From her position Hunter nervously watched the surrounding flora pass by. It was too bad it was filled with catpeople and she was only there for her job, because otherwise the jungle kicked ass.

//No pun intended,// she joked to herself, not feeling it appropriate to mention her botanical observations at this point in time.

//Damn but doesn't this place scream take my picture! Too bad I don't have a camera- or take decent pictures... but that's besides the point.// The weight of the past events attacks both internal and external left an odd tension about the group and Adrienne would be happy to just get this over with and go home.

The increasing grade caused their slow group to move even slower and, being one of the few, the proud, the uninjured, adjusted her pace accordingly. Adrienne wondered why they hadn't just aborted all together. How much more risk was ahead - she doubted they could stand a major ambush and come out alive. But she was a good little subordinate and kept her mouth firmly shut.

~*~*~

The rain beat mercilessly on the top of Rhea’s head as she trudged alongside Mac in the pouring rain. Her poncho was next to useless in the downpour, with water quite happily trickling down her neck and down the back of her top. She was almost tempted to ditch the stupid thing, but decided against it just in case being without it was worse that wearing it. She was so busy wondering if a change of clothing was in order that she caught the toe of one boot on a slight projection from the muddy path and went sprawling face first. A hand grasped the back of her poncho and helped to pull her upright.

“Bloody hell,” she cursed, trying to rub the thick goop off her face and failing miserably.

“Here, let me help you. You look like you’ve just visited the beautician from hell,” Mac said, using the sleeve of his jacket to help clean her face.

“Thanks,” she said when the procedure was over with. “You’ve got mud in your hair.”

Mac nearly went cross-eyed trying to see. “Where?”

Rhea chuckled and ran her fingers through his close-cropped thatch. “See?” she said, showing him her fingers after she’d finished.

“How the hell-?” He ran his hand over his hair and looked at the mud that was transferred as a result of the action.

A cough interrupted their banter. Mac turned and looked at Start, the person doing the coughing. “Are you okay?” he asked, the concern obvious in his voice.

“I’m fine,” she said tightly. “I was just wondering when we were going to stop inspecting each other for lice and try to catch up with the others.”

The major did an admirable job of covering up a glare, although Rhea could tell by the way a small muscle twitched in his jaw that he wasn’t overly amused by her demeanour. “Whatever you say doctor,” he said in a surprisingly un-tense voice. “Let’s get going.”

A few more minutes walking saw Mac take another tumble, Rhea muddy up her hands and knees and Start persistently stay upright, no matter how much they slipped around the place. The rain eased up slightly during the hike, making conditions a little less uncomfortable. But it wasn’t until it had settled into an incredibly annoying drizzle that they were finally able to make contact with the team ahead of them.

“Major Mackenzie?” MacDonald’s voice asked over the radio.

“I’m here lieutenant. What’s the problem?” Mac asked.

“Sir, I think we might’ve found something.”

~*~*~

Tirion pulled her soaking jacket tighter around herself in an effort to relieve some of the chill in her limbs, and, ultimately, stop her teeth chattering. She walked slightly ahead of Mackenzie and O'Shea, once again concentrating on the treacherously slippery path. The astrophysicist knew she was being a crotchety old cow, but she could hardly breathe, move, or stay awake. It tends to put one in a bad mood. Not to mention the fact that she was feeling increasingly useless. She knew very well Mackenzie had called the team separation because of her. He and Rhea were well fit enough to continue at the pace they had previously. Tirion knew she wasn't. She had a fair idea why he pulled Rhea back, too. He probably didn't trust the woman not to throw herself in the way of any danger the team was put in. The Tok'ra would be real happy with him for killing off one of their ambassadors. That aside...

The CO of SG-15 had a crush.

