SHATTERED

By crystalquirt
"Thunderbirds Are Go!" Fan fiction
I don't own anyone or anything, and it's sad. I'd like to 'own' Virgil ^.^)) ~ and no, I would not share.

*** Very special thanks to TigreMalabarista for proofing it and making many wonderful suggestions and corrections!


CLASS FIELD TRIP


"Thunderbird 5, John, I'm entering the cave now. I'm not sure if comms will work once I get in further."

"FAB, Virgil, keep us informed if you can. If we lose contact, how long should I wait before sending the others?"

"Oh, I don't know, twenty minutes? This rescue should be quick - if they all stayed together. I'm looking for eight people, right?"

"Right Virgil. Two teachers and six elementary students. You should have taken MAX with you - he could have relayed messages."

"I tried to tell him, John," Brains joined the conversation. Max chirped in agreement.

"Come on! It'll be like a maze. I just have to find the kids and lead them out. No problem," Virgil said cheerily.

"Still, it's underground, and we don't know what you'll run into," John said. "The floor could give out, a stalagtite could fall on you, among other things."

"In these man-made caves? You didn't read or have any report of a cave in, or bad air, right?" Virgil asked.

"No . . . but be careful, Virgil, Just because they are man-made doesn't mean they won't be flawed - quite the opposite! And they are more than two decades old." John said, worry lacing his voice.

"I'm always careful, big brother," Virgil answered. "But schools use these caves all the time to take kids out on one or two hour nature hikes for science class. They just take a thirty minute hike inside, collect their matter for study and come back out the same way. I'm sure they just got turned around."

"Hope so, Virgil," John said.

In Pod Bay 3, while he and John spoke, Virgil loaded the pouches on his sash with even more grapple packs and other assorted hooks and spikes, taking as much with him as would fit. Lastly, Virgil backed into his power suit, and the automated robotic arms fitted on the pilot's body like it was made for him. It was, Brains took measurements in every way possible of Virgil's body while he was building the power suit. He shouldered several coils of climbing rope too before he left the Pod.

Just a short way inside the cave, water dripped in Virgil's hair. "Wow, that feels good on this hot summer's day." Virgil talked to himself lingering for a moment under the drip. "It will probably be cold if the people I rescue are down very deeply."

A lot of squeaking and leathery wings made loud rustling sounds over Virgil's head. He looked up to watch the bats.

"Hey guys, I didn't mean to startle you! Don't worry - we will be gone in no time," he spoke kindly to the bats.

The colony had been placed in the cave years ago by scientists and remained. The park service and local scientists monitored their behavior and health. Each bat had been vaccinated for rabies and had tiny bands in the folds of their right wings.

The path went down and down. Most of the way it was a gradual slant, until Virgil stopped at a fork in the cave. He went to the right, following many footprints. After the fork in the cave, he found that sometimes he had to slide down over large rocks to continue. Virgil wondered why the teachers would have led the children down over the steep rocks.

"Hello? Can anyone hear me?" He called but heard no answer.

"Well at least the footprints go this way, but I bet the path to the left would have been easier." Virgil observed.

Frequently, Virgil called out trying to hear an answer as he made his way deeper into the mountain. In some places the cave was very narrow, and he had to turn sideways. Virgil kept pushing his way through. Turning sideways for the third time, Virgil stopped and sighed.

"Wow, even Alan would have to turn sideways to get through here. The kids must have thought this was great fun." Virgil said out loud. His voice echoed even in the narrow area. Pointing his light, he could see that the cave opened up wider again on the other side.

"International Rescue," Virgil yelled, "I'm here to help you find your way out!" but he heard no answer.

Trying to get through another narrow place, he pushed extra hard but couldn't get through.

Virgil spoke out loud, a little frustrated, "This would have been a narrow fit for the teachers, but for me wearing my mobile Jaws of Life, it's like trying to thread a camel through the eye of a needle."

"The rock is solid here on both sides," Vigil continued thinking out loud. "I could cut or blast it out, but it'll be faster and safer if I just leave the power suit here." Virgil grunted softly, "I think I can squeeze through without the suit."

It turned out that taking off his Power Suit was not enough. Virgil unloaded all of his equipment and belts and tossed them through. Even without his gear, Virgil just barely squeezed himself through the small opening.

"This is not so much a cave, but only a crack in the rock. Much too hard for a school outing. They must have turned the wrong way at the fork."

