Disclaimer: I do not own StarGate or Heroes. If I owned StarGate, there would be a lot more Lorne. If I owned Heroes, I would know what was going to happen next, and I wouldn't have almost cried when I found out that there's no Heroes next week.
A/N: Thanks to all of you for your reviews and patience with my being out of town and update.
Nikki stared at Nathan. Questions raced through her mind. Why was Nathan here? Where was "here? Did he know what was going on? And most importantly, whose side was he on?
"N-Nathan?" she asked in a trembling voice.
"It's OK," he said soothingly. "I came to help." He helped her to her feet and looked at her. "Are you all right?" Nikki stared at him, and then burst into tears as he pulled her into a hug.
"I was s-so s-s-scared!" she whimpered. "Th-th-they just grabbed me….."
"I know," he murmured, stroking her hair. "I'm sorry."
Alarm bells went off in Nikki's mind and she pulled back, staring at him.
"For what?" she asked.
"Do you trust me?"
Before she could answer, the floor around them opened up and five giant rings flew up around them. Nikki felt Nathan's arms tighten around her before they were enveloped in a white light.
It was gone before she could scream, and she stumbled away from Nathan, staring in horror at the golden walls that now surrounded them.
"Nathan!" she cried, feeling rage from Jessica and shock from Gina mingle with her own fear. "What did you do? Where are we?"
"Everything's going to be fine," he said calmly.
"So you've arrived," said a loud, amplified voice behind them. Yelping, Nikki spun around, backing over to Nathan. A man stood there, wearing lavish golden robes and a strange metal glove. He walked slowly into the room, looking at Nathan. "She is the one with the strength?" Nathan nodded and the man approached Nikki, appraising her. "I must admit," he said softly. "It is often surprising how……beautiful your race can be." He looked at Nikki. "Tell me, how does it feel, this strength?" Nikki couldn't find the words to answer him. "Tell me," he prompted again, sounding impatient.
"Answer him, Nikki," Nathan advised. Nathan. Nikki turned on him, feeling the rage of all three personalities blending into one.
"You Betrayed US!!!!!!" she screamed, lunging at him. She heard a shout and then felt a surge of electricity all over her body. The pain engulfed her and then there was darkness.
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Peter glanced out the back window of the van for the hundredth time. Claire shot him a warning look and poked him.
"Stop it!" she hissed. He rolled his eyes at her and got an elbow in the side. He glanced over at her friend, Cassie, who was staring blankly out the window. He sighed. As much as he'd hated to bring her with them, there was no guarantee that those men back at the house would have left her alone. And Peter refused to let her get hurt on their account.
Mohinder turned onto a dirt road, and Peter heard Gabriel let out a low growl as the sleeping Molly was jostled. He suppressed a smile. It seemed like ages since Gabriel had figured out how to control the "hunger" they both shared. While there were still some in their group – Noah Bennett and Mohinder among them – who didn't fully trust the reformed Sylar (or Gabriel, as everyone else insisted upon calling him), he had become a part of the family. Granted, he still had what Molly called "Boogeyman moments", when he stared at someone using their power before barring himself in his room, and he and Peter still had a regular mediation time in the day to suppress the hunger. Still, Gabriel was a part of the family.
Peter closed his eyes and thought again about Nikki. He felt panic rise in his chest as he saw that her location had changed……again. Guilt washed over him. We should've left before the attack began………but then everyone else would've been caught. Could I have sacrificed all of them to save her? No. Nikki would've wanted it this way.
The van stopped and Peter opened his eyes. They were in the old shed, almost to the safehouse. Mohinder leaned out the window and entered his passcode and then the floor lowered them down into the safehouse. Peter unbuckled his seatbelt as Claire and the others got out. He looked at Cassie.
"Welcome to our safehouse," he said grimly.
"What's the plan?" Meredith asked, moving to one side as Gabriel passed with the sleeping Molly.
"You all stay here," Peter commanded. "Gabriel and I are going to find Nikki."
"Where is she?" Micah asked.
"Her location's changed," Peter answered. "For some reason, I can't pin a city or state on it, so we're going to her last known location: an underground bunker here in town." Cassie got out behind him and he looked at her before looking at Meredith and Mohinder. "Keep them safe," he said before stepping back, laying a hand on Gabriel's shoulder, and teleporting.
