Sometimes Goodbye is a second chance

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Taryn was the one on watch now and from her post where she stood she watched as Clark turned onto his side. Something just wasn't right. Her heart ached to hold him but she simply turned her eyes back towards the door and horizon. Pretty soon the sun would be rising and they would scour the bunker for more clues, more information... the general was ballparking a year to crack this case, she hoped that it wouldn't take as long but who knew... there were many many journals and too much unknown."

She pulled a piece of gum from her pocket, sticking the fruity stick into her mouth. She folded the small foil wrapper into a plane, she turned and sent the small thing flying. She didn't know where it would land but a piece of her heart hoped it would fall on Clark or near him. Maybe a small gesture enough for him to know he was not alone.
 
Clark felt something hit the back of his head and he frowned. His tears disappeared and he rolled onto his side to pick up a foil airplane. Now he knew he was crazy. He was here and he had gone bonkers.

There was no way any of this made sense. None!!

He couldn't help but smile at the delicate thing. It seemed to help piece him back together a bit.
 
Taryn eyed his smile from where she stood and she too smiled, like an idiot. She shook her head, the small gesture had seemed to ground him and her. She wouldn't tell him it was from her, it would be her own little secret. She moved outside, her gun in hand. It was a short trek to the hidden humvee. She simply wanted some fresh air. The bunker had been built and well hidden into a giant stone that sat out in the desert. Charlie had either been bat shit crazy or a loony genius. The way things were going she wondered if Charlie was even dead... she shook her head at the thought they would walk the bunker, find a downstairs hatch and find the crazy man working out algorithms. She shook her head, she had been watching too much Tron Legacy.
 
Clark sat up, stretching and deciding he would get to work on those journals. Although, he had regained sanity without them. They reminded him too much of the past and the past was something that hurt too much.

Clark moved to the desk, determined to maintain composure this time. He flipped open a book, finding it was loaded with military secrets. He chortled, some of them seemed ridiculous
 
Taryn walked outside for a while, she then re entered the bunker, surprised to see Clark sitting at the desk, hunched over working on one of the journals. She sat on the wooden chair near the desk and watched him work.

"You've never looked as much as superman as you do now. Well his alter ego at least working at the newspaper" she said her hands moving to wipe down her rifle.
 
Clark looked up, hazel eyes once again bright and chipper. "Is that good?" He turned to face her, leaning an elbow on the desk. He winked at her, that playful smile crossing his face.

He liked how strong she looked in that uniform. Cleaning the gun and sitting right there.

Woah boy, keep is civil. She doesn't want anything going on in her work place. He had to strictly remind himself as he turned back to the journal
 
Taryn fought the smile as much as she could. With him winking at her she knew exactly what he was thinking. Of course her cheeks gave her away as the blush spread. She shook her head going back to the task at hand.

"So last night you said something about finding it... what did you mean?" she asked figuring they were working together might as well get the intel he had out of him.
 
Clark frowned. "I...yesterday is a little hazy..." He glanced up at her, a blush spreading across his face. "I apologize for everything...I didn't scare you did I?"

He probably hadn't. She was a military woman. What he did know was that he certainly had scared himself. He hated the dark one that sat at the corners of his mind and memories. He glanced at the book still a little confused as to the purpose of the military sending him there
 
Taryn mulled the question over. She gave him a shrug. "Well you definitely weren't yourself... and I feel like even before this...back at your place, you had kept a lot of your past from me. None of that matters now I guess." she said with another shrug. He hadn't allowed her to know about him, and that was his choice. She wasn't in any right to pry or ask him for anything. They were not boyfriend and girlfriend especially not here, she was his commanding officer.

"Anyway, no... you didn't scare me. As soon as the guys are up, we're checking this bunker out. Stories have it this one large room is just the beginning of what secrets it holds." She finished cleaning her gun. Her fingers rounded her dog tags. She had yet to remove the second set and hook them to her boots. It was one of the rules to be out of the wire. She did so then, in case all they ever found were her boots, they'd know she had died.
 
Clark looked at her, hands clenching the journal until his knuckles were white. "There's a reason why I was glad my father had died..." He whispered. He put the journal down wheeling around to face her. "It wasn't bad at first...but the older I got the worse it got. Being forced to run until I puked or passed out. The beatings...I let the cold side of me take over. It helped everything."

He stood, taking a compass in hand. "You're right...Charlie always did like the surprises."
 
Taryn watched him with curiousity. "Lead the way Mr. Kentworth." she said standing and following him about while he held the compass. The men deserved to rest, jet lag was a bitch especially when leaving the states for the middle east.
 
Clark flinched. He shouldn't have said anything about his father. He found a point where the compass went haywire and smiled. "Silly Charlie...it's like school all over again." He reached a hand out and twisted the wall sconce. A door panel slid open and he grabbed Taryn's hand. "Stay with me just in case. Spiders or rats or snakes..."
 
Taryn couldn't help but smile. Things were falling apart around them but here was Clark being as adoringly dorky as ever. She knew she should pull her hand from his but the way her heart sped up when she felt his hand around hers made her hand stay. She couldn't understand her own mind screaming at her to nip things in the bud while then going completely stupid whenever he'd touch her. It was infuriating.

The passageway was dark and with her free hand she reached for the flashlight in her pocket. She shone ahead of them, cobwebs, spiderwebs and all sorts of vermin ran around their feet. Taryn scrunched her nose. Well at least Clark was being all manly.
 
Clark was screaming on the inside. He hated spiders with a passion. They scared him and shook his core. "Spiders of course the bastard has spiders." He glared at the wall until a particularly nasty hissing spider made him stop in his tracks.

He was certain he would pass out from the sheer terror until he was reminded of Taryn's hand in his. He isn't let her ever see him as weak! He puffed up his chest while at the same time getting as far away from each spider as possible
 
Taryn was a great soldier and an amazing woman for taking on a career where it paid to be a man and you had to pay to be survive in it as a woman, but when it came to spiders. She was all girl. She too froze, her skin prickling and when the damn thing hissed she jumped, her hand squeezing his tighter, she wanted to turn around and send one of the guys in her place.

"Oh God." She groaned, refusing to open her eyes as they passed it.
 
Clark held onto her tighter and ushered her past the things. "Oh god that's terrible"

It was clear to see he was frightened of the creatures. "Let's get out of this hallway..."

Clark soon entered a dome shaped room, empty of everything.
 
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Taryn finally opened her eyes when Clark had stopped moving. She looked around and there was nothing to be seen. Charlie had been so cryptic that even his own brother friend had no idea that he had been a special agent of any sorts.

"I really want to believe he wasn't a loony... but I'm thinking it's going to take us a hell of a lot longer to figure this secret out if we keep running around in this maze of confusion." She said softly, even then her voice echoed.
 
Clark nodded. "If I knew what I was looking for it would be different..."

The depression had started to sink in.
 
Taryn listened to Clark and moved away from him, her hand falling from his. She pressed her small hand to the wall and walked around the room, feeling the wall seeing if somehow she'd press something. She looked at a small hole that was on the wall. It looked too small for a camera. Maybe a microphone? Her mind began to find an explanation.

"Did you guys have a password... like a word only you two shared with each other?" She asked wondering if her inkling was right and that the hole housed a microphone maybe a safety security word would open up something.
 
Clark nodded, watching her move around the room. He was drawn to her like a magnet. All he wanted was to wrap her up in his arms. "Sure we did." He had been distracted by her, his response delayed by a few minutes. "We had a safe word for whenever my dads abuse became too much."

He sighed, shaking his head as memories filled his mind. "Paladin." He answered, biting his lip.
 
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