Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Destination Truth or Joshua Gates. Anything in this story that doesn't belong to SyFy is probably mine, including places, characters, vehicles, ect. I just wrote this for fun. :)

Summary: The team sets out on another investigation for the yeti, but this time, something fights back. Josh has to make the biggest sacrifice of all, and may loose more then he intended. Friendships are torn, love is made, and lives are lost. R&R.

Rating: Strong T. [For: swearing, violence, monsters, strong sexual themes, and one psycho bitch.]

Author's Note: This story does contain spoilers for various episodes, so just be warned. :) Also, I'm really trying to keep this canon and realistic, but I do get a little "pair crazy" toward the middle, so just bear in mind I - a romantic writer attempting action - may have my weak moments. Other then that, just enjoy!

Prologue

If Josh could have laughed, he would have.

The irony of his situation was so overbearing it was, in a sick, twisted way, funny. He was lying on his back in the icy snow, bleeding to death, yet he had never felt so alive. With every stitch Rex put into him, the pain sent him a little further into the bitter darkness he was in, and closer to the edge. And at the edge, he wanted to jump. He wanted to feel himself falling through the unknown just so he could see what was on the other side. His whole life he's been chasing the unknown, and here was his chance, but something was holding him back. Someone; his team. They were so much more then a team, they were his best friends, practically his family. He couldn't leave them, Erin especially. God, that night in Nepal rolled through his mind like an unmanned freight train. Her muffled whimpers still echoed through this head.

"So..." He asked her, panting, as he laid back against his pillow. "Am I supposed to say I love you now?"

The laugh she laughed when he said that rung through his head, giving him the strength to hold on. But then again, her answer broke his heart.

"No..." She replied, something almost giddy sparking in her voice. "You don't have to say I love you. Nor' do you have to treat me any different then you usually do. Well, a little different, I guess. You could always open a door for me."

"Will do..." He chuckled lightly, gently grabbing her waist and pulling her on top of him. She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Any other commands, mistress?"

"I'm sure I can think of something." She purred as his lips found their way to her neck.

As that played through his head, he wanted to jump. She obviously didn't care for him the way he cared for her. Then again, he didn't love her either, did he? His mind reeled, but he tried to focus on one thing at a time; and right now, that was surviving. He could faintly hear Erin now, along with the rest of Team Truth, begging him to be alright. To open his eyes, to say something, to show any sign of life. Josh had a choice to make now; to open his eyes and continue on, or jump off the imaginary ledge into the unknown he's wanted for so long. In death, there is no reason, nothing is cruel or kind. Just peace and rest; something he needed so desperately. Erin's voice was coming in clearer now, and so was Rex's. Maybe he was coming out of it, maybe he had just leapt off that edge. He wasn't sure of anything anymore.

"Easy Josh..." He heard Rex say, along with the feeling of hands of his chest. The hands were strong, large; they must have belonged to Gabe. "I'm almost done."

Josh didn't feel himself jerking up and down with each stitch, but he must have been, right? Why else would Rex say that? That also explains Gabe's hands on his chest, and Erin's muffled cries in the background. He could feel Vanessa holding his hand, telling him everything would be ok, but the tone in her voice was weak. She knew he wasn't going to make it through this. Then, there was a sudden weight on his shoulder; a head. Erin's head. He could feel her tears running down his bare shoulder.

"Please Josh..." She begged lightly. "Please be alright... I..I- Pleeassee."

He could feel her body quivering from the fear and cold, she was in hysterics. There was something she wasn't telling him, something everyone else wasn't telling him. What the hell was going on?

In that moment, Josh made his decision. He looked down over the ledge, into even more of a black inkyness, took a deep breath and turned around. He used up most of his strength opening his eyes, and the rest of it speaking.

"Ryder..." He muttered as he coughed up blood. "You..worry..to much."

That nearly took it all out of him, but he fought on. The next voice he heard wasn't from his team members, the voice wasn't even human. It was deep screech that echoed over the barren peaks, causing no one to move or breath. After a few moments Bicha' spoke up in a voice that registered as stunned, yet terrified.

"Gabe, give me the fucking gun..."