A/N: Thanks to those of you that have submitted reviews for the last chapter, in spite of all the Fanfiction problems. Much appreciated.

My normal beta for this story, Writesalott, is unwell, but Captainrick944 kindly stepped in to help. Thanks, my friend.


Chuck vs The Triangle

Chapter 7: Miami Recordings


Chuck and Sarah stopped a quarter of a mile from the port, waiting for Matt to leave.

Using binoculars, they watched Sarah's boat set off, and shortly after, two more boats followed.

"Looks like the CIA took the bait," Sarah commented.

They waited until they couldn't visually see the three boats before moving forward.

Sarah called Matt on Chuck's phone after activating Scram. "Thanks, Matt. Wish us luck."

Yeah, hope it goes well," Matt replied.

As they approached the mooring, they could see it was clear of people. Sarah had suggested they arrive nearly an hour before the session was to start. Otherwise, the CIA would have suspected something with camera crews turning up.

They soon had the boat tied up and sat on deck, waiting for the media teams to arrive.

A half-hour later, still thirty minutes before the session was scheduled to start, the first team arrived. That was the NBC team who were due to set up the raised platform for them to stand on. Their cameraman approached. "Is this it?"

Chuck called down, "Yep."

"Come and pose in front of it, please." They did that. He took a still photograph and said, "Put your arm around her," the man instructed. "Makes people think you're a couple, even if you're not. Draws people in."

"Oh, we are a couple," Sarah said.

"Great. Can I film you kissing in front of it?" he asked.

Chuck grinned. "Sure."

The man switched to the video camera he'd brought, and Sarah put her fingers in Chuck's curls and pulled him down into a kiss. Chuck had to remember where they were to avoid being caught up in that kiss.

"Perfect!"

The NBC reporter, Jason Philips, had joined by now. "I'll say 'the loving couple on arrival.'" He asked to have a quick look on board. Chuck took both the men.

The cameraman, Paul Jackson, was trying to decide where to go to get the best views.

"You'll need to be seated when we go at speed," Chuck said. "The G-force makes standing hard."

"Awesome!" Paul said. He pointed at a seat near the front and to the port side. "I want to sit there."

Jason said, "As we were the first you contacted, which I'll mention, I assume we will come on the first trip, right?"

"Definitely!" Chuck replied. "NBC is helping us with this."

Chuck handed the two men forms. "Everyone coming for the demo is required to sign these, acknowledging that we are not responsible for any injuries if the individual moves from their seat." He looked at Paul. "I guess that mostly applies to cameramen."

Paul laughed. "Yeah."

"Well, sign those now, and you can come straight on. Even if you take them to sign, you'll have them before others."

The men took them to sit and read.

They walked off the boat, and Chuck rejoined Sarah. Hand in hand, they walked with Jason and Paul towards the podium.

"At the time you specified, whether everyone has arrived or not, stand on the podium and start," Jason said.

A crowd was now starting to form. Chuck was beginning to get nervous. Both Sarah and Jason noticed. She gripped his hand.

"If you suffer nerves from presentations, don't look at the people but over them," Jason advised.

"Thanks," Chuck replied.


It was time to start. Chuck and Sarah approached the microphones that had been set up for them.

Chuck started, "Thanks for coming, everyone. I'm Chuck Bartowski, the son of the man who created this amazing boat, Stephen Bartowski. And this is Sarah Walker, who helped me retrieve it.

"I'm going to tell you about Dad's boat and the technology he built into it. Mom and Dad went down with it out there. Some might attribute that to being in the Bermuda Triangle."

There was the sound of laughter and scoffing. "I'm not saying that. I lost my parents, but with the help from Sarah and her team, I have the boat. I'll let Sarah talk about the recovery.

"After it dried out, we took it out to test it."

Sarah interrupted at that point. "The speeds it goes are phenomenal. Over twice as fast as the fastest speedboat."

"We'll then talk about how we will share this technology," Chuck said. "We're going to build a company around it. It won't be cheap, but some will want to buy it."

"Probably best to keep it out of speedboats, though," Sarah said. "Can't have everyone in a marina going at those speeds!"

