Chuck Versus the 42
by: Sam Lincoln
Disclaimer: The characters of Chuck and Alias both belong to their respective rights holders and I make no claim of ownership on either
Summary: The Ring steals information, Chuck has a flash, and who is Sydney Bristow and how is she involved?
Spoilers: This story takes place after the events of Alias and during season 3 of Chuck, in between Chuck Versus the Honeymooners and Chuck Versus the Tooth
Act 3:
"Sorry Chuck, Ellie got called into the hospital, what can I do you for?" Devon asked.
"I was really hoping I could talk to Ellie, I could use her help with something."
"Well maybe I could lend a hand, come on it." He motioned for Chuck to enter the apartment. "Who are your friends?"
Chuck, Isabelle, Sydney and Vaughn entered the apartment. Devon walked over to his stationary bike and draped a towel over his shoulders. "Devon this is Sydney Bristow, her husband Michael Vaughn and their daughter Isabelle. They're friends of Sarah's." Chuck put extra emphasis on Sarah's name and hoped Devon got the hint.
"A friend of Sarah huh? Well any friend of Sarah is a friend of mine. I'd shake your hands but I'm still a little sweaty from my cardio." He took a closer look at Sydney and frowned. "Wait a minute, don't I know you?"
"No I don't think so," Sydney replied.
"No I definitely know you from somewhere," Devon tapped the side of his head. "I never forget a face." He snapped his fingers. "Med school you were dating Danny…" His voice trailed off. "Whoa."
"It's all right, that was a long time ago," Sydney tried, and failed, to keep the sorrow out of her voice. "Somedays it even feels like a different life."
"Wait, hold up, you know Awesome, I mean Devon?" Chuck asked Sydney.
"Ellie and I knew Danny Hecht, Sydney's boyfriend at the time. He was in the cardiology program with me so we met Sydney a couple of times at parties. He was an awesome guy Sydney. Did they ever find out who did it? I remember there was that thing with the reporter, Trippet?"
"Tippen, Will Tippen, he was, is, a friend of mine. He didn't take Danny's death well. That was just a bad couple of years for all of us."
"But you're here now, with your husband and daughter, that's awesome, and you're friends with Sarah. What are the odds of that?" Devon barked out a short nervous laugh.
Chucked played with the ends of his tie. "Yeah what are the odds."
"So what was that favor you needed?" Devon asked Chuck.
"Well Michael and Sydney are in town for business and they need someone they trust to look after Isabelle for a little while, and I was hoping Ellie could do it."
"No problem Chuck, I can keep an eye on the tyke," Devon said.
"Are you sure? I wouldn't want you to put yourself out."
Devon rested a hand on Chuck's shoulder. "Chuck, Danny was a friend. What kind of a bro would I be if I didn't offer to help?"
"If you insist," Sydney said. She glanced over at Chuck who shrugged in acquiescence. "Thank-you so much, this whole trip has been very last minute, and knowing there's someone looking after Isabelle while Michael and I are at our meetings is a real weight off our shoulders."
Devon smiled at Sydney. "Like I said, I'm delighted to help. Chuck, can I talk to you upstairs for a moment? Sydney make yourself at home, there's kale smoothies in the blender if you want a little pick-me-up." He grabbed Chuck by the arm and dragged him upstairs.
"Sydney Bristow is a spy?" Devon asked Chuck as soon as they were in Devon and Ellie's bedroom.
"Apparently she is. Why is that a big deal to you?"
"Why is that a big deal? Because I've played beer pong with her Chuck. Her dead boyfriend and I had classes together. We weren't close friends, but we knew each other. And his girlfriend was a spy, even back then?"
"I'm afraid so buddy."
Devon slumped down onto his be and cradled his head in his hands. "Level with me bro, just how many spies do I know?"
Chuck sat down next to Devon. "I don't know for sure, but I think you've met all of them. And if there are any others I'll let you know the moment I find out."
"You're a good dude Chuck," Devon said. He slapped Chuck on the back. "And I'm not going to bail on the babysitting duty."
"You don't know how much of a help this is," Chuck said while wincing in pain.
"There isn't anything special I should know about this kid right? She's not some kind of spy kid or something?"
Chuck laughed. "No, Isabelle is perfectly normal. She just has a couple spies for parents in all."
Devon nodded and then took a deep breath. "Okay, I can do this. Oh one more thing, you're not going to meeting are you?"
Chuck shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Remember the people who thought you were a spy? They attacked Sydney at her house this morning. Relax, they were after Sydney and I came here looking for Ellie's help. There's no way I would do that if I thought there was a chance in hell I'd be putting her in danger."
"I know Chuck, and it's not like I'm going to say no at this point. I just wanted to know what I was getting into." Devon clapped Chuck on the back again then stood up from the bed. "Besides, this will be awesome practice for when Ellie and I have kids of our own. How hard can it be?" He asked before walking into the bathroom to shower and change.
A short while later — after instructing Devon on what he needed to do to take care of Isabelle — Chuck, Sydney and Vaughn walked out of the Woodcomb's apartment.
