The Nights shift one shot #3
"Don't be such a wuss about this, baby bro" Thad exclaims rolling his eyes at his baby brother. TC shakes his head in frustration.
"It's a bad idea, Thad, you know it is. I've seen plenty of guys get their legs blown off doing stunts like this!" TC claims seriously.
"Listen, if we worried about the risk, then nothing would get done" Thad retorts easily, though now he refused to look at him. TC sighs.
"Just…let me go instead." TC offers, making Thad look at him sharply.
"No"
"Thad, I can do this"
"And what about the risk you just mentioned!"
"Are no different than if you were going."
"Then why on earth would you think I'd trade places with you!" Thad snaps.
"Because big bro, I'm Ranger…your just a gun shooting lunatic" TC replies grinning. Thad glowers.
"He's got a point…you are a lunatic" Nick says cutting into their argument. The first as everyone else was merely watching the tense tennis match between brothers.
"NO, the answer is still no" Thad says, a warning edge to his voice now. TC sighs; there was no more arguing with his higher ranking brother. Topher placed a hand on his shoulder, as the team got ready to head out. Going in head first to a situation like this was a bad idea, especially with shitty Humvee's that needed better armor.
"T!" TC eyes focused on who was in front of him, calling him. He blinked when he saw Toph, the only man allowed to call him simply 'T' instead of 'TC'.
"Yeah Toph, what's up?" TC asks. Toph stared at him for anther minute.
"You alright?" Toph asks worriedly. TC nodded.
"Yeah, sorry, I was just remembering when I tried to convince Thad to switch places with me…" TC confessed, as there was no one else around the break room. Topher grinned.
"I remember. Didn't Thomas get shot in the ass then?" Toph asks. TC laughed nodding. It had been funny when the worry was over.
"What'd you need, Toph?" TC asks. Toph scratched his head.
"We've got a car pile up, we're helping with some of the load, getting a couple injured. Dispatch says we're not getting any critical." Toph warned. TC nodded.
"Great. Let's let Paul and Krista take care of most of them, they'll need the experience." TC suggests.
"I'll pass it on" Toph assures.
…
As soon as he saw the retired Colonel, he knew he was going to have a problem. The normally cool headed man, would no doubt lose it if he saw Colonel Ryan Summers. The man literally almost blew their entire camp off the map when he tried showing off to a general, reading in the wrong coordinates…and this was just stateside when they were training, not to mention all the crap he did over in the actual war.
"You've got to be kidding" TC winced as he heard Topher's disbelieving voice. This wasn't good.
"Toph" TC warned. Toph glanced at him before looking back at Summers.
"I'm gonna go check on him" Toph informs, grabbing the chart for the retired Colonel and making his way over.
"Toph!...wait…Toph" TC groaned, before looking around before following Topher over to Summers.
"What's going on?" Jordan asks falling in step with him. TC winced again.
"The man that just came in is retired Colonel Ryan Summers, he was one of the injured from the car crash" TC says.
"And what? Topher just decides to go say hi to a patient that isn't his?" Jordan questions.
"Not exactly. See, we know Summers…Topher just has a grudge against the guy" TC explains. Jordan's eyebrows rose.
"Topher with a grudge? What'd this guy do?" Jordan asks peering over his shoulder to see Topher greet the Colonel, who seemed to recognize Topher and it didn't seem like a happy reunion. TC shrugged.
"For starters, he almost blew us off the map." TC sighs.
"Yeah, I bet that would tick anyone off, but Topher's a forgiving guy. Would he really hold a grudge against the colonel for that?" Jordan asks confused. Before TC could reply, a THUD was heard. Slowly turning, he took a deep breath as he saw Summers knocked out on the hospital floor with Topher straightening his scrub top.
"TOPHER!?" Jordan yelled, rushing over to check on Summers.
"How's your hand buddy?" TC asks taking Topher's hands and looking at it.
"Fine" Topher says stiffly. TC nods his agreement.
"Did you really have to knock him out here?" TC questions. Topher contemplated it for a moment before shrugging.
"Felt really good, T" Topher says.
"You realize Landry will make you see someone over this. Especially since it was YOU who decked someone…never mind it being who." TC warns.
"He deserved it" Topher says defensively. TC nodded.
"Legal isn't going to see it that way" Michael Ragosa states. TC and Topher turned and looked at the man.
"Trust me, he deserved it" Topher repeated. Ragosa looked to TC questionably.
"Long story" TC says.
"Right, always is. Regardless, you're banned from seeing this patient Dr. Zia" Ragosa says addressing Topher. Toph nodded with a shooting glare at the Colonel.
"Am I going to have any problems with you, TC?" Ragosa asks. TC couldn't help but smile innocently causing Topher to stifle a smile.
"I don't just deck anyone, you know" TC says. Ragosa rolled his eyes but walked away without banning him from Summers as well.
