They arrived to Sarge's condo and knocked on the door. It took a few moments before the door was opened by Lopez.
"No eres lo que pedí/You're not what I ordered."
"Good to see you, too, Lopez." Simmons said cheerfully as he walked into the condo.
"Te odio/I hate you." Lopez responded as he motioned for the others to come in.
"Same buddy, same." Grif whispered to Lopez.
Once Virginia entered the living room, she was greeted by Caboose, who came rushing to her with open arms. Virginia held him as he sniffled into her collarbone.
"It's okay, Caboose." Virginia said as she held him, patting his back. "We're here now."
Nico walked in behind Virginia, looking around the room. He eyed Lopez, then Caboose and then, Sarge.
"Who's this guy?" Sarge asked, gruffly.
"This is Agent Nevada. Also known as Nico." Virginia explained.
"Hmph." Sarge responded, looking over the Freelancer. "Another one of you guys?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Nico asked as he raised an eyebrow. "Is he being racist right now?" Nico asked Simmons.
"No, I think he means 'Freelancer'." Simmons responded.
"Ah. That makes sense." Nico nodded. "Yes, I'm one of those guys."
"Sarge, how are you?! Did you miss us?! Did you miss me?" Simmons asked as he stepped closer to the red-armored soldier.
"Um, what?" Sarge asked. "Yeah, sure. It's been quiet." Sarge responded, avoiding what Simmons said. Simmons sighed and plopped down on the couch.
Virginia was already sitting on the couch, having Caboose curled up on her lap and rocking him like a child.
"Is he... okay?" Nico asked Grif in a whisper.
"He's a bit... special." Grif replied.
"Ah." Nico responded and gave a nod.
"Were you able to get hold of my sister?" Grif asked Sarge.
"Ah, yes. I got their voicemail; something about 'bump-a-chic-a-bump-bumps' and... something-er..." Sarge explained. "I left a message and told them it was gravely urgent."
Grif sighed and sat on a recliner.
"Donut and Doc should be home in a few hours." Simmons mentioned.
"...Donut...?" Nico asked.
"Yeah, he's one of the Red soldiers." Simmons explained.
"And his name is 'Donut'?"
"Hey, buddy. You will find we're all a bunch of weird people." Grif explained to the Freelancer. Nico gave a nod, looking mortified as he turned away.
What have I gotten myself in to?, he thought.
"Yo, Sarge. You got anything to eat?!" Grif whined. Sarge grumbled.
"Nothing for you."
"Ouch. My feelings are hurt." Grif stated, sarcastically. "I'm ordering pizzas up in this bitch." Grif got up from the recliner and went to call for delivery.
"You can sit down, Nico. They won't bite." Virginia informed, still coddling Caboose.
Nico, who was up against the wall, gave a nod and went to the love seat. He cleared his throat as he sat down next to Sarge.
"I don't bite, but I will shoot." Sarge warned. Nico sighed, tapping his hands nervously against his knees.
"We know that Virginia bites." Grif snickered as he returned from the other room. Virginia glared at Grif, mouthing 'fuck you'. Simmons began to blush, putting a hand over his hickey.

Carolina's eyelids fluttered, seeing a series of bright lights shining on her face. She squinted, trying to give her eyes some time to adjust.
She turned her head to the side, and noticed that her wrists were strapped down. She attempted to raise her legs, but realized that they were also strapped down.
"What... the... Hell?!" Carolina gasped as she raised her head a bit, seeing that she was on a type of medical table.
"Look who's awake!" Came a cheery voice. Carolina tried to see past the lights, only to see shadow.
"Who's there?" She asked, trying not to sound panicked.
A man in a white lab coat stepped into view. He looked to be in his 40's, with slicked-back hair. His hair was black, with mostly silver hair by his sideburns.
He went to a nearby sink, rolled up his sleeves and began to wash his hands. Carolina could see a tattoo along his forearm, but couldn't make out the design.
After a few minutes of washing his hands while humming, he turned the sink off and put on some rubber gloves. He stepped closer to her and Carolina began to thrash.
"Don't come near me!" She cried out.
"Calm down, Agent Carolina." The man whispered to her. He smiled as he looked over her face.
"How do you know who I am?" She asked. Her heart was pounding.
"I've done my research. You were the best Freelancer, or so what I read." The man grinned, seeming proud to have that knowledge. "Being the best comes at a price, though."
Carolina followed his hands to a medical tray, where he picked up a syringe.
"What are you planning to do?" Carolina asked through gritted teeth.
"We need to make the best." The mysterious man said, tapping the syringe and letting fluid drip out.
"Make the best what?!" Carolina screamed. The man looked at her and reached for her head. She snapped at him, attempting to bite him.
He pulled his hand back and sighed.
"That's not very lady-like, Miss Carolina." He warned her. Carolina noticed movement in her peripheral and watched as another man moved towards her, dressed in a surgical gown. The man grabbed her head as she tried to fight it, but he held her tightly in place. She felt the injection in the side of her neck and tried to scream through gritted teeth.
"There. That wasn't so bad, now was it?" The man asked as he pulled the syringe out of her neck. The nurse slowly placed Carolina's head back onto the table, as she felt everything slowly spin. Her vision began to blur and her eyelids fluttered.
This is it... she thought. I'm dying...

