A/N: This would technically be the Season 3 Finale, yeah I know but the story doesn't end here no, no. This is just a midway point. The setting is going to switch so that it carries both storylines so look for CAPITAL LETTERS to tell you what storyline it is.

FALLS CHURCH…

"What the hell do you mean, they went to Russia!" Jim Grant was shouting in AJ Chegwidden's office.

"Watch your tone, Colonel! Rabb accumulated his leave and he and MacKenzie are in Russia as we speak. They are, from what I understand, trying to find Rabb's father." The Admiral replied.

"Rabb's father? Harm's dad was shot down over Vietnam what the hell would he be doing in Russia?" Jim Grant's face was buggered up as he tried to connect the dots.

"Apparently, Harm has information that his dad was taken as a prisoner back to Russia by the KGB after the war." The Admiral watched as a wash of realization came over his friend.

"I'm going after them, you'll have my application for leave on your desk in twenty minutes, sir." Jim got up to storm out of the office when he heard the Admiral's voice.

"At ease, Colonel!" The Admiral shouted and Jim stopped. "I have orders from Special Agent Webb to keep you from going after Rabb and MacKenzie." The Admiral knew he'd have to stand toe to toe with the Marine to keep him in line.

"Fuck Webb, I'm leaving, sir." Jim went to turn again.

"The orders were approved by Secretary Nelson." The Admiral informed him knowing it might get him to think twice.

"I'll alter my previous statement then. Fuck Webb with Nelson, I'm still leaving, sir." Jim was pushing but the Admiral wasn't going to put up with some gun-happy cowboy Marine this afternoon.

"Stand down, Marine!" The Admiral was red-faced and toe to toe with Jim. "You have your own set of orders that came in over the wire this morning Colonel. They came from the SACEUR." The Admiral was right up in Jim Grant's face.

"Wes Clark, what does he want? And what could this possibly have to do with Webb?" Jim walked back toward the chair he was sitting in.

"I don't know. But as of now, all I know is that Rabb and MacKenzie are in Moscow and they're expected to call in some time tonight. At which point, you are to be in my office, so that Agent Webb can explain the orders to you." The Admiral was rubbing his temples.

"If Wes Clark and Clayton Webb are on the same team, this must be something pretty serious. I have a feeling I know what I'm going to be asked." Jim sat in the chair and let out a sigh.
"What are you thinking?" The Admiral looked over the desk.

"That Marlow's going back down the river." Jim said with an imagery not lost on the Vietnam vet.

MOSCOW, RUSSIA…

"Baby, have I told you how sexy you look in that white nightie?" He wrapped his arm around her as they spooned on the hotel bed.

"I could've guessed, your mouth didn't close for six minutes and nineteen second after you saw me in it. It's nice to hear you say it though." She smiled and mumbled into her pillow. A knock came at the door and the two of them got out of bed to answer it. Harm opened the door and tussled with the man on the other side of it, eventually pinning him.

"Alexei?" Harm was shocked to say the least.

"Is me, boss." Alexei replied. "I figured I could interest you in Moscow night life yes?" The Russian cab driver smiled almost innocently at them. Harm and Mac looked at each other suspiciously and told Alexei to wait in the hall while they got ready. After getting dressed and making sure they were armed they met Alexei in the hall and followed him out of the hotel to his cab. Mac opened the door and heard the voice that drew her and Harm back to their investigation on the USS Hornet almost ten months earlier.

"How are you, Sarah?" The man asked.

"Falcon." The single word from Harm's lips sounded almost like a condemnation.

"Ah yes, Commander Rabb. What brings you to Russia?" Falcon seemed to almost be familiarizing as the two of them got in the cab.

"The truth." Harm stated simply. "Where's the list, Falcon? Or don't you and your KGB buddies know what I'm talking about?"

"Commander, I work for the Federal Security Service first of all and secondly, Commander, I'm here to talk to you about false information you may have received." Falcon informed as his cold gaze never drifted from Mac.

"I have no idea what false information you're talking about, Falcon." Harm said smugly.

"I have reason to believe that you've received false information that there were POWs shipped to Russia at the end of the war and that you're here to find one of the said POWs." Falcon's tone carried with it a rhythmic, industrial efficiency.

