A/N: Total AU Charah story triggered by someone on the Chuck Fanfiction Facebook group mentioning interest in Chuck and Sarah being involved in the Bermuda Triangle. No more details were provided than that. I couldn't resist, so this total AU is the result.
Chuck lost his parents near Grand Bahama, and is now trying to find where their boat went down to get some answers. He seeks help.
Thanks to Writesalott who kindly beta'd this for me.
Chuck vs The Triangle
Chapter 1: Help
Chuck had finally sold off his company and was now pretty rich, thank you very much. He'd spent three years of his life building that software and the services wrapped around it. Starting the company had only been possible because of the loan he'd secured following his graduation from Stanford. Then, he'd spent a further eight years exploiting the software and providing the services to the world. It had been quite the adventure and had taken him places he'd never expected he'd go. However, two years ago, after that terrible day, it had all lost its appeal.
He'd spend every available moment since researching the event, trying to understand what had happened.
Now it was time for action. Selling the business had been the only viable option. There was just no way he'd have the time to pursue his goals while still being in control. Letting go of the staff, he'd made sure they received a year's additional pay as severance. It hadn't reduced his funds too much and made Chuck feel better about the whole thing. Once the company was gone, Chuck realized it was only his friend Morgan that he would miss about Los Angeles.
Now everything was settled and now he would spend his time and money seeking his parents. Chuck was glad that he'd spent so much time on boats with his parents over the years. Being used to them and in control would make this search all the easier. However, he would still need help. He knew where they'd gone, but wasn't a professional diver and certainly couldn't bring anything to the surface on his own, like their boat.
The company, Walker Salvage, had come up more than once in Chuck's search for help. Everything he'd heard was good. Chuck wanted very much to enlist their help. It was known that Walker Salvage was soon to move to Bermuda, so he had to act fast.
Sarah was starting to think that her salvage business was sunk. She'd joked about that happening a few years ago, but the reality of it had killed the joke.
It was just increasingly difficult to keep a business afloat when you go months without a single high paying client.
Sure, she'd taken people out to see some wrecks in the area and even taken them down to explore, but no salvage meant no significant revenue. A business couldn't persist on only small, occasional low paying jobs for long.
It seemed that all the sunken treasure in the area had already been discovered.
At a few particularly low points, she'd even considered going back to her dad's less than legal approach, something she'd not done since he'd been killed and left her with the boat.
But she knew that would never happen. She'd run a legitimate business for seven years now. She wasn't going back to a life of crime even if she went bankrupt.
So, here she was, planning on moving to Bermuda, the shipwreck capital of the world, hoping there were still more to find.
She'd only just announced that she was moving her operation when suddenly she got a call from a potential client. The multi-millionaire Chuck Barowski was coming to see her in a day's time to discuss the job. With his wealth, she should be able to charge high rates for whatever he wanted. She might even be able to afford a property on the island after him, rather than just sleeping on the boat. If this panned out, it could be worth delaying the move to Bermuda.
She just hoped he was easy to work with, unlike those two previous fat cats, Barker and Shaw. She still shivered at the memory of Barker's wandering hands, the lecherous bastard. And he seemed surprised that she didn't like it. When his search turned out to be a bust, she couldn't have been happier. Shaw wasn't like that, just an arrogant pig who treated her badly. If Bartowski was like either of those, she'd refuse to work with him, money be damned.
When Bartowski first saw her, Sarah had to try hard not to roll her eyes at his reaction. Such a caricature. He froze, his jaw dropping, as his eyes nearly popped out. The only thing missing was his tongue hanging out as he drooled over her!
She knew she was attractive. Her dad had made use of that on cons, but come on, not that attractive!
Sarah held out her hand and he finally focused and shook it.
He must have built up a lot of static electricity because she definitely felt a jolt pass between them.
Sarah quickly took in his appearance. Tall, probably 6'4", and of slim build, although his shoulders were broad, so probably a swimmer. Good. He had curly brown hair and hazel eyes that really caught her attention. He looked attractive, but that wasn't relevant here.
Before they started, she explained her situation, in case he didn't know, "Just so you know, I'm in the process of moving the company to Bermuda, Mr. Bartowski."
"Yeah, about that. I need help nearer here. About five miles from Fairport in Grand Bahamas."
He seemed to want her to change her plans for him. "Hmm. That's unfortunate," she replied.
"I'll happily pay for your mooring here, or at Fairport," he rushed out. "Whichever suits you."
