry it will all become clear. All I can say is that Lauren is no saint, and she still hasn't experienced a full change of heart. If you really want to find out the truth, please REVIEW and you will be provided with the answers.
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***VAUGHN'S HOUSE***
Vaughn continued to glance anxiously at the clock on the bureau wondering what was taking Lauren so long. She had said that she was only going to the supermarket, but too much time had elapsed for that to actually have been the case. A wide range of thoughts ran in the back of his mind discerning all of the possible scenarios, which all included Lauren taking part in some Covenant activity.
While deep in concentration, Vaughn barely heard the faint jingle of the keys at the door. He attempted to relax himself when he heard the familiar sound of the front door being opened and then closed. He could make out the rustle of plastic bags assuming that it was Lauren unpacking the groceries.
After a short period of silence, Lauren appeared at the bedroom door. Vaughn managed to flash a small smile in her direction. She made her way into the room and went to the drawer to take out some nightwear. Vaughn maintained his attention on the television screen as Lauren undressed. Upon finishing, she laid herself next to Vaughn on the bed.
Vaughn attempted to withstand her presence as long as possible as he tried to block out her closeness by focusing solely on the television. However, the disgust became unbearable, and he knew he needed to put some distance between Lauren and him. He came up with a logical excuse to get out of the room.
"I'm going to go do some paperwork in the study. I won't be gone for long."
Lauren smiled at him and laid back on the bed. She grabbed the remote and changed the channel to something of her liking. Once she was satisfied, she placed the remote down and focused on the program of her choice. Upon seeing that she was being kept entertained, Vaughn walked out and went to his study.
He grabbed his briefcase that was next to his computer and placed it on his desk. He prepared to put in his combination when he realized that the numbers were already in place. Vaughn tried to remember whether or not he had left the combination set on his briefcase after he had placed the portfolio into it.
The more unlikely it seemed, the more Vaughn became aware of the actual explanation... Lauren. She must have somehow known the combination to his briefcase. He had been made. Vaughn grew angry at himself wondering how he had allowed himself to get caught within the span of a day. It was because of reasons like this that he had never been very good at being an undercover agent.
Vaughn knew he had to get in contact with Dixon and let him know of the developments. If Lauren knew the truth, there was no telling what she would do with him. He quietly made his way into the kitchen and grabbed the phone. He made sure that he could still hear the television in the bedroom before dialing.
The phone rang five times before it was finally picked up.
"This is Marcus Dixon."
"Dixon we have a problem. She kno....."
Before he could finish his sentence, he felt something heavy hit his head from behind. He fell to the ground as a result of the sudden impact. As Vaughn bordered on the state of consciousness, he could hear Dixon's voice in the distance calling from the receiver. It was after a minute that he finally heard his attacker.
"You are certainly going to pay for that love."
With those words, Vaughn could not keep fighting the wave of darkness that suddenly washed over him. The world around him finally turned black.
Vaughn silently groaned as he gradually came to. His eyelids felt heavy while his head was still throbbing from the blow. He attempted to rub the area that hurt only to find that he could not move his arms. He realized that he had been left in shackles. It was in that moment that he noticed just how stiff his arms were from being kept up by the chains.
He surveyed his surroundings while still in a slight daze. He took in the dark, damp room. The coldness of the room became more evident when Vaughn took notice of the fact that he was shirtless. They probably tore it off to prep him for the upcoming torture sessions.
Before he could decide what they were going to do with him, the heavy metal door creaked open. Vaughn squinted at the sudden brightness allowing him to only make out two silhouettes in the doorway. Once the door was closed, he could easily tell who was standing in front of him.
"Last time we met, I believe we were several thousand feet above the ground."
Sark sneered at his captive while Lauren stood to the side looking on. Sark walked around Vaughn in much the same way that a predator would circle his prey. Sark found it difficult to hide the delight he felt at the opportunity to finally show Michael Vaughn that no one crossed his path without facing the consequences.
"So..... how does it feel?"
Vaughn merely looked at him with a cold stare. He showed no signs of giving any type of response provoking Sark to dig just a little deeper.