Once he was through, Virgil put his tool belts, shoulder light and ropes all back on, but he left his Power Suit behind. He straightened his equipment and continued down another steeper path going deeper into the earth. The scanner he carried showed that the cave had plenty of air for even an extended stay by many people.

"Well, at least there is enough air. Thunderbird 5 can you still hear me?"

"Affirmative Thunderbird 2. How are you doing?" John answered.

"Okay so far - I have their footprints. With that many kids, they've been easy to track. I had to leave my power suit behind. This path is pretty rocky - I wouldn't call it a beginner path for a class outing."

His brother aboard the space station, frowned and said, "The person that called it in didn't know what might have happened. Only that they were late coming back to afternoon classes."

"I think they went the wrong way at the fork a while back."

Virgil kept walking while he spoke with John. He slid skillfully down a rock face and when he got to the bottom, he said, "I'm not getting back up that last rock without using my climbing gear, but the kids did go this way. There are still footprints all over the place."

"Bad news Thunderbird 2, that means you may need help getting that many people back out of that cave," John said.

"Don't panic, John. I've seen no evidence that they are hurt, and I have climbing gear with me," he said, only to hear static in his communicator.

"What was that Virgil? Please repeat, you're breaking up!" John said, his voice crackled too."

"I'm losing you, John, just wait - I'll contact you as soon as I can," Virgil called into the radio, only to hear silence. He surveyed the area around him, puzzled at the silence that still permeated the cavern. Someone should've spoken by then, he thought.

"Hello? Can anyone hear me?" Virgil yelled, and then spoke to himself, "I can't believe that I'm still not close enough for them to hear me. How deep did they go?"

In the control room on Tracy Island, John's hologram appeared and he said, "We have a situation, guys. I just lost radio contact with Thunderbird 2!"

"We did too. But Virgil sounds pretty confident that he can get everyone out." Kayo said.

"FAB, but just in case, I'm sending Scott his way as soon as he's finished with that GDF Hummer that rolled into a crevasse at that Yellowstone wildfire."

"FAB, let us know if you need us," Gordon said, and then he spoke to Alan, "I wish I would have gone with Virgil on this one."

"Yeah, but you were helping Brains in the lab. Virgil said he didn't want to take you away from that."

"I can help Brains anytime. A mission is a mission!"

"Rather than just sitting here worrying, let's both go back to the lab and see what Brains is working on now," Alan suggested.

When they arrived, they found Brains was welding a large piece of metal when they got there. Soon they were busy helping him build a new heat bank for Thunderbird 4.

Later on, the comms beeped and John's hologram appeared in Brains lab.

"Guys, we may have a problem - a situation at Virgil's location."

"What is it, John?" Alan asked.

"I just focused my scans deeper, much deeper and found that the network of manmade caves that Virgil and those kids are in, is on top of an old coal mine," John explained. "The mine was accessible only from the North side of the mountain range - Virgil entered from the South aspect of the mountain range and wouldn't know."

"Uh Oh," Brains said, taking off his welding helmet.

"Why Uh Oh, Brains?" asked John.

"Methane gas is a byproduct of coal."

"Isn't methane what is in a fart?" Gordon asked, making Alan giggle.

"Yes, but in much less volume," Brains answered with not so much as a smile. "Methane is the main component of natural gas. It only takes mixtures of approximately nine-point-five percent of methane in the air to be explosive. When the right amount of fuel mixes with the right amount of oxygen, this produces water, carbon dioxide and a lot of heat."

"So why the Uh oh?" asked Alan again, worried.

"In an old mine especially if it has been closed off, the concentrations of gas will be enough to explode at the slightest rise in heat," Brains answered.

That wiped the smirk off of both younger brothers' faces. "How can we let Virgil know what he's walking into?" Gordon asked.

"I don't know. By Virgil's description, the path would not be easy enough for MAX to navigate," Brains said, someone else may have to go down and find him."

Alan said, "But Virgil is an explosives and caves expert. Won't he see what's happening?"

"It's likely that he will – I just hope he does in time. The heat generated by this process raises the temperature of the air. It does not take much heat to ignite the combustion process, and therefore methane explosions can accelerate very fast."

Brains continued, but Alan and Gordon were already running to gear up and take Thunderbird 3. In moments they launched.

