A/N: Hi! I'mmmm bbbaaaaccckkk! Sorry for the late update but the muse had left me for a little while but now that we're back together I think we can work it out, lol! Thanks for all of the PM and reviews! I am sincerely humbled at your generosity.

Still own nothing.

Chapter 11

Castle

Burbank, CA

1145

Sarah and Casey sat around the conference table waiting for the video conference call to start. Casey smirked as he looked at Sarah before saying "From the smile on the Moron's face I see he finally dipped his chocolate in your peanut butter Walker. I'm surprised he can walk."

"Sure you're not interested? You sure take a keen interest in my sex life did you want the play by play?" Sarah said seductively.

Casey looked horrified as he replied "Hell no! If you're going to torture me, I'd rather you used a cattle prod on a sensitive part of my anatomy. Just keep it out of the workplace so I don't see or hear anything and we won't have any problems."

Chuck entered the conference room with a tray holding three cups of coffee. "Here you go guys, hot coffee all around. Hey Casey, what do you think Beckman will decide?" he said as he handed the cups to his partners.

"Hard to say. The smart play would be see reason and implement your changes. We've been pretty successful so far and rocking the boat now seems shortsighted. On the other hand, Generals don't usually take kindly to being told they're wrong and given ultimatums by their subordinates. Basically it's a tossup," Casey said.

"When is that HR guy going to arrive with those forms?" Chuck asked.

"Should've been here by now, maybe he's caught up in traffic," Sarah answered.

The video screen light up with the NSA logo and the team turned to face the monitor as General Beckman's face appeared.

"I see you are all here, so we can get started," the red headed General said.

"Now after careful -" she started to say when Sarah interrupted.

"Shouldn't we wait for the CIA Deputy Directors?"

"That won't be possible," General Beckman snarled "since they've both been taken into custody pending a Presidential inquiry into charges of treason. It seems some classified documents were found in their possession along with some recent interesting banking activity. Now that Foley's absence is settled Miss Walker do I have your permission to continue?"

All three caught the Generals use of the title 'Miss' in place of 'Agent' and its implications. The tension in the room skyrocketed.

"Since I have been given COMPLETE control over this situation and to prevent anymore outbursts I've invited some guests," She said snidely.

Suddenly all three entrances to Castle burst opened and Sarah and Casey reached for their weapons but several flash bangs that had been tossed in went off and both agents were too stunned to draw them. The room filled with Tactical team members and shot both Sarah and Casey with tasers while they were still feeling the effects of the flash bangs. They were then had both their wrists and legs shackled. Once they were incapacitated they were searched for additional weapons. Finally, they approached Chuck and cuffed his hands behind his back before pushing him back into his chair. They then picked up his team mates and put them in their chairs. The tactical team move away from the table and aimed their weapons at Casey and Sarah.

"General, what's going on? Why are you doing this? This is crazy! Sarah! Sarah! You bastards! What did you do to them?" Chuck screamed hysterically as he jumped up from his chair and moved toward Sarah.

"SHUT IT BARTOWSKI OR I'LL HAVE YOU GAGGED! I'VE HAD QUITE ENOUGH OF YOU!" Beckman shouted.

Two Tactical team members grabbed Chuck and lifted him up and carried him back to his seat and forcibly made him sit. They stood on either side of him and kept a hand on each shoulder. Sarah broke out of her electrically induced haze and tried to stand when one of Chuck's guards pulled his pistol and pointed it at Chuck's head. Seeing this Sarah blanched and quickly sat back down. Two other Tactical team members moved into Sarah and Casey sightline with weapons aimed at them. Casey looked at several red dots dancing on his and Sarah's torso's before he spoke. "Can it Walker! Nothing we can do now but hear the General out," He then looked at the guy pointing the gun at Chuck and said softly through gritted teeth "I'm going to tear you limb from limb from limb when I get loose if you don't holster that weapon now."

The guard looked at the General and saw her nod before holstering his pistol.

"Go ahead and gag them all, I don't want any more interruptions," she paused until the guards accomplished the task before continuing.

"Now that the preliminaries are finished we can get to the pleasant part of today's proceedings. Well, I should clarify that remark, I meant pleasant for me. I'm afraid it won't be for you three. Where should I begin? Oh yes Mr. Bartowski's ridiculous demands. After considering them for all of a few seconds, I decided to reject them all and instead come up with my own. Apparently, you have some serious delusions of adequacy Mr. Bartowski and that just won't do. If you think for one second I'd let an underachieving slacker like you EVER dictate terms to me then you are more brain dead than that bearded loser you hang around with. You fracked with the wrong woman you adolescent man child!" Beckman said venomously.

