A/N: Thanx for all the continued support, my fab readers/reviews. Here comes the show-down, and I should warn you, action scenes are really not my strong point...

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 10

Things were going well, or as well as things could go, Chuck surmised, when you were trapped in an alternate dimension with Wild West versions of all your friends and work colleagues, planning a gun battle with the guy that killed your predecessor as Sheriff!

Chuck was trying to be positive. He had Sarah at his side, willing to fight for him, as well as being in love with him apparently. He had Casey, Devon and Morgan all ready to fight by his side, come hell or high water, and he still had the Intersect. That last part seemed the most weird to Chuck, since if this really were the Wild West, such technology was from light years into the future. Still, he didn't question it, he couldn't afford to. He just had to hope they all survived the upcoming fight with Marcus Ring, and that this adventure might soon be over so he could return to present day Burbank where things made a little more sense.

"Okay" he said, standing over by the bar where a map on the town was laid out, held flat by shot glasses, as Chuck, Sarah, and Casey made their plans, "Dr Devon is here, two more guys over here and here" he pointed to areas of the map, "They're the early warning system"

"Those might be the main routes into town, but there are more" said Casey with a shake of his head, and a look that suggested he thought the Sheriff was a fool that Sarah didn't miss.

"It's not Charles' fault that supposedly brave men ran out on him when they realised how serious this was" she pointed out, speaking of at least half a dozen men, surprisingly including Big Mike and not surprisingly Emmett Milbarge, "Not everybody is a hero"

"Yeah, well" the Saloon owner groused, "Looks like we're gonna have to be" he said, looking to the doors as they swung open and Awesome's alter-ego ran in, sweating profusely and breathing hard from the exertion of the very fast ride and run that'd brought him home.

"Sheriff, they're coming!" he told Chuck, "Ring and two more guys"

"Just two?" Sarah checked, finding it hard to believe, as she picked up her gun from the table and slid the safety off.

"There were more, I'm pretty sure of it" explained Devon as Ellie appeared at his side, apparently concerned for his welfare - that only made Casey look more mad as he prepared his own guns for the fight, "They came screaming down from the hills with the Indians on their tails. Arrows probably took out the rest of the posse, but I didn't have time to find out"

"Okay" said Chuck with a nod, trying to keep the shake out of his voice, "Okay, this is good, it's fine" he said, looking to Sarah for some kind of conformation.

"It is" she promised, "We can do this, Charles, I know we can" she smiled, though there was some fear in her eyes too, Chuck was sure of it.

In some ways that actually helped. If she was afraid that gave him licence to be a little nervous too. Still, Chuck knew he had to focus now, had to believe he was going to come through this fight the victor. He was Sheriff Carmicheal here and was expected to rally the troops and end this thing once and for all.

"You ready, Sheriff?" asked Casey as he moved around the bar to leave, noticing that Chuck seemed to have drifted off into La-La Land at some point.

"Yeah, I'm... I'm ready" he agreed, pushing his guns into his holsters and heading out with his two closest allies, "Devon, I need you to clear the street" he said as he passed by the Doc, "Get everyone in their houses, I don't want anyone getting hurt unless they have to"

"He can barely stand" Ellie protested, but Awesome shook his head, determined to see this through.

"I can do it, Ellie-Faye" he told her, all heroic and manly as ever he was in present day Burbank, "I have to"

Casey only sneered at the exchange, letting Sarah and Chuck out of the front door so that his last moment before facing this gun battle was alone with Ellie himself.

"You get yourself inside, lock the door, and stay away from the window!" he told her definitely, "I don't want you hurt in this" he told her, his hand at her cheek a moment before he ran out the door to do his duty.

The plan swung into action before the street was even clear of the folks that lived and worked there. Casey took the far end and Sarah the nearer one of Nerdsville's main street, though she wouldn't go til she planted a kiss on Chuck's lips, with a promise that he could do this. It was all he needed right now, that and the knowledge that he had both her and Casey on his side in this. They stayed back in the shadows of the buildings so even he could no longer see them, but they were always there and he knew it.

