A wild chase, one black eye, and six court martial threats later, Frank was holding a cold pack over his face and laying on his cot in the Swamp. Hawkeye and BJ were shifting uncomfortably on theirs, waiting for the two new ones that had just been requisitioned. With the Quartermaster's usual pace, that would take a long time. "You two degenerates sure are lucky!" Came an annoyed remark from the corner. "I could've had you both court martialled for this, if that old coot hadn't talked me out of it!" Make that seven court martial threats. "And the old coot makes his grand entrance." Colonel Potter said through the small window in the Swamp's door, throwing an irritated glance in Frank's direction as he walked in.

"Oh, hello Colonel, sir..." He said with a nervous giggle. "I wasn't talking about you, sir, oh no... some other old coot."

"Sure you were."

"Er, to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?" Frank asked, changing the subject as the older man sat down on the end of BJ's cot. "I'm glad you asked, Burns. Spares me the rest of your pleasantries." Potter said sarcastically. "Just thought I'd let you boys know, we got a mess o' wounded headed our way. They should be here some time within the next hour or so."

"Attention all personnel! Wounded in the compound, buses and ambulances, and choppers on the pads! Cancel your weekend activities, folks, this'll be a long one!"

Hawkeye sat up and groaned. "Weekend activities? It's only Thursday!" The four of them stood up and trudged sullenly to the O.R.

They put on their caps, gowns, and facemasks, scrubbing before they put on their white rubber gloves. So much white, only to be stained red all too soon. Klinger rushed into the scrub room dressed in his usual nurse's outfit. "Captain Pierce, there's a man in PreOp with an unexploded grenade lodged in his thigh!"

"Damn!" Hawkeye swore, recieving a fatherly look from the Colonel. "Pierce, you want me to take him for ya? Bouncin' buffalos, you look tired enough to drop on the spot. Well, you did a second ago, anyway." He was now wide-eyed and rigid, having gone to stare through the doors into the Pre-Operative Ward. Not answering Potter, he yelled "Alright, corpsmen, sandbag the O.R. walls! Come on now, quick! Move the ones out that can wait, and get the top-priority man in here stat!"

Klinger saluted and ran for PreOp, dashing out the doors as Radar came in at equal speed. "Sir, there's a guy back there with half his stomach blown away! Major Houlihan says it's gonna take two surgeons and a whole lotta blood!" BJ looked at Colonel potter. "We'll take him, Radar." That left only Frank, who wandered aimlessly into PreOp to determine which of the patients needed treatment badly. In reality, none of them did; none were dead yet. Suddenly, Father Mulcahy came in holding one end of a stretcher, while Klinger held the other. The soldier requiring immediate treatment had already been left in Hawkeye's hands.

"Major," The Father said quickly "This little girl needs help. She was injured when her home was bombed. She's an orphan now... her parents were killed when the South Koreans bombed her home." Big mistake. "What side is she on?" "Well, I'm afraid her parents were communists." Mulcahy said, caught up in the moment's hurry and not realizing that he had just handed the daughter of two communists over to Frank Burns.

"Communists?!" Frank spat, seething with rage. "I will NOT operate on any commie brat!"

"But please, Major!" Father Mulcahy begged, helping carry the stretcher into the operating room. "She needs immediate attention!" The beautiful little Korean girl, only around six or seven years, was covered in crimson blood. Most of her dress was torn away, revealing deep lacerations on her chest and shoulders, and a gash in her throat that resulted in extensive blood loss. Frank followed them in, still ranting angrily. "No! OUR boys are top priority here!"

Just then, Hawkeye looked up from the grenade he was holding lightly in a towel, and glared at him. "Just do it!" He said quietly, taking cautious steps toward the window. With one hand he broke the glass and threw it hard out into the grass, several yards from the building. It exploded in a cloud of smoke and metallic fragments, some of which bounced off the outer wall.

"Hawkeye? Do you have a moment?" The good Father asked with a pleading look that automatically captured the other surgeon's attention. BJ and Potter looked up from their patient and glared at Frank, waiting to see if Hawkeye would finish with his current patient or go to the orphan. He was walking hurriedly toward the stretcher, when Nurse Cutler, who had been taking the girl's pulse, stood up and shook her head. It was too late... she was dead.