"The heat causes it to expand in volume. Since hot air cannot expand easily underground, pressure builds in the mine. If this pressure is high enough, it can cause the air ahead of the combustion zone to compress and cause a shock wave . . ." said Brains, only to find himself alone in the lab with just a slightly worried hologram. "Oh. R-A-D! Thunderbirds are go!"

In flight, Alan called John, "What are Thunderbird 2's coordinates?"

"Why?" John asked.

"Gordon and I are in Thunderbird 3. We're going to try and help Virgil."

"Okay, but be careful - you'll find Thunderbird 2 at 1.1257 by 8.53. I have no way to tell how deeply Virgil has gone. I lost contact a while ago."

"We know," Gordon and Alan said together.

"FAB, Thunderbird 3," John answered.


"Instead of getting cooler as I go deeper, the temperature is getting hotter," Virgil stated out loud.

He was breathing fast. His body was trying to pull in more oxygen. He checked the surrounding air and temperature levels. He frowned at the findings. "There is very little air here and with the heat, there could be a lot of natural gas accumulation somewhere in these caves.

Virgil tapped his sash communicator, "Thunderbird 5, can you read me?" He tried, the growled softly in frustration. "No answer. These people could be running out of air. And if it is Natural gas, which I believe it is, it could explode at any minute."

Virgil jogged ahead, trying to hurry to find the lost kids.

"I still see footprints and lots of them," Virgil said to himself. After climbing just over a short ledge, Virgil saw bright colors ahead in the the light he wore on his shoulder.

"That can only be children's clothing! They dropped their outerwear as they began to get too hot." Virgil jogged forward, becoming more breathless as he pressed on after finding the colorful items on the ground. He noticed a bright pink sweater in particular, along with a couple of small, brightly colored backpacks.

Looking ahead, Virgil cried, "Oh no - from here it looks like they are already out cold!"

"Can any of you hear me?" Virgil called again making his way closer. "How will I carry all eight of them out of here?"

His rescue plans paused mid-thought when deep within the cave, he could hear a rumbling noise.

"Wait - what is that?" Virgil stopped and listened only to find that the sound was followed by an explosion that knocked him off of his feet.

He quickly stood back up, even before the rocks had stopped falling. They had been just a short distance away, but he could no longer see the kids or much of anything. The dust was too thick.

Coughing and wheezing, Virgil tried to find the kids again, but his path was completely blocked by fallen dirt and rock.

"Oh, no - no - no!" Virgil cried. He paced back and forth in the small area. He was looking, wishing for a way to get to the others when suddenly there was another explosion, and the earth disappeared from under Virgil's feet.

He slid feet-first on his stomach and then rolled onto his back. He tried to guide and slow himself down using his hands, but he couldn't find anything to hold onto. He rolled and tumbled until coming to the end of the rocky side.

The fall sent Virgil into the empty air for a moment, and he landed hard on his back and then rolled onto his side, groaning.

"Grrrhh! That left a mark," Virgil said breathlessly.

He moaned, feeling some pain as he pushed himself to his hands and knees. Virgil moved carefully, trying to tell if his back, arms and legs would work if he stood up.

He remained on his hands and knees, only to sit back a little on his heels, groaning. He tapped the IR logo on his sash.

Breathlessly, Virgil called, "Thunderbird 5, come in!"

He waited a moment, not hearing an answer. "John please, I think I have a big problem . . . Crud, no response."

"I had to try, but I know I lost radio contact a long time ago," Virgil said, looking up at the rocks above.

Several large boulders were stacked together in just a way that they made a sort of ceiling over his head.

"If just one of them moves, or there is another explosion, that whole pile will come down on me."

"I guess the teachers and all of the children were dead from the gas and lack of oxygen before I even got down here. Even if they weren't, now they're buried under tons of rock. If only I had been quicker - brought more equipment, my brothers - something."

Virgil went back to his hands and knees and then on his side, ending up on his back, he looked up at the tons of rock above his head. He looked around and saw nowhere to go.

Looking up at the rocks and thinking about the children, Virgil had a tear run from the corner of his eye and into his hair. "I'll never see my brothers again," he whispered.

He uttered a whimper and covered his face with his arm. Resting that way, he waited for the rocks to come down and crush him too.


Scott arrived first in Thunderbird 1 and landed next to Thunderbird 2. The pilot's seat lowered from the 'bird's belly, and Scott jumped off.

"Thunderbird 1 arrived in the danger zone, Thunderbird 5. There's no sign of Virgil. He must still be in the cave."