Just as soon as Chuck got into the middle of the street, he could feel the horses hooves thundering towards him. They came from the end of the street where Sarah was hidden, Ring and two of his posse, headed for the Sheriff as if to trample over him with their steeds. Chuck didn't flinch, though his eyes closed of their own accord as he yelled;

"Stop, by order of the Sheriff of Nerdsville"

The three horses were pulled up simultaneously, Ring's own animal stopping just an inch or two short of trampling Chuck's toes. He gingerly opened his eyes to see this and his head spun wildly in an epic flash just as soon as his gaze landed on the man they called Ring.

It was strange but 'Marcus Ring' wasn't the name that raced past his eyes then, though the face was the same - dark hair and dark eyes, kind of looked like Christopher Reeve in his Superman days, but now wasn't the time to wonder on it.

"Well, if it isn't the new Sheriff in town" he smirked as he climbed down from his horse and faced Chuck with an evil smile that made his insides twist together.

"That's right, Ring" he said, tilting his chin, channelling his inner Eastwood or similar as his hands hovered near the guns that were strapped to his hips, "This is my town now, and you're not welcome here" he told the guy, as the two that had ridden in with him also dismounted and smacked the horses so they ran away.

In that moment of brief commotion, Casey saw an opportunity. He leaned out from his hiding place and took out the man on the right with a bullet to the chest. Chuck watched the lump of a guy slump to the ground and anticipated what came next, whipping his guns from the holsters at the same moment as Ring and his one remaining man. The pair backed up some, mindful of the fact they were fighting more than just the Sheriff here now.

"Looks like you've got a little help, Carmicheal" noted the man in the black hat, seconds before a shot was fired from the other end of the street and Ring's second man fell forward to the dusty ground with a bullet in his back.

"Looks like you don't, Ring" replied Chuck, his confidence growing every second as he strode forward, both pistols trained on the other man's chest, though the enemy continued to smirk.

"We both know it's not that simple" he said, side stepping a little, seemingly knowing just where Sarah was and that if he moved over just enough she would not be able to successfully shoot at him without coming out of her hiding place.

From his new position he could also make out Casey in the distance, and before Chuck had a chance to react, a shot was fired from Ring's gun in the direction of the Saloon owner who would be a hero.

Glancing back for a split second only, since it was all he could afford, Chuck saw Casey drop to the round clutching his leg. He wasn't dead, but it wasn't good.

"Don't look back, Carmichael!" he called, his gruff strained voice mixing in with Ellie's wailing as she ran out to aid him.

Chuck moved over, blocking Ring's view of his friends.

"You didn't oughta done that" he said, in real cowboy drawl, his fingers on the triggers of his guns, squeezing more and more and yet never quite making a shot yet.

A part of him was glad when he realised Sarah was willing to do this for him. She came creeping up behind Ring, quiet as a mouse, and Chuck did his best to keep his eyes off her for fear of attracting the other man's attention. Unfortunately, Ring's man that Casey had shot perhaps wasn't as dead or even as wounded as they thought, his hand suddenly making a grab at Sarah's leg and pulling her down. Her yelp of pain and panic both had Ring's attention in a second and he turned to make a grab at her.

"She's not a part of this, Ring, let her go" Chuck pleaded with him, as the barrel of Ring's gun pressed into Sarah's temple.

"Now why would I want to do that, Charles?" he asked with a hollow laugh, "I killed her old boyfriend, I'm gonna kill you" he grinned, "Why not make it a full set?"

Chuck saw red then, looking from Sarah to Ring and back. His head went into overdrive, a flash hitting him full force and almost knocking him over. He knew how to get out of this, how to save them both, and somehow as his eyes opened and met Sarah's own, he realised she knew just exactly what he was thinking. A little barely-noticeable nod was all it took.

"You're a fool, Ring" said Chuck, "You think you've got the upper hand, but you forgot one thing" he told him with a smirk that was rarely seen on his genuine face.

"And what's that?" asked Ring curiously, his grip tightening on Sarah's throat even now.

Chuck spared one hand to flick his white hat up on his head, and readied himself in a real cowboy battle stance.

