Alex Mason (3 June 1933 -) was an American agent working for the CIA during the height and decline of the Cold War. Captured by the Soviets during the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1960, Mason was brainwashed by General Nikita Dragovich, Colonel Lev Kravchenko, and former Nazi scientist Friedrich Steiner into becoming their sleeper agent. With the help of Viktor Reznov who reversed his brainwashing, Mason escaped Vorkuta and eventually tracked down and killed two out of three of his targets over the course of the 1960s. Mason was initially targeted for security risk by the CIA during the 70s, but was spared and Mason retired.
In 1981, he was brought back to assist in stopping Perseus from detonating several Operation Greenlight nukes placed across Western Europe. Mason and his best friend and companion Frank Woods killed CIA traitor Robert Aldrich and KGB Major Vadim Rudnik. He also assisted in assaulting Perseus' stronghold at the Solovetsky Monastery, stopping the signal that would detonate the nukes. Later, when Russell Adler was captured and brainwashed by Vikhor Kuzmin, Mason assisted in breaking Adler's programming. He then retired once again.
In 1986, Mason was recruited by General Oliver North to rescue Woods from Angola. He briefly met Raul Menendez there, who Mason would pursue across the world. In Panama, while securing Manuel Noriega, Mason was kidnapped by Menendez's men. Despite the captured Jason Hudson's manipulation, he would be shot in the leg by Woods, who deduced that Mason was the one he was being goaded to shoot. After Woods was crippled by Menendez, Mason then went into hiding for the next thirty-seven years, eventually meeting his adult son after Menendez's capture.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Alex Mason was born on June 3, 1933, to John Mason and an unknown mother in Fairbanks, Alaska. His father served in the Marine Raiders during the Pacific campaign of World War II, receiving a Purple Heart on Makin Atoll. He grew up hunting elk and grizzlies with his father. Alaska's proximity to the USSR and the constant threat of possible nuclear war led to Mason's fervent anti-Communist beliefs; his father and his political beliefs added up to Mason joining the US Marine Corps.
Military service[]
During training, Mason demonstrated various survival tactics and a keen adaptation to the cold weather, as well as excellent marksmanship skills. At the age of 20, he became the youngest Wimbledon Cup winner in the history of the marksmanship competition.
Regardless, he was sent to South Korea to fight in the Korean War as an infantryman. His aptitude for combat made him a perfect candidate for the USMC Force Recon, in which he would serve valiantly as well.
Soon after the war's conclusion, he was recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency at the age of 25 for their Special Activities Division.
Early CIA service[]
Mason made fast friends with several of his CIA colleagues, two of which were Frank Woods and Joseph Bowman. Woods soon discovered Mason's tendency for impulsiveness during missions, learning quickly how to rein him in. On one such mission, the three met Cuban rebel Carlos Gutierrez, during which they disrupted Tropas activities.
Operation 40[]
In 1961, Mason, Woods, and Bowman were tapped to be the assassination squad to take out Cuban communist leader Fidel Castro during the planned Bay of Pigs invasion. They met with Gutierrez at his bar in Santa Maria, Cuba for intel on Castro's estate; coincidentally, the estate was Gutierrez's plantation before the revolution, which allowed him to provide maps and the planned extraction point at a military airfield not far from there.
As they were talking, Tropas entered the bar and interrogated the customers inside, eventually approaching Woods' table. As the captain questioned Mason, Woods stabbed his hand through the table and smashed a beer bottle over his head, before the four shot his team. Provided with AR-15 rifles and Smith & Wesson 39 pistols, hidden behind the bar counter, they fought through several units of police dispatched to the bar before fleeing the city towards Castro's estate, Gutierrez staying behind to rally his men.
The team infiltrated Castro's mansion under the cover of the airborne invasion, eventually going loud and fighting through several Tropas squads. Mason and Woods breached the bedroom door of Castro, with Mason firing a bullet directly into the head of "Castro" as he used his mistress as a human shield. His mistress pulled out a shotgun, but was reluctantly shot by Woods before she could fire.
