A/N: I wrote this story as a small timestamp following the story A Rescue of Another Kind and could never justify it being finished. I do not plan on continuing this timestamp because every new edit I make feels forced, it doesn't flow easily. I hope you enjoy and if you find it's a little confusing due to the OC I've added you can go back to read A Recue of Another Kind, but it's not imperative.

Hope you all have a happy thanksgiving!

Sad-Blue-Eyed-Angel-2010

Kash barked and howled as he found where he was buried. Scott and Virgil came running when they heard Kash's distressed barking. As Virgil and Scott approached, they saw Kash beginning to dig through the collapsed structure. There was a lot of metal, concrete and wood. Alan had entered a dwelling to check for survivors after the granddaddy of all earthquakes…an 8.0 on the Richter scale when it happened. An aftershock a little smaller than the earthquake itself shook the earth and before anyone knew what happened, Kash started to run towards the structure barking frantically as the building began to collapse around Alan.

Scott reached Kash's side and joined in the two year old dog's search. "Is this where Alan's buried Kash?"

Virgil dropped to his knees and began throwing debris this way and that as he tried to find his baby brother. There was so much rubble to sift through. It was a big structure, but nothing so big that they'd need mechanical equipment to unearth their brother. "Alan? Alan, if you can hear us please answer us!" Virgil doubted Alan could hear them, but he hoped to be able to hear if his brother was still alive.

Kash kept barking until Scott ordered him for silence. It was a command that Alan had taken the care to teach the other dogs when he'd been trying to prepare them for homes to be adopted into, but their dad surprised them all and said they could keep the puppies. Alan was ecstatic and Scott would admit, the dogs had been a great asset to their team.

Kash got back into action after Virgil hefted a piece of concrete and rebar out of the way. The dog was whining and wagging his tail as he dug. When he stopped suddenly and ducked down to lower his head into the hole, it was a big breath of relief to see a gloved hand reach back out of the hole to pet the dog's muzzle. Scott moved Kash so he could peer down into the hole with his torch.

"Al?" Scott inquired as he looked into the darkness and saw a pair of blue eyes looking back up at him. "You alright?"

"My leg feels like an elephant is sitting on it…can someone please just help me out of here?" Alan begged, in hopes that he'd get out from under all this rubble. Virgil replied with a 'we're trying' but all their digging seemed to be in vain. They couldn't seem to find the right section that was sitting on Alan's leg. They were slowly unburying him from the chest down and when they finally did reach his leg, Kash had crawled up to Alan on his belly and began licking Alan's face when he gave a pained yelp. "Damn it this hurts so damned much!"

"I know bud, we're trying…." Scott soothed before trying to help Virgil who'd been joined by Gordon in their combined efforts to free Alan from his prison. Gordon did a lot of running back and forth though since he was retrieving things from mobile control or tools to help Scott and Virgil release Alan.

Kash stayed by Alan's side, whining lowly in his throat and licking Alan's cheek every time the young man cried out in pain. Virgil and Scott worked in tandem trying to free Alan and when they managed to remove the last of the rubble from Alan's leg – it was with a gasp of fear and looks of concern exchanged between the brothers. The wounds on Alan's leg looked worse than they hoped they were in actuality.

"Gordon, can you bring a back board and a stretcher?" Scott asked into his mic. "Alan needs to be transported."

Scott pressed a couple fingers against his earpiece before he nodded solemnly. "We're also going to need a splint for Alan's leg and some ACE bandage. Better yet just bring us the field kit."

There was silence as Scott and Virgil made space for the back board to be placed beside Alan. Kash refused to be moved and he rested his head against Alan's chest, panting as he let his tongue loll out of his mouth. After a few moments Virgil crouched beside Kash and Alan and he grabbed the bottle of water Kash carried in a backpack specially designed to move with ease so the dog wearing it wouldn't encounter difficulty maneuvering.

Unscrewing the lid, Virgil pulled the straw from within and held the water to Alan's mouth so he could stay hydrated. He didn't want the heat getting to Alan especially since he was just lying in the sun. Once Virgil felt Alan had a sufficient amount of water, he grabbed a second bottle and poured some water into a collapsible bowl for Kash to drink from. The dog lapped it up happily and wagged his tail in thanks before he finished and turned his attention back to Alan.