"I'm Sheriff Charles Carmichael" he said proudly, "And I don't go down without a fight" he said with determination, "Sarah, go!" he yelled suddenly then, forcing her to make a break for it by biting Ring's arm, as Chuck levelled both his guns at the outlaw's chest and pulled the triggers.

The bullets shot out of the guns as if in slow motion, spinning through the air and making the strangest high-pitched whistling sound that made Chuck want to wince. Still he kept his eyes focused on the projectiles as they headed for Ring's chest, just about to make impact when...

Chuck's eyes shot wide open and he sat up too fast, finding the world around him to be completely different to what it was just a split second before, and yet one thing remained the same. Launching himself from the bed he'd been lying in, Chuck's hands were around the throat of the man who wore Marcus Ring's face, almost choking the very life out of him before anyone had a chance to react.

"Chuck, stop! Please!" Sarah's words cut through the white hot fury and adrenaline that had been powering the Asset-turned-Spy and he seemed to come to his senses in an instant.

Casey grabbed Chuck and pulled him away, finding it harder than he usually would up to the point Sarah spoke. It was as if Bartowski had doubled in strength despite the fact he had appeared close to death by poison just moments before. He was powered by anger and adrenaline it seemed, but soon Casey had him pulled off Shaw, the special agent rubbing a hand round his sore throat as the NSA man pulled Chuck's arms behind his back and held on tight.

"Calm down, Bartowski" he instructed, though honestly he would've like to have seen him tear Shaw a new one, now wasn't the time or place.

"It's okay, I'm fine" said Shaw, though nobody cared enough to ask the question.

"I think you should leave" Sarah told him as she moved towards Chuck, confident that he definitely wouldn't harm her, especially now as his eyes seemed to gain some focus and his breathing evened out, "Chuck?" she said carefully, glad when he looked her way with a glimmer of understanding.

"Sarah" he breathed, "I… I don't know what happened" he admitted, as his legs seemed to give way underneath him.

"Easy there, soldier" said Casey as suddenly there was no resistance from the kid, only a dead weight in his grasp.

The two agents moved Chuck back to the bed, sitting him down there whilst he got his bearings. He looked terribly pale and was bleeding from the arm where he'd ripped out wires that connected him to monitors before. Sarah knelt before him, trying to keep him calm and check he was okay, but no matter what she and Casey said or did, Chuck's eyes kept straying to Shaw.

"I meant what I said!" Sarah snapped at him, "You need to go until we're sure he's okay" she said, turning angry eyes upon her fellow CIA agent.

Shaw just nodded his head and without a word turned on his heel and left, knowing he was only making matters worse here.

"He was… He was Ring" said Chuck shakily as he watched the other guy leave, putting a hand to his head that ached terribly, "It was like a dream but it was so real, I don't know…"

"It's okay, Chuck" Sarah assured him, one hand grasping his, the other pushing hair from his face, "You're going to be okay, I promise"

Casey realised he was the spare part here in his little romantic reunion and so moved to go.

"I'm going to let Beckman know he pulled through" he said as he reached the door, before turning back with an awkward smile, "Glad you're back with us, Bartowski" he told him, something that might've meant more to Chuck if he was really aware of what the hell was going on.

"I'm so glad you're okay" said Sarah with tears in her eyes that she couldn't control and was hardly even aware of, "Chuck, I was so worried about you"

"I'm okay" he told her, "I think... I think I'm okay" he said, shaking his head a little in the hopes it would clear the fog that had settled there but immediately regretted the movement as the world spun out of focus.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" she asked carefully, as he put a hand to his aching head a moment.

"Yeah, maybe" he confirmed as he blinked at her, "but first I wanna know what the hell happened to me. Sarah, who is that guy that was here before?" he asked, looking from the blonde to Casey who hovered beyond the door, his duty to Beckman done and wondering now whether to walk in on this moment or not.

"You deserve to know what was done to you" said Sarah definitely, helping Chuck up from the bed and assisting him through to the main room where they all sat down at the table; it was explanation time.

To Be Continued...