A/N: Well, with football season in full swing, my writing time has considerably shrunk. Don't worry though, this story is about over, just a couple more chapters. Thanks to the TheJusta for his beta work on this puppy. Any mistakes are still mine, however. This chapter is only about half as long as what I usually post, but something is better than nothing. Me not owning Chuck still applies, as always. I appreciate all the reviews, so please, keep them coming. I'll do my best to finish this thing as soon as I can. For now, please enjoy!

Chuck vs. The Grid

Chapter 9

July 19, 2010 Flagstaff, Arizona

"YOU'RE WHAT!?" Sarah exclaimed.

"I'm bringing him Orion," Bryce repeated with an annoyed voice. "I won't hash out the details over the phone but I can help Chuck get it out. Once it is out, he'll be free of this, of us."

"Bryce, things have changed. Last night he took out three NSA agents. They aren't going to leave him alone, regardless of if it's in or out."

She heard Bryce swear and then start conversing quickly with another man, presumably Orion. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but they seemed to be forming some sort of plan.

Bryce sighed into the phone. "I think we've figured out a way for him to stay out of jail, but he'll still need it out. How soon can you be in LA?"

"Why?" Sarah asked slowly.

"Because I'm going to need help and selling this idea is going to be hard enough as it is."

"We can be there in a few hours."

"We?" Bryce's tone was not exactly happy.

"Yeah, I'm bringing Casey."

Casey looked at Sarah in surprise, but didn't mind being included, especially if it could resolve this mess before it got any worse. When she threw him a glance, he nodded, acknowledging that he was with her. With it seeming as if this nightmare with Bartowski was reaching the end, it seemed only right that they finished it working together again.

Bryce mulled things over silently. "That's actually good. It'll make our story more believable for the CIA and NSA. But Chuck can have no idea what we are going to do."

"Bryce, what exactly are you planning?" Sarah was nervous.

"I'm planning to help my friend. I know he'll be pretty pissed off over what will happen, but I have to help him. I can deal with that. Can you?" Bryce hadn't forgotten about Sarah's feelings for Chuck.

Sarah was torn. She couldn't bear the thought of Chuck hating her, of losing him forever over this. He was her ticket to a real life, a real family. On the other hand, this was a chance to free him of the Intersect. He deserved that, no matter what it cost her.

"We're in."

"Good. Get to LA. I'll fill you in when you get here. The old safehouse, you know the one."

***

The Bird Feeder Diner

"Listen, I want you guys to go to Burbank, keep an eye on my sister and her family," Chuck stated to his tablemates.

Lily shook her head, throwing a quick glance at Roy. "No, Chuck, we should be here with you."

Chuck gave them an appreciative smile. "I know you guys want to help me, but it feels like we're approaching the end. I want to know my family is safe if things go bad. Can you do that for me?"

Lily and Roy nodded reluctantly.

"You take care of yourself," added Roy as they got up to leave, "I still want that beer."

Chuck gave him a genuine grin as he watched them leave. As he watched them pull out, his thoughts turned to Orion. He seemed like the real deal, showing him something that would make him flash. Chuck was getting desperate. The want to return home to Ellie and Katie was overwhelming, which was allowing him to sit there while this stranger was coming. It wasn't smart but chances need to be taken, given what transpired the other night.

He threw his shades on and glanced out the window looking at nothing in particular. He saw a black sedan pull into the lot. Looking closely, Chuck saw two figures emerge from the car. 'No fuckin' way!' Chuck said to himself. He sat there in a daze as Bryce Larkin and his father approached the diner. 'What the hell is going on?' Chuck pulled the gun from his back on laid it on the seat next to him, not certain of what was going to happen, but feeling the need to be ready for anything.

Bryce walked into the diner, holding the door for Stephen Bartowski. Stephen gave the diner a once over before heading to take a seat opposite to Chuck, smiling at his son. Bryce joined the elder Bartowski and greeted Chuck with a grin.

