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Tweak says, "5, 6... grab your crucifix"

Derek Morgan (derek__morgan) wrote in omega_reality,
@ 2010-11-02 13:17:00

Entry tags:

*complete, 2010 11, character: derek morgan, dead: leon vance, dead: penelope garcia

RP: Derek & Penelope
Who: Derek Morgan, Penelope Garcia
Where: DC (Washington, VA), NYC
When: Nov 2, 2010
Summary: After a night unwinding with the team, Morgan and Garcia take a little detour. To another dimension.

"Kevin waiting up for you?" Derek asked, arm around Garcia as they headed toward the bar exit. It was late, and everyone else had gone home already. Unwinding after a case was nothing new, nor was his and Penelope's being the last to leave.

He helped her on with her coat, and then pushed open the door of the pub. He noticed a glimmer on the sidewalk, which was weird because it was full on dark out. Must have been a play of the street lights he decided, holding the door for Pen. It wasn't until they were fully on the street that he knew something was wrong.

There should be federal buildings all around, not quaint little shops and a few houses. He looked around, and not even the bar they'd just been in was the same. As far as he knew, there was no Charlie's Sports Bar & Grill on Indiana Ave.

"Garcia," he said slowly, wondering if this was some sort of psychotic break and he'd end up being their next Unsub. "Am I seeing what I think I'm seeing?"

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goddessgarcia
2010-11-03 01:13 pm UTC (link)

"Jealous?" Penelope teased, letting him play the gallant and help her with her coat. She reached up and patted his cheek. "Baby, you know I've only got eyes for you."

She felt pleasantly light as they stepped through the door, buzzing a little from the alcohol but not more than that. Fiddling with her buttons, she didn't realize anything was up until Morgan spoke.

"....Um." She stared around, eyes widening behind her glasses. "Did... someone redecorate?"

She rubbed her eyes and looked again. All around them, people were walking by as if nothing was wrong. But - not enough people. Even at this time of night, this street should be crowded with pedestrians and cars, but there were barely a dozen people in sight.

"I am not this drunk," she declared, shifting her weight a little closer to Morgan's reassuring presence. "You don't think somebody slipped us something? Is there anything that could do this?" Perfectly coherent hallucinations? That had to be a new one.

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derek__morgan
2010-11-03 01:14 pm UTC (link)

"No, we are definitely not this drunk," he said, looking around slowly. He kept himself between her and anyone passing, one hand reaching for the gun he would find at his side. He still had his badge and other important ids, and he knew his girl carried all sorts of things in her fancy purses, so they weren't totally up the creek without a paddle.

And while it was possible that someone slipped them something, Morgan didn't think that had been what happened. But what drug could cause delusions so specific, and more than that, shared between two people. That was, as far as he knew, impossible. Reid would know more, would have facts stored in that giant brain of his, and might possibly be able to make some sense of this.

"Come on. We can't stay here." They'd go to the FBI headquarters first. Someone there would know what was going on. He told Garcia his plan, and they headed East on Indiana, back towards the office.

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goddessgarcia
2010-11-03 01:19 pm UTC (link)

Garcia was only too happy that Derek had a plan. As they made their way back toward headquarters (and she tried repeatedly to convince herself that the reason she couldn't see any part of the building was because it was hidden, not because it for some reason wasn't there), she goggled at everything they passed. All sorts of crazy scenarios were forming in her brain. Teleportation... parallel universes... time travel...

Let's face it, Garcy girl, you read too many comic books.

Teleportation was probably out, anyway. There was just enough familiar about this Bizarro World to convince her that they hadn't left DC. The route they were taking back to HQ was exactly the same. Well... the streets were.

To distract herself from craning her neck in search of old J. Edgar Hoover, Penelope fished out her smartphone. It would help to know if this was something that was happening to everyone, or just to herself and Morgan. She looked at it and muttered a curse.

"Nutbunnies. I know I charged this thing." Replacing her personal cell in its pocket on the side of her flower-bedecked purse, she fished around in the bottom until she located her work mobile. And... "Derek? Uh. Is your cell working? Because neither of mine are. And I know they were charged. This is..."