"Silent treatment. I see... maybe I should elaborate. How does it feel to know that you have been taken for a fool?"
Vaughn readjusted his jaw slightly and pulled the chains around his wrists. He found himself only inches away from Sark, but he still could not get close enough due to the restraints. Upon noticing that he had struck a nerve, Sark closed the distance between he and Lauren. He stood behind her and began stroking her cheek while still maintaining eye contact with Vaughn.
"Can't say that I blame you though..... she is rather delightful in the lovemaking department."
With that statement, Sark pulled Lauren in for a deep kiss. Lauren was initially caught by surprise and tried to resist, but any form of resistance soon disappeared as she returned the kiss passionately.
Vaughn diverted his glance and felt the bile rise in the back of his throat. After the display of affection had ended, the wave of nausea was still coursing through his body. He heard footsteps approach him as he glanced up only to find Sark in front of him again grinning evilly.
"Jealous are we?"
Vaughn's icy stare bore through Sark's eyes as his lips curled in disgust. Vaughn felt the anger course through his veins. He decided to turn the tables and return one sarcastic remark with another.
"You know Sark.... I shouldn't be surprised that you go after damaged goods, but I find it hard to believe that you also go for the leftovers as well."
Sark's smile quickly disappeared as it soon became an infuriated scowl. Not willing to take backtalk from his prisoner, Sark crossed the distance between them and landed a blow in Vaughn's stomach.
Vaughn felt the air leave his body immediately. Before he could fully recover, he felt Sark smash another punch only this time on his face. Vaughn could sense the metallic taste of blood on his tongue as his vision blurred momentarily.
A fit of coughs went though his body as he gasped to regain the loss of air. Meanwhile, Sark shook his hand in the air trying to ease the pain from his blows.
"I'll have you reminded that here...... you are under my control. So if I was you, I'd implement the sarcasm at a more convenient time..... one in which you have the upper-hand."
Even if Vaughn wanted to make a comeback, his voice was still caught in his throat following the blow to his stomach. He gave a sideways glance at Lauren, who had yet to say anything. She merely looked on with a blank face that was completely unreadable by Vaughn.
"Well.... pardon the brevity of my visit, but I have things to take care off. However, you do not have to worry..... I will be leaving you capable hands."
As Sark walked out with Lauren right behind him, a large heavy set man walked in. He easily towered over Vaughn as he made slow strides toward the captive. Vaughn was so focused on the large size of the man that he failed to pick up on the fact that the man was carrying links of heavy chains in his hands.
Vaughn finally noticed them when the large man swung them in the air as he got closer to Vaughn. It was in that moment that the first signs of fear appeared in Vaughn's eyes. The chains sliced through the air until they finally making contact with Vaughn's skin. The sudden yell filled the room and traveled down the hallway.
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Sydney found herself doing 70 in a 50mph zone. Her knuckles were turning white as she gripped the steering wheel tightly. Although she was passing the other cars easily, she felt that she could not get there fast enough. After finally arriving at headquarters, she parked her car carelessly and did not even check to make sure she had locked it as she walked away hurriedly.
The only thing that Dixon had told was that something had happened with the Lauren issue. He did not want to give further details over the phone and asked her to come to the office immediately. Although Dixon had tried to hide it, she could sense the worry in his voice. It was in that moment that she knew that something had happened to Vaughn.
She rushed towards the debriefing room only to find that everyone else had gotten there before her, including Marshall who had been left out of the first meeting. They had been waiting for her arrival to start. She quickly made her way to her seat and looked up at Dixon. She silently prayed that he was going to say something that had nothing to do with Vaughn's safety. However, in this instance, it did not seem her prayers would be answered.
"I have called all of you here tonight because complications have arisen in relation to Lauren Reed."
Before anyone could ask for him to elaborate, he pressed the button on a tape recorder that was sitting in front of him. After a few seconds of silence, a voice filled the room that evidently belonged to Vaughn. Sydney felt as though she had been punched in her gut the moment she heard Vaughn's voice interrupted by a large thud. It was obvious that he had been attacked by someone.
