A/N: Thank you to everyone for staying with this story and for all the reviews and alerts, it's great to hear from you all! A nice long chapter to sink your teeth into this time!

oOo

Chin was satisfied with the amount of distance he and Kono had been able to cover in the space of just five or so minutes, though he knew that the tracks that had been left behind pointed out that Steve and Danny mustn't have been in the best shape to be leaving such clear tracks to follow. As the thought crossed his mind for the hundredth time, his heart seemed to stop as he found the most disturbing evidence yet.

"Kono!" He called out as be knelt down to examine the ground in front of him.

"What've you got, Chin?" She didn't need her cousin to reply as she saw what had made him stop and she barely managed to catch the gasp that escaped at the discovery. Even with the recent downpour, the blood was clearly visible as it stained the foliage and mud on the ground.

"It's hard to say how fresh it is after this rain," Chin stated, concern written clearly on his face.

Not feeling the need to study it any closer and add to her growing sense of dread, Kono stood up and scanned their surroundings, again resting her hand on her sidearm as something caught her eye not far from their position. Taking a few steps forwards, she drew her weapon in a hurry as she saw what lay ahead of them and jogged forward as she called out. "Chin! Up ahead!" Kono's heart felt like it would leap from her chest as she quickly approached the body, praying that if it was Steve or Danny that they were merely unconscious.

Chin reacted quickly, drawing his own weapon and running to reach his cousin as he took in the sight of the body, the formally white t-shirt now stained red and soaked through with rain.

The body was lying on its back and the cousins both breathed a sigh of relief as they easily identified it was Brennan's body they had stumbled across and not that of one of their friends'. Both of them kept their weapons drawn and pointed at Brennan as a precaution as Kono leant down to feel for a pulse, though both of them knew that with the amount of blood visible it was more than likely that the criminal was dead. Kono confirmed their thoughts when she was unable to find a pulse, "He's dead." They both looked at the stab wound obvious in Brennan's chest, satisfaction at the knowledge that Steve and Danny were responsible. "Good for them," Kono voiced what they were both thinking as Chin activated his radio.

"Duke, it's Chin. We've found Brennan; he's dead, stab wound to his chest."

Duke was quick to reply to the good news. "That's good to hear, Chin. Medivac's arrived and is scanning the area. Any sign of McGarrett and Williams?" As he spoke the cousins could hear the sound of the blades from the Medivac chopper as it hovered nearby.

"Not yet, though we're hoping-" his answer was cut off and he and Kono snapped to attention as three gunshots cracked through the quiet rain forest and echoed around them. Without a second thought, Chin and Kono began sprinting in the direction of the gunfire with their weapons drawn. The shots had been close and both Chin and Kono prayed they hadn't come this close to rescuing their friends to fall short at the last moment.

Chin heard Duke in his ear again seconds after the shots sounded. "Chin, was that-"

"Gunfire, yes. We're not far from it now, we'll keep you posted," he replied breathlessly as he continued to run in the direction the noise had come from.

The cousins broke through the dense foliage and into a small clearing and halted, taking the time to take in their surroundings, sure that the gunfire had come from roughly in this area. A large banyan tree caught Chin's eye as a loud cry rang out through the clearing.

oOo

Danny kept the gun raised after firing three shots in the hope of drawing help to their location, mindful that help might not be the only thing close by. He glanced back down at Steve, concern bubbling uncomfortably in his gut as the memory of his partner passing out again replayed in his mind; he needed help hours ago and he tried not to think that help may be too late this time.

The sound of snapping branches and footsteps thudding heavily on the forest floor made his head snap around and his shaking arm raise his only form of defence higher. Danny felt his heart race as he waited for whoever it was to enter the clearing, praying that their bad luck had come to an end.

He watched as two figures emerged from the foliage towards the left of their hiding place, each holding a raised weapon in front of them. Their faces were turned away from him and both were clad in ponchos but the back of their dark heads were clearly visible from where the hood of the poncho had been pulled back and Danny would know the long dark hair and skinny jeans that belonged to Five-0's rookie anywhere.

His heart soared as help finally arrived and he cried out as loud as he could as the eldest member of Five-0 turned his eyes to their shelter. "Chin! Kono! We're over here!"

Relief flooded every inch of his body as the cousins' turned at his call and his relief was echoed in their reply, "Danny!" Chin and Kono wasted no time in moving to their friend's side and within what felt like a split second Danny was staring close-up at the concern written in their eyes as they crouched down beside him. "You two have never looked so good in my life." Danny knew that his voice sounded as exhausted to them as it did to himself.

"I wish I could say the same about you," Chin felt sick at the state his friend was in and he found himself disappointed that Brennan had got the easy way out. It took just a split second for him to take in Danny's pallor which only highlighted the bruising around his chest, shoulder and face and the dried blood which had faded to the point of being nearly invisible in the rain.

"We need to get you and Steve to the medivac," Kono stated, her eyes now on the prone form of her boss as she tried to get closer in the confines of the banyan tree to see him better. "Is he-?"

"Still breathing," Danny could see the fear in her eyes, "but that's about all he can manage; he needed to be at a hospital yesterday," Danny emphasized as he looked back to Chin.

