Disclaimer: I do not own StarGate or Heroes. They belong to NBC and the Sci-Fi people.
A/N: Thanks to all of you who reviewed and told me what you think! It was really encouraging!
Noah Bennett stared at the man. Even after months of captivity and interrogations, he stood as tall as he ever had. His hair was neatly parted and his horn rimmed glasses were still as pristine as they'd been since before his capture.
"Well Noah," prompted the man Noah knew as NID Agent Malcolm Barrett. "How do we stop them?" Noah glanced at the other occupants in the room before answering the agent.
"You don't have kids, do you Malcolm?" he asked with a sad smile.
"And how would you know?" the agent demanded, all business.
"Because to a parent, there is nothing on this earth more important than the safety of your children," Noah answered. "You can kill me and make it last for two hours or two years. Nothing you say will make me cooperate." Malcolm opened his mouth to speak, but just then the door opened and a man stuck his head in.
"Agent Barrett," he announced. "We have video inside the house."
"Put it up!" Barrett commanded, spinning in his chair to see the screen. Instantly, there was a video of a fancy kitchen in it. Noah's heart skipped a beat: Claire. She was there, in the kitchen, along with Peter, Gabriel, Monica, Micah, Mohinder, and Meredith Gordon. Noah studied his daughter. She looked healthy, but also worried about something.
"Who's the other teenager?" Malcolm demanded. "The girl with Micah Sanders, who is she? Get her I.D. I want it now!"
"What are we going to do?" Meredith was asking.
"We have to find her!" Micah insisted. When Meredith refused to meet his pleading eyes, he turned to Peter. "Please!" Peter stood up and walked over the boy. Noah scrutinized him. He stood taller and looked more……….powerful, somehow. He wasn't the dreamer Angela had claimed him to be, Noah realized. Peter was their leader now.
In the video, he laid a hand on Micah's shoulder.
"We will," he said reassuringly. "But first we have to get you to the safehouse," he added, looking at the four minors.
"What? No!" Monica cried.
"But what about you?" Micah demanded.
"Do we have to?" Molly asked, looking up at Peter, who wisely avoided looking into the twelve year old's pleading eyes. Noah hid a smile. He's learning.
"Yeah," Peter answered. "Mohinder, you and Meredith take them. Gabriel and I are going to go find Nikki."
Barrett whirled around.
"I want the guard on Nikki Sanders tripled!" he ordered. Onscreen, Meredith and Mohinder began herding the kids out of the room. Molly ran over to Peter and hugged him tightly.
"You be careful!" she ordered. Peter smiled and ruffled her hair.
"Promise," he answered. She hurried after the others and Peter looked at Claire, who hadn't moved. "You, too."
"No," she answered stubbornly. "I'm coming with you."
"Claire-!"
"I can help!"
Noah bit back a sigh. That was his Claire. Always wanting to lend a hand.
"Look, Claire," Peter said gently. "I promised your dad I'd protect you. I'm not gonna put you in harm's way!" Even with the grainy image the camera was giving them, Noah could see the pain in his daughter's face.
"Which father did you promise?" she asked coldly. "Noah? Or Nathan?" With that, she stormed out. Peter looked stunned before whipping around.
"Claire!" A door slamming was his only answer. Sighing, he flopped into a chair, running a hand through his dark hair. Gabriel straightened from where he'd been leaning against the counter and approached his brother.
"What we going to do?" he asked softly. Peter glanced at him and then stared at the ceiling….and then directly at the camera. Noah felt a chill go down his spine at the look of absolute fury in Peter's eyes. He stood up and looked at the camera.
"I'll tell you what we're not going to do," he said, not tearing his eyes from the camera. "Whoever's watching this," he said, keeping one hand beneath the table. "Let me just give you a simple warning: Stay away from us." Then he brought his hand up, crackling with lightning. He hurled it at the camera with such deliberate force that Noah took a step back, expecting the lightning to hit them. The woman sitting at the table let out a gasp and leapt back as the camera fizzled and then died. Noah hid a smirk. These people had no idea who they were messing with.
--
"Mom? I'm home!" Cassie called as she walked into the house. She saw a note on the front table and grabbed it.
Cassie,
Working late. Could you run to the store and get some more milk?
Thanks!
Mom
Cassie smiled and fished around in her pocket for her wallet. If she didn't have the cash, she could always go get some out of the jar in the attic. Her wallet wasn't in her jeans, nor was it in her backpack. Groaning, Cassie remembered setting it on the table in Claire's basement. Rolling her eyes, she scribbled a note of explanation to her mom and then grabbed her keys and her jacket before hurrying out again.
--
Claire tossed her duffel bag next to Molly's and then glanced towards the kitchen, where Peter and Gabriel were still planning their next move. She sighed. I shouldn't have snapped at him like that, she thought. He was just trying to protect me. Sighing again, Claire headed for the kitchen, knocking on the doorframe. Both Peter and Gabriel looked up.
"Hey," she said softly.
"Hey," Peter replied. Gabriel glanced between them and then cleared his throat.
"I'm going to go get my jacket," he said. "Something tells me it's gonna be a cold night,"
"Thanks," Claire said softly as he passed her. Although she was able to see him as more than a monster now, calling him "Uncle Gabriel" was still a long way off. He didn't seem to mind, fortunately.
Peter walked over to face her, his hands in his pockets. Claire bit her lip before speaking.
