AN1 Thank you for the initial reaction to the story. I hope you will enjoy this story as it plays out. I have plotted the story with the help of Tpsoftballdad, and this story has about six years' worth of content, spanning around eighty chapters. It's going to be a long one. So continued interaction will be vital for the story to see its completion whenever that will be.


The Spy and the Soldier

Chapter Two, The Spy Starts Anew


Secure Government Building

Location of Intersect Computer

Washington D.C.

Four days until the upload

"I hope we're ready for our operation to commence," General Beckman said to Director Graham as they stood alone together inside of the Intersect room where Chuck would upload the Intersect from in just a few days.

"We are, Diane. We have waited long enough, too long with all of the testings, and then when Orion went rogue on us after he constructed the first Cipher. This project has cost both of our agencies a lot of time and money," Director Graham complained.

General Beckman nodded in agreement. "A heck of a lot. But because we haven't uploaded it to anybody before, even we are unsure of the risks involved in the upload. Maybe we should have told him."

Director Graham shook his head. "No, we shouldn't have. Because then, Chuck would never have agreed to it, and we need him to make this project a reality and our country a safer place to live in."

"Langston, I'm not so sure. He has served his country with honor, and Captain Bartowski is an exemplary soldier. He may have uploaded it despite knowing the risks and potential damage it could cause him," General Beckman protested.

"Diane, we couldn't afford to take that chance and have him say no to the project. He is still serving his country with honor by agreeing to this. We did the right thing by not informing him of the risk. If anything does happen to him, then we will put forward his name for a bravery award and distinction in service of the government. His family and friends would probably accept it as a noble gesture, and we would then move on to find the next most compatible agent to upload the Intersect to."

"With his information retention ability of ninety-eight percent at Stanford, it was always destined for Chuck to upload the Intersect," General Beckman declared.

"I know. We almost recruited Chuck out of Stanford, but once we read his communique to his sister and to a U.S. Army recruiting office stating his intentions to join the military on graduation, we knew he would eventually make his way to us anyway—with a lot more training and expertise than what we could have given him. When Chuck got the patriotic urge to serve his country after 9/11, it was the best thing that could have happened to our country; otherwise, he may have been a forced asset kept in a bunker, like Laszlo instead."

"How are things working out with Laszlo?" General Beckman then asked.

"Since our last discussion about him?" Director Graham replied.

"Yes."

"He's refusing to cooperate with his handlers. We're growing very impatient, and we are contemplating bringing a female Agent in to see if we can control him that way instead."

"The things we must do to keep our country safe," General Beckman complained.

"Diane, it's not pretty, but we need the best people at our disposal to prevent another 9/11 from happening again," Director Graham argued.

"The President would close our agencies down if it happened again," General Beckman declared…


Pope Field

Fort Bragg

North Carolina

United States

Chuck came to his senses after sleeping in his on-base housing. Chuck was feeling very proud of himself this morning. His feel-good mood that he was experiencing was due to the upcoming assignment he had been selected for and had subsequently accepted. Chuck was and always would feel it a great honor to serve and protect the nation he loved so dearly in any way the country saw fit, so long as the order was just. Chuck wasn't naive; he knew that Beckman and Graham had probably withheld information from him at the briefing yesterday. There would have been no way of knowing definitively of the potential damage that could originate from Chuck absorbing a supercomputer into his brain if the NSA and CIA hadn't attempted it before. But once they had told him that he was the best guy for the job and that his actions would make his country a safer place to live in, he had a strong obligation to accept the assignment, no matter the danger or risk to himself, because that was what made the man who the man was. Chuck would always show a disregard for his safety to protect his friends, his comrades, and, most importantly, the innocent civilians of the world that he shared it with. Chuck very much enjoyed being alive, but if he were to fall in service of his country one day, then it would be a sacrifice and honor that he would gladly give, provided it had a purpose for him to do so.

Chuck would be spending most of today reading through the files of the new partners he would be working with on Project Intersect. Chuck was still on-duty with Delta Force, however, and he would continue to be until the day of the upload, and so his pager was required to be on hand at all times in anticipation of an active mission for his unit.