The two evacuated to the airfield along with Bowman, getting aboard a stolen plane piloted by Gutierrez. The plane was unable to take off as a column of vehicles blocked the runway. To Woods' dismay, Mason sacrificed himself and jumped off the plane to a ZPU, destroying the blockade. Soon after, Mason was pulled off and knocked out by Tropas soldiers. As he regained consciousness, he witnessed the real Castro handing Mason off to Soviet Army Major General Nikita Dragovich as a gift.
Vorkuta[]
Mason was transported to the Vorkuta labor camp, where he was experimented on by Dragovich, his right-hand man Colonel Lev Kravchenko, and ex-Nazi scientist Friedrich Steiner in an attempt to create a sleeper agent to assassinate then-US President John F. Kennedy. As part of his brainwashing, Mason was implanted with the knowledge to acknowledge and decipher Soviet coding broadcast from Dragovich's numbers station under the Gulf of Mexico. Despite Mason's strong will, they eventually succeeded.
Soon, however, Mason made friends with ex-Red Army Captain Viktor Reznov, who began to reengineer the programming in order to have him kill Dragovich, Kravchenko, and Steiner instead of Kennedy. During this, Reznov told Mason of his story, including his missions with Dimitri Petrenko, the mission in the Arctic Circle where Dragovich betrayed Reznov, and Petrenko's death. After the brainwashing was complete, Reznov and Mason began assembling a plan to break Mason out of a second uprising in the Vorkuta gulag.
Mason was thrown into the labor force after six to seven weeks, mining coal. During this time, Mason trained several of the prisoners in creating incendiary bombs for step three, utilizing his CIA training in such manners. An M134 Minigun taken from a downed US helicopter was delivered to Vorkuta in case of a riot; this information became known by Reznov and incorporated into the plan. This took months of planning, until it began in October 1963.
Step 1: Secure the Keys[]
On 6 October 1963, Mason and Reznov staged a mock fight between one another, luring a Vorkuta guard nearby to break up the fight. Mason then bashed the guard's head in with a rock as the guard beat Reznov with a baton. This completed step 1 of their eight-step plan.
Step 2: Ascend From Darkness[]
Mason, Reznov, and the rest of the prisoners then rushed to the elevator, killing several guards along the way. Mason met Sergei Kozin on the way as he killed two guards with his bare hands. As the group assembled onto the elevator, a prisoner questioned Mason's presence. Reznov reminded him that they were all brothers in Vorkuta. This completed step 2 of their eight-step plan.
Step 3 and 4: Rain Fire, Unleash the Horde[]
Mason then retrieved a Makarov PM from a guard that Kozin impaled upon a pickaxe, using it to assist his friends in fending off any resistance. He guarded Kozin and Reznov as they pushed a coal minecart they were using as cover against the machine guns.
These were soon destroyed by slingshots firing improvised incendiary bombs. Mason later commandeered a giant slingshot, destroying three guard posts that were gunning prisoners down; this completed step 3.
The prisoners were soon rallied by Reznov's speech about rising up against their oppressors, completing step 4 of their eight-step plan.
Step 5: Skewer the Winged Beast[]
Mason retrieved a shotgun from an arms locker that Kozin broke into, destroying a gate lock and several guards along the way to the armory. An Mi-8 Hip helicopter soon arrived, exactly as planned. Mason then retrieved an improvised harpoon, firing it at the Mi-8 and caused it to crash into a building, destroying it. This cleared the way to the armory.
