Chapter III: Back to Hell

Bleak and dull. Those two words fit the description of the landscape outside perfectly. Everything was a blur of brown and grey as the car sped down the muddy path in Wales. Alex sat in the back with his pack next to him, trying his hardest to zone out. It was an unfortunate side effect of his occupation that he could no longer let his brain rest in cars. He was just always on alert the moment the door closed on him. The acquired skill was something that saved him as much as it disadvantaged him. When they finally ground to a halt, the driver spoke to Alex for the first time.

"That's the main office," the man gestured unnecessarily to the building in front of them. "There should be someone there to, uh, inform you of the proceedings." That was it. And really, what was one supposed to say? Enjoy your stay? Doubtful that anyone could really enjoy a stay at a SAS training camp.

Sergeant Meyers heard a car pull up in front of the building. The MI6 agent's arrived, then. He'd been in a mood since he'd received the request that there was to be an agent imposed on his humble territory. Obviously, he was not at all happy and the poor unfortunate souls under his command suffered for it. Myers took solace in the fact that the soldiers would not be any happier with the agent.

Outside, the car door slammed and the sergeant watched it reverse and back out the driveway through the grimy window. A figure walked up and out of his line of sight and he heard a short knock before the door opened.

Meyers watched a man walk in and stared suspiciously at the youthful face presented to him. They sure were recruiting young these days. The man was blond, with deep brown eyes that stared back at him steadily as he stepped up to his desk. He couldn't be more than twenty-something, but the way he held himself, in all his lanky height, spoke of experience. As did the thin white line running down the bloke's neck. Experience in what, exactly, was harder to say.

"Right. You probably know better than I do why the hell you're here. I would like more than anything to kick you right back to where you came from, but I'm told that would be good for no one. That doesn't mean you'll get off easy," he snarled. "You'll be staying with unit K. Whatever they do, you do. You're young, but I'm not going to coddle you! Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Here's a copy of the schedule detailing your activities. You'll be called…Cub. That, from now on, will be your formal name at the SAS. Now, off you go!"

He watched this new Cub turn his back and walk out the door. He let the lines of confusion crease his face. All this time, in his mind, the name "Cub" had been matched with an even younger face. The name had occasionally been recycled, a few times before and after the school kid, but someone that young and not half bad had definitely left an impression. What had happened to him? He'd always been a footnote, listed as having been a member of K-unit, although he'd never been present.

Glancing down at the file he held, he saw that K-unit once again had five members. Only this time, the fifth would actually be joining his unit, at least for a while. The only thing that stood out was that this new Cub was not a soldier, but a spy. An MI6 lackey, just like the young boy that came before.

Meyers frowned as he allowed himself to contemplate a possibility. He could vaguely remember the other Cub's face though the constant grime from training made it harder. A teenager's face, for sure, with baby fat still present. The new Cub's face had a more carved quality, older and more matured. It was easy to imagine that they could be the same person. But what did it matter? This Cub would be out of here sooner or later anyway. Sooner, if Meyers had his way.

Earlier, Wolf, Snake, Eagle and Lynx had been called to the sergeant's office. There, they were told that they would be getting a new member. They had gone through quite a few before, but now that Lynx was permanent, they weren't expecting anyone else.

Now, they were grumbling.

"Why the fuck do we get stuck with the MI6 bastard?" Lynx moaned. He was the replacement for Fox, after he crossed to the dark side. He had fallen in quickly with the others despite their relationship with their former teammate which was more that could be said for his predecessors. "We're only back here for a refresher and they do this to us? The hell?"

"I can't understand why Foxy-boy ditched us for them!" That was Eagle.

Snake, always the quiet one of the group, shrugged with a frown on his face. Wolf just grunted ill-temperedly.

Thoughts were broken when they heard knocks resounding on their barrack's door. They hadn't even heard footsteps. No one moved and Lynx eventually got up, mumbling about lazy bastards, and went to get the door.

Lynx's frame blocked most of the doorway so they couldn't make out the agent's face. All they saw were glimpses of blond hair and a duffle bag. They heard Lynx ask gruffly, "You the MI6 guy?"

"Yeah," a quiet voice answered. There was a pause.

"A bit young, aren't you?"

"Are you paid to make small talk?"

The response was flat, voiced without infliction at all but Lynx chuckled anyway, turning his head to the guys. "This might not be so bad, guys. At least he's got a sense of humour." He stepped aside.

The soldier standing in front of Alex moved away, revealing three familiar faces. Alex had been dreading this particular reunion, vaguely wishing Ben was beside him. Or Tom, even. The reminder of his friend hit Alex with a pang of guilt. He hadn't been able to tell Tom what happened and where he was going. And even he didn't know how long this little vacation would last.

He expected to hear surprised, probably angry exclamations of his codename and furious questions as to why he was imposing his presence on them again – because once was already too much – but there was nothing. Not even from Wolf, who had interacted with him more than the others on Point Blanc.

Alex, or Cub rather, made no move to speak. He merely made his way to the only unoccupied cot and began unpacking. He could feel the eyes of the other men watching his every move. After a few more seconds of uncomfortable silence, someone finally spoke up.

"So, uh, care to introduce yourself?" It was the soldier Alex had not recognized.

Alex grimaced. Of course they hadn't been told. It would have saved him a lot of effort otherwise. But then again, no need to prolong the pain.

"I'm Cub."

"Well, yeah, we know that much," Wolf spoke up. "But we've had plenty of Cubs come through. What's your story?"

Alex shrugged nonchalantly, but he was actually quite amused. Did they actually not recognize him anymore? He didn't think he had changed that much…though apparently he had, as no one said anything about it. Three years was a long time, anyway.

"There won't be any more Cubs after me, apparently. According to your sergeant, anyway."

"What happened to your face? Got in a bit of a scuffle?" Eagle asked instead, gesturing at the bruise on his cheekbone.

"Something like that, yeah."

"Ah." It wasn't uncommon, after all, in their line of work, spy or soldier.

Alex grunted. "I'll just get some rest then. Goodnight."

Any chitchat didn't last long after that. The whole of K-unit fell asleep that night feeling especially put off. There was just a general air of befuddlement hovering at the edge of their consciousness. Unanimously, there was tacit agreement that the next few days would be long ones.