Security chief Michael Garibaldi regained consciousness with a searing pain in his skull. He blinked against the darkness struggling to remember what happened. The alert sirens and klaxons were screaming making thinking hard. Yelling in a multiple languages tickled a memory. Red sector. He was in Red sector. Off duty. Dinner with...Susan! Fear shot through Michael with such force it took his breath. She'd been next to him. Garibaldi tried once again to see something against the blackness. All he saw was dark, debris and smoke.
"Susan?"Michael called his voice hoarse and barely audible over the sirens and yelling.
A response came but it wasn't Ivanova. The voice was from his com link. Sheridan. Michael tried to raise his arm to answer but couldn't. It was trapped under debris. It'd been numb when he woke so Michael hadn't registered that until now. Too busy trying to remember what had happened.
Another explosion hit just as Sheridan's voice called again. The blast was smaller but enough to disturb the weakened ceilings and teetering debris piles. Michael heard screams from the market place. He cursed and protected himself best he could. It wasn't enough as debris rained down. Something large connected to Michael's already battered skull and he fell unconscious with a groan.
Captain John Sheridan stared in disbelief at the smoke clogged and rubble filled far left entrance of the marketplace. They'd been able to trace two com signals to the damaged area so John knew he had two of his own trapped. He hadn't been on B5 long enough to make friends. However, he respected both Garibaldi and Ivanova greatly.
The rescue teams moved quickly spreading through the damaged marketplace. John barked orders and helped where he could. It still didn't feel like he was doing enough.
Susan awoke awash in pain. It seemed like every part of her hurt. She was lying on her back. Her legs were trapped under something heavy. Her torso and head were in a small pocket. However she couldn't lift herself up very far without smacking her head.
It was dark all around her. Susan could hear lots of noise. Voices, machinery. As her pain eased a bit some memories returned. Red sector, dinner with Michael...oh no. Where was he? They'd been walking together; now she was alone.
Susan raised her right hand to try her com link. She could hear communication traffic but couldn't get anyone to respond to her hails. Either it'd been damaged or whatever she was trapped in was blocking the signal. Susan cleared her dry throat and started to scream for help.
Michael awoke slowly. The pain was dulled. The fact that he was lying on something soft was a good sign of rescue. The familiar sounds of Medlab confirmed the theory.
"Vitals show he's coming around."Franklin stated to someone from near Michael's bed.
"I needed some good news."Sheridan stated quietly. "Was a long night."
Michael forced his eyes open. He remembered what happened almost as soon as he came to. Now he wanted; needed answers.
"Welcome back, Chief."Sheridan greeted with a smile.
"Ivanova?"Michael inquired anxiously.
"She's alive."Sheridan responded grimly. "The floor collapsed beneath her just as they reached that area."
Michael felt his face pale and his eyes widen. He shot up to a sitting position. He instantly regretted it as the pain increased and the room spun.
"Easy."Franklin cautioned as he placed a restraining hand on Michael's left shoulder. "You've got a concussion and a broken right arm."
"They're close to freeing her."Sheridan informed. "The area around has been stabilized as much as they can."
"But she's still in danger."Michael surmised as he shook off Franklin's grasp. "I'm going back down there."
"No, you're not. You can barely sit up without being dizzy."Franklin countered. "Your right arm was badly broken. It's going to need multiple surgeries and until then it needs to be immobilized as much as possible."
With a curse Michael looked down and saw that his right arm was in a cast and a restraint. Both had shifted slightly when he sat up. Now the pain intensified the longer he remained that way. With a frustrated sigh Michael sank back onto the bed.
"We've got our best people on that rescue."Sheridan soothed. "They'll get her; it'll just take time. Did you see what happened?"
"No. We were headed to a restaurant to get dinner. Next thing I know I'm flying backwards."Michael replied. "How many did we lose?"
"Don't know yet."Sheridan said solemnly. "I have to get back. Get some rest."
"I know you want to help her."Franklin commented after Sheridan left. "But the best way you can do that is by getting better."
Michael nodded. He tried to fight off the exhaustion but it was a losing battle. As he drifted off Michael thought of Susan. Their romantic relationship had been a casual thing; no strings. Now, Michael couldn't help but reevaluate his feelings. Maybe this was fate's way of giving him a reminder of what was really important.