Chuck's best friend, Captain Morgan Grimes, lived next-door to him. Morgan would often make entry into Chuck's housing by lockpicking his way in without Chuck's knowledge of him doing so. The two officers called it the Morgan entry.

Chuck moved to get up out of bed, and he proceeded to change into his fitness wear for his morning run. Once Chuck was ready, he departed his housing, and he walked the short distance to Morgan's accommodation. It was 07:00, and the two officers and best friends would always leave for a morning run at this time. Arriving outside Morgan's door, Chuck knocked on the door. He then proceeded to wait a few seconds, until Morgan opened the door dressed in his fitness attire also.

"Morning, Chuck," Morgan greeted him, warmly.

"Hey, buddy," Chuck replied as he sported his best friend a loving grin.

Chuck and Morgan then began their run together around a small portion of Fort Bragg that housed more than fifty thousand active-duty personnel, and two hundred and sixty thousand people in total; it was the largest military base in the entire world.

"Chuck, you're breaking my heart in leaving me, man. We've been together since basic and we've been through so much hell together and now you're leaving me alone," Morgan declared in a depressive tone.

Chuck glanced at his best friend and sported him a sympathetic smile as they continued their physical activity. "I'm truly sorry, Morgan. You know that I'll miss you. I don't want to leave, but I have to do this. If I can make the country a safer place to live in, then I have to do it, man. You know that. You'd do it yourself if they had approached you with the assignment instead," he protested.

Morgan nodded as they continued their jog. "You're right. I guess I would. But I wish I could come with you."

Chuck laughed. "Buddy, it would probably bore you to death. You'd miss being part of all of this," Chuck paused, and to emphasize his point, he extended his arms out to gesture at the base that they were standing on before adding in, "I know I'll miss it."

"We're brothers, Chuck," Morgan then declared.

Chuck nodded, and he patted his best friend endearingly on the shoulder. "Rangers Lead the Way!" he shouted in an attempt to raise his best friend's spirits.

It seemed to do the trick, as Morgan shouted back, "All The Way!" and the best friends and soldiers continued their jog for another twenty minutes until arriving back outside of their housing.

"Morgan, I'll just freshen up and change, and then we'll head for breakfast," Chuck stated.

Morgan nodded. "Ok, Chuck, same here."

Chuck then moved to enter into his housing, and he headed straight to shower. Having finished freshening himself up a short while later, he changed into his Army Combat Uniform, and he departed his housing once more. Morgan quickly linked up with him, and they headed to a breakfast restaurant just a few minutes walking from their quarters. On arrival, they were seated, and they ordered breakfast together.

"So, Chuck, are you able to tell me much about your new assignment?" Morgan asked from where the best friends were sat.

Chuck shook his head sympathetically. "I can't tell you much, buddy. Most of it is highly classified, and I like my service record being intact, and it wouldn't be for very long if I began spilling classified information to you."

Morgan nodded his head as his lips creased in sadness. After a short moment, he said, "Fair enough. What about your partners?"

Chuck laughed. "I went to school with one of them," he declared.

"No way!" Morgan declared in amazement.

Chuck nodded with a grin.

"Give me all of the gossip. Male or female?" Morgan asked.

"Female," Chuck responded.

"Attractive?" Morgan asked.

"Extremely," Chuck declared instantly.

Morgan winced approvingly. "Now, when you say extremely, are we talking Natalie Portman levels?" he asked.

Chuck shook his head. "No, we're talking Vicki Vale levels," he declared.

Morgan audibly winced. "Wow, now I'm not sure so much, Chuck! Maybe I wouldn't be so bored on this assignment as just muscle or miss this life we're living right now too much," he admitted.

Chuck laughed at his best friend's humor.

"Did you both have a thing at school together?" Morgan asked.

Chuck shook his head. "Not really. She is a year older than me."

Morgan nodded. "But what about now?"

"Morgan, I didn't take the assignment for romance," Chuck declared humorously.

"There's no reason why you can't have both at the same time, Chuck. You've had plenty of women since Jill. You're very confident, and you could pull this woman too if you tried hard enough, even if she is a supermodel if she looks how you're describing her to me," Morgan stated.

