Too Far

By: Trivette Lover Heather

--

One held the door opened while the other two softly lifted the Majors cot and moved it outside the tent into the bunker; the Major had recently had the enlisted men, dig up. As they set it down in the bunker, they filled it with leftovers from the mess tent. The three then scurried away, snickering and stumbling over themselves.

The next morning they were awaken by mortars.

"Trap...we're getting shelled." Hawkeye hollered, waking up his bunkmate.

"PIERCE!!" was heard from the middle of the compound, and he suddenly remembered their late night caper.

"Frank." The two said in unison, as they ran to the door, they saw the shells were coming closer and closer to the camp.

"We gotta go see Henry." Trapper replied starting out the door.

They watched as Frank slipped out of the bunker and attempted to run into post op; suddenly he slipped and during his attempt to get up, a shell exploded only feet away from him.

Glancing quickly at each other they raced towards him.

Hawkeye turned him over and checked his wounds. "He's hurt bad, get a stretcher."

"How bad?" Trapper appeared with the stretcher.

"See for yourself." Hawkeye quipped, screaming over the continued shelling.

Trapper couldn't believe his eyes. "Holy"

Everyone had begun to gather in post op, with Radar on the phone with headquarters and Henry covering his panic as best he could, things were getting more chaotic.

"What happened?" Major Houlihan entered pre op.

Hawkeye and Trapper were scrubbing up. "Frank was hit bad, shell fragments, head wounds"

"What was he doing? How? What?"

"Margaret calm down!!" Trapper hollered as the shelling still continued outside.

"Calm Down? Captain, I... I will do no such thing."

"Well can you do no such thing, somewhere else?" Hawkeye replied, grabbing a towel.

"Major look, we need help in there, you up for it?" Trapper asked, also grabbing a towel.

Two nurses put on their gowns and gloves, while the Major started to compose herself.

"I am." She straightened up and lifted her head high.

"Then hurry up will ya." Hawkeye said backing his way into the operative ward, Trapper following close behind.

"Trap, I'll start in the chest, nurse start cleaning up that thigh."

The shells seemed to be hitting closer and closer to home. "Don't they know we do surgery between 2 and 4 every day?" Hawkeye quipped. "Suction."

"Suction."

"God what a mess." Trapper commented.

"Damn."

"What is it?" Trapper looked over. "Clamp it."

"His BP is dropping Hawkeye."

"The hell it is...he's not ruining my streak....clamp."

"Clamp."

"Got a fragment near the aorta."

This caused Trapper to look up suddenly. "Easy."

"Start another unit Major." The Major didn't move. "Margaret, get him another unit!" Hawkeye repeated. Still to no avail.

"Murphy, get him another unit....Margaret, if you can't handle this, you either leave or I'm gonna remove you myself!" Hawkeye was practically screaming as he kept working.

"Can you get at it?" Trapper asked. "Give him some suction nurse."

"Pulse is dropping, you gotta get out fast."

"I can't see it dam nit! I can't see it." He hollered. "Suction...clamp"

For a second Hawkeye looked at Franks face, and the blood that covered his forehead. It was their fault he was out there, it was their fault he fell, he couldn't let him die.

"Don't even think about it Frank!" he said, while clamping another artery. "I think I see it...got it...Alright let's close him up, quick"

The nurse came in with the other unit, Margaret momentarily relieved.

Hawkeye and Trapper worked quickly to close him, his BP and pulse still wavering.

"Get him into post op, same orders."

Hawkeye and Trapper stayed in the operating room alone for a moment while they took him out.

"Jesus, that was..." Trapper began.

"Horrible." Hawkeye finished. "We're not finished ya know? I bet you any money; there were more fragments we missed. The shell hit so close it was a miracle he was alive for us to operate on."

Suddenly a shell exploded, causing the Captains to drop to the floor.

"Tell me about it." Trapper hollered as they got up and headed to Henrys office.

---

"Where have you two been? We're getting our butts shelled off!" Henry yelled, coming up from under his desk.

"Frank was hit bad with a shell; we thought we'd try to save his life." Hawkeye lifted his hands, and they fell to his sides.

"Very funny"

"Really Henry, he was hit, he's in pretty bad shape...we're probably gonna have to go back in."

"You're serious?"

"Yes." Trapper nodded.

"Sir...regimental on the line"

"Hold it a second... so Franks hurt bad huh? How bad?"

Hawkeye wiped his hand over his face. "Bad."

Henry saw the look in their eyes and understood. "Do what you do, and I'll do whatever Radar tells me to do, and we should be okay."

"Right Henry." Trapper replied and the two surgeons headed to post op.

--

"How is he Major?" Hawkeye appeared next to her.

"Not good Captain, his BP and pulse are still dangerously low; he's started to run a fever"

The major was obviously anxious and restless. "Margaret, we can't"

"I know Captain; you can't go back in, till he's stable"

"Right." Trapper nodded. "We just gotta hope that he stays with us till then."

"There isn't much else" Hawkeye began.

"You can do...yes, I know."

Hawkeye sighed and put his hand on her shoulder. "Just watch him Major; let us know if anything changes."

The two wandered back into Henry's office and waited. The shelling finally stopped and the camp was attempting to repair the damage.

"Any change with Burns?" Henry asked, pouring them a drink.

"Nothing. But if he doesn't get stable soon, we're in trouble." Trapper replied taking the glass from Henry.

"It's our fault he was out there." Hawkeye said staring aimlessly in front of him.

"Hawk, don't start again with that garbage, we couldn't have known the shell was gonna hit there...get off it." Trapper scolded.

"Right Trap, like you don't feel the least bit responsible."

"Wait a minute, how was it your fault?" Henry asked sitting down.

Trapper went on to tell him the prank they had pulled on Frank the night before. This time no snickering followed.

"He's right Pierce." Henry started.

"It was just a matter of time, we finally went too far." Hawkeye replied, gulping down his drink.

Radar then burst into the office.

"Sirs! Major Houlihan needs you right away, its Major Burns."

---

END CH 1

AN: Radar is my favorite cliff hanger helper. Let's just hope I don't get writers block with this one, like I did my last one. Please review, it helps me, help you.

Take care – TLH †