Vice Admiral Michael Kernan was enjoying a very relaxing day. He started out with a very pleasant walk with his grandson in a very beautiful garden, situated in one of his own estates. Then he had breakfast at a famous local diner with his cousin / best friend, General Adam Stanfield. He hadn't seen much of him ever since Adam got promoted in NATO so it was nice to have a little chit chat with his old friend. Eventually, he arrived at the NGA headquarters and headed towards his office. Being the gregarious director he was, he felt the need to soak up as much of the agency and its personnel as he possibly could in his limited schedule. He wasn't getting any younger, after all. That was just a fact of life.

After taking a relaxing stroll, he entered his chambers. Taking a long breath, he tried to enjoy a momentary zen experience before work started. Then all of a sudden, his phone rang. After calmly glaring at his desk for a while, he picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Sir, we have an emergency. George Bowman wants to see you."

"George, as in the lead scientist in Computer and Telecommunication Engineering?" Michael raised an eyebrow. George wasn't someone who ever paid a direct visit to his office unless some crisis was happening, The last time he did that was during the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.

"Send him in!"

The moment he uttered those words, a frantic-looking old man slammed the door open, ignoring all etiquette and common sense before literally dashing in front of his desk. Michael could clearly see the distress in his eyes.

"What's wrong, George? Why are you so worked up?"

"Sir, we found a signal. After eleven years we finally found it." George stated, his voice mixed with both excitement and panic. "The prototype Orion was building for DIS before he vanished has now been activated. No doubt about it."

"Are you sure about this? As far as I know Orion destroyed both prototypes before he disappeared." Michael narrowed his eyes.

"One thousand percent. The frequency matches that of the homing beacon we put inside the hardware. For many years we thought Orion figured it out and removed it, but I was wrong." George nodded affirmatively.

"Where is the signal coming from? Have you triangulated its position?" Michael asked. He was quite eager to see the legendary Orion in person. No one knew what he looked like. Or even his... or her gender, for that matter. What Michael did know was that Orion was a top researcher working for the government and had successfully kept his / her identity a secret. Apparently one of the projects they were working on had gone wrong, which led to Orion cutting off all ties with the government and disappearing into thin air as if they never existed.

"Yes, Sir. The prototype has been activated in a house situated in Echo Park, Burbank, LA."

"I see." Michael let out a chuckle. He knew that area very well; he was posted there a few years ago before his promotion and he visited Burbank quite frequently as his daughter lived there. The last time he went there was to attend his granddaughter's birthday party in December. Perhaps it was time for another check up on the little rascal.

The admiral nodded his head in understanding. "Tell all stations to stand down. I will take a small squad with me just for the sake of formality. I want to deal with this matter personally."

"Sir?"

"Orion is not a terrorist, George. If we can talk to him, we might be able to reach an understanding." Michael replied in a firm tone, leaving no further room for discussion. "Tell Emily to cancel all of my meetings. I am going to meet a very special guest." He added hastily, tilting his head towards George before leaving through the door.

The Vice Admiral's sudden departure left his entire staff looking a bit flabbergasted.

...xxxxxx...xxxxxxx...

A little while later and many miles away from Fort Belvoir, a miserable-looking young man woke up, scrubbing the top of his head while mumbling all sorts of complaints under his breath. He felt physically alright though, as the only remaining symptom of the previous night's incident was a slight headache. His somber mood continued as he dragged himself inside the washroom.

"Man! That hurt like hell." Chuck let out a groan while splashing water on his face. "Take note, Bartowski. Get your facts straight before touching your deadbeat dad's stuff. That was scary. I really felt like I was about to turn into a zombie and go out on a rampage, evil dead style."

That kinda sounds cool, though.

He took another look around his room. He needed to fix everything before Ellie and Awesome arrived, or she would definitely ground him like she used to during his high school days. He also didn't want to go through the headache of explaining everything to her.

Kicking the door open, he immediately went to the kitchen in order to make himself some breakfast. Which was his usual plan of action for the morning. Perhaps an omelet and some orange juice would do. He didn't want to be late for Buy More. However, he received the shock of his life when he saw an old man dressed in Naval uniform, with the stars, shoulder boards, and sleeve stripes of a U.S. Navy vice admiral of the "line" reading the newspaper while sitting on his kitchen table. After noticing his arrival the old man looked at him, offering him a small smile.