"The blood we found?" Chin asked grimly.

"Super-SEAL's," Danny confirmed as he pointed out the bullet wound in Steve's side.

Without another word, Chin stepped back and began talking into his radio. "Duke, we've got them but they're both in bad shape, I'm going to need the medivac chopper to land as close to our location as possible; I'll read you our coordinates." Chin pulled out their GPS locater and proceeded to relay their coordinates to Duke.

As Chin moved out of the way, Kono moved up to Danny, pulling out her handcuff keys as she did so, having noticed the cuff binding their wrists together. Once it was finally undone, Danny pulled his arm in and used it to support his opposite throbbing appendage, silently revelling in finally having two usable arms. He nodded his thanks to Kono, finding speaking too exhausting as his adrenaline began to wane now that help had arrived.

Kono placed a warm hand on his good shoulder, "It's good to see you both again, Brah," her voice was filled with sincerity. The contact brought her attention to just how cold Danny was as his shivering became more apparent and she remembered the small first aid kit Chin had had the good sense in making her carry. Unhooking it from where it hung from her belt she wasted no time in opening it and grabbing the thermal blanket she knew was inside.

"He needs it more than I do," Danny protested as she placed it over his shoulders and wrapped it around his front to keep the warmth in.

"Then you can take turns," Kono held the blanket firmly in place, "it looks like he could use a real bandage anyway, though I'm impressed with your Bear Grylls attempt." She smirked and Danny couldn't help but give a small smile.

Carefully manoeuvring past Danny, Kono moved into their shelter and knelt beside Steve, her breath catching in her throat as she got her first decent look at her boss. His normal tan skin was disturbingly pale except for where dark bruises and cuts marred his face and his trembling lips which had taken on a bluish tinge. Fearing it was from lack of oxygen, Kono quickly checked his pulse and breaths, finding both were still present and she put the colour down to cold; something she still didn't find comforting and she wished the measly first aid kit carried two blankets.

Turning her attention to the wound on his right side the dread in her gut grew as she took in the blood stained pieces of shirt being held in place by a belt. Gently pulling up the edges of one of the cloths, Kono tried to get a better view of the wound and was somewhat relieved to see that there was only a small amount of blood seeping from the wound. Deciding that there was no way she would be able to lift the unconscious SEAL to wrap a fresh bandage around his abdomen, Kono used the few pieces of gauze from the kit to pack the wound, placing the fresh, clean material under his soaked shirt and against the wound instead of the soaked through shirt Danny had used. Once the gauze was in place, Kono tightened the belt another notch to hold it firmer, trying not to think about what infection Steve would have from lying on the sodden forest floor for God knows how long.

Danny watched silently as Kono worked, feeling somewhat detached from the situation and he began to lose focus on his surroundings. Kono must have noticed because the next thing he knew she was right in front of him and gently tapping his face to get his attention.

"Hey! You still with me, Danny? 'Cause we've got a little girl who's counting on us to bring her father back in one piece, alright?"

"Grace," Danny's focus returned in a hurry at the thought of his daughter and Kono was pleased to see him more alert.

"That's right, she's ready and waiting to see you when we get back."

Chin took that moment to return, having finished relaying information to Duke and the medivac. "Medivac's headed to the closest clearing to drop in two of their paramedics; it's approximately a quarter mile north of where we are. They're going to meet us here and help us get you two on board the chopper."

"Good," Kono nodded to her cousin from her position next to Steve, "just make sure they hurry."

"And tell them to bring a couple of steaming cups of coffee," Danny added through chattering teeth, bringing a small smile to the cousins' lips.

"No luck, Brah," Kono smiled, "But keep your eyes open 'til then and it's my shout for the rest of the year."

"You're on," Danny smiled.

Chin placed his hand against his ear as the radio came to life again. "Copy that," he replied after just a moment. "Medivac just dropped their guys in; it should be another five minutes."

Danny managed to keep his promise of keeping his eyes open until then, though it felt like the longest five minutes of his life. Everything was numb; from shock or cold he wasn't sure though a part of him knew it was probably a little of both. It was relieving and terrifying all at once; on one hand, the pain from his various injuries seemed to have fallen silent but on the other hand he knew that it wasn't for any good reason that he had been granted this relief.

He was pulled from his daze at a commotion in front of him as Chin disappeared into the forest only to emerge seconds later with two men carrying a medivac basket between them. He watched as they jogged the last few feet towards him and set the basket down and made a beeline for him.

"Uh uh uh," he tried to push away the first paramedic's hands as they reached for him. "My partner-"

"I'm aware, Detective; I need you to come aside with me while we get your partner out and into the basket, can you do that for me?" Danny knew from his tone that it wasn't a question and, satisfied that Steve was going to get the attention he needed, he humoured him and nodded. He allowed the paramedic to help him up and away from the confines of the banyan tree, seating him down again just a short distance away from where the second paramedic was moving over to Steve.

"My name's Paul Doherty, sorry to have to meet under these circumstances," the paramedic introduced himself as he opened his medical kit.

"Danny Williams," Danny replied as he made sure he had a view of Steve from their position.

