Transhuman, 14/?
Title: Transhuman
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Characters/Pairing: Garcia-centric, team - gen
Genre: Science-fiction/Drama
Summary: In a dystopian future, hacker Penelope Garcia finds herself being hunted by a corrupt organization. Fearing for her life, she must search for help in the strangest of places.
Author’s Notes: Betaed by Windy City Dreamer.
Chapter Fourteen
It was early when Morgan heard the noise. It was soft - a slight creaking on the wooden floors outside. Once upon a time he might have dismissed it as the building settling, or a neighbor leaving their apartment at some ridiculous hour. That time had long since passed.
He grabbed his gun from the counter, flicking off the safety. That small movement had evidently been enough to pull Hotch from sleep on the couch nearby.
‘Something wrong?’ the older man whispered.
Morgan said nothing, but pointed towards the door, indicating that he was going to check it out. Hotch nodded, drawing his own weapon. Two guns were better than one. They flanked the door, Morgan gripping the handle. Hotch, peering through the peephole, gave him a nod, and he simultaneously turned and pulled.
There were two of them - both dressed in black, and both heavily armed - but neither Hotch nor Morgan were amateurs. Morgan found himself tackling the first man to the ground, leaving the second to Hotch. There was a brief but ugly struggle, with an equal number of blows from both sides. He had wanted to get through this without firing his weapon, but he also knew that if he didn’t get proactive, then it would go from an ugly fight to a downright brutal one.
A gunshot echoed in the confined hallway, but he felt no pain. There was the briefest moment of panic, as he realized that it could have been Hotch that took the bullet, but then he felt the warm, sticky blood flowing from the dead weight that was lying on top of him. A second shot fired, and he became aware of Hotch, standing over the body of the second man. The other man’s white shirt was stained red from the multiple wounds that seemed to have been inflicted.
‘We need to move, now,’ said Hotch, pushing the apartment door open. Neither man reholstered their weapon - if there were two, there could have be more.
No sooner than they’d stepped inside, Garcia and Kevin had burst into the living area, followed by JJ from the other bedroom.
‘What’s going on?’ asked Garcia, overcome with a thorough case of bedhead.
‘We need to move, now,’ Morgan said. She was gaping at him - at the blood that he was covered in, he realized.
‘Is that…did you…?’
‘I’m fine,’ he said bluntly. ‘But we need to go, now. Grab your stuff.’
She nodded, and was off in a flash, Kevin as well. He had to hand it to them, they were quick in a crisis. Once they’d ascertained the nature of the situation, it had taken them less than a minute to comply.
Satisfied that they were good to go, Morgan jerked open the door of the apartment, only to come face to face with Spencer Reid. The young man was staring at the bodies on the hallway floor, shock marring his otherwise innocent features.
‘They tried to kill us,’ Morgan said bluntly, though he didn’t know why he was explaining himself to a complete stranger. Well, he reasoned, not a complete stranger. He’d had a couple of interactions with their temporary neighbor, but not nearly enough to label the man a friend, or even an acquaintance.
‘If there are others, then they’ll be on their way,’ Hotch said, not even reacting at the sight of Spencer.
‘There’s a service entrance,’ the young man said, to Morgan’s surprise. ‘No-one’s used it in years. I, uh…I go down there to ah…to feed a stray cat sometimes. It goes out onto the backstreets.’
‘We can avoid the Corp altogether if they don’t have anyone at the service entrance,’ Morgan told Hotch. ‘We can double back around to the Eastern Tunnels.’ Before Hotch could argue, he added. ‘Look, we’re covered in blood, our names will be on ever wanted poster from here to the bay. Even with a bridge pass, there’s no way we’re getting over to the slums by any legal means.’
‘I know,’ Hotch conceded. He stole a glance behind him - at JJ, Morgan knew immediately. Hotch was going to do everything in his power to help reunite that family. Morgan was with him every step of the way.
‘Follow me,’ Spencer said, with some determination. Morgan was a little intrigued by the sudden display of dominance, but didn’t have time to question it. There was the possibility that the man was leading them into a trap, but he didn’t seem like the kind.
‘We can’t drag you into this,’ Morgan argued.
‘The door is hidden, you won’t find it without being shown. Come on,’ Spencer reiterated, starting off down the hall. It could have been a trap. Morgan really hoped that it wasn’t a trap - Spencer was a good kid. He really didn’t want to have to kill him.
