Chapter 242

Tegan woke up slumped forward in her seat, she was cold, an icy wind blew over her. For a few seconds she was completely disoriented and had no idea where she was.

What happened… where am I? Tegan thought to herself groggily. She touched the side of her forehead and was surprised to see blood. She stared at her fingers for a second. Then it hit her…

"Oh fuck… oh fuck…. Sara! Kate!" she yelled. Nobody replied.

"Saraaaa!" she yelled as she tried to unbuckle herself. She couldn't see over the high seat back. Her hands were shaking so bad it took her at least 30 seconds to free herself. Her heart was racing like a freight train and her ears were ringing. She eventually pulled herself up. She didn't look at the back of the plane that was ripped away, she didn't feel the icy wind blow into the wrecked cabin, she didn't feel pain. She just needed to find her sister and her friend.

Tegan pulled in a shocked breath when she saw Sara. She wasn't moving, her eyes closed. She hung limply forward and to the side of the seat. Blood was seeping from a gash on her cheek and one on the bridge of her nose but more alarmingly, Sara's leg was hanging at a very awkward angle, it looked misformed. The table in front of her must have crashed into her.

"Sara! Sara can you hear me? Sara! Sara wake up" Tegan yelled.

"Oh god no… come on Sar, stay with me" Tegan mumbled through tears. She put a shaky hand on Sara's neck to check her pulse.

"Come on" Tegan whispered and closed her eyes.

She felt a rush of relief so huge her legs buckled when she found a pulse. It seemed strong and regular.

"Sara…. Wake up…. Sara!" Sara didn't move.

Tegan had no idea what to do, she felt completely lost in this carnage. Her entire body shook in shock. She stood with her hand in her hair turning slowly in circles.

"Help! Help us!" she shouted. No reply came.

"Fuck" she mumbled. "Heeeeelp" she shouted again.

Tegan rushed back to Sara and carefully pulled her body back. Annoyed she pressed the button on the side of the chair to get the seat back down. It didn't work. She knew that she needed to get Sara on the floor to keep her airway open since she couldn't keep her upright.

"Kaaaate, Kate can you hear me? Kaaate" Tegan shouted. No response.

Tegan knew that she had to stabilise Sara's neck as much as possible, she didn't have any idea what was going on with her. Her spine could be injured. She quickly took the light knee blanket at Sara's feet and rolled it into a long strip. Carefully she put rolled the blanket around Sara's neck to form a makeshift cervical collar. She tucked in the ends to keep it in place. She knew she needed to splint the leg but she also knew she didn't have time.

"Okay Sar… hang in there… I've got you" she said as she put her arms under Sara's and pulled her up with sudden, unhuman strength. Sara grunted.

The sudden, searing pain in Sara's leg and head made her cry out in pain. What happened? Pain… why so much pain?

"Ahhhh…. Ahhh"

"Sorry Sara… just hang in there its okay" said Tegan over and over as she lay Sara down as gently as possible, careful to move the leg as little as possible.

"What happened... you're bleeding…. Kate… where's Kate?" Sara asked confused.

"I'm fine… the plane crashed"

"What? Where's Kate!" Sara mumbled, her vision and her mind cloudy.

"I'll go find her"

"Kate… Kaaaate!" Sara shouted franticly and tried to get up but she fell back in pain.

"Sara just stay still… stay still, I'll go find her" said Tegan jumping up. A sudden wave of dizziness hit her and she swayed for a second or two.

"Tegan are you okay… Tegan?" Sara yelled.

"I'm fine Sara, just this cut on my head I think… I'm fine! Stay still, just stay still" said Tegan.

She looked around in panic.

"Kate! Call out!"

Kate became aware of pain in her abdomen as she slowly regained consciousness.

Where am I…. what happened… oh god it hurts… Sara...

"Kate! Kate call out if you can hear me" Kate heard Tegan yell.

"Help" Kate tried to scream but her breath came out in a wisp of red mist.

She picked up her arm with great difficulty and brought it to her abdomen. She felt wetness first and then, with shock, she felt something sticking out of her belly, just below her ribcage.

"Tegan" she tried again but only managed a groan.

Kate tried her best to ascertain whether or not she had a neck injury but her head was spinning and she struggled to catch her breath.

Tegan stumbled to the front of the plane over debris. She found Kate lying in front of the floor on her back, half under some seats that were pushed forward. A big piece of metal was sticking out of her upper abdomen.

Tegan froze and felt a wave of nausea and dizziness come over her.

"Tegan" Kate gasped softly, obviously in pain.

"Oh my god… Kate" Tegan said and knelt down next to her friend.

"Kate… oh fuck…. Kate" is all Tegan could get out.

Kate looked white as a sheet and cuts and scratches on her face were slowly trickling blood but she seemed alert and oriented.

"Tegan listen to me" said Kate breathlessly, almost a whisper.

"Are you okay? Kate what should I do?" Tegan exclaimed, completely panicked.

