Washington walks up to Doc, as he checks South's pulse.
Wash: Doc. What did you find in your scan of the Meta?
Doc: Umm, it's hard to say. He's added so much non-standard equipment to his armor that I can't really get a good reading on him.
Wash: I didn't ask you to run an intelligence report on him. I wanted a medical one.
Doc: His power systems are stressed from trying to maintain it all. Is he missing some component that controls all this-
Wash: Physically. Is he fine, physically?
Doc: Yeah, I guess.
Wash: Good. Next time answer the question I ask. I'm watching you two. Give me any trouble and you're dead. Don't believe me? Ask your buddy about his friend Donut.
Doc: (to Simmons) Hey, he does realize that I'm the one who scanned Donut's dead body, right?
Simmons: I think he was just making a point. Hey! I have an idea! Give me your scanner.
Doc: My scanner? Why? It can't be used as a weapon.
Simmons: Maybe it can. If I can overload the power-cell, you may be able it will be able to fire an over-charged burst. It could short out the Meta's systems, either that or...
Doc: Or what?
Simmons: Huh? What? Na na na na, No 'or', just that, forget the 'or'.
Doc: You were going to say explode, weren't you?
Simmons: ...Nooooo.
Doc: Were you thinking explode?
South: (groaning) Just give him the fucking scanner....
Washington and the Meta spot Sarge from across the canyon.
Sarge: Oh, Simmons... Simmons... Where are you? Yoo-hoo.
Wash: Looks like just one of them.
The Meta growls in response.
Wash: I don't know if he has it. I can't see from this far.
The Meta growls again.
Wash: No you stay here, guard these two. I'll go out there.
The Meta growls again.
Wash: If he gives me any trouble, just kill the prisoners and come help me.
Doc: I hope your friend doesn't give him any trouble.
Simmons: If it's one of my friends, he won't stand a chance.
South: (in her head) Please hurry, Cal.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
In the desert, Tucker wanders around yelling for the Reds.
Tucker: YO! Dudes! Sarge! Grif! Slade! Where'd you go? Aw, great.
Caboose: Hey, Tucker.
Tucker: Yeah, what's up dude?
Caboose: Have you seen Church?
Tucker: No, I'm looking for the red guys. Looks like the fixed one of the jeeps and took off.
Caboose: Oh, well that's not good.
Tucker: Maybe Church went with them, or maybe they took him, I don't know dude.
Caboose: Oh, I wouldn't say that. I don't think that would happen.
Tucker: (turning around) What? How the fuck would you know?
Tucker then sees the Elites are standing behind Caboose.
Caboose: Cause if he was gone, I think some people who were looking for him might be really mad that he's not here and we might have to explain to those people why he's not here and those people might not like our explanation and those people might hurt us with plasma guns and plasma grenades.
Tucker: Oh... Right......
Caboose: I mean the Aliens.
Tucker: Yeah, I figured that out.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
Back at Valhalla.
Sarge: Maroon 1, Maroon 1, where are you?
Wash: Great, this guy.
Wash quietly runs up behind Sarge and aims his rifle.
Wash: Freeze! Stay where you are. Turn around.
Sarge: Well, well. If it isn't our good buddy, Agent Washington. And just what are you doing here?
Wash: Don't play dumb with me Sarge. I think you know why I'm here. Where's the rest of your guys? Where are Epsilon and Cal?
Sarge: Someplace safe.
Wash: You can either tell me, or you can tell the Meta back at the base.
Sarge: The Meta is here?
Wash: Yes, and he really wants a chance to repay you guys for all the trouble you caused him.
Sarge: I seemed to recall you caused him some of that trouble yourself.
Wash: Situation's changed. Now drop your weapons.
Sarge drops his shotgun and Washington puts it on his back.
Sarge: Just so you know, I'm going to want that back in a minute.
Wash: I said, drop your weapons.
Sarge: All my weapons?
Wash: Yes.
Sarge: You sure? Maybe I can just keep the pistol. You know these things aren't effective as they used to be.
Wash: Drop it. Now!
Sarge drops his magnum.
Sarge: That's what people say.
Wash: Good. Now march.
