Inside the base, Grif and Simmons are looking for what Wash instructed them to find.

Grif: Simmons, what are we looking for?

Simmons: Power cells, batteries, anything.

Grif: How is a power cell different from a battery?

Simmons: Grif, this is not the time!

An explosion is then heard, followed by pistol shots.

Sarge: Hey, did you hear that?

Simmons: Yeah... I did... (grabs rocket launcher) Come on Grif, let's go!

Grif: Aren't we supposed to run away from explosions?

The Reds, Kan, South, Caboose and Tucker race outside just as an explosion sends Epsilon crashing into the snow in front of them.

Epsilon: Ow!

Sarge: What happened?

Epsilon: The Meta... there...

Sarge: And I was afraid we wouldn't get to kick a little ass today! Come on, fellas!

South: I've been waiting for this rematch!

Tucker: Caboose! Stay with Church!

Caboose: Okay.

Tucker: And try not to kill him by accident!

Caboose: Okay!

The Meta opens fire and Wash dives aside to avoid the hit. The Meta charges towards him, Brute Shot blade raised, but Wash whips out his knife and parries the blow. He then slices him in the shoulder but the Meta cloaks himself and ducks aside. Wash stops and glances around the field. He spots the snow being shifted in one side and throws the blade towards the movement. As it hits, the Meta uncloaks with a roar of pain. Wash raises his battle rifle and opens fire, but the Meta shoots a grenade out and sends Wash flying back under the Warthog.

Slade jumps on the Meta and brings him down, strangling his throat. The Meta grabs his pistol and shoots Slade once before head-butting him and kicking him away.

Suddenly, the Reds, Kan, South, and Tucker come charging in.

Sarge: Attack!

Simmons: Get him!

Grif: (terrified) We're gonna fuckin' die!

Kan: PREPARE TO DIE!

As they charge, they all open fire, but the Meta slams his hand into the ground, summoning a domed energy shield around him that blocks the explosions. He then leaps out through an opening at the top and fires at Grif and Tucker who quickly roll out of the way. Simmons then raises his rocket launcher up and fires at the Meta.

Simmons: Fire in the hole!

The Meta nimbly flips over the rocket and crashes down in front of Simmons, slicing his launcher in half with the brute shot blade. Tucker takes out his sword and swings it at the Meta, but he blocks the blow and knocks him aside. Sarge raises his shotgun and fires, but the Meta blocks that as well. In a rare act of bravery, Grif suddenly pounces onto the Meta's back and grabs him by the neck, throwing him off-balance.

Grif: Yah! Ah, ah, ah, this guys like a bear!

The Meta grabs Grif and throws him off, but as he falls Grif snatches the Brute Shot out of his hands.

Grif: Yoink!

With the Meta now unarmed, Sarge charges forward to tackle him but the Meta punches him to the ground then grabs him by the leg. Sarge fires again but the Meta dodges. He then swings him around twice and flings him into Grif and Simmons.

Sarge: Ow, dammit!

South unloads her assault rifle, yelling until her gun clicks empty. The Meta then body slams her, before she locks her legs around his arm and brings him down. Kan runs up and raises his sword as he jumps up and prepares to bring his blade down through the Meta's head.

The Meta quickly throws South off and rolls away before punching Kan twice and smashing him and South together.

Suddenly, Tucker comes out and impales the Meta's chest with his sword.

Tucker: Stab!

Meanwhile, Slade gets up by the Warthog where Washington is lying.

Slade: Wash! Come on!

Washington: (wearily) I can't... I'm done...

Tucker: (panicking) Guys, I can't fight him by myself!

Wash: Here... Take this... You know what to do...

The Meta punches Tucker to the ground, with his sword deactivating and falling to the ground as well. A buckshot suddenly hits Meta's armor. He spots Slade pointing his double-barrel shotgun.

Slade: COME ON, MAINE! IT'S YOU AND ME!

With a growl, the Meta moves towards Slade. He steps closer, firing his shotgun with each step, making the Meta's shield ripple and deplete.

Grif: What's he doing?

Simmons: It looks like he's killing himself.

Sarge: Uh oh.

Slade blows the Meta's visor to bits, making the large Freelancer rip off his helmet, revealing his bald features and soulless eyes. Slade fires again, but the Meta ducks the next shot and knocks the shotgun away. He then grabs Slade by the throat and begins to strangle him.

Slade: Oi, mates! I've lost my shotgun! What am I going to do without my shotgun? Shotgun, ya wankers!

Grif: Shotgun? (looks at the Warthog) Come on, guys!

Slade: (struggles to breathe) Oi, Meta. Got a question for ya: (attaches something to the Meta's chest) Is this how you saw yourself going out?

The Meta turns his head and spots Grif, Simmons, Sarge pushing the wrecked jeep towards the edge of the cliff.

Simmons: Come on, push, Grif!

Grif: I am pushing!

Sarge: Then push harder, numb-nuts!