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Nathan watched as two Jaffa dragged the body of their fellow soldier out of the room. He looked at Ba'al, who was calmly watching Nikki be borne away on a stretcher.
"You didn't have to kill him," he said. The Goa'uld turned to look at him.
"He disobeyed my orders," he said coolly. "I said not to enter the room. He entered the room and injured her."
"Probably best," Nathan said with a casual shrug.
"Are you certain of that?" Ba'al asked. "She didn't seem to be much of a threat." The politician stared at him.
"Don't underestimate Nikki Sanders," he warned. "She may seem like nothing, but she's more dangerous than a fleet of these ships." Ba'al chuckled.
"I find that hard to believe," he commented before walking over to his throne. "Inform me when the Tau'ri woman wakes up!" Nathan watched him.
"You have no idea," he commented with a chuckle.
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"I still don't understand how we plan to stop them," Sam said as Malcolm hurried through the halls of the SGC. "If Peter Petrelli is as powerful as you say-!"
"He is!" Barrett interrupted. "You have no idea how dangerous he is!" She stared at him and he sighed. "We're hanging a net above the entrance to Nikki Sanders' cell. It's modified to deliver a low voltage shock to anyone or anything it drops on. Now it's not fatal, but it'll knock Petrelli out. After that, we just have to get a Tok'ra mind device on him, and then we have the location of the others."
"And his brother?" Sam asked.
"We've been able to capture him in the past, it's easy enough." Barrett said with a shrug. He looked at his watch. "Come on, they should be arriving any minute." Sam followed him around the corner, feeling her heart race with anticipation.
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Gabriel looked at Peter as soon as they arrived at their destination.
"Look for guards," Peter commanded. Gabriel nodded and hurried to peer both ways down the hall.
"I don't see any-!" he began, turning back just in time to see Peter, taking a step towards the door, crash to the floor under the weight of a heavy net. "PETER!!!!" he yelled. "Teleport out! NOW!!!" Peter rolled over, further wrapping himself in the net. In horror, Gabriel sensed the sudden surge of electricity as it flew over the net, covering Peter as well. "Phase, Peter! Phase!" The electricity snapped and flew over his brother's skin, causing him to grimace in pain. As Gabriel took a step towards his brother, Peter started screaming in pain. Gabriel's mind flooded with panic, but he managed to calm down long enough to reach out and pull at the net holding Peter. It started to shift, but then stopped: attached to the wall by a heavy chain. Growling in annoyance, Gabriel yanked, fully prepared to pull the entire wall down.
"RUN!!!!!!!" Peter howled, writhing in pain. "Aaauuugh, get out of here! GO!" Gabriel turned to run, and found himself facing a wall of men, all aiming weapons at him. Rage overwhelmed Gabriel's sense and he lunged out at them with his mind, flinging the soldiers back. More ran into the gap, with more guns, causing more rage.
"You did this!" he snarled, glaring at them. "You people hurt my brother!" He took a step forward and then felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck. Reaching back, his fingers brushed the soft tip of a tranquilizer dart. Then he felt nausea take over and he collapsed, unconscious before he hit the floor.
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Claire's eyes snapped open, sleep ended, and she sat bolt upright on the couch with a cry.
"Peter!" The door to the bedroom flew open and Meredith ran in.
"What is it, Claire?" she asked.
"I-I just got this jolt….." Claire said shakily. She looked at her biological mother and then stood up and walked dazedly into the next room. Cassie was in there, seated at the counter, and she looked up sharply as Claire entered.
"Hey," she said, chewing on her lower lip.
"Hey," Claire responded, hesitating. "Do you mind if I join you?" Cassie shrugged and Claire hopped up onto a bar stool beside her.
"Can I ask you something?" Cassie asked after a moment's silence.
"Sure," Claire replied.
"What are you?" Cassie blurted out. Claire started laughing, but then noticed that her friend wasn't sharing the amusement.
"Uh, sorry. It depends on who you ask," she said, fiddling with the placemat. "Peter calls us 'heroes', Mohinder calls us 'evolved humans', Gabriel calls us 'special' and the government…………well, they call us 'mutants'."
"And that's the reason you hate people who experiment on human beings?" Cassie asked coldly.
"Of course it is!" Claire said in a fierce whisper. "You have no idea what they could do to us if we got caught. They would never let us go!"
"Is that why you kidnapped me?"
