"Hope you brought your sea legs Probie," DiNozzo shouted as their boat bounced over wave after wave. McGee scowled, unimpressed at his attempt at humour. In fact he had taken motion sickness tablets but he was still feeling more than a little seedy and couldn't wait to get off the water. However he had no intention of letting Tony or Gibbs know this. Sea spray splashed onto them as their boat cut through the water. The salt water burned their faces. Ahead in the distance they could see the dark shadow of land. McGee was relieved that soon he would be on dry land. He took another deep breath just as Tony gave him an encouraging slap on the back.

"I'm fine, Tony!" he snapped turning around angrily. He could really do without DiNozzo pushing his buttons right now.

"Cut it out DiNozzo!" Gibbs hollered with a mean look in his eyes. Tony decided to listen for once.

Before they knew it two of the SEALs were leaping into the water and dragging the boat to the beach. They all clambered out and took their gear. Some of the SEALs concealed their boats in the foliage at the head of the beach. They all began to put their packs on their backs and started their hike to the rendezvous point.

As they made their weapons ready, Tony and McGee noticed that Gibbs was carrying an assault rifle. All they had been issued were MK23 handguns.

"Hey, Boss, how come they didn't give us on of those?" DiNozzo asked as they walked off the beach towards a track through the trees.

"Have you ever fired an M4, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

"Well, no," Tony admitted.

"That's why!" Gibbs replied, ending that conversation abruptly. Gibbs held his weapon low at the ready, scanning their surroundings for anything out of the ordinary. He was at his most alert in situations like these. Tony realised stealth and speed were of the essence so shut up and continued on following the Navy SEALs who were leading the way. As they reached a larger road the Platoon Commander raised his fist in a signal to get down and stay quiet. They looked up ahead and could just make out the outline of a large truck parked at the side of the road. He walked on while the rest of the unit remained concealed. Then he gave a signal using his torchlight. Another signal was returned. Satisfied that everything was alright, he turned back to his unit and signalled them to follow him. He was talking to the driver by the time they reached him.

"Climb straight in, guys," he ordered and everyone, including Gibbs did as they were ordered. Once everyone was on board, the engine burst into life and the tarp was lowered to conceal the platoon. The truck bumped down the uneven road until it eventually reached another with a tarmac surface. They travelled unimpeded for close to an hour before the truck took another turn and continued down another uneven track where it finally ground to a halt.

They remained seated until the driver came to them and raised the cover and invited them to jump down. When they did, they saw that they were in a barren area which was surrounded on all sides by rocky hills with few shrubs. Not much cover, Gibbs noticed. The unit regrouped and split into smaller tactical groups each with different objectives.

Gibbs and McGee were in one group of five, Fornell in another and DiNozzo with yet another. Gibbs and DiNozzo's groups were charged with locating the missing Mossad operatives and the capture of any hostiles that may provide both governments with valuable information. Fornell and his unit were responsible for the extraction of any intelligence that may be in the camp. The fourth unit were to provide back up, communication and covering fire if need be. As they waited for instructions, the Platoon Commander returned from observing the camp from a position on one of the rocky outcrops that lay in the hills above them.

"Okay, men, it all looks pretty quiet down there. Go in silent. No firing unless absolutely necessary. Building by building sweeps, got it?" he reminded them.

"Yes Sir," the SEALs replied enthusiastically.

Then the groups began to split up to their designated camp entry points. As they did, Gibbs called over to DiNozzo.

"Keep your head down, DiNozzo."

"You too, Boss," Tony replied. It was about as close as he'd ever come to telling Gibbs to be careful to his face. Gibbs nodded an acknowledgement in his direction before following his unit leader. McGee gave Tony a meek wave as he trotted behind Gibbs. They circled the camp to the south while Tony and his group prepared for entry from the east.

Silently Gibbs and his troop neared the camp boundary. With their night vision goggles, they could see that there were only three permanent structures. The remainder of the camp consisted of tented accommodation. As they surveyed the camp Gibbs saw a handful of armed terrorists patrolling the compound. The Navy SEALs that accompanied them led the way. Then one of them sneaked up close to one tent and as a guard walked past he grabbed him by the chin and quickly silenced him. Then he signalled for the others to follow. Carefully they entered the tent, weapons at the ready. However, they relaxed when they discovered that this particular tent was obviously just a storage area for provisions. It was all clear.

One by one they proceeded to check each tent meeting little resistance. Gibbs was anxious to get to the single storey building that stood at the centre of the encampment surrounded by tents. If he was holding anyone captive, that would be where they would be held. Eventually they made it undetected to the building in question. The five men stood with their backs tight against the wall. They paused for breath before the lead seal opened the unlocked door. As he did he was met by a very startled Arab looking man wearing military khaki's and a scarf. The man reached for his weapon but fumbled and was thrown back against the wall as a double tap of bullets slammed into his chest. He slid down to the ground, silenced forever. One by one they entered the building. They sneaked through the dark corridor checking each room. Finally they reached a door at the end of the corridor. This was the only one that was locked. Using a small explosive charge the Seal blew the lock and burst through the door. Initially the room appeared empty also. However as Gibbs and McGee walked in, they noticed a crumpled heap in a corner close to the window.

Cautiously, they approached the figure, weapons trained the entire time. As it became apparent that the figure was in fact a person Gibbs lowered his weapon and bent down to check if they were alive. Slowly he rolled the person onto their back and it was then that he realised that it was a woman. For a moment he failed to recognise her as her face was so badly bruised and swollen. He felt for a pulse and as he did she turned quickly and grabbed his wrist. It was then he realised that it was Ziva.

"Ziva, it's me," Gibbs said quietly.

"Michael?" she replied her confusion evident.

"No, Ziva, it's me, Gibbs," he told her as he brushed her hair from her face.

"Gibbs? Am I dreaming?" she asked not believing her eyes.

"It's not a dream, Ziva, we're taking you home," he replied compassionately. "Can you sit up?"

With Gibbs help she managed to raise herself into a seated position.

"McGee, give me a hand," Gibbs barked as he tried to get Ziva to her feet. Immediately, McGee took one of her arms while Gibbs took the other and while trying to stifle a whimper, she got to her feet. Her legs felt heavy and her head was spinning but with the support of Gibbs and McGee she managed to walk out of her prison cell. With the SEALs offering protection, the trio slowly returned to the cover of the bushes and rocks that surrounded the camp. As they left they could head gunfire from the other end of the camp. They presumed that another group had been discovered and they were battling their way out. Gibbs thought of Fornell and DiNozzo and hoped that they were okay.

After several agonising minutes, Ziva, Gibbs and McGee had made it back to the rendezvous point. There they lay Ziva onto the ground and examined her injuries more extensively. Thompson, one of the Seals was also a medic and he began to catalogue her injuries. He could see she was dehydrated and gave her water to drink. He cleaned and dressed her facial lacerations and the rope burns that were painfully evident on her wrists and ankles. He noticed that she was guarding her abdomen and ribs and suspected internal injuries but knew that treating those would have to wait until they got back to the carrier.

Gibbs was concerned, not only for Ziva but also about the fact that neither DiNozzo nor Fornell's team had returned yet. Having heard the gun fire he feared that they were in trouble.

"McGee, stay with her," he ordered as he stood up with purpose.

"Where are you going?" McGee asked, surprised that he was willing to leave them there.

"To lend a hand," he replied before grabbing his rifle and jogging towards the east of the compound.

McGee comforted Ziva and watched Gibbs disappear behind the hills. Deep down he had an unnerving feeling that this wasn't over just yet.

And it's not. More to come. Let me know if you're liking it or not.