AN: This is just something I threw together once I stopped bawling and I'm posting it today in remembrance of the ones who made the ultimate sacrifice. All mistakes are mine but I hope you still enjoy.
Summary: Full Metal writes his final words to Bravo Team. Spoilers for 4x16 "One Life to Live".
Rest in Peace, Metal. Your legacy will live on.
All Give Some, Some Give All
To my Brothers,
Scott paused, reread those three words and frowned when they didn't sound or feel right. With a soft groan, he shook his head and turned to a new sheet of paper, pondering over how to start this deployment's letter. He's done this for years now, penned what the team would read upon his death, but for some reason, the words failed to come to him.
He stared at the blank page for a few more minutes before resigning to the fact that he needed a break. It was early still and eventually the boys would be up and about. He needed to get this done. As it wasn't his first rodeo, he knew the drill but that didn't explain his struggles this time around. Metal didn't want those knuckleheads to think he never wrote them a letter should he meet his maker, which was why he was still awake in the middle of the night, fighting with a pen and paper.
To the knuckleheads of Bravo Team,
Yeah. That sounded right.
Scott twisted the pen between his fingers as he worked the problem - what he would say - in his head. He looked down from his bunk and out into Bravo's quarters; Clay and Sonny each had hats pulled down over their eyes, as if there was a threat of sunlight quickly approaching. Trent had his blanket pulled up over his shoulder, having turned away from the rest of the room, and Brock was currently in a position that shouldn't be comfortable. Metal heard Jason leave about an hour ago, so he was probably still roaming the narrow halls. And Ray… well, Ray was probably enjoying some time to himself.
He knew Jason and Ray weren't on the same page, and hadn't been for months now. Sonny and Clay weren't all there, either, which made for awkward and tense moments throughout the day. Brock and Trent seemed to be squared away, not that either of them talked much, so he had no reason to wonder where their heads were at. And Metal himself? Well, it depended on the day.
These were his brothers, his family. The only family he's ever had. The only family he would ever have. He had to give them something.
And just like that, the most important words he could write began to fill the paper. Scott wrote down what he knew Bravo would need to hear if he didn't make it. He wrote down the words he knew would keep them in the fight and not roll over in defeat at the loss of another brother. He wrote down what mattered.
I hope I died a Team guy, not just a SEAL.
I hope I did my job.
Scott paused as he remembered the missions he ran over his many years of service to the career he married for the country he loved. When he got in, he knew what he was giving up and to make such a sacrifice was more than worth it.
"I have no regrets." he said to himself as he wrote the words down.
The only place he ever felt at home was on a battlefield, fighting wars alongside the men he loved the most. There was no better place to die, no other people he'd die for.
I'm glad I left this world doing what I loved most, with the people I love most.
I miss you guys already.
Scott neatly folded the letter and placed it into a matching envelope. As the rest of Bravo stirred awake, he placed his letter in the special section of his bag: Jason would know where to find it should the time arise. And as he gathered his things and prepared to face whatever the world would throw at him, he couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of pride as he watched Bravo.
He was damn proud to call them his brothers, even to the end.
FIN
AN: Italicized words are taken directly from Metal's letter. It was beautifully written and really hammers home the fact that these guys really go out and prepare for any outcome. And I don't often cry when I'm writing something but holy smokes writing this got to me. It probably didn't help that I kept listening to *that* scene as I edited this… oh, well.
I hope my fellow American's have a safe Memorial Day. Don't forget the reason.