Chuck shook his head. "Now, why'd you have to go and bring Jill up? I don't remind you of Anna Wu!" he protested.

"Oh, yes, you do!" Morgan replied as he pointed his finger accusingly at Chuck.

Chuck was unable to curb his laughter as Morgan was quite correct. Chuck, indeed, had teased Morgan endlessly about Anna Wu. Even though he greatly despised the woman deep inside over how she had treated his best friend. Their winding up of each other was just part and parcel of them both being soldiers. Their banter shared was how they coped with the missions they went on.


Washington D.C.

Major John Casey opened the file of his new partner, Captain Chuck Bartowski. When Casey had first met the junior officer at Langley yesterday, the Captain had presented himself very well to Casey. He very much appeared to be a man of honor, and he proudly wore the uniform of his country, despite not needing to, because a Delta Force operator could wear whatever they chose to wear, including civilian attire if they so desired. So, Casey could very much respect that in a man.

Casey spent several minutes reading through his new teammate's civilian life prior to the military. All of Chuck's life was standard to Casey. Chuck had an extremely bright mind; he had taken an Engineering degree at Stanford, he had information retention ability of ninety-eight percent and he didn't have many people in his life except for a caring sister but he developed an urge to serve his country. If the truth was told, Casey couldn't wait to get to the most intriguing bit, and arguably the most relevant to the assignment, his teammate's military career.

Casey quickly read through all of the general information contained in a soldier's military file.

Rank; Captain. Pay grade; O-3. Date of Rank; February 15, 2007. Name; Charles Irving Bartowski. Date of Birth; September 18, 1981. Service conduct; Distinguished. Station; Ft Bragg, NC. Branch; U.S. Army. Unit; 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta.

Casey read through a little more of the standard military information, including Decorations, Medals, Badges, and Commendations, before he arrived at Citations. Among the numerous citations for his new partner, Casey opted to study three—the Captain's Soldier's Medal, Silver Star, and Distinguished Service Cross, in that order—of his new partner's citations.

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress 2 July 1925, has awarded the SOLDIER'S MEDAL to

Second Lieutenant Charles Bartowski

3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment

FOR: HEROISM: On January 11th, 2004, at 19:00 hours, while serving with his 3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, 2nd Lt. Bartowski, at significant risk to his own life, distinguished himself as he subdued an armed criminal that had already seriously wounded two civilians during an armed robbery at a grocery store in Columbus, Georgia. 2nd Lt. Bartowski entered the store and had quickly become alert of an active situation inside the store. 2nd Lt. Bartowski, having heard a loud commotion and numerous screams and cries of help crept into an advantageous position. Acting decisively and courageously, 2nd Lt. Bartowski waited for the opportune moment to strike, before charging at the enraged gunman and wrestling with him for the weapon. 2nd Lt. Bartowski successfully managed to disarm the criminal, and he subdued him by keeping him locked onto the floor of the store by using all of his body weight on top of him despite the criminal's attempts to break free until the police arrived. His actions that evening undoubtedly saved numerous lives as the armed criminal was committed to continuing his aggressive rampage, having already shot two innocent civilians. 2nd Lt. Bartowski's performance is in keeping with the finest traditions of military service and reflects great credit upon himself, the 75th Ranger Regiment, and the United States Army.

Casey grunted as he nodded his head, approvingly at the courageous actions of his new partner. He then began to read the second citation he had picked out.

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

This is to certify that

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, has awarded

THE SILVER STAR

Presented To

Captain Charles Bartowski

United States Army

FOR

GALLANTRY IN ACTION DURING COMBAT OPERATIONS AGAINST HOSTILE ENEMY FORCES

On June 20th, 2007, Captain Bartowski participated in a hostage rescue mission with his unit in Khost Province, Afghanistan, against a determined Al-Qaeda faction that had taken four aid workers hostage. Captain Bartowski had fought his way through the cave to where the terrorists were holding hostages, and he breached into the room. Upon entering, Captain Bartowski immediately neutralized two terrorists inside of the room. With the vision granted to him from his night-vision goggles, he ascertained that a third terrorist was attempting to detonate an Improvised Explosive Device inside of the room. Captain Bartowski quickly charged at the terrorist and he spear tackled the terrorist onto the floor of the cave and managed to restrain him until a teammate neutralized him from where Captain Bartowski was pinning him in place. The heroic actions of Captain Bartowski saved the lives of four innocent aid workers, and his actions bring great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

