Carolina and Zone enter a dark room where they see the Director sitting in a chair watching video. They could see a blonde woman in a standard UNSC uniform. 

"Beginning playback." FILSS announces. 

"Leonard, come on, stop it, put that thing down. You're gonna make me late, they're waiting for me." The woman says on the video. 

"Hello, Director." Carolina says. 

"Hello, Agent Carolina. Hello, Agent Arizona. Would you like to watch this file with me?" The Director asks. 

"No." Zone replies. 

"Play it again, FILSS." The Director orders. 

"Director?" 

"Again!" The Director says pounding the arm of his chair. 

"So, this is what you've become?" Carolina says sadly. 

"I just need to watch this. I think I have a way...a way to bring her back right this time." 

"The authorities are hunting you now. If we found you, they will too." Zone states. 

"I just need a bit more time." The Director pleads. 

"No!" Epsilon shouts appearing and floating over to the Director. "You've had your freaking time. You have to answer for what you did. To the Meta, to Washington, to Zone, to Carolina, to me and to her! To Texas!" 

"Hello, Epsilon. You came all this way just to see me?" 

"I'm here to remember what you've done. Somebody has to!" Church says spitefully. 

"Epsilon..." 

"Not all of us got off scott free, Zone." Epsilon states. 

"(Delta) He was brilliant...(Theta) and we trusted him. (Gamma) But he lied to us. He twisted...(Omega) and tortured us, and used us! (Sigma) Manipulated us for his own purposes, and for what? For this? This...shadow?!" 

Epsilon turns normal again. "He needs to pay." Carolina removes her helmet and stares at the Director. The Director removes his glasses and hesitantly looks up at Carolina. Zone watches his lover's expression change from anger to sadness. She leans down, and kisses him softly on the forehead.

"Just a bit more time." The Director begs. 

"Come on, guys. We're leaving." Carolina motions to the exit. 

"I thought we came all this way to kill him." Xi says confused. 

"Xi, remember what Church learned in the memory unit? You need to let go. Your past doesn't define who you are. It just gives you the starting point for who you're going to be." Zone smiles at her compassion. He begins to follow when the Director holds up a hand to stop him. 

"Agent Arizona?" 

"Yes, Director?" 

"Would you be so kind as to leave me one of your pistols?" Zone pulls out one of his magnums from his back and places it on the table. 

"Thank you, Arizona." Carolina places a hand on the Director's shoulder. 

"Goodbye, Sir." Carolina then leaves the room, leaving just Zone, the two AI, and the Director alone.

"You were my greatest creation." The Director says tearfully. 

"I don't know what I am, but I do know this - I'm more than just a copy of you. I'm better than you." Epsilon says shamelessly. 

"I wasn't speaking to you." The Director murmurs. Epsilon floats away and Xi disappears. Zone stares at the heartbroken man. 

"All of this..." Zone gestures to the room. "Just to bring back your wife? You can't revive the dead Director. Believe me, I know better than anyone...and that's something no amount of cloning is ever going to change." 

As Zone walks to the exit, the Director says something, "Agent Arizona?" The Spartan V looks at the former Director of Project Freelancer. 

"I'd like to ask a favor of you." 

"Depends on what it is, sir." 

"I know that you care for my daughter a great deal. And I also know that I cannot be her father. So I ask this of you: please take care of her. Look after Rachel and protect her please...I'd hate to see her lose the only man she's ever loved." Zone slowly nods before turning and leaving the room. 

"Play it again, FILSS." The Director commands. 

"Beginning playback." The video of the woman starts again. 

"Thank you, FILSS. Now, I would like you to erase all our files except for this one." 

"All our files? Does that include me, Director?" FILSS asks. 

"It has been a pleasure working with you, FILSS I am sorry." 

"And, you, as well, Director." 

"And, before you do, please shut down all the facility systems as well. Take everything offline." The Director adds. 

"Director, this is a sealed facility. If I shut down all the systems, life support would not-" 

"Thank you, FILSS. Shut them all down. Lock me in." 

"Alright. Was the project a success? Did you find what you were looking for?" 

"No. No, I did not. But I believe I might have come very close. I wish...I wish I knew." The Director replies sadly. 

"I see." 

"Perhaps the next time around." The Director raises the pistol to his chin, as the door to his room begins to close.

"It has been an honor, sir." FILSS says before the video of the woman echoes its last words. 

"Don't say goodbye. I hate goodbyes." 

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Outside the facility, Carolina and Epsilon look down as the Reds and Blues prepare to leave. 

"I guess that's that." Epsilon shrugs. 

"I guess it is." Carolina agrees. 

"Yep." Carolina and Church turn to see Zone walk up. "It's finally over." 

"Rex, what happened to you back there?" Carolina asks. "One minute you were fighting with your sword and the next-" 

"I don't know what happened to me. All I know is that I was fighting then I got this sudden burst of power from the sword." Suddenly Zone has a flashback of what Maz'rah said. 

(This is no ordinary sword. This sword has a gift, one which I cannot explain to you. But you will know when it happens.) Zone looks down at his hands as he curls his fingers into fists. 

"I don't know what that was that I turned into...but I intend to find out." Zone says determined. 

"Hey Zone?" Zone looks at Epsilon. "After everything we've been through, I just, um..I just want to say thanks." 

