Spencer went back into the vehicle to help Drake and Helena out before they towed the truck back into a drivable position. To his own injury, he gave little heed. Drake was yelling quite loudly. "Keep calm." Spencer said as he looked around him. He knew the basics of treating wounds, but the doctor could certainly do it better than he could. He rose and sprinted to the back of truck three and leaned in. "Where's the doc?" He asked.
"Better ways to warm up," she grinned back, "but each to their own I suppose. How is truck four? Do we still have everyone?" "Yeah liquor or a quick romp. Sometimes both!" he said and let out a big laugh. Then he got a little more serious. "Yeah, lost an Arabian. That bloke with the bird. Poor bugger. The bird that this." He was trying to make light of the situation as he looked down. Fact was, he felt he wasn't quick enough to drop the Van Haar who got Merle.
Mika gave him a sympathetic look, knowing that these guys took it a bit personally when someone was lost. There was always a woulda/shoulda/coulda and yet it was over. Done. "Sorry to hear that." She said, "What of Gask, Sadie, and the Doc?" Mika asked after her former team, "and thank you to whoever dragged me in here. I thought the Van Haar had done for me."
"Sorry to hear that." She said, "What of Gask, Sadie, and the Doc?" Mika asked after her former team, "and thank you to whoever dragged me in here. I thought the Van Haar had done for me." "Didn't see Gask or Sadie," he said. "Doc gave me a quick fix, and some pills and I was back here." Gaston motioned forward, to where the Captain was. "I think Cap'n brought you here after you got a conk on your head, there," he continued. "Eh, Cap'n?" There was no response. Gaston peered forward. The Captain didn't even move. "Cap'n?" He got up from his seat and approached the Captain, who had slumped over. His leg was bleeding out, blood soaking the seat. He looked at David. "Christ, man!" he yelled. "That Cap'n's bleedin' to death and you didn't even radio a doctor!" He pulled the Captain from his chair and brough him back, laying him on the ground. He grabbed some wraps from a med kit and tied them tightly around Hawke's leg. "Anybody know how to stich a wound shut?"
"I can." Mika said, horrified that a man had been quietly bleeding to death while they talked, "get the bleeding stopped. I'll do what I can." She unzipped the parka and dug into an inner pocket, bringing out a sewing kit. "I won't do such a neat job as the doc but I can do it if I need to." She looked for the right needle and a good weight of thread as Gaston worked to stem the bleeding. "David, could you radio and see if we can get the doc...depending what kind of damage there is I may not be able to handle it." She could stitch skin and even muscle but if, as she suspected, a vein had been hit that would take a surgeon.
Hawke slowly opened his eyes. he saw Mika took her hand and tried to thank her but the pain bite hard with the cold. He blacked out once again.
Gaston watched the Captain fade in and out. "Great," he said quietly. He got up and grabbed the CB radio. "Anyone listening," he said, transmitting to all trucks. "We need a doctor at truck one ASAP." He was hoping at any minute, Spencer would come flying in, doctor in tow, but only if they were lucky. He put the CB up and looked over at David. "Might be a good idea to stop the truck now," he told him. "No sense in going anywhere until we know the Cap'n'll make it."
Mika's hands were covered in blood, the cabin stank with it. She kept pressure on the wound and helped Gaston to apply a tourniquet. Only then was she able to see the wound's depth. She turned pale and tears filled her eyes as he grasped her hand briefly before fading out again. "Get the doc here NOW," she said, "I can't stitch the vein, no needles fine enough."
Not seeing the doc, and not getting an immediate response, Spencer went back to his squad mates on the snow. He jumped into the VAC briefly to grab a first aid kit. He went first to Helena, asked her to close her eyes, and removed her snow shades slowly. He then proceeded to clean the blood on her face and the cuts on her head with surprising gentleness. He applied bandages to the major ones. Finally, he replaced her snow shades on her face. And for an extra moment, he simply stared into her concealed eyes. Why, he didn't know. Admiration? Respect? A beauty hidden behind an efficient exterior? With an effort, he turned to Drake and similarly examined and cleaned his wounds. "You fought well." He said simply to him when he finished up. He looked to the others. The doc was tending some of the other wounded, and it looked like they would be mounting up soon. He helped his squad mates to their feet.