"Man, Bartowski has some balls! Guy's a freakin' hero," Casey said aloud before he continued on to read the final and most important citation of his new partner…


Fort Bragg

Chuck closed Casey's file after having spent around twenty minutes reading through it.

I feel honored to have him as my new partner. Casey is a patriot, and if his file is accurate, which I don't doubt for one second, then he has served this country with as much distinction as anybody I have ever known. I'm looking forward to working with and being on the same team as him in the coming weeks, months and years

Chuck then began to stretch his arms and shoulders from where he was sitting briefly, before closing the file of Major Casey, and he moved to take hold of the folder of his second partner, Sarah Walker.

To state that Chuck was highly anticipating reading the life of Sarah would be an understatement. Chuck had always liked Jenny at school. He never had the confidence to talk to her back then because she was a year older than him, and he wasn't that good with girls back then either, especially considering how attractive she was to him. Chuck had a massive crush on Jenny, now known as Sarah, at their school.

Taking in a breath of air, Chuck opened the file of his new partner. Having opened the file, his gaze instantly connected onto a picture of his new partner, and his breath caught at the sight of her.

"She's gorgeous," he declared aloud as he allowed himself to stare at the picture of the girl but now more appropriately, the women he knew at school for the next twenty seconds before he shook his brain to realign himself once more to study the rest of the first page of her file and not just of her picture.

Central Intelligence Agency. Confidential. CASE FILE SUBJECT:

Agent Name: Sarah Walker

Known Aliases: Katie O'Connell, Rebecca Franco, Jennifer Burton, Mrs. Anderson, Illana Truffaut.

D.O.B: May 10th, 1980

Gender: Female

Nationality: American

Height: 5'7"

Weight: 130lbs

Eye Colour: Blue

Hair Colour: Blonde

Relatives: Mother, unknown; father, Jack Burton.

Martial Status: Single

Languages: English, Polish, Russian, Spanish and German.

Licenses

– Firearms

– Vehicles

Specialist Fields

Firearms

Hand to Hand Combat

Agent Walker was born to Jack Burton and an unknown mother. Her father, Jack Burton, is a con artist, and Agent Walker's early life had consisted of life on the run with her father. They had burnt through numerous aliases together when she was found and recruited into the CIA in Burbank, Los Angeles using the pseudonym of 'Jenny Burton.'

Having completed reading the first page of Sarah's file, Chuck immediately turned over to the next page. Chuck was extremely engrossed in reading the information about his new partner, and he instantly began his reading of the second page.

Agent Walker's earliest assignment with the CIA came when she was part of a team of female spies called 'CAT Squad.' The CAT Squad, abbreviated for the Clandestine Attack Team, consisted of Sarah Walker, Carina Miller, Zondra Rizzo, and Amy Monroe.

The CAT Squad was a very successful unit for the US government. The team had succeeded in taking down many enemies of the government except for Augusto Gaez, who had managed to evade the group successfully.

However, the squad started to fall apart after a failed mission. The team had found a bug on one of Zondra's boots, and Agent Walker became convinced that Zondra was a traitor. Zondra, on the other hand, had believed that it was Sarah who planted it there. An official government inquiry cleared Zondra, but the team split up and had gone their separate ways.

"Wow, the CAT Squad sounds so cool!" Chuck declared with great interest as he paused from reading Sarah's file.

I wonder who the real traitor was?

Chuck then continued to read Sarah's file.

After Agent Walker had gone her own way, she had been assigned to the United States Secret Service, where she would be part of the detail for a year to provide her with the necessary protective detail training that she would need at times in the CIA.

On completion of her protective detail with the Secret Service, Sarah was assigned her first termination mission shortly after, which she completed and was then handed official Agent status in the CIA by the Director.