She had watched him wipe the mud off O'Shea's face, watched as she ran a hand through his hair, and a small sad smile had reached her face. It had been a long time since she had allowed herself to feel that way about someone. It almost made her heart soften towards him. Then of course, her lungs had to protest the tight strapping around them, which destroyed the whole moment. He had looked almost guiltily at her - why? Did he think she disapproved? She shook her head. Of course he did. He thought she disapproved of everything he did... every decision he made. He probably thought she was still angry with him for replacing Alex, when she was over it months ago. She hadn't done much to suggest otherwise, though. Maybe it was time to ease off a bit.

The rain had eased to a drizzle when Mackenzie's radio sparked to life. MacDonald had found something. Relief ran through Start - she was tired of hurting and wanted nothing more than a warm bath and maybe someone to put her offending bones back in place.

She strained her ears to hear the rest of the conversation, but didn't succeed, so decided it would be a good idea to turn around and head back to them. That is, until her foot slipped, sending her legs out to the side and her body crashing down onto the ground. As she fell, she thought about how totally ungraceful she must be looking, that is, until her body finally collided, forcing her injured left shoulder into the mud and her elbow into her side.

She felt nothing for three seconds, then a stabbing pain ran through her entire upper body, rendering her unable to do anything, including swear very loudly and profusely. She clenched her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut, vaguely aware that mud was seeping into her clothes and hair. Hurried voices floated ahead, but she had no idea who it was.

//Get up...// She screamed at herself. //Get UP!//

Planting her right hand into the ground, she rolled slowly forward then up onto her knees, pulling her hand away to wrap around her ribcage. She felt an incredible need to cough, but each time she did spots danced in front of her eyes.

A figure dropped down in front of her, reaching out and grasping her upper arms. Tirion guessed it to be Mackenzie. Looking up in the direction she believed his face to be, she gritted her teeth again.

"I'm fine.." She said. "I'm fine... It's okay... I'm okay... I just fell... I'm fine..."

As she spoke, she found herself able to focus on his face, well enough to see a small muscle twitching in his jaw - the one that said he was angry. The one she'd seen - and often deservedly so - directed her way so many times. But now, she saw it, and pulled her arms tighter around herself.

"I'm sorry..." She whispered. "I'm okay... I just fell."

He stared. Mud trickled down from the corner of her mouth and she reached up to wipe it away, looking down at her hand to make sure she got it.

There was no mud, only a red smudge.

Her hand shook, and as the rain continued to fall, she felt something else weasel its way into her stomach. Fear.

~*~*~

The rain hadn't lessened a bit and the ground was starting to get treacherously slippery. Rhea had only just dumped herself face first in the mud, and Mac had helped her clean some of the muck off herself, while managing to liberally plaster himself in it too. For some reason he felt awkward as he helped O'Shea. He glanced up to see Tirion watching and knew why. Her expression as she watched was...hell, Mac couldn't explain it. It was just not her normal one.

Finally the rain eased up and MacDonald's voice could be heard on the radio. "Major Mackenzie?"

"I'm here lieutenant. What's the problem?" Mac replied.

"Sir, I think we might've found something."

Mackenzie's excitement grew as he turned to call the two women together for the final push to join the others. He saw Tirion turn and trip, falling almost in slow motion. He was already running towards her before she hit the ground. He called her name - to him it also sounded distant... as if it was shouted from another person. Mac's boots slid all over the place as he scrambled through the mud to her. She hadn't moved much since she'd hit the deck. He was almost there... when he saw her struggling to her knees and he threw himself to the ground in front of her, peering up into her face. She looked up at him, blurrily and unfocused, and clearly unable to make out who he was.

Mac grasped her upper arms and held her tightly, panic-filled worry flooding through him.

"I'm fine..." he heard her say in a gasp voice. "I'm fine... It's okay... I'm okay... I just fell...I'm fine..."

But Mac wasn't fooled. He knew she was far from fine and he felt a deep anger at himself for endangering her yet again. He'd failed to protect her when that creature had attacked and now this! Hell, he should've seen the signs and taken her back to safety. Back to the base camp. Not further on. Not risking her life like this. His anger grew as he saw her focus on his face, her face ridden with pain.