Spencer heard the call over the CB. Without a moment's hesitation, he charged back out into the snow and picked up the fallen bike had had used. Revving it up, he sped over to where the good doctor stood and dragged him aboard the bike. Punching the gas, they flew towards the huge truck in the distance. He dismounted, and burst in the back trap with the doctor in tow. "I found him." He said to Gaston.
“Your sense of danger is flawless.” Although her eyes were on the Van Haar surrounding them, Sadie’s grinned widened. It wasn’t often she met someone who could match her sarcasm, and this was twice now Gask had managed it. If she’d had time, she might have thought of another pithy reply. As it was, she shot back, “Damn straight,” before the Van Haar launched themselves at them. Looking back, the fight could not have lasted for more than a few minutes. At the time, however, it seemed to stretch on endlessly. Sadie ran at the first Van Haar, ducking under the blow it swung at her and bringing the handle of her shotgun round to slam into the base of the Van Haar’s neck. He stumbled forward a feet, and as he did so Sadie twisted round on one foot, spinning her gun back round in her hand and squeezing off a round into his back. Blood spilled over his clothes, and he spasmed before a moment before going limp in the snow. Sadie had already turned back to face her next opponent. Seeing his rifle locked on her, she brought her gun up and shot roughly at his arm. The bullet hit the Van Haar in the crook of his elbow and she dropped his rifle, which shot uselessly into the snow. Furious, the Van Haar charged her. Sadie squeezed off another couple of rounds into his chest, but his momentum was too great to stop and with his last burst of energy he flung himself at her, knocking her to the ground. The icy, hard snow raced up to meet them, and with a lance of agony she felt her left shoulder dislocate. The breath was knocked out of her, and her ribs felt, at least, badly bruised. Before she could recover, the Van Haar’s corpse was thrown off her and she was hauled upwards by another. Her vision blurred as her opponent threw two quick punches to her face, and warm, metallic tasting blood filled her mouth. Sadie spat it out, and her vision focused again on the crimson that contrasted so sharply with the dazzling snow. Breaths coming in ragged pants she stumbled backwards, instinctively ducking another blow that came her way. She’d lost her gun when she had been knocked down, so was left with only her feet and right hand, her left arm now hanging uselessly and painfully at her side. Sensing the Van Haar before her, she twisted upwards, bringing her foot round in a sharp kick aimed at her opponant’s solar plexus. The Van Haar staggered backwards, gurgling for air. Sadie suddenly caught sight of her gun sticking out from under one of the other Van Haar corpses. Pretending to stumble, she knelt down and whipped it out, bringing it up and firing a bullet into her enemy’s head in one smooth motion. That was the last of them. Sadie stayed still for a moment, catching her breath, then looked round for Gask. He was lying unconscious a few feet away. Ignoring the pain from her dislocated shoulder, she staggered over, slipping occasionally on the blood-soaked snow. When she reached Gask, she dropped down on her knees beside him and felt for a pulse. There was one there, fairly strong, but he still looked in bad shape. His nose was clearly broken, he was bruised, and he was covered in so much blood Sadie couldn’t tell if he was cut anywhere. She was no doctor at any rate. The only thing she could do was look around and call, “Hey! We need some help over here!”
Chris was pulling guard duty on the 50cal as vehicle 3 moved to rejoin convoy formation, when he felt Eve slowing down. "Something's up with Truck 2!" she yelled, "They're just pulled over to the side of the road and not answering coms." Great. Chris thought to himself. There's no way we're going to make it to the Drekk at this rate. Eve pulled in close behind vehicle 2. As they approached, Chris could see clearer the red snow and lifeless bodies. "They were attacked." He said to to the Crew. "Your powers of observation are astounding, mate." Steward told him Dryly. Chris spotted Gask and Sadie off to the side, way out in the snow. She was crouched over him, with his head in her knees. Chris thought he could hear her yelling but couldn't be sure with the howling winds, at any rate, he could tell they needed medical assistance, and Spence had taken the Doc. "Tell them we need the doc out here!" Chris yelled at eve before he dismounted the truck to try and help.
