Deep Six- Prologue

L.J. Tibbs was a man of few words, an NCIS team leader who drinks to alleviate the burden of his messianic complex. It wasn't that he didn't have plenty of thoughts, L.J. just didn't feel the need to share them. Emotionally, L.J. didn't feel or see the need to share much of anything. Oftentimes, it can be easier to bottle things up than share, and this was especially true for L.J. Having been through a lot and seen even worse, L.J.'s personal habits were hardly a surprise to those who knew him best. Even then, L.J. tried his hardest to hide his inner turmoil. In his late 60s and gruff around the edges, it was not L.J.'s no-nonsense personality that made him friends. While it generally took people time to warm up to him, when they did, it was L.J.'s heart that they inevitably fell in love with. The recent happenings in his last case were a testament to the care that only those who knew L.J. best were privy to seeing. A sailor had passed, leaving behind a family. The sailor had promised to build his son a treehouse and was about halfway through when he died. Tibbs finished the treehouse, but very few people found out about it- Tibbs never was one to accept recognition for anything.

It was his team who were some of the only people who knew the real L.J. A team of five, six including himself, L.J. treated his agents as if they were their own children. Affectionately referring to L.J. as "Boss" or Tibbs, they love him well. Any compliments from L.J. always stick and meant the world to his team members. Even the frequent head slaps of disapproval that L.J. gave were respected, even appreciated.

Swashbuckling, socially repugnant Special Agent Tommy had been the first agent that L.J. had picked for his team. After a rough childhood, Tommy learned to use humor as his coping mechanism. His goofy antics often annoyed his coworkers, but his thought for others and zest for life always shined through still. While he was an acquired taste and made many inappropriate remarks and jokes, it would be wrong to say that Agent Tommy could ever be any sort of agent except exemplary. On the field, Agent Tommy is a dogged pursuer of dirtbags, and any skirt over the age of 18 off of it. Plagued by the troubles and pain of his past, his coworkers often saw right through Tommy's childlike antics.

Tommy was not the only agent to have been on the team for a while. Forensic Scientist Amy Sutton's job is crucial to the solving of cases, and her quirky, cheerful, gothic personality is crucial to the emotional well-being of the team. The happiest goth you've ever met, Amy's personality can be hard to pinpoint. Even in her style, Amy's joy and love for life contradicts the darkness of many gothic lifestyles. The bedroom in Amy's apartment consisted of many different rock music posters, bright purples, and fun trinkets, while also consisting of skull decorations and even a coffin for a bed. Amy's quirks were what her coworkers appreciated most about her, however, and they would often times encourage her.

Agent McGregor, the brilliant tech-guru of the team, had actually fallen in love with Amy and her quirks. While most were just willing to look the past the quirks, McGregor went as far as to get a tattoo on his rear to impress her. The two would often work side by side on technology, always coming up with new algorithms to search, trace, and find new information. McGregor's geeky personality and relationship with Amy were sources of many jokes from his co-workers, but McGregor didn't truly mind. It was easy for anyone to see that Tommy was insecure in his own smarts, and the fire in the relationship between McGregor and Amy could only be rivaled by that of Tommy and his own work partner.

The newest member of the team was Lisa- the sultry and emotionally distant Mossad officer. Lisa had been through a lot, and she intrigued Tommy more than just about anyone he had ever met. Tommy has had a hard time controlling himself around her since the moment they met. With a fiery first meeting, the flames have been growing ever since. For Tommy, one look into Lisa's eyes reminded him of emeralds flawed only by the icicles in her heart. Lisa had been through more than just about anyone Tommy knew, and the icicles were only put up to protect herself. Like real icicles, however, Tommy was confident that with time, he could melt the walls around Lisa's heart.

While Lisa tended to click with the entire team, she was closer to Doctor Pimmy Jalmer than most were. An autopsy specialist, there were many rumors going around that the quirky doctor had intimate, sexual relationships with the corpses that stayed in the morgue. The rest of the team loved the doctor, but they did not always do the best job of showing it. The rumors of Pimmy's intercourse with the corpses were widely believed, and he did not generally feel the love. People generally would get caught on Pimmy's quirks, and he felt extremely misunderstood. Despite Pimmy's best efforts to keep what people think from shaking his confidence, it was a daily struggle. Even knowing the love that the team had for him, at least deep down, Pimmy found that it is hard being an accidental outcast.

Altogether, L.J. appreciated the delicate balance of his team. A good team knows how to forgive, move on, have fun, and love each other. While he pretended to let it bother him when there was constant chatter, he personally thought the childlike behavior made the bright orange bullpen even brighter. On this particular morning, as L.J. sat at his desk catching up on paperwork, Lisa and McGregor were attempting to focus on overdue paperwork of their own. Tommy, who despite spending the most time goofing off, always seemed to be the furthest ahead. He had finished his work hours earlier and was now distracting his coworkers. L.J. was about to say something when his cell phone rang. The phone call could only mean one thing: a new case. Tibbs stepped out to a quiet spot and answered the call.

Rhett Christiansen seemed to have had every chance in life. From growing up with a little sister and both parents, to being raised in Church, and eventually having his own dream family, he never wanted for anything emotionally. Financially, Rhett wanted for even less. Living in a multimillion, giant home in downtown D.C. growing up, going to the most elite of schools, having anything he'd ever wanted, maids, a sports car a 16, the college of his choice, a million-dollar trust fund… the list keeps going of the things that Rhett was blessed with. The money never really mattered to Rhett though. His parents taught him to give back, and so the second that Rhett was old enough, he signed up to be a sailor. After kissing his adoring wife and kids goodbye, he waved goodbye through tears as his ship sailed away during his first assignment away. He never saw any reason to believe that he wouldn't return back to his family. The betrayal was extremely unexpected. So, Rhett simply prayed that God would bring him comfort and peace while he was away, not expecting that "going home" would refer to anything except Norfolk. At 25 however, Rhett Christiansen breathed his last breath. Rhett's early death was not of natural causes though and had nothing to do with being in a dangerous line of work either.

Upon learning more, Tibbs hung up the phone and headed back towards the bullpen.

"Grab your gear," Tibbs called out to his team. "We've got a dead body on a ship."

They grabbed their bags, guns, and badges, and off they went to find out who could have murdered Rhett Christiansen.

A/N: Let me know what you think! I know this is a lot of detail, so I can't decide if I'm going to keep the prologue in this format. Thanks!