Returning to duty after a week of drinking hard and playing even harder, Smith's A-Team assembled in the briefing room at Tay Loc. Sitting at attention in their seats, they listened intently as the C.O. laid out the plans for their next mission.
"I don't foresee any problems, it's a quick insertion fifty clicks north of the DMZ, plant the C4, blow the not-so-secret, secret ammo dump and Murdock will pick us up at this L.Z.," he pointed to a clearing on the map.
"Any questions?"
The room was silent.
"Excellent." He clapped his hands together and rubbed them with glee, "Now, we have a few days to kill while Murdock waits for his new A-gunner and he has suggested an intriguing extraction method for us to use in future, which I would like to test." Smith's eyes met Face's briefly before they shifted to settle on Eddie and a jazz-filled grin bared his teeth in a shark's grin.
Eddie's stomach lurched and all the blood drained from his face; he knew that grin all too well...
Fast Eddie stood in the middle of the airfield in a weird almost-crouched position, his face set into a severely displeased grimace. At the edge of the runway where he was hunched, Colonel Smith and Face were watching as the sergeant did his best not to soil himself.
"THIS IS A BAD IDEA, COLONEL!" Yelled Eddie.
Smith grinned and waved a cigar at his terrified man, yelling back, "DON'T BE RIDICULOUS, SERGEANT! I''VE HEARD GREAT THINGS ABOUT THIS STABO RIG; YOU'LL BE FINE!"
The unmistakable sound of approaching helicopter rotors reached his ears and Eddie began to pray to any deity who may be in the vicinity, his eyes squeezing shut and his hands balling into fists as he prepared to meet his maker.
Standing comfortably by his C.O., Face smiled freely; this was going to be sweet! Eddie had ribbed him almost twelve hours a day, every day, since he had been assigned this new nickname and Peck was keen to return the favour any way he could.
It seemed his new 'bestestest' friend - he winced at the memory of his ride on the porcelain roller coaster - had devised just the revenge to whet his appetite.
The sound of rotors grew louder and as Face looked up he saw Murdock swooping in towards them, his Huey bulleting smoothly through the air, vectoring in on Eddie's position. Face's grin widened as Eddie began to wail in fear,
'OHMYGOD, OHMYGOD, FACE I'M GONNA KILL YOUUUUUUUUU!"
Murdock's chopper snagged the webbing and Eddie was yanked off his feet, kicking and screaming.
Face and Smith collapsed to the tarmac in fits of hysterics as the usually calm and unflappable point man shrieked his head off.
Circling the airfield twice, Murdock came in to land, setting Eddie gently down first.
Eddie's legs had turned to rubber and the other two men had to help him off the hook so Murdock could pull back up and land a safe distance away.
As the pilot and his crew shut down the Huey, Smith slapped Eddie firmly on the back, "Well it certainly looked effective, how was it, Sergeant?"
Eddie whimpered wordlessly, his face white and his eyes wide.
Face's grin threatened to split his face in half, "Maybe you should do it again, you can never have too much practice with this sort of extraction."
Eddie turned his dazed countenance to Face's and blinked blankly, "Again?"
Murdock bounded over to them just in time to overhear Eddie's reply, "You wanna go again, Muchacho?" He grinned from under his dark visored helmet, the sun glinting off the polished, tinted screen and leaned on Face's shoulder, the other man now quite comfortable with him following their eventful R&R in Saigon. "No problemo, hey let's try it at full speed this time!"
Eddie fainted.
-A-
Shifting his weight, Face relaxed into the stance that Murdock had shown him, the long staff held firmly in his hands. Facing him, Murdock mirrored Face's body position and brought his own staff up into an attacking position.
Murdock came at him from overhead, slowly so Face could see where to block, which he did so easily. Smirking with just a touch of pride, Murdock stepped to the side and brought his staff around in a horizontal manoeuvre, again easily blocked by Face now he knew how.
They continued in this slow moving pattern of attack and parry, gradually increasing speed until Face was absorbed in the motion of his staff, feeling himself becoming one with it.