"FAB Scott," John answered, "What do you want to do?"

"I'm going in," Scott answered, loading more grapples from Thunderbird 2 onto his belt.

Which pod container is Two carrying?" John asked.

"The MOLE, in Pod 3," Scott replied.

"Perfect - you may have to use it. Gordon and Alan are on their way. EOS and I are trying to boost the power so we can broadcast deeper."

"FAB - I'm going in now. I'll stay on . . ." Scott was cut off. He felt a brief rumbling under his feet, and a blast of fiery dust billowed from the cave opening. Scott tried to turn and jump away, but the force still hit him.

He landed on his belly. Soot and burned dust covered his back and legs.

Scott kept his arms over his head, holding his breath until the blast was over.

John's worried voice run out from his comms, "What happened? Scott! Can-you-hear-me?"

Scott was getting up and brushing himself off when another explosion deeper in the mine shook the area knocking him to the ground again. "I'm glad my suit protected me from most of the heat and falling rock from the explosion," mumbled Scott.

"SCOTT!" John yelled when he detected another explosion.

"Yeah, Yeah, John - there was an explosion deep in the cave, two actually. I just got blown away from the entrance."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine - I'm going in!"

John didn't quite believe his brother's comment, but that paled to his next decision, "Scott, take the MOLE!"

"I wouldn't know which way to go yet," Scott argued, "Scans haven't been able to give us enough information! I could drill right through someone."

"You're right, Scott, sorry," John conceded.

"Have Gordon and Alan take the MOLE and follow below - and parallel to my signal."

"FAB, Scott - Find everyone, find Virgil," John said.

Scott ran into the mine, only slowing down when he had rocks to move or boulders to climb over. He kept calling out Virgil's name and yelling 'International Rescue' in case one of the teachers or children heard him.

"John, Thunderbird 5, are you still with me?" Scott called after a while.

"FAB Scott. Have you seen anything yet?"

"No! It's been rough going, and now it seems like the cave is completely cut off."

"You're one hundred fifty feet down - almost to where I lost contact with Virgil."

"I'll keep moving rock - maybe it opens up on the other side."

"You could be digging for a hundred feet. I still can't scan that far down."

"I don't know what else I can do right now."

"Thunderbird 3 is arriving. Gordon will bring the MOLE to you at least."

"FAB," Scott said and rolled another large rock out of the way.

"AH-OH-NO! Thunderbird 5!" Scott cried, sounding panicked.

"What is it, Scott?" John asked in a voice as panicked as his eldest brother's.

"Virgil's Power Suit is under here! I just found the right grasping arm," Scott cried as he frantically moved some more rocks.

"Is he conscious, Scott?" John asked.

"I don't know - I can't find him! I don't know whether to be happy or scared, but Virgil is not in his power suit."

Inwardly John sighed in relief, but was still concerned. "He said the way was narrow and rough to travel. He must have taken it off on the way."

"Well, at least I know I'm in the right cave," Scott said. "But, John - these caves seems to be mostly destroyed. If Virgil or those kids are down here someplace . . ."

"I know Scott, don't even say it, said John. "EOS and I are working on our scanners. I won't give up."

"Who said anything about giving up? I'll dig to the Earth's core with my fingernails if must to find Virgil and those kids," Scott said defiantly.

"FAB, call if you find any other sign," John signed off.

Gordon rolled the MOLE out of the pod under Thunderbird 2. Alan stood by the ramp, watching.

"Okay," Gordon called, "John, the MOLE is ready, where should I point it?"

"One moment Gordon, I think EOS has something," John said.

After another short pause, John yelled, "There! EOS - you did it - I see Scott's and . . . I think . . . If it is Virgil, his signal is about a hundred feet below where Scott is now. I'm sending the coordinates to the MOLE."

"Scott, I'm reading one life sign below you - no others. It must be Virgil, right?"

"First we will rescue whoever belongs to that life sign," Scott said, his voice shook.

"It appears to be Virgil," John added, "Its frequency is close to what we use for International Rescue tracking signals," John said.

"You don't sound sure," Scott said.

"Our scans are more powerful now, but draining Thunderbird 5's energy stores fast, according to EOS. Accuracy is not completely guaranteed," John said. "I don't want to say for sure, in case –" John paused.

"It's good that Virgil remembered to turn his locator signal on," Scott said, "Gordon, are you coming?"

"FAB, I just received the coordinates."

"You can pick me up on the way can't you?"