"Tegan just listen. Calm down" Kate whispered in pain. She closed her eyes and swallowed hard trying to normalise her breathing.

"Okay, I'm calm, I'm calm" said Tegan feeling anything but.

"Where's Sara…. Is Sara okay? Are you okay?" Kate asked, not daring to move in fear of dislodging the piece of metal that no doubt was tamponading some internal bleeding.

"Sara's okay… she's… I think she has a broken leg" said Tegan.

"Dammit, I need to help her… I need to get to her… Sara" Kate tried to yell. She tried to sit up but only managed about an half an inch before crashing back down in pain.

"Stay still Kate, don't move! Just stay really still" said Tegan.

"Tegan! Have you found her" Sara yelled loudly.

"Yes Sara just stay still, I have to take care of her I'll be back in a minute"

Kate slowly moved her head side to side.

"Tegan… you need to find something to put on this wound… then… Tegan listen…. Tee" said Kate softly trying to calm Tegan down. "You need to find a cell phone okay… and my… medical bag"

"Okay… Okay…. Hang on" said Tegan through tears.

"Go Tee… I'm okay" Kate nodded. She didn't feel okay, she was in a lot of pain and she felt dizzy and lightheaded.

"Kate… baby…. I'm here okay…. I'm here don't be scared just listen to my voice" Sara yelled weakly, her voice strained with pain.

Tegan started rummaging through cupboards and luggage storage bins in the cabin.

"Tegan come here" Sara called.

"Sara I'll be with you soon. Stay still, don't move"

"Is she okay… Tegan is Kate okay?" Sara begged.

Tegan knelt down next to Sara. "Sar… she's hurt but she's awake and she's talking"

"Oh my god… oh fuck… Kate! Why isn't she answering me!" Sara exclaimed.

"Sar, she can hear you. She just really can't raise her voice right now okay. Stay still!" said Tegan and jumped back up to search for supplies. She found her carry on bag and pulled out the spare hoody she had in there as well as her cell phone and sprinted over to Kate.

"Here, here…. she said and carefully put the hoody around the piece of metal poking into Kate's body. The wound was bleeding but not as much as Tegan expected. She felt nauseous and dizzy at the sight of the blood.

"Okay… call 911 now Tegan" Kate whispered.

Tegan tried to call but nothing happened. She looked at the screen. The words 'no service' taunted her.

"Fuck!" she yelled and tried again. "No service"

"It's okay Tee… calm down, I'm sure they're... on their way to come... get us okay… just try another phone. And see if we have... any other casualties…. Ohhhh gggoood" Kate moaned in pain through gritted teeth.

Tegan didn't know what to do first. She ran to the cockpit to look for help. She had to shove the door hard before it opened. The two pilots were both slumped over. One had a tree branch through his neck, his eyes still open. He was obviously dead. The other was slumped over, not moving. "Oh fuck… oh fuck" Tegan mumbled and put her fingers in the man's neck to search for a pulse. Nothing… She tried again with a shaking hand. Absolutely nothing. Tegan turned and vomited violently. She stumbled out of the cockpit.

"Okay think Tegan… think… calm down and think" she mumbled with her head in her hands. She took the container with anxiety pills from her pocket and dry swallowed one.

She rushed towards the back of the plane again.

"Kate… are you with me buddy" she said as she knelt down next to Kate.

"Uh huh" Kate grunted.

Tegan put her fingers in Kate's neck to check her pulse. It was sky high and weak.

"What did... you find?" Kate mumbled.

"The pilots… they're… gone… they're dead" said Tegan as tears rolled down her face.

"Tegan focus… there's nothing... you can do... about that…. Focus now… go find my bag Tee" breathed Kate.

"Okay, stay still Kate… just stay still I'll be back soon"

Tegan knelt down next to Sara.

"Sara I need to go find Kate's bag. Don't move, stay still okay"

Tegan desperately searched what was left of the cabin but couldn't find a bag. She moved to the back of the plane and saw the tail about 20 meters away. Debris and baggage were strewn everywhere. She looked down and realised that she would have to climb down to the bottom. The task seemed impossible. Sharp pieces of metal was sticking around everywhere.

"Shit… think Tegan…. Emergency exit" she mumbled and scanned the plane for a door. She found it fast and pulled the emergency lever. The door flew open and a balloon slide popped out. It would be fine getting down but impossible getting back up. Tegan ran to the door in the front of the plane. She tried to open it but it seemed stuck. She shoved it with her shoulder a few times.

"Come the fuck on" she yelled before the door flew open. The steps slammed onto the ground.

"Good… great" Tegan mumbled and carefully climbed backwards down the stairs so she could use her hands for extra support. It was freezing outside, even more so than inside the plane. Tegan started running towards the back, desperately searching for Kate's bag or anything that could help her stabilize Kate and Sara.

"Fuck… where the fuck is it" Tegan mumbled through tears. She picked up a phone, the screen was cracked but it seemed to still be on.

"Dammit, no service" she yelled but pocketed the phone anyway.

A/N: They're alive, but how long can they last? Review please!