Caught Up In Reality
The Storm
Back at the offices, Sydney was in debrief. While looking through the papers found on the floor of SD-6, information had been found on the evacuation.
"Sloane was tipped off by one of his guards, probably one stationed on the islands you visited. Realizing he had been compromised, he closed down all SD cells. The night shift in place was evacuated, and everyone who worked there was given a thirty day period in which to find a new job.
"Now, Sloane must have known it was you on the island, and on the ship, or he would have told you and Jack about the breach. So we must assume you have been compromised and take the necessary measures." Kendall concluded his speech to Sydney.
"Do we have any leads on Sloane?" Sydney asked.
"Yes, actually. A few of the papers were for plane tickets. A seat for one Mr. Sloane."
"Where to?"
"Nepal."
"When do I leave?" Sydney said, determined to kill the man who had slipped away yet again.
"You don't."
"I'm sorry. I don't understand..." She said, a steely glint in her eye.
"You're a liability, Ms. Bristow. We can't have you go after Sloane and risk his detection of you."
Sydney stared at Kendall in disbelief, then fled the debriefing room. Going directly to her laptop, she booked a ticket to Nepal for that day. She didn't need the CIA's permission to kill Sloane. He was wanted in forty countries.
"Sydney, what are you doing?" She startled at Vaughn's voice from behind her.
"I'm going after Sloane. And don't you even try to stop me." She said, instantly defensive of her choice.
"I'm not going to stop you, Syd. But you can't do this on your own. I'm coming with you."
"Vaughn, I can't ask you to do that."
"You don't have to. You don't even have a choice. I'm going to come with you whether you like it or not." he said firmly. There was no way that he was going to let Sydney go after Sloane alone. There was no guessing what Sloane would do to her.
Sydney booked another ticket to Nepal.
"Have you seen Sydney?" Jack asked Weiss.
"No. I was about to ask you the same thing. I haven't seen Vaughn either." Weiss replied, worried about his friends. Jack's face turned dark. He didn't bother to reply to Weiss, turning quickly and going over to his computer. A few moments later he looked up at a thoroughly bewildered Weiss.
"They went after him. Two tickets to Nepal."
Sydney and Vaughn stepped out of the airport into the thin air of the Himalayas. Vaughn looked to Sydney, unsure of where they were going next. But Sydney wasn't even paying attention.
"Syd?"
"Yeah. I know. I'm just trying to think of where I would go if I were Sloane." There was a moment of silence. "He always was saying something about Emily, how they spent a few years here. I think I can remember what the name of the town they lived in was. Emily always said it was the most beautiful place she had ever seen. She loved the mountains." Another silence. Suddenly Sydney spoke. "Birganj. We're going to Birganj."
After spending an hour in a musty pickup truck, they reached the small town. It lay on the side of a narrow valley, its small buildings capped with a layer of snow. Sydney pulled the car over to the side of the road.
"Do you have a storage facility in this town?" She asked an inhabitant in Nepali, who spoke back in rapid tongue. Vaughn didn't understand much, but Sydney nodded, thanked the small woman, and drove on.
"What did she say?"
"There is one place, an underground warehouse. If I were Sloane, that's where I'd go. It would be quiet, and he could bring the Rambaldi Artifacts with him without risking their exposure to any warmth or much light." She said, turning towards Vaughn. She reached over and took his hand in hers. "Thank you for coming. I didn't want to have to do this alone. Once this is over, if we catch Sloane, the Alliance will be gone. I'll take you out to dinner, introduce you to Francie..." She continued on. This was what she was fighting for. A close-to normal life, days spent with Vaughn, days where she wouldn't have to pretend anymore.
They pulled up to a small, wooden door in the mountainside. Sydney loaded her two guns, then replaced them at her sides. Vaughn did the same. Reaching her hand out to the rusted doorknob, she hesitated, then gripped it firmly and kicked open the door. It was dark inside, but Sydney could make out the steps leading down into the blackness. Trailing her fingers along the wooden railing at the side of the stone walls, she began her descent, Vaughn a few paces behind her.
They traveled down, down, down until Sydney reached the bottom of the staircase, stepping onto a hard concrete floor. Looking to her left, she saw a light at the end of a narrow tunnel, illuminating the roughly hewn walls that surrounded them. Heading towards the light, her eyes adjusted to the dimness. When she reached the door, she peered inside. Just as she thought, the large cavern was filled with boxes, and some Rambaldi manuscripts were hanging from the walls. "The Prophecy" was framed in the center of the room. A small white chair sat in front of an antique wooden desk, the symbol of Rambaldi burned into the surface. There was no sign of Sloane. Sydney un-holstered her guns and entered the cave. Vaughn followed her in, protecting her back from danger. Sydney was on the alert, searching for any movement in the shadowy cave. Spotting nothing, she reluctantly lowered her gun. Lights snapped on overhead, and Sydney's eyes flashed to the doorway, where Sloane stood. His hand rested on a hidden switch in the wall. His other hand pointed a gun at her.