Step 6, 7, 8: Wield a Fist of Iron, Raise Hell, Freedom[]
Mason fought his way into the armory, guarding Reznov from normal prison guards and riot armored guards as Reznov used a blowtorch to open a door in the armory. There, Mason obtained the Minigun and utilized it to destroy several guard positions and vehicles. Upon reaching several guard trucks, tear gas was deployed, incapacitating Mason. Reznov then dragged Mason to a garage, where they then used motorcycles, KS-23s and an MG truck to escape to a train. Mason then jumped aboard, urging Reznov to jump after him. He refused, saying that freedom was for Mason, not him. Reznov then stopped the truck, leaving his fate unknown
Return[]
Mason managed to get back to the United States via a path between Moscow and St. Petersburg, eventually being cleared for duty and assigned Jason Hudson as his handler. On 10 November 1963, Mason was taken to a national security briefing at the Pentagon by helicopter alongside Hudson. They further traveled in a limo with police escort alongside US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and General John Rumfeld. McNamara led Hudson and Mason to the Pentagon's nerve center and the war room within, both leaving while Mason was briefed by President John F. Kennedy. Mason experienced several hallucinations that urged him to kill Kennedy, but Mason resisted as Kennedy informed him of Operation Flashpoint at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union with the goal of sabotaging the Soviet space program and Major General Nikita Dragovich. Woods, Bowman, Mason, Terrance Brooks, and Soviet-born Grigori Weaver were tasked with accomplishing this mission.
Baikonur[]
Weaver had infiltrated the site months prior to the mission, intending on disabling the rocket launch that was to be conducted on 17 November 1963. Woods and Mason were the first military personal to use the MP5 submachine gun even though it was still being invented till a year later.
Woods, Mason, Bowman, and Terrance Brooks silently killed four Spetsnaz operatives and took their outfits, before witnessing Weaver be found out by Colonel Lev Kravchenko, his eye being cut out. Weaver would shortly after be rescued in an interrogation room, but the rocket launch would fail to abort, requiring Woods and Mason to launch a Strela-3 and destroy it. Several Ascension scientists died as the rocket's remains returned to earth.
Mason and Woods attempted to assassinate Nikita Dragovich and managed to destroy his limousine, but the kill was not completely verified.
Kennedy assassination[]
Mason, under the influence of his original programming, went to Dallas, Texas on 22 November 1963 to participate in the assassination of President Kennedy alongside Lee Harvey Oswald.
However, despite taking his place at the grassy knoll, he resisted his programming enough to not try and kill Kennedy. This was for naught, however, as Oswald managed to hit Kennedy and kill him. Shocked, Mason fled the city.
Over the next five years, Mason was retired from the field. His father, John Mason, sent letters to him about his mother being on her death bed. Mason never went to then hospital or her funeral, resulting in John disowning his son. However, his sister Dot did not have the same opinion, writing that he could visit her family whenever he wanted
Vietnam[]
Khe Sanh[]
In 1968, Mason was assigned to MACV-SOG as part of Woods' unit. He was to meet with Woods at the Khe Sanh Combat Base in Quang Tri, South Vietnam on 21 January 1968 with Hudson accompanying him. Their deployment in Vietnam was to investigate any possible Soviet involvement in Vietnam, with Khe Sanh providing support for an operation in Hue City to extract a defector. Hudson and Mason met Woods shortly before a North Vietnamese Army attack on the base occurred. Despite the risk, Mason and his team stayed to defend Khe Sanh rather than deploy immediately to Hue City.
During the battle, Mason destroyed several tanks with LAW and TOW missile launchers, thwarting further NVA advance and forcing them to retreat. Soon afterwards, Mason and his team met with Bowman once again, prepping to go to Hue City. However, the MACV compound that the defector was in was destroyed in an NVA attack, with the defector presumed dead. However, due to the knowledge on Dragovich that the defector possessed, Mason insisted on deploying anyway if only for the dossier.
Hue City[]
Mason and Woods rapelled over the devastated MACV compound in Hue, Thua Thien, South Vietnam on 2 February 1968, as the Battle of Hue raged on. Their UH-1 Iroquois helicopter was shot down mid-rappel, resulting in the two of them slamming into the glass; this disoriented Mason, during which Woods ambushed an approaching NVA soldier and stole his incendiary IZh-20, snapping his neck and killing two other soldiers with it.