Comfortable now, Face made to make an original attack of his own and, looking quickly to his teacher, he saw Murdock's eyes flash as he blocked. Setting his jaw, Face feinted then hopped out of range as Murdock's staff swept through the spot he had just been occupying.
Face grinned and, determined to show Murdock he had mastered what he had been taught, he launched into a flurry of attacks. The only sound that could be heard in the dingy gym was the clack of wooden staffs and the increasingly heavy breathing of the two men. Face had yet to learn how to breathe properly and Murdock was still not fully recovered from surgery enough to train to his full potential, so they were pretty evenly matched.
Face pressed harder, tapping into some hidden reserve and Murdock, to his dismay, began to feel himself being driven backwards.
Murdock's pride was not about to let him be beaten by his cocky new friend, no matter how much the shadows behind Face's eyes begged him to let the shorter man win, so he dropped low and swiped his staff out, knocking Face's legs out from under him.
Face landed with a 'whump'. Winded, he scrambled to his feet, ignoring the hand Murdock offered in assistance,
"Come on. Again." Face raised his staff in readiness, his eyes wide and his teeth bared.
Murdock narrowed his eyes, something was definitely off.
Face had come to him earlier in the day and had asked him to show him how to use the staff, to which he had agreed easily, he and Peck were on much friendlier footing these days. As soon as they had set foot in the gym and he had handed Peck a staff, something had flickered in those blue eyes. Puzzled, but respectful of his team mate's privacy, Murdock hadn't pushed, merely asked if he was okay.
But now that flicker of something indistinct had flared again, more violently than before. Murdock knew better than to get into fisticuffs with a man who was fighting in order to deal with something else.
"Not today, Muchacho. I'm beat." He wiped his brow for effect, hoping it would dissuade the other man.
It didn't.
"Come on, Murdock, we haven't been at it that long, we can handle some more." He fixed Murdock with a look that bordered on desperate and all but begged, "Please, Murdock, just one more."
Murdock's lips thinned into a line. He had been keen to get a better insight into Templeton Peck ever since their first encounter in the gym, and it seemed this was his chance. Tightening his grip on the staff, he reluctantly nodded and moved into position, hoping that this wasn't going to be a massive mistake.
As soon as Face had laid the first blow against him, Murdock realised just how big an error in judgment he had made. Face's battle mask, the one he always wore when pummelling V.C.s, had slipped firmly into place and he launched the most savage attack he had yet. It was all Murdock could do to defend himself against the flurry of strikes - Face's strength as a S.O.G. pro was far superior to his own. Murdock defended firmly, gathered his strength, and when he unleashed and managed to get the upper hand, he drove Face back until he had him pinned against a wall.
Struggling against the staff that pinned him, Face kicked out frantically, like a trapped animal, blind rage burning in his eyes, and only Murdock's lightning reflexes, honed from hair-trigger air combat, saved his balls from being blasted up into his mouth.
"Face! What the fuck are you doing?!"
"Murdock, let go of me!" Face pushed against the taller man, but Murdock had the distinct feeling that if he released his friend he'd only get knocked out, so he held Face firm.
"No. What's wrong with you?!"
The fingers of one hand released the staff, curled into talons, and swiped for Murdock's face, "Get off of me!"
Murdock frowned, tempted to pull rank and order Face to stand down, but that wouldn't get him any answers as to why his friend was so worked up.
"Face, come on man, talk to me; what's killing me going to achieve that talking to me won't?"
Face suddenly stopped struggling and glared at him, the wordless stare demanding that Murdock release him. Bracing himself, Murdock did so, and took a good few distancing steps away from the man he had thought was his friend.
Without another word Face left the gym. Tension was clear in the tightness of his shoulders, and the silence he left in his wake was deafening.
Murdock watched him go, his lips twisting into a deeply puzzled frown.
What the hell had that all been about? He shook his head and moved to clear up the fighting equipment, he just didn't understand these special forces boys.