PART ONE: HELP IS ON THE WAY
"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." – Confucius
"Mayday, mayday," the voice in the speakers said, "decrease speeds, prepare for impact, mayday," it repeated with alarms blaring.
"Shit," a woman's voice mumbled, "how far away from the surface am I?" The voice came back over the speakers, "Prepare for impact in 60,000 feet. Mayday." The inside was burning up. It felt like she was inside of a volcano that was ready to explode. She could hear the metal from the outside of her ship starting to tear away. The grinding sounds of metal pulling from screws and bolts punctured her ears. How the hell am I going to survive this? I've lost all control, she thought. "Mayday, prepare for impact in 30,000 feet," the voice said. Damn, I'm falling faster than I thought. Maybe I deserve this. "Mayday, mayday. Prepare for impact in 10,000 feet. Reduce speeds. Mayday," the voice on the speakers said. That's it. There's no way out of here. I'll be reduced to rubble. I'll be nothing more than a burned up corpse laying on a foreign planet in the middle of nowhere. I can already feel the fire as it engulfs my body. Tears began to run down her face, and she began to brace herself for the impact that the Earth would have on her ship. "Brace for impact. Impact in 6…5…4…3…2…1..."
As she hit the ground she could feel her ship give way out from underneath her. She felt the metal tear apart, and she heard the grinding sound on the concrete. She felt her skin begin to tear and bleed. She felt the bones in her arms and legs break into pieces, and she could feel the heat of the dark concrete on her torn skin. It felt as if someone were holding a piece of iron with a flaming tip to her skin – much like being branded. She tried to let out a blood curling scream, but it was no use. Why can't I make a sound? I can't breathe…I can't scream…I…can't keep my eyes open. I can't move, she thought. Her eyes began to close and her breathing shallowed. A few minutes later, she found herself drifting in and out of consciousness.
The sirens. They're loud. The ringing. It hurt. The ground. It burned. She couldn't see anything except for the bright white light that seemed to be blinding her. She could only hear what sounded like voices yelling off in a distance and screeching vehicles attempting to stop. She could feel the vibrations of people running towards her and the blood running down her face, arms, and legs as she laid there on the ground. What the hell is going on? Where the hell am I? she thought to herself. "We need medics here ASAP! I have a 10-33 at the corner of 22nd and Rian!" She heard someone say. She tried to lift her head to see who was talking, but it was no use; her body wouldn't move. She felt like she had a pile of bricks sitting on top of her. "Did anyone copy? We need medics! We have a 10-33! I repeat, we have an emergency!" She heard the voice say again. This time, it was much more aggressive and loud. "Ma'am, I need you to open your eyes," a man said as he knelt down to her. As she forcibly made her eyes open, she could see that it was a police officer. "I need you to try to keep your eyes open. I'm trying to get medics here as fast as possible," he said. He reached over to his left shoulder and grabbed the radio sitting on his collar bone. He began screaming into the radio. "DAMMIT! WHERE ARE MY MEDICS?!" About ten seconds later, a reply came over the radio, "Copy that. ETA ten minutes."
Thank God, she thought to herself. She was in so much pain that she couldn't even feel it. She knew something was terribly wrong. As her vision became more focused, she could see the face of the police officer. He looked worried and impatient. "The medics are on their way," he said to her. "I need you to keep your eyes open. Don't go to sleep on me," he pleaded. She was trying her hardest to stay awake, but staying awake seemed like an impossible task. She tried to embrace the heat of the black concrete underneath her body so that she couldn't close her eyes. "I'm officer Cory Yielder. What's your name?" She knew that he was trying to talk to her so that she would stay awake, but she couldn't get the words to come out of her mouth. Instead, what came out was a quiet gasp for air. "It's alright. Don't try to speak. Just keep your eyes open. They should be here any minute now." He grabbed for his radio again, "What's your ETA?" A voice from the other side of the radio replied within seconds, "10-23. I repeat. We are here."
"It's about time," the officer said to the medics as they rushed over, "she's been here for at least fifteen minutes. No movement. She's unable to speak. Serious injuries to face, arms, legs, and back," he explained. The medics knelt down to her and touched her neck and wrist. "She's got a weak pulse. We have to rush her to the ER," one medic said to the other. "Ma'am, please don't move. We are going to get you out of here and get you some help," he said. Yes. Please. Do whatever. Please just get me some help, she thought. A few seconds later, another medic came rushing over with a long, orange, board-type looking thing. They slid the board under her and rose her up out of the burning street. They took her and put her into the back of a white cube looking vehicle. It had flashing lights on the back of it and what seemed to be medical equipment in the inside. She was put into the back of the vehicle and the doors were closed. There were two people in the back with her. They began hooking her up to bags of fluid and other types of medical equipment. The sirens kicked on and they began moving.
"You've got some pretty nasty injuries," one medic said to her, "you'll be just fine though, we're taking you to the best hospital in the city." She hoped to God that he was right. "Shut up Greg, you're going to scare her!" It was a female voice. She was the medic on the other side of her.
"How? I just told her that she's going to the best hospital and that she'll be fine," he replied. "You shouldn't have talked about her injuries," she said harshly, "I apologize for him. My name is Lilly. That there is Greg. We are going to keep you company while we head to the hospital. Make sure you keep your eyes open," she said to her in almost a motherly voice. She was older. Maybe in her 40's. After what seemed like hours, they came to a stop and the sirens shut off. She was taken out of the back of the vehicle and rushed inside a building. The doors were gray and the entire inside of the building was white. It smelled like sickness. She was rushed down a hallway where a man dressed in green scrubs and a woman dressed in white scrubs met up with the medics carrying her.
"Female. Early 20's. Serious injuries to the face, arms, legs, and back. Unable to speak," Greg said to the two. She was taken into a gray room with a steel table and a bright light above it. There was medical equipment on both sides of her, and a gas mask that smelled like rubber and chemicals was placed over her nose and mouth. About 30 seconds later, it was all dark.