"All this happens here today is on your head and you have no one else to blame. You naive imbecile! What was I supposed to do when your usefulness was over? Pat you on the head and give you Walker to play with? Oh yes I know all about your pathetic infatuation with Walker. I do hand it to you though; you really swing for the fence. Normally, a woman like Walker wouldn't give you the time of day if she wasn't ordered to. The really pathetic thing is that she is so damaged that she actually fell for you. Figures, it'd be the only way you'd have a chance. Now where was I, oh yes the new team dynamic. Look around Bartowski, welcome to your new home. You'll live out the rest of you days here looking at the Intel I feed you and flashing," she said smugly.

"Oh and you don't need to worry about your family and friends they'll be to pre-occupied trying not to get beat up or gang raped in the prison I've arranged for them to be incarcerated in to have time to think of you. You see, this morning the Police raided your sisters apartment and place of work and found massive amounts of drugs, guns and money. It seems that Ellie, Devon and Morgan were running a drug ring using the Buy More as a cover. It looks like the entire staff was involved so they'll all be spending a long time in prison. It'll be up to you whether they serve hard time or not. Cooperate like a good little Intersect and nothing will happen to them, well nothing too serious. Make a mistake and they'll suffer. The Guards at the prison Ellie's being sent to have had more than a few complaints of sexual misconduct with the prisoners levied against them, but I'm sure they'd let a pretty girl like your sister alone. I'm also sure Devon and Morgan will be popular with their fellow inmates. Do you think they'll make Morgan shave and wear a dress?" she said with an evil chuckle.

"Don't worry Mr. Bartowski I've saved the best for last, Miss Walker's fate. Or should I call her – oh that's right you don't know her real name. Of course, I'm sure Agent Larkin is aware of every intimate detail regarding her, and I do mean intimate. I can get him on the line if you'd like? No? Maybe later I can show you their mission videos. Steamy stuff if I do say so, a little too kinky for my tastes, but to each their own. No matter, I was going to have her extradited to a Pakistani prison, did she ever tell you about her and Carina's exploits there? Of course not, she doesn't share her past with you does she? Wait, there's a certain warlord in Thailand who I bet would love to get his hands on her. With her martial arts skills she'll spend the rest of her short life fighting in the pit; that is when she's not fighting off rapists in her cage. Oh she's made so many enemies that I could send her to but then I realized that wouldn't work. You want to know why? Still not talking? Okay I'll enlighten you. You are an eternal optimist, a dreamer, you would hold out hope that someday you would figure out a way to escape and save everyone. It's rather pathetic. No, the best way to break you is to take away your hope, and I have just the thing. Mr. Casey if you want to remain a Marine, you'll shoot Miss Walker in both eyes in front of Bartowski," She again paused and looked at Casey for a response. Seeing none she moved on. "I'm sure the Russian mafia will find you a grave beside Ilsa when they are finished with the two of you. How ironic, burying a Reaganite like you on Russian soil. Pity, you were a good soldier once," she said with a small hint of sadness in her voice.

"Good news Chuck, it looks like the job is yours. You will be untied and given a pistol with two bullets and you will shoot her in both eyes. Don't even think of killing yourself because if you take that path your sister, Devon, Morgan and Walker will know pain and misery for their remaining lives which I assure you will be a long time. Every day, I'll make sure that your sister knows that you could have saved her but took the cowards way out and abandoned her just like your parents did. She'll be cursing your name when she eventually dies. Do we need a demonstration first?"

A second monitor came to life and was split into three screens. He could see Ellie Devon and Morgan in what looked like prison cells. The doors opened and several men entered. They stopped and looked up at the camera.

"They are to begin aggressive interrogation in five minutes unless I call them and stop it. I'll only do that when Walker is lying on the floor missing those beautiful blue eyes you adore so much. One more thing, once the interrogation begins I won't stop it until they've confessed to their crimes. The choice is yours Bartowski, but the clock is ticking. Release him and put the pistol on the table," Beckman said calmly.

