Welcome Back

Ghost found himself sitting on the couch staring at the TV, beside him was the maid. Her head was on his shoulder but he was too tired to even care. She sniffed his shirt and then asked "Did you guys go drinking?"

"What? No, I had to borrow a Russian's coat. Bastard, was drunk as could be. You're probably smelling that." said Ghost, concentrating on the TV. Next thing he knew he was being drug, "Where the hell are we going?" he asked, preferring to know where he was being taken.

"To take a bath, you smell like a bar." she said.

"I'm a grown man, I can take care of myself!" he said, struggling against her surprisingly strong grip.

"Oh, really? If that was so you would have washed up two hours ago when you got back!" she said, pulling him into the bathroom and locking the door.

"What the hell did you do that for? Are you going to watch me take a shower or something?" he asked, removing his t-shirt.

"No, I going to give you a bath." she said, grabbing a sponge. "Off with your pants, and that gaudy mask, you can't clean up properly with that on."

"But-" started Ghost.

"No, buts. Pants off now." she commanded.

"Yes, mommy." he said, the whole remark heavily coated in sarcasm.

"Welcome back, Private Allen. I see you decided to enter my realm, again." said an odd voice, which could only mean one thing.

"Jackson." muttered Allen, lifting himself up off the ground.

"That's right, it's me." said the ghost, smiling, "Been a long time, miss me?"

"Like the plague." said Allen, cracking his back.

"Oh, looks like he told you, Jacky-Poo." said another voice, this one female.

Allen turned to see another ghost had joined Jackson, this one a female in a pilot's uniform.

"Pelayo, how many times do I have to say that you never interrupt me when I'm talking to the newly-deceased?" said Jackson, sounding like he was telling his sister to leave his room while he did 'boy stuff'.

"You weren't sayin' anything important so I figured it'd be okay to join in." said Pelayo, it was at this point Allen noticed her slight Southern drawl.

"And if I hadn't joined in on that mission to rescue you, I'd still be alive!" shouted Jackson.

"Paul, I.." started Pelayo, and then she burst into tears.

Allen just turned away while Jackson tried to assure her that it wasn't his fault and that he only had himself to blame. If he was seeing the ghost Marine, that meant he was dead. Or, he was losing his mind. Neither one was a particularly appealing answer. Interestingly, instead of the airport like last time this time the setting was that of a Middle-Eastern city. For some odd reason, his vision had taken on a red tint and distant buildings collapsed into dust. Nearby was a downed Sea Knight and a burning playground.

"Where are we?" asked Allen, causing Jackson to look up.

"This is the place I died." said Jackson, solemnly.

"Me too." added Pelayo, wiping away her tears with the back of her glove.

"Along with many others." finished Jackson, behind him now standing a mass of Marines. The thirty thousand killed in the blast. "Do you know who caused this?"

Allen shock his head.

"Shepherd. He knew about the presence of nukes. He knew their would be no way in hell we'd all get clear. He used us as a test, to see how well equipped Al-Asad was. He wasted thirty thousand lives on a gamble!" shouted Jackson, the dead Marines murmuring in agreement.

"Roach, go get Ghost. Tell him we need to get geared up. We're headed to Russia, we've got a nuclear submarine to keep out of Russian hands." said MacTavish, walking out of his meeting with Shepherd.

"So, how'd your meeting go with Shepherd?" asked Roach.

"I didn't meet with him. Price did. Figured he's still my superior." said MacTavish, looking down at the floor.

"You two go way back?" asked Roach.

"Not really. I only knew the man for a week before he went off the gird for five years. This is the first time I've saw him since then." said MacTavish.

"Ok, one last thing before I go. Does this mean I can call you Soap?"

"Not as long as I out-rank you." said MacTavish, patting the shorter soldier on the head. "Now run along. I need to brief Ghost."

Roach finally got to Ghost's room, only to find it empty. He could hear Ghost's voice emanating from the bathroom so he went to the door, only to find it locked. Thankfully, MacTavish had given him the master key for every door in the 141 barracks. What he saw before him was startling.

"Jesus! Did they teach you knock where you come from?" shouted Ghost, his voice filled with anger. The maid was washing his back with a soapy sponge. But this wasn't what startled Roach the most. It was the fact that Ghost wasn't wearing his mask. It was unheard of, the man wore a mask to bed, showered in one, ate in one, smoked in one, everything he did had him wearing a mask. And now he was without one.

"Holy shit! You look like Max Martini!" shouted Roach, trying to find his phone so he could have photographic proof that Ghost actually had a face, a bet he and Meat had going since they first joined the 141. But by the time Roach had retrieved his phone, Ghost had managed to secure his mask.

"Damn.." muttered Roach, putting his phone away dejectedly.

"What the hell are you here for? Certainly not to see me in the nude!" shouted Ghost, the maid still washing his back as if nothing had happened.

"Oh, right. MacTavish wanted me to tell you that we've got a new mission. And he needs to brief you." said Roach, "So you and the maid? Wow, never saw that coming."

"And why's that?" asked Ghost, the maid having moved on to washing his chest.

"I..I didn't know you could love.." muttered Roach, rubbing circles in the floor with his toe, "Especially the maid."

"You mean Natasha?" Ghost asked.

"Who?" asked Roach, shocked to hear a female name being uttered in conversation with Ghost that didn't involve work.

"Natasha. Y'know. The maid." he said, pointing a figure at the maid who only giggled.

"Oh, right. Her. You know, I'm just going to leave you two alone." said Roach, quickly retreating and slamming the door behind him.

"Well, you heard him. I need to go find Soap and get briefed." said Ghost, rising from the tub.

"But Simon.. I haven't washed you all over yet.." whined Natasha.

"You have a point.. Well, he can wait just a little more longer." said Ghost, plopping down in the tub again. "Do you really think I look like Max Martini?"

"Now then, I assume you want to return to the land of the living." said Jackson, dispelling the extra undead Marines.

"That would be greatly appreciated." said Allen, happy to finally be able to leave this annoying place.

"Oh, stop screwing with him Jacky-Poo! You know you can't!" said Pelayo, breaking Allen's brief period of happiness.

"Wait, what? What do you mean I can't return to the living!" shouted Allen, unprepared to live out the rest of his days as a spirit forced to stay with a duo of crazy Marines.

"I mean I have no way of getting you back. You only get one act of god. After that, all up to your buddies." said the ghost.

"What do you mean all up to my buddies?" asked Allen, worried it might be some complicated task that they would have to complete.

"They have to revive you. And it appears the only person available to revive you is one James Ramirez." continued Jackson.

Allen groaned, of course he pissed off the one person available to save him from an eternity stuck with this undead Marine. His day just kept getting worse by the minute.

Max Martini is a reference to my favorite show, The Unit. Max's character reminds me a lot of Ghost, and is also how I picture Ghost looking.

Also, their was some confusion about who Wells was, he was introduced in

Chapter 12. He was guarding Raptor.

Read and Review, y'all!