Thanks for the reviews of Chapter One, I really appreciate it.

Chapter 2 - Flash Already

"Flash, already!" Chuck Bartowski's mind yelled as he stared down the barrel of some sort of weapon. One would think with how many weapons had been pointed at him the past two years, he would start to get some sort of knowledge of the makes and models, but no such luck. He supposed it didn't matter which type of weapon it was that was pointed at him, it would kill him just the same. Still, he would have to make a point to ask Casey for a quick rundown if he made it out of this one alive. Ha, that's something Casey might actually take an interest in. Chuck smiled, and caught the burly man with the gun off-guard.

"What is so funny, little man?" the big, strong man said in his deep voice. The man's name was Rotund Emberd, a rogue NSA agent. That had ruffled Casey's feathers, or maybe Casey's scales would be a better way of putting it.

"Nothing, nothing," Chuck quickly stammered. "It's just I thought about your gun, and then, well, it's kinda hard to explain…"

Rotund sneered, his brown moustache curling up as he did so, his large, fat face wrinkling. The man was built, his arms about the size of Chuck's neck, protruding like tree trunks out of his blue tee. "I think this mouse here thinks he is funny guys." The four guys lined up behind Rotund, in a victory V formation, all chuckled as if on a laugh track.

"Please flash, please flash…" Chuck's mind yelled. He tried to concentrate, to force a flash that would save his life, but it wouldn't come. Maybe Sarah would. Oh, Sarah… He lost his breath when he thought about her, the simple act of thinking her name was more emotional for him than having a gun pointed at his nostrils. If he had a therapist, he was sure they would go crazy with that. But Sarah… he wanted her there so bad right now…

"So, should I shoot off his fingers first, guys?" The clones standing behind Rotund all laughed again. "You come in here, Carmichael, thinking you can take us out all by your lonesome." Rotund got up in Chuck's face, breathing heavily. Chuck winced, the smell was unpleasant. "That isn't funny. That insults me." The man licked his lips, and Chuck almost dry heaved. Chuck guessed being rogue meant little or no bath time. "No, I'm not gonna torture you. That would be complimenting you. You're not worth my time." Rotund clicked his gun into place, and Chuck's heart dropped.

"FLASH ALREADY!" he yelled, and Rotund stopped, lowering the gun, his eyebrows bent down at Chuck's statement.

"You want me to flash you?"

"No no, no, of course not… I mean, I'm sure you're a very good looking man, in fact, I know… well, what I mean to say is that if I, well, it just wasn't…"

"Enough!"

Chuck's palms were dripping with sweat as he whimpered. Shoulders slumped, he held his breath in, getting ready for the bullet he was going to take in his head. Oh Sarah… Sunlight streamed in through the windows behind him, lighting yet another abandoned warehouse. Before Chuck got the Intersect, he had never known just how many empty warehouses there were in the city.

Breath still held, he watched as Rotund raised the gun once again. "Hasta la vista, Carmic…" Rotund stopped mid-sentence, and stepped back, Chuck was confused. What was it now? Not that he should be complaining, but the tension was killing him. The sound of breaking glass scared the crap out of Chuck, and he hit the floor as gunshots immediately followed. Two of Rotund's henchmen fell down, bodies riddled with bullets, as Chuck turned over on his back and saw Casey, the Tarzan version, standing in the room, gun a blazing, having swung in on his rope. Hearing the sound of splintering wood, Chuck turned back towards Rotund and the two surviving goons just in time to see Sarah break through the door and take out one more of the henchmen with a shot between the eyes. Ouch. Just a few seconds ago, Chuck thought, that would have been him.

That left Rotund and one accomplice the only ones alive. They both fired at Casey, who rolled to his left and then scrambled, dressed in all black, but having no visible body armor on. Sarah fired into the back of the one remaining henchman, filling him with lead until he hit the floor. Rotund was the only one left.

Eyes filled with fear, he turned around and pointed his gun at Sarah, but he already had two guns pointed at him at this time.

"Give it up, Rotund. We've got you." Sarah managed to say that without panting or showing any sign of the physical exertions she had been through.