They sat in an awkward silence for about a minute, with Chuck eyeing Bryce suspiciously and his father apprehensively, until a waitress came over.

"Can I get anybody anything?" asked the young woman.

"Three coffees, please," replied Stephen with a smile.

As the woman left, Bryce finally decided to get the ball rolling.

"Well, I gotta say, I like the new look Chuck." Bryce couldn't believe that this guy with short, spiky hair and a beard was his best friend. Chuck threw him an annoyed look as he removed his sunglasses. Bryce noticed his eyes lacked the liveliness that he was so used to seeing from his friend.

Turning back to his father, Chuck asked, "What's going on? Why are you here…with Bryce?"

"Umm, well, the thing is," Stephen started rambling, "I asked Bryce to bring me here. We're here to help."

"How can you help? How can either of you help?"

"Well, the thing is son, I'm Orion," Stephen finished, looking out the window.

Chuck's jaw dropped. "What?" he whispered. "How can…wait…does this mean…" Chuck had trouble deciding which question he wanted to ask first.

"Look, I'll explain things as best I can. The whole story will take too long. Why don't I start around the time I found out that the rogue agent, who happened to be you, was looking for me?"

Chuck nodded as the waitress gave them their coffees. Stephen mumbled thanks and took a sip. Bryce got more comfortable and started glancing around looking at nothing in particular. He knew most of the story, so there was no need to take part in it once again.

"Well, I figured out someone was looking for me when I checked on my situation," Stephen started.

"What do you mean, 'checked on your situation'?" Chuck asked.

"I may have hacked into the DNI mainframe to see what was being done to find me, whether or not they were close to finding me. Anyway, the point is, I saw that efforts by everyone, CIA, NSA, Fulcrum were all increased. I also saw something about some rogue agent hunting me. I tried to inquire about it, but all I got was a serial number, nothing useful. So I started leaving hints to my whereabouts all over the country, hoping that maybe everyone would just kill themselves and I wouldn't have to deal with it anymore."

"Everything changed when I figured out it was you that was hunting me. I still had yet to find anything out about the rogue agent. I surmised that he may have had an Intersect in his head. Why else would an agent be on his own looking for me? So, I set up the Fulcrum agents in Miami and waited. I had surveillance on that place and when I saw it was you, Charles, you don't know how much it crushed me. I saw what you had become, and at that moment I started working on a way to remove the Intersect. I also tried to contact you, but you fell off the grid. I searched as hard as I could, but you disappeared. I made contact with Bryce shortly afterwards, telling him what was going on with your situation, and he agreed to help."

"A couple of months ago, I found out about Charlottesville. I saw how the CIA found you, made the connection from the car to Roy, and then I decided to locate near him. I've been hiding out near there since then. I was hoping you would show up there, but you never did. Bryce contacted me about a week ago to tell me he had information that Fulcrum had recently completed building an Intersect room. We agreed that it would be best for everyone if, first, we removed the Intersect from your head, and second, destroyed the Intersect room they have built."

"Wait," Chuck interrupted, "Fulcrum has an Intersect room, but no Intersect?"

"I'm not sure about that," Bryce finally chipped in, "but my intel suggests they had the room built recently, so it is likely that they are in the final testing stages for their Intersect. That's why we need to act fast, as in tonight."

"Right," Stephen continued. "As I was saying, I saw your friend Roy leave his house in a hurry, so I followed. It seemed likely that he was meeting you and he did, so I made contact, which brings us to right now."

Chuck nodded. He was processing as fast as he could. His father was Orion, he could remove the Intersect, Fulcrum was close to their own Intersect and it may all be over after tonight. One problem seemed a little glaring so he decided to mention it.

"The three of us are going to break into a heavily guarded Fulcrum facility, by ourselves?"

"Not exactly," Bryce said without meeting his friends' eyes.

Chuck eyes narrowed as he knew who Bryce had called for help. "Look, me and Sarah aren't exactly BFF's anymore. Plus, she is hunting me. Casey too."