"A termination mission? Jenny Burton is an assassin?" Chuck queried aloud as he gulped at the revelation. He then continued on with his reading of Sarah's file.

On being handed official Agent status, Agent Walker was given her first assignment on becoming an official agent, where she was partnered with a CIA Agent, Bryce Larkin.

"Sarah knew and was partnered with Bryce? That bastard who betrayed me at college is CIA?" Chuck asked aloud with strong distaste.

Chuck's hatred of Bryce Larkin went all the way back to when Chuck first began his degree at Stanford, and he had met Bryce Larkin on campus. They had got talking with each other about a video game called Zork. Chuck was building his own version of it, and Bryce had revealed that he was also a fan of the game. Bryce had then introduced Chuck to a girl called Jill Roberts. Bryce had told her that Jill shared many of the same interests as Chuck. Chuck and Jill quickly became very friendly, and they began to date, and Jill was Chuck's first real girlfriend and the love of his life. Everything was going well between them, or so Chuck had thought, because one day, on his third year into his four-year degree, Chuck visited Jill's dorm only to find her in bed and having sex with none other than Bryce Larkin. On discovering them together, Chuck had never felt angrier in his life, and he immediately stormed away from the dormitory heartbroken. He never spoke to either of them again, other than telling them to go to hell when they had both approached him individually. Chuck wasn't a fighter at the time, but if he was, then he would have punched Bryce's lights out. He certainly would have done so if he had been a Ranger and had discovered somebody in bed with his girlfriend, that's for sure...

What Chuck had witnessed that day, his best friend in bed, together with the love of his life, had destroyed all of his trust in other human beings. And while 9/11 was the biggest driving factor in Chuck joining the military, what Bryce and Jill did to him had also played a part in his signing up. Chuck knew that if he was ever going to be able to learn to trust people again, then he would need to find some kind of brotherhood and togetherness with other people, and the first thought that had come into his mind at the time was the military. And then 9/11 occurred, which had signed and sealed it, and Chuck had spent almost the next year getting himself in a fit enough shape. Chuck indeed, had been entirely correct because as soon as he had joined the military at the end of 2002, and had shipped off to basic, he met Morgan Grimes. Within just weeks of knowing Morgan, Chuck had forgotten all about Bryce Larkin and Jill Roberts, and he had learned to trust other people again, and the bond he still held with Morgan was the greatest friendship that he had ever had in his life. Looking back at his decision he had made many years ago, Chuck signing up to join the military was the best decision he had ever made, and also the proudest decision for that matter too.

Chuck then continued to study the information related to Sarah's partnership with Bryce for a few minutes more until he was alerted to the sound of movement out in his hallway inside his housing. He knew it was probably Morgan, but he became very alert until Morgan then appeared in view at the doorway a few seconds later.

Chuck shook his head with a wide grin. "Morgan, you need to stop lockpicking your way into my housing, buddy! You're going to give me a heart attack one day!" he declared.

"Heh," Morgan laughed.

Morgan then walked deeper into the bedroom that Chuck was in.

"Whatcha reading?" Morgan asked as he glanced at the file in Chuck's hand.

"I can't tell you," Chuck declared as he gazed at his best friend.

Morgan shook his head. "Oh, you're ditching us and becoming a spy already, huh?"

Chuck shook his head in disagreement. "Morgan, I'll be back as soon as the assignment is over, I promise. I love this unit. I love you. I love the guys, my place and home always will be here. I'm a soldier, and I always will be a soldier," Chuck declared.

Morgan nodded approvingly. "You had better be or else I'll come and join you and coerce you to come back to us. Heh," he chuckled.

Chuck joined the laughter. "Fair enough," he stated.

"And you'd better not give any of the juicy combat missions to DEVGRU either. Remember your friends over here at CAG!" Morgan demanded.

Chuck nodded. "Buddy, the squids, are getting nothing, it's all coming to Delta, I can assure you."

"Good man!" Morgan retorted as he pointed at Chuck, approvingly.

Chuck then closed the file of Sarah, and he placed the folder on top of John Casey's before he then stood up.

