Disclaimers: CI5 with all its characters, particularly Cowley, Doyle and Bodie belong to Mark 1 Productions, Medicopter 117 with all its characters, particularly Michael Lüdwitz, Thomas Wächter and Karin Thaler belong to RTL-Television Germany. As much as I'd love to, none of them belong to me, and I swear I'll put them back where I found them when I'm done. This story is written for fun, no money is involved and no infringement is intended.

Two TV shows from two different countries, two different decades (millennia even, if you count the last of Medicopter was shot after 2000), some of my most beloved characters in a strange, kind of funny cross-over.

Medicopter is a German TV show about a helicopter-rescue Service in Bavaria, Dr. Michael Lüdwitz (Rainer Grenkowitz) left the series when he became the unwilling witness of a mafia murder. The official story says he went to the US under CIA protection, changed IDs and disappeared. What if?

If you wish to make comparisons, this is what the show and Rainer Grenkowitz look like, sorry, German only.

CI5 could do with some internal medical staff, don't you agree?

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They had long waited for their annual two weeks off, it seemed a bit strange that Cowley had agreed for them to take the whole two weeks in a row, together and in summer. He was getting a soft spot in his later years...

They had flown into Munich and then gone mountaineering in the lovely Bavarian Alps, and although they had been forced to leave their hotel's details back at HQ, they both tried to act as though no one knew where they were.

They loved to have good physical exercise without being forced to, just for fun, no deadlines, no lives at stakes, pure pleasure for someone whose job included weapons and death and danger on a daily basis.

They were sipping a beer at the local Stube on their third night when Doyle said, "I must be getting old, but I have the distinct impression we are being followed".

"Comes with the job, doesn't it? Come on, no one knows us here, and certainly they don't know what we do for a living".

"I'll tell you something else, I even caught a glimpse of someone looking exactly like the Cow!"

"Cowley? He's back in London, forcing Murph to do the amount of work we usually do combined."

"Yeah, right, can't be anything else, he hates the mountains!"

"Our own personal beach boy, he is!"

The following day they were again out on an excursion and saw a big red and yellow helicopter flying low.

"That must be some kind of rescue service, it says Medicopter 117 on the side, there must have been an accident."

"Yeah, they couldn't really do otherwise with all the high peaks around here, if they are in a hurry an ambulance would take too long and they wouldn't be able to reach every spot. Let me take note of the number, you never know."

"Don't tell me you brought your mobile phone with you!"

"Oh, yes I did, and so did you, and we know perfectly well that was the only way we could go away without the Cow being mad at us!"

They got back to the hotel late in the afternoon exhausted, so decided to just have a small snack and go to bed.

"You know, I'd love to do some "normal" sightseeing tomorrow, maybe some shopping for the guys back home?"

"You mean a pair of those lovely leather trousers for the Cow?"

"I can just imagine him yodelling in his office when he thinks no one can see or hear him!"

"You've got a very sick sense of humour Bodie!"

"I know, how else could I cope with yours?"

So they went into town, their German was just good enough to get by, heavily accented though it was.

During lunch at an outside café they saw a couple wearing what looked like a bright red uniform, "Notartz" it said on both their backs.

"They must be on the team flying the helicopter, look at the logo on their shirtsleeves."

"You're right. I wish I could visit their base, but it must be off limits for outsiders, more's the pity."

"You're not thinking of getting injured on purpose just for the sake of some weird curiosity of yours, are you?"

"No, still..."

"Oh, come on Ray, isn't your life dangerous enough as it is?"

The rest of the first week had passed pleasantly enough, they had even managed to invite a couple of the local girls out for a beer, but nothing serious had developed.

From time to time Doyle complained of the nasty feeling that they were never completely alone, and Bodie had dismissed the idea just as good-naturedly as before, but he was starting to wonder if his partner might be right, after all instincts were always very useful in their job and had saved their lives more than a couple of times.

One morning at breakfast the concierge came and discreetly asked "Mr Bodie and Doyle? Someone is waiting for you in the manager's office, would you mind following me?"

They looked at each other: they had come in with false passports and no one was supposed to know who they really were, still the employee didn't seem all that surprised. They didn't know they were in for the shock of their lives.

When they entered they saw a few people sitting at a long conference table and someone whose features seemed vaguely familiar, looking out of the window with his back to the door.

"Sit down lads, will you? And Doyle, you were right all along, you were being followed, and yes, it was me you saw right at the beginning of your stay. I'm getting old and sometimes I tend to forget I'm dealing with the best."

They managed a strangled "Sir?" before both their jaws dropped low. The Cow?

"Please sit down, and have a drink."

"No, thanks, not at breakfast."

"As you wish. May I introduce Drs Johnson and Barton from the CIA, and Dr. Michael Lüdwitz from the local helicopter-rescue service Medicopter? I think you might have noticed them during your excursions."

"CIA?"

"Yes, Bodie, and we are here to take advantage of an unfortunate accident which has befallen Dr. Lüdwitz."

"Well, not exactly an accident, was it?" The accent was not as heavy as they might have expected. "It seems I saw something I shouldn't have. And it is Michael, please"

"We need to implement a protection programme on Dr. Lüdwitz and your Major Cowley thinks you could be of assistance."

"Protection programme? On a regular basis?"

"Not exactly Doyle. I've been looking to take on an extra hand for medical services for a while, and Dr. Lüdwitz with his extensive experience in emergency medicine seems to be the perfect candidate. By the way, your holidays are cancelled and we are leaving for London in an hour."

"An hour?" The groan was just audible.

"Yes, and hurry up with your luggage, Dr. Lüdwitz will be happy to show you around the base while he says his good-byes. The helicopter is waiting for us just round the corner."



Doyle looked just like a kid in a toy shop and Bodie had to admit his talk with pilot Thomas Wächter had been very interesting.

But they hadn't missed all the sadness between Dr. Lüdwitz and Dr. Karin Thaler, his wife to be.

"Is this an "adieu"?"

"I'm afraid so, but who knows? Thomas, take care of her, promise?" Michael Lüdwitz had kept his hard face on, but everyone knew he was bleeding inside.

They had been left alone for a moment, but time pressed. A private plane was arranged. Once they were in the air Cowley said "Welcome to the team, Michael."

"Thank you." As the Bavarian Alps disappeared quickly behind them he held a small scale replica of the machine he had been working on for the last few years and a tear finally escaped his steel-gray eyes.

-- THE END --