However, her concern soon gave way to anger when she could easily make out Lauren's voice in the background. Sydney gripped the arms of her chair tightly as a way to restrain herself. She noticed Dixon reach forward and press the stop button. Despite how much she wanted to do something, she held herself back and awaited Dixon's thoughts on the entire situation.
"Upon receiving the phone call, I immediately dispatched officers to Agent Vaughn's home. Unfortunately by the time they got there, the house had already been evacuated, and there were no absolutely no signs of Agent Vaughn anywhere."
Sydney felt herself clench her jaw realizing that Vaughn could be anywhere right now, and worse....... he could be hurt. She could not withhold her emotions any longer.
"So what are we going to do..... give up??? He is out there somewhere. We nee...."
Dixon immediately interrupted Sydney's sudden outburst. He understood her anger, but he had to make sure that chaos did not ensue during this crisis.
"Sydney, no one said anything about giving up. We are using our resources to the best of our abilities to determine Agent Vaughn's whereabouts, which is why Marshall was asked to offer his assistance. It may take us awhile, but we will find him."
Sydney could only smirk in disgust. She could not understand how Dixon could be so calm at a time like this knowing that one of his agents was now in the hands of the most powerful people in the Covenant. She was not prepared to let things slide that easily.
"The question is not whether we find him or not. The question is whether we find him in time or not."
With that, Sydney stormed out of the office frustrated by the ease with which Dixon was taking this in. A part of her knew that she was angry at Dixon for putting Vaughn up to this in the first place. She placed her hands at her waist and stared down at the ground. Her breathing was slightly heavy as her chest rose rapidly due to the anger.
As she struggled to compose herself, she realized that Weiss was approaching her. She finally evened out her breathing and raised her glance towards Weiss. She locked eyes with him and felt her eyes begin to water. Her mouth gradually formed a frown as she finally said something.
"Do you think Vaughn is going to be okay?"
Weiss stared at his saddened co-worker and could only shrug his shoulders while shaking his head. He knew that right now was not a time to sugarcoat the truth.
"I honestly...... I honestly don't know."
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The instant Vaughn regained consciousness was the very moment he regretted coming to because in that moment the pain in his body became more evident. Vaughn felt his vision fade in and out as the excruciating throbbing was becoming unbearable.
Vaughn decided to assess the damage done in order to determine the odds of his escape. Judging the general outlook, it seemed highly unlikely that he would be able to make it out alone. His left eye was completely swollen shut while blood continued to form down his lip. He was almost certain that at least two of his ribs were broken making breathing difficult.
In one blow, the chain had actually cut through his skin on the right side of his stomach. The wound was losing a lot of blood explaining his lightheadedness. There were other gashes but none were as deep as that one. At one point, Vaughn tried counting the bruises that were forming but soon lost count. To make matters even worse, his hands were still over his head chained in shackles.
Vaughn knew he would have to come to grips with the idea that maybe he would not be making it alive this time. He had cheated death so many times, and it seemed that this time death would end up catching up to him.
The heavy door once again creaked open only this time Vaughn did not even bother to look up. He was simply to overcome with exhaustion to accomplish even that little gesture.
"Oh my God."
Despite the fatigue throughout his body, he still managed to jerk slightly at the voice. Before he could fully understand what was going on, his hands fell to his sides as they were finally freed from the constricting shackles. His knees immediately buckled under the weight causing him to lean fully on the individual.
They made their way slowly out the door and through the hallway. Vaughn felt the pain in every step that he took. Despite the ache in his body, he still could not help but look at his unlikely rescuer.
"Why are you doing this?"
Lauren glanced at him quickly before returning her gaze down the hallway.
"Because not everything between us was a complete lie."
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I know what you're thinking.... LAUREN GOOD?!?!?!?!? WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!?!? Don't worry it will all become clear. All I can say is that Lauren is no saint, and she still hasn't experienced a full change of heart. If you really want to find out the truth, please REVIEW and you will be provided with the answers.