"Not on your life," he grunted. That lead to a Casey grunt, and Chuck saw Casey's finger tighten on the trigger, but not pull. The orders were to take Rotund in alive. Suddenly, Chuck saw Rotund make a slight move towards Sarah, and Chuck flashed…

~an ancient Chinese symbol~

Body taking control over mind, Chuck jumped up off the ground without support from his arms, in a single leap threw himself over right behind Rotund, and in less than a second snapped the large man's rather considerable neck, killing him instantly. The dead body hit the floor with a thud, and the sound gave Chuck control of his body once again. Sarah and Casey were staring at him, once again. Just like in the Intersect room. Would they ever get used to this? Would he?

'Damn it Chuck, did you have to kill him?" Casey walked over, stance of a lion, getting in Chuck's face. Just a week ago, Chuck never would have imagined Casey ever saying something like that to him.

"It wasn't his fault Casey, lay off." Sarah walked up to Chuck as well, cool as a cat, at least on the outside. "He can't control when his… when he flashes."

Chuck laughed. "If I could, I would have done it long before you two showed up."

"Excuse me if we weren't the ones who got kidnapped in the biggest maze of a warehouse I've ever seen, Bartowski." Casey's nose seemed to get a lot bigger every time he got mad.

"Oh, I didn't mean that as an evaluation of your skills," stammered Chuck.

"We know Chuck, we know." Sarah got closer to him, and pulled an invisible hair off his shirt. His brown eyes met her blue, and sparks flew between them. They still hadn't had a chance to really talk about that morning in the hotel room, and it was driving Chuck crazy. With the past week being filled with dozens of tests on the new Intersect, there really was no time to discuss feelings. And considering how hard it was for Sarah to do that, Chuck was starting to become unsure if said conversation would ever happen. MORGAN! He hadn't yelled at that bearded little demon yet for raiding his wallet. Something else to do. "Are you sure that you are okay?" Sarah's hand stopped picking invisible hairs off his shoulder long enough to slightly caress Chucks neck. Staring into one another's eyes, as if in a trance, Sarah let her hand rest there. Her touch was maddening. How he wanted to touch her neck… no, he didn't want that. He wanted more. He wanted to run his mouth down her neck, devouring it in a way they both would love… if she would let him. If that morning in the hotel room hadn't just been instincts or some other excuse Chuck was deathly afraid she would hide behind.

"Gee golly Chuck, your neck looks so soft. Can I touch it too?" A giant smile formed on Casey's face. Why was it whenever Casey smiled, it was normally at Chuck's expense?

Sarah's hand quickly left Chucks left and returned to her side. They both stared down, like awkward children with their hands caught in the cookie jar. Crap, what was it that she had asked before she touched him, in that soft, gentle, yet incredibly sexy way? Keep the mind on track Bartowski. You can do it. Damn, he just called himself Bartowski. Last thing he wanted was his mind becoming Casey. That was scarier than Rotund with a gun. Come on, what had she asked… oh, that's it.

"I'm feeling fine, thanks." He quickly smiled at her, than lowered his gaze again. Now he was unintentionally staring at her breasts. That was nice too, but the last thing he wanted was a reaction. He was already starting to get there with the neck caress, and if he started to show, Casey would never let him live it down.

"Well, if you two are done being frisky, let's go. I buzzed the cleanup team, they are on their way. We have to go report to Beckman." Chuck winced at that. Rotund was dead, and he had killed him. Chuck was used to screwing up missions occasionally, but never in this way. Never so permanently. Casey sneered at Chuck. "You can be the one to explain to her why Rotund is dead." Oh great…

On their way out the door, Chuck suddenly remembered something. "Oy, Casey, I was wondering if I could be trained on what the names of guns are and such…"

Casey turned and looked at Chuck. "Don't make fun of me, Bartowski." He then kept walking.

Chuck looked at Sarah. "I was being serious… Sarah?" She was smiling. Hmm. All thoughts of firearms left Chuck's mind.

"So that is why you two are responsible." Chuck thought he couldn't shrivel back away from the screen anymore, but he was sure as hell trying. Beckman was mad, but not at him. Sarah and Casey had failed to control the Intersect, Beckman had said. Chuck wasn't sure how that was possible, they had had issues with controlling the regular Intersect, much less this new, dangerous one.

"Understood, General," they both said in unison. Chuck stopped himself from giggling. They were scared silly of this petite redheaded woman. Of course, Chuck was too, but he wasn't a trained agent.

"This was your first mission with the new Intersect, and it's a failure. Not a great way to start out." Beckman's nose looked a little red, maybe she had a cold? Chuck thought back on past experiences when he had tried to be nice to the General and decided against asking about her wellbeing. Especially since her wrath wasn't directed at him, for once.