"I'm sorry... I'm okay... I just fell."

Mackenzie held her still as he stared into her face. Her hair was hanging in muddy tendrils around her face, but that wasn't what bothered him. He could only see the smear of blood in the corner of her mouth and his heart missed a beat. Tirion wiped at it and she also saw something serious had happened. Rhea hovered nearby, almost hopping from foot to foot in worry, but the blood had been hidden from her by Mac's back.

He thought hard and fast. There was no way she could carry on. Not now. But he knew they couldn't stay here - in the middle of the trail that was rapidly turning into a mud slide. He came to a decision. He needed Diens. He tried his radio, cursing fluently when he couldn't raise the others. Quickly pulling the amulet from Tirion's neck, he turned to Rhea.

"You have to go on ahead and fetch Diens," he told her, trying to ignore the wild-eyes panic this statement brought to O'Shea's face. "Wear this. It will warn you if anything is near by. You have your ribbon device?" He glanced at her hand as she poked it out of her poncho.

"Yes, Mac," she replied in a small voice.

"Good. And take this," he handed her his gun.

"But that leaves you with nothing," she said, her concern thick in her voice.

"Start has a gun. We'll be fine. Now GO!" He watched as she almost flew up the slope, hoping he was making the right decision. He knew he couldn't leave Rhea with Tirion as he had to move her out of the way of a potential mud slide. The others weren't too far ahead, he tried to convince himself as he pulled Start into his arms. He heard her protest irritably and ignored her. HE stood, trying to maintain his balance and not fall over himself and carried the injured woman into the trees, looking for some shelter at least. He looked down at her as she huddled against his chest and frowned. Her eyes were closed and pain-induced furrows covered her forehead. He could also see some fresh blood on her lips.

"Dammit to hell,' he swore to himself as he placed her as gently as he could beneath a thickly-foliaged tree. "Doc?" he said softly. "Tirion?"

She opened her eyes slightly. "Mac... It hurts," she finally admitted.

Mac rubbed a hand across his face as his worry grew out of proportion. "Come on Rhea," he muttered as he pulled Start's head onto his lap.

~*~*~

"I'd definitely say that we've found something," Angel breathed as MacDonald reported to Mackenzie through the radio. The stone structure before them was intricate in design and immensely, totally, completely, waaaay…

“Cool,” the anthropologist whispered as she approached it.

“Don’t go too close, McNamara,” the Canadian called.

“Yeah, yeah.” Muttering, Angel reached out and brushed her had against the rough, sandstone surface. At least, she thought it was sandstone. In all honesty, she hadn’t a clue about what kind of rock it was - she wasn’t a geologist!

Hunter approached and looked up at the archway to the darkened tunnel that led into the face of the mountain. “What’s that?” She gestured with her weapon.

“Hmm? Oh, that’s Mayan glyph writing.” Seeing the Sergeant’s blank look, the young woman continued. “It’s basically the Mayan equivalent of Egyptian hieroglyphics.” Adrienne nodded and pulled out her flashlight. Flicking it on and shining it into the darkness, the NCO peered through the rain into the dark tunnel. Angel glanced up from her now-crouched position in the mud near the wall. “See anything?”

“Not a damned thing. It’s like the light’s just bouncing off it.”

“Maybe it’s pretty deep?” Diens suggested.

“Maybe.” McNamara looked up at the military contingent.

“Mackenzie’s on his way with O’Shea and Start,” MacDonald’s voice called as he approached.

“They may be a while,” Tatanya replied.

“Can you read what that says?” Asked the Canadian, gesturing to the text on the wall.

“No.” Angel’s answer was short and blunt.

“No? But I thought you spoke Spanish?”

“I do, but translating written glyphs to match sounds and sounds to words can take a long time, even if I knew what the glyphs meant.” They looked at her and she looked back. “I can’t do it.”

“Then I guess we just wait for the Major,” Hunter said, sitting down on a nearby rock.

“Or we can go inside.”

