Part One

Chapter 1

They tried not to look at him as he walked a path back and forth in front of them. They kept their eyes focused forward.

He wore tan Camouflage fatigues with boots that laced up mid calf, the bottom of his pants tucked neatly inside them. He wasn't much older than the five of them, yet his attitude and they way he carried himself showed confidence way beyond his years. Not one person there would have dared to challenge him. His eyes were mostly hidden under the matching Camouflage cap but none of them dared to make eye contact with him either. That would just be stupid. Considering the fact that they were in the middle of the desert, he was well-groomed and his uniform was precise. As he turned his back one of the men adjusted their shirt trying to imitate their Commanding Officers attire.

"Hey!" he bellowed, quickly making his way over to him, placing no personal space between their faces. "Did I tell you to move soldier?!"

"No Sir!" he replied quickly. "I'm sorry Sir!"

"Did I ask you for an apology?!" he screamed at him. "Don't apologize to me again?! Follow rules! I'm not your goddamn babysitter" He shoved him in the chest with one hand, knocking him down on the ground. "Get up!" he yelled down to him as he made his way down the line, looking for another target.

"Yes Sir!" he scrambled to his feet, standing firmly at attention, relieved that he had moved on for now.

Steve moved down the line, examining his five new recruits. He stopped at each one sizing them up, getting a read on who was going to do well and who was going to give him trouble. He was usually dead on with his picks. It was the one at the end of the line that he wasn't sure about. He stood in front of her as she kept her eyes downcast, but stood completely erect and expressionless. He bent slightly, trying to get a reaction out of her, following her eyes as they looked everywhere except at him. He moved around to the back of her, "What's your weapon of choice soldier?" he asked over her shoulder.

"M11 nine millimeter, Sir!" she replied without hesitation.

He leaned over standing as close as he could without actually touching her. "If the enemy comes up behind you, how you going to shoot him? You going to put that M11 on your shoulder and hope for the best?"

"No Sir!"

"Then I ask you again! What is your weapon of choice soldier?!"

"A Sog Seal knife, Sir!"

"Wrong again!" He tapped firmly on the back of her head with his index finger, going down the line and hitting each one of them in the same spot. "This is your weapon of choice! Use it! Protect it! Nurture it!" he walked back in front of them, standing in front of the one he'd shoved down. "Because when it comes down to you and the enemy no weapon will save you unless this," he head-butted him hard enough to be annoying, "can out smart your enemy." He walked back down to the girl. "Never, ever let anyone get up behind you."

She hadn't moved an inch. He couldn't get any kind of read on her except that she wasn't afraid of him. That meant either she was trained well and felt confident to follow rules so she didn't see him as a threat, or she had an attitude that he saw in many of the women that had come through, she wanted to prove she was an equal to any man there and that usually meant she refused to waiver in the face of danger. That he didn't like. Only time would tell which it was.

"I'm Lieutenant Commander McGarrett," he spoke firmly, standing in front of all of them now. "You will refer to me as Commander. I'm not here to wipe your nose, I'm here to keep you from getting your nose wiped off your face." He pointed out toward the desert. "Out there are armed, angry and above all smart Taliban soldiers who never sleep. They have one mission in mind, to kill a United States soldier; preferably a Navy Seal." He wasn't telling them anything they didn't already know, he was just reminding them why they were here and that just because they had graduated BUD/S class two weeks earlier, didn't mean they were ready for what was out there. Not one of them had experienced a mission that didn't consist of twenty men backing them up. In this place they went out on maneuvers where there were only six, and if you didn't watch your back, your brother's back and the one hundred yard radius around you all at all times, you were dead and your brother was dead, or, the worst case scenario, your brother was dead because of you.

"If you listen to me, follow the rules and pay attention, but above all," he walked down the line again, raising his voice. "Listen to me!" He stopped at the end by the girl. "Then you will all live to be old and grey, having earned bragging rights to tell your grandkids how you were one of the elite." He walked back down to the one he shoved. He stood right before him, his hands behind his back, and the brim of his hat touching the soldier's forehead as he stared intimidatingly into eyes that looked straight ahead but not at him. "However, if you try to think for yourselves feeling confident enough that you don't need my guidance then feel free to do that. I'll send a nice note to your Mother telling her you were an exceptional soldier and my condolences on your death!" He tapped the brim of his hat against his forehead, remembering how badly he hated it when his CO would do that to him.