He then tossed the IZh-20 to Mason, who utilized it heavily during the clearing. Bowman soon joined them, rappelling from another Iroquois. Mason witnessed the NVA gunning down South Vietnamese civilians that worked with MACV as secretaries, a serious war crime that would later be documented as part of the Massacre at Hue; though, they were avenged shortly after.
When Mason breached the door that the defector was behind, he was ambushed by a knife-wielding NVA soldier; Mason hallucinated that Reznov saved Mason, but in reality Mason saved himself. "Reznov" gave Mason the dossier, informing him that he was the defector, explaining the covert attack Dragovich planned against the West.
Mason and "Reznov" linked back with Woods and Bowman, where they fought with several US 1st Cavalry Division troops to their evac point with the assistance of an attack helicopter and an M113 APC callsign Bottom Feeder. Though Bottom Feeder was destroyed, they managed to make it to the LZ, though failed to hold off the NVA attack. As such, Mason ordered an evacuation by boat, as well as a bombing run. The team managed to barely escape the bombs; though the mission was a success, Hue was severely damaged by the NVA.
Quang Tri[]
Mason sent the dossier to Hudson, who went after Soviet collaborator Dr. Daniel Clarke in Kowloon, Hong Kong with Weaver on 9 February. Though Clarke was killed by Dragovich's Spetsnaz, Hudson learned of Steiner's base at Mount Yamantau as well as the "numbers". While heading north into North Vietnamese territory to investigate Kravchenko's operations with Nova 6 on 9 February, Mason's helicopter was shot down at the southern Vietnam DMZ. Woods, Mason, and "Reznov" managed to escape their downed helicopter as it was assaulted by Viet Cong and sunk, with Mason ambushing a sampan and taking a VC as a human shield. He eliminated the VC's four companions as the human shield was riddled with bullets, tossing his corpse aside.
After clearing out a small gorge, Mason and Woods ambushed another sampan as Mason heard numbers due to "Reznov's" presence. He pulled a VC into the water, slicing his neck. They rendevoused with Bowman and another SOG member, where Mason informed them that their goal was to destroy a ZPU destroying aircraft, before moving further in to Kravchenko's outpost. Mason and Woods silently eliminated several VCs while planting C4, before detonating and engaging in a bloody battle against the entire village. He later used a M202 FLASH against the ZPU, allowing helis to fly in and assist with the taking of the next village.
Upon encountering a foxhole, the team blew the entrance apart but still needed to clear it out. Mason and SOG member Keith Swift went into the tunnel, only for Mason to encounter a hallucination of Reznov. As Swift reprimanded Mason, he was stabbed to death by a VC who was immediately shot with Mason's Colt Python. Mason and "Reznov" rendezvoused and cleared the tunnels, finding Kravchenko's outpost. It was wired to blow as soon as he left, with Mason crawling out of the collapsed tunnel and jumping onto Woods' helicopter.
Laos[]
Mason, Woods, and Bowman were informed by Hudson of a Soviet commercial plane transporting Nova 6 that was downed in Khammouane, Laos. On 11 February, they traveled up the Mekong River in a US convoy to reach the crash site, destroying several VC occupied villages along the river and an NVA PT boat. The US Marine manning the guns on their PBR was killed during the fight against the PT boat to Woods' sorrow.
Upon landing at the crash site, the team engaged VC and Spetsnaz sent by Dragovich that were lying in ambush, killing them. Upon entering the plane, Mason noticed US weapons and the dead crew, killed by Nova6 exposure; Woods deduced that this was a setup. The three soon engaged VCs gathered in the valley before the fuselage was destroyed, knocking Mason, Woods, and Bowman out.
Mason then awoke to find Dragovich and Kravchenko; Dragovich mocked him, before Kravchenko kicked Mason in the head, knocking him out.