"You know what, Morgan? Let's go and do something together, buddy."

Morgan nodded, and the two officers and best friends departed Chuck's housing together.


Washington D.C.

Sarah was sitting on the bed in her hotel room when her phone began to ring. Glancing at the phone placed on the bed next to her, she ascertained that it was Bryce calling her. He had already called her numerous times in the weeks that had followed since she left him. Sarah instantly moved to place the phone into her hand. And, using her free hand, she then moved to block the call and subsequently his number so that he could not contact her any further.

Sarah then moved to throw the phone back onto the bed away from her, before she proceeded to breathe out a deep sigh to herself stemmed from Bryce Larkin trying to get into contact with her once more. Her glance then shifted onto the file of her new partner, Chuck. She moved to pick up his folder, and she placed it in front of her. Breathing out one final sigh, she closed the old chapter of her life, and she opened up the new chapter, as she opened up Chuck's file.

The first detail that Sarah noted in Chuck's file was a picture of him. He was wearing the same uniform that she had encountered him in yesterday, only he wasn't wearing his beret, and the picture was a very formal military one with a United States flag placed behind him. Chuck had short hair in the picture, his skin was suntanned, and he looked very masculine and attractive. That uniform he was wearing most certainly added to the attraction that she felt towards him.

Sarah paused from studying the picture of Chuck as she puffed out another long sigh.

Stop it, Walker. I have only just moved on from one work colleague. I'm not going down that road and repeating the same mistakes all over again

Having composed herself, Sarah spent the next few minutes reading the civilian section of Chuck's life that the CIA and NSA had inserted into his military file.

On completion of reading Chuck's civilian life, and having discovered that Chuck didn't have many people in his life except for his sister, which was identical to her, as she had only had her father around that time in her life until he had been taken away from her, she paused from reading to digest the information she had read.

Why did Chuck join up? Why did he not choose to use his Bachelor of Engineering and his incredibly talented mind to become a billionaire instead? He certainly had the intelligence to do so. I must ask him his reason for joining the military when I see him

Sarah then began to read Chuck's actual military file, and she became so engrossed in learning all about her new partner's valiant exploits in combat and in service of the United States for thirty minutes until landing at the Distinguished Service Cross citation. If the former citations that she had just previously read were anything to go by, then Sarah was pretty sure that she would feel incredibly touched by her new partner's heroism in service of his country.

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

To all who shall see these presents, greeting: This is to certify that the President of the United States authorized by an Act of Congress takes pleasure in awarding the