He stepped back and just stared at them, letting the moment sink in and letting them just stand there in the hundred plus heat as the sweat began to drip down the sides of their faces. He turned and walked away, not giving his permission for them to dismiss or any orders for that matter. It was his way of seeing who could listen and who was impatient.

He stepped inside the officer's command center that was somewhat air conditioned only because the computer equipment needed to be kept cool in this heat. He closed the door behind him and went to the window, standing a few feet back so as not be seen and just watched.

"You're such an asshole," his buddy Sean said coming up next to him.

Steve smiled, "The one on the end there is going to be good. He wants to please. I can already tell. He'll be a good follower, but I'm not so sure he'll lead."

"What about the woman?" He looked over at him. "She's your first isn't she?"

"Yep. I don't know yet. Could be she's strong and smart as hell, or could be she'll be weak by wanting to prove herself too much."

"I hate those types. Remember SS Sally?"

Steve looked over at him, never liking that nickname that was given to her. "Yes, but you have to give her credit though. She knew her shit."

"Yeah, but she also couldn't get along with her brothers."

"Maybe it was them that couldn't get along with her. It pissed me off the way that Hank treated that situation. He let those guys get away with stuff that I would have cracked their heads over."

Sean reluctantly agreed, "Yeah I guess you're right. They pretty much got a slap on the wrist for that tampon incident."

Steve huffed, "I would have made them eat em'. One by one."

Sean laughed, "You would have."

"Goddamn right. " He focused back out toward his new recruits, seeing them beginning to communicate with each other, wondering who was going to falter. He knew the guy on the end wasn't going to budge so he pretty much ignored him. It was the other three and the girl he had his eyes on.

"Is he going to come back?" Parker whispered, trying not to make his mouth move.

"What the fuck," Jordan cursed. "It's hotter than shit out here. I can feel sweat running down my ass crack."

"Shut up," Hendricks growled. "You know he's watching us from somewhere."

"He's the worst type of Commander," Jordan griped. "He's bi-polar. You never know what's going to set him off."

Sean took a drink of cool water from the cup in his hand. "The one in the middle sure is a talker."

"That's Jordan. He was a squad leader until it went to his head. He's going to be my problem child." He studied the girl, Baker, who still hadn't moved a muscle, or spoken a word.

Parker looked out of the corner of his eye at Baker. "What should we do?"

She remained silent knowing for a fact that he was watching them. If those idiots couldn't figure that out then that was their problem, and it was going to be a big problem for them, not her.

"I think he was talking to you girlfriend," Jordan mumbled.

"And there it is," she thought angrily. That first sign that she was different. It only took fifteen minutes. She refused to acknowledge them, not only because 'girlfriend' wasn't her name, but also because it was hotter than hell out and she didn't want to do fifty because she hadn't followed his rules.

"Hey," Jordan said, leaning slightly forward and turning in her direction. "Can you feel the sweat running down your crack too?"

Baker made no sign that she even heard what he said.

Hendricks did though, "You're big mouth is going to get us all in trouble," he whispered angrily.

Jordan stood back at attention. "Look at her though. She's hot, and I don't just mean from the heat." He didn't like her from the get go. She didn't belong there. He had a strong opinion that she wasn't hard-core enough to go into a battle and come out unscathed. "How long has it been since you've seen a fine looking cut of woman like that?"

Steve watched the three of them conversing. He knew the direction of the conversation had centered on Baker and he was positive that Jordan had instigated it by the other two taking a quick glance in her direction. He also knew that whatever it was he said was not in a positive manner. Yet she stood untouched by it.

"Shut up," Kruska finally spoke up from the other end. He didn't want to get punished again but he couldn't stand by and listen to them berate her. He on the other hand felt that she had passed all the tests and graduated the same as they had. She deserved to be there as much as any of them.

Baker stood steady. She knew this was going to be harder than her BUD/S classes. This was the place where she really had to prove herself if she wanted a career in the Navy.

"How long are you going to make them stand there?" Sean asked, popping the rest of a donut in his mouth.

Steve stood crossed armed, staring out the window. "She's the only one that hasn't moved. She hasn't even changed her course of breathing."

Sean nodded, "Looks like you might have found your star pupil." He glanced over at him, "I could easily see the first woman squad leader coming from your unit."