“No way, McNamara, we wait for Mackenzie first.”

“You wait for Mackenzie, I’m going inside to take a look. Don’t worry, I won’t go far.” The anthropologist was already on her way in before they could stop her.

~*~*~

The chance to go on ahead was a wonderful tension releaser, but Adrienne felt a little guilty about her angry comments made previously. The rain set in, not improving the mood of anyone. But the appearance of the structures was a relief. Maybe they could at least get out of the rain.

Adrienne only half-heartedly listened to McNamara’s explanation of the symbols. History had never been her strong suit, and all that matter was that they had found what they were looking for.

“Can you read what that says?” asked the Canadian, gesturing to the text on the wall.

“No.” Angel’s answer was short and blunt.

“No? But I thought you spoke Spanish?”

“I do, but translating written glyphs to match sounds and sounds to words can take a long time, even if I knew what the glyphs meant.” They looked at her and she looked back. “I can’t do it.”

“Then I guess we just wait for the Major,” Hunter said, sitting down on a nearby rock.

“Or we can go inside.”

“No way, McNamara, we wait for Mackenzie first.”

“You wait for Mackenzie, I’m going inside to take a look. Don’t worry, I won’t go far.” The anthropologist was already on her way in before they could stop her.

Hunter cast a look towards MacDonald then back in the direction McNamara had gone. "Dah crap. You wait here, I'll keep in touch." She trotted into the darkness, switching on her flashlight.

"McNamara! Wait up!"

~*~*~

Rhea ran as fast her legs could manage up the muddy hill. She was covered in mud thanks to a myriad of falls, and one arm hang uselessly at her side thanks to a particularly nasty spill. It had happened so quickly that she hadn’t had the chance to break her fall with her hands, so her shoulder did the job – which had lead to a dislocation and fractured collarbone as far as she could tell. But after a few moments sitting in the rain bawling her eyes out in agony, she picked herself up and continued. Exactly what was motivating her wasn’t entirely clear to her exhaustion fogged mind. For all she knew, it could be the panic she’d heard in Mac’s voice. It could be the ashen look on Start’s face as she’d knelt in the mudpile that the trail had become. But, whatever it was, it allowed for her to cover the distance between her starting point and the others in a time that would’ve put a sprinter to shame, even taking her falls into account.

She staggered around the final curve in the trail and finally spotted MacDonald and Diens sitting at the front of a large structure. Relief at seeing them immediately robbed her of what little fortitude she had left, her legs giving out and dumping her into a panting mess in the mud.

“O’Shea, what are you doing here?” MacDonald yelled, jogging over to her. “Where are the major and Dr Start?”

“They- Start- hurt- Diens,” she got out between heaving breaths. “Help- please.”

Glances were shot between the two lieutenants. “What about-?” Diens said.

“I’ll stay. Go back with O’Shea. Hurry,” MacDonald replied quickly. “Go.”

Hearing that she was to lead the way back to the accident site, Rhea shook her head violently. “I can’t. I need rest. It’s okay if you play it safe.” Her mouth twisted as she glanced at her injured shoulder, which was out of site thanks to the poncho. “You’ll have to go with her. Take this,” she said, holding out the amulet. “I’ll be fine. Please, she’s not doing well.”

MacDonald nodded tersely and unclipped his radio. “Keep this.”

She nodded mutely and held the item to her chest as the pair took off into the storm. When they’d disappeared out of sight, she looked towards the building that the duo had been sitting out the front of. Even with her view somewhat impaired by the rain falling in bucketloads, it was still impressive – and from the way MacDonald said he’d stay, in addition to the absence of the other two, McNamara and Hunter had gone inside.

//Are they insane?// she thought as she picked herself up off the ground and staggered over to resume MacDonald and Diens’ guard duty.

~*~*~

Tirion existed in a haze of pain and nothing much else. It occurred to her that she would really appreciate some of that stubborn energy she had in spades all through the mission. Unfortunately, it appeared she had used it all up on the way. Even her teeth chattering was making her tired. Closing her eyes she slipped her hands up the opposite sleeves of her jacket in an effort to keep them warm.