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS

TO

First Lieutenant Charles Bartowski

3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment

FOR

EXTRAORDINARY HEROISM IN ACTION AGAINST HOSTILE ENEMY FORCES

On September 18, 2005, 1st Lt. Bartowski, while serving in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, with his Ranger platoon consisting of twenty men that he was commanding on a patrol of the area due to increased insurgent activity, came under an intense ambush by a ruthless and determined Taliban force consisting of twenty fighters in superior mountainous positions. 1st Lt. Bartowski, along with the rest of his soldiers, began to take fire from all sides. The Ranger platoon quickly found cover wherever it could find it, but two Rangers were exposed in the open ground and became singled out by the insurgent fire. From his position in cover, 1st Lt. Bartowski observed with great sadness as the two soldiers took several rounds in the exposed position they were in from the insurgent fighters surrounding their position. With no regard for his own safety, 1st Lt. Bartowski immediately abandoned his position of cover, and he dashed forward the thirty meters to his wounded soldiers while discharging his weapon in the direction of where muzzle fire had originated from. Having arrived at the position of his wounded comrades, and now coming under intense fire in the exposed position himself, 1st Lt. Bartowski managed to put one of the wounded Rangers under his arm. 1st Lt. Bartowski was at that time joined by his Second in Command, who had moved to place the second Ranger under his own arm when an RPG connected onto the ground near to the four Rangers causing them to fall to the ground. On getting his bearings back from the disorientation of the blast, 1st Lt. Bartowski immediately rose once more and placed the wounded Ranger under his arm once more, and while doing so, two rounds from an enemy combatant connected onto 1st Lt. Bartowski's left arm and shoulder. Grimacing through the intense pain of being shot, 1st Lt. Bartowski continued to evacuate his soldier to safety under intense fire the entire distance until reaching cover a minute later. Setting down his wounded soldier, he immediately screamed out, "MEDIC!" several times, until the medic of the team arrived. The medic instantly attempted to assess and to treat 1st Lt. Bartowski's injuries, but 1st Lt. Bartowski told the medic, "I'm fine! He's more hurt than me! Attend to him!" 1st Lt. Bartowski then immediately began to communicate with his command, and he successfully directed airstrikes onto insurgent positions that were fiercely engaging with his platoon. When the insurgents started to retreat sometime later after superior firepower having been directed by 1st Lt. Bartowski towards them, two medevacs were called in for three seriously wounded Rangers. The team medic had attempted to get 1st Lt. Bartowski to evacuate from the battlefield as he was in no further position to fight due to his serious injuries sustained, but 1st Lt. Bartowski had told his soldier, "I don't need to fight! I will coordinate air support and orchestrate the counter-attack!". With his wounded soldiers successfully evacuated from the field of battle, 1st Lt. Bartowski followed through on his intentions as he successfully led the counter-attack despite having been shot twice. 1st Lt. Bartowski's Ranger platoon, together with a Quick Reaction Force and airstrikes, successfully eliminated all twenty insurgents that had engaged the platoon. When 1st Lt. Bartowski finally did give consent to be evacuated from the battlefield for treatment of his serious injuries, it was more than three hours after having first been engaged. 1st Lt. Bartowski spent several days in the hospital before returning to operations with his unit to continue on with his mission. 1st Lt. Bartowski's extreme gallantry and heroic and determined leadership in service of his country exemplify the highest traditions of the United States military, and brings great credit upon himself, the 75th Ranger Regiment and the United States Army.

Sarah gasped, and her mouth opened wide on having finished reading the citation that had awarded Chuck his Distinguished Service Cross.

Beckman was right. Chuck is a hero of the nation. I now feel very honored to have been in his company, let alone to have talked with him again. He's changed so much since we were at school. But not in a bad way. In a very good way. But maybe I shouldn't be having these thoughts about him. I'm clearly not good at relationships for Bryce to have not been satisfied with me that he felt the need to bed other women for three years and who says Chuck would even want to have a relationship with me anyway even if I wanted to have one, which I don't

Sarah was disturbed from her thoughts as she began to hear a noise at the door to her hotel room. She became instantly alert as she reached for where her sidearm was located. Acquiring it, she stood as she positioned herself behind the door in wait. About thirty seconds later, the door opened, and Sarah continued to remain paused when somebody began to enter into view. She immediately struck as she grabbed the intruder and she pushed them into the wall with one hand while her second hand was holding her pistol at the head of the intruder. Sarah then met her gaze with the intruder, and her mouth opened in shock.

"Carina!" Sarah declared as she shook her head at the stealthy actions of her friend.

"Hello, Walker," Carina replied with a loving smile.

"Couldn't you have just knocked?" Sarah asked as she returned Carina's smile.

"I could have, but where would the fun have been in that? Besides, I was hoping you would be in the shower or the bath," Carina declared.

"Carina, I don't swing that way," Sarah joked as she suppressed laughter.

Carina shared the laughter with Sarah for a long moment. "That was very witty, Walker. I'll give you that!" she retorted eventually on restoring her composure.

Sarah smiled as she let go of her grip on the only friend that she has. "So, why are you here? Let me guess; you're here to request me for some dangerous mission where I'll be shot at or stabbed?"

"Wrong. I'm here to see you, Walker," Carina declared with a loving smile.

Sarah shook her head in disbelief. "Yeah, right!" Sarah retorted as she laughed.

Carina continued her smile at her. "Truthfully. I heard about Bryce. I thought I'd come and check in on you before I head out to Afghanistan for assignment," she declared.

Sarah sunk her eyebrows into a frown in confusion. "You really came here just to see me with nothing else attached to your visit?" she asked.

Carina nodded. "Yeah, is that so hard to believe?" she then asked.

