The Waves (Le Onde)

As with Tell Me Lies, this began life on SD-1 - and I know one or two of my readers there are regular posters here too. And I found out that some of TML's readers never knew about this fic over there, so it's brand new to them :lol:.

I'll start from the beginning, for anyone new to this - for anyone who's read this before, please keep quiet about the cliffhangers! ;) Thank you! :hug:

Title - The Waves (Le Onde)
Timeline - I'm always a little fuzzy when placing my fics, but it involves the CIA and SD-6, so it's circa season 2-3 (i.e. Kendall is in charge, but Marshall's on the good guys' side).
Rating - PG-13

Synopsis - The CIA is chasing the pieces of a valuable computer programme - they already have one, and are trying to get a second piece. But is everyone on the same team?

Disclaimer - I don't know the characters or anything of the show, that's all JJ and Bad Robot, etc.

Hope you like it! I'll be starting a PM list, as I don't know who (of the SD-1 readers) is registered here, and hopefully, there'll be some new readers! :hug:






The Waves (Le Onde)

Chapter 1

The wind whipped around Sydney, as she sat on the rocks at the edge of the beach. This early in the morning, the beach was deserted, especially as it was slightly out of LA - it was too far for the tourists to visit. She came here quite often, or at least as often as her schedule allowed. It was free from distractions, free from people, just unspoilt sand and sea. Wild and slightly rugged, she could come and sit on the higher rocks and just watch the waves crash over the smaller rocks below. From time to time, spray would fly up and coat her face, tiny salt drops flicking her skin.

She took a deep breath, inhaling the clean, salty air. Closing her eyes, she tried to empty her mind of all the thoughts which crowded it, jostling to get her attention. Kendall, the agency, the mission, Vaughn, her father... she needed to clear her mind, for her own sanity. That was why she'd come to the beach, it was her little sanctuary. She watched the dark clouds drawing in over the horizon, and she could almost smell the rain which she knew would begin to fall. As the wind picked up, she shivered and drew her jacket closer around her body. It was so peaceful, so quiet, she wished she could stay there all day.

Her pager beeped, and for a second, she longed to throw it into the ocean. She smiled as she remembered once throwing her pager into the sea, when Vaughn was with her. Her heart sinking a little, she picked up the pager and read the message. Her father, back at the office. Looking back out to sea for a moment, she took a mental photo of the view, and counted to ten slowly, trying to maintain the calm she felt, watching the waves roll in. Then she picked up her keys, and made her way back to her car.

****************************

Jack was at the conference table in the briefing room, surrounded by piles of paperwork. To his right, Eric Weiss sat ploughing through a summary of the previous missions. His usually jovial face was oddly serious, as he concentrated on the report. As Sydney neared the room, Vaughn caught up to her. Taking her by the elbow, he steered her towards an alcove in the corridor.

"Syd, listen, about the mission..."

"Vaughn, we - "

"Please, Syd, let me finish." He rubbed his face, and she could see how tired he was. She knew she looked just as tired. This situation was taking its toll on all of them. "I just wanted to say, that I'm ready to back you up on this. I don't think it's the right thing at all."

Sydney looked at him, looking deeply into his eyes. After what seemed like forever, his eyes flicked up and met hers. They had shared so much, but she was still amazed by just how much could be conveyed in those green eyes of his. A corner of her mouth gave an almost imperceptible twitch into a smile - so small most people would have missed it. But not Michael Vaughn. She twined her fingers into his, and looked at them. Small scars laced his skin, tiny, but there if you knew where to look. A miniature map, each scar telling of a different mission. She knew this mission they were planning was dangerous. She wondered how many new scars would be added.

Sensing what she was thinking, Vaughn gently squeezed her hand. "I know," he said quietly. Just two little words, but they spoke volumes.

Hearing footsteps heading their way, they broke apart, and looked up to see Eric walking towards them, looking tense. "Guys, we've had news. We're all in the briefing room."

Sydney and Vaughn followed him in. "Any news on the other pieces of the programme?" Sydney asked, as she sat down. She gave a quick smile of hello to her father, and a nod to Kendall.

Jack nodded, curtly. "Marshall has intercepted an encrypted message from a man called Vincente D'Angelo."

"The D'Angelo who created the virus which brought down the entire Stock Exchange?" Vaughn asked, stunned.