"Are you really sure this is a good idea?" Sydney asked Chuck. "I remember playing Devon in beer pong for god's sake."
"That's funny, because he said the same thing about you when we talked about you being a spy," Chuck said.
"What?" Sydney asked. She grabbed Chuck by the lapels and slammed him into a nearby wall. 'What do you mean he knows I'm a spy?"
"Easy Sydney," Vaughn said. He reached out and put a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder.
"He found out about me. He knows that I'm a spy, that Casey is a spy, and that Sarah's a spy. Look, the Ring thought he was me and tried to recruit him. We didn't have much choice but to tell him the truth."
Sydney loosened her grip on Chuck. "That doesn't explain why you had to break my cover."
Vaughn rubbed Sydney's shoulder to ease the tension out of it. "Sid think about it. If Chuck's brother in law already knew that Agent Walker is a spy then introducing you as someone who met Sarah through work is like putting a flashing neon sign over your head saying I'm a spy. I'm sure General Beckman vetted Devon before agreeing to keep him out of protective custody."
"That's right, she did. And I'm not lying when I say that Devon is an awesome guy. He'll do a great job of looking after Isabelle."
Sydney let go of Chuck and stalked towards the Herder. "Out of all the people in the world it had to be Devon Woodcomb," she said to herself as she went.
Chuck looked over at Vaughn. "Is she going to be okay?" he asked.
"She will be," Vaughn said. "I don't think she was expecting to be reminded of Danny the same day we get attacked because of her past. Danny died because Sydney told him the truth about what she did. Or at least the truth as she knew it. I think you can imagine how much she's worried about that life intruding on Isabelle." Vaughn paused. "I know I do."
The two men walked back to the Herder where Sydney was waiting for them. "Agent Bristol, Sydney, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you about Devon, but honestly I was expecting Ellie to be there, and she definitely do not know about my spy life."
Sydney took a deep breath. "It's okay Chuck. I just wasn't prepared to handle seeing someone from my past like Devon. It brought back a lot of memories that I'd rather not think about right now."
"If it makes you feel any better it freaked out Awesome as well," Chuck said.
"You did explain to him that if he tells anybody the truth about what I used to do I will kill him right?"
Chuck took in a deep gulp of air. "I believe that was understood." He opened the door to the Herder. "He did want to know if Isabelle was some sort of super spy kid, which makes sense because you both are, were, spies, and very good ones, but that's ridiculous…wait, why are you looking at each other like that?"
"It would be quicker to show you," Sydney said. "Project Christmas."
"Well that doesn't sound ominous," Chuck started to say before the Intersect flash hit. Images of school children and standardized tests raced through his mind before settling on Sydney's face. "Your own father" Chuck asked when his vision cleared.
"We had a lot of issues to work through," Sydney said."
"And I thought I had a complicated relationship with my dad," Chuck said. "So you think Isabelle is like you then?"
"We don't know," Sydney said. "We don't want to know. Isabelle is going to grow up living as normal a life as we can provide for her."
"Which is all well and good, but we need to get back to Castle and see if Casey and Sarah have any new information about that Ring safe house," Vaughn said.
"As you might have guessed the Ring safe house is in a supposedly abandoned warehouse," Sarah told the assembled group. She was standing in front of the conference table with a picture of a nondescript warehouse on the video screen behind her. "While you three were talking to Awesome about Isabelle, Casey and I paid the site a visit. There is no visible guard presence, but it would be foolish to assume there isn't any. There is a lot of communications gear on the roof, so we have expect that the Ring has plenty of backup on standby."
"So what are you proposing?" Vaughn asked.
"We break up into two teams: Team Venice, you and Sydney and Team Burbank Chuck, Casey and myself."
"One team goes in the front, the other the back and we meet in the middle?" Casey asked.
Sarah nodded. "Precisely."
"I am a little concerned about having uneven teams, but there isn't enough time to read in anyone else," Sydney said. "If we're all going to be taking part in the raid though, who will be running comms?"
Sarah looked between Casey and Chuck. "Yeah, about that. There is someone, but I don't think you're going to like it."
"No they are definitely not going to like it," Chuck said. Casey grunted in agreement.
Chuck walked onto the sale floor of the Buy More. When he didn't see Morgan he approached the Nerd Herd desk where Jeff was staring off into the distance. "Hey uh Jeff, have you seen Morgan around by any chance?" Chuck asked.
"He's in the break room with Lester," Jeff said without looking in Chuck's direction.
"Uh great, I'll go there right now," Chuck said. He took a few steps towards the break room before scurrying in front of Jeff and looked in the same direction to figure out what he was staring at. When all Chuck could see was a display of HDTVs he shrugged and walked away from the desk.
Inside the break room Chuck found Lester and Morgan sitting at the central table with a small throng of Green Shirts surrounding them. A bottle of Snapple rested on the table between them. "Guys, what are you doing?" Chuck asked.
"Don't interrupt us Charles," Lester said. "We are in the middle of a sacred struggle."
"This is the last Peach Mangosteen Snapple in the store. We're having a staring contest to see who gets it," Morgan said without taking his eyes from Lester.