"Tell them we need the doc out here!" Chris yelled at eve before he dismounted the truck Steward followed after Chris, "I only know basic first aid". As both men approached the two bodies they could see a women leaning over a man, covered from head to toe in blood, quickly kneeling besides the wounded man "CHRIS STOP GAWPING, TAKE HER TO THE CONVOY!.....NOW!!!" Quickly taking off his thick snow coat and placed it around the man, placing a hand to the mans cheek in a sign off reassurance " ya gonna make it mate" smiling "Hang in there" Grabbing the snow around him, he started smearing it onto the wound trying to numb and coagulate the blood; reaching under his fleece he began tearing his shirt into strips and placing the smaller strips inside of the wound "You with me mate?"...."can ya tell me ya name?" Stripping larger pieces to bandage up the wound followed by more snow. Taking the man by the arms, Steward began to drag him to the convoy
Gasks head bobbed around loosely on his neck as he was dragged through the snow. He could make out a number of voices around him, but the only one his ears recognized was Sadie's. Gask thought for a moment on how cold it was outside, how he couldn't feel his hands or feet. "You with me mate?"...."can ya tell me ya name?" So many questions and Gask's head hurt to much to give any real answer. The only thing he could manage before slipping back into darkness was a mumbled, "Bastard broke my cigarette."
Hawke again opened his eyes The others looked down on him. He tried to sit up but the pain was still with him. Hawke looked at Mika. "Can you please get me a frakking Cigar. Just stuff it in my lips. And give it a light." Hawke groaned. He was beginning to get used to the pain. Yet it was his lungs craving that fix of niocotine from one of his fine Cigars.
All was quiet up top. No sign of danger anywhere. But that wasn't a definite confirmation of a break in battle. He did a little scouting of the area, not the Alec Gaston special of course, but he wanted to get an idea of what could be lurking. Those Van Haars were a tricky breed. Excellent training. He saw Gaston come back to the Behemoth, and a doctor following not much later. The Ghost must have been injured. Or maybe it was for the pretty little number that the Captain brought in to ride with them. This was not a good sign. He looked around at the other trucks, one had a windshield done in. Two friendlies were on foot. Had they been hurt? The cold snapped on his face. He drew a breath and watched the fog blow out. His flesh wound was also bitten by the storm, but he wasn't as important as the others, so he would wait until the doctor wasn't so busy.
Chris had never seen so much blood in his life, both of them were covered in so much of it, he couldn't tell where they were wounded. He could only stand and stare at the horrible scene, until Steward's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "CHRIS STOP GAWPING, TAKE HER TO THE CONVOY!.....NOW!!!" Following Steward's example Chris removed his thick coat and wrapped it around the woman, the one they called Sadie. "My name's Chris, I'm going to take you back to your truck where we'll w-wait for the D-Doc Alright? C-c-c-c-can you walk?" Chris was freezing without his coat. He didn't wait for a response from Sadie. He picked her up in his arms and began trudging through the snow, heading for truck 2.
Sadie watched Gask being dragged away torn between relief that he was being tended to, and disapproval at the way he was being tended to. Even if he was unconscious, being hauled backwards over the snow could not be good for his injuries. Though, to Sadie’s approval and amusement, he hadn’t been too badly injured for an indignant remark about the fate of his cigarette. Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t realise she was still kneeling in the snow until the man still stood with her wrapped his coat around her shoulders. Kind the action may have been, but she gritted her teeth as it caused another bolt of pain to shoot through her left arm. She also had enough sense to realise that while she appreciated the extra warmth, it was an idiotic sacrifice – the man would freeze. “My name's Chris, I'm going to take you back to your truck where we'll w-wait for the D-Doc Alright? C-c-c-c-can you walk?” She didn’t get a chance to reply before she was literally swept off her feet; the ground disappeared from under her and Sadie found herself cradled in the man’s arms as he trudged over the snow towards one of the trucks. “Apparently not,” she answered, “Once we get to the truck, you’re taking your coat back. Unless, for some reason, you want to be a popsicle. In which case I’ll just go ahead and watch you freeze.”
