Page Twelve - Full Moon Blues -

FULL MOON BLUES

PAGE TWELVE

"Cap?!'

"Huh? I'm fine. I'm fine.. What do you
got over there?" Cap said.

Roy moved to check out the split
garage doors where Bonnie had run
through to get to the back yard.
He smiled and just about cried when
he saw almost a two meter gap.
:: Tipped on its side, the stokes could pass
through that rear door fissure easily..::
"Found a way out. I'm coming back!"

And he ran back through the dusty mist
to the front of the garage, almost leaping
over the debris piles. "Cap..did you
hear me? We're getting outta here.."

He screeched to a halt when he rounded
the fender of the squad.

Cap was crouched , still squatting on his feet,
almost on top of Marco, but he was slumped
over with his head sagging down.

Roy grabbed his shoulder, his stomach
flipping. But Cap immediately lifted his head.

Recovering from his fright, Roy spelled it
out in no uncertain terms.
"Hey, are you going to be able to do this,
Cap? If you're feeling hurt worse than you
think you are, I can go get Ch--"

"No. Roy, let's just get him out now. I'll sit down
once we're outta danger.." Cap said, looking
at his paramedic. He grabbed onto Marco's
feet and picked them up, while Roy got his
shoulders. "Come on.. Let's move. Look,
his resp rate's already dropping off.
Marco won't be able to wait much longer for O2
if you detour. Besides, neither Kelly nor Vince
will want to leave trying to get Gage outta
trouble without a fight. And that will cause
a serious delay my friend.. Don't
tell me that it won't."

He wasn't happy, but Roy didn't protest further.

It took several minutes, with
Cap stumbling and sweating over boards
and bricks for both of them to get Marco
safely enscounced into the stokes and strapped
in. They piled all the gear on top of him for a one
trip carry, until they got to the split in the
rear hanger doors Roy had found.

Roy gestured for Cap to head
on through first to accept gear in hand-offs.

Soon the three of them were free from
the shattered ruin of station 51's garage,
and into clearer air and sunlight.

Cap grunted when he saw the level of
destruction around them in the yard.
The high tan brick walls ringing the station
were completely levelled.
"My god, the epicenter must have been
right here.." He barely got stumbling
to where Mike was when he dropped
Marco's stokes the last few inches to
the ground.

Roy said, "Think you're right, Cap. Now just
take it easy over there.You've done all you
can do.." he said as Cap sat painfully down
next to Marco's head to monitor him.

DeSoto grabbed the 02 apparatus and
handed it over to Stoker, who was
listening to a tentative recaptured air
exchange on Miss Thorne. "How's she
doing?" he asked Mike.

"Got her partially back. She's breathing one
out of three." he said, snatching for
the demand valve. He began to use
it full flow, letting her pull air when she
could but assisting and taking over
when she lapsed.
"I got lucky. She never lost a pulse."
Then he tossed a head back behind him.
"You'd better get over there buddy.
Chet and Vince are having problems
digging Gage out."

"Is he conscious?"

"Don't know.." Mike answered.
"Sort of had my hands full here."

"I'm going over there. She'll maintain
all right. Here's more info on them."
Roy dragged Marco's stokes near
enough to the O2 so he could
string a mask from the other port
for Lopez. "Marco's really out. Breathing
shallow. And he's febrile for some
reason. Keep an eye on Cap too.
Possible head injury.." he said
setting a ten liter flow for Marco
through a non rebreather.

Mike nodded. "Ok. Got it. Roy, I think
the woman's problem is just the
gas exposure. Nothing fell on either
one of us at all.."

"Noted. I'll contact Rampart as
soon as we know about Johnny too.."
Roy said. He grabbed the shovel
he and Cap brought and ran around
the antique engine towards where
he could hear Bonnie barking.

On the way, he met the four tour
students they all had gotten out of
the station. "It's all right kids. Your
teacher's not dead. We're just helping
her on some oxygen. Your friends are
safe, too, out in front. Just wait here where
it's safe in the open. Don't go anywhere,
all right?"

Four heads nodded. The kids were
shivering where they were clinging
together seated on the ground,
mousy with emotional shock. But
Roy didn't see any critical problems
on them so he left them alone in
Mike's line of sight.

He ran faster until he got to where
Bonnie was letting the dirt fly high.

Chet and Vince were in high gear too,
still trying to dig next to a frantic Bonnie.
Vince was beginning to get desperate,
using his helmet.

Roy dropped down onto the brick
pile and laid to with his spade fighting
down unbidden fears.
"Heard anything?"

"Not a peep." Chet said just as anxious.
"There's NO way we can get to him, man.
There must be half a ton of bricks here.
This is where the hose tower was.."

"Just keep digging. There's gotta be
an airpocket or something under there."
Vince said.

"We hope.." Chet said.

Kelly's shortness made Roy try to
ease his doubts even as his own grew worse.
"Part of the stack was reinforced concrete
and wire. That wouldn't collapse flat."
Roy said. ::Johnny. Hang in there.::

For several tense moments, there was
just the "chuck" of helmet and shovel
and bare hands, biting into soil and rubble.

Then Kelly said, "Hold it! Hold it! Look!"

Bonnie had moved to a different area
of the debris pile and was cocking her
head at a sound just beneath her.
She began to dig madly and the pitch of
her barking changed to one of excited discovery.

There was a small cave beneath
her and in her eagerness, dashed inside of
it.

"Bonnie. No!!" Kelly warned.

But the tiny Yorkie's tail reemerged
unscathed, and soon, came the rest of her.
When her head followed out of the hole,
Gage's dusty sock and foot were
tightly in her mouth.

"Johnny!!?" Chet yelled, and he shoved
Bonnie aside to bury his head into the
hole up to the shoulders with both hands,
reaching deep. "He's alive.. I can see
him breathing." came his muffled report.
"His arms and shoulders are pinned pretty
good in here. I think a small chamb--"

There was another cave in and a plume
of dust hissed out of the fissure and
Kelly let out a startled yell.

Vince grabbed onto his belt in a tackle
to keep Kelly from slipping under the
ground even further. His efforts proved
just how unstable the regolith in
their area was.

Another collapse came, this one bigger
and heavier. Suddenly, both Johnny and Chet
started to thrash in panic as their airspace
suddenly filled up in choking dirt and brick.

Vince hauled Kelly out by his pants, with every
sinew of strength, until inch by inch,
the curly haired fireman was pulled free..

Chet gasped and choked on chalky grit
that had blown into his nose and mouth.
"Get him out of there!! *cough* The
whole roof caved in.*cough. cough*"

Roy started to dig underneath where
Johnny's leg was writhing as quickly
as he dared.

It was Bonnie who found Gage's other pinned
leg, twisted above the first just before
his struggles began to weaken.

Vince and Roy abandoned helmet and
shovel and quickly each hauled on a leg
full weight backwards, sliding awkwardly
on the slippery brick pieces.

"Come on. Let go.." Vince grunted to
the earth. "He can't breathe.."

Johnny's limp head dragged clear at last and
thunked over a few boulders when all
three of them fell on their butts.

"Johnny. Can you hear me?" Roy
shouted. He crawled to Johnny's head,
accidently jarring him in his haste to get an
answer.. Gage's mouth gaped open.

FULL MOON BLUES

Click Rescue Squad to
Goto Page Thirteen :)