"I owe you an apology," she began. "I'm sorry I said that to you earlier. I know you're just trying to keep me safe." He didn't say anything and Claire felt panic well up in her chest. "Please say something……anything. I'll go with Mohinder; I just need to know that you forgive me." Peter looked up and Claire's entire body relaxed: He was smiling.
"Claire," he said. "Nothing you say could ever hurt me so badly that I wouldn't forgive you." Sighing in relief, Claire hugged him. He seemed to relax as he rested his chin on her hair. "I just need to know that you're safe," he whispered.
"I will be," she promised, looking up at him. "If you will." He smiled and gave her an extra squeeze.
"I will be," he answered. Claire nodded and headed for the door to get ready to leave.
--
In the NID briefing room, Daniel stared at the static video, still reliving the moment the electricity had hit. Agent Barrett stood up.
"Gray and Petrelli should have teleported out by now," he said calmly. "We can take the others into custody." He glanced back at Noah with a smirk. "It appears we didn't need your help after all." Then he stood up, glancing at SG-1. "Thank you for your cooperation. We'll send units down to StarGate Command to apprehend Petrelli and Gray."
"What's going to happen to them?" Daniel asked.
"I'm not at liberty to discuss that," the agent answered. Daniel leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.
"You're going to kill them." He said bluntly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Noah stiffen.
"Dr. Jackson-!" Barrett began, but Daniel cut in.
"Why? What did they ever do to you?" he demanded before rising and storming out.
--
Cassie hurried up the walkway, praying that she'd have time to get milk and go home before her mom got off of work. Maybe then she wouldn't get yelled at for being careless. Sighing, she pushed the doorbell and waited.
--
Barrett spoke into his mike.
"Take the house." Instantly, the vans across the street were opening and men were pouring out, dashing silently towards the house.
"Wait," Sam said, looking at the monitor, which now showed the exterior of the house. "Who is that? Right there, on the front porch? Tell me that's not-!"
"Cassie!" Jack gasped. He turned on Barrett. "Call your men back!" Barrett nodded and grabbed his mike again.
"Fall back!"
--
Peter was just about to teleport himself and Gabriel to the place they'd seen Nikki at when the doorbell rang. Everyone froze, their eyes locked on the door. Peter approached it, and he could hear Mohinder and Meredith hurrying the children out of sight. Gabriel remained, waiting. Peter opened the door, thinking about all the weapons he could use, in case it was an enemy.
"Cassie!" he gasped. "What are you doing here?"
"I think I left my wallet in your basement…." she explained, looking embarrassed. Peter felt the tension leave his body, and then he saw them: Dozens of men wearing all black heading his way, guns at the ready.
--
"Sir!" said a breathless voice over the mike. "We have an ID. It's Petrelli!" Instantly, Barrett began cursing.
"He's supposed to be gone!"
--
Cassie stopped talking when she saw the look of horror on Peter's face.
"Peter?" she asked. "What is it?"
"Take the house!" yelled a voice behind her. Cassie spun around and screamed at the sight of all the men with guns charging towards her.
"GET DOWN!!" Peter yelled, grabbing her and yanking her into the house, throwing himself over her as a human shield. Behind them, the door slammed and the locks began to lock it automatically. Cassie stared. How was all this happening?
"Peter!" cried a voice. Peter scrambled to his feet, pulling Cassie up with him. She looked around. Several other people were coming out of a hallway, looking scared. A man looked at them and then looked at Peter.
"What do we do?" he asked. Peter glanced over his shoulder and then looked at the man.
"Everyone grab onto me!" he commanded. Everyone hurried forward and did as they were told. Peter looked at Cassie. "This will feel weird." Then he closed his eyes in concentration and it seemed like everything…….stopped. Cassie saw everyone begin to run around again, grabbing things and running to put them somewhere else. Peter looked out the window and Cassie followed his gaze. She gasped in shock. The men outside were frozen in place! What had he done?! She looked at Peter and then backed away.
"It's OK!" he said, noticing her fear. "No one is going to hurt you, I promise. We just need to get you to safety." Cassie nodded and he led her out to the garage, where everyone was climbing into a huge van. They got in and drove out onto the street, carefully avoiding all the still-frozen people. Only when they were safely away did Peter close his eyes and make them move again. Cassie looked around at everyone else. They looked calmer now, more relaxed. Except Peter and the two men. They kept looking around, always on edge. What are these people??
--
Sam stared at the screen as Cassie was yanked inside and the door was slammed. The men ran up and burst in, vanishing inside. A few minutes later, the garage door was opened, and it was empty. Barrett swore again.
"He stopped time," he growled. "They're gone.
"Obviously!" Jack snapped. "Where's Cassie?" Barrett stared at him and then pushed a button on his mike.
"Any sign of the Frasier girl?"
"Negative, sir. The house is empty," was the reply. Barrett groaned.
"They have a hostage!"
--
Nikki opened her eyes when she heard voices outside. Concentrating, she listened in.
"….go with you, sir?"
"No," replied a voice that sounded somewhat familiar. "I can handle this." There was a weird beeping sound and then the door opened and someone walked in. Nikki looked up and then gasped.
"You!"
Presidential candidate Nathan Petrelli smiled grimly at her.
"Hello Nikki."
Bam! Another chapter! I could have written more, but I didn't want to reveal the entire story in one chapter, so we'll leave it to that! Enjoy this chapter, don't forget to review, but no flames please.