"Me? What'd I do? All I did was yell at you guys." 

"Yeah. But you were right. Revenge isn't something you should strive to find." Carolina says. 

"And for showing us different sides of ourselves." Epsilon adds while Carolina nods in agreement. 

"Same here." Zone chuckles. He sees the Reds and Blues packing up. "Guess I'd better go give them a hand." Zone hops down the ledge they were standing on and jogs to the Sim Troopers. 

Carolina looks at Church. "What about your teams? What will happen to them?" 

"Oh, there's still one place we haven't visited. Somewhere we can make a home." 

"Show me." 

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

ONE WEEK LATER: 

"Private Grif, front and center on the double!" Sarge yells as he and Zone were standing outside waiting for Grif and Simmons near their make-shift base. 

"Urgh, Sarge, I'm tired. Do I have to do it on the double?" Grif complains. 

"Look at me, Sir! I got front and center on the triple!" Simmons states. 

"Dagnabit, now I've got two insubordinate soliders. When I say double, I mean double!" 

"Dad, what does it matter so long as they get here ASAP?" Zone asks. 

"Because Rex, if they don't get here in the amount of time I tell them I'm gonna put 'em in the ground!" Sarge shouts pumping his shotgun. 

"I will only go so far as single and a half." Grif declares. 

"If these orders were hamburgers, then you'd do a double." Simmons snaps. 

"What? Who has hamburgers?" Grif then looks around. 

"The only hamburger meat here is gonna be your face when I'm done with my shotgun court-martial! And don't even ask me about the type of buns." Sarge warns them. 

"That sounds like the most delicious punishment ever..." Grif sighs. 

"Of all time." Simmons agrees. 

"(Laughs) You guys are so crazy man!" Xi laughs. 

"Kill me now..." Zone mutters palming his visor. Elsewhere, Caboose and Tucker were outside their make-shift base. 

"Caboose! Don't touch that, you'll break it!" Tucker warns him. 

"Oh, no, I won't..." Caboose pulls out a wire and stands up. "I broke it...Tucker did it." Caboose murmurs. 

"Dude, you can't say that when I'm right here." Tucker states. 

"Tucker said it." 

"Oh, my god, shut up." 

"Both of you shut up! And get back to work!" Wash shouts walking out of Blue Base. 

"What do you mean "back to work?" That implies previous work." Tucker explains. 

"I am putting my back to work." Caboose declares. From on top of a hill, Epsilon and Carolina were watching the Reds and Blues. 

"Seems like they're getting settled." Carolina states. 

"Yep." Church agrees. 

"So I guess everything is finally getting back to normal." 

"What passes for normal around here, sure. What can I tell ya? We're home. I mean - they're home." Epsilon corrects himself. 

"Can I make a suggestion? Don't say goodbye." 

"Goodbye? I didn't realize I was going somewhere." Epsilon says confused. 

"I intercepted a military transmission. It seems some low level thugs have some armor and equipment that's way above their paygrade. Sounds like it might be some of the missing gear from a certain defunct military project we both know." Carolina explains. 

"Is that right?" Church smirks. 

"Think I'll go get it back. Hate to think about it being in the wrong hands." Carolina says looking down. 

"And?" 

"And, with all that equipment I could really use someone to help me run it. You seem uniquely qualified for the job." 

"I don't know." 

"I figured we could set some things right. That we helped make wrong." 

"That's a lot of things to make right." 

"Yep. Could keep us busy for quite a while." Carolina shrugs. 

"It would be nice to be a good guy again." Church says thoughtfully. 

"Epsilon, what you and I were involved with...the things we helped do...I'll be honest - I don't know if we can ever get all the way back to good. But, I think that we have a chance to do better. And if we wake up everyday and try to make things better, eventually, we might find that better is good enough." 

"Good enough..." Epsilon breathes. 

"Good enough." 

"Yeah, still, I hate to leave without saying something. They deserve to at least hear goodbye. Don't you wanna tell Rex?" 

"My mother had a saying. Did I ever tell you about my mother?" Carolina asks. 

"No, I don't think you ever did." Church laughs. 

"She wasn't around a lot when I was a kid. And when she was she could only stay a short time. Seems like she always had somewhere else to be. Something important to do. And when she left, she wouldn't say goodbye to me. Instead, she always told me, "Never say goodbye. If you don't say goodbye then you aren't really gone, you just aren't here right now."" 

"Your mother sounds like a smart lady." 

"She was, she really was. Had terrible taste in men though." Carolina says shaking her head. Down below, Caboose looks up and sees the duo. 

"Hey, Church! Church! Come down here! We wanna show you something! Church!" Caboose looks away for a split second and when he looks back up Epsilon and Carolina had vanished. 

"Church?" Caboose looks around. 

"Hey, Caboose, you find Church?" Tucker asks. 

"Nah, I didn't find him." 

"Well, where do you think he is?" 

"I don't know, somewhere. He's just not here right now." Caboose says smiling before following Tucker inside Blue Base. 

EPILOGUE: 

"Alright guys, you ready?" Zone says with his electric guitar. Grif was on bass, Tucker had his own electric guitar and Caboose was on drums. They all nod in response. 

"1! 2! 3! 4!" 

https://youtu.be/Np16Rvr7LrM

(AND THAT'S A WRAP FOR SEASON 10! GET READY THE WAR OF CHORUS!)