Steve didn't react to that, but knew it would cause a stir if he did. He wouldn't do it to prove he could, he'd only do it if she were worthy. He really didn't give a shit what the others thought of it. He'd never back down from a challenge and he'd never let someone else's ideals intimidate him. It just didn't exist in his thought process. "We'll see."

He took a long drink of water and then stepped back out into the scorching heat. He walked straight up to Jordan. "I saw your mouth running a marathon out here. These people next to you are your family for the next two months. I certainly hope you were thanking them ahead of time for saving your ass, because believe me, it will happen." He moved closer to his face. "Are you a team player Jordan?" he asked, his voice patronizing, "or are you one of those guys that thinks he's above everyone else, huh?" He moved to the side of him. "I bet you even think you're smarter than me." Steve laughed sinisterly. "Let me give you a bit of advice, you're not. I already have you pegged as weak. You'll turn and run at the first sign of danger," he shoved him with his shoulder as he moved behind him. "Won't you soldier? You'll leave your team behind a man short because you'll be running to the hills looking for a safe spot to hide."

"No Sir!" Jordan bellowed.

"You're a pussy," Steve tormented him. He could see the vein in Jordan's neck swelling over his frustration of not being able to lash out, and worse yet being humiliated in front of the others. "Look at the people standing next to you, all of them! Do you think they give a shit about you? Do you honestly think anyone one of them would risk their life to save yours?" He moved up to the other side of him, "You need to understand clearly boy," his voice low, almost growling, "when you're surrounded by fifty Taliban and all that stands between you and them is your team, you better pray that they feel enough for you to risk their life, or you'll be the first one thrown to the wolves."

He stepped back facing all of them. "I can't teach you to respect one another, you have to earn that respect from your team member. You have to earn it from me. Right now you're just a bunch of misfits that I wouldn't lead to the latrine let alone into enemy territory. There are six other units here in training. My unit has consistently been called upon first for missions. Don't disappoint me."

They all had their own opinions of him. Some already respected him while others hated him, not knowing in time that they would all think back on this first day realizing every word he said was the dead on truth.

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Steve looked through binoculars at the five target ranges six hundreds yards away. Each of his recruits lay before him on their bellies with a scoped rifle in hand, taking shots. He walked over to Kruska, nudging his right ankle with his foot.

"Open your legs a little more and brace the toe of your boot in the ground."

"Yes Sir," he said, digging the toes of his boots into the sand.

Steve looked through the binoculars once again as he took aim and fired. The bullet hit right on the line of the bulls-eye zone. "Good," he said proudly, "good job."

Kruska smiled over his praise, feeling a boost of adrenaline.

Steve moved down to Jordan who fired off rapidly one after the other. He looked at his target, impressed by the accuracy. Everyone was right around the target but not one was center. Steve squatted down next to him, "You're sitting down too low."

"This is how I was taught by my Master Chief, Sir. He was an expert shooter. I was top in my class, Sir."

Steve pretended to act as if he were overly impressed. "Well, good for you! Isn't that something? Top of your class yet you still can't even hit the line around the target." The smiled faded. "You get one shot at your mark, if you miss and have to shoot again, they'll have you pin-pointed with fire raining down on your head so fast you won't know what hit you." He motioned with his head, "Line up again."

Jordan lined up determined to hit his mark to prove the asshole was wrong.

Steve let him take a couple more shots, knowing they would land in the same spot as before. As Jordan lined up for another he stepped over him and bent down, grabbing the collar of his jacket and pulling him up on his elbows. "Pull out the kick stand on the rifle," he ordered him.

"I've always been a free-standing shooter Sir," he argued.

He bent down to his ear, "Are you going to argue with me all fucking day or are you going to do as you're told!"

Jordan reached out and angrily flipped down the stand of the rifle trying to find a comfortable position to take aim.

Steve pulled on his collar again, forcing him back and away from the gun. "Rest it on your shoulder, about right here." He tapped a soft spot just below his collarbone.

Jordan did as he was told; convinced it was the wrong objective to his line of fire. He knew how to handle a rifle. He lined up a shot and pulled the trigger, "Shit! he thought angrily as the bullet hit even further off the target.

"Drop your right shoulder," Steve said, "and adjust the scope to point one five."

He did as he was told, cussing him out as he did it. "He doesn't know what the fuck he's talking about." He lined up again and fired, surprised that it had hit closer.

"Again," Steve said looking through the binoculars.

He fired again seeing it even closer.

"Again. Have patients. Find your mark."