"The very same," Weiss agreed. "Marshall's been working on the encryption, but given D'Angelo's reputation as an IT genius, it's not a quick job."

Sydney and Vaughn exchanged glances. "How long has Marshall been working on the decryption?" Sydney asked, worried.

"About 6 hours now." Jack pulled out a photograph from a file in front of him, and passed it to Sydney and Vaughn. "All we know at the moment is that D'Angelo has disappeared off the radar. It's likely he's gone to ground in Venice, where he feels at home. We've got agents in the area working to confirm this. In the meantime, we need to-"

"Sorry! Mr. Jack- uh Bristow- Mr. Bristow, I've got it," blustered Marshall, tearing into the office, waving a sheaf of papers. Everyone looked up in surprise at the human whirlwind who'd just blown in. As usual, Marshall was buzzing at about twice the pace of everyone else, both mentally and physically.

Kendall held up a hand, and motioned for Marshall to sit down. "You've got the decryption?"

Marshall gulped, and nodded, handing out copies of a page to everyone at the desk. "It's a message from D'Angelo to a second party, I don't know who just yet, but I'm tracing the IP address. It's located in Venice, as you thought, Mr. Bristow. It seems he's acquired a piece of the programme, and is trying to find a buyer for it. As a precaution though-" he paused, and managed to look apologetically serious, a typical Marshall expression, "- he's devised a brand new encryption for the piece he has."

Kendall groaned, and Sydney and Vaughn deflated slightly. Another blow. Even if they managed to steal the piece of the programme from D'Angelo, they would either need him to translate it, or spend valuable time translating it themselves. Only Jack seemed unfazed, bar looking slightly more pensive and serious - which just meant that his brain had shifted up a gear, analysing the new situation.

"And if we can acquire this piece," Kendall began, "how long do you estimate it would take, to translate?"

Marshall gave a nervous laugh. "Without seeing the encryption he's designed? I have no idea. But it took the CIA's best virus techs 2 weeks to unravel the virus he created last year. He's good - I mean really good."

Everyone paused a second. Such praise from Marshall carried weight, as Marshall was no slouch in the technological genius stakes.

Kendall took charge. "Marshall, get to work on tracing that anonymous second party. Anything you can get - name, town, even country at this point." He scratched his head, and turned to the others. "I want everyone else working on tracking D'Angelo. This man can make himself invisible, and we need to find him to get that piece of the programme. Hit every contact you have, pull in favours, cajole, beg or bribe, I don't care. We need to find this man. Get to work, and keep me posted."

Sydney, Vaughn and Weiss gathered their files, and followed Jack out the door. He shepherded them to a quiet area nearby, and looked around to make sure they were not overheard.

"I think there's something going on, something that Kendall isn't telling us," he said, quietly, his voice clinical and businesslike.

"I thought it was just me who thought Kendall was off," Sydney whispered.

Vaughn and Weiss shook their heads. "Not just you," Weiss remarked. "I've been here all morning, and he's definitely hiding something, I just haven't worked out what, yet."

Jack bit his lip, deep in thought. "I'll go and talk to him, see if I can get a hint of what's going on. In the meantime, start researching D'Angelo. Sydney, try to contact Perotti, he's an old friend of mine, owes me a favour. He'll know who you are, you can trust any information he gives you."

"Didn't we work with him on the Sardinia mission last year?"

"Sardinia, and also Rome in '98," Jack nodded. "But he's often been a source for me, even if we've not worked side by side. He should be able to find out something, and right now we'll take anything."

"I've got a few back channels I've not fully tapped yet," Vaughn said. "They're usually fairly reliable."

"All right, let's see what we can find out, and we'll update in half an hour." Jack watched as the other three went their respective ways, and then headed over to Kendall's office.

Sydney saw him enter Kendall's office as she logged onto her computer. She was still uneasy, but she couldn't place why. Right now, however, she needed to hit the research trail, so she shook off the unease as best she could and started dialling Perotti's number.


****************************

And that's your lot for now! :smiley: Hope you like it - I love hearing people's thoughts, so let me know - whether you liked it, what things or lines you liked, etc. And also, if you'd like to be on the PM list! :hug:

Thanks for reading!
 
Ooh im loving this already! :woot: :jump: i find it very intresting and intriguing how the plot resembles a real episode of alias.
Thanks so much for the pm and you better update soon! After all you creully didnt give us two chaps. :cry:
 
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