Chris smiled at her comment as a gust of icy wind took a cheapshot at his scantily clad torso, sending a violent shiver down his back. "Yeah, I i-instantly regret g-giving it t-to you." he said, grinning. "B-but luckily the effort of c-carrying your heavy ass is s-s-starting to warm m-me up."
"Son of a bitch," Omar said as Gask was dragged over to him. The doctor's hands were already slick with Captain Hawke's blood. The man's life was hanging by a thread. "I really appreciate you all trying to make me feel useful, but we're really not equipped to handle this many casualties. For God's sake, I at least need a sterile environment! We have open wounds here!" Omar elevated Hawke's leg and inserted a cannula into to drain away the blood and prevent hematoma, collecting it in a plastic pack for later use. "Steward!" he snapped. "Keep pressure on that wound! I'll be there in a second." The doctor removed the cannula, disinfected Hawke's wound, re-did the stitching and wrapped it. The bleeding didn't stop. "Shιt." Omar moved over to Steward and Gask. "Hey Mika, you know how to make a tourniquet? Our dear captain's losing too much blood. We need to cut off circulation. And, if we have to chop off his leg later because of it, I want you to be the one he's pissed at." Gask was bleeding pretty heavily from the head. That complicated things. Omar hoped he wasn't brain-damaged; he liked the guy. "Alright, Gask. It's very important you stay awake, you hear me? I'm going to play around with you a bit. Tell me what hurts."
Half way through dragging the semi-concious man towardsthe convoy he released a mumble "Bastard broke my cigarette." fading back into unconciousness, Steward released a grin "Easy geeza" Fed up with dragging the mans body he decieded to lug the body over the back of his shoulders "Jeez, lost that much blood and ya still Heavy as f**k!" Turning around Steward saw Chris 20 yards in front carry the female, Steward decided to start jogging towards the convoy "LETS HURRY IT UP CHRIS,"MY ASS IS FREEZING" shouted steward, followed by a slap to chris behind "LAST ONE THERE'S A SMELLY ASSED DREKK"
"Can you please get me a frakking Cigar. Just stuff it in my lips. And give it a light." Hawke groaned. Mika could have argued that. But as the doc was finishing up the last couple of sutures, she didn't see the harm in giving the man his comfort of choice. She rifled a cigar from his pocket, bit off the end and spat it into a corner of the cab, before stuffing it between his lips and searching for his lighter. Finding it, she gave him a light, smiling at the look of profound relief that crossed his face. Pandemonium broke out near the truck with cries for the doctor. Omar looked exhausted already as he rushed to help the newest casualties. "Up to me to bandage you, I think." Mika told Hawke, finding some bandage and doing so.
“Yeah, I i-instantly regret g-giving it t-to you,” Chris replied with a grin, but the chattering teeth rather ruined the effect. “B-but luckily the effort of c-carrying your heavy ass is s-s-starting to warm m-me up.” Sadie pursed her lips together in a scowl, narrowing her eyes at her helper. She was suddenly glad that he was cold. With her good hand she pulled his coat a little tighter around her to rub it in, but her plan rather backfired as her dislocated shoulder throbbed painfully. That only served to irritate her further and she answered in her most sarcastic tone. “Oh, real smooth, aren’t you? Didn’t your mother ever teach you not to comment on a woman’s weight?” she demanded. “That’s just bad form.”
"Alright, Gask. It's very important you stay awake, you hear me? I'm going to play around with you a bit. Tell me what hurts," came the Doc's familiar voice. Gask rolled his head around into a point of questionable stability before giving the Doc a slight grin. He managed to raise his hand in front of his face so that he was staring into his palm. "It hurts here..." He moved his hand down to the left side of his chest. "...and here."