The pizzas finally arrived and Grif began to eat happily. Everyone partook in the pizza, even Nico, who still seemed shy.
"Thanks, Grif." Caboose said softly as he ate quietly.
"Yeah, no problem." Grif responded. He hated to admit it but seeing Caboose like this was a hurtful sight.
The silence was broken when a loud chime went off from the computer screen on the wall.
Lopez went over, tapping his fingers on the keyboard.
The screen flickered and a transmission began to come through.
Everyone looked to see Tucker appear on the screen.
"Hey, what the Hell is going on? We got Sarge's message." His eyebrows were furrowed with confusion.
Everyone looked over to Caboose, who was keeping to himself as he ate his pizza.
"Tucker..." Virginia began to say.
"Guys, you're scaring me. What's wrong?" Tucker's voice began to sound panicked.
"Washington and Carolina were kidnapped." Virginia explained. Tucker's eyes grew wide.
"Wait, what? How is that possible?!" He screamed.
"The bad men threw nets on them!" Caboose cried.
"It's true. Found a net attached to the wall. It was made of a metallic wiring and it shocked me!" Sarge explained. "Someone blew a hole the size of Texas in the side of their house. They left no trace of them."
Tucker wiped his face with his hand, looking agitated.
"We'll get on the next flight." Tucker announced. The transmission abruptly ended, leaving only the sobs of Caboose to fill the room.
Virginia pulled Caboose into her arms, gently patting his back.
Simmons watched Virginia, replaying what Grif had said before about the Freelancers.
Trouble always seems to stem from them...

Virginia and Caboose fell asleep on the couch after eating. He nuzzled his head into her shoulder.
Simmons, Grif and Sarge sat at the dining room table, while Lopez tapped away on the computer.
Nico was on the love seat with his arms across his chest and his head hanging down. His eyes were closed.
"I just got a message from Donut that they've landed and they'll be fetching a taxi." Simmons announced.
"Hm." Sarge huffed.
"We just can't seem to stay away from each other." Grif groaned as he stretched his arms over his head.
"Hey, what do you guys think of this other Freelancer guy?" Sarge asked as he leaned in closer to them.
"I mean, he seems trustworthy." Simmons whispered back.
"He didn't try to kill us when we first met, so there's a plus." Grif added.
"He used to be a teammate of Virginia's way back." Simmons explained. "She trusts him."
"Well, I, for one, ain't gonna trust him just yet." Sarge grumbled. "For all we know, he could be a part of it."
"You sound paranoid." Grif pointed out.
"Doesn't hurt to err on the side of caution." Simmons said.
They all nodded, making a silent agreement to stay on guard.

