Imago Dei

Brittany "Thespis" Frederick

Summary: The sequel to "Heaven's Fortune." When the world goes to war, they answer the call; but when their own war hits them at home, it's up to those who would be heroes how far they fall.

Genre: Action/Adventure/Drama

Rating: PG for a little language

Dedication: To Tisha, as always, the better half of me.

Author's Note: This is the fourth mega-crossover in the Life Serial series, which began with "Coventry" and "Their Law" and went on to "Heaven's Fortune." Like the last part, this part will be a crossover between 24, The Agency, Freakylinks, and the new Ed O'Neill/Ethan Embry series of Dragnet. Like usual, I don't own any of the stuff that's not mine, and it's all in fun.

I would also like to caution readers that this installment will deal with real-life situations, including issues of terrorism and international war. Although the situations are largely fictionalized (based off of reality but generally untrue), if you might object to such content, you probably want to avoid this story, which throws the characters into a more reality-based situation than the previous three.

Home Base San Marcos

6:31 P.M. Wednesday

          My knuckles gripped the sides of the bed. I was hoping, praying that this was all a nightmare or a lie. But it was neither. The statement had come down: it has begun.

Without a soul

My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold

Until you find it there

And lead it back home

          Before the first satellite photos crossed my screen, before the news anchor finished a sentence, I jumped resolutely to my feet, grabbed both my standard firearms and my attache case, and bolted from my bedroom. I nearly ran into Eric Weiss in the hall; he'd been coming from upstairs. His standing orders were the same as mine: when it goes, you go.

Wake me up inside

Wake me up inside, save me

Call my name and save me from the dark

Bid my blood to run

Before I come undone
Save me from the nothing I've become

          Everyone else had MSNBC on in the living room and they knew what was happening – I had no time to explain it even if they didn't. My strike team members – Derek Barnes and his friends, Chloe, Lan and Jason – were all situated around the TV and tense as hell. Our sixth housemate, Leticia, was with them. She wouldn't be going – she wasn't vetted for the field, and anybody could be called upon to risk their lives at any given moment.

          I barely had time to make eye contact with Derek for some sort of sign to them of what had to be done as Weiss and I bolted for the door, ran through the door. We'd be going to separate Central Intelligence Agency installations. We looked each other in the eyes for one moment, then we both sprinted for our own vehicles. Every second mattered. Even now, just one minute, or was it two, after the word came down, agents from all divisions and all offices would be getting the call, summoned to arms.

Now that I know what I'm without

You can't just leave me

Breathe into me and make me real

Bring me to life

          That included me. As the Administrative Assistant Special Agent In Charge of the Counter Terrorist Unit's Los Angeles Division, I would be one of the people on the operational front lines. Although my job was basically to keep ground ops running, it was also possible I could be sent out on an operation in the blink of an eye. Counterterrorism was what this was all about, and we knew it. All of us had been preparing for this day. On standby for the last 48 hours since the ultimatum had been given, we understood that more than likely we were going to have to fight. And now we were assuming the risk.

Wake me up inside

Wake me up inside, save me

Call my name and save me from the dark

Bid my blood to run

Before I come undone
Save me from the nothing I've become

          I shoved my keys in the ignition, backed out quickly, and pushed my Altima as fast as it would go. Driving one-handed, I grabbed for my cell phone headset and dialed my office immediately. Assistant Special Agent In Charge Tony Almeida took the call.

"I'm coming in," I told him. "What are my op orders?" I wanted to know what I was doing before I got in there, before somebody's life paid the price.

After a heartbeat he got back to me: "You're running the room."

          "Acknowledged. Keep me updated. I'll be there in half an hour." I hung up the phone, tore off the headset and threw it on the passenger seat, running a red light in the process. Around me I could see the city changing, tensing, preparing. People were aware of what was happening around them and they would react accordingly. It was our job to make sure they didn't have to go to sleep at night wondering if they'd wake up in the morning.

Frozen inside without your touch
Without your love, darling
Only you are the life among the dead

          My brain was already preparing an active operational plan. The operations orders Tony had just given me meant that I would be, at least until told otherwise, the senior agent operating out of CTU Los Angeles. That meant both he and our superior, Jack Bauer, were both involved in operations. As third in command, that meant I was the senior administrative agent, responsible for planning out and holding on while they made things happen.

          I had never run the room before. I had assisted Jack and Tony in running the room, but never had the responsibility been solely mine. It didn't matter. I was trained and ready to take it on, and lives and operational success would depend on the choices I would make. At seventeen, I had become a pivotal agent in the defense of my country. I was not about to look away when the moment we were waiting for needed my attention.

All this time I can't believe I couldn't see

Kept in the dark but you were there to follow me

I've been sleeping a thousand years it seems

Got to open my eyes to everything

Without a thought, without a voice, without a soul

Don't let me die here

There must be something wrong

          When I made it to the office and parked my car in its usual spot next to Jack's Yukon, I noted that many of the vehicles of the senior staff were already present. I ran inside and onto the main floor, where operations were in full swing. I didn't hesitate for even a moment, but as I threw myself into the fray, I knew things were shaping up to be big. The home team was already waiting for me to issue my first orders, but active operatives were making sure they had all the equipment and resources they needed.

I spotted familiar allies among the ranks – field operatives like Christopher Gautreau, Stephen Claire, Jack and Tony, and more base-related operatives like Kevin Blaisdell, my partner Lex Richards, and computer specialist Paula Schaeffer. Even Division supervisors Jackson Haisley and George Mason were on site, as befit protocol. We were all present and accounted for.

          As I rushed over to my workstation beside Lex and began pulling up necessary information, I could hear Jack give the official order: "Listen up – Brittany's got the wheel!"

Wake me up inside

Wake me up inside, save me

Call my name and save me from the dark

Bid my blood to run

Before I come undone
Save me from the nothing I've become

Bring me to life…