Laying on the ground of the stairwell, staring with wide eyes and a slacked jaw at the smoldering black crater that burned into the roof right where he had just been standing, Ray was at a loss for words. When Peter pulled Ray back into the stairwell out of harm's range Peter had lost his balance and Ray had fallen on top of Peter's legs. The two men laid in a crumpled pile as they tried to figure out what the hell they just witnessed and what caused it.

Thunder rumbled angrily from the clouds as streaks of lightning danced through the thick masses of ethereal energy. "Kismet." A deep, angry voice snarled out through the swirling clouds. "Prepare."

A strong wind gusted across the rooftop and slammed the door shut, dividing the Ghostbusters from the rooftop and storm.

"Well that was quite the adrenaline rush!" Peter commented but was perplexed by the two words of warning given by the paranormal entity existing in the storm overhead. "What the hell was that all about?" He cocked his head to the side to try and get the sore feeling out of his neck from the fall. "And what does 'kismet' have to do with it? And 'prepare' for what?!"

"What... What just happened?!" Ray stammered nervously as his entire body began to shake with reasonable fear. "We could've been killed!"

Peter sat upright and tried to pull his legs out from under Ray's heavy weight. "I said 'move'." He reminded Ray of his warning before they fell back into the stairwell together.

"I... I was almost..." He slowly turned his head away from the shut door and looked at Peter. "You just... Saved my..."

"You're welcome." Peter was still trying to get up. "Now, please, get off me!"

"Oh, sorry..." On shaky arms Ray pushed himself up from the ground and off of Peter's legs. "Uh, thanks."

"Don't mention it." Peter stood up and brushed the dirt from his jacket and backside. "Now, is that proof enough that this is where Egon was when he was struck down by the wrath of some 'demigod wannabe'?"

"Y-yeah." Ray was still shaking and struggling to compose himself after the close call. "And I think... I think the PKE meter got an accurate enough reading to... to..."

"'To...' Do what, Ray?" Peter was growing impatient with Ray's delayed responses as well as reactions. "Speak boy, come on. Speak!"

"If we can use the collected data from the storm," Ray pressed a trembling hand to his face as he desperately attempted to gather his thoughts. "we could possible identify the source of the ghostly storm, pinpoint the exact location of the ethereal interference and possibly stop the storm and stop whatever that... 'thing' is who attacked us before New York is overrun or destroyed!"

"Good idea Ray." Peter pulled Ray after him down the stairwell. "Now, let's get out of here before someone notices that this supposedly abandoned hotel isn't quite so abandoned. You know, with all the lights and screaming going on."

"Yeah, yeah." Ray's legs were quaking with fear and adrenaline. "We need to get back to HQ. I want to get this data analyzed and check in on Egon."

Dana refreshed the cold compress and replaced it over Egon's forehead. He had been resting seemingly well after being given some medication, but he was still very hot if not feverish.

"Come on, Egon." Dana softly spoke to her injured friend. "I've known you too long. You're too stubborn and curious to just sleep through this."

Egon suddenly took a deep gasping breath as if something had knocked the wind from his body.

"Egon?" She put her hand on his arm as her instincts told her that something was wrong. "Egon, can you hear me?"

Suddenly Egon's entire body went rigid as his head was thrown back and his entire body was wracked with violent muscle spasms. His eyes were open but rolled to the back of his head as his own body rebelled against him.

"Egon!" Dana pressed her hands against his shoulders in an attempt to keep him as still as possible during the seizure.

Conflicted Dana couldn't decided if she should hold the seizing man down or try to get the phone to call for help. It seemed reckless, if not just plain cruel to leave him alone; but she knew she couldn't help him alone.

The sound of the garage doors opening downstairs caught her attention. "Thank God!" As soon as she heard the Ecto-1 park and the car doors open she called out for help. "Peter! Ray! Help us!"

"Dana?!" Peter's voice carried an uncharacteristic lilt of fear. "Dana, what's going on?"

The sound of heavy footsteps racing up the stairs echoed loudly through the old firehouse. Peter and Ray practically leapt up the stairs as they rushed into the bunk room only to find Dana doing her best to help a seizing Egon.

"Egon!" Ray moved first and helped Dana to try and hold him down by using his weight on Egon's flailing shoulders. "When did this happen?"

"Just before you got back, a few seconds ago."

Peter returned to his footlocker and the small box that contained his small selection of medications. Looking through the various glass vials Peter selected the drug Lorazepam and a fresh sterilized syringe.

"Hold him still." Peter grumbled as he filled the syringe with the proper dosage of medication and then kneeled down on Egon's forearm in an attempt to find the Cephalic vein again. "Ray, keep his arm steady."

Finding the vein Peter carefully injected the drug and retracted the needle from his arm.

Egon's body slowly relaxed as his muscles stopped spasming and he became still.

