A/N – I thought I'd try something a bit different than my normal stuff. I've never been a huge Russell Crowe fan, but I loved 'Proof of Life' after finally succumbing and watching it goodness knows how many years after it was actually released – There's something fun about Dino's character that got me hooked. So here we go, a quick (ok so not quick exactly) fic set a couple of years prior to the movie that will hopefully cover a few points bought up in the film like where has Dino met Arturo Fernandez before, why he left Luthan Risk, oh and that birthday party involving Terry jumping out of a cake.

So anyhow – there's a warning here, the language and violence is…not exactly hugely offensive, but a bit more, erm, edgy than I've written in other fics – you can't say you weren't warned!

Hope you enjoy – please take the time to leave me a review.

End transmission.

salutes

Chapter 1 – Mexico.

"What the fuck was that all about mate?" Terry Thorne spat as he swung himself around the door frame, his back slamming against the wall and lifting a small cloud of dust into the air with the force of his movement; gunfire erupted in the aperture where he'd been standing just milliseconds earlier. He ran a hand down is body just making sure that he was still in one, un-perforated piece, and that the hostile fire hadn't forced him to do a passable impression of a colander.

Dino, who had adopted a similar position to Terry but on the other side of the doorway, shrugged.

"Fourth of July?" He quipped as he released the empty magazine from his handgun, letting the spent container fall to the ground with a clatter, although the sound was lost in amongst another spray of gunfire that exploded in a shower of bangs and flashes in the doorway. A couple of the bullets bit sharply into the wood frame less than ten centimetres from Dino's face sending a cloud of splinters raining down.

"Seriously mate, what the hell did you say to piss 'em off so much?"

Dino pulled a new, full, magazine from his belt and slammed it into the gun housing hearing it load with a crisp snap.

"Less what I said, more what I did, I guess." He lifted the gun to his eye level and looked down the length of the barrel, pulling the slide action back before letting it snap back into place pulling a bullet from the newly installed magazine into the chamber, concurrently pulling the firing pin back and readying the weapon to spit its deadly load out of the barrel as soon as he put the slightest pressure on the trigger.

Terry waited for him to elaborate on his statement, and when no more information was forthcoming he dared to expose his arm to enemy fire for the briefest of seconds and shoved Dino on the shoulder.

"Dino, spill."

"So I won the pot in a poker game. Hey, just because they don't wanna pay up, not my fault." He shrugged.

"Jesus Dino, you played poker with these guys? You got a fuckin' death wish or somethin'? No, don't bother answering that, I got a pretty good idea." Terry ducked his head back further into the shadows as more bullets came blasting through the door. The pause in the conversation brought a thought spinning into his mind. "Just tell me you didn't try and hustle 'em."

Dino looked across to the other side of the doorway to where Terry was concealed and raised an eyebrow.

"Fuck, Dino, you scammed 'em didn't you. And suddenly I'm not surprised we're being shot at."

"Yeah, well they'll get bored soon enough and go away…"

There was another rat-tat of a stream of bullets hitting the outside of the structure accompanied this time by some curses in Spanish. Both men were fluent linguists and didn't like the words they were translating.

"…Or maybe not." He continued, now starting to sound a little sheepish.

"Y'know Dino, every now and then I'd like to complete a deal and actually be able to go back to the damn country without fear that I'm going to get my ass nailed to the wall by someone you pissed off the last time we were there. You are seriously reducing my travel options."

"Yeah, but then you'd just keep going back to some third-world shit-hole all the time, it'd get boring, I'm giving you the gift of variety." He turned to face Terry, hands open, palms up (as much as was possible while still holding a 9mm pistol) as if offering him a gift, but was instantly forced to slam his body back against the wall as a bullet missed him by millimetres.

"These guys are seriously starting to piss me off mate." Terry quipped, watching his friend's reflex kick in as he threw himself back against the thick wall again in order to avoid the projectile.

"You and me both man. On three?" Dino grinned as he spoke, and not for the first time in their working partnership Terry wondered how the hell Dino could enjoy these petrifying moments so much.

