Made for the
leverageland Spin-Off Challenge. Our task was to create a fictional spin-off featuring any characters we wanted. A couple of people asked about it, so I figured I'd post it here, too. Minor spoilers for the end of Season Three.
The Calvary
The Story
Everything was going beautifully for the Leverage team. Damien Moreau was under lock and key, Nate Ford was a free man, and the team was closer than ever. They were finally safe and ready to settle in and do what they did best-help people. But one morning, Eliot Spencer’s worst fears are realized. His team, his family has disappeared without a trace. Was it payback for bringing down Moreau? Was it an old adversary come to settle a score? Was it something else entirely different? With the rest of his crew missing Eliot Spencer assembles a team of professionals to track his family and bring them home. And if all goes well, maybe they can help a few people along the way.
Eliot Spencer (Christian Kane)
Eliot Spencer, ex-soldier and retrieval specialist, had grown used to being a loner over the years. But an off-kilter thief, a smart-ass hacker, a sexy grifter, and an alcoholic mastermind had gotten under his skin and breathed new life into a cold shell of a man. The wounds had started to scar over, and Eliot was starting to believe that he’d left the man he used to be behind. But now, with the people he cares about the most gone, Eliot is rocked to the core. He was supposed to be their protector, but he had failed. Plagued by nightmares and guilt, Eliot struggles to keep it together long enough to find his team and bring them home safely. But as he turns over every rock and looks in every dark corner, he’s afraid he might lose the humanity the team had nurtured.
Tara Cole (Jeri Ryan)
Tara Cole is more than just a sexy grifter. With a complicated past and a skill set that would make most professionals envious, Tara has become a survivor. Her skills as a grifter, coupled with her ability to throw down in a fight when necessary make Tara a crucial addition to Eliot’s team. Maybe it was a sense of loyalty and friendship to Sophie that led her to join Eliot’s little rescue squad. Or maybe Nate and the others had broken her, too. Either way, she’s learning to like being part of a team. And she often finds herself having to rein Eliot in, as he slips further and further into the darkness.
Reese Wells (Jensen Ackles)
Reese Wells is a retrieval specialist, and he’s definitely got the skills and experience to make him one of the best in the business. He’s smart, a crack shot, and a gifted hand-to-hand fighter. But for all of Reese’s skill, he seems to have a screw loose somewhere. He loves the thrill, the adrenaline rush, the heady sense of power his job offers him. According to Eliot, he loves the rush little too much. He’s known Eliot Spencer for several years, and once in a while, they call each other friends. When Eliot approaches him for a long-term rescue gig, he’s too intrigued to turn it down. But will his recklessness and love of adventure make him more trouble than he’s worth.
Ishi Tanaka (Naoko Mori)
Ishi is a hacker and inventor whose technical skills have been called upon by numerous government agencies and private businessmen over the years. At first glance, she seems to be shy, retiring, and stereotypically nerdy. And she’s perfectly fine letting people believe what they want. But in reality, Ishi can be calculating, efficient, and deadly when she needs to be. She’s completely comfortable in her own skin and appreciates fine art and fine food. She’s joined the team out of loyalty to Eliot, who once saved her life, but she soon grows comfortable with the camaraderie they offer. She finds herself struggling with her attraction to Reese, who she sees as less-than-professional.
Ben Hopkins (Jeffrey Dean Morgan)
As a veteran of the US military, Ben Hopkins served as a member of a covert operations team specializing in the most delicate of assignments. He’s scary-good at what he does, but his skill is tempered with compassion, an easygoing manner, strong morals, and a sense of humor. He’s not a cuddly teddy bear by any means, though, as anyone who gets in the way of his completing a mission will soon learn. While in the military, he served with a young squeaky clean, fledging Army recruit named Eliot Spencer, and they’ve kept in touch over the years. As a member of Eliot’s team, Ben finds himself becoming a big brother to the Eliot, Reese, and Ishi and a frequent rival of Tara.