"I know they are, but Chuck, give yourself a little credit. You've changed Sarah. She's not the person I was partners with anymore. And you may not believe it, but I know she wants to help. Casey…well…don't worry about Casey. You've softened him, believe me. I've heard he actually arrests people now instead of just killing them."

"Look son," Stephen added, "They are our best shot. I know you don't trust them, and I'm sorry that this has ruined your faith in people, but trust me. Trust Bryce. He could have turned me in, but he didn't. He's risking a lot to help me and you."

Chuck glanced at Bryce, who was staring at him. Chuck didn't know what to think. Bryce's betrayal at Stanford was an attempt to save him. 'He sent me the Intersect because he trusted me. He said I was his only friend.' Chuck believed Bryce would never intentionally hurt him, but that didn't mean others wouldn't, like Sarah and Casey.

"Okay, I'm in," Chuck finally stated. Stephen heaved a sigh of relief while Bryce grinned.

"Well, I'm gonna hit the head before we take off." Bryce got up and went to the bathroom.

Once Bryce was out of earshot, Chuck quickly spoke to his father. "Do you know where this Fulcrum place is? How to get there?"

"Yeah, I got everything we need to plan this."

"Okay good cause we are leaving."

"What, why?"

"Because we need to maintain distance between the others. I'm not sure what's going on, but it doesn't feel right. Three agents to take out a Fulcrum facility that could be housing an Intersect. I'd send everybody. I think it may be a set up to get us both captured."

Stephen flinched, but responded, "The intel is good. I know, I've looked."

"That may be, but I'm still nervous about Sarah and Casey, more specifically Casey. I'm sure you know what happened the other night."

"Yeah, I know," Stephen stated sadly.

"Right, so that's why we need to separate ourselves. We'll watch them. If it looks okay, then we can join in. If not, we back off and figure something out."

Chuck started ushering them out of the diner quickly as Stephen weakly protested.

Bryce returned to the booth to find it empty with a note and a set of keys on the table.

'See you tonight. Be careful with the car, it ain't mine.'

-Chuck-

Bryce sighed at the note. He picked up the keys and went to find his ride back to LA.

***

Los Angeles, Cailfornia Bryce's Safehouse

Sarah and Casey had finally arrived in Los Angeles. It had taken more time to get there than Sarah had anticipated, mainly due to the fact that she was driving an SUV. She made Casey aware of what she thought of his transport as she sped along at only 105 mph. Casey tried to ignore her, feigning sleep in the hope that silence would dull the throbbing that continued to pulse inside of his head.

Sarah had tried to make conversation with Casey along the way, but got no response. Now all she was left with was her thoughts, which she didn't want to deal with. They mostly centered around Chuck and what his response would be to seeing her. Every scenario she played out in her head ended badly and as they neared LA, her grip on the steering wheel became progressively tighter. Now, standing outside the door to Bryce's safehouse only a few feet from Chuck, her nerves were beginning to betray her. She had never felt this much anxiety about anything before, but the thought of seeing Chuck was affecting her in a way she never thought possible.

She knocked on the door of Bryce's safehouse, which was a crappy studio apartment. He opened the door a moment later and let both Sarah and Casey in. Sarah did a visual sweep, which didn't take long, and noted that Chuck was not there. She let out a breath she didn't remember she was holding and then looked at Bryce with confusion, as did Casey.

"Yeah," Bryce started, noticing the looks he was getting, "Chuck isn't here."

"Where is he?" Casey asked.

"Umm, not sure," Bryce replied, "but he'll be there tonight when we go in."

Casey snorted in disgust and shook his head. "Well, where is Orion?"

Bryce swallowed. Casey noticed and shook his head even more.

"Christ, Larkin. You let Bartowski get away with Orion."

"Look, Chuck doesn't trust anyone. How the hell was I supposed to convince him that you two actually want to help him, especially considering that you," he looked at Casey, "nearly had him captured last night and you," he threw a look at Sarah, "were responsible for Charlottesville?"