Captured[]
Mason, Bowman, and Woods spent eight days in horrible conditions at a VC camp in Sekong, Laos, before the three were taken out to play Russian roulette. Bowman mocked Dimitri Varshavsky, the Spetsnaz interrogator, who responded by bashing his skull in with a pipe. Woods then took Bowman's place, before concocting a plan to take out the entire room. Mason then grabbed the Colt Python with one round, before firing it at Luc Quoc Vie, the bookie. Luckily, it fired the bullet at Luc, killing him, with Mason grabbing Luc's sidearm and dispatching three other VC. Woods and Mason then pursued Varshavsky, killing several dozen VC on the way, before gunning the operative down as he tried to open a boarded up door.
Mason and Woods then escaped the compound, before killing several Spetsnaz guarding an Mi-24 Hind helicopter. They took control of the helicopter, using it to fly their way to Kravchenko's compound. Mason and Woods destroyed several key outposts and defenses along the Ho Chi Minh Trail before landing at Kravchenko's compound. They fought through dozens of Spetsnaz operatives, freeing several POWs including "Reznov". Mason was then ambushed by Kravchenko, though saved by Woods who plunged his knife into Kravchenko's back.
Kravchenko pulls the grenade pins from his bandolier, before Woods threw himself and Kravchenko out of his office window. The explosion resulted in Mason believing Woods had died, with the hallucinatory Reznov telling him so. He then discovered the existence of Rebirth Island in the Aral Sea, concocting a plan to infiltrate it and kill Friedrich Steiner
Rebirth Island and interrogation[]
On 23 February, Mason and "Reznov's" plan went into action; they smuggled themselves aboard a cargo ship bound for Rebirth Island, before infiltrating the island and killing dozens of Soviet Army personnel stationed at the site. Coincidentally, their arrival came at the same time as when the CIA led by Jason Hudson assaulted the island in an attempt to capture Steiner. As Mason/Reznov got to Steiner's office, Hudson and Weaver attempted to break the glass separating them, only for this to be in vain as Mason declared he was Reznov, shooting Steiner and killing him. Mason then shot Weaver in the leg before being knocked out by Hudson.
Mason was then taken to the Pentagon for interrogation by Hudson and Weaver over the next two days, specifically to figure out what the numbers mean and where they were broadcasting from. Mason recounted his life from Operation 40 to then from his perspective. This interrogation was relatively unsuccessful, resulting in Mason breaking out on 25 February and wandering an evacuated Pentagon while having flashbacks and hallucinations of Reznov and the events of his life. Hudson them ambushed Mason, knocking him down in order to clear his head. He then explained to Mason that Reznov was dead since Vorkuta, Mason hallucinating every interaction with him; some were entirely fictional, while others were actions committed by Mason.
Hudson then asked Mason to look at the numbers, before Mason sees what he couldn't see before: the broadcasting location from the Rusalka. Mason then informed Hudson where he last saw it: Cuba.
Rusalka crisis[]
Early in the morning on 26 February, hours before the broadcast, an assault took place on the Rusalka by Mason, Hudson, multiple US Navy helicopters and cruisers, and several CIA operatives. They fought through dozens of Spetsnaz and Soviet Navy personnel, eventually capturing the ship and confirming that the broadcast was from an underwater station. Not willing to pull out and risk Dragovich escaping, Hudson and Mason descended down to the numbers station with scuba gear.
They fought several units of Spetsnaz and juggernauts, before finally confronting Dragovich as the station was bombed by the US Navy. He drowned Dragovich in a bitter fight, Dragovich mocking Mason with the JFK assassination before he finally suffocated on the mounting seawater. Hudson and Mason evacuated the facility, barely reaching the surface as Weaver pulled them up.