"You mean like a twenty year-old picture of my father taken at a Siberian train station." Harm shot back.

"Who sent you the picture?" Falcon leaped on the insinuation.

"Why should I tell you?" Harm's litigator skills were kicking in.

"Because maybe there's something I can do for you." Falcon replied.

"I thought it was false information?" Harm's little verbal trap was kicking in.

"It is, which means it's harmless for me to try and help you." Falcon shot back.

"I tell you what I know about the person who sent me the photo and you help me get whatever information I ask for." Harm demanded.

"Fair enough." Falcon replied.

"I don't know who send me the photo; unmarked envelope and no return address." Harm smiled victoriously. Alexei pulled them back up to the front of the hotel. "Now, as for what I want; I talked to an ex-KGB agent who gave me my father's number when he was a prisoner. Number S2954; find out all you can." Harm and Mac got out of the cab.

"Oh, Sarah, I was hoping that I might call up that rain-check I owe you for a steak dinner." Falcon's gall was enough to get to Harm.

"I'm otherwise occupied; thanks for the invitation though, Mark." Falcon could see how Mac had reached for Harm's hand and intertwined their fingers when she'd said that. Alexei's cab pulled away into the Russian night as Harm and Mac walked back up to the front doors of their hotel.

Just as they were about to go through the revolving door they saw a familiar face come through the door from the hotel to greet them. "Colonel Parlovsky." Harm said with no surprise at all.

"Commander Rabb, nice to see you again and you Major MacKenzie. No Captain Grant this evening, I was so hoping for a reunion." The older man said with a sly look playing upon his features.

"We should talk." Harm said trying not to come off as anxious.

"Not here, I know an alley where the walls have no ears." Parlovsky replied as he started lead them in the direction of this alley. When they came around behind the building Parlovsky turned to talk to them. "I see you met Major Sokol, he's ex-KGB you know?"

"He said he was with the Federal Security Service." Mac replied quizzically.

"Is that what he told you? No, he's most definitely working for hard-liners in the old KGB. I work for the Federal Investigative Organization, it's akin to your FBI." Parlovsky replied.

"Sokol, said something similar about the Federal Security Service, he also wanted to know about the photograph." Harm pushed.

"Did you tell him I sent it to you?" Parlovsky's voice seemed to take on an edge of worry.

"No, I told him it was unmarked, no return address." Harm supplied the information and watched relief overcome Parlovsky's expression.

"That's good, Commander. I will be in touch." Parlovsky went to leave before Harm stopped him.

"Why did you send me the photograph?" It was a question that had been bugging Harm.

"Call it a sentimental act by an old man whose son went missing in Afghanistan." Parlovsky grinned widely. "I still believe your father is dead, Commander."

"Is your son dead?" Harm asked and the older man smiled at his response before just walking off.

"Spy games in Moscow?" Mac let out a hard breath into the cold crisp air.

"Tell me about it." Harm looked back at her. "So sweet thing, what do you say we get you back up to the hotel and back into that white nightie?" Harm said with a smile.

"One track mind, Flyboy." Mac replied with a smile of her own.

The two of them went back up to their hotel room and tried, largely in vain to fall back asleep. They spent most of their time spooned together in the bed talking about things that were going on back at the office. Well actually, Mac was talking; Harm was more or less just staring and nodding his head in agreement every time she asked a question. He couldn't understand why he'd never seen this particular nightgown of hers; it was fast becoming his favourite. The way it clung to her body was making very difficult for him to even remember to nod at certain points.

"You're not listening to a word I'm saying, are you?" She looked up at him.

"Well it's just…I mean, damnit you're too beautiful!" Harm said trying to argue his case after being caught.

"You didn't seem to have a problem concentrating through two years of investigations." She retorted with a flirtatious tone to her voice.

"Oh, trust me, I so did. That one case with the abusive husband in Norfolk; when you came to the door in that pink bathrobe, the image was engrained into my fantasies for months." Harm protested almost evangelically. "Now, this white nightgown; are you trying to ensure my libido responds to no one but you?"

"Darn, you caught on to my plan." Mac responded with a playful slap to the shoulder.

