Director: Dear Chairman. I too hold the protocol in the highest regard. The doctrine kept us all safe during the Great War. If you are insinuating, sir, that we violated it in any way, or that we were derelict in our duty to the military, well then I suggest you be direct, and tell me exactly how we did so.

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

Everyone stares at Church, as he still in ghost-form and standing over Slade's body.

Washington: What is going on?

Church: Wash, stay calm. We can explain.

Washington: I don't want explanations, I want the truth. Now. When were you gonna tell me about this?

Church: Okay, maybe I should start from the beginning. You see, Caboose here, killed me by accident once. Well actually, more than once.

Caboose: Not my fault. Tucker did it.

Church: Shut up.

Washington: He killed you. As in... dead.

Sarge: Then we reached an agreement. I built Blue over here a new body-

Church: Agreement? More like we kicked your ass, and you didn't have much of a choice of what you wanted to do.

Sarge: Who kicked what now?

Simmons: What're you, an idiot?

Sarge: You wanna take that back.

Church: You guys totally gave up!

Grif: Bullshit.

Church: That was the time that Texas kicked your asses all over-

Washington: Stop. Focus. How did you build him a body?

Sarge: With a robot kit of course. I'd already used ours to build our helper. Lopez.

Simmons: And a mighty fine job you did too, sir..

Grif: Yeheah, it's always great to have a helper no one can understand.

Sarge: Blue Team hadn't used theirs for some reason, and they even had an extra. We used that for your buddy, uh, whatsername.

Washington: And that didn't strike anyone as odd? That you would have a kit to build a robot that looks like a soldier?

Simmons: That's just standard issue equipment. Right?

Washington: What? No. Have you ever run in to anyone else who has one?

Simmons: We don't really get out that often.

Sarge: Okay, smart guy. If they're so rare, then why did Command send us upgraded ones when we were told to ship out to Rat's Nest?

Church: You guys went to Rat's Nest too?

Sarge: I used some of the spare parts to spruce up Lopez.

Simmons: Spare parts? Did you fix his voice thing?

Sarge: You know, I didn't even think about that until just this second. Kind of obvious in hindsight. Probably best not to mention it to him if you see him.

Simmons: Meh, he wouldn't understand anyway.

Church: Your team sucks.

Sarge: At least our robot isn't the leader of our team. Bluebot.

Caboose: Hey! That's not nice. He means us right?

Church: Yes, and shut up.

Washington: Stop it! I can't stand this. No more bickering. You have to be the most immature soldiers I've ever met!

Grif: Your face is immature.

Washington: Shut up. From now on everyone just keep quiet and don't talk unless I ask you a question. That's an order. I need to figure this out.

Slade immediately stands up, ready for a fight.

Slade: WHERE IS THAT MOTHERFUCKER?! I'LL RIP HIM BLOODY NEW ONE! I'LL-

Slade then sees his old team.

Slade: What the hell are you wankers doing here?

Grif: (sarcastically) Nice to see you too.

Slade: Where's the Meta?

Washington: Gone. Thanks to your quote-unquote 'team'.

Slade: Oh, great. Another brilliant blunder from the Red Squad of Fuckingham Palace!

Grif/Simmons: Hey!

Slade: So aside from losing the Meta, what else did I miss?

Washington: I was telling your teammates to go help South.

Slade: You heard the man. Go!

Sarge: Hold on, you can't order us around!

Washington: Yes, we can.

Sarge: What's your rank?

Washington: My rank? You still don't get it, do you? You think you're real soldiers? You're not. You guys are nothing.

Grif: Whatever. Your face is... nothing.

Washington: We used your outposts as testing grounds. Practice. You never noticed that you never had anything to do unless a Freelancer showed up, or you made a call to Command?

Sarge: ...You're makin' that up.

Slade: Is he? Think about it, Sarge. Name one bloody thing that ever happened to us that wasn't directly preceded by Command calling us, or sending someone to one of our bases. One thing. ...Anything? No? I thought so. Now, Sarge, Grif, Simmons, go help South assess the vehicles. See if you can find some trail of the Meta while you're at it.

Simmons: Ooh, finally a take-charge leader! I like it!

Sarge/Grif: Shut up.

Washington: Church, get back in your armor. You're just going to draw attention to yourself like that.

Church: Fine. But first-

Washington: No, no first. Get in your armor.

Church: I really think I should tell you what it is-

Washington: Shh.

Church: Delta and Theta have a message for you.

Washington: Delta and Theta? Why didn't you tell me?

Slade hits Wash on the back of the head.

Washington: OW! What the fuck was that for?

Slade: And you call them morons. What did they say?

Church: They said they'd tell you once they finish healing up, Slade.

Washington: How would they know that? Do they know what you are?

Church: Well I didn't tell them. But Delta seemed pretty smart. Maybe he just put two and two together.

Caboose: Four!

Church: That wasn't a test.

Caboose: Yes it was. I won. A-plus.

Slade: Both of you, knock it off. Delta, Theta, you there?

The AIs then appear upon hearing their names.

Delta: Affirmative.

Theta: I'm here.

Slade: What's the message?

Delta: Memory is the key, Agent Washington.

Washington: Memory is the key. Anything else?

Delta: Negative.

Caboose: Memory is the key? What does that mean?

Church: I don't know. Maybe Wash and Slade know.

Slade: (surprised) Memory is the key. Delta, you mean-

Delta: Precisely.

Washington: Gather your gear. We're leaving. Now.

Caboose: I think he's angry because of what you said to him.

Church: Yeah. If you knew it was gonna make him leave you should've said it sooner.

Slade: Church get back in your armor.

Church: (hops back in his armor) There, hap-

Slade kicks Church off the platform and he yells as he falls and hits the pavement.

Slade: Now I'm happy.

Church: ASSHOLE!

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

Wash and Slade walk up to the Reds, South, Kan, and an overturned jeep.

Washington: What's the status of the vehicles? Report.

Grif: You could have asked nicely.

Washington: You're right, I could. Report.

Sarge: They're all busted. We could probably fix one by takin' parts from all the others. That's one of my specialties.

South: One of the idiots knows how to do something useful! How nice.

Kan: That's not even half of it.

Sarge: Gonna take a while though.

Washington: How long?

Sarge: Couple-a days.

Slade: No time. We need to start bloody moving ASAP. And we need six seats. You're gonna have to give us two jeeps in a few hours.

Sarge: No can do. Not gonna happen.

Washington: Then we'll have to get them somewhere else. And I know exactly where we can find them.

Church: Why, where are we going?

Washington: Delta was right. Memory is the key.

Church: But what does that mean?

Washington: It means that only one thing remembers everything about these A.I. and where they come from. It will know how to stop them. We need to unlock the Alpha.

Church: The Alpha?

South: Wash, please tell me you're shitting me. The ALPHA?

Slade: We aren't kidding, lass.

Washington: And that means we're going home. ...We're going to Command.