Mackenzie knew the woman in his arms had done something serious. More than she'd admit - to him, at least. His frown deepened as he looked down at her, noting her shivering state as she closed her eyes. She was icy cold - he could feel that himself - and he awkwardly pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around her. He knew it was soaked but at least it should help a little. He hoped so anyway.

"Tirion?" he said softly. "Stay awake, will you?"

She heard Mac's voice and opened her eyes slowly. His face looked strange, causing her to frown. Moments later, she realised what it was. "You're upside down..." She slurred.

Mac grinned at her, hearing the Tirion he knew so well, even if only a little. "Are you still in pain?" he asked, knowing damn well she'd say no, but also knowing she was. He felt his frustration grow as he realized she'd probably never accept his help or his worry. If only time could go back - he knew he'd handle his first meeting with her so differently if he had another chance.

Start frowned. "Yeah..." She said, quietly. "I guess that's what you get for landing on broken ribs, huh?"

//Hell, she admitted it,// Mac told himself in disbelief. "You know something, Start?" he said very softly, seeing her glance up at him. "You're one stubborn woman."

//Yeah, almost as stubborn as me,// he silently added.

She chuckled, which only sent her into a weak spasm of coughing. "It's been said once or twice..."

"Hey... don't talk, ok?" he told her pulling her closer as she began to shiver once more. Some of the rain was managing to find its way through the leaves and he leant over her in an attempt to keep it away. Mac tried his radio again. Nothing. “Doc... Maybe I need to check you over," he suggested, waiting to get shot down in a blaze of glory.

"What..." She replied jokingly. "You wanna frisk me? In your dreams, major…" He frowned at her and she found herself laughing at her own joke. "Just what exactly to you need to know?"

Mac grinned at her. "Don't get so excited, doc," he threw back at her. "I just wanted to make sure you weren't bleeding all over my jacket." He tried to hide his concern, knowing she was worried too. An overhead rumbling could be heard, signalling the return of the storm. "Oh, great," he mumbled, knowing they'd probably have to move out from beneath the tree once more. "Hey... we'll need to move again, ok?"

"Sure," she said quickly, pulling his jacket off her. "Just give me a hand up and-" She was cut off by more coughing, and quickly wiped what she knew to be blood away from her mouth with her sleeve. She dropped her arm back to her side, utterly exhausted. "You mind if we just stay here?" She asked. "I... don't think I can go anywhere."

As he looked down at her face he knew she couldn't move - not under her own steam. His head snapped up as the first real rumble sounded and he saw the lightning fork down again. "I'm sorry, honey...we have to move," he whispered, standing quickly and hefting her into his arms. He heard her groan and bit his lip in anguish. The trail wasn't the best solution as it was so slick and there was the inherent danger of a mudslide. So he headed into the trees, towards where he could just see open space. Maybe they would find safety there. He hoped so as he knew he couldn't carry her far. She was light enough, but his hands were little use. "Not too far. Promise," he said as he walked as fast as he could.

She felt herself be lifted into his arms but didn't have the energy to protest. As much as she knew he was trying to keep her from getting hurt, each step jarred her ribs, creating waves of pain through her chest. She felt rain pour onto her face as the storm once again passed over them, and, for a brief second, wondered what the hell she was still doing alive.

Mac walked as carefully as he could, knowing he was hurting her. He felt himself start to panic slightly, not sure what to do next. Not sure whether he was even killing her by moving her. But they couldn't stay under the trees, or return to the trail. He found an overhanging section of the cliff wall that ran down the right hand side of the clearing - almost a small cavern. At least it was dry. He lowered her to the ground again and covered her with his jacket. Only problem now was, would the others be able to locate them? Mac looked back at where they'd just come from. The trail wasn't in sight. And no way would he leave her alone while he went for help. He prayed his radio would function again soon as he crouched by Start's side.

