(AN: I appreciate everyone's response and interest in this story. There have been quite a few inquiries as to what happened to the Damned 33rd, what will happen to Delta Squad and JSDF's Third Recon. Something to keep in mind, this is a SO:TL crossover, so there will be twists abound. Now, enjoy!)

(Excerpt from AAR debriefing for Operation Reclamation, audio recorded testimony of Martin Walker, Captain, U.S. Army, 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta, timestamp: 12/20/2012, 0142 hours local time)

*Captain Walker is looking at the individual pictures of JSDF Third Recon Squad, smoking his cigarette. He finally speaks up*

"Would things have been different if it had just been us? You mean would things have not turned into a sideways shit-show without us babysitting the Japanese Army's Geek Squad? Not sure. If it had just been my team Delta Squad, things may have gone better, or they have have gone a helluva lot worse...

"As you know, my team has seen it all...Panama City, Caracas, Baku, Basrah, Kabul...been there, done that, seen it, killed it. But you see, the Japanese Self-Defense Force hasn't been in a real war for over sixty years.

Thing that they don't teach you in boot camp, or OTS, is it doesn't matter how much training you have, or how tough you think you are. Nothing prepares you for your first combat sitch...with real, live human beings shootin' at you, trying to end your life, only then do you know if you've got the right stuff. Only then do you know."

*Here Walker pauses at the picture of Lt. Yōji Itami, leader of Third Recon, and stubs out his cigarette*

"But nobody...nobody ever tells you what that knowledge costs...An' with that in mind, we shoulda left Third Recon back in Tokyo with their maid cafes and their magical girl comic books..."

Walker left Third Recon's position with Lt. Itami in tow. As he approached his own squad he knew he was walking into a true shitstorm, his squad was pissed and he didn't blame them. He spread his hands in a placating manner.

"Look, before everyone blows their stack, it won't be that bad..."

Lt. Adams, his second-in-command, glared at the new arrival but said nothing. Sgt. Lugo was the one who spoke up.

"Captain Walker, sir, with respect this isn't part of the mission."

The Delta Force captain glanced over at Lt. Yōji Itami, who shrugged sheepishly. Even with his limited command of English, the JSDF officer knew why Captain Walker's teammates were angry. Walker responded.

"Look, we have a mission to finish, we gotta locate this beacon, and see if we find any signs that the Damned 33rd are still alive. Lt. Itami wants to accompany us to complete his mission, which is to locate any of the hostages taken in the Ginza Incident. He volunteered to act as a translator and help us out."

Lugo shifted his Scout Tactical slung on his shoulder and adjusted his ballcap.

"Sir, we've been through enough shit to know a paper-thin excuse for babysitting some high-speed armchair operator..."

He paused, then looked over to Itami, apologizing in Japanese.

"No offense, sir."

The JSDF officer gave a self-deprecating grin.

"None taken, sergeant. You should hear some of the names Shino calls me..."

Lugo nodded and turned his attention back to Walker, just as Adams finally spoke.

"Marty, you know Delta Squad operates alone, right?"

Walker grinned.

"C'mon Adams, its cultural exchange, just like Basrah back in '04..."

Adams snorted, actually laughing at his CO's comment, while Lugo chimed in.

"Yeah, and you remember what happened to Lieutenant Sadiq and his men..."

Walker chuckled.

"Hey, that mission went sideways because nobody debriefed us on Sadiq's disdain for the local Shi'ite population, and that was completely different..."

"...which resulted in me getting shot in the ass," interrupted Sgt. Lugo, "an' also ended my dream job of teaching tango to hot soccer moms after I EAS..."

He paused.

"My point here is-"

Adams interrupted, grinning.

"Yeah, what is your point, sergeant?"

Lugo finally broke down in laughter.

"You know what? Fuck you, an' fuck it...if Lt. Itami wants to tag along, I'm cool, but I ain't gettin' shot in the ass again."

