Virgil clambered along the path following the point on his pad. The little robot beeped behind him as it towed the hoverstretcher. He'd had to wait for John to confirm the risk of another explosion was minimal. Scott had managed to cut off major areas of the site, so the debris was limited to building vicinity. His brother had saved countless lives by putting his own in harm's way. John hadn't sounded too concerned about Scott, though the lack of any verbal response was worrying. It made Virgil more determined to get to his brother fast. The twisted metal of the building wasn't helping though. Virgil carefully cut through it. He was above the tank Scott was in. Shining his high beam through the gap, he quickly spotted the blue of his brother's uniform. Virgil's heart stilled. Scott rarely sat still, let alone lie down to wait. Various medical conditions started flying through his head as he tried to assess the situation. He sidestepped, trying to get a better view. The gangway was torn and bent but it still looked sturdy. There was a larger hole of twisted metal behind him and Virgil cut some of the sharp edges away, leaving behind a crude ladder-like shape. Carefully he climbed onto the gangway, pushing his foot against it first to test its strength. The metal groaned as it took his weight. With gentle steps Virgil headed closer to the form of his brother. A glance reassured Virgil only for that reassurance to be shattered when Scott's left arm came into view.

"V-Virgil?"

Scott's voice was a gasp and Virgil could hear the pain he was fighting. The fact that the stubborn man was conscious with such an injury was impressive. The rest of Scott's body appeared unharmed. He'd come remarkably close to being crushed, and Virgil noted that it was still a risk, but the reason Scott couldn't move was his arm. Virgil crouched as best he could next to his brother.

"I'm going to give you some pain relief."

A nod was all Virgil got in response. The laser cutter made light work of the material covering Scott's right arm, and his own nimble fingers had a cannula inserted safely into his brother's arm. Virgil had the strongest painkiller in his hand and carefully measured out the right dose for his brother. It helped that he had only done Scott's last physical examination last week. Gently pushing the drugs into Scott's system, it didn't take long for Scott to sag and release a sigh as it took effect. How much pain Scott had been tolerating, Virgil would never know.

With the painkillers getting to work, Virgil moved closer to Scott's left arm. The sad look in Scott's eyes gave away how he felt. Virgil could give no comfort or reassurances, knowing for Scott it was worse to lie. The arm had been impaled at multiple points, some spikes protruding all the way through, others going in an unknown depth. At least one closed fracture which Virgil needed to stabilise. He was going to have to be inventive.

"I'm going to cut you off the metal, then try get this as straight as possible. It might still hurt something awful."

"Just do what has to be done."

The grim response came with an air of resignation. Scott understood there might be a need to tourniquet the arm which would almost definitely lead to amputation. Virgil slipped the small cutting laser from his baldric and started cutting the metal prongs. They cut with ease, though supporting the arm was difficult from his current position. Once freed from the metal, Virgil held the arm to Scott's side, hoping his suit could withstand any sharp edges.

"I'm going to roll you in Three...Two...One."

With a swift sure movement and Scott was on his back. There was a small risk of spinal injury, so a spinal board was slipped under Scott and a brace secured around his neck. The lack of protest from the older man was unsettling. A cooperative Scott didn't bode well. Now on the board, Virgil slid Scott along the gangway to where it was more stable, and he could have easy access to Scott's arm. The sooner it was stabilised the better. There was no way a traditional splint was going to fit, but tight bindings would help stem the bleeding and help the arm stiff and reduce further damage.

"Scott, I'm going to manipulate your arm. This will hurt."

The blank expression and numb look in Scott's eyes as he nodded sent a chill down Virgil's spine. Turning his head to the task in hand, he took a deep breath and wrapped his gloves fingers around the arm. Another steady breath and Virgil manipulated the limb until the bones were as close to their original alignment as he could make them. Scott gasped but that was his only response. The pain medication was working. Some of the wounds were bleeding more readily now, and Virgil worked quickly to wrap bandages around them, stemming the bleeding and securing the metal for the journey. Placed the arm by Scott's side and strategically placed the strap to stop the arm from moving in transit. Virgil beckoned to Mini-MAX as he stepped back, allowing the robot to move the hoverstretcher to beside Scott's spinal board. With MAX at the other end, Scott was quickly moved and secured to the stretcher. Mini-MAX quickly grabbed it and started pulling it from the tank back the way they had come. Virgil was quick to follow, clambering up his rudimentary staircase, not wanting to lose sight of his older brother.

