The Fix

The last words he said to Murdock as they were being pulled apart by military police weren't 'I love you' or even 'I'm sorry' but a solid and resounding; "I'm gonna fix this!"

This isn't over.

And it's no comfort as he's led away in handcuffs with only one last fleeting glance at panicked eyes before he's being shoved through a door.

It's no comfort in a tiny holding cell awaiting transport where he has to fight to focus his rage into swearing under his breath as he slams his fist into a stark gray wall until he can't even feel the pain anymore.

"I'll fix this," he whispers, dropping to the floor with his back against the wall, clutching his bloody and battered hand. Tears sting his eyes, but he won't let them come - not when they won't mean anything.

He has plans to make.

And he adjusts. Not easily, not naturally, but he does what he has to do to make things work. Little by little things get tucked back into neat little boxes.

But he doesn't forget the promise he made.

I'll fix this.

Breaking Out the Broken

"God damn it..." Face sighs as the stolen pickup rolls countless miles from Florida toward California. They've been cooped up almost two days but said no more than a hundred words between them that weren't about stopping for food or to take a leak. "I was one week away from parole."

"And now you're out." Hannibal replies with a maddening calm. "We've got unfinished business, Face."

"You don't understand..." he sighs, a humorless chuckle closing his throat. "I was so close... so fucking close to clenching my plan. You don't know what I had to go through to make everything fall right into place."

"Plan? What plan?"

"Germany, man. I had him transferred there three months ago because I know a guy that can get me a job there after I get out. All it would take is jumping my parole for a quick little boat ride to a new fucking life." He sighs loudly, taking a deep drink off his nearly empty water bottle.

"You got Murdock transferred to Germany? His file said he was being sent to a specialist... who did you sleep with to make that happen?"

"Yeah, well... I was very thorough." He replies bitterly; "You have your ways and I have mine, okay?"

Several miles of silence stretch between them before Hannibal asks; "So, you and Murdock?"

He nods silently, and then ignores the tug in his guts at the meaning behind his own words - wondering if he'd even still be wanted after the way things worked out. "Yeah, me and Murdock."

Hannibal lights a cigar, puffing idly as they near the cheap motel they're crashing at for the night. "What exactly was your end game there, Face? House with a white picket fence? Invisible dog, couple of kids?"

"Yeah, maybe. I don't know, all right? I just... I told him I would fix this. And I owe it to him to keep a promise."

"We are fixing this. All of us. It's time to soldier up and make things right."

A bitter laugh rattles out again and Face sighs; "You know, I don't know about you - but I'm pretty sure we're not soldiers anymore. That whole stripped of rank - sent to prison thing made it kind of clear what Uncle Sam wants."

The tires screamed down the center of the freeway as Hannibal laid on the brakes - guiding it into the shoulder before catching Face with a strong right across the jaw. "Don't you dare, we have come too far you to decide you don't care if you go down for crimes you didn't commit. You're a ranger, son. That doesn't just go away when they take your stripes."

"What do you want form me?" Face shoots back, holding his jaw. "All I want to do is go back to the way things were."

"We can't do that, but we can fix this." Hannibal sighs, waiting a long breath before he asks; "Are you in?"

"Yeah..." he replies quickly, but with a certain resignation in his voice. "Let's... let's get the boys and the plates."

Calm Before the Storm

They're alive.

Some how, they're alive. They flew a fucking tank and they're alive in an abandoned cottage outside of Berlin.

The house crackles with their energy, but nobody's feeling it more than Murdock - clearly, he's about halfway off the rails.

"Boss, I'm gonna talk him down." Face offers, nodding to where Murdock was turning giddy circles around the living room, loudly describing the whole experience to BA again.

At first, the colonel doesn't respond, but then he nods slowly and says; "Keep his head on straight, we've got a big day tomorrow."

He nods quick acceptance - understanding the unspoken threat loud and clear, don't break him. "Come on, Murdock... time to get some shut eye." He claps his friend on the shoulder, the first honest to god close contact they've had in six months. "Let's get some rest."