…
TC couldn't believe what he just heard. Some stateside Colonel was ordering them to stand down from going and getting Topher and the team that were shot down.
"Sir, we can't just leave them there! The Taliban will get to them if we don't-"
"I'm well aware, Captain, they knew the risk. I can't risk sending in more guys just for them. Look, I'm sorry, I know how-"
TC swung at the Colonel before being grabbed and dragged out of the tent by his brother and his team.
"Calm down, T!" Thad whispered into his ear.
"Let me go, Thad! He won't send anyone to go get them! He's gonna let Toph get his head cut off!" TC yelled causing the glaring Colonel to look away and leave. Coward!
"We don't leave a man behind, T, we're gonna get them. Now if you want to come with us, you'll be a good little brother, and not tell on your big bro" Thad whispers. Instantly TC mellowed. But he swore if he ever saw Colonel Summers again…
"…I remember you" TC looked up from the spot on the floor over to Summers who was looking at him warily.
"I'm surprised" TC admitted.
"Kind of hard to forget the Captain who swung at you" Summers scoffs. TC tapped his fingers on the cup of coffee he was holding.
"Really, I would've thought more people swung at you than just me" TC grins.
"Well, not all of them blatantly disobey direct orders, either" Summers pointed out. TC pressed his lips together.
"I suppose not…I remember you quite well, as does everyone else you nearly blew up with you reading in the wrong coordinates…We managed to get our guys out without any casualties…there was no reason for you to leave them behind other than to be an incompetent ass" TC says sharply. Summers narrow his eyes.
"The war for us is over, Callahan" Summers replies without addressing the issue. TC nodded.
"Is it? You know, Topher still has issues flying in choppers…that's your fault" TC retorts. Summers shifted.
"I didn't shoot that chopper down, Captain, I'm not the enemy"
"No, you didn't shoot him down, Colonel, what you did was order him to switch places with me in the first place for no reason other than to tick me off. What you did, Colonel was order us to leave a man behind, for no reason!" TC snaps getting dangerously close to Summers.
"TC, you need to step away from him" Jordan calls. TC looks over and see's a group of nurses, Ragosa and several others standing around staring with shocked faces. TC takes a deep breath before complying.
"You know Callahan, if your brother had obeyed protocol, he probably wouldn't be dead" Summers snips as TC took a step away. Before anyone could do anything about it, TC was on Summers, wailing on anything he could hit.
"Topher, a little help here!" Kenny calls trying to pull TC off the patient without getting hurt himself.
"Sorry, Kenny, I'm not allowed near the patient" Toph replies calmly. In the end it took Drew, Kenny and a reluctant Topher to get TC off.
…
"Colonel Summers, huh?" Colonel Smalls asks with a raised eyebrow. TC and Topher were sitting in front of him with Ragosa, Landry and someone from legal standing behind them.
"Yes, they both violently attacked the patient." Legal suit guy states. Smalls looked at the two in front of him.
"Well good for you boys" Smalls declares.
"Excuse me? Aren't you working on TC's violent outburst?" Ragosa asks. TC grins.
"Of course I am. However, I think, Summers is an exception. If I'd saw the man I'd have done a lot more than just give him a few good hits" Smalls sighs.
"May I ask why?" Landry questions.
"There are so many reasons, Miss De la Cruz. The major one is, is that he was known for leaving our guys behind. Topher experienced this first hand. TC, and them disobeyed orders to go and get him and his team…Summers became famous for this…As I understand it, if the Colonel was ever in a live firefight, well…if he got hit it wasn't the enemy who got him" Smalls says.
"Friendly fire?" Landry asks shocked before giving TC and Topher a questioning look.
"I'd never shoot someone who was on our side" TC eases.
"Even if he made it hard to distinguish which side he was actually on" Topher agrees.
"I can't say the same for Thad though. He really didn't like the Colonel." TC mends.
"I heard he threw a rock at his head" Toph grins.
"Yeah, had to give him stitches afterwards though…Summers told us he tripped and hit his head…he didn't wan to say a flying rock hit him when he didn't see anyone around to blame it on." TC laughs.
"Think Chad has video?" Toph asks. TC shrugs.
"Alright, enough, look, we're in a bind. Two of our Doctors attacked an unarmed patient over a passed grudge…what we'd like to know is, is if you can team up with Dr. Landry and get together with Summers and see about getting it so he doesn't press charges against my doctors or sue the hospital" Ragosa request, shocking everyone, even the legal guy. Smalls sighed.
"I'll see what I can do." Small says.
…
"So let me get this straight, two doctors and a guest therapist all attacked one patient?" Ragosa took a deep breath.
"These people are really ruining my night" Ragosa sighed softly, remember saying the same thing about Landry and Jordan a few nights ago.