Quickly, the Meta looks down and realizes that Slade has attached the jeep's tow-hook onto his armor. The Reds shove the jeep right over the edge, and just as the cable tightens, Slade punches the Meta in the face and grabs the capture unit from the Meta's back. As the Meta is thrown off his feet, Slade falls to the ground and the unit rolls up, landing next to Epsilon and Caboose. With a roar of terror and fury, the Meta is dragged along the ground towards the cliff, his arms flailing. As he nears the edge, he catches hold of Grif's leg and drags him down with him.

Grif: Wah!

Simmons: Grif!

Grif: Simmons! Grab my hand! Help!

Just as they reach the edge, Simmons dives forward and grabs Grif's outstretched hand. The sudden stop causes the Meta to lose his grip and he falls down to his death with a distraught roar into the icy sea below.

Simmons: Hold on! Hold on! Don't let go!

Sarge: (concerned) Uh-oh.

Grif slips out of Simmons' grip and falls.

Simmons: Grif!

Grif: Simmoooooooooooooohoohons! Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

Sarge approaches Simmons at the edge.

Simmons: (sadly) He's... gone...

Sarge: Yes. Grif is dead. It's a sad day. But he died as he lived; flat on his belly, trying to get someone to do his work for him. He will be missed, until we get a replacement, and then forgotten immediately.

Simmons: I can't believe he's gone...

Tucker approaches the two.

Tucker: You know, sometimes, when somebody falls off a cliff in movies, he's actually just over the edge, hanging on a tree branch or something.

Sarge: Nope. He's definitely dead.

Simmons: Maybe we should look, just in case.

Sarge: I think looking would get our hopes up, and Grif wouldn't like that. Grif would want our expectations to be as low as possible. Let's honor him by not looking. And then have a nice lunch. I'm thinking Monte Cristo sandwich!

Simmons: Are you sure? I could just peek right over the edge.

Sarge: (quickly) Sounds like a waste of time.

Simmons: Wouldn't even take a second.

Sarge: Nope.

Grif: (from below) Oh, for God's sake, just look over the damn edge! I can't hold on for much longer!

Sarge and Simmons run up to the edge and look down to see Grif hanging from the stolen Brute Shot that he'd stuck right into the icy cliff-side.

Simmons: (overjoyed) Grif!

Sarge: (irritated) Dangling on the job again, I see. Dagnabit, I hate cliffhangers.

Grif: (furious) Oh, just pick me up!

Doc, Epsilon, and Caboose stand around the failing storage unit.

Doc: Yeah, I don't know, it's in really bad shape... so are you.

Epsilon: There's not much time. I need you to use it on me.

Doc: Me?! I can't! I'm a medic! I took an oath!

Epsilon: Oh yeah... Ugh, the first is, uh, "do no harm," right?

Doc: Well actually now first is "lobbying against socialist reform." But second is, yeah, the "no harm" thing.

Epsilon: Caboose, here. Pick it up.

Caboose: I can't, Church.

Epsilon: Yes you can. You do this all the time.

Caboose: (concerned) Yeah, I don't want to.

Epsilon: (sighs) Yeah, ok. Ok Caboose, I'm sure I can do it on my own.

Caboose: But what if you don't come out again?

Epsilon: Well, you know what Delta always said, right?

Caboose: Memory is the key.

Epsilon: If I don't come back then... you're in charge of remembering me, ok? Don't let Tucker help, he'll... just fuck it up. Bye, buddy.

Epsilon leaves his robot body and enters the failing unit. Slade, Sarge, and Simmons come up.

Sarge: What's going on here?

Caboose: Church went in, he's going to find her.

Simmons: That unit looks bad, let me see what I can do to stabilize it.

Sarge: Doc, go check on Wash, I don't think he's gonna make it.

Simmons: Oh no!

Caboose: What? What?

Simmons: It's only going to be open for a few more seconds. After that, he'll be trapped!

Slade: Rho, can you do something?

Rho: (appears) I can try.

Rho then jumps into the device.

Caboose: Come on, Church. You can do it. Can you hear me? You can... Run towards my voice!

Simmons: It's shutting down! I can't stop it!

Caboose: Church? Are you there?

The Epsilon unit slowly fades, and then shuts down.

Simmons: (sympathetically) Caboose... I'm sorry.

Caboose: (heartbroken) ...Church...?

Slade pulls in Caboose for hug, as he then speaks in his mind.

Slade: (in his mind) Rho's in there too, isn't he?

Delta: (in Slade's mind) I am afraid so.

Tex: (in Slade's mind) I'm so sorry, Cal.

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

Several hours later, a UNSC investigation team is searching the area.

Interrogator: And where the hell did the Pelican in the water come from?

Tucker: Hmm... I don't know. I guess the Meta must have hijacked it, and crashed it here. That makes sense, right?

Interrogator: Man, the Chairman is going to be pissed. The budget only allows for one crashed Pelican per mission! All right, well I guess you guys check out. You can head back to your training bases now.

Sarge: We just call them bases.

Interrogator: (smugly) Hmph. I bet.

South: Hey, dickwad. We just did ninety percent of your job for you.

Interrogator: I gotta hand it to you. Killing one of these agents would be tough. But three? And this guy... (looks at Wash's armor) The Chairman will not be happy he's dead. I think he wanted to debrief him personally. Oh well.