"Kidnapped?" Claire cried, leaping off her chair. "We were protecting you!"
"From what?" Cassie demanded. "You don't know that those people were going to hurt me! Or you!"
"Because naturally, the government just comes charging across the lawn towards your house on a regular basis!"
"Maybe they suspected you of something!"
"Yeah, they did! They suspected that we were different!" Claire growled. "You don't know that they were dangerous, Cassie. But we do." Then she stormed out again.
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"We've been forced to keep Petrelli unconscious via a low electrical current running through his body," Barrett explained as he and Daniel headed down the hallway towards the room where Gabriel Petrelli was being held. "Fortunately, we can keep Gabriel lucid but powerless with a simple drug."
"Is it harmful?" Daniel asked.
"Not for the likes of him," Barrett answered before they entered the cell. Gabriel was sitting in a metal chair, cuffed to it. He shook his head weakly and looked at them.
"Where's……where's Peter? What did you do with Peter?" he demanded.
"Some serial killer," Daniel muttered. "He sounds more like a lost kid."
"Don't be fooled, Dr. Jackson," Barrett answered. "He's killed more innocent civilians than you can imagine." He pulled up a chair and sat down. "Mr. Sylar-!"
"My name is Gabriel," the man cut in coldly. "I want to see my brother. Where is my brother?"
"He's being held in another room," Barrett answered.
"Let me see him!" Gabriel commanded, straining against his bonds.
"Why don't you calm down?" the NID agent asked. Gabriel glared at him. "Where are the others….Gabriel?"
"What makes you think that I would betray them?"
"Because you don't want to let anyone get hurt?"
"What are you talking about?" Gabriel demanded.
"The President is considering initiating an APB on everyone associated with you. If that happens, your family might get hurt." He shoved himself backwards as Gabriel lunged at him.
"You stay away from them!" the prisoner yelled.
"I can guarantee your family's safety!" Malcolm continued. "I give you my word; no one will touch them if you cooperate." He stood up and put his chair in the corner. "I'll give you some time to think about it."
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Outside Cheyenne Mountain, there was a soft thud as a young woman landed on the ground. Glancing around furtively, she darted over to where there was a large hatch. Grabbing the handle, she gave it a yank. It resisted and the number console beeped. The young woman huffed irritably before hopping back and pointing her finger at it. A blast of blue electricity shot from her finger and hit the number console, causing it to explode. Smirking at the thought of how much that cost, she pulled open the hatch and then began her descent.
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Janet glanced over at Peter Petrelli, who still lay dormant on his bed.
"How is he?" asked a voice, causing her to jump. Daniel walked into the room. "Sorry," he apologized.
"That's all right," she said with a laugh. "Everyone's so busy talking about how dangerous these people are, I guess I'm just jittery." Daniel nodded and looked over at Peter.
"How's he doing?" he asked.
"He's in and out," she answered.
"Does he say anything?"
"Sometimes."
Daniel Jackson to the briefing room! Daniel Jackson to the briefing room!
Daniel sighed and patted Janet's arm before heading out.
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Nikki stirred. Her head was pounding. Groaning slightly, she sat up and looked around. She was in a smallish golden room, lying on a cot. Looking around, she saw a mirror on the wall. Gasping, she ran over to look into it. To her immense relief, Jessica was staring back at her.
"Nikki!" she said urgently. Nikki stared at her and then started talking,
"Ohmigosh, what's going on? Where are we? Who was that guy?"
"Calm down!" Jessica commanded. "Look. Do you want me to get us out of here?"
"Wh-what are you saying?" Nikki asked in a trembling voice.
"Do you want me to take over?" Jessica asked. Nikki bit her lip. Whenever Jessica or Gina took over, it seemed like the consequences always came when Nikki was in charge.
"Nikki?" Jessica asked quietly. "Do you want me to take over?" Nikki looked at her and then swallowed before answering.
"Yes." She said, clenching her fists. Jessica nodded and then assumed control of the body. She looked at Nikki, now in the mirror. Nikki let out a shuddery breath and nodded to Jessica, who ran a hand through her hair before sitting back down on the cot. She couldn't help but smile triumphantly at the thought of that man in robes coming in, expecting Nikki. He would be surprised. Jessica chuckled. She'd get them out of there…….but not before these people paid.