"Of course. Brace yourself - I'll be pushing the MOLE's limits."

Standing by Thunderbird 2, Alan watched the MOLE disappear into the ground near the cave entrance. He began."John?"

"They will be okay, Alan. Hang in there," John answered knowing his little brother was worried.

"John, can you tell if Virgil's signal has moved at all?" Scott said. He was digging through the rocks to find all of the pieces of the Power Suit. He couldn't just wait quietly, and he couldn't think of anything else to do right then.

"From up here it does not look like he has moved at all," John answered.

"FAB," Scott said sadly, thinking of all that could be wrong, each possibility worse than the last.

The MOLE powerfully pushed its way through the mountain leaving a nice round hole in the earth behind it.

Gordon carefully watched his location change and Scott's coordinates so he wouldn't run into him or Virgil, or anyone else accidentally.

He brought the MOLE down into the small chamber right behind Scott where he was working to uncover Virgil's Power Suit.

The pointed nose cone appeared briefly, first and the vehicle dropped from the ceiling, landing with its nose in the dirt floor. Scott climbed up and sat behind Gordon, while the MOLE was still moving. He closed the hatch and Gordon piloted the machine on down, heading for Virgil's signal.

"Scott, the sensors on the MOLE are picking up Virgil's life signs and locations for sure now," Gordon said. "He's in a deep crack-like formation of rock and there's tons of loose rock over him. If we come down from above, he'll be buried."

"Then sweep around and enter from the side, or even below him." Scott said.

"I'll have to be precise. The pocket he's lying in is small and any movement might cause a cave in."

"FAB," Scott said apprehensively. "What did Virgil teach you about drilling into fragile areas?"

"Slow speed, high torque," Gordon answered.

"FAB, take it slow Gordon." Scott cautioned his little brother.

Gordon's hands shook a little as he worked the MOLE's controls. Even as nervous as he was, Gordon still piloted like a master checking every inch to be sure he wasn't too close to Virgil. And he went slowly, trying not to cause any more vibration than he had to.

"Going good, Gordon - We're almost there." Scott said.

"Yeah," Gordon said, worry in his voice. He wondered if he was about to find out that he had lost a brother.

"Even from here, his life signs are very weak," Gordon said.

After what seemed like the longest trip ever in the MOLE, the nose cone slowly broke through the cave floor, near Virgil's signal and in a small, but relatively flat spot.

"He should be right here! Where is he?" Gordon cried.

Scott had the canopy open and was climbing out.

"This way," Scott said. He saw a dark corner and was sure that had to be where Virgil was.

"We'll have to dig by hand." Scott instructed. In the narrow crack in the rock, there was only room for one, so Scott pulled rock out, and Gordon pulled dirt and rock farther away by hand.

"There! I can see through to the other side, Virgil is there!" Scott suddenly exclaimed.

"Virgil! Can you hear me? - Virgil - We're coming!" Scott repeated.

Almost unconscious from the lack of oxygen, Virgil did hear Scott, but couldn't respond. Another tear ran into his hair and he wore a faint smile.

"Virgil?" Gordon called too. Scott pushed the last large rock through and followed it into the small air pocket where their brother waited.

"Virgil?" The aquanaut felt his arm to be sure nothing was obviously broken before he moved Virgil's arm from over his face.

Virgil opened his eyes, trying to focus on Gordon's face, but he was very weak and wheezing with each breath.

"Oxygen!" Scott cried and handed Gordon a mask connected to a small tank that Scott continued to hold.

Gordon pressed the mask with pure oxygen running to it over Virgil's face. After just a few breaths, Virgil smiled, his lips no longer blue. He said, "What took you guys so long?"

"We stopped for pizza." Gordon joked.

"What about the children, did you find them?" Virgil sounded hopeful, but he knew there wasn't a chance.

"No, yours is the only life sign for miles. We came straight to you. The MOLE is just over those rocks, do you think you can crawl through?"

"Yeah, I'm feeling much better now that I can breathe," said Virgil.

"You should have been wearing your helmet and gear!" Scott scolded as they helped Virgil roll over so he could crawl back out of the chamber.

"This was a call for lost kids on an easy, school approved hiking trail. None of this was supposed to be a problem!" Virgil argued.

"You never know! We could have lost you, too because you weren't prepared."

"Yeah, I know. I wasn't prepared and all those kids and their teachers died because of me. It just seemed like overkill to bring the MOLE down when this first started. My decisions probably killed them all - I'm so sorry."