"On three." Terry nodded in agreement, "…One…"

"…Two…"

"…Three." They both shouted the last number together before rolling round the door frame, planting both feet in a firm stance and emptying their clips into the small group of men that was gathered outside, most of whom ducked behind makeshift shelters, although one or two gave a groan and clutched extremities as bullets hit flesh; emitting small clouds of blood-red mist. Efficiently, Dino and Terry quickly rolled back inside the shelter before the remaining men had a chance to regroup and fire their own weapons in retaliation.

"Did you see what I just saw?" Terry threw the question across to his partner on the other side of the doorway.

"Short range M224 mortar system? Hell yeah."

"Time we left the party?"

"Sure honey, I'll just get my purse." Dino pulled a tear gas canister off his belt as he spoke, ripped the pin out with his teeth and hurled the canister out of the door. Both men adopted a slightly crouched position that would allow them a quick getaway as soon as the device began to disperse its distasteful contents. Sure enough a few seconds later there was a small dull bang as the canister detonated, sending a cloud of tear gas in amongst the renegade group. Terry and Dino didn't hang around to appreciate the violent coughs and splutters of the crowd, putting their previously assumed stances to good use and sprinting to the back of the abandoned building. They used the erupting white gas cloud to mask their escape, Terry yanked open the sturdy wooden door at the back of the structure and Dino hurled himself out of the opening, instantly meeting a man with a rough appearance, who looked like he was in serious need of a bath; a red bandana tied around his head held his filthy black hair out of his face.

"You…" But that was the only word he managed to say before Dino's elbow made violent contact with his nose.

"Yep. Me." Dino grinned evilly as he look down over the figure now squirming on the floor, blood running freely from his nose. "Y'know I was always told it was bad form to kick a man while he's down, but hey, it's not like you're gonna think less of me is it?" He launched his size twelve army boot into the soft flesh south of the guy's stomach, ensuring that any romantic entanglements that this creep had planned for the near future would have to be put on hold. The kick elicited another, deeper, groan, one that if you'd merely been watching from the sidelines would have made your eyes water. Dino turned around to find Terry grappling with another, equally unwashed miscreant who seemed to be trying to gouge out his friend's eyes.

"Ah to hell with this shit." Terry muttered, and brought his right knee swiftly up to connect with his attacker's balls.

His opponent let out a grunt and sank to the floor, curling into a foetal position as soon as he hit the dusty ground.

"And you say I fight dirty." Dino called over.

"You do fight dirty. Me? I'm a gentleman unless they force my hand."

"Or in this case your knee."

Terry pretended to give it some thought before nodding his head.

"True. Let's just get out of here before backup arrives." They both jogged over to an open top jeep that was concealed behind a stack of wooden shipping crates a few metres away. Grabbing onto the exposed roll-bar framework of the khaki coloured vehicle they vaulted themselves over the sides of the jeep, sliding down into the smooth seats without opening the doors.

"I always wondered why you insisted on hiding the car when we get sent out to these places."

"You never know what kind of criminals are roaming around."

"Mostly you're the worst criminal roaming around."

"Hey, I'm offended." Dino pulled a mock hurt expression, but failed to hold it for long, his face breaking into a wide grin. He pulled a pair of sunglasses out of the drivers side door pocket and smoothly slipped them on, turned the key in the ignition and revved the engine, letting off the brake just in time to send the jeep's wheels into a squealing spin as the rubber tried to catch up with the speed of the wheel's rotation, producing a cloud of dust behind them as the vehicle shot forward. Dino pulled the jeep around the corner of the building they'd been sheltering in minutes before and found their group of attackers still recovering from the effects of the tear gas. He pulled the vehicle into a tight turn right next to them, letting the back wheels lapse into a short slide, sending another cloud of dust spraying over the men.

"Whoooo-yeah!" Dino yelled, laughing, a spray of gunfire erupted around them as the jeep lurched forward, bouncing over the rocky terrain on their way to finding the main road.

To be continued…