That amused the audience, especially when someone shouted out, "So, not for crazy speed merchants?"

"I'm not calling anyone that," Sarah replied but nodded, which drew chuckles.

"Then, we'll take people out six at a time," she said. "I'm assuming that'll be three reporter, cameraman pairs. We'll go out of the port at a sensible speed, but once in clear water, I'll open it up. You'll have to sit straight. The G-force will pin you back in your seat. Standing will not be allowed.

"We know there are people who want to have exclusive use of this technology, but we don't want that," Sarah added. She then looked at Chuck. "Over to the techno expert."

She stepped back and sat at the seat behind her.

Chuck kept looking about the audience. This was easier than he expected. College presentations and pitches of his software were harder.

"Stephen Bartowski was an amazing inventor. Two of his inventions are built into this boat. Some were dangerous and can't be used, but these can. Those are the engines that power the boat and achieve incredible speeds, and the other, equally important breakthrough is the engine's incredible fuel efficiency while achieving record speeds. My estimate is that at full speed, it would get us from here and around Cape Horn and up to the start of the Panama Canal on one tank of fuel. I can't say for sure how long that would take. If the boat traveled at 525 nautical miles per hour, i.e. full speed, and didn't have to slow down or deviate from that tight range, it would take 31 hours to make that journey."

There were gasps from all.

"Of course, that's not realistic. It would have to skirt around other craft, which would slow it down. Avoiding hitting anything is the greatest challenge, hence limiting where it would be used."

Sarah stepped forward again. "I can tell you, when Chuck took me out in it the first time, and I was pinned to my seat, it was frightening because I hadn't expected it to be so fast. Anyone coming on board has to sign a form saying we are not responsible for any injuries from not staying in your seat. In fact, anyone who gets up or slides off will probably get severely hurt. So… just don't!"

There was a murmuring of amusement at her words.

"So, before anyone is allowed on the boat, you need to agree to us not being responsible if you try to move from sitting firmly in your seat when I increase the speed," Chuck said. "You can collect the forms to complete from the desk here. Complete them and sign. Hand the form to one of us as you come to the boat. We'll only take six at a time, so we're assuming three pairs, a reporter and a cameraman in each." He looked at the NBC pair, who both nodded. "NBC has helped set this up, so they're in the first group. So, there's room for two more pairs."

All the hands went up. "But don't forget to complete the forms," Sarah reminded them. "Or you won't be coming with us."

There was a bit of a scramble to get the forms and then frantic form filling.

"That's the end of the presentation," Chuck said. "We'll select the first four to have completed the forms. Hold your company names up as you come this way. And don't worry, you'll all get a chance to go out."

Jason and Paul from NBC walked up to them. Jason said, "Do you want help selecting?"

Sarah chuckled. "I think we should do that. More impartial."

Paul snorted. "She's got you there, Jace."

They soon had men and women crowding toward them. Sarah selected the two from the Miami Times, and Chuck chose the pair from ABC.

"The rest of you, please leave your completed forms for us to read next time. We'll be back in about fifteen minutes. Then, it'll be your turn. Sorry for the wait."

They hurried the four onto the boat, and while Sarah unmoored them, Chuck showed them to the seats. They waited for them to sit centrally in their chosen seats, and then Chuck set off with Sarah sitting behind them all. She planned to watch for movement and would call out.

Once beyond the harbor, Chuck checked ahead. The sea was clear of other boats, so he started to increase speed. Slowly at first. After a minute, he said, "Hold onto your seats."

Sarah looked at all six to make sure they were all seated, then said to Chuck, "Okay. Go!"

Chuck pushed the boat to its maximum speed.

There was a chorus of gasps as the people were pushed hard back into their seats.

"This recording is fucking amazing!" Paul called out.

"Mine too," the cameraman from ABC called out.

"Even mine," chuckled the Miami Times cameraman who would post it on their website.

After a minute, Chuck slowed to a halt and turned the boat around. "A forward view in this direction might be more interesting as we approach Miami," he said.

"Fucking hell!" gasped at least three of them as he accelerated. Miami was approaching unbelievably rapidly.

