O0O

Holly shot out of bed, a cold sweat gluing her golden tresses to her head. Her eyes ran a quick scan of the room, finding nothing fully familiar except the man sleeping in the cot next to hers. He was still firmly entrenched in his sleeping fantasies, his light blonde hair sweeping across his forehead in a way most familiar to her. Holly raised a hand to her lips in horror. She knew where she had heard his name before. This was her old partner. This was Caboose from the Moon.

O0O

Holly did everything she could to avoid Caboose, but it was no use. Years of following Church around let him know all of the possible hiding places. He had a feeling that it was his fault she was so antisocial, but not directly.

She was feeling that he was going to figure out where he had heard her name before, but she wasn't sure how he would take it. After all, it was her fault he was here. It was her fault that he was this way.

Caboose seemed to appear out of nowhere, and she jumped in her fright.

"Hi, Ms. Alaska," Caboose paused for a moment. "For some reason, Alaska reminds me of Ohio. I don't know why, though." he glanced at something shiny poking out of Holly's armor. It was a necklace charm on the chain of her dogtags, shaped like a sniper rifle. "What's that?" It seemed so familiar to him, like he had seen so many times before, but the memory of it eluded him.

Holly's hand jumped up to the charm, holding it tightly like a child's security blanket. "It... It was something my old partner gave me in celebration of our first successfully completed mission. He was thoughtful like that."

"Was?"

"He died." Holly quickly lied. She couldn't bear to tell him. Not now, anyway. "In a terrible accident. It was my fault." Her voice cracked, and Caboose held her while she thought of Agent Ohio and their first mission.

O0O

"Remember, Alaska, this is not about stealth or speed. This is about getting what we came here for. I don't want you giving away our position yet, though. Let's get the program first, then blaze a trail out of this hellhole." Ohio's voice filtered through the radio's closed channel.

Alaska nodded, knowing that he was watching her every move closely. The new tech in her lilac armor granted her extra strength, but it did nothing for her speed. She needed to be light on her feet and quiet as a silent night. Upon the rooftops, she glanced at the map Ohio sent her via channel connection. It lit up the inside of her helmet, but didn't illuminate past the polarized visor. The map moved to show where she was, signified by a purple dot. Another dot, this one blue, showed where Ohio was sitting with the sniper rifle.

"Alright. We are here," Ohio was speaking to her through the radio once more. He was a stickler for plans. "And the program is being stored in the facility somewhere over here." The map moved to the building next to the one she was perched on, a warehouse overhanging the canyon. It was a steel plated monstrosity, and had guards everywhere on all of it's flat surfaces, inside and out. Those were highlighted by bright red dots, which took up a majority of the map. "All you have to do is quietly and quickly get the program, then alert me. Let me know if someone sees you on the way there or while you're getting the target. I'll take them out if you can't. Then we alert York for pickup, and the pelican will be on its way while we shoot us up some guards."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on it," Alaska waved her arm in a dismissive manner, then leapt onto the roof behind an air conditioning unit. Twelve guards were circling.

"You know what I could go for? Hot chocolate." one of the guards spoke to another guard.

"Tough shit. You know how many times other people get you stuff while you're up here? None. Ask someone to get you a damn twinkie while you're inside, and six people will bring you one. The roof shift is the suckiest one here!"

"Sorry. Just sayin', you don't have to be such a bitch," the first guard said. Alaska grew bored of their conversation and stayed in the shadows as she made her way to the door leading inside. She opened it, only to have a guard pause.

"Did you hear that?" one whipped his head around, trying to find the source of the creak.

She heard Ohio use his voice modulator to copy one of the guard's voices as he tuned into their radio frequency. "Nope. Must've been the wind."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." the guard replied, unaware of his foolishness. "Never mind."

Alaska nodded and slipped inside, feeling the warmth of the heavy machinery being used. Whatever they were doing here, it was very complicated and illegal. That gave her reason to pause. What would the Director want with illegal tech? Not that anything they had was completely legal, but this, this was something different altogether. Genetic testing. Gene splicing already living beings. Creating supersoldiers. She didn't like the look of this. But she had a job to do, and dammit, she wasn't going to blow it for some antiquated morals.

"Alaska, report." Ohio ordered over the radio.

"I'm in," she whispered back. "It looks like this is a genetic testing facility."

"Never mind that. We have orders to follow. Here, I've got a safe-ish path for you to follow." The map that she had been following highlighted a pathway. It was long and definitely not safe looking.

"Ohio, I'm not following that. It looks like a death wish. I'll just keep to the shadows, thanks." Alaska placed her hands on her hips, and tilted her head to the side. She was assessing the situation. "The target is just around the corner. It's easier if I just go over there instead of all this sneaking around up and down air shafts. Besides, I'll get infected with some kind of fume that'll turn me green or something."

She slipped behind a group of guards, careful not to alert them to her presence. The computer was within arms reach. She was so close! Alaska managed to switch out the program for the virus they were assigned to implant in the system. "I've got it. The virus is in place. All is clear."

"Great! We make a great team, Alaska. Just like chocolate and peanut-" Ohio started, and Alaska smiled. She finished the saying with "Candy!" just to screw with him.

"What? Chocolate and Peanut Candy?" Ohio thought for a moment, "You know, that actually sounds really good. Like Reese's or something."

At that moment, an alarm sounded, warning lights flashed, washing the warehouse grounds in red light.

"Um, Ohio." Alaska pulled out her rifle. "I was seen."

"No, you think?" Ohio's sarcasm was washed out with gunfire. "I'm picking them off before they get to you. Move, Alaska, MOVE! Get where I can find you!"

"Get to ze choppa!" Alaska mocked him in an action movie voice. Weird music started playing. "What the hell? Is that music?"

At that moment, a warthog busted through the doors, the weird song playing over the radio. They ran over teammates trying to get to Alaska, and she fired pot shots trying to get away. She picked up a sniper rifle on her way out, meeting up with Ohio as she ran.

"What the hell? Where did they get a car? What the hell is that music?" Ohio was not pleased, but was still slightly amused at the song choice, a cross between polka and Latino, if it could be described at all.

"I don't know! But I think I can take them! Cover me!" Alaska flung herself onto the warthog, and put the sniper rifle against the gunman's head. His brains were splattered across the side of the building as Alaska took out the man in the passenger's seat. The last guard had no chance. She jammed the muzzle of the rifle under his helmet and fired. His visor turned pink and red in an instant.

"Jesus, Alaska! You're dangerous with that thing!" Ohio gaped at her as she rammed the man's body against the radio, busting it. She used his weight to keep the gas on, and drove it over several more guards. Alaska jumped off just as it went over the edge.

"I have to be. We can't fail this mission, Ohio. This is what we do." She grabbed her handgun from a holster on her hip and fired off twelve rounds in three guards. Then she took the last one's gun and shot through another man's breastplate. Instead of a clean getaway, they were leaving a bloody trail. In the distance, the Pelican was touching ground.

"York's here! C'mon, we have to keep moving!" Ohio grabbed Alaska's hand as they ran, and a blush ran across Alaska's helmeted face.

"I'm running as fast as I can, you're the Caboose!" Alaska joked as she ran ahead.

"Oh, ha ha, very funny." Ohio's sarcasm was back in full force.