Dana and Ray released their grip and stepped away from the bunk and watched Egon nervously. Peter grabbed Egon's wrist to check for a pulse only to feel his own heart skip a beat. Pressing his fingers to Egon's neck Peter's mind began racing.

"No, no, no! You're not going to leave us like this!" Peter demanded as he interlaced his fingers together and began compressing Egon's chest.

"Oh God..." Dana put a hand to her mouth in absolute disbelief at the terrifying sight. "No."

Ray felt weak and helpless as he watched Peter alone trying to save Egon's life.

"Help me move him onto the floor." Peter instructed cooly. "Come on Ray, move it."

Without a word Ray helped Peter slid Egon from the bunk and onto the floor while Peter continued to perform a far more effective CPR on their down colleague.

"Come on Egon!" Peter was losing strength as he struggled to revive Egon. "Come on!" He paused only long enough to check for a pulse and still find nothing. "No!" Peter slammed his fist down on Egon's chest to try and get his heart to start beating again. "No, Egon!" Over and over again he thumped down on Egon's chest. "Come on Spenz, we need you!"

"Peter." Ray spoke softly as he bowed his head, accepting the grim reality that had just transpired. "Peter, let him go."

Ignoring Ray Peter continued to pound on Egon's chest.

"Peter? Peter please!" Dana kneeled down beside Peter and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "Stop."

Peter gave Egon's chest one last firm thump before his arms went limp from exhaustion. His blue eyes welled up with tears of frustration and sorrow as he stopped his heroic endeavor.

Ray put a hand on Peter's shoulder sympathetically as he too began to mourn the loss of their friend. "You tried Peter. You did everything you could."

Peter stared down at Egon's lifeless body and held back a sob. In his mind he retraced his steps and every action he took to aid the injured man, it was then he remembered one last resort he could use.

"Not everything..." Peter broke free from Dana's arms as he shot up from the floor and tore into his medical kit. Pulling a preloaded syringe from a secondary compartment concealed beneath the other medicinal vials he dropped to his knees beside Egon and pulled the white gauze down and away from the muscle tissue directly over Egon's heart. Inserting the needle directly into Egon's heart Peter injected the drug and resumed compressions. "Alright Egon, this is for all the monkeys in the barn!"

The used syringe rolled to the ground beside Egon's body revealing the label: "Adrenaline".

"Come on Egon..." Ray quietly whispered. "Come on."

Dana held Egon's hand tightly as Peter performed one last round of CPR.

A sudden gasp of air caught everyone's attention as Egon took in a deep breath of much needed air.

"Egon!" Peter pressed his fingers to Egon's neck as he smiled triumphantly. "I knew you wouldn't leave us behind!"

Ray slumped down onto the ground with utmost relief as he realized that Peter had done it. He had saved Egon's life.

Dana was just as relieved as Peter and Ray and held Egon's hand as tight as she possibly could.

"Let's get him back on the bunk." Peter suggested casually. "And make a new rule that no one is allowed to die while on the clock, okay?"

Ray locked himself away in the basement of the firehouse and preoccupied his mind with the data collected from the Mercado Hotel rooftop. Desperate to find answers to the ghostly storm that threatened the entire city, and to get the image of Egon's lifeless body from his mind, Ray worked tirelessly through the rest of the evening and well into the night.

Peter and Dana took it upon themselves to keep vigil over Egon, ready at a moment's notice to react. They both agreed that if Egon had another seizure or stopped breathing again that they'd call 911 and explain things to Egon later.

Dana walked into the bunk room with a fresh cup of coffee in hand and sat beside Peter on the bunk beside Egon's. "What did you find at the hotel? Anything useful?"

"Maybe." Peter kept his focus on Egon as he spoke. "It was definitely where Egon had been investigating, and it was where he got hurt." He pulled Egon's broken glasses from his pocket. "We were almost struck down by the storm too."

"What? Lightning strike?" Dana was as shocked as she was impressed.

"Well, it sure didn't look like a union strike."

Dana playfully smacked Peter's leg. "I thought lightning didn't strike the same place twice." She remarked as she sipped her coffee and offered it to Peter.

"Metaphorically yes, but when you break the logistics of the billions of years that the Earth has existed and trillions of storms that have raged all over the planet during those billions of year, I think it's safe to say that at least once before lighting has in fact struck in the same place at least twice." He sipped the coffee and flashed her his trademarked cheesy grin. "So the roof of the hotel being struck-" His eyes lit up as an interesting idea ran through his head.

"What is it?" Dana could read his face all too well and knew that something was brewing in sick little mind.

"I think you just gave me the answer." He kissed her cheek and took off for the stairs, only to stop at the top of stairs and turn back quickly. "If anything happens to Egon-"

"I know, I know." Dana smiled warmly. "Panic and scream, right?" She teased playfully to try and lighten the mood.

"Right!" Peter responded quickly as he jogged down the stairs. "Scream real loud, 'kay?"

...to be continued...