"Well, your plan is working." Harm's eyes returned to the part of her body they were previously concentrating on. Just as they leaned into one another an interrupting knock at the door came. "Who is it!" Harm called.

"Is me, boss!" Alexei's voice called through the door.

"What do you want, Alexei?" Mac opened the door and let the flustered cab driver into the hotel room.

"Major Sokol, he wishes to see you yes?" Alexei managed to get out as Harm rushed him into the room.

"What? When? Harm looked quizzically at the cab driver.

"Soon as possible, boss." Alexei replied. Harm pushed Alexei back out into the hallway so that he and Mac could get dressed. In pretty much five minutes flat they were ready to go out and tackle another obstacle that stood between Harm and finding his father. They found their way through the hotel and back down to Alexei's cab. After piling into the back of the cab they found themselves on their way to a secluded park in residential Moscow.

Harm saw 'Falcon' standing outside about a hundred yards away from his car, in the middle of the park waiting for them. Alexei pulled the car up next to 'Falcon' and Harm and Mac got out. They walked over to Falcon side by side and found him to be carrying a red folder.

"This was all I could find on Prisoner S2954, there's no name so there's no way you can be sure it's even your father." Sokol stated as he went to hand Mac the folder. Harm reached for it and Sokol retracted his arm. "Do you read Russian, Commander?"

Mac reached out and took the folder from him and rifled through it. "Harm, it says here that your father was held prisoner at Lebionka prison until he was moved to Buloika in 1977 and then in 1980 he…"

"He died." Harm said solemnly.

"Harm, he escaped." Mac supplied with a smile. The two of them turned back toward the car and got ready to head back to the hotel. Alexei pulled the cab away from the park and he slowly navigated the roads back to the hotel. "Alexei, how far is it from here to Buloika?"

"About thirteen hundred miles. There is a shuttle plane that makes the trip once a week." Alexei informed them.

"Do you think you might be able to get us on that plane?" Harm asked leaning into the front seat.

"I see what I can do, boss." Alexei said as he pulled up to the front of the hotel. Harm and Mac got out and went up to their room to finally get the good night's sleep that they so desperately needed. The next morning they were going to have to call in to Falls Church.

FALLS CHURCH….

It was late in Virginia. The tired figures of AJ Chegwidden, Clayton Webb and Jim Grant crowded around the phone in the Admiral's office. Webb had two purposes to serve here tonight, he was going to help Harm and Mac in their Russian escapade as much as he could and he was going to fill in Colonel Grant on the mission that was going to pull him away from his post at JAG for the next little while.

The call came in late that night. "Chegwidden." The Admiral's voice took instant command of the phone.

"Admiral, it's Commander Rabb."

"Of course it is, who else would call at this hour." The Admiral replied with a smile.

"Admiral, we have news, we have reason to believe that my father may still be alive. He escaped from Russian custody near the town of Buloika in 1980 sir." The announcement took everyone in office in Falls Church by surprise.

"Clayton Webb, are you sure about this, Commander?" At the sound of Webb's voice you could almost hear Harm's dejection on the other end of the line.

"I've got the folder right here, Webb." Harm said into the phone with tone that made the Admiral and Jim sure that they could hear the grin on his face.

"Rabb, who gave you the information? " Webb said into the phone.

"A Major Sokol." Harm replied. The name caused Jim and Webb's eyes to light up.

"Harm, you're playing some serious Russian spy games here." Jim stated in a foreboding tone.

"What your Colonel is alluding to, Rabb, is that Sokol is Parlovsky's protégé, they could be working together, off of each other or even against each other. Be careful Rabb, we have a man working at the American embassy, go to him if you need anything." Webb said.

"I never thought I'd say this; Thanks, Webb." Harm clicked the phone off.

"Alright, Webb, you have precisely ten minutes to explain my orders before I resign my commission and go ensure that Harm and Mac don't get themselves killed in Russia, so make it fast." Jim was out of his chair and physically backing Webb into a corner.