That could work, she thought. She asked, "What are we looking for?"
"Two years ago, my parents went out to sea from Fairport and never returned," he replied.
Her heart sank. "You're trying to find their bodies?"
He winced. "I hope not. I'm hoping to find a clue as to where they went."
She groaned. "Spirited away by mysterious forces?" she asked, hoping he didn't say yes.
He frowned at her. "I don't believe in that sort of thing."
'Well, that's a relief,' she thought.
"Could be aliens, though," he added.
She groaned. He was one of those crazy ones. "You can't be serious," she said.
He looked unsure, but said, "Maybe."
Sarah thought about the arbitrary region known as the Bermuda Triangle with Bermuda as the most northerly point, the South Western point being Miami and the more southerly South Western point being Puerto Rico. That meant that the Bahamas were north of the bottom 'line' of the triangle.
She rolled her eyes. "So, you're searching for your parents who've disappeared within the southern part of the Bermuda Triangle and might have been abducted by aliens." She shook her head. "You're a nut job. I don't go out with nut jobs."
He looked affronted. "Hey! I'm not asking you on a date, just for your expertise!"
She couldn't believe this guy. "I don't go out TO SEA with crazies. Not helping." She sat back and waited for him to leave.
He frowned again. "I'm not crazy and I don't believe in aliens, either. But I do need your help."
"If you don't believe in them, why hint that you do?" she asked.
"My attempt at humor didn't work," he said ruefully.
"I take this business seriously, Charles. It's not a joke," she replied.
"Noted. Doesn't like humor."
That comment more than irritated her. "I like humor as much as anyone, but not when being frivolous about dangerous things. The ocean is a terrible and powerful force at times. Take it seriously or get out."
He looked taken aback. "I use humor when I'm stressed or want to deflect away from painful topics. I'm sorry I've offended you."
Seeing his reaction, she realized she'd been harsh and attacked him, for being, well, him. She sighed. "I'm sorry, Charles. You hit one of my trigger points. Can we put all that behind us and work out what, if anything, I can do for you?"
He nodded and put out his hand. "Can we start again?" After a moment, she smiled and shook it.
"My friends call me Chuck. Charles is too formal."
Her smile grew. "So, in spite of shouting at you, you consider me a friend now?" she joked.
"I hope so, Sarah," he said. "I really hope so."
The way he said that seemed to have deeper meaning than it should. She remembered how he'd looked at her before. And those mesmerizing hazel eyes of his bored into hers. She couldn't help thinking, 'He's dangerous. Watch yourself, Walker!'
They spent the rest of the morning discussing what Chuck knew. They covered what he could do to help find the wreck, if it was still there, and what Sarah would do when they found it without a problem. It wasn't until Chuck mentioned some mysterious thing his father had created that might still be on the boat that the conversation derailed. Sarah didn't like it when anyone was this vague, especially not a client. It always meant trouble.
She stopped his rambling and said, "Come on. You have to explain this inter-whats-it more clearly if you want me to go down and find it."
He sighed. "If you know too much, it could put you at risk."
She held his gaze. "I appreciate you caring, Chuck, but I can look after myself."
"Oh, I'm not implying you can't, but I think he and Mom were chased by government agencies, maybe from more than one country."
She was shocked to hear that. She got her act together and said, "well, it won't be the US."
"The CIA were dad's greatest threat," Chuck commented.
She huffed in frustration. This felt like it did at the beginning with him not taking her seriously. If she was getting involved in this venture, he should tell her everything. As far as Sarah was concerned, a lack of knowledge in this area was just as dangerous, if not more so, than ignorance. "If you don't tell me, Chuck. I can't help. Not knowing everything could get me in danger too and I am not going into this in the dark. I've had enough of secrets and lies in my life and I don't want more."
He looked at her in equal frustration, but also there was something else. Concern maybe? "Sarah, if anything happened to you because you knew about the Intersect, I…" He paused, frowning. "I don't want anyone else getting hurt by this."
She watched him clam up. He really wasn't going to tell. "Then drop the whole thing," she replied. "If this thing is so dangerous, leave it at the bottom of the ocean."
"I can't drop it. It's important, Sarah," he said. "I just can't."
She huffed and then started counting off things on her fingers for dramatic effect. "Let me summarize what I've learned from you.
"1. Your parents had something the CIA and god knows who else wanted. And you don't know how they found out about it, any of them.