"Good one, chief..." Tirion wheezed, becoming more aware of the brevity of their situation "Now how are they going to find us?"

Mackenzie narrowed his eyes. "Honestly?" he said, looking down at her. "I don't know." Without holding out much hope, he tried his radio again, almost pitching the useless piece of equipment into the jungle when it failed to work. He peered out into the ever-increasing rain, hoping for a glimpse of Diens while also worrying about O'Shea.

"Oh for crying out loud, Jake... they're not going to find us..." Start paused to catch her breath. "What you are going to do... is go. Leave me behind." Coughing overtook her once more, but she didn't bother to wipe the blood off her lips. "Look at me..." she continued. "I'm no good to you. There's no sense in both of us dying out here."

"Stop trying to play the heroine, Start," he almost snapped back at her. If he were honest with himself, he'd know his flash of temper was born out of pure frustration, something that stemmed from his current inability to get her out of this mess. He knew he wouldn't leave her, no matter how much she wanted him to. "Its not gonna happen, doc, so give it up," he added. "We're in this together whether you like it or not."

Jake Mackenzie sat down heavily next to Tirion Start and wiped the back of his left hand gently across her mouth, leaving her blood on the bandage covering his wound. He gently lifted her slightly in an attempt to ease her ragged breathing. He felt her relax slightly and lean into his chest and he pressed his head back against the cold, hard stone wall behind him, trying to come up with a way out of the mess they found themselves in.

~*~*~

A sickening feeling started in Tatyana's stomach as she saw the heavily breathing Rhea O'Shea run towards them.

//Where are the others?// Was her first thought.

“O’Shea, what are you doing here?” MacDonald yelled, jogging over to her. “Where are the major and Dr Start?”

“They- Start- hurt- Diens,” she got out between heaving breaths. “Help- please.”

Glances were shot between the two lieutenants. “What about-?” Diens said.

“I’ll stay. Go back with O’Shea. Hurry,” MacDonald replied quickly. “Go.”

Hearing that she was to lead the way back to the accident site, Rhea shook her head violently. “I can’t. I need rest. It’s okay if you play it safe.”

Diens saw her glance at her shoulder, but didn’t have time to worry about any more injuries.

“You’ll have to go with her. Take this,” she said, holding out the amulet. “I’ll be fine. Please, she’s not doing well.”

MacDonald nodded tersely and unclipped his radio. “Keep this.”

The two lieutenants took off into the storm, having a rough idea of where to find the two missing SG-15 members.

"I *knew* I shouldn't have gone ahead! This is all my fucking fault!" Tatyana said angrily to herself.

"This is no-one's fault. Nobody could have guessed Start would have gotten any worse." MacDonald replied as they both carried on running.

"I should have put my foot down."

"And rank would've been pulled."

The two reached the last known position of the major and Start. "Where the hell are they?" Diens said.

"They were here." MacDonald said as he saw a used bandage only a few feet away.

"I'm guessing a couple of them slipped around here. There's skid marks in the mud." Diens said. "Where would they have gone?"

"If I know the major, then I'd say he'd have taken her to some kind of shelter around here."

"What the hell was he thinking?" Diens said.

"He's looking out for a teammate."

"And by doing so he could kill her. If I'm guessing right from what O'Shea said and these slip marks, then Start's in trouble."

"What kind of trouble."

"There's no doubt she's broken something. But if she's getting worse she's in either extreme pain or the worse case scenario stopped being a scenario." Diens explained "I don't have to say what that scenario is."

"Then we'd better move it then, don't you think?"

~*~*~

Eventually Start fell into an uneasy sleep, one that was filled with mumbled words and bouts of shivering. Mac held her tightly, trying to keep as much of her body off the cold floor as he could. Sitting where he was he found the rain managed to reach in enough to completely soak him and he hunched a shoulder to protect Tirion from the elements - succeeding for the most part. He twisted his left wrist slightly to see that Rhea O'Shea had left almost two hours ago and his worry resurfaced. Diens should be here by now. That could mean one of two things. Either Rhea hadn't reach the others or Diens couldn't find them. Neither option was acceptable, but he hoped it was the latter.