Further work with the CIA[]
Mason continued hearing Reznov's voice, which made the CIA wary of Mason and believed he may be compromised. As close associates of Mason, Weaver and Hudson were suspected of being compromised as well. Despite the CIA's reluctance, Mason continued being sent on missions during the 1970s.
East Berlin[]
In 1976, Mason was tasked with infiltrating East Berlin to meet with a Stasi defector and acquire valuable intelligence. After killing numerous Stasi and KGB agents, Mason met with the defector and acquired a microfiche on a KGB spy ring using a front company in West Berlin. He identified the man running it as Colonel Mikhail Belov, who was responsible for most of the KGB assets in West Germany, making him the primary target with orders to capture. Mason killed several KGB agents as he made his way to Belov.
Once there, he breached the room, with Belov fleeing. Taking a NOC list on KGB assets, Mason chased Belov into the streets befor finally catching him in a building. He lunged at Mason with a knife in a room full of embedded KGB agents, though was disarmed and taken hostage. Knowing that he wouldn't escape with Belov alive, Mason grabbed a piece of C4, stabbed it into Belov, and tossed him into the agents. The plastic explosive then detonated after Mason made his escape, goring Belov and his agents. Mason then made it to extraction with Belov's NOC list.
Nicaragua[]
That same year, Mason was tasked with rescuing an embedded CIA operative abducted by the KGB and held in Managua, Nicaragua by Sandinistas. Using sniper fire, he covered the operative as he escaped towards a truck, enabling him to flee towards an airport and escape the country. Mason made his escape shortly afterwards.
Operation Charybdis[]
In 1978, Mason found intel regarding one of Dragovich's old sleeper cells, prompting him to pursue it. This finally enabled the CIA to declare Mason, Hudson, and Weaver rogue assets, assembling a top team to eliminate the three in South Africa, where they escaped. Two of the known participants of Operation Charybdis were to be Ryan Jackson, a CIA analyst, and Jonathan Price, a young and eager British SAS operative. Before the operation could commence, Hudson managed to convince the CIA of the trio's wrongdoing, which canceled Charybdis and allowed re-entry into the CIA.
Afghanistan[]
In 1979, Mason was tasked with extracting a Mujahideen HVI from the hands of the KGB. After finding him in Kabul, Afghanistan, Mason had to fight through several squads of Alfa Spetsnaz in order to reach the evac site, which he performed successfully.
Retirement[]
Sometime after the Afghanistan mission, Mason retired from active duty in 1979 to Fairbanks, Alaska, where he married a woman who he had a son with, David. He stayed with his wife for two years, raising their son.
Perseus[]
Amsterdam and Turkey[]
In January 1981, President Ronald Reagan approved a CIA operation to hunt down one of the perpetrators of the Iran hostage crisis, Arash Kadivar. Mason received a call from Jason Hudson, his former handler, in January 1981, telling him that if he wanted to return as a CIA operative, he should report to Amsterdam, the Netherlands to meet with special officer Russell Adler and Frank Woods.
Woods and Mason were assigned under Adler to accomplish this mission, beginning with the interrogation of Kadivar's second: Qasim Javadi. CIA intelligence discovered Javadi's safehouse in Amsterdam, Netherlands, prompting Adler to utilize a favor with Amsterdam KLPD chief Hans Tillerman to lax police presence near the safehouse. This effort was successful, and on 12 January they invaded the safehouse and killed several of Javadi's men. They then interrogated Javadi at the rooftop, discovering Kadivar's location at the airtport in Trabzon, Turkey. Javadi was spared by Mason, later becoming a CIA asset.
18 hours later, the team arrived at the Trabzon airport and witnessed Kadivar's arrival, in which he shot two masked men in his vehicle for an undetermined reason. They confirmed his identity and attacked Kadivar as he boarded a cargo plane, being forced to chase the plane in a jeep. With the use of an explosive RC-XD, the plane was destroyed and Kadivar was heavily injured. Woods watched as Adler interrogated the Iranian, shooting him dead as he taunted Adler about the resurgence of Perseus.
