p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Kayo had moments to react as the windows blew in and the ground opened up, taking her brother down to whatever lay below. With a mighty heave she pushed the hover stretcher away from the widening hole but only managed a single step before the ground fell away beneath her. She reached out blindly, hands scrabbling for any kind of purchase and she caught the lip of the newly formed chasm. She took a breath and began to haul herself upwards. As her head raised above the lip she saw the hover stretcher only a foot away and thanked her lucky stars it wasn't any closer. If any more of it had hovered over the lip it might have fallen into the hole or simply turned off dropping down onto her fingers. Alternatively if she'd pulled herself up and ended up under it - she didn't want to think about that. Living things did not do well under hover fields./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"It took more effort than she would have liked to get herself back onto level ground and, as much as she wanted to just lay for a moment and take stock, she couldn't. She was on her feet in an instant and moved the hover stretcher to a safe distance before quickly checking Nick. He was still unconscious, kept asleep by his own injury and the pain relief Virgil had given him. She tucked the space blanket round him more tightly then crept as close to the edge of the hole as she dared./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"It was a lot deeper than it should have been./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic; font-size: 17.41px;"What if they've fallen directly into Steven's lair?/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Despite the light being relatively good - the power was still on after all - she couldn't see anything of Virgil or Jasmine./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Virgil!" /span/p
p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 22.5px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Nearly two floors below Virgil opened his eyes having instinctively shut them as the ground rushed up to meet him. He had fallen forwards and found himself lying on this stomach, the weight of the exosuit pressing down on him. He winced as he moved, pulling his arms under him and shaking his head to clear it. The whine from the motors suddenly seemed very loud in the absence of the driving wind. He shifted causing debris to fall from his left leg, that was when he noticed the whine from the suit was subtly wrong. He twisted round ignoring the twinge from battered muscles. His left leg moved freely but the right was locked in place; the exosuit had taken the full impact of the fall, saving his own limbs but battering the metal framework. It seemed he'd landed on his leg first, but instead of breaking his bones the knee joint of the suit had buckled and twisted causing the metalwork to seize. In short, the suit was dead. He reached for the manual release and crawled out from under it, experimentally flexing arms and legs to try and free up some of the bruising form where he'd landed on the connection points./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Rising to his feet he got his first look at what he'd fallen into. A good twenty feet of corridor had collapsed into the basement below, a glance upward proved the basement to be deeper than a standard floor. Virgil guesstimated it to be about a floor and a half and counted his blessings that it wasn't any more than that./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Jasmine!" he called out unable to see any sign of her in the detritus ahead of him. He flicked on his shoulder lamp./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Kayo?" he tried turning. He looked up just in time to see a pair of boots scrabble over the edge and onto the landing above. Virgil smiled tightly and turned back once more to the debris ahead of him. Kayo would assess her own situation and stabilise Nick before trying to contact him. That was something they'd trained for; in this situation you secure yourself and any known victims before taking on any more, be that a member of the public or a teammate. Well, Virgil had secured himself and he had a potential victim to find./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"He began methodically scanning his light over the fallen pieces of ceiling and flooring. He thought that Jasmine had been no more than ten feet in front of him when she'd fallen but resisted the urge to start there. Search grids existed for a reason, no matter how infuriating they might seem./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"There!/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"The edge of his light caught movement and, as he carefully picked his way across downed floorboards, he saw fingers reaching upwards. The hand managed to make enough room to free itself then turn and push against a large chunk of debris. The debris didn't move but Virgil managed to reach the her before Jasmine could batter the offensive object in frustration./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Jasmine" he said catching hold of her hand and stilling it. "Jasmine, calm down, this section is pinned down, I need to remove the obstruction before I can move this piece. Are you injured at all?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""No" she said. "Just stuck. I can move a bit but not enough to shimmy under this bar."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Okay" Virgil said deciding to make his own mind up when he saw her. "I need to you stay still and not move until I tell you. Can you do that for me?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes sir" came back the crisp and clearly conditioned response. There was a beat of silence as they both digested that before Jasmine said, "well that was fucking weird, saying that to you." Virgil had to agree. A thought occurred to him then and, deciding it might alleviate some of the tension he decided to roll with it before he thought about it too much./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I don't know. I can think of a time we might have a use for it."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"There was a beat before Jasmine laughed./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I've been in a bad influence on you. In possibly a great way."