Donut knocked on the door, adjusting his back on his shoulder.
Doc stood next to him, yawning.
"Man, I am jetlagged!" Doc announced.
The door opened and they found themselves looking at Simmons.
"Hey, guys." Simmons greeted them and stood to the side to let them enter.
Donut had a wide grin as he leaned over to whisper something to Doc.
Doc stared at Simmons and gasped.
"W-What?" Simmons asked, shutting the door behind them.
"Richard Simmons! Is that a hickey on your neck?" Donut asked, sounding like he was going to give him a lecture.
"Oooooh!" Doc snickered from behind Donut.
"Shut up!" Simmons quickly got defensive as his face grew hot.
"So it is true!" Donut continued to flash his smile. "Simmons and Virginia, sitting in a tree!" He began to sing.
"Donut, I will murder you." Simmons threatened through gritted teeth.
Donut giggled as Sarge and Grif came into the room.
"Hello everyone." Doc spoke first.
"'Sup?" Grif asked.
"Grif, looks like I owe you $20!" Donut said with his hands on his hips.
"$20 for what?" Simmons asked.
"We had a bet going on how long it would take for you to lose your virginity." Grif beamed as Donut forfeited the money.
"What. The. Fuck?!" Simmons yelled.
"Yeah, looks like I owe you money, too." Sarge began to grumble as he handed money over to Grif.
"Not you too, Sarge!" Simmons gasped.
"What? I'm a betting man." Sarge explained.
"I hate you all." Simmons sighed.
The conversation was disrupted by Virginia, who was rubbing an eye.
"Donut! Doc!" She opened her arms as the two hugged her.
"It's good to see you." Donut said with a smile. "You doing okay?"
"As good as expected, I guess." Virginia nodded, then looked over to the couch where Caboose was stretched out and mumbling in his sleep. "I'm a bit worried about him."
Doc peeked into the living room, and then looked back at everyone else.
"Hey, whose the new guy?" He whispered.
"Oh, that's Nico." Virginia said. "Also known as Agent Nevada."
"Wait, are you saying he's a Freelancer?" Donut asked.
"Yes." Virginia was a bit hesitant to respond.
"Holy smokes. So you all weren't killed?" Doc said.
"Unfortunately not." Grif added. Simmons elbowed Grif in the ribs and shot him a glare.
"Tucker and Sister will be flying home eventually. We got ahold of them." Simmons explained to Donut and Doc.
"So... what do we do 'till then?" Donut asked.
"Well, we could do recon." Nico startled everyone as he stood behind them, awake. "I'd like to go see Wash and Carolina's place and see if we can find anything."
"I didn't find squat but you're more than welcome." Sarge said.
"I'll go, too." Virginia volunteered.
Simmons felt a little uneasy at the thought of her going alone with Nico.
"I'll tag along." He added.
"Sounds good. Let's get ready." Nico went to fetch his bag that was sitting on the floor.
Virginia disappeared into the bathroom as Sarge showed Nico the guest bedroom.
"Dude, you comfortable going with those two?" Grif asked.
"Yeah. Fine."
"I'll go, too!" Donut said. "I'm not jetlagged oooone bit!"
"Oh lucky, 'cause I sure could use a nap." Doc yawned and went to the unoccupied love seat.
"I guess I'll go, too." Grif sighed.
"I'll stay behind, I guess." Sarge huffed. "Someone's gotta babysit Caboose."

It didn't take long before everyone was dressed in their armor.
"I'll drive." Grif volunteered.

They pulled up to the house, seeing the massive hole on the side.
Everyone stepped around the rain puddles, approaching the damage.
Virginia bent down to examine several sets of foot prints, and a smear in the mud that indicated that something was dragged.
"Looks like someone used a rocket launcher." Simmons said as he climbed over the rubble to get inside.
Everyone followed in his tracks, seeing an array of splintered woods and crumbled bricks.
Furniture was tossed to the side and a few knives were protruding out of the wall.
"Looks like Wash was here." Virginia said as she looked at the knife.
"Hey, there's that net." Nico pointed straight down the hall, seeing a webbed net stuck to the front wall.
Everyone approached it, seeing the corners of the webbing imbedded into the wall.
"Hmm.. interesting." Simmons leaned in closer to the net, only to see it spark.
"It's a stun net." Nico explained. "It's like being hit with a taser. It traps you inside and leaves you immobilized."
"Who uses such equipment?" Grif asked.
"I've seen some Freelancers use it." Nico admitted.
"Well, that's comforting." Grif grumbled.
"I hope you're not saying that Wash and Carolina were captured by other Freelancers?" Donut asked.
"Highly unlikely." Virginia spoke up.
"What's the company that makes these things?" Simmons asked as he pointed to the net.
"Um... I think it's Raini Technologies." Nico responded. "Why you ask?"
"Well, if we can get into their databases, we could probably find the people who received this equipment." Simmons explained. "Thus, leading us to the captors."
"Holy shit." Nico gasped. "You're right. He is smart." He whispered to Virginia.
Virginia smiled, looking at Simmons.
"Let's get to hacking."