"No, NO! Virgil, Scott didn't mean that! What happened to them was NOT your fault. I would have done the same thing." Gordon said.

The three followed in turn as they crawled back out to the MOLE, and no one spoke again until Scott said. "It will be more comfy for all of us, if you two get in the back, and I'll pilot us out of here."

"FAB, I guess I'm elected to sit on Virgil's lap, right?" Gordon smiled.

"Unless you want your big brother to sit on you." Scott pointed out.

Virgil shot him a weak smile and climbed in after Scott. Then Gordon got in. He wedged himself in the small seat on top of Virgil. Gordon watched his brother carefully to be sure he wasn't hurting him.

Virgil barely acknowledged that Gordon was climbing around him trying to get comfortable.

Alan waited as patiently as he could for the others. He paced and he and John spoke to each other the whole time the other's were underground, each trying to keep their wits about them.

Finally, with a rumbling, the Mole came back out of the same hole it made when it entered the ground.

Alan practically jumped up and down when he saw Virgil was inside the MOLE. As soon as the nose stopped spinning Alan ran over to help them get out.

Gordon let Alan hold his hand as he jumped out, and together they held onto Virgil's hands as he jumped down.

"Virgil! I'm so happy to see you!" Alan cried.

"But the children and their teachers didn't make it," Virgil said sadly.

"I'm sorry Virgil - that's hard." Alan replied with all the joy out of his voice.

Scott said, "Gordon, Alan, work with John on recovery. I'll let the GDF know what happened here and they can help too."

"FAB." Gordon said. He climbed back inside the MOLE and Alan dropped into the back seat. Before Alan closed the canopy he yelled, "Feel better Virgil!"
He got the canopy closed just as it started into the dirt.

"Are you able to fly Thunderbird 2?" Scott asked Virgil.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, walking to his ship.

"I'll be right behind you, let's head back to base." Scott said.

"FAB," Virgil said sadly.

Virgil arrived home at dark and dragged himself through the command center before going to bed. He wore his plaid shirt, jeans and boots.

"Do you want some dinner, Virgil?" Grandma Tracy asked when she saw him.

It was like Virgil was in a trance. He was not at home with Grandma Tracy fussing about dinner, he was still in that cave seeing the faces of the children. Since he'd never actually seen their faces his imagination was actively making that part of his daytime nightmare up.

Grandma Tracy stood with the strange brown lasagna tray in her hands watching Virgil leave the room, "Virgil . . . are you . . .?"

Scott walked up, "Don't worry Grandma. Virgil's upset. The mission didn't end well," he said gently, following her gaze. "I'll check on him."

Virgil wandered into his bedroom and flopped onto his bed on his stomach, with his clothes on.

No sooner had he closed his teary eyes there was a knock on his already open door.

Virgil rolled over and sat up, wiping his eyes.

"Oh, Scott, I really don't feel good. All I want to do is sleep."

"I know, you are feeling bad that the mission failed." Scott said.

Virgil took a deep breath and looked away from him.

"Virgil, those small caves should have been filled in. Caves over an old coal mine should have never been used for recreation by anyone," Scott said emphatically, "You were not in charge of that or that the teachers led the kids into the wrong cave."

"But I should have known - I know caves!" Virgil argued.

"And you couldn't help the lack of information at the beginning of the mission. No one could. Only EOS and John's equipment, overclocked to the highest power levels, detected that the caves were over that old mine."

"I should have asked more questions, and not been so know-it-all! I should have made sure I had all the facts before I ever went inside. I thought I knew everything about those caves. I should have moved faster, maybe taking the MOLE right away! I should have checked maps of the surrounding area to see what might have been there, even years ago."

"Virgil, you did the best you could, with the information and equipment you had. No one can ask more of you than that."

Virgil said nothing else, but flopped back on the bed staring at the ceiling.

"John and EOS have some repairs to do," Scott continued, "Even Brain's and John's equipment couldn't hold up to the power it took," Virgil said.

"I could have moved faster - found that they'd taken the wrong way sooner," Virgil argued.

"Are you mad at John for not finding out about the mine sooner?"

"No of course not." Virgil said.

"It was not your fault either," Scott insisted, "Don't blame yourself."

"Could you just leave me alone for a while?" Virgil said.

"Sure brother, but I will check on you later," Scott promised.

To be continued . . .