"Morning, lad! Would you like to have a seat? You seem a bit rough."

"Oh sure, I will just... HEY!" Chuck suddenly shouted in alarm and leapt back, only to realize where exactly he had seen this man before.

"VADM Michael Kernan? You run the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, right?"

"Glad to see that you recognize me. I never thought anyone would have seen that interview on CNN." Michael replied with an amused smile, staring at him expectantly.

"Hey! Don't change the topic! This... is breaking and entering." Chuck pointed his finger accusedly towards the elder.

"Oh, is that right? My apologies." Michael let out a hearty laugh.

"Forget it. He really doesn't mean that." A female voice called out from behind, which apparently belonged to a pretty woman around Chuck's age with brown hair and matching eyes. She extended her hand towards him with a friendly smile. "Hi, I am Lt Lou Palone. I'm in charge of the Director's security."

Chuck gulped nervously for a moment but shook her hand regardless.

"Ummm... I am Chuck. I fix computers at Buy More."

"Nice meeting you, Chuck. Let me fix some breakfast for you guys." She replied kindly before marching towards the kitchen.

"She can't help herself. Both her parents are chefs. She is a pretty good soldier though. No doubts about that." Michael shook his head. The young man followed them with his eyes as he carefully moved around the table.

Sweating bullets, Chuck scratched the back of his head sheepishly. He wasn't someone who could survive prison and the number of secured government websites he hacked into... just for 'fun' was more than enough to earn him a life sentence.

Holy crap! They didn't figure out I'm the Piranha, right?

Taking a long breath, he gathered his courage. Why would the director of the NGA would be interested in Piranha? That didn't make sense. Besides, he hadn't been Piranha since... well, since Stanford. So it had been a while.

"Sir, what brings someone like you here all the way from Virginia? Was it something I did?" He asked, trying to sound as casual as possible, despite the fact he wanted to scream and run away.

"Hmm... So we are getting straight to the point." Michael murmured observantly, his focus shifting to the wristwatch Chuck wore. "Don't worry, lad. We are not here for you. Just tell me how you managed to get this to open." He put the old case from last night on the table.

"Oh! That? I don't know. My fingers brushed against it and WOOSH, it was open. Just like that." Chuck explained further, feeling slightly relieved.

Impossible. This case was designed to withstand explosives, natural disasters and even some of the nastiest acids known to man. Only someone with genetic properties similar to that of Orion would have been... able to open this...

No way... Could he be...?

Michael scratched his chin, taking a closer look at the device on Chuck's wrist. That definitely seemed like the same design he was shown in the blueprints, he noted with a small smile. Then he cast a serious gaze upon Chuck.

"Where did you find this case?"

"Oh, I think my dad put it behind the drawer before he left and, well... never returned." Chuck replied with a dejected sigh. He then raised an eyebrow out of curiosity. "Did you know my dad?"

"I do know about this piece of technology on your wrist and perhaps, that might answer the questions about your father as well."

"I don't understand. My father was a commercial scientist. He worked with IT companies out there." Chuck sharply narrowed his eyes.

"Not just IT companies. Your dad worked with a lot of people. Including us." Michael exclaimed.

"No way." Chuck stood up, his eyes widening in awe and disbelief. However his sudden movement caused him to bump into Lou who was about to put eggs and toast on the table. His eyes bulged as several images of various gymnasts and athletes performing amazing feats flashed in front of him. He felt like he was on autopilot as his body moved on its own at lightning-fast speed – he picked up the plate using one hand, changed direction in short order by performing a backflip, then used it to save the eggs and toast. Effortlessly so, judging by the expression on Lou's face.

"Oh my! Chuck! How did you do that?"

Chuck had no idea whatsoever. Not even Devon would have been able to catch a plate like that and he was called Awesome for a reason. Why do I get the feeling I am full of surprises?

Michael, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes in suspicion. He approached Chuck and put his hand on his shoulder, then gestured towards the mysterious case.

"Tell me, Chuck. Did you notice anything unusual or odd ever since you opened this case?"

"Well..." Chuck scratched his head, taking a moment to ponder. "You guys might want to sit down because this may take a while to elaborate."

...xxxxxxx...xxxxxxxx...