"There's more Snapple in the vending machine," Chuck said. He pointed his thumb in the direction of the machine to emphasis his point.
"It is the not the deliciousness of Peach Mangosteen though. Snapple is the only kosher beverage in the vending machine, and I will not allow this goyim to partake in it," Lester said.
"Morgan, I really need to talk to you buddy," Chuck said.
Morgan held up an index finger in Chuck's direction without breaking his stare. "Hold up there Chuck, because I too find Peach Mangosteen delicious, and I will not be bullied into foregoing it."
"Oh for…Morgan, I will buy you a damn Peach Mangosteen Snapple if you get a move one. This is important."
"So is this Chuck. Lester lords his Judaism over us all the time to get his way. Well not anymore, as Assistant Manager I am putting my foot down!"
"By getting in a staring contest? What if you lose?"
"It is the Law of the Buy More Charles," Lester said. "Morgan honors our ways."
"This is ridiculous." Chuck grabbed the bottle of Snapple off the table and chugged the contents. "Lester, all sodas are Kosher, you don't have to drink only Snapple. Morgan, let's go." Chuck yanked Morgan out of his chair and out of the break room.
"You haven't heard the last of this Bartowski! I will have my revenge!" Lester shouted at the closing door.
The break room door opened and Jeff walked into the room. "Lester, Morgan, I got next," he said before he saw the empty bottle on the table. "Aw, who drank the Snapple?"
In the safety of the stockroom Morgan squirmed free of Chuck's grasp. "You're spending too much time around Casey. I can't believe you did that man!" Morgan said.
Chuck's face contorted into a look of disgust. "I know, I hate Peach Mangosteen. I'm going to taste it all day."
"Well what was so important that you had to undermine my authority in front of Lester and the Green Shirts."
"We need your help buddy, on a mission."
Morgan's face instantly brightened. "Really, you do? For real help, or do you want me to sit in the van again."
"I won't lie to you, we need you in the van, but hear me out! You'll be a vital part of the mission's success. There's a second spy team involved in this mission and we need someone to coordinate all our communications and you Morgan Grimes, are that someone." Chuck tapped Morgan on the shoulder.
"A second spy team?"
"That's right a second team. This one is even more secret than we are. You should see them buddy; they're a pair of super spies."
"Super spies? That sounds, well I can't lie, that sounds awesome. What are they like? They aren't a couple of Caseys are they?"
Chuck laughed. "No they aren't. They're a married couple actually, mostly retired, and they have a kid."
"Gee Chuck, it sounds like they have everything you and Sarah could possibly want," Morgan said.
"I never, I never looked at it that way, but I guess you're right. Though I've never been hoodwinked into working for an evil spy organization, so there's that."
"Okay you know what? I'm in, let's do this thing Chuck!" Morgan said as he clapped Chuck on the back. "What exactly are we doing?"
"Oh you know, breaking into a heavily guarded Ring base with just five agents, you, and no backup."
"Is that all? Big deal, we'll be home in time for dinner. Now let's get a move on. I want to meet these super spies. This is going to be so awesome!" Morgan turned and walked out of the stockroom.
"Oh yes," Chuck said as he followed Morgan. "I'm making a note, huge success."
"Mic check, mic check, one two, one two. Sibilance, sibilance," Morgan said into his headset. He was seated in the team's unmarked surveillance van staring at monitors that at the moment were not connected to anything.
"We all can hear you just fine Morgan, now shut up until we need you," Casey said.
"Oh come on Casey, you know if I didn't check, and something did go wrong you'd blame me for not checking."
"He's got you there," Chuck said over the radio.
"Can we please focus on what we came here to do?" Sydney asked. "Team Venice is almost in position."
"As is Team Burbank," Sarah said.
"In that case, good luck and we're all counting on you," Morgan said.
"Morgan, please don't quote Airplane right now," Chuck said.
"Right, right, sorry. I'll let you guys get to it, and I'll let you know if these radio things pick up anything." Morgan flipped off his headset then spun around in his chair. "And I'll just stay here, in the van, all by my lonesome. Don't take too long guys."
Chuck, Casey and Sarah stood next to a simple wooden door built into the side of the Ring warehouse. "So I almost hate to ask this, but doesn't it seem like this is a little too easy?" Chuck asked.
"Shut up Bartowski, do you want to jinx us or something," Casey said to Chuck. "Walker, get the door."
As sarah working on picking the lock Morgan's voice came on over the radio. "Uh guys, I don't want to alarm you, but I can't get Team Venice on the radio."
Chuck looked over at Casey and Sarah. "That means this is a trap isn't it?"
Sarah finished picking the lock and the door swung open. Inside they could see a squad of armed men with Sydney and Vaughn bound on their knees in front of them. "Yep, trap," Casey said as he raised his hands in surrender.
Author's Notes: So yeah, it took way too long for me to get this chapter published, which is really bad considering all I had to do was transcribe from my rough draft, edit the transcription, then post. Better late then never I guess. On a happier note, I really do like that scene in the Buy More, it feels very Chuck. Until next time.
-sam