They turned one last corner and her voice died away. There in front of them, where the Hoover Building should have stood in all its stodgy concrete glory, was... What was that? A church?

"...really, really weird," Penelope breathed, gazing up at the unfamiliar building with wondering eyes. She wasn't quite to fear yet; it was all too surreal. "Babycakes, we are officially not in Kansas anymore."

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derek__morgan
2010-11-03 01:20 pm UTC (link)

Derek was trying very hard not to freak out. But the more they walked, the more he couldn't help it. Outwardly he was completely calm. Inwardly? The only thing keeping him together was Penelope. And when she mentioned that neither of her phones were working, things got worse. He checked his, but it was dead just like hers.

He didn't have a chance to respond, however, because the church took him by surprise. "What the fuck." Derek wasn't one to swear often, but sometimes it was necessary. "I don't even think we're in DC, Baby Girl. At least, not the DC we know."

And he wouldn't admit it, but without the J. Edgar Hoover building in its appropriate place, he was at a loss where to go next. They could hardly find the nearest precinct and say they'd stumbled into an alternate reality or universe or whatever this was. They'd be separated and locked up faster than he could blink. And hell, he got that. He did. He'd be likely to the same if someone came to him and said they were from a different world.

"Okay Garcia, we need to get off the streets, somewhere we can figure out what the hell is going on here."

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goddessgarcia
2010-11-03 01:22 pm UTC (link)

DC, but not DC. Those crazy comic book theories were seeming more plausible every minute.

Going to a precinct didn't even cross her mind. Not particularly enamored of authority to begin with, Garcia couldn't help but think that if this were a graphic novel, there was a good chance that everyone around them - authorities in particular - were plants. No, they were on their own, at least until they found the rest of the BAU.

Unless they're plants too. No, stop it, Garcy. That way lies madness.

"My place," Penelope replied decisively. "I've got my laptop, but the big guns are there. We can charge up, jump online, and send up a mayday. One teensy tiny favor though?" She gave him her best pitiful look. "Can we get a cab? I know you're Mr. Macho Man, but it's a couple miles, and these boots are not made for walking." Lifting one kitten-heeled shoe, she wriggled it to emphasize. "You'll be carrying me in five blocks - nobody wants that."

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derek__morgan
2010-11-03 02:22 pm UTC (link)

He didn't want to scare her, but no way were they getting a cab. With everything being different, there was no guarantee that their money would work, and the last thing they needed was to call attention to themselves that way. Being arrested for forgery wasn't really on his list of things to do. And there was also the fact that they had no guarantees that Garcia's apartment would be where it should be.

"Penelope," he used her name, something he only ever did when it was serious. Something was seriously wrong, and the hair on the back of his neck was standing up, body primed for reacting. Fight or flight instinct, and everything was pointing to fight.

"Stay behind me. Something's wrong--" He heard the sound of a rifle going off before he saw the black BDU's, and he pulled Penelope behind him. The sharp prick of a tranquilizer dart had him out cold, though, before he could get her to run.

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goddessgarcia
2010-11-03 10:02 pm UTC (link)

Garcia had not spent much time out in the field with the team - really out in the field, where the guns were, as opposed to holed up in the local police station. But she recognized the change in Morgan's manner. It wasn't just that FBI Headquarters was gone. A more immediate and urgent threat was what she read in his sudden alertness, the move to get her out of harm's way. And now she was scared.

"Derek-?" she began, but then she was roughly pulled into the shelter of his body, and a second later he collapsed, nearly knocking her over with the suddenness of it. She drew a quick breath to scream, but the second dart hit her before the sound escaped. She crumpled bonelessly to the pavement beside him.

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leon_vance
2010-11-03 11:33 pm UTC (link)

They had searched the two new arrivals as soon as they arrived to the base. After that, they had their intelligence people gather everything they could on their counterparts here this reality. That was the easy part. Convincing them about the truth would be the hard one.