"Those left behind will be capturing us zooming toward them," Sarah commented.

When they were moored once again. The six had to get themselves stable again before they could leave.

Jason was the last off. "This will make national news. You'll hear from everyone. Brilliant!"

"Thanks, Jason. We really appreciate all you and NBC have done for us," Chuck said.

"Let us know if you want an interview just for you," Sarah said.

Jason grinned and nodded. "Oh, you'll be in our studio before you know it!"

Sarah left and checked the other forms, and led the final six back onto the boat.

They repeated the process.

Thankfully, all had taken the advice about staying seated, so none were injured that time either.

Once they were back on shore, Chuck asked Jason and Paul to stay behind.

Ten impressed people left them as the NBC facilities crew took down the podium and collected the chairs.

"Would you be willing to help us this afternoon?" Chuck asked. He told them what was happening.

"Shit! Yes, definitely!" Jason said as Paul nodded. They left to get back to their base to hand over the material and prepare.

"Well, that was better than I expected," Chuck said to Sarah.

"More tomorrow, I guess," she responded.

"After lunch, we'll have to do the other, less pleasant, task," he said.

"Hopefully, no one will get hurt then, either," she replied.


After lunch, Chuck called Bryce. "Are you still in Miami?"

"After your stunt before I was nearly shipped out," Bryce growled. "But I got an extension. Your stunt with the boat, first speeding off from our craft and then this circus today, has apparently made you someone we can't take in."

Chuck grinned at Sarah. "That was part of its purpose."

"Why are you calling?" Bryce asked.

"I found the Intersect," Chuck replied. "Do you want to meet?"

That got Bryce fully focused. "Where and when?"

"It'll be somewhere near the port, at 5pm today. I'll give you instructions shortly before."

"Why not tell me now?"

"I don't want to be ambushed." Chuck hung up.

"I've rented the gym we discussed for an hour and a half using one of dad's other accounts," Sarah said.

"Good. I just hope we can hold the weight down as we talk," he said.

"We tie it down. You know I'm quick with a knife," she replied.

"Yeah." Remembering her speed still made him shiver.


At the start of the booking, the two of them turned up wearing hoodies and sunglasses. Just as Sarah had said, the disguise didn't faze the receptionist. Many people turned up to the gym dressed like this.

They set up the weights bench with enough weights on it to crush the Intersect when they landed on it. To make sure there was no give underneath, they covered the area where someone's upper back would normally lie with a solid plank of wood and placed the cube on it. Then, they pulled the arms down and tied a rope to one end before wrapping it around the base and tying it to the other arm.

Sarah sat off to the side of the machine, ready to slice the rope with a quick throw. Chuck sat on the bench, and they waited.

Ten minutes before the agreed time, Chuck called Bryce and told him where to go.

"Fuck! That'll be a sprint," Bryce said. "I can't drive there in this traffic!"

Chuck ended the call and grinned at his girlfriend.

Three minutes later, Bryce turned up. "Amazing what you can do on a motorbike," he said, smirking.

Another, larger man walked in behind him. "Let me introduce you to Major Casey of the NSA. He has an interest in this, too. Our two agencies have agreed to share the technology."

Hand it over, Bartowski," growled Casey.

Chuck said to the cube, "Intersect, give us some details on the major."

In less than a second, the cube replied. "John Casey is an ex-marine. His original name is Alexander Coburn."

Casey gasped.

"I didn't know that, Casey," Bryce said.

"You keep quiet about it," Casey snapped.

"I thought a demo would be worthwhile," Chuck said.

Chuck noticed the doors behind the two men open.

Casey started forward threateningly, reaching for the Intersect cube, and Chuck nodded to Sarah. Her throw was accurate, and the blade was sharp enough to slice straight through the rope. The weight crashed down on the cube and crushed it.

"Noooo!" Bryce and Casey cried in sync.

"That ends the threat of the Intersect to the human race," Chuck declared.

In the doorway, the NBC team had captured the cube being crushed, and they now walked in, still recording, as Casey growled, "I should kill you or at least lock you in a deep dark hole!"

"Is that what the NSA does to people from whom they fail to steal things?" Chuck asked, knowing this was being recorded.