When Gordon arrived with the supplies, Virgil tasked Gordon with keeping Alan calm while he focused on splinting Alan's leg. He was forced with cutting a straight line up Alan's jumpsuit so he could access the fracture. Grabbing a couple squares of gauze, Virgil asked Scott to apply pressure to try to limit the bleeding. Alan's tibia was broken, that Virgil could diagnose without needing an X-ray, he was looking at the bone and though feeling a touch squeamish – he knew he'd need to do all he could before they took Alan to the hospital. Gordon had lain the splint beside Virgil and he grabbed the device and began fitting it around Alan's leg. He kept a careful eye on his brother seeing every wince or tear that fell.

Once Virgil got Alan's leg splinted, he grabbed some more gauze and had Scott add to the amount he had pressed against Alan's leg. The bleeding wasn't as bad now but Virgil didn't want it to start back up again. Picking up the roll of ACE bandage, Scott focused on wrapping Alan's leg from the bottom of his foot to well above his knee. He didn't want to take any chance of Alan's leg moving even with the splint. Using Scott and Gordon, the three brothers eased Alan onto the backboard and fastened a c-collar around Alan's neck.

"Okay Alan, we're going to lift you up in a few minutes so you're going to experience some weightlessness, try to remain calm." Virgil said as he looked into Alan's eyes. He could see Alan was in pain and appeared to be in shock, all he could do was to get Alan to the med bay and cover him up to ward off shock as much as possible. When they got Alan on the stretcher, Kash barked and ran alongside the International Rescue agents.

Virgil pushed the stretcher while Scott kept a hand on Alan's shoulder and Gordon hauled the field kit. They hustled towards Thunderbird Two before they hit the ramp and ran up into the massive green airship. Virgil and Scott transferred Alan from the hover stretcher onto a stationary bed. Kash stayed beside Alan and once alone, the two year old dog pulled himself up onto the bed and laid in Alan's arms. He was giving as well as receiving comfort from his papa. The yellow haired man-child raised he and his siblings.

Kash licked Alan's cheek before giving a sniff of the man-child, he could smell the tang of blood and injury and it made him whimper. The dog looked up and down Alan's body, sniffing as he looked over his man-child. His man-child was hurt and he didn't like it. It made him remember when Raven got hurt on a similar rescue, she had the same scent about her and couldn't walk for a long time without wearing a strange clay and material scented box on her front paw. He recalled his man-child carrying Raven around because of how pitiful she was when she tried to walk.

Alan groaned in pain and Kash licked his cheek again. He didn't like his man-child feeling pain.

'Hurry older man child…my man-child is hurting.' Kash expressed as he let loose a mournful howl to which Gordon returned to check on Alan. Virgil was preparing to take flight and while their older brother was doing so Gordon made sure he seat belted himself in beside Alan's bed before fastening a clip to Kash's harness.

"Alan will be fine Kash, don't you worry." Gordon murmured when the shepherd cross mix whimpered at a groan made by Alan. "You'll see, he's going to be fine."

'I want my man-child to get better other man-child.' Kash conveyed as he leaned forward to nose at Alan's hand.

Upon reaching the hospital, Virgil who'd been in contact with medical personnel at the hospital opened the door to let doctors and staff in to retrieve Alan. Kash wasn't happy with the arrangement and he voiced his displeasure by puffing up his body and standing in front of Alan's bed. He was guarding his man child and he'd go down fighting. Baring his teeth and allowing his hackles to rise. Gordon who was nonplussed by Kash's posturing reached out and gripped Kash's harness and held him back so the medical personnel could take Alan in for treatment. Kash rose on his back legs, barking and howling as Alan was taken from him and it didn't surprise Gordon one bit that the dog was as protective of Alan as he was.

"Kash, hush!" Gordon commanded.

Kash continued barking and howling and once Alan was in medical care, the ramp closed, sealing the exit and cutting off the view of Alan and the medical personnel. Kash kept up the noise and Virgil hailed Gordon to find out why Kash was loud enough to be heard straight in the control room.