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Janet looked up as Peter Petrelli's monitor started beeping. Setting her clipboard down, she hurried over and looked at it, wondering what the matter was. Without any warning, the patient jolted awake, grabbing her arm. Janet cried out in shock and tried to pull free as he stared at her.
"Where is he?" he gasped. "Gabriel…..where…..is he all right?"
"He's…….fine!" Janet burst out. He frowned and then he saw that he was gripping her arm. Releasing her abruptly, he laid back, wincing in pain slightly.
"He's safe…." He breathed. "Good…….Nikki?"
"I don't know," Janet answered. Just then, the door behind him burst open, causing Janet to whirl. A blonde woman stormed in, her fist crackling with blue electricity.
"Get away from him!" she commanded. Another man walked in, carrying a gun. At the sight of him, Janet gasped.
"Henry!" The SGC technician smiled grimly at her.
"I'm sorry about this, Janet," he said sadly. "Get over against the wall. Now." Janet obeyed and the woman hurried over, yanking the IVs and blankets off of Peter.
"Elle!" he said weakly. She smiled at him.
"Hey."
He sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, catching his breath. He looked at her. "How did you…?"
"I was on the way when Henry called me," she said with a shrug. "Decided to come save your a--." He smiled and she patted his knee.
"C'mon," she said determinedly. "Let's get you out of here."
"Gabriel," Peter said, struggling to stand. "We have to get him."
"What about her?" Henry asked, motioning with his gun towards Janet. Peter shook his head.
"Leave her," he said firmly.
"We can't leave witnesses!" Henry argued. Peter waved his hand and the gun flew out of Henry's hand. The SGC technician blanched, taking a step back when Peter moved in between him and Janet.
"No one dies, Henry," Peter growled. "Now go find Gabriel! Elle and I'll deal with her!" Henry's Adam's apple bobbed as he ran out. Peter looked back at Janet. "Ten minutes," he requested. She stared at him, wide-eyed.
"Peter," Elle urged. "We have to go." He looked at her and then grabbed a robe before running out with her. Janet stared after them and then looked at the clock. She glanced from it towards the alarm button and then took a step towards the button.
"Going somewhere, Janet?" asked a familiar voice. Janet whirled around. Henry stood there, glaring at her. He shook his head. "You couldn't leave well enough alone, could you? You had to go and disobey Peter! I'm sorry to have to do this, Janet. But I can't leave any witnesses." Then he pulled out a knife. Janet screamed as he lunged at her. She tried to leap backwards, but there was nowhere to go. Just when it seemed like Henry would stab her, there was a flood of blue sparks across his body and he dropped to the floor like a stone. Shaking, Janet looked up and saw Peter Petrelli standing in the doorway, hand still outstretched to unleash more electricity if Henry moved. He looked up at Janet, lowering his arm.
"Are you all right?" he asked, concerned. Heart pounding, Janet nodded. Peter nodded as well and then looked at her.
"I have to go," he said. "Security should be here soon." Then he was gone.
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Gabriel looked up as his cell door opened and two people walked in. He blinked and then squinted at them.
"Peter?" he asked, stunned. His younger brother smiled at him.
"Hey," he said cheerfully. "You need a hand?" Then Gabriel's cuffs were gone and he was being pulled to his feet and hurried over to the third person. He stared at her.
"Elle?" he gasped. She stared coldly at him.
"Sylar."
Then Peter was teleporting them out of there……..to safety.
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Daniel was in his office when the alarm sounded.
Security team to the infirmary! Security team to the infirmary!
"The infirmary?" Daniel said to himself. "……….Janet!" He ran to the room, where the security teams were wheeling out a gurney. Daniel stared at its occupant before dashing into the room.
"Janet!" he cried, rushing over to her. "Are you OK?" She nodded shakily. "What happened?"
"Peter woke up.......he and another blonde woman….broke out Gabriel….Henry was in on it! He wanted to kill me, but Peter stopped him," she explained.
"Peter Petrelli rescued you?" Agent Barrett asked, arriving just then with the rest of SG-1. Janet nodded, still shivering.
"Janet, are you all right?" Sam demanded. Janet nodded again.
"The prisoners have escaped," Barrett announced
"Gabriel and Peter?" Sam asked. Barrett nodded. "They didn't take Nikki Sanders with them?"
"No," Barrett answered. "She's still in her cell. We checked."
"That's not possible," Sam said, shaking her head.
"What do you mean?"