"You're getting on a plane to Naples tonight. A private jet out of Andrews, chartered by the SACEUR himself and he's even meeting you at Andrews. You're going to Naples to meet up with Force Recon X; a team that was compiled just for this mission. We've got a Serbian weapons engineer that's going to defect and give us the sites of Milosevic's anti-aircraft stations. We had sent an operative in with a SEAL team to get the engineer out but they got pinned down by a death squad in Kosovo. You're going in to get them out." Webb finished as he gulped for air after getting that explanation out in one breath

"Is no one at the Agency capable of getting an op right the first time? I thought I finished with this in '94!" Jim shouted.

"'94?" AJ asked slightly confused by the latest tidbit of information.

"AJ, your Colonel has been - since 1977 - a Marine Recon mercenary at CIA disposal. He has eight medals from missions with us that he can't even wear on his uniform due to the nature of his actions in earning them. Surely you noticed that a good two pages of his service record are under black ink?" Webb supplied.

"I don't like you picking apart fully functional Recon teams to compile this 'All-star' team and I don't like being recalled after I told you idiots I was done back in '94 but since this is technically an order from a four-star and not the director, I'll go. We'd better get to Andrews, now!" Jim headed for the door. "We'll take my car, I've got my cammies in it."

"Alright, Colonel, let's go." Webb caught up with Jim as they went for the door.

"Jim!" AJ called and the Marine stopped halfway through the door of the office. "Give'em hell, Marine! I'll take care of your son." Jim nodded at his commanding officer before heading out of the door to the office. The old Marine had been right, Marlow was going back down the river. Thank God he'd drawn up a will this afternoon in case he didn't come back.

Webb hopped into Jim's jeep and the two of them headed off to Andrews. "Why do you always get me for these missions?" Jim shouted over the radio.

"Simple, you're old Corps. You represent the John Wayne, cowboy, shoot first, get the job done, no price too high Marine Corps that is needed. With the military undergoing what is in essence political castration, there aren't many officers like you left." Webb shouted back as the radio went into a Led Zeppelin back-to-back.

"I'm getting to old for these, Webb; I was twenty-three when I started these escapades. There's a big difference between back then and now." Jim pulled off the beltway toward Andrews.

"After what I saw in Syria, you've still got it, Colonel. A little wiser and less impulsive than you might have been but there's still the fire in your eyes." The jeep pulled on to the tarmac at Andrews and up near to the plane. Jim hopped out of the jeep and approached the figure in Army green that was walking toward the jeep.

"Jim Grant! It's been a while!" The man shouted.

"Sure has, Wes, how's life?" Jim smiled and shook the man's hand.

"Could be better; I trust Agent Webb brought you up to speed?" The two men headed up the steps and into the jet.

"Yeah, the Agency's screwing things up just like the old days." Jim took his seat.

"Sure is, nearly got a SEAL team killed too. Jim, if you can't get to them, estimates say they'll be dead in four days. Bourbon?" General Clark was standing over near the bar.

"Got any Scotch?" Jim replied with a tired smile.

"One twenty year-old single malt coming up." The General smiled as he poured the drink. "I've got to say Jim, I thought you'd have at least one star on your shoulder by now."

"Nah, I never learned how to play the political game Wes, my life has been doing things the way the old Corps taught them. I'm still from the school of breaking down a man and building a Marine in his place. That kind of thinking is hard to swallow for a lot of politicians." Jim grinned self-deprecatingly before taking a drink.

"See, it's that kind of gung-ho Marine I need on this one. I need you to rescue that SEAL team, that CIA operative and that weapons engineer." General Clark took the seat opposite Jim. He had a folder in his hand and laid it out on the little table between them. "Here's where they're being held. It's a small bunker in the middle of the bush."

"It's no less than fifteen miles from the Albanian border!" Jim retorted disbelievingly.

"Twenty two point three miles, actually. Read over the files for the members of your team Jim and get some sleep. I need a team leader who's well rested when we land in Naples." With that General Clark went up to the cockpit to talk with the pilot while Jim tried to position himself in the chair so that he could sleep.

MOSCOW, RUSSIA…

The day dawned on Russia, sadly not bringing with it any warmer weather. After making the call to Chegwidden all Harm and Mac were waiting on was word from Alexei about the shuttle to Buloika. "Open up, boss, is me!" The voice came from through the door. Harm walked over and opened it to let Alexei in. "I have most bad news for you, boss. The shuttle to Buloika is cancelled for this week."