"Easy," Casey quipped back, "don't tell him were coming."

Bryce shook his head in exasperation. "Look, he's not naïve anymore. He didn't believe for a second that me, him, and Orion could infiltrate a Fulcrum facility. He knew I'd need help and that I'd ask for yours. He's waiting for a double cross, which sadly has to happen."

"Wait, why does that happen? What's the plan?" Sarah asked. This plan didn't sound like it was going to help Chuck at all.

"In a nutshell, once Chuck has the Intersect removed, we capture him."

***

Los Angeles, California A Local Pizzeria

"So, that's the plan," Stephen finished and took another bite of his pizza. "We go in after they do, head down to the Intersect room, remove the Intersect, and escape before they even know we're gone."

Chuck nodded. It sounded simple, but he knew the odds of getting out of this alive and not captured were slim to none. Still, he had managed to elude the CIA and NSA for the better part of a year and a half, so maybe another small miracle could still be achieved. Now that the mission planning was finished, he could finally talk to his father, not Orion.

"So," Chuck started, "how's life on the run? Yours has to be better than mine."

Stephen gave him a sad smile. "It was boring, for the most part. I really missed you and Eleanor, but if being away from you meant you would be safe, then that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make." He paused. "I'm sorry you've had to go through this. If I had known the Intersect would make its way to you, I would have destroyed it and my research when I left."

Chuck nodded. He was still trying to process the idea of his father as Orion. He understood his reason for leaving, and even though he would rather have had his father stay in his life, the fact that he did to protect his family filled Chuck with relief. His father didn't abandon him and still loved him.

Chuck wanted to ask more questions, but he didn't know what to ask. His thoughts were swirling with mission plans, building details and Fulcrum agents so much so that he couldn't focus. He glanced over and saw a teenager playing Time Crisis. The kid was decent player, but his stance was off and the way he held the gun meant his aim was misaligned. Chuck shook his head at those thoughts. Even video games had lost their innocence now.

Chuck glanced down at his watch. It was almost time for their mission to start. The building would be least occupied after 10:00 pm and that was when the guards changed shifts. They had a small window in which they could infiltrate unnoticed. From there, Chuck and his father would head down to the Intersect room while Bryce, Casey, and Sarah would try to access as much Fulcrum intelligence as they could.

"Well, looks like it's time," Chuck finally declared taking one last bite of his food.

"Okay, son, let's go," Stephen declared. Chuck followed his father out the door and to the Sedan. Without speaking, they drove to their destination.

***

Los Angeles, California Secret Fulcrum Intersect Facility

Bryce, Sarah, and Casey were waiting in their car. The new group of security was supposed to be coming anytime, but they appeared to be late. Bryce kept his eyes peeled for movement, Sarah was going over supplies for the fifth time, and Casey was unconsciously stroking his shotgun. Finally, an SUV pulled up and four men got out.

Bryce pulled out his 9mm and attached a silencer. Sarah grabbed her knife and threw the supply bag over her shoulder. Casey silently cocked the shotgun. In matter of seconds, the Fulcrum security team was killed. The three quickly put the bodies back in the SUV, grabbed the necessary keycards and security ID's and entered the facility from the rear.

A few blocks away, Chuck pulled the scope away from his eye. He had watched the whole thing, Bryce killing two men with head shots, Sarah lodging her knife another man's throat and Casey knocking his attacker on the head with his shotgun and then breaking his neck. They were quiet, efficient, and without emotion or hesitation. Awhile ago, the acts he had witnessed would have sickened him. Now, he watched people he knew commit terrible acts and thought nothing of it.

After waiting two minutes, Chuck noticed no backup anywhere around the building. Deciding that the coast was clear, he motioned for Orion to follow him. The two of them made their way to the rear of the building, noticing that a keycard and ID had been left on the ground near the door. Chuck grinned, picked up the items, ran the keycard through the scanner and walked into the now open door.