Finishing the adjustments required for the third proton pack Ray hefted the heavy device from the desk and onto his back. With an uncomfortable look on his face he grabbed for the second pack while Peter picked up the first. The doubled weight of the two packs caused Ray to groan with discomfort while making Peter grin with a bemused pleasure at watching the hulking movements of his colleague as he slowly made his way up the stairs.

"I could watch that all day." Peter chuckled as he followed Ray up the stairs. "No, really. He moves like a buffalo!" Pausing for a moment on the staircase Peter extended his arm and nodded toward Egon. "Coming dear?"

Dana could see that Egon was doing his best to hide his pain and wasn't exactly in a joking mood. Speaking up on behalf of the physicist she stood at his side put her hand lightly on his arm. "We'll join you in a minute. Get everything ready."

Peter looked at Dana, then to Egon and then back to Dana. "Playing favorites? I see how it is..." He resumed walking up the stairs in an exaggerated manner like a child pouting. "Honeymoon can't last forever." He quipped playfully. "Just don't tell Oscar! Or Ray! I can only handle one baby at a time!"

Ray's voice called out down the stairs and back into the lab. "I heard that!"

"Babies have great hearing." Peter jested as he disappeared onto the first floor. "Don't stay down there too long! Egon's fungi collection is starting to look like 'Audrey' meets pond scum."

Alone with Egon Dana's natural kindness flowed forward as she pressed the palm of her cool hand to his forehead. Fighting the urge to fully lean into her soft, cool touch Egon just focused on evening out his breathing, hoping it'd cause the lingering pain in his chest to mercifully subside. As horrendous as he felt in that moment he'd never admit, just as he'd never let his friends face a danger without him.

"You are running a fever." Dana confirmed as she pulled her hand away. "I know you want to go with them and I'm not going to try to change your mind, it won't do any good, but are you sure you can make it?"

Egon nodded weakly as he slowly stood up from the stool, mindful of the dizzy spell that had almost caused him to fall earlier. "I'm sure. I won't let them go alone. I won't let them go to their..." He trailed off morosely as the horrific image he had seen while so close to death taunted him. "I won't let it happen."

"Egon are you sure that what you saw was even real? You said so yourself that it could've been a hallucination or-"

"I know what I saw." Egon steadily made it was to the stairs, only to stop short and wince in pain. "And there's only one way to be sure that what I saw was a premonition, a bad dream or maybe even a warning."

"A warning?" Dana took his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders while she wrapped her own arm around his waist. "From who?"

"I cannot say for sure." Egon admitted as Dana helped him to walk up the stairs. "But what I do know for sure is that every instinct in my body is telling me I have to go." Reaching the top landing Egon stood up as straight and tall as possible and took his arm from Dana. "If I don't go with them I fear I will regret it."

Dana watched as Egon limped more than he walked toward his locker on the far side of the garage. Both Ray and Peter were already at their own lockers were situated together with Egon's, and had already slipped into their own jumpsuits. Opening the locker Egon retrieved his gray jumpsuit and haltingly unzipped the garment as he tentatively prepared to pull it on over his clothes.

Janine was sitting behind her desk. She noticed Egon's limp and silently motioned for Dana to join her by using her right index finger. Leaning close she whispered to Dana. "Is Egon really alright? I've never seen him look so rough."

"He'll be fine." Dana reassured the wary receptionist. "He won't be alone, and we both know that Ray and Peter will keep a close eye on him."

"Yeah, you're right."

The lockers were a flurry of activity as the three Ghostbusters prepared themselves for the impending danger that they were sure to face at the Mercado.

"Need help?" Ray asked quietly after zipping his up his jumpsuit as he watched Egon struggling with the material of his own jumpsuit.

"No. I'm fine. Thank you Ray." His answer was quick but steady. Pulling his locker door toward his body to create a 'modesty' wall between himself, Dana and Janine, Egon removed his dark suit pants and stepped into the legs of the jumpsuit. "Are we ready to go?"

"Almost." Ray slipped on his his paragoggles and tested the unique device's power levels. "Venkman is going to throw in the fourth pack just in case we need a back up. Never know what could happen on a night like tonight."

"Good idea." Egon pulled off the button down black shirt and weakly slipped on a black t-shirt over his bandaged chest. His held his breath with every move and Ray noticed the forced effort being exerted just to change clothes. "Make sure Janine has the correct address for the Mercado. If Winston shows up we'll need him at the hotel right away."

Peter slammed his locker shut and gave Egon a curious glance. "Shy?"

Egon blushed a little, but against his paled complexion he looked beet red. "Modest."

"Humble." Peter decided as slipped on his black gloves. "One last check and then we're hitting the road. Be sure to use the bathroom before we leave because I am not stopping!"

Egon zipped up his jumpsuit and took a deep breath. "I'm ready."

"Then let's go." Ray put his hand on Egon's shoulder. "I'll drive."

"Like always."

"Not always!" Ray defended a little only because he loved Ecto-1 like a child loves his toy. "...but often."

"Got it." Peter carried the fourth proton pack from the basement lab and opened the rear compartment of the hearse best known as Ecto-1. Placing the pack alongside the other three Peter slammed the compartment door shut and turned on his heel to make eye contact with Dana. "Now, I'm going to get you."

Walking over to his beautiful, courageous bride Peter embraced her tightly and gave her a firm kiss on her lips. "If something were to happen to me-"

"Don't say that." Dana pressed her fingers to his lips. "Don't even think like that."

"But if something does happen to me, just promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

"Never remarry."

Laughing cheerfully Dana kissed him one more time and pressed her head into his shoulder as he continued to hold her in a warm hug. "Please be careful."

"I will." Peter kissed her forehead and rubbed his hands up and down her back. "I promise."

Ray opened the driver's side door and jingled the keys from his fingers. "We better get going. We have only..." he looked down at his watch.

"Five hours and twelve minutes." Egon had been keeping track of the time in his head. He opened the passenger side door and pushed the seat forward so he could climb into the back to ride in the jump-seat. His movements were sluggish but remained precise with every effort. "I'll make adjustments to the fourth pack en route."

Peter reluctantly released Dana from his hug. "Stay here. Stay with Janine. If Winston shows up send him our way. Let him know what's going on." He whispered into her ear so that the others couldn't hear. "I love you. I love Oscar. I can't bear the thought of losing either of you, stay safe."

"I will." Dana wrapped her hand around his and squeezed tight. "Now go. We're counting on you."

Taking his hand from Dana's Peter jogged over to Ecto-1 and climbed into the passenger side seat beside Ray.

"Good luck!" Janine called out as the three men prepared to face off with an otherworldly foe. "We believe in you!"

Throwing on his seat belt Peter looked over his shoulder to Egon. "Ready?"

"Ready." Egon confirmed as the sound of metal clanking beneath his hands echoed through the car. "We need to get moving."

Ray turned the key in the ignition. "Let's go."

The iconic hearse screeched loudly as it exited the fire house and raced down the street toward the hotel in the distance. The distinct siren atop the car sang its song as the flashing lights illuminated the streets like a much needed beacon of hope for the dreary, desolate city; as the ethereal storm began to rumble to life with thunder, glow with lightning flashes and soak the abandoned streets in an icy rain.

Egon glanced out the window at the strengthening storm overhead and sighed as he made adjustments to the fourth proton pack. "The calm before the storm. If only it were in fact calm."

...to be continued...