A cold breeze whipped across the bare hills deep within the Sayan Mountains in Russia. Among the trees and snow a flickering light could be spotted in the darkness. It was a medium size cabin, sheltered and hidden among the wilderness of the mountains. Inside the sleeping forms of four men were huddled close to the fire burning in the fireplace. One of the figures stirred and slowly sat up, yawning lightly and rubbing at his eyes. He paused when he noticed the dark silhouette of another man in the far corner of the cabin leaning against the wall and staring out a window into the cold darkness outside. Quietly, he rose to his feet and made his way to the other man's side.

"You should be getting some rest mate."

The man at the window slightly turned his head towards his comrade. The firelight gently flickered across his strong handsome features on the left side of his face, the right side of his face however was illuminated by the moonlight from outside which defined a distinct long scar that ran from the corner of his right eye to his neck.

"Can't sleep." He answered nonchalantly.

"Come on Ghost, we've been here for two weeks and you've barely gotten any sleep. Your wounds will never heal properly if you don't let your body rest."

"I'm fine Tavish." Ghost answered with a hint of impatience in his voice.

Soap had caught the tone in his Lieutenant's voice, but he ignored it. Ghost had been acting differently since his survival from Shepherd's betrayal. Soap gazed over where their Russian prisoner had been tied up. The wooden floor was dark from the heavy blood stains. He had been horrified when he had spotted Ghost standing over the nearly decapitated body. He had never seen Ghost so violent and even now, after the chaos had settled, the younger man seemed even more distant and he had a hungry look to his eyes that made Soap shudder. Soap returned his eyes to his right hand man. He knew Roach's death had been hard on Ghost. The lieutenant had treated Roach like a little brother, he had spent extra time mentoring and teaching Roach, convinced that the kid was going to be something great with his skills, but Ghost had been more than a teacher and a guide, he had been a source of comfort for Roach, and Ghost had found that same source of comfort in him. Soap sighed, losing Roach so violently and due to a betrayal nonetheless, had torn Ghost apart, and he knew that somehow he was going to have to save his lieutenant from the dark recesses of his own mind.

Soap reached out and set a comforting hand on Ghost's shoulder before turning and heading back to his place by the fire. Ghost paid the gesture no heed, his attention was on whatever dark thoughts were streaming through his mind. Soap settled into his sleeping bag which was nestled between Price and Nikolai. Archer was fast asleep next to Ghost's empty sleeping back just a short distance away. Soap turned and gazed at the dark, still form of his lieutenant a distance away and sighed in worry. There had to be something he could do to get Ghost back to his old self. He thought on it as he allowed his eyelids to droop and within seconds he was asleep.

Ghost momentarily pulled his attention away from the window and gazed at his teammates. He rested his eyes on each of them searching for the slow steady rise of their bodies as they slept. Once he was certain they were all asleep, he reached for a pistol he had laid on the kitchen table and slipped it into his leg holster. Without making a sound, Ghost walked to the door and slid outside into the cold night.