"Only a little," Sarah retorted, as she sported her best friend a loving smile.

Sarah and Carina then walked away from the hotel room door and towards the bed in the room.

Sarah then watched Carina's gaze connected onto Chuck's file.

"What's in the file?" Carina asked.

"None of your business," Sarah replied, and she quickly moved to pick up the file before Carina could get her hands on it.

"Tsk, tsk, you're no fun," Carina complained as she shook her head at Sarah.

"I still can't believe you only came to see me," Sarah declared, changing the topic with her mouth agape as she was still feeling the shock of Carina's unannounced visit.

"You're never going to let this go now, are you?" Carina asked as she rolled her eyes.

"No," Sarah replied with a loving smile.

"I'm sorry I did it now," Carina stated.

"I'm glad to see you, Carina," Sarah admitted as the two women held their gaze.

"Then let's go out to a club together," Carina suggested.

"I'm not sure," Sarah replied, apprehensively.

Carina moved to touch Sarah's arm. "Sarah, come on, I didn't come all this way to sit around and be boring."

"Where did you come from?" Sarah asked.

"Mexico. So throw on a dress and let's go party!" Carina demanded.


Fort Bragg

Chuck was still socializing with Morgan when their pagers both began to go off.

"Here we go!" Chuck exclaimed in excitement as he glanced at his pager.

"I hope you're ready for a mission, Chuck," Morgan stated.

"Of course I am! It's what I live for," Chuck declared with a wide grin.

"Can you even go on this mission with your reassignment in four days' time?" Morgan queried.

Chuck nodded. "Of course, I can. Well, if it takes three days or less. If it is only a short mission, then I'd like to see the CIA and NSA try and stop me from going on it," Chuck declared.

Morgan nodded approvingly. "That's what I like to hear!" he retorted as the best friends and comrades departed for the situation room.


Washington D.C.

Sarah had just arrived at a club in D.C. with Carina. It was the first time in months that she had let her hair down. Though Carina had better not do anything wild tonight because Sarah wasn't in the greatest of moods and she didn't want any of Carina Miller's party antics tonight.

"Carina, you had better not get us mixed up in anything crazy tonight," Sarah warned her friend.

Sarah then watched as a mischievous smile formed on her friend's face.

I'm suddenly sorry I came out with her after seeing that smile. I know that look!

"Live a little, Walker," Carina encouraged Sarah in a daring tone.

"Carina, I'm serious. I'm not in the best of moods right now," Sarah admitted, reservedly.

"Because of Bryce, right?" Carina asked with a warm smile.

"Carina..." Sarah protested.

"Sarah, come on, the guy was an asshole in how he treated you, but not all men are like that. You could have anyone present in this club tonight and then some," Carina stated.

"I don't want anyone in this club. I don't want anyone right now, in fact. Bryce hurt me," Sarah admitted as her gaze lowered to the floor in sadness.

Carina smiled at her friend. "Sarah, you'll find someone else. And that next person won't hurt you as that loser did," she said, reassuringly.

"I'm not sure," Sarah argued back.

"Sarah, come on, you're too gorgeous to stay single," Carina stated with her continued smile towards her only friend. "What about your new assignment? That's what the file was about, right? Are there any guys on the mission that you like?"

Sarah didn't respond, but she gave her best friend a telling look, which indicated that there was indeed somebody on her new assignment that she liked. A one certain Chuck Bartowski.

"See! What did I tell you?" Carina replied with renewed hope.

"Carina, I'm not focused on men right now. I don't want to make the same mistakes all over again by sleeping with the guys I work with. I just want to get on with my new job," Sarah stated as she puffed out a depressive sigh.

Carina, sensing that she couldn't coerce her friend into finding a new relationship at this exact moment, let the topic slide, and the best friends began their night together.

End of Chapter


AN2 Well then! That was a lot to digest. If you could be so kind as to leave a review, that would be great. Reviews do equal fast chapters. They also provide me with the infinite motivation to continue on.

AN3 Next Chapter: Chuck goes on his mission with Delta Force. And Beckman and Graham aren't going to be very happy at all about it!