The Sergeant strode down the familiar halls, automatically saluting the officers he passed. He had been summoned to General Kaiser's office and he couldn't be late. The general hadn't been specific about the reason but he knew just the same. The old man was going to give him his next assignment. There was a lot of that going around with the base being shut down and all.

He walked into the General's outer office, nodding at Mrs. O'Reilly, General Kaiser's civilian secretary, who was carefully packing up some of the files and shredding others. He knew she wasn't getting re-assigned but was going to retire and move to Albuquerque to live with her son Robbie and help with her soon to be born first grandchild. He was going to miss her and her homemade chocolate chip cookies. She'd added a welcome homey touch to the place.

"Good morning Mildred. Is he in?" he asked, smiling at the woman.

"Walter, good morning. Yes he's in and waiting for you."

"Any idea where I'm going?" he asked, fully aware that not much happened on the base without Mildred knowing about it.

"You know I can't tell you. It'd spoil all his fun," she chided gently. Walter rolled his eyes and knocked on the general's door.

"Come."

He opened the door and walked into the medium sized office. He stopped in front of General Kaiser's desk, brought himself to attention and saluted. "Master Sergeant Davis reporting as ordered sir," he intoned, fixing his eyes on the bare, nail studded wall behind the general.

General Kaiser returned the salute. "At ease Davis."

"Thank you sir."

"Have a seat." Davis sat down, trying to reign in his curiosity. "How long have you been at this base Davis?" the general asked, twirling a pen in his fingers.

"Five years sir."

"Five years. That's right. And in those five years you've worked wonders in your department. Took a group of scatter-brained non-coms and turned them into the best, most organized group of people on this base."

"Thank you sir."

"That organizational skill is why I'm giving you this assignment. It's a TDY but I don't want you to think you're getting it because something's wrong or because I'm dumping it on you."

"Yes sir."

"Davis, an old friend of mine is getting his last assignment. He's being sent half way across the country to close down some failed top secret program. Basically it's a can of worms no one else wants to deal with so it's being dumped on him because...well it is his last tour of duty and he can't refuse.
He's going to walk into...a hell of a mess and he's being expected to put humpty dumpty back together so they can neatly just make it go away."

"Sir if I may?..."

"Why doesn't the present commander clean up his own mess? Because General West FUBARED things up then used his connections to get out of it before the brown stuff really hit the fan."

"I see sir," Davis said carefully.

"Davis, this is an assignment that'll last six months, nine tops. I know you were hoping for Edwards. That you wanted to work with the shuttle program out there. What I'm asking you to do is transfer to Bluebook and help shut it down. Then you'll get Edwards."

"But sir..." he protested. He didn't want to bargain. He wanted California. His girl was stationed there. And he may only be a sergeant but he certainly had enough seniority to have his transfer approved.

"Walter I...You and your staff have been invaluable to me, especially these last few months. What I'm asking is more of a favor than an order. I know your girlfriend is stationed at Edwards. And that is one big reason you want to go there. But I also know George is an old friend of mine, who is going to be going through one of the toughest times of his life. He doesn't want to retire, he's being forced out. And he's walking into a facility that...let's just say there's more than one snake in the grass around there. I want him to have at least one person on his staff he can trust." Kaiser paused and looked at the man sitting before him. "This is a favor, not an order. If you don't want to go, just say so and you'll be at Edwards by the end of the month."

The general fell silent and Walter contemplated his words. True, he really wanted to get out to California, stop having a long-distance relationship but...he and General Kaiser were...it sounded weird but they were partners. The general was one of the first CO's he'd had that had treated him as part of the team not just the sergeant down in data processing.

Over the past five years the general had made the decisions and he and his group had carried them out.

Working together, they'd turned the dilapidated base into something to be proud of...right before they were downsized into oblivion. "Six months sir?" he asked, his decision already made.

"Nine tops," Kaiser promised. "You'll like George. He's a little gruff, but fair."

Walter looked up and saw the truth in the general's eyes. In the five years he'd known the man, General Kaiser had never lied to him.

~~~~~

Mildred looked up as the door opened. Walter stepped out and closed it behind him. She bit back a smile at the slightly shell shocked look on his face. He'd been in the general's office for nearly two hours. Barely long enough to process all the information he'd been given.

"Cookie?" she offered.

Wordlessly he reached into her jar and snagged one, plopping down in an empty chair at the same time.

"Have you seen this?" he asked, holding up the manila folder with 'classified' stamped on it in big red letters.

"Who do you think put it together?"

"I...it's incredible," he stammered, absently taking a bite of the cookie.

"That it is," she agreed.

"And they're shutting it down."

"Apparently."

They sat there in silence for a moment, Walter finishing his cookie. Suddenly he sat upright and checked his watch. "Oh man, I nearly forgot. I told Laura I'd call her...now."

"Then you better run," the elder woman advised. Following her suggestion he hurried from the room. She shook her head and smiled, he was going to have fun explaining all this to his girlfriend, considering all he couldn't tell her.

~~~~~

"I thought you were sure you were going to get Edwards," Laura complained.

"Hon, you know how this works. Besides this...thing should only last a few months."

"Walt..."

"It's only for a few months. I promise. Then I'll get Edwards. The general even put it in writing," he said.

"But Colorado...you hate the snow and you're going to a place where they measure it in feet."

"I know but..."

"It's a favor for the old man," she finished, well aware that they had a rapport. "OK. Go. Good luck and maybe I'll get some leave and come see you," she relented. When they'd started this relationship they both knew there would be compromises. And losing him to some secret place in Colorado was a small price to pay to get him at Edwards. And having a three star owing you favors wasn't bad either.

They talked for a few more minutes, tentatively arranging to spend Christmas together, somewhere.

Once he hung up he pulled out the folder and opened it again. He scanned over the reports contained within, his eyes settling on words like Abydos, Ra, slaves and Dr. Daniel Jackson, KIA.

If nothing else this was going to be an interesting TDY.

~fin~

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