He felt Tirion stir and feebly struggle to move away from him. "Keep still," he said firmly, gripping her even tighter and dragging his sodden jacket around her shaking body. His words reached her and she relaxed once more as Mac began to shiver himself. Finally, exhausted, his eyes began to close and, despite his discomfort, he also fell asleep, automatically maintaining his hold on Start.

~*~*~

Some time later, something woke him from his light doze. A sound... maybe. Whatever it was had been close by. He groped around on the floor to locate Start's gun and awkwardly held it in both hands - neither doing a proper job, but he wasn't going to let anything else happen to Tirion. He peered out into the rain, desperately trying to pinpoint the sound. He glanced left to see two figures walking towards them. He dropped the pistol.

"MacDonald!" he called. "Over here!" Mackenzie felt himself weaken with relief when he saw the team medic with the Lieutenant. Diens dropped to Start's side and muttered under her breath. It was all Mac could do to stay upright himself as Diens began to take a look at the injured woman as she lay across his lap. He closed his eyes once more and rested his head back, more than content to let her take over.

~*~*~

Diens ran over to Start's side "How long has she been like this Major?"

"Around forty minutes."

Diens touched Start's forehead - it was cold an clammy. She took off her poncho and jacket and laid both of them over the doctor.

Tatyana then did a quick set of observations on the doctor. She recorded her respirations (rapid, shallow, and uneven), her pulse and level of response.

"MacDonald, I want you to raise and support her legs for me." Diens told him as she helped Start to lie back down. She loosened the doctor's clothing around her neck, waist and chest.

Diens stood and walked over to Mackenzie "Sir, I need to talk to you."

"How is she Diens?"

"She's in trouble. We already knew that Start had four closed rib fractures. At first I thought she was alright, but she's gotten a lot worse. Did she fall again?"

"Yes, why?"

"She's showing all the signs of haemoptysis."

"What's that?" Mac asked.

"She's coughing up frothy, bright red blood. It's from her lungs sir,. I believe one of her ribs was forced out of place and perforated her pleura and lung."

"Can you help her?" he asked quietly.

"No. Not here. We need to get her to the nearest hospital with a chest trauma or respiratory unit. She can't walk either, she's not fit enough too."

"OK."

"And we need to do it as soon as possible. I believe the internal bleeding is causing pressure within her chest-"

"-And at this altitude it's being made worse." Mac finished for her.

"You got it." Diens said.

~*~*~

Rhea wasn't entirely sure of exactly how long she'd been sitting outside the entryway to the large building. An hour, maybe two. The exact length of time really wasn't mattering a great deal to her given the double whammy of not only having more injuries (like the ones she'd already received weren't enough) to deal with, but also two teammates apparently having disappeared into the great unknown. For a moment she'd been sorely tempted to search them out, but decided that sitting on a rock getting rained on and being in agony was more helpful than losing herself in a large building.

She shot a mile into the air when the radio she still held clenched in her working hand sprung to life with a loud hiss.

"O'Shea," a crackling voice asked.

"I'm here. Did you find them?" she asked, quelling the flutter of panic in her gut.

"Eventually," came the affirmative. "Have Hunter and McNamara come out yet?"

Rhea shook her head, before realising that the movement wasn't transmissible through radio waves. "No, they haven't. Should I-?"

"You'll do nothing of the sort," a different voice said.

This time Rhea did fall off her rock in surprise. She yelped as her shoulder contacted with the ground, unwittingly depressing the button that allowed for her voice to be heard by the others.

"Bloody hell," she swore through gritted teeth, squeezing the radio in her hand as she suppressed the urge to scream. "I'll stay here then shall I?" she finally said. Then she actually looked at the remains of the radio that she was trying to use. The hand holding it flopped back onto the ground and she just lay there while it rained on her face.

"Shit."

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