"So I've heard; you two had a lot of people worried by the sound of it."

Danny allowed Doherty to take his vitals and examine his various injuries, paying most attention to the cut on his head and his dislocated shoulder while Danny kept focused on what was happening to Steve, grimacing whenever the technician touched anywhere that was particularly sore.

"You really picked a miserable day to go for a hike through this forest."

"My words exactly," Danny appreciated his attempt to lighten the mood and gave a pained smile, still not moving his attention from Steve.

After examining his shoulder, Doherty pulled a roll of bandages from the medical kit at his side as he reported, "I'm not going to set your shoulder here, but I am going to strap it for the flight back so we don't do more damage to it in the meantime, by then I'm sure we'll have your partner ready to be transported and we can get moving."

Doherty waited until Danny nodded his understanding before he began to expertly strap the dislocated appendage against the detective's chest. While he worked, Danny continued to watch what was happening with Steve. The second paramedic could just be seen in banyan tree's roots from where he sat but Danny wasn't able to see exactly what he was doing. Kono was still at Steve's side and Danny could see her responding to whatever the paramedic was saying to her as she aided him. It wasn't long before he watched the two of them with Chin carrying his partner out of the shelter and over to the basket awaiting them.

He watched as Kono supported Steve's head as Chin and the second paramedic took most of Steve's weight, his neck encompassed in a brace which Danny knew would just be standard procedure. The paramedic was cradling a fluid bag between his shoulder and neck as they began lowering Steve into the basket, pointing out that he had already set up an IV fluid line and he could see that a clean bandage was now wrapped around his abdomen.

Danny glanced down at his shoulder as Doherty completed his task, his shoulder feeling marginally better now that it was strapped.

"Alright, that'll do it for now," Doherty clapped Danny's good shoulder. "I'm going to have one of your team help you back to the chopper-"

"I'm fine-" Danny tried to protest before he was cut off.

"No you're not; quite frankly we'd normally have you in a basket to transport you but I'm afraid we have just the one, so you're going to take the help that you need with no arguments and you're going to keep that thermal blanket around you until we get back to the chopper and we can get you into something warmer." He didn't give Danny the chance to say anything more as he called for Kono to come over and help Danny to his feet.

Once he was standing, Doherty went over to Steve to help his partner carry him to the medivac chopper with Chin's help, lifting the basket up easily between the three of them. Kono wrapped an arm around Danny's shoulder as they started moving, wanting to provide as much warmth as she did support. The two didn't say a word as they followed them through the forest back to where the chopper was waiting for them.

Danny focused on his feet as he forced them to keep moving one after the other, the thought that this was almost over spurring him on. Danny found himself leaning heavily against Kono, the pride at wanting to walk unaided out of this nightmare giving in to the overwhelming exhaustion and need for support.

Kono was relieved when they reached the clearing where the chopper was hovering above them, as she had started to fear that Danny wouldn't make it standing as she carried what felt like most of his weight. She continued to keep him upright as Steve's basket and one of the paramedics were attached to the cables lowered from the helicopter and started their ascent.

The second paramedic, Doherty, turned to Danny. "We're next," he yelled to be heard over the top of the wind that the helicopter was buffeting around them. He turned to Chin and Kono, "I'm afraid you two won't be able to come for the ride; there's not enough space for an extra body in the chopper. We'll be taking them to Queens."

Chin and Kono both nodded, knowing that their chances of staying with their team members had been slim. Above them, the cables were lowered once again and Doherty wasted no time in strapping Danny into a harness and attaching the cables to lift them both up.

"Hold on; this isn't going to be comfortable," he warned Danny.

Danny nodded, finding that he didn't particularly care if the ride was comfortable or not as long as it got them away from here and somewhere with some damn good pain relief. The harness dug into his skin as he felt his feet leave the ground and he began to swing as they were pulled up. Danny clamped his mouth and eyes shut as the movement brought his nausea back to the foreground and he swallowed several times in an attempt to keep it at bay.

Doherty must have noticed and he called out, "It's a short ride, I promise."

Danny didn't respond as he kept a tight grip on the rope he was attached to and his slowly slipping consciousness. True to Doherty's word however, he soon felt himself being manoeuvred into the chopper, the blades almost deafening above him. He opened his eyes and aided in getting themselves into the copter, though Doherty ended up doing most of the work. The door was slid shut as he unattached himself from the harness and he turned to see his partner still in the cradle on the floor next to him, the paramedic in the process of cutting off his sodden clothes.

"Paul! I could use some help with this one; we need to get him into something warm, his temp's 89.8, and I want to get another line in; I'm not happy with his BP," the paramedic called to Doherty after he'd called to the pilot to get moving.

"You've got it," Doherty was at his side in an instant, getting another IV line ready to go.

"And get a tube out in case we need to intubate; his chest sounds aren't great."

Danny wanted to help; he wanted to at least ask if his partner was going to make it after all the events of the past day; God, had it only been a day? But all he could do was sit and watch as they worked to save his friend, his vision tunnelling and the sound around him fading before he felt himself fall to the floor of the helicopter and his vision went black.

TBC

oOo