"2. You think, but don't know, that they had it with them on board the boat.
"3. They didn't return and you think their boat sank, but you don't know for sure.
"4. You think you can find it, but haven't told me how you could do that.
"5. It may have been blasted and nothing exists of it anyway.
"6. If it does, your parents may have escaped and not be down there. And if they had it, they would've taken this Intersect thing with them.
"7. The Intersect is what the CIA and others are after, and will kill to get it.
"8. You're desperate to retrieve the Intersect and put yourself at risk from having it.
"9. You refuse to tell me what it is because knowledge of it is 'too dangerous.'
"10. You expect me to retrieve it for you blind, in spite of the danger.
"11. You'll probably get me and my crew killed doing that, or captured when the CIA realize we helped, even blind."
She looked at him. "Do you understand why I refuse to help under those conditions?"
He put his head in his hands, but stayed silent.
She sighed and said, "I think you've wasted enough of my time. Please leave."
He uncovered his face and looked so miserable that she felt sorry for him, but she still wasn't budging.
Suddenly, he reached forward and grabbed both of her hands in his. That took her completely by surprise and, alarmed, she tried to pull them away but couldn't. His grip was too tight.
She glared up into his eyes as he spoke, "I need you, Sarah Walker."
"Let me go," she hissed. "Or you'll regret it." She was thinking of the hidden knife in her boot, not that she could reach it at the moment, but he didn't know that, so a threat was worthwhile.
"I need you so much that I'll tell you," he qualified. "I just hope you can keep a secret."
In spite of the situation, she couldn't hold back the snort. He eyed her quizzically, but she wasn't going to explain.
He released her hands. Sarah took them back and stuffed them in her pockets in a huff as he began to explain.
"The Intersect is a device that records what the user chooses. Speech, images, videos, whatever. Then it accesses all systems, searching through public or private ones alike. It can even get into highly secure Intranets, to find out all it can about what it started with. It takes all the information it captures, correlates it, finds where different threads intersect, discards loose ends, and solves the problem. That information is then available to the user."
"That must take a lot of power and I presume some super computer somewhere," Sarah observed.
Chuck grinned. "That's another of Dad's inventions. A supercomputer in a four inch cube."
She just stared at him for a moment. "Why the hell didn't he sell that?"
"As with everything else, the government found out about his storage invention. They acquired it from him, and paid dad well for it. He used that as start-up capital, enabling him to pursue his other ideas, including the Intersect. He had to keep silent about it for 'National Security reasons,' apparently.
"Nothing was ever developed from it that ended up in the hands of the public or other enterprises.. That's partly why dad always distrusted the government."
"So, this Intersect, how the hell does it do what it does?" she asked, finding it hard to understand.
"Dad created the ultimate search capability," he said with pride.
"No, I meant getting into secure sites."
"Ahh. That's another secret. Dad's the ultimate hacker. He built algorithms to breach any firewall, get through any defenses, crack any encryption. He's brilliant."
"Why did he create this?" she asked.
"He thinks governments hide facts from the people, including what is happening in the triangle, which fascinated him since he first heard about it."
"Why would they do that?"
"Maybe there's something they're doing that they don't want people to know about. Maybe there's something they think will frighten people. Maybe, and this is my dad's thinking, not mine, there are aliens at work."
"Oh, shit. Back to that?" She shook her head. "So, another Roswell believer!"
He shook his head. "Strangely, he never believed in Area 51."
"So, your dad used this thing and it attracted attention. Not so good at hiding his tracks, huh?"
"Yeah."
"And maybe he didn't find what he was looking for and came out here to look for himself?" she continued.
He tightened his lips. "Pretty much my thinking."
"I think if we find this device, it should be destroyed. And we should record it being done."
He looked aghast at her. "My dad's work…"
She cut him off and finished the sentence, "May have gotten both your parents killed, which makes it too dangerous to remain."
He stayed still for several moments, then said, "You may be right."
She said, "If you agree to destroy it, if we find it, I'll help you." Part of her couldn't believe she was agreeing to this. Then again, it was the only job offer she had, the only decent paying one she'd had for months. .
He nodded. "I agree, but you'll have to help me destroy it. I'll probably waver when the time comes."
She grinned. "I can be quite persuasive."
A/N: Please don't ask if this Intersect can be downloaded into someone's head. It can't.
I'm going to try to update this story every fourth day.
If you can, please leave a review. It means a lot, especially as FF is not currently recording views.