"He didn't like Alan being taken away. He started growling when the doctor and nurses retrieved Alan." Gordon replied before releasing Kash's harness and watching the dog run to the exit and sniff before he sat down and threw his head back, letting out a mournful howl. Gordon felt his shoulders fall in sadness at Kash's distress. There sadly wasn't anything they could do. Alan needed medical attention that they couldn't provide and Kash couldn't seem to understand that. He could appreciate the fact that Kash as all the dogs were very protective of Alan, considering that he'd raised them from puppyhood. He was Mr. Mom to those pups.

Alan had been the first person or thing the puppies saw upon their eyes opening and his voice was the first they heard when their ears opened. Alan had explained the concept of pack mentality to Gordon a few times and he understood that the dogs all looked to Alan not only as a parent but as their alpha. Gordon left Kash in the med bay and he walked through the green giant to make it to the control room where Virgil was piloting the craft.

"Where's Kash?" Virgil asked as he looked around, not hearing the distinct click of Kash's claws on the metal flooring.

"Howling in the med bay for Alan." Gordon said before he plopped in the co-pilots seat beside Virgil.

"He was upset, wasn't he?" Virgil asked.

"As if, he was more than upset. He was protective of Alan." Gordon said. "I was afraid he was going to bite the doctor or nurses."

"We'll get him home and let him be smothered by the other fur balls and he'll be better. Alan shouldn't need to be in the hospital but for a day or two at most." Virgil said. "I imagine the dogs won't leave him alone once he gets home."

"I doubt he'll get a moments peace from them." Gordon commented.

And true to form, when Alan came home from the hospital three days later – his father and brothers were finding it hard to separate the dogs from Alan's side. The moment he'd been brought off the jet, the dogs who had followed the other occupants to the airfield surrounded the wheelchair that Alan was in. The moment they stopped, so they could turn Alan's wheelchair and maneuver it up the three steps onto the patio – Alan almost got a lapful of Kash.

"Whoa boy. Down." Scott commanded the dog that was more his than anyone's. Kash sat on Scott's command, tail wagging nervously and his whole body thrumming with anxiousness. "Stay."

Jeff popped Alan's wheelchair up and pulled back, pulling Alan onto the patio. Once on the patio, the family let Jeff and Virgil handle getting Alan situated on the couch in the living room. Barely a minute out of his wheelchair and all the dogs fit themselves in and around Alan which was a feat in and of itself. Eight two-year-old dogs on a couch which was purchased to accommodate five growing boys and a family of ten if you included all the island occupants. Alan smiled at the dogs before looking to his dad and smiling at him.

"Glad you're okay son." Jeff said as he walked over to his youngest and ruffled his hair.

"Well, I'm afraid I'll need to take a little LOA, but hopefully I'll be back to keep you all on your toes in no time at all." Alan murmured as he smiled down at one of the dogs that laid its head on his chest. "Hey Baby-Love."

"She's trying to make you feel better." Virgil commented when he entered the living room to see his brother buried beneath a dog pile. He saw Alfalfa and Evie wagging their tails as they laid on Alan's uninjured leg. They had been trained to detect a variety of drugs as well as flammable substances and illness. He recognized the signs that they were alerting on Alan because he had a cocktail of drugs fed into his veins after the building collapse had broken his leg and given him a decent concussion. "Are you two giving Alan love?"

Alfalfa and Evie both wagged their tails and looked to Virgil who had become their handler on rescues. Each of the dogs had taken to an individual brother or Jeff, but they knew who commanded them on a rescue. Shark belonged to Gordon and he turned out to be just like his handler. Loved to swim anywhere there was water and could be sneaky. Luna and Raven both belonged to Alan and usually one or the other joined Alan in searches. Alan preferred to rotate them so they didn't get overly tired, he wishes there were more than him and his brothers on the team so that they could also rotate…but this business was kept strictly to family outside of on-shore representatives that kept their foot in the door for government clearance.

Baby-Love typically stayed with their dad on the island more as moral support during a difficult rescue. She did join rescues on occasions, but she was a lazy dog. She wasn't the runt of the litter, but she was substantially smaller than her other littermates. Evie had been the runt and she was the biggest after Kash. Rascal was a lot like Kash, joined every rescue and was always getting his paws dirty. Alan was glad his dad had decided against his rule when the boys were growing up of no pets because each of the dogs was of great benefit to the team. They each had their own niche and they took great pride in it.

Now International Rescue felt more complete.