"I was just there! The cell is empty."
"Well she didn't just vanish!" Barrett protested. Sam looked thoughtful.
"Maybe she did," she said. "Come with me." Curious, Daniel and Janet followed them down to the surveillance room. Sitting down at the computer, Sam pulled up the video for the cell and played it. It showed Nikki Sanders waking up, pacing, laying on the floor, standing to greet Nathan Petrelli, and then…..static.
"Who was that guy with her?" Daniel asked.
"Nathan Petrelli," Sam answered.
"Petrelli?" Jack repeated. "As in Peter Petrelli?"
"His brother. He's a politician who's made several…..generous donations to the NID." Barrett explained. "He knew Nikki Sanders and asked if he could come talk to her. Convince her to cooperate."
"And did anyone see him leave?" Jack inquired.
"We had other priorities!" Barrett protested.
"So what you're saying," Jack said coldly. "Is that a possible threat got onto this base and let his buddy out to play!"
"Petrelli had no reason to lead us on!"
"We held his brother captive! Something tells me he might take that a little bit personally!" Jack snapped.
"They didn't have any contact," Barrett said dismissively.
"Do you know that for a fact?" Sam asked. When Barrett didn't answer, she looked at Jack. "Colonel, I'd like to take a look around the cell."
"Teal'c, go with her." Jack ordered before pointing to Barrett. "You, with me. Now." Daniel watched the two pairs go off and then looked at Janet.
"Is there anything you need?" he asked gently. Janet shook her head.
"No thanks."
"Well, if you do need anything…."
"Thank you, Daniel." Janet said gratefully. "But right now I just want to be alone." Daniel nodded and headed out, glancing back at her, standing all alone. He sighed and then kept walking. There was nothing he could do.
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Cassie looked up as the door at the far end of the kitchen opened and Peter, Gabriel and another woman walked in.
"Peter!" she cried. Instantly, they heard doors opening and voices shouting. In a few minutes, the entire group was assembled in the kitchen. Cassie watched Molly climb into Gabriel's lap while Claire just flew into Peter's arms.
"Where'd you guys go?" Meredith asked.
"Some underground bunker called StarGate Command," Gabriel said. Cassie's heart began to pound.
"My mom works there!"
"She's not one of the security teams though, right?" the blonde woman asked.
"Why?" Cassie demanded. The blonde looked a bit sheepish.
"I might've gone a bit....overboard," she suggested with an embarrassed smile. Claire looked at her.
"Elle?"
"Hey cheerleader," was the response.
"Where's Mom?" Micah demanded, his voice trembling slightly.
"I don't know," Peter answered. "We were ambushed before we could investigate the cell."
"Ambushed?" Claire cried, looking alarmed.
"We're all right," Peter assured her. "But our inside man didn't make it," he added, looking at Gabriel.
"Don't look at me," his brother answered. "You're the one who shocked him."
"What?" Mohinder demanded.
"He went after one of the doctors there," Peter said. Cassie gasped.
"My mom is a doctor!" she cried. Everyone stared at her. "Who was the doctor?"
"I don't know," Peter said gently. "The doctor wasn't hurt, though, OK? I promise."
"What about Mom?" Micah persisted. Just then, an alarm began to sound. Mohinder ran to a nearby laptop and began typing rapidly.
"Someone just entered the shack!" he announced.
"Lock us down!" Peter ordered. Mohinder hit a button and the lights dimmed. All the doors were instantly sealed. Peter looked around. "No one in or out!" he announced.
"What about calling my parents?" Cassie asked. Peter looked at her.
"I'm sorry," he said softly. "But right now, I have to do what's best for all of us." He looked at Mohinder. "Keep an eye on them. The second they're out, I want to know about it."
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"This is odd," Sam said, looking around the cell. "There aren't any air vents or anywhere they could've gotten out." Teal'c studied the room from the center.
"And yet they are nowhere to be found," he said. "The guard outside did not remember Senator Petrelli exiting the cell."
"It's as if they just disappeared," Sam said, walking over to face him. Before Teal'c could respond, the floor opened up and five rings flew up around them, transporting them to a Goa'uld mothership. Sam looked around.
"Well, this isn't good," she commented.
There! Another – hopefully long enough – chapter! And yes, I am still out of town, I just got the chance to update so I can work on another chapter. Enjoy, and don't forget to review!