"You're damn right they do!" Casey snarled.

"Thank you for that clarification, Major Casey. I'm sure NBC viewers will be fascinated to hear that," Chuck replied.

"They will," the NBC reporter said.

Casey snapped around. "What the fuck?"

The reporter smiled at him. "Don't worry, when it goes out, they'll bleep out the swear word."

Chuck stood and reached his hand out to his girlfriend. "Time for us to go, Sarah."

Sarah stood also and took Chuck's hand. Bryce was now looking amused. As they walked past him, he muttered, "Well played."

Chuck noticed Bryce was standing to one side and probably had not been captured on the recording.

Once out, with the NBC crew following, they went with them to the studio van.


The interview back at the NBC studio followed. Jason had them state that the CIA and NSA had been chasing them to get a device that would give them unlimited access to information.

"Sarah was kidnapped by a Russian mobster, and her life was threatened by him because he wanted it," Chuck stated. "The device would be sought by everyone and threaten peace. The owner would, in effect, threaten stability."

"Hence, you destroyed it?" Jason asked.

"Dad should never have created it," Chuck replied. "Whoever has it wields too much power. I do not think our government would use it for our benefit, if you're going to ask that. Those two agencies planned to keep it for themselves. And would abuse its power. It's better that it doesn't exist."

"Not everyone will agree with you about that, Charles," Jason commented.

Chuck nodded. "Well, to compensate for that, we'll be bringing the power of my dad's engine to everyone, something else that wouldn't have gotten out if those two had had their way."


That evening, Sarah and Chuck met Matt and Janine at the cavern.

"Thanks for leading the CIA off," Chuck said.

"It wasn't just the CIA. One boat was them, but the other was NSA," Matt replied. "They boarded us and searched for you."

"We're going to be joined by my parents and two aliens in a second or two," Chuck told them.

"So Sarah warned us," Janine commented.

"We're ready," Matt said.

Chuck chuckled. "Brace yourself, anyway."

It was less than a minute before four beings materialized in front of them.

"Shit! That's just like Star Trek!" Matt exclaimed.

Chuck and his dad laughed.

"Unfortunately, I don't have that technology to use without these two," Stephen said.

'Thank you for destroying the Intersect.'

Matt looked stunned, and Janine looked accusingly at Sarah. "You didn't mention that they did that!"

"Oops!" Sarah responded.

"Now that the Intersect is no longer a threat, we're going to return with our friends to their planet," Stephen said.

"Can't you stay?" Chuck virtually begged.

Mary looked sad and pulled him into an embrace. Sarah could see tears in her eyes. This was an emotional moment for them. She could feel tears of her own forming.

"If we did, all those that have been after me and the Intersect will still want it. If they caught me, I'd ultimately be forced to create one anew," Stephen replied. He placed a device on the table by Chuck. "That's not one of mine, but if you press the side, it will notify these two that you need help."

"Or that you are ready to come and visit," Mary added.

Chuck looked at Sarah. They'd talked about this briefly. "What do you think?"

"I'm ready for a break from here, but we have a lot of interaction to come over the next few days and then this new company to set up," she replied.

"Come for a quick visit," Mary begged.

Sarah turned to Matt and Janine. "Can you field questions tomorrow?"

Matt just nodded, still focused on the two aliens.

"We can," Janine said.

Sarah turned to the aliens. "Can we have a very quick visit and be back here in a day's time?"

'As a thanks for what you have done, yes.'

Chuck picked Sarah up by her waist and spun her around. She giggled.

As he put her back down, he kissed her, then said, "Looks like we're having a brief excursion."


A/N: The aliens didn't appear much in this chapter, but they will in the next which captures that excursion.

You can still leave reviews in spite of Fanfiction's problems, so I'd love it if you did.

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Glossary:

Like in my Exo story, I'm recording alien words and names here for reference:

Sxtrtztar - some effect detected by the alien sensor arrays when the Intersect cube is used.

Xspotl - one of the first pair of aliens encountered by Chuck and Sarah.

Zxtarl - one of the first pair of aliens encountered by Chuck and Sarah.