As soon as he was released and the gag removed he looked at the General's image on the monitor. Tears were streaming down his face as he tried to compose himself before speaking "Why General? Why do this? Ellie, Devon, Morgan and the rest are innocent. Punish me if you need to, but spare them. I'm begging you. I'll do anything you ask just please don't do this."

"Very well Bartowski, I'll see no harm comes to your friends and family as soon as I see you shoot Walker. You did say anything, didn't you? Then get on with it, you have four minutes left and I don't like the way that one guard is looking at Ellie. Maybe Walker can talk some sense into you, take off her gag," Beckman said.

Chuck looked over at Sarah and saw tears in her eyes. He moved towards her and was stopped until Beckman nodded at the guards to let him pass.

"Sarah, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I should have seen this coming and done something…"he voice breaking as he spoke.

"Chuck, this isn't your fault. It's hers and hers alone. You have nothing to be sorry about," she said trying to console him.

"Sarah, I can't shoot you, I just can't do it. I love you. How can I live with myself after doing something that horrible? Please don't ask me to do it, please…" he sobbed.

"Chuck, you have to save them. Only you can be the hero. Look at me. Promise me you'll save them. I love you too and nothing will ever change that. Now, I need you to be brave and pick up the gun and save the day. You can do this. You have to do this for Ellie. Kiss me one last time. I promise I'm not leaving you, I'll never leave you. Whenever you need me just close your eyes and remember this kiss and I'll be there with you. I love…," her voice cracked as the tears flowed down her cheeks. He leaned in to place a tender kiss on her lips. The kiss became something more; something deeper, for it had to last for the rest of Chuck's life. It only broke when they heard Beckman's voice.

"One minute, time to end this sickening public display of affection," she said sarcastically.

"Go ahead Chuck, it's okay I'll be waiting for you wherever my last journey takes me. I love you," she choked the last words out as he picked up the gun.

"I love you to Sarah; I'll try not to keep you waiting too long. Now close your eyes, I can't do this with you looking at me," she closed her eyes and then smiled bravely as he placed the pistol an inch from her right eye. "There's my kick ass ninja girl…" he said as he squeezed the trigger.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH! SARAH! NOOOOOOOO!" he screamed in absolute agony.

"CHUCK! Chuck wake up! Chuck it's just a dream, Come on, it's okay it's just a bad dream. I'm here, I've got you. It's okay sweetie. It's okay," Sarah said soothingly as she embraced him tightly.

"Sarah? You're okay? It was just a dream. Thanks God, it was just a dream," He said then he sobbed uncontrollably.

"Shhh, it's alright, I'm here. I'm fine nothing's wrong with me. Shhh, it's okay," she coos in between soft kisses, rocking him back and forth while running her fingers through his hair desperately trying to comfort him.

A few minutes later his sobbing slowed down and stopped. He pulled back from her to look in her eyes started placed soft kisses across her face before pulling back in to another hug before speaking.

"It was awful; Beckman was going to hurt Ellie, Devon and Morgan unless I killed you. I didn't want to but you made me promise to save Ellie. Oh god, it was so real. Please tell me this is real and it was the nightmare," he whispered in her ear.

"I'm real, I'm here, I'll prove it," she said as she nipped at his ear.

"Ow! Okay woman, I get it you're real and this isn't a dream! I think you drew blood," he laughed wetly as he rubbed his ear.

"I had to prove I'm real somehow," she laughed. "Come on, let's go downstairs to the kitchen and get some hot chocolate and you can tell all about your nightmare and we'll make plans to make sure it never happens," she said as she pulled on his t-shirt.

"Thanks, that sounds like a good idea," as he pulled on his boxers and followed her down the steps.

A/N: Dark, was it not? I usually don't like darker stories unless they are really well written. I know that Beckman is over the top EVIL in this but remember its Chuck's nightmare, which has his worst fears and insecurities. I even had Beckman monologue! The only thing missing was her holding a cat, lol.

Sorry, but this is why it's taken me so long to update this story. I was debating going with something like this or just posting the final chapter. This chapter has been bouncing around in my mind but I couldn't get it written down. As I said I like lighter stuff. Then I sat down and wrote it in a single evening. Oh sure, I spent several days adjusting it and correcting errors but it is largely intact from the first draft. FYI, I almost stopped the chapter when Chuck pulled the trigger but you guys have been so good to me that I couldn't do that to you, plus I didn't want all of the hate mail that would follow, lol! Please let know what you think.