"What? How did that happen?" Harm practically yelled.

"How things always happen, boss, orders from the top." Alexei pointed to the ceiling.

"So, what do we do now? There's got to be some way of getting there." Mac protested as she walked over to where Harm was pacing the floor.

"Mac, Buloika's 1300 miles from here, only a plane would get us there in the time needed." Harm responded as his pacing slowed.

"The only other plane is a MiG 29 and…" Alexei looked over at Harm who looked like he'd had a sudden realization. "Oh no, boss, no way, is not possible."

"Alexei, you told us that you work for the highest bidder, well how much am I going to have to bid for you to put me in the cockpit of that plane?" Harm's resolve was back in full force.

"I don't know, boss, I suppose, fifty thousand American?" The cab driver was scratching his head.

"I can get my hands on that Alexei but you're going to have to get me to the American embassy." Harm and Mac grabbed their coats and made ready to head for the embassy. "I'll call ahead and get everything set in motion."

NAPLES, ITALY

"Sir, we're making our approach into Naples, you need to wake up." The co-pilot came back and shook Jim out of his sleep.

"Thank you." Jim nodded at the man.

"Welcome back to the land of the living, Colonel. Were you hoping it was all just a dream?" General Clark was still sitting across from him.

"I gave up on wishing these missions were dreams fifteen years ago, Wes." Jim came back with a smile.

"Another Scotch?" General Clark offered him the glass.

"Breakfast of champions." Jim accepted the glass and gulped the stiff drink. "Where would the military be without rot-gut?" The two men shared a laugh.

"Stuck at Valley Forge." General Clark replied. The two men felt the plane slowly start to land and ease down the runway before coming to a complete stop. The door to the jet opened and the two men shook hands one last time.

"I guess this is where I get off." Jim said as he stepped toward the door.

"Make good on that Devil-dog name, Marine!" General Clark shouted as Jim stepped off the plane.

"Oohrah!" Jim shouted back as the door closed. He was walking across the tarmac when he saw a young female Marine headed toward him. She was about five-foot-six with cherry red hair and dangerous curves that her jungle cammies couldn't quite hide. He noticed a silver Lieutenant's bar on her shoulder and smiled.

"Sir! I'm Lieutenant Angela Harris." The young woman had a soothing voice.

"Colonel Jim…" She cut him off mid-introduction.

"Colonel Jim Grant, sir, I know. You served with my brother Mi…" His turn to cut her off.

"Lieutenant - likely Captain by now – Michael Harris. I served with him in Panama." Jim supplied with a smile as they turned and headed toward the barracks.

"Captain Michael Harris, yes sir! How did you know, sir?" The young woman had a puzzled look on her face.

"Only two things run in Marine Corps families, Lieutenant; Recon and red hair." Jim's voice was full of enthusiasm.

"When I told my brother I'd be serving with you he said you'd say something like that, sir." She replied with a wide, tooth-filled smile

"And what did he tell you to say in reply?" Jim inquired as he pulled his sunglasses from his pocket and placed them on his face.

"That you need to get some new lines, sir." She laughed. The girl had a lot of moxy; Jim had to admit that He quickly scanned her ring finger before deciding to banter back.

"Tell you what, Lieutenant; if I think of any new lines, I'll try them out on you." He smiled as they hopped into a jeep and headed for the interior of the base.

"It would be my pleasure, sir." Angela's voice carried a flirtatious air.

"It will if I have anything to say about it." Jim smiled and pulled a cigar out from his inside pocket and slid it between his teeth.

"It's a shame that you're my CO, sir." Angela sounded almost disappointed.

"Only for the next 96 hours, Lieutenant." Jim's voice was muffled by the cigar.

"Well, in that case." She leaned over and braced herself on his shoulder before closing her teeth around the end of the unlit cigar and taking it from him. "In Texas, the ladies get the first puff if they want it." She turned the cigar around and lit it.

"In Tennessee, we don't mess with Texas." Jim's jaw was agape as he saw her puff seductively on the cigar.

MOSCOW, RUSSIA…

"Mr. Rabb, I presume, Clayton Webb told me to be expecting you. He said that I should tell you that I cannot officially support you in anyway." The man, whom Harm could only assume was Webb's contact, got up from behind the desk.