"Gordon, prepare Thunderbird Two for immediate launch. Radio the nearest trauma centre, Scott needs specialist attention."

"FAB."

The response was short and formal and to untrained ears would have sounded quite normal. But Virgil knew Gordon. He'd heard the short pause, heard the snap of his brothers back straightening as he slipped into his serious mode. Gordon's military training meant he was could put his emotions to one side and do what needed to be done under pressure. Soon the green Thunderbird was in view and Scott was secured in the pod in record time. As Virgil ran the medical scanner over Scott, knowing Grandma would be studying them on Tracy Island, he heard the familiar click of the pod reconnecting with the main body, followed by the rumble of igniting VTOL engines. Virgil took a seat and held Scott's undamaged hand. His brother strained his eyes to meet Virgil's gaze.

"It's bad, Virgil."

Scott's voice was sure and fatalist in a way that Virgil didn't think was possible for his brother. Scott never gave up. The sinking feeling in his stomach made him squeeze the hand he held. Virgil couldn't promise his brother anything. He wasn't even certain they could save the arm.

"We'll get through this, Scott."

Scott eyes returned to continue staring at the ceiling, leaving Virgil to sit in silence for the whole journey to the hospital, though his eyes constantly checked the bandages. The thud of Thunderbird Two landing was a welcome sound and set Virgil into a flurry of activity. Virgil was standing at the pod hatch, stretcher at his side, ready to rush his brother into the Accident and Emergency department the second the metal touched the ground. The sight of medical staff waiting was a relief. They ran beside him and Virgil handed over his brother to their care, listing off every injury he knew about, the drugs in his system and when they were given. Virgil was held to the side by a nurse and watched as Scott was transferred to a hospital bed. The hoverstretcher was returned to him. His brother's blood spotted one side.

"Come this way, I'll show you to the room where you can wait in peace. We'll keep you updated, but your brother is in expert hands."

Virgil let her lead him, dragging the stretcher. She opened the door and he thanked her. She left but Virgil didn't step inside. Instead he returned to Thunderbird Two and cleaned the stretcher as a worried Gordon and Alan appeared. When he was finished, he walked towards them and wrapped an arm around each.

"Let's go sit inside and wait."

The pod closed behind him, Thunderbird Two safe where she was. Virgil led them to the room, and they sat their together, Alan leaning into Virgil. A nurse came in to inform them they were taking Scott to theatre to try to remove the spines and set the bones. They would try to save the arm, but there was a chance it could still die after surgery. That started their wait. John, Grandma and Kayo joined them promptly, bringing coffee. Grandma shoved them out the room after that to go get showered and changed in Thunderbird Two. Apparently, they couldn't stay in their sweaty, dirty uniforms. Returning via the canteen with cheese and ham sandwiches for all, the silent wait continued. Another hour passed before a doctor entered the room.

"The surgery went well, but there is significant damage to the arm. It's highly likely he will lose the hand and forearm or have no feeling in it. He's lost a considerable amount of blood but is doing well. He's unconscious in recovery, though we have to restrict it to one visitor until he's got his own room."

Everyone glanced around the room. Only one of them could go to Scott. They all wanted to see him, all wanted to be reassured that he would pull through. Grandma stood up and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You go, Virgil."

No complaints came.

"Thank you."

Virgil followed the doctor, scrubbing his hands when asked, into the recovery area. There were multiple people lying in beds attached to beeping monitors, but Virgil's eye found Scott easily. He went straight to the bed, noting the blood transfusion still underway, the pale tone of his skin and his closed eyes.

"The anaesthetic still hasn't worn off yet."

Virgil nodded and sat in the chair next to his brother's bed. There was a plastic cast strapped around his arm instead of plaster. They mustn't want to cover us the various wounds just yet. There was only a fraction of the arm that wasn't covered in bandages. It was only the ends of Scott's fingers that were uncovered. Virgil gently brushed his own fingers along them. They were warm and flushed, which meant there was blood flow, but what the doctor had said about nerve damage resonated inside Virgil. Was that why Scott was so resigned? Is that what he had suspected? Would those fingers ever move again? The what ifs fell over Virgil, weighing down his heart. Was Scott strong enough to survive this?