They called him as soon as they two woke up in the interrogation room. Even though Hetty could probably do it better, he wanted them to learn the truth from him. They needed to trust him if they were going to work here.

Leon entered the room and looked at the two with a smile on his face. "Mr. Morgan, Ms. Garcia, my name is Leon Vance, director of NCIS." He took a chair, because he wasn't here to intimidate them. "That is from NCIS in our reality. There has been an incident that has caused a rift in realities and we are now guests of what I like to call the Omega reality since it seems the arrival point from other realities. You are at a base of the newly constituted ICIS - Interreality Criminal Investigative Service, and I've been named director. I'm sure you have plenty of questions."

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derek__morgan
2010-11-04 02:54 am UTC (link)

Derek was honestly surprised that they were in an interrogation room together, and not in separate cells, when they woke up. He could only assume that their id's had gotten them this far, though his gun had been confiscated. A glance at Penelope showed that she was relatively unharmed, if disheveled. Her hair was falling out of it's intricate ponytail thing, and she was missing an earring. She was going to bitch about that later, he thought, before turning his attention to the man across the table from them.

Leon Vance. NCIS. Alternate Realities. Derek wished he could chalk this up to an extreme delusion, call Hotch and Rossi, and get the hell out of here. However, he'd been trained in behavior analysis, and could tell when someone was lying. And Vance was not lying. It didn't mean that he trusted the man, or believed him about the rift, but he could remain calm enough to ask questions.

"You're right. I do have plenty of questions." And Garcia likely had more, but he gave her a look to remain silent for now. He needed to be sure of this man's identity before they said anything. "But first, can I see some identification?"

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leon_vance
2010-11-04 03:11 am UTC (link)

"For what exactly?" He asked, amused. The FBI was always so entertaining. Gibbs would have a field day. In fact, Leon would have a field day if Gibbs were here. He'd take his men over any other agent.

"An agency you don't know exist in a place that doesn't exist? I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't walk around with an ID that says that I'm the director of a secret agency while inside the base. I can tell you that we found you in Washington, Virginia. A lovely town at the border with Maryland. We're now in Brooklyn, New York, the Capital of the United States, that our borders are slightly different, the Hoover building isn't on Pennsylvania Avenue anymore, in fact, it doesn't exist, because there is no FBI, and the Twin Towers are still standing." Leon looked at the two. "Would you like to go outside and see for yourselves? Those two buildings make a huge difference when hearing this story."

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goddessgarcia
2010-11-04 05:21 am UTC (link)

The keep-quiet look was largely unnecessary, at least at first. Penelope was too busy goggling at the stranger, trying to take in everything he was saying.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute, sugar, put on the brakes. You're saying we actually are in the Bizarro World right now?" She shook her head in bewilderment. What she most wanted to ask was whether the rest of the team was here, but she bit back the question at the last second. They still didn't know if this man - who apparently had had them drugged and kidnapped and transported unconscious across state lines - could be (ha!) trusted. And if he couldn't, and the others were here and hadn't been caught yet, Garcia wouldn't be the one to point him in their direction.

Her head was spinning. There was really only one thing she knew for certain, and she latched on to it: She would much, much rather be outside than locked in an interrogation room. It would reassure her somewhat as to Vance's intentions, and if they had to escape, it could only be easier from outdoors. So as long as they were being offered the option...

"Yes. Yes, I would very much like to see New York Prime for myself." She got to her feet, wincing at the stiffness in every limb. No idea how long they'd been out, but if they'd really been transported to New York, it had been a while. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and noted the awful state of her hair and makeup with dismay. Trying to shove a lock of hair back behind her ear, she found her hands were shaking, and planted them hard on her hips so hopefully no one would notice. She fixed the man with a Death Glare. "I also want my computer back, right now. And the rest of our things."

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leon_vance
2010-11-04 12:52 pm UTC (link)

"You can call me 'Director' or Mr. Vance, and I'm telling you that you are in an alternate reality," he said, pleasantly. "I doubt the people here would appreciate it being called Bizzaro World."