"What else did Webb tell you?" Mac chimed in from her place standing behind Harm.

"That once that little warning failed, to provide you with every assistance possible." The man smiled.

"Well, I'm waiting for a man named Hugh Blackadder, he's got something for me and it should be all I need for the time being." Harm smiled and the man left the room leaving only Harm and Mac inside. "This sure has been one non-stop thrill-ride, huh, sweet thing?"

"You bet, flyboy." She slapped him playfully in the shoulder and took a seat in the chair behind the desk. "You realize, that a year ago we were just trying to get the feel for each other as friends?" She smiled in her reflection.

"Last night we were just trying to get the feel for each other to." He shot back with a smile.

"But that was more than friends." She replied with a coy smile. "I didn't think our first vacation together would include Russian espionage."

"I thought Naples was our first vacation together." He replied as he thought back to the weekend liberty he'd had while stationed aboard the TR.

"I didn't think any of our vacations together would include Russian espionage." Her lips were doing that cute thing he'd pointed out to her on one of their earlier investigations. "In fact, the only thing Russian I envisioned about them was a Siberian method for sharing body heat."

"Is that right?" He looked at her, his eyebrows at their inquisitive peak. A knock came at the door and Harm went to answer it.

"Mr. Rabb, I presume." The older gentleman said as he walked into the room.

"Why is everyone saying that today?" Harm and Mac shared a laugh as he saw the man put the briefcase he was carrying down on the desk. "You would be Mr. Blackadder?"

"That's quite correct. After conferring with Mr. Webb, I was able to procure any and all necessary funds." Blackadder opened the case to reveal a rather inordinate amount of money.

"Thank you." Harm said with a disbelieving huff.

"Don't mention it." The man replied before leaving the briefcase and taking his leave of Harm and Mac.

"Well, what do you say, sweet thing? Shall we buy ourselves a ride in a MiG?" He smiled and she groaned.

"You know this is going to make me airsick right?" She poked him in the ribs.

"I'll make it up to you." He offered.

"Dinner at Casa Dios when we get back to DC?" She smiled hopefully.

"And dancing." He added.

"Deal, flyboy." The two of them walked out of the room and through the embassy, finally meeting Alexei who was pacing next to his cab. The three of them piled into the car and Alexei once again returned to his duty of navigating the Moscow streets.

"Alexei, can you still wrangle us that MiG ride?" Harm asked with an almost devious expression on his face.

"You got the cash, boss?" Alexei looked in his rear-view mirror. Harm opened the briefcase and displayed the money that had been delivered to them at the embassy. Alexei than proceeded to steer them toward the nearest military base.

USS PATRICK HENRY

SOMEWHERE IN THE ADRIATIC…

Jim Grant stood before a team of five Recon Marines that were going to be his team for this op. They were below deck on the Henry, in the Marine barracks to be exact and it was the ideal place to give his pep-talk and familiarize with his team before they went into combat the next day. "My name, is Colonel James Tecumseh Grant! 26 years in this man's Marine Corps! I have medals for every campaign since the end of the Vietnam War and I assure you that I am not going to soft-glove you like any Academy grad COs that you may have had. This is my team and on my team, we play by the rules of the Old Corps!" Jim came to a halt before the junior most member of the team. "What are the rules of the old Corps, Corporal?"

"Leave No Man Behind! No retreat! No one lives forever! God, Country, Corps; sir!" The Corporal replied.

"Very good, Corporal. Now give me your name, rank and home-state!" Jim shouted in the young man's face.

"Corporal Andre Snider, sir. From the Buckeye state!" Corporal Snider replied.

"And how about you Corporal?" Jim moved to the next man in line.

"Corporal Pierre Dupree, sir. From the great state of Louisiana!" The young man replied with a very recognizable accent.

"A wild-eyed southern boy, good! What about you, Sergeant?" Jim's sardonic smile was growing. He looked every bit the image that one would expect after reading his file. He had his sunglasses on, a short cigar in his teeth and his jungle cammies.

"Sergeant Wayne Hill, sir! From good Ol' Miss!" The Sergeant was emphatic.

"Alright, we got two southerners, how about you, Gunny?" Jim stood back from the Gunnery Sergeant.

