Author's Note: I don't own G.I. Joe. I don't claim I own it, I have never claimed to own it, I never will claim to own it. This is a work of fanfiction.

Prologue: An Unexpected End

Snake-Eyes was finished with his duties for the day and decided to take in a workout after dinner. A few of the other Joes had approached him with what he was going to do and he, in his only way possible, let them know what his plans were.

"After dinner workout?" asked Mainframe to make sure he had gotten Snake-Eyes' meaning correct. Snake-Eyes just nodded. Mainframe gave him a thumbs up. "Cool. See you there then. I've got a bet for you."

Snake-Eyes returned Mainframe's thumbs up to indicate that he was up for whatever bet Mainframe had in mind. Then he walked off down the hall towards his quarters with his dinner in hand. Given his disfigurement, he preferred to eat alone in his room where no one would be put off seeing him with his mask off. As he walked, a few of the other Joes gave him random greetings when they saw him and he responded in his usual silent way.

As he neared his quarters, Snake-Eyes got a cold sensation, like he was being watched. Looking about, he saw no one. Satisfied that he was alone, Snake-Eyes stepped into his quarters and locked the door behind him. Then he walked over to a table in the middle of the room and set his dinner tray down upon it. As he did, he paused. He thought he heard breathing. Again, he looked around to see if anyone else was around. Again, he didn't see anyone. Still, he was not satisfied. After pulling a sidearm, he began a sweep of his room, starting with his closet. His search turned up nothing and Snake-Eyes began to feel that he had imagined the breathing. Still, he wanted to be sure. Quietly, he approached his bathroom and opened the door. No one was apparent. Then he moved over to the shower and reached for the curtain. With a quick motion, he pulled back the curtain.

The booby trap explosive waiting for him went off. Unfortunately for him, he had no time to react to avoid being caught by the explosion. A few moments later, a figure quietly rose up from the laundry hamper, picking Snake-Eyes' dirty laundry off them as they did. "Too bad, Snake-Eyes," said the figure as they took some earplugs out of their ears. "You were good, but not good enough. Now, you're out of the game. I'm surprised I got you so easily. Still, I won't complain. With you out of the picture, the other Joes won't stand a chance."

To be continued...