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Characters/Pairing: Garcia-centric, team - gen
Genre: Science-fiction/Drama
Summary: In a dystopian future, hacker Penelope Garcia finds herself being hunted by a corrupt organization. Fearing for her life, she must search for help in the strangest of places.
Author’s Notes: Betaed by Windy City Dreamer.
Chapter Fourteen
It was early when Morgan heard the noise. It was soft - a slight creaking on the wooden floors outside. Once upon a time he might have dismissed it as the building settling, or a neighbor leaving their apartment at some ridiculous hour. That time had long since passed.
He grabbed his gun from the counter, flicking off the safety. That small movement had evidently been enough to pull Hotch from sleep on the couch nearby.
‘Something wrong?’ the older man whispered.
Morgan said nothing, but pointed towards the door, indicating that he was going to check it out. Hotch nodded, drawing his own weapon. Two guns were better than one. They flanked the door, Morgan gripping the handle. Hotch, peering through the peephole, gave him a nod, and he simultaneously turned and pulled.
There were two of them - both dressed in black, and both heavily armed - but neither Hotch nor Morgan were amateurs. Morgan found himself tackling the first man to the ground, leaving the second to Hotch. There was a brief but ugly struggle, with an equal number of blows from both sides. He had wanted to get through this without firing his weapon, but he also knew that if he didn’t get proactive, then it would go from an ugly fight to a downright brutal one.
A gunshot echoed in the confined hallway, but he felt no pain. There was the briefest moment of panic, as he realized that it could have been Hotch that took the bullet, but then he felt the warm, sticky blood flowing from the dead weight that was lying on top of him. A second shot fired, and he became aware of Hotch, standing over the body of the second man. The other man’s white shirt was stained red from the multiple wounds that seemed to have been inflicted.
‘We need to move, now,’ said Hotch, pushing the apartment door open. Neither man reholstered their weapon - if there were two, there could have be more.
No sooner than they’d stepped inside, Garcia and Kevin had burst into the living area, followed by JJ from the other bedroom.
‘What’s going on?’ asked Garcia, overcome with a thorough case of bedhead.
‘We need to move, now,’ Morgan said. She was gaping at him - at the blood that he was covered in, he realized.
‘Is that…did you…?’
‘I’m fine,’ he said bluntly. ‘But we need to go, now. Grab your stuff.’
She nodded, and was off in a flash, Kevin as well. He had to hand it to them, they were quick in a crisis. Once they’d ascertained the nature of the situation, it had taken them less than a minute to comply.
Satisfied that they were good to go, Morgan jerked open the door of the apartment, only to come face to face with Spencer Reid. The young man was staring at the bodies on the hallway floor, shock marring his otherwise innocent features.
‘They tried to kill us,’ Morgan said bluntly, though he didn’t know why he was explaining himself to a complete stranger. Well, he reasoned, not a complete stranger. He’d had a couple of interactions with their temporary neighbor, but not nearly enough to label the man a friend, or even an acquaintance.
‘If there are others, then they’ll be on their way,’ Hotch said, not even reacting at the sight of Spencer.
‘There’s a service entrance,’ the young man said, to Morgan’s surprise. ‘No-one’s used it in years. I, uh…I go down there to ah…to feed a stray cat sometimes. It goes out onto the backstreets.’
‘We can avoid the Corp altogether if they don’t have anyone at the service entrance,’ Morgan told Hotch. ‘We can double back around to the Eastern Tunnels.’ Before Hotch could argue, he added. ‘Look, we’re covered in blood, our names will be on ever wanted poster from here to the bay. Even with a bridge pass, there’s no way we’re getting over to the slums by any legal means.’
‘I know,’ Hotch conceded. He stole a glance behind him - at JJ, Morgan knew immediately. Hotch was going to do everything in his power to help reunite that family. Morgan was with him every step of the way.
‘Follow me,’ Spencer said, with some determination. Morgan was a little intrigued by the sudden display of dominance, but didn’t have time to question it. There was the possibility that the man was leading them into a trap, but he didn’t seem like the kind.
‘We can’t drag you into this,’ Morgan argued.
‘The door is hidden, you won’t find it without being shown. Come on,’ Spencer reiterated, starting off down the hall. It could have been a trap. Morgan really hoped that it wasn’t a trap - Spencer was a good kid. He really didn’t want to have to kill him.