"Sydney. How nice to see you." His mouth smiled, but his eyes remained a cold gray. She didn't answer him. Sloane's eyes flickered to Vaughn as he calmly advanced towards Sydney. Vaughn watched as each step Sloane took brought him closer to Sydney, becoming more and more enraged with every movement. But Sydney's demeanor told him to stay put. "I was so upset by your betrayal, Sydney. But I don't blame you, really. After what I had done to your fiancée. That doesn't, however, change what I have to do now. You know the rules, Sydney. You know what happens to traitors." His eyes glittered. He stopped, standing but a few feet from her.
Sydney had remained silent through all this, but she couldn't keep her mouth shut any longer.
"You've done nothing but ruin my life since the day I saw your slimy face. Do you know how many times I've listened to your debriefs, thinking of ways to kill you with my bare-" Her tirade was cut short by a slap across the face. Moments later she and Vaughn were seized by guards from behind. Sloane cocked his gun as the guards stooped to tie their hostages.
In a flash, Vaughn reached down for the knife he kept strapped near his ankle. Stabbing the first guard in the chest, he quickly turned on the second, grappling with him while Sydney took out the final guard, spinning on Sloane and knocking his gun to the floor. Turning towards Sloane again, she pulled out her own gun. Vaughn kicked the fallen weapon out of Sloane's reach to rest against the back wall.
Sloane's face showed no expression as he stared down the barrels of the two guns aimed at him. Instead, his eyes flitted towards the entrance. Moments later, heavy footsteps could be heard descending into the cavern. Sloane looked back to Sydney and smiled. It would be the last thing he did. Sydney's fingers closed on the trigger, sending a bullet through Sloane's chest. A second followed a moment later.
Sydney lowered her gun. She stared at the body of the man who had caused her so much pain. She knew that killing him wouldn't bring back Danny, or give her back those years she wasted working for the enemy, but she did know that he would never do those things to her or anyone else again. Vaughn took out the three guards that had come down the stairs with a few well placed roundhouse kicks, then walked over to hold Sydney. They spent a moment like this, then Sydney pulled out her cell phone and turned it on.
"Dad?"
"Sydney. Are you alright? Is Vaughn with you?"
"Yes and yes. We found Sloane."
"Where is he?"
"He's on the floor. Dead." She went on to explain the events of the past couple of hours, starting with her decision to go after Sloane and ending with his death.
"Get on the next flight home. I'll meet you at the airport."
Many hours later, Sydney was returning home from the CIA. Upon her return she had been asked to repeat her story at least twenty times, and she was tired. Opening the door to the apartment she shared with Francie, she thought about how good it was to be home. She set her bags down on the counter, dropping her keys onto the coffee table.
"Hey Syd. How was you trip?" Francie's voice came from the bedroom, followed by Francie herself, clad in pajamas.
"Exhausting." Sydney said, giving Francie a hug. "How was your week?"
"Same old story. The restaurant's getting off well, though. I ended up hiring five more waitresses while you were gone." Sydney smiled at Francie's ever-growing number of waitresses. "Oh, someone sent you flowers. I was going to peek at the card, but I decided to wait for you." Francie smiled, indicating the dozen white roses that adorned the dinner table. Sydney walked over to them, followed by a curious Francie. She opened the card and began to read.
"So? Who are they from?" Francie asked eagerly. Sydney smiled.
"A guy from work." Francie motioned for her to elaborate. Sydney caved. "I've been working with him for about a year and a half now at the bank. His name's Michael Vaughn, and he's... well he's amazing."
"Obviously." Francie smiled, admiring the flowers. "So when do I get to meet this Michael?" She asked.
"I'll be taking him by the restaurant sometime this week." Sydney said, remembering her promise to Vaughn. Francie grinned.
"You're really into this guy, aren't you?" She asked, knowing the answer. Sydney looked at her and burst into a smile.
So what'd you think?
C'mon guys, you knew it would all work out. I wouldn't just leave Sloane on the loose!!! Now we can get back to fluff.
Chapter 10- Wednesday/Thursday? At latest Friday.
Please review, and the next chapter'll be there that much sooner.