Walker and Adams both laughed, and Itami joined in. After they recovered Walker stepped forward.

"Alright, now that that's taken care of...Adams, Lugo, check your gear and make sure it's gonna hold up in this cold. We've got 2 hours to investigate the source of the transmission, then we gotta fall back and RV with Third Recon, leave and report back to Command."

He checked his own M4.

"But, as experience has taught me, better to prepared for the unknown..."

Lugo grinned.

"Expect the unexpected..."

Adams shook his head, still smiling.

"Adapt and overcome, bitch..."

After less than 10 minutes Captain Walker and his squad were ready to head out. He watched as Lt. Itami spoke briefly to his squad, and his fellow otaku Sgt. Tomita, then he trotted out alongside Walker. The Delta captain signaled to Adams and Lugo.

"Same as before...Lugo, you still gotta lock on that transmission?"

"Roger that, sir. Still 600 meters to the east-northeast..."

"Then take point, but don't rush."

(45 minutes later)

"Hey, Adams!"

"What is it, Lugo?"

Lugo was taking cover behind a large tree whose trunk was as large and as tall as a Redwood tree. The Delta sniper toed a snowdrift with his boot and spoke in a familiar sing-songy voice.

"Do you want to build a snowman?"

Adams shook his head as he checked his quadrant from cover. It had been slow going, as the thick forest was rife for an ambush, and at Walker's insistence they were taking no chances. He snickered at his fellow Delta operator.

"Jackass..."

Walker's voice spoke up in both of their radios.

"That's enough, gentleman."

Lugo keyed his throat mic.

"Just keepin' it light, boss."

He glanced off to his right. About twenty yards away was Captain Walker and Lt. Itami. He heard his CO's voice come through the static of his radio.

"Yeah, I don't need you light, I need you focused on the mission."

"Yes sir, but to be honest, we're only about another coupla hundred yards from the signal."

He paused and turned to Adams.

"Hey, did you hear that?"

The larger Delta Force operator shifted the 249 SAW in his hands and shook his head.

"You fuckin' with us? Ain't nobody here, man."

Lugo shrugged as he peered through the scope of his Scout Tactical.

"Fuck it, it's probably the transmission."

Lt. Adams slowly got out of cover and advanced.

"C'mon, let's just get this over with..."

Lugo shouldered his Scout Tactical and readied his backup weapon, the TAR-21 bullpup. As he left cover to join Adams, he called out into the forest.

"Hey! Anyone out there? Stalker says 'what?'"

He heard Walker's voice again, although he could tell his CO was smiling.

"Lugo...two things: We're on a timetable here, we're tryin' to be stealthy and shit, an' I need you both to set a good example for our guest. He thinks we're professional special forces types."

The Delta sniper shrugged as he scoped out ahead.

"That's three things, sir. And honestly, this shit sounds like a waste of three stone cold ruggedly handsome Delta Force operators, such as ourselves."

He paused.

"...An' one high-speed JSDF officer..."

Lt. Itami, who was in cover by Captain Walker and overheard most of the radio chatter, looked questioningly at Delta Squad's leader, who shrugged.

"I'm taking it you didn't catch most of that?"

The young JSDF officer chuckled as he fingered his T63 rifle nervously.

"It sounds like banter in my Call of Duty video games, sir!"

Walker shook his head and keyed his radio to respond.

"Lugo, do you ever actually hear the shit comin' outta your mouth?"

The Delta sniper's voice can through the static.

"Nope, I feel like it messes with my rhythm, sir."

The thicket of trees started to thin out, until it cleared out to a vast, rocky snow-covered plain. Lt. Adams took cover behind a boulder and surveyed the landscape. It was as barren as the clearing by the Gate, with only large rocks and snowy hills dotting the landscape. The heavy-gunner paused and looked over to his CO, who was slowly approaching from cover.

"You, it does feel like we're being watched, Captain."

"Good, someone should see how sexy I am on the job..."

Lugo stood up and shouldered his rifle.

