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Against All Odds
Part 2
The first thing to hit Sydney as she came to was the overwhelming smell of smoke and burning plastic that lingered in the air all around her. It clogged her lungs and brought on a severe bout of coughing that did nothing to aid the hammer-on-concrete type feeling that was occurring in her skull right at this very minute.
Forcing open heavy eyelids and fighting through the thick haze in her head it took a minute or two for the recent events to come flooding back to her. As she shook her head in a pitiful attempt to get rid of her dizziness Sydney slowly raised her hand to touch her forehead and was dismayed for it to return bloodied.
Carefully peering through the neighbouring cracked window she saw that they had landed in what appeared to be an area of dense woodland. There was nothing but trees visible for all the eye to see and it was obvious that it didn't bode well for any rescue or escape plans.
Using the sunlight that poured through the window Sydney was able to take in her surroundings and get her bearings but as she turned her to her right she was horrified to find the seat next to her was empty. Vaughn? Oh dear God where was he? She struggled hard against her seat and it took her a moment to realise she was still strapped in. Grabbing the belt hard she pulled at it hard in frustration until the clasp finally gave in.
As she stumbled into what was once the aisle of the plane Sydney desperately searched in every direction for him, trying hard to ignore the fresh bouts of pain that erupted every time she coughed. Where the hell was he?
"Vaughn?" Was that her voice? Dear lord it sounded so unfamiliar to her. "……Can you hear me…… Michael?"
Perhaps he had gone to the cockpit to radio their position and get a rescue party organised. That's if the radio was even working. Judging by the state of the rest of the plane it was very doubtful to her. As she lifted a metal bar out of her way an overhead section gave way bringing down with a multitude of live electrical cables. Trying hard to ignore the sparks that seemed to be jumping straight toward her face she gingerly leaned back into a chair and carefully side-stepped the danger.
It became apparent to Sydney as she stared at the tattered remains of the aisle in front of her that there wasn't a chance in hell that Vaughn had come this way. There were clearly just too many metal and plastic fragments for him to have got around without obviously clearing them.
She reached for support as she got to the battered remains of the first row of seats and quickly recoiled from the red moisture that appeared on her hands. She inhaled hard and all her previous thoughts went straight out the window as the emotional side of her took straight over her logical side as she tried to convince herself it wasn't Michael there. It's not him……it's not him. Keeping the mantra going in her head she slowly bent down and choked back a sob when she saw the two bodies of the agents who had been on the mission with her. She knew with certainty that they were dead and she had to fight to keep her emotions in check.
She had seen a lot of terrible things in her time and been on the receiving end of some of those atrocities as well but the fact that she knew these agents and had worked closely with them, knowing that they were good people……it was hard for her to maintain the emotional distance that she had been trained to do, that was expected of her. She softly whispered a small prayer for the two men as she shakily stood up and slowly made her way further to the front of the plane.
A few steps and a lot more debris later she arrived at the entrance to what was once the cockpit and the horrific sight before her dashed all her hopes that she would find anyone alive in the front compartment. She lowered her head and took a deep, reassuring breath before slowing turning around. Michael. Where are on earth are you?
Quickly pushing her way back through the debris Sydney was able to make a slow but steady path through the plane until she finally reached a hole in the plane's side that was large enough for her to crawl through. It was almost parallel to where they had been sitting and she prayed that it meant Vaughn had been thrown clear and that was the only reason why she couldn't find him.
It hit her then like a blow to the stomach and she had to lean against the side of the plane for support as she contemplated what had to have happened. For Vaughn to have been thrown clear it meant that his seatbelt must not of been fastened. And as she replayed their last moments together she realised in horror that Vaughn had never fastened his seatbelt before the crash. He had been so intent ensuring that hers was secure and that she was ok he hadn't had time to fasten his own. Damn it! Why was he so selfless? Was there nothing this man wouldn't do for her? If anything had happened to him she didn't know how she would go on.
As she climbed through the hole she had to squint a little at the change in brightness and it took her a moment to get her bearings. Swiftly searching around the area she felt her heart stop when she saw him lying under what looked like what once part of the plane's wing.
Time seemed to stand still for her as she raced over to him, begging every higher power that existed to spare his life.