"Gunnery Sergeant Robert Edward Johnson, sir!" The man, who was only a few years younger than Jim replied.

"Let me guess, a Virginian?" Jim asked almost sarcastically. The Gunny merely nodded. "And finally our team X.O. Sound off, Lieutenant!"

"Lieutenant Angela Harris, sir! Don't mess with Texas!" Angela had a self-assured smile.

"God has granted me a team that is southern by his grace. I myself am from Tennessee. Now do we all know the plan for the extraction tomorrow?" Jim's view panned across the line and he got a chorus of 'Yes, sir!' "Good, from what I've been told, this team is supposed to be the best of the best that Force Recon has to offer. Gentlemen…" Jim heard the sound of Angela clearing her throat and corrected himself before continuing. "And Lady, your training will only help you in combat tomorrow, getting to and from the LZ will be pure survival instinct. Lucky for you, it will be my survival instinct. Stick with me and you will live. Deviate and I can guarantee that you will not. Your opponents are not called Death Squads for nothing, they are ruthless, they are vile and make no mistake, and they will kill you. Shoot to kill. We have to save some SEALs tomorrow, do not get in a pissing competition with them, get them on the chopper and get them the hell out of country."

"Sir, yes, sir!" The Recon team chorused as Jim took another panoramic look at them.

"Good, remember that you are Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance; the best of the best, bar none. SEALs are no match for you, Rangers run scared when you near and Air Force Commandos quake in their boots at the sound of your voice. Now, who are you?" Jim loved giving that speech.

"Recon, Oohrah!" The team shouted.

"That's better." Jim smiled smugly.

MOSCOW, RUSSIA…

Harm, Mac an Alexei were on the tarmac near a MiG 29 as they prepared to go for their 'ride'. The three of them walked up to the pilot who was standing next to his plane. "Alright, you have permission to go up; the plane is only a two-seater which means I can only take one of you at a time." The pilot tried to explain to them. He had not noticed that Mac had walked behind him but he sure took notice when he felt the barrel of a gun being pressed against the middle of his back

"Get rid of the Sergeant." Mac stated in Russian which meant that Harm was the only one unable to understand. The pilot told the Sergeant that he'd forgotten his maps in his locker and ordered the Sergeant off to go retrieve them.

"Good work, Mac." Harm stated encouragingly. Mac raised the butt of the handle of her pistol and struck the pilot on his head knocking him unconscious. She proceeded to climb up the ladder and into the RIO seat. Harm followed her up the ladder and took the pilot's chair.

Overcome by a sudden attack of conscience, Alexei scrambled up the ladder after them. "I cannot let you go, boss. They will be waiting for you. They know you are going to steal the plane." He explained frantically.

"Who, Alexei?" Harm's eyes were overcome with worry.

"The highest bidder." Alexei responded.

"Ready, Mac?" Harm checked over his shoulder. His obvious insistence to carry through with the mission brought a look of annoyance to Alexei's face as he climbed down from the plane.

"Ready as I'll ever be." Mac said as she secured herself into the seat. Harm lowered the canopy and got the plane ready to taxi down the runway. Soon enough they were in the air headed for Buloika.

"Mac, you're going to have to check for bogies while I see if I can get this radar working." Harm said as he tested buttons on the console. Mac took a few deep breaths as she started to gently swivel her head to check for other planes. Harm found himself finally able to get the radar working and when he did he saw two unfriendly aircraft closing in on his six. "Mac, we got company." Harm tried to manoeuvre the plane but soon discovered that a MiG 29 was not his beloved Tomcat. He started to hear a sound that could only mean that one of the bogies had a lock on him.

"Harm, does that mean what I think it means?" Mac's voice dripping with concern.

"I'm afraid so, missiles inbound." Harm executed a quick climb and ended up putting the sun in between the missiles and the MiG.

"How did you do that?" Mac let out a large breath.

"They're heatseekers and the sun got between us and them." Harm replied with a smile of relief before he heard the unfamiliar sound again…

MARINE UH1 HELICOPTER

500 FEET OVER KOSOVO…

"Well ladies, we're in country now!" Jim Grant looked out the door of the Huey and watched as night blanketed the Balkan forest below.