Sarge: Son. You can insult me, you can ambush me, you can even take away my weapons. But if you think I'm going to set one single pinky toe inside Blue Base without my "shotgun", you must not know who you're dealing with.
Wash: I said move.
Sarge: And I said "shotgun".
Wash: Yes... I have your shotgun.
Sarge: No, I mean, "shotgun".
Wash: What is this? You think I'm going to give you back your shotgun because you asked?
Sarge: I said "shotgun"! (looks at the wall to his right) "Shotgun", damn it!
Slade: (from behind the wall) Grif! That's the signal!
Grif: (from behind the wall) Oh, yeah! Shotgun. That's my cue.
Wash: What? Wait, what're you up to? What is that noise? Do I hear a...
Suddenly the wall explodes into pieces as, the Warthog bursts straight through it, with Grif behind the wheel and Slade in the passenger seat. Sarge quickly dives out of the way as Wash is taken completely by surprise.
Wash: ...CAR?!?!
The Warthog smashes right into him and drags him under the bumper.
Slade: (shoves Grif) Why the bloody hell weren't you paying attention?!
Grif: Would you piss off?! We got him, didn't we?
How's my bumper taste, asshole?!
Washington sticks his hand over the front of the Warthog.
Grif: Uh oh!
With some effort and a near slip, Wash pulls himself onto the hood and raises his battle rifle.
Grif: Oh, no!
Slade: NO YOU DON'T!
Slade pulls out his sword and hops on top of the Warthog. He tries to slash at Wash, making the gray and yellow Freelancer duck before Slade back-kicks him off the jeep and goes flying.
As he flies, Wash tosses his rifle aside and draws out the shotgun, but as he passes a large boulder, Sarge snatches the gun back from him in midair.
Wash: Huh?!
Sarge: See? Told you I'd get it back.
Washington crashes into a pile of fusion coils. Grif drives to the rock Sarge was standing on and Sarge hops in the passenger seat.
Grif: How 'bout next time we use a code word, we choose something you don't say every five seconds?
Sarge: Just drive, numbnuts.
Slade hops off the Warthog.
Slade: Get to the base and help Kan get Simmons, Doc, and South. This is personal.
Sarge: We're on the move!
As Grif and Sarge drive off, Wash dizzily stands up as he sees Slade approach him. Wash grunts as he tries to hit him but Slade catches his fist and grabs him by the throat, raising him up. Slade then slams him against the crashed Pelican.
Slade: You know, I had a feeling that Maine could come back after me and my AI. But you Wash? After everything we did to put that bastard down?! THIS IS HOW YOU TURN OUT?!
Wash: Just give us your AI, Cal! Or else I'll have the Meta kill Sou-(chokes)
Slade throws Wash to the ground and rips off his helmet before repeatedly punching him in the face.
Slade then stomps once on his face before driving his fist into Wash's nose, breaking it. Blood profusely leaked out his nose as Wash groaned in pain.
Slade: I'm not gonna kill you, David. Because unlike you, I can see outside of fucking orders. I don't just listen to commands and do them without question of how it could affect someone else... enjoy being another arsehole's pawn.
As Slade turns, he feels something stab into his ankle. Thinking it was a knife, he turns and knocks Wash out with another foot-stomp to the face. Slade then drops a grenade next to the fusion coils before he runs off to help the others.
What Slade didn't know was that he wasn't stabbed with a knife.
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
At Blue Base, Simmons hands Doc his scanner back.
Simmons: Ok, now's our chance Doc! Hit him with an overcharge. It should overload at least one of his systems.
Doc: Um, you do it.
Simmons: What? Me? I don't even know how to fire that thing!
Doc: Just pull the trigger and let go. It's super easy.
Simmons: No, no, no. You're trained with it. You do it. Go!
Doc: What if I miss?! What if it doesn't do anything but make him mad? I already made him mad once and that really didn't work out really well.
Simmons: We...Well, then we'll improvise.
Doc: Yeah, I don't feel very comfortable with that answer.
They suddenly see an explosion in the distance.
Doc: What the heck was that?
Simmons: Uh Oh. I just have a bad feeling someone just caused him trouble.
The Meta faces the two as Doc charges his scanner with the overcharge.
Simmons: Oh no, improvise, improvise!