"So, on the heels of this mission, I have another one for you. Yes, its rather soon after the last, but this is better, you won't dwell on your failures." Sarah seemed to take each insult personally. Chuck really wanted to defend her, but knew that would probably make it worse. "This one is a personal request of the Director of the CIA." All three of the team members perked up after hearing that. Great, Chuck thought, more pressure.

"A personal friend of the Director's daughter has gone missing. The father is Renald Dixon, the 17 year old daughter Renee. You three are too fly to their home, and see if the Intersect flashes on anything that could lead to her whereabouts. All relevant information will be included in a file on your flight." Beckman smiled, a strange thing. "You are only assigned to try and find information, but seeing as trouble follows you around, be sure to pack appropriately." Chuck smiled. That should make Casey happy, lots of weapons. "Miss Dixon's birthday is in a week, if at all possible it would be nice to have her back by then."

Sarah spoke up. "General, do we have any idea who kidnapped her?"

"Agent Walker, we aren't even sure she was kidnapped. She may have simply ran away. The family is extremely wealthy, it's not like she wouldn't have the funds. Or, she could be in a life-threatening situation. It's up to you three to find out. You have all your normal resources behind you. Your flight leaves in four hours." The screen went black. Not much for goodbyes, was she?

"Lets meet back here in two and a half. On the dot." Casey walked up the steps of Castle. Chuck thought he was still pissed off at getting reprimanded by Beckman. Chuck turned to look at Sarah.

"Your hair is very pretty," he blurted out. Where the hell did that come from, that wasn't at all what he had meant to say. Both of their cheeks turned a slight red color. Sarah looked at him.

"I just have it up, out of the way so it doesn't get in my way on a mission."

"Well, I like it. A lot." At this point, Chuck was wondering if he would ever breath properly again. Were they finally going to have their little talk. Dare he dream that the talk might lead to a return trip to a bed? Heck, he'd settle for just a kiss right now.

Sarah breathed in deeply, muttering something about time. "We have to get ready, Chuck. We'll have plenty of time to talk later."

"Really?" Chuck's stomach dropped, a feeling he had gotten used to the past two years.

"It's a long flight to Switzerland." Sarah reached behind her, grabbing her backpack off the table, then walked up to Chuck and kissed him on the cheek. The joy in Chuck's mind almost drowned out her words. "You look nice too," she said lamely. Chuck's heart rose again. What a roller coaster. Sarah walked up the steps to the Orange Orange, her hips moving in such a way that intoxicated Chuck.

After a minute, he followed, pausing to look in a mirror. He looked like crap, after that last mission. But she said I look nice… Chuck jogged up the steps, smiling.

Renald Dixon sat in his study, staring at his cell phone, hands shaking, mind wandering. He had just received word that his friend, the Director, was sending his best team to the mansion. Renald had been never been so grateful. He already had all of his personal guards out searching, but CIA trained agents were easily the best shot he had.

He resisted the urge to go up and sit on his daughter's bed again. That was too emotionally grating on him. As a single father, he had spent so much time with his Renee, his little princess. They had a great relationship. Flipping open his cellular, at picture of his daughter stared back at him. Tears filled his eyes. He would find her. He would. He brought his lips up to kiss the picture when a blade went through his heart. Eyes wide, he fell forward, phone tumbling out of his hand and onto the ground. As blood filled his lungs, his last thoughts were of Renee. He slumped forward, dead, on the desk.

A gloved hand picked up the still open cell phone, and looked at the picture. Snapping it shut, the hand threw it in the nearest trash can. Taking his own cell phone out of his pocket, the middle aged man called the only number in the address book. One ring and he picked up.

"Is it done?"

"Renald is dead, along with all the mansion employees."

"The replacements will be there within the hour."

"You managed to find a Renald look-a-like?

"A few modifications had to be made, but yes, we found someone who would suffice."

"And Frank's… protégée?"

"On the way as well. Enough with the questions. You may be closest to me now that Frank is gone, but that doesn't give you free reign."

"Yes sir, my apologies."

"Stay there as the Butler. You will be the first to greet our guests."

"Excellent."

"Stick to the plan. We are going to have the human Intersect, finally, within our grasp. Nothing can go wrong. Nothing will go wrong. Understand?"

"Yes. Mr. Charles Bartowski had better enjoy his flight, it will be the last hours of freedom of his life."