Leon got up. "You will fill your belongings in your new quarters, Ms. Garcia." He opened the door and stepped outside. "Come, let me show you the base, and we can talk about the many other things you need to know. While Bizzaro World can be interesting, it's also a bureaucratic nightmare in terms of cover stories, missing people. I'm sure since you both work for the Bureau, you're aware of that."

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derek__morgan
2010-11-05 02:07 am UTC (link)

Derek reached out and squeezed Penelope's leg under the table, a quick warning action to let her know to back down before it was too late. "Director, I'm sure you realize how absolutely impossible this sounds," he said, and stood along with the other man. They could talk and walk at the same time.

"First, how did this happen? It was a split second, and we were here." It didn't make any sense. Derek didn't read comic books or watch superhero movies, but he knew enough from Garcia and Reid to know they that what they were experiencing was like something dreamed up by Marvel.

"What happened to our counterparts in this reality?"

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leon_vance
2010-11-05 02:17 am UTC (link)

Leon chuckled. Did he know? Of course he knew. "Trust me; I know better than you. As far as we can tell, I was the first to arrive and no one really believed me. So yes, I know perfectly well."

He had been asking himself that very question since he had arrived here. "You'll get a lot of fancy terms from the scientists, but as far as I can tell, they know as much as we do, which means they have no clue other that their nifty project isn't working."

He looked at the other man. "They end up in our place. One of my employees arrived and said that I had resigned, but I was also seen. I'm assuming that they are containing the new arrivals, just like we are. It's the logical conclusion."

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goddessgarcia
2010-11-08 06:16 am UTC (link)

'Director' of an agency we don't know exists in a place we don't know exists? Garcia wanted to retort, but at Derek's touch she held her tongue. For the moment. She would rather have given it free rein; this whole situation had her thoroughly freaked out, and while making smart remarks wouldn't necessarily have changed anything, it at least would have given her some sense of being in control of something.

And 'new quarters'. She didn't like the sound of that either. "New quarters?" she repeated, an edge in her voice. "So you're telling us that not only do you have no idea how we got here, you're expecting us to stay?" Vance was projecting the air of a man who was on their side (if being sort of an authoritative jerk about it) but she still saw no reason to take anything he said as canon. Maybe he'd brought them here himself. Maybe he was trying to manipulate them for some nefarious purpose.

Maybe she was getting carried away, but then again, supposedly they'd been sucked into an alternate universe and maybe 'carried away' didn't really have any meaning anymore.

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leon_vance
2010-11-08 01:06 pm UTC (link)

"You seem like a very bright woman, Ms. Garcia." She was smart enough to evade the authorities in this world and Leon had no reason to believe that they were any less competent than theirs. "Where exactly would you go? You have no jobs, no money and no idea what's different. Technology has changed, cities have changed, everything you know has disappeared; your friends are all gone."

He didn't mention that no one would be allowed to leave, even if he wanted to. The best he could achieve was to keep the people willing to help, but he had no idea what would happen to the rest, and it was probably best for his sanity not to find out. "Look, I know it's a lot to take in, but you will have a place to stay and we'll give you books and information about this world and when you are ready, you will do your job and duty as a federal employee. We all swore allegiance to this country. We might be in another reality, but it's still our country."

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derek__morgan
2010-11-09 01:50 am UTC (link)

"There's no way back, is there." It wasn't a question, because they wouldn't be having this discussion if the scientists had found a way back through the portal, or whatever it should be called. He squeezed Penelope's hand, because she looked ready to explode, and looked back at Vance.

"Thank you, Director. It's a lot to process right now. It might be best if we saved the tour for another time. We'll take the books though. And Penelope would like a computer." She could find out a hell of a lot more in a shorter period of time about this place with a computer than he could with a book. Neither of them read or processed information at Reid rates, but it was a start.

Luckily, it turned out that their rooms at the hotel were well equipped, and they could spend as long as they needed acclimating to this new universe.

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