He took an extra second before he fired off another one, hitting it almost directly in the center of the bulls-eye. He looked up from the eyepiece at the target, stunned.

"Good," Steve said moving on. "Now you really are the top of your class."

Jordan looked up at him in awe as he casually moved on down the row as if what he had just taught him was nothing more than common knowledge.

Steve stopped behind Baker as she lined up a shot and fired. He watched through the eyeglasses as it hit just above the target. He used the same method as Kruska, kicking her right ankle. "Spread your feet apart more."

She did it without any question, taking aim and firing off four rounds.

Steve watched as it hit the target dead center in the same spot every time, but not in the bulls-eye zone. He squatted down next to her. "Why were you intentionally missing your mark?"

"Sir?" she asked, looking straight ahead.

"You heard what I said."

"I don't understand Sir."

"Bullshit!"

She glanced down the way as the others continued to fire off their rounds, oblivious to their conversation. "I'm trying my best Sir."

"No you're not, you're giving me your third maybe your fourth best." He grabbed her by the arm, yanking her off the ground. She stood at attention as he took out his pistol from his side holster, holding it out to her. "Hit that target."

"Sir, I…."

He stepped closer, yelling in her face. "I said hit that target soldier and that's an order!"

The other four trainees stopped and looked over, surprised over his outburst toward her. She had been like the prize pupil over the last five days, which only made the separation between them lengthier.

Baker looked up at him as he glared at her. She knew she could hit that target dead-on with anything they gave her to shoot with. She just didn't need something else for the men to use against her so she played it down.

"What's the matter Baker," Steve smiled, belittling her, "are you afraid these good ole' boys here might see you as a real soldier? Are you afraid to step up and be better than them, because if you're afraid of that, then you'll never make it out here. You might as well pack up now and head home little girl because you're just wasting my time."

She hated the way that he spoke to her. It was condescending in the worst way. She'd heard it over and over again from the same arrogant assholes since she'd stood in line that first day along side her other BUD/S recruits. She thought he would be different. He seemed different but he wasn't.

"You're out," he said to her. "Go pack your make up and perfume and I'll arrange a nice comfortable transport home for you sweetie pie."

She grabbed the gun out of his hand and turned her body pointing it toward the target, legs spread apart staring down her arm lining up the mark. She fired every single round out of the magazine in the clip, hitting the bulls-eye thirteen out of the fifteen attempts. She let her arm fall to her side, still holding the gun.

Steve took it from her hand as the other men stared at her and glanced at each other over what they just saw. He put it back in his holster. "If you don't think you're worthy, then no ones going to think that. You need to be better than everyone else, you know that too. If you want it, then Goddamnit, don't make me drag it out of you or I will send you packing. You got that?'

"Yes Sir."

"What?!"

"Yes Sir!"

"I didn't hear you!"

"Yes Sir!" she shouted back at the top of her lungs.

"Good! Now get down and give me a hundred and don't you ever fucking lie to me again soldier."

She dropped to the ground looking over at the others, catching Jordan's eye last before dropping her head down and doing her punishment. She knew that look; it was angry and full of prejudice. He didn't want her there. As far as she knew none of them did. A few had struck up conversations with her, but it only made her feel awkward wondering what the ulterior motive was. She wondered herself sometimes what she was doing there. She wanted it bad and knew she could achieve it, but still had that mindset that if she were better than them at anything then they would never respect her. She would never be a leader and was ok with that, accepting her role as taking orders and not ever giving them. She learned that from every Commander she had been assigned too the further she made it up the pole. They never verbally told her so, but they all held her back in one form or another. It began to feel comfortable as if she found her place in line as long as she kept a low profile, which she had mastered, until now. This Commander wasn't like the others; he wasn't going to let her fly under the wire. She hated him for that.

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Steve sat in his office, which consisted of four walls, a file cabinet and an old desk that had drawers that stuck half the time; his living quarters were in the back beyond a door. He didn't care about comfort it was convenient and did the job. He sat back in the chair that was oddly comfortable considering its surroundings, waiting on hold for Baker's CO from her BUD/S class to come on the line.

"Yes? This is Flagg," he finally heard.

"Commander Flagg," Steve said. "I'm Commander McGarrett with the Seals training unit in Scepter Four. I have one your former students and I was wondering if I could ask you a couple of questions about them?"

"Sure, fire away," the deep voice on the other end said. These types of calls were not uncommon.