"Well, this looks like the place..."

He pointed a gloved finger to an outcropping of rocks. There was a tall metal tower with loudspeakers broadcasting the radio transmission. As they got closer, Lugo could make out a flag or banner flapping in the wind at the top of the tower.

"Holy shit...that's something you don't see every day."

Captain Walker looked up at the sound of Lugo's voice and stared at the banner. It took the Delta Force leader a moment to realize what it was. It was an American Flag, tattered and flying upside down, which was usually a sign of distress. As Walker and his team approached, they could see that the rocky outcroppings were in fact the snow-covered remains of armored military vehicles. Lugo approached the transmitter and spoke.

"Yep, this is what we're looking for, whatever it is..."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Walker asked.

"It's a distress beacon, but it ain't military. Somebody built this outta spare parts."

"Any idea who?"

Lugo was about to respond when he heard a voice behind him speak up in Japanese.

"This is a civilian wireless internet services tower."

Lt. Itami, of all people, had chimed in. He grinned and pointed to the AP's attached to the side, while Lugo acted as translator to Captain Walker.

"My father worked as a tower foreman for Nuro Hikari, I remember riding along with him on one of his work jobs as a kid."

The JSDF officer pointed to a rusted sign with Japanese kanji writing on it.

"This is definitely something that was pillaged from the Gina district during the first Gate raid."

Walker was about to ask why something like that was this far away from the Gate, and what it was doing here, when he heard Adams exclaim something.

"Goddamit...Walker, you gotta see this!"

The Delta Squad leader turned to where Adams was and approached. Parked in front of the trailer that supported the radio tower was a US Army HUMVEE, buried up to its hubs in snow, but that wasn't what got the team's attention. What got their attention was the frozen, mummified corpse that was staked to a pole right in front of the HUMVEE's bumper. And it was wearing US Army ACU's.

"Oh fuck..."

"That's putting it lightly..." Adams responded.

Walker stared at the corpse incredulously. He couldn't tell if the person had still been alive when it was impaled on the stake.

"Body looks frozen solid..."

He heard Adams continue.

"It is...and even worse..."

The heavy gunner pointed to the corpse's uniform. The name-tape was removed, along with the rank insignia, but the battalion's distinctive insignia flash was still velcro'd on the corpse's shoulder.

"...he's 33rd."

Walker shook his head, even Lt. Itami was shocked.

"Who did this?"

Before anyone could respond there was a deep, booming explosion in the distance. All four soldiers looked up, and they saw a plume of smoke in the woods. Right where they just came from.

"The hell was that?!"

But Walker didn't respond to his squad-mate's exclamation, his attention was on Lt. Itami. The young JDSF officer's radio lit up, with voices speaking rapidly and frantically in Japanese. The JSDF lieutenant was trying to respond, and Walker only caught a small fraction of what was said, but he knew enough. Third Recon was under attack, and by that extension so was the Gate and their ticket out of this cold world.

"Lugo, what the fuck is going on?"

The Delta sniper shook his head as he tried to listen and respond in Japanese on his radio.

"Third Recon's in trouble, they've made contact with hostiles that ambushed them...took 'em by surprise."

He heard SGM Kuwahara's voice yell through the static in English.

"Shit! Tomita's down! Tell Walker to get back here we need backup!"

Walker had already turned towards the smoking plume in the forest, checking his M4 and spoke up.

"Third Recon's in trouble, an' someone's attacking our ticket outta here, let move!"

(AN: And I know I'm a stinker for cutting it off here, but this chapter and the next chapter were supposed to be one larger chapter but I ended up adding more to this section and the next, so I split it up. It adds to the suspense...Anyways, as I said earlier some of you are going to realize that this isn't going to be your 'run of the mill' Gate crossover. That's correct, it is a SO:TL crossover so there will be cruel plot twists and turns just around the corner, including one big bombshell in the next chapter. Should have it up in a week or two, so stay tuned!)