Heyo! I want to say a few things. First, I apologize to those of you who were hurt by me running this story back as a Peyton and Lucas story in a rewrite. I went through a period where my tastes change (you should have seen the way I cut my hair LOL!), but in all seriousness I know that many of you were invested and hurt. I am truly sorry! I intend to bring this story back, but to y'all I genuinely apologize. I wanted to rewrite with a bit more skill and also go through that weird change of who I preferred as a couple for that brief time. HOWEVER! I am back at it and hope that all of you will rejoin!

That brings us to the practical part of the update. I will be going back and redesigning some aspects of the story (nothing huge, you won't have to go back and reread or anything; more of the military stuff being shifted around; Alex Martin will be renamed Alex Walker; there is significance in this). I am striking the Vietnam part of the story and focusing the military parts of the story on the Middle East, where we see a lot of real-life stuff play out. I will use my writing to better explain what all is going on. I probably will publish updates titled "SITUATION ROOM" before I release chapters on a new issue or area where I explain exactly what is going on (you will see more down below at the end of the practical update).

ADDITIONALLY! I am going to try integrating some first person for a few chapters. It will stay mostly third person, but I want to try and integrate some first person. I will mark those areas clearly. PLEASE review or dm and let me know which you prefer.

FURTHER! I took a bunch of time to develop the Alex character, as he is one that we have no background on since I created him. However, I sense that I went a bit overboard with how much of a focus he was. I will try and shift back to splitting time between he and Lucas.

FINALLY! I want to value y'alls input. I want some suggestions on moving forward. What do y'all want to see? I have a general idea of where I want Lucas and Brooke to end up and some major plot points, but there are lots of things that I frankly am drawing a blank on or just don't think would be great when written out. I NEED HELP! I want suggestions and want to use your input. Give me some ideas. Marriage? Cheating? Baby? Miscarriage? PTSD? Jealousy? Old flame coming back in for either of them? PLEASE GIVE ME SOME THOUGHTS!

This is the final part of my apology to y'all. I want my efforts to earn back your trust to be in sync with the story. So, if you are still with me and committed, please send in any and every suggestion you can think of. No idea is a bad one. I am not promising to use all, but I will use some and I will reply and share my thoughts with each DM that brings an idea.

I appreciate each and every one of you. As I move forward, know that! Please review or dm. I don't care about numbers, but I want feedback from y'all so that I can get a gauge of what I need to do with each ensuing chapter. Knowing the interest and knowing what y'all want helps me SO MUCH!

Looking forward to this new leaf.

SITUATION ROOM

QUMAR

Qumar is a small middle eastern country located on the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, straddling the Strait of Hormuz. Because of its important location and the importance of trade moving through that area, the United States has had an alliance with the country for years. However, the economic alliance does not hold back Qumar from supporting terrorism. Qumar has progressively become more and more oppressive from the top down, with support of terrorism and the progressive implementation of sharia law straining relations.

Qumar's defense minister Abdul Ibn Shareef has spent years quietly supporting and funding terrorism. Now, however, he has become emboldened to carry out Jihad. President Bartlett and his intelligence community discovered a plot to destroy the Freedom Towers in New York City, the rebuilt World Trade Center that serves as a monument to the original World Trade Center Twin Towers that were destroyed in 2001. Now, President Bartlett and his staff wrestle with whether or not to send SEAL Team Six to kill Shareef, which is a violation of international law that prohibits the execution of heads of state that a country is not at war with. Now, Shareef is on a flight to the United States on a faux diplomatic mission to feel out the White House, no doubt serving as an intelligence gathering mission in which Shareef decides what to do next regarding terrorism on the United States shores.

The mission is one that would terrify Alex, as it requires him to return to Qumar. The Qumari coastal city of Jasken once rivaled Dubai as the great center of Wealth on the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, but six months of sandstorms destroyed the city and rendered it unreachable. The wealthy elite and politicians downplayed its danger while fleeing from the eastern city of Qumar to other cities in the west that weren't in danger of being overrun by the desert. The abandoned locals and foreign workers called out for emergency help. Colonel John Konrad brought the "Damned 33rd" Infantry Battalion in from Afghanistan to help out the evacuation, but just after reaching the city, the storm wall intensified to a biblical proportion and locked the city in, damning the relief efforts and all inside. The last communication from the American force was from Konrad himself, stating he was going to lead a caravan out of the city as reports of martial law and war crimes began to emerge from CIA agents inside the city. The caravan never made it out, no one was heard from again, the area was declared no man's land, and the 33rd was publicly disavowed and Konrad charged with treason.

Though all were assumed dead, and the city done, a transmission managed to punch through the storm wall after six months in which John Konrad stated: "This is Colonel John Konrad, United States Army. Attempted evacuation of Dubai ended in complete failure. Death toll... too many."

The United States sent in a covert three-man SEAL team to assess the situation, provide reconnaissance, confirm the presence of any survivors, and immediately radio for extraction. Alex and his team found survivors. But they did not radio for extraction. They tried to help.

That was his mistake.

Two months after the SEAL team was sent in, a patrol managed to punch through the storm wall. They found one sole, bloodied, broken survivor of the city and the rescue team. It was Lieutenant Commander Alex Walker.

He would never be the same.

Alex was ordered to take R&R before retaking control of his team. His return to Bravo corresponded with the entrance of Lucas to SEAL Team Six and their return to Tree Hill.

Now, with Lucas on his team and the safety of the West in balance, Alex might be forced to confront his demons, while Lucas might be forced to confront the reality that war doesn't create monsters: it reveals our true nature.