"It's about Chief Petty Officer Michelle Baker." He heard a long sigh through the phone before the reply.

"What do you want to know about her?"

"How was she as a BUD/S student? Confident? Assertive? Driven?"

He laughed into the phone. "Smart, strong and capable, but none of those other three."

Steve shook his head, "Ok, that's where I'm confused. How did she make it through BUD/S training of all places if she lacked the three most important aspects?"

"What are you saying McGarrett, that I don't know how to do my job?"

"I'm simply trying to figure her out."

"Let it go and move her on to someplace where she won't get hurt," he instructed. "Don't get caught up in the political web that might come back and bite you in the ass."

Steve couldn't believe what he was hearing. "So you're basically telling me that you graduated her without the skills she needed to pass for political reasons? Why?"

"She passed the course! She can shoot a gun like it's an extension of her hand and she was in the top 1% of the class on all her exams. She might not have been the strongest in the class but she got through the courses and kept up through the rigorous training. She's got stamina, but she lacks confidence around the other men."

"But you passed her anyway? Did you at least try to bring it out of her. Instill some kind of confidence, prove to her that she belonged there," he argued, still wondering why he let her through.

"Listen to me," Flagg said. "I'll be goddamned if I'm going to fail some woman who looks good on paper but can't hold her own in a man's world. All she needs to do is get a feather up her ass and sue us for not passing her all because she was a woman! I'm not putting that stain on my record and I suggest you think the same way."

Steve sat back in his chair shaking his head in disbelief, "So you basically dropped this whole mess in my lap."

"She's not completely without merit. Like I said, she just lacks confidence to speak up. She's smart enough and has great instincts; she just lacks the motivation to let them be heard. Just think of her as GI Jane without the hard-core man qualities," he chuckled.

"Yeah that's amusing," he replied sarcastically.

"I've been training Seals for eighteen years," he defended. "I've failed thousands of men. There were thirty-eight in her class that rang the bell. I don't believe she even considered it once. If I thought she was completely undeserving I wouldn't have let her through. There are lives at stake. If you feel the need to take her under your wing then so be it. Are we done here?"

"Yea, thanks for all your help, Commander." He slammed the phone down. "What a prick." He was almost mad enough to report him but knew that wouldn't solve anything.

He ran his hands over his face groaning when Sean walked in.

"What happened? " he asked. "Is one of your recruits wetting the bed?"

Steve couldn't help but chuckle over that. "Shut up." He sat up putting both arms on his desk as Sean went over to the file cabinet and opened the bottom drawer taking out a candy bar, knowing Steve had a stash in there as well as protein bars.

"I just got off the phone with Baker's CO from BUD/S training."

"So," he said casually, sitting on the edge of his desk opening up a Snickers bar.

"She lacks confidence."

He took a bite talking with his mouth full. "She lacks confidence? How the hell did she get this far lacking confidence?"

Steve shrugged, sitting back in his chair. "I don't know." His attitude spoke as if he had a great chore ahead of him. "She has what it takes, I know she does. She just lacks the initiative to be heard."

"So what are you going to do?"

"What do you mean what am I going to do?"

"What are you going to do?! You going to let her slide by like everyone else or are you going to teach her something?"

"How long have you known me? Have you ever seen me let anyone just 'slide by'?" he used his fingers as quotes.

Sean took another bite and grinned. "There was that girl Melinda from Texas that one time, you let her slide down, but I don't think slide by."

"It was Melissa," Steve laughed, recalling the blond bombshell when he was stationed in Texas for about two months. "She was crazy."

"Crazy in a good way."

"Yeah, up until that one night," he reminded him. They both looked at each other and started laughing over the memory.

Sean stuck the last of the candy bar in his mouth, "How are you going to handle this Baker situation?"

"Carefully, yet firm."

"Shit, she'll probably end up the first four star General after you're done with her." He came off the desk. "Got to go, breaks over."

"All right, catch ya later."

He flipped her file back open filtering through her exam scores and evaluations, both physically and mentally, wondering what it was that made her want to join the Navy in the first place and what it was even more that gave her the drive to become a Seal. That feat alone was impressive, whether her CO's gave her a little leeway or not, the physical and mental determination to get through it, not to mention her test scores were proof enough to him that she could probably do anything she wanted in the Navy, wondering what that was going to be and wondering what in the heck he was going to do with her if she didn't stand up. He blew out a breath, deciding right then that that wasn't going to be an option.