Tucker: Yeah...

Caboose: Yeah, that's too bad.

Washington: (disguised as Epsilon) Well, be sure to let him know we're sorry.

Interrogator: Whatever. You're free to go. If we need you, we know where to find you.

The Interrogator walks away.

Washington: (confused) Why are you guys helping me?

Caboose: You helped us, Wash. It only makes sense.

Tucker: Yeah, plus we needed to even the teams. And I couldn't put up with Caboose constantly asking "Can we keep him? Can we keep him?!"

Washington: (quietly) For whatever it's worth... Thanks.

Washington looks at South.

Washington: South.... listen, I-

The female Freelancer doesn't say anything and just shoulders past him.

Slade: She's pissed at you, mate. Severely. And so am I.

Washington: Cal, I never-

Slade: I DON'T WANT TO HEAR YOU FUCKING EXCUSES OR REASONS FOR WHY YOU DID WHAT YOU DID WASH! YOU FUCKING SHOT HER! AND DONUT! AND LOPEZ! YOU DECIDED TO THROW AWAY EVERYTHING WE'D DONE TOGETHER JUST SO YOU COULD GET A FUCKING GET-OUT-OF-JAIL-FREE CARD!

Washington simply looks down.

Slade: You've got a helluva long way to go to earning our trust back. The Reds and Blues may be willing to forgive and forget, but we aren't. Now get the fuck out of my sight before I do something I won't regret.

Wash sighs and heads off, leaving the heated Australian Freelancer. Kan comes up, crossing his arms.

Kan: Do you really believe he will change?

Slade: Who knows, mate? There's only one thing we can do....

Tex: (appears) What's that, hun?

Slade: Hope for the best.

Tex disappears as Slade and Kan then head off. Meanwhile, the Reds watch the Blues wander away.

Grif: Well, looks like Blue Team has a new recruit, Sarge.

Simmons: Doesn't look so tough to me.

Sarge: Maybe this one can shoot. Come on, fellas. Let's go home.

Grif: Uh... The jeep's busted, Sarge. Are we walking?

Sarge: That depends. You fellas gotten over your fear of flying yet?

Simmons: Yes, sir!

The Reds steal a Hornet.

Grif: Yoink!

Guard: Hey! You can't take that! That... That's UNSC property! Get back here! Hey, come on, I'll lose my job!

Simmons: I hope this doesn't go on our permanent record!

Soldier: (kneeling over the Epsilon Unit) Hey Chief, what do you want me to do with this thing? I can't get anything out of it, it's dead as a doornail.

Interrogator: I don't care. Toss it in evidence. It's all a bunch of junk now, anyway.

Inside the Unit, Epsilon begins to speak.

Epsilon: (voice over) I'd like to say that I found her right away, that I just walked into the Epsilon Unit, and there she was, waiting for me. As you can probably guess, it didn't happen that way, but, I know she's in here somewhere, and I'll find her. We always seem to find each other, for better or for worse. I don't know why the Director did what he did. I don't know if he was trying to revive a memory from his past, or if he was just trying to get it out of his head. But I figured out something that the Director didn't. It took Alpha, Delta, and the rest to help piece it together for me, but what I've learned is that... a great love is a lot like a good memory. When it's there, and you know it's there, but it's just out of your reach, it can be all that you think about. You can focus on it, and try to force it, but the more you do, the more you seem to push it away. But if you're patient, and you hold still, then maybe... Just maybe... It will come to you. I just need to make sure I'm somewhere she can find me.

Inside the unit, a greener Blood Gulch comes into view.

Epsilon: (voice over) I think this place is a little different than it was before. See, out there, everything is based on the Alpha, but in here, I guess I'm the Alpha. And maybe this time through, things will be a little different for me as well. I guess I'll find out.

Tucker: Hey Church, come on! I think the Reds just got a new vehicle! Let's go check it out!

Caboose: They only got a jeep! We got a tank! That's way better!

The memories of Tucker and Caboose run toward a cliff.

Epsilon: Ok, I'll be right there!

A standard blue armored soldier with red accents wielding a grenade launcher in hand comes up behind Epsilon.

Soldier: (with Rho's voice) Well, this is gonna be fun.

Epsilon: Being back in the same canyon where everything started?

Rho: Actually I meant watching you suck with that sniper of yours. HA!

Rho then runs off, laughing.

Epsilon: YOU MOTHER- COME HERE!

Epsilon then runs after the red and blue AI.

Epsilon: (voice over) And I mean, hell, if you have to live the rest of your life in a memory... you might as well make it a good one.

After-credits:

One of the guards of the investigation team searches Wash's armor and finds something in one of the armor pockets.

Guard: What's this?

(AND THAT'S SEASON 8 FINISHED! SO GEARS WILL BE NEXT AND I DON'T PLAN TO DO 9-10 OF RVB UNTIL AFTER I FINISH GEARS 5! THANKS FOR ALL THE SUPPORT GUYS AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING RVB ZERO COME OUT! CIAO!)