Directly afterwards, they searched the vehicle Kadivar shot up and found that an occupant of the vehicle, who was Perseus' right hand man, was still alive. Taking his codebook and the man, Mason watched as Adler brainwashed the officer into believing that he was Bell, an old friend of Adler who participated in Operation Fracture Jaw, where he found the codebook.
Perseus[]
Woods, Mason, Adler, and Jason Hudson attended the debriefing of the operation, accompanied by then-Secretary of State Alexander Haig, Chief of Staff James Baker, and President Reagan. Reagan approved the CIA operation to stop Perseus, as each of his resurgences shifted the balance of the Cold War.
Re-retirement[]
Before 1985, Mason left the CIA and military presumably out of delusion, or simply to raise his son since his wife passed away years before. It's assumed that Mason has a similar relationship with his son as he did with his father, being somewhat cold and distant. It's also hinted that Mason would meet with Hudson's wife Jenny and their kids and take David on hunting lessons in Alaska. It's also possible that David was being cared by Jenny in 1981 since he was born during the late 1970s.
Return to the field[]
In 1986, Mason is with David in Alaska, and is called to rescue Frank Woods in Angola by Oliver L. North, and Hudson. Mason and Hudson help Jonas Savimbi fight against the MPLA, and receive intel that Woods is on a transport barge and leave to go save him. The two succeed in getting Woods out of the barge but are forced to stealth their way through the jungle to call for rescue. When reaching a radio station, Mason holds Raul Menendez at gunpoint, but has to escape after the latter pulls a pin on a grenade but shoots out his eye. The trio are rescued by Savimbi, and Hudson is saved by Woods, who was wounded by a surviving MPLA soldier.
Second mission to Afghanistan[]
Mason and Woods rejoin the CIA and go to Afghanistan to help the Mujahideen find information on Menendez and stop the Russians. Mason helps by destroying tanks and shooting down helicopters that were reaching the valley with the aid of Tian Zhao. When returning, the team fights off a Russian tank, but Mason is attacked by Lev Kravchenko, causing the numbers to return. Woods and Mason knock out Kravchenko, and take him back to the base, and witness his interrogation. The player can either give into the numbers and shoot Kravchenko, or let the latter reveal that Menendez has people in the CIA, and Woods executes him. The Mujahideen betray Mason, Woods, Hudson, and Zhao, leaving them into the desert until they are saved by strangers (with Alex thinking it was Viktor Reznov).
Nicaragua[]
The CIA agents head to Nicaragua to find Menendez and are aided by the President of Panama, Manuel Noriega. However, Noriega betrays them, and frees him before being beaten by Menendez, who goes to save his sister, Josefina. Mason and the team fight off the cartel soldiers, and learn of Noriega's betrayal, causing Woods to go into a rage-filled hunt for Raul. When going down into the base, Hudson tells Mason to keep an eye on Woods, stating that he is losing it. When Woods and Mason confront Raul, the former starts to fire, as Mason holds him down. Frank head buts him and throws a grenade that kills Josefina. Menendez was reported to be killed, but was alive, and would plan to have revenge against Mason and Woods for Josefina's death.
Operation Just Cause and supposed death[]
In December of 1989, Mason, Woods, Hudson, and Mark McKnight are part of Operation: Just Cause, and are to frame Noriega, and capture him. The mission goes successful until Hudson tells the duo that they have a new target and orders them to bring him to a secure location. At the location, Mason is captured by PDF and posed as the target Raul Menendez, as Woods is ordered by Hudson to shoot him shooting him in the legs. Mason will remain unconscious as Woods loses both of his legs, Hudson is murdered, and Menendez will remind David of the pendant.
Return[]
In order to protect Woods and David, Alex has to go AWOL. His disappearance led David being raised by a now crippled Woods who lied about the circumstances of Alex's death and told David that it was some "drifter" who did it to spare him more pain that he had to endure.