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"He gave her hand a final squeeze before releasing it. Job done, victim at ease and the rescuer? Well he could probably light the place with his face rather than the flashlight but he should have it under control before Jasmine ever got to see./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Moving fast he started playing the torch across the beam Jasmine had been pushing against until he found what was stopping it from moving. It looked as though a fire station had fallen into the pit as well, the heavy red box and fire hose which should have been securely mounted to the wall now wedged between the basement wall and the bar. It took a few solid kicks but he got the thing loose and then returned to Jasmine./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""When you said you could nearly shimmy under this bar, which way did you mean?" The hand pointed towards the closest wall. "Alright, one moment." Moving in the direction she'd pointed he quickly cleared the assortment of insulation and floorboards making a small space for her to slide into. In the process he uncovered a boot and ankle. He put a careful hand on it trying, and failing, not to make her jump./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""When I lift the bar you need to move in this direction, understand?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes, s-" /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil decided not to comment on the uncut of word. Instead he moved back to the bar and braced himself./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""On three then. One, two, three!"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Even with the large fire box removed the bar was damned heavy. Fortunately he didn't have to hold it long. Jasmine moved straight away and was pulling herself to her feet before Virgil had a chance to put the load back down safely./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Are you sure you're not hurt?" he asked moving over to her./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""No I'm fine" she brushed the question off. "We need to move."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Would you know?" He asked catching her elbow as she made to leave./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Know what?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""If you were hurt, would you know?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes. If it was serious I'd know, now come on!"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil remained unconvinced and it must have shown on his face./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Oh for gods sakes" Jasmine said throwing her arms out wide and then holding stationary. "Come on then."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Er" Virgil was baffled./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Sticky damp test" she said exasperated. "It's the only way you'll be happy that I'm not actually hurt anywhere. You'll be able to feel if something is broken - which it isn't - or if I'm bleeding - which I'm not. You'll feel better, we can move on."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil waited a beat before extracting a med scanner from his sash and holding it out pointedly./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I forgot you had those" she said a little lamely. "My way would have been more fun."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil hummed a response, too intent on the readings the med scanner was giving him. She was fine. She was better than fine. Gordon's stats hadn't been this good when he was in full olympics training and, no offence to Jasmine, but she wasn't carrying the physique of an athlete./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes I'm a freak of science" she said pushing the scanner away. "Where's Nick and Kayo? Would the hover stretcher have kept Nick up there? Also what happened to your armour?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""It's called the jaws of life or the exosuit, not armour" he said, "and it twisted in the fall. The right leg is seized up." Virgil turned back to where he'd seen Kayo's boots disappear./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Rather it than you."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I saw Kayo pull herself back over the lip and no, the stretcher would have crashed down too. They can only hover about a meter or so."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""That's a bit rubbish, what's the point of it hovering if it can only do it occasionally?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""To hover any further than that it would need to have full VTOL" he explained, irrationally irritated that she was dissing their state of the art kit. "Kayo!" he called only to have Jasmine virtually jump on him and slap a hand over his mouth./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""What are you doing!?" she demanded. "Sociopath! One floor down! Who wants your guts for garters, or had you forgotten?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""The collapse would have alerted him already" Virgil pointed out./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes but he doesn't know we fell into it! He's also been ordered not to leave his little lair but he /spanspan class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic; font-size: 17.41px;"wants /spanspan class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"you. /spanspan class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic; font-size: 17.41px;"You, /spanspan class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"not the information, not the Thunderbird. Steven wants you. You announcing your presence is the only thing that might make him come up here but by all means, keep shouting!"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil was struck dumb by her quiet but emphatic tirade. He was only ever a means to and end. Yes he was the one on the hook, but that was because he was Thunderbird Two not because he was himself. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Why me?" he managed./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Jasmine huffed out a breath./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I think he's compensating. He's short, for a man, scrawny, prematurely grey. Basically everything you aren't. He'd take Scott, as a second choice, but in all the stills we have, all the footage cobbled together, he's only ever been interested in you. Everything down there is set up for someone your size. Hey, hey! Look at me" Jasmine took hold of his hands and gave them a squeeze. "That's why we're leaving. Breathe, Virgil. It's not going to happen."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"It was only then that Virgil realised he'd been holding his breath. He let it out in a whoosh and inhaled deeply. Then he did it again, focused inwards on calming the dread that threatened to take him over. A few moments later he was back in the room./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""That's it" Jasmine smiled encouragingly. "Now, can you talk to her without shouting?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yeah" he reached up to his shoulder torch and began flicking it on and off. A few moments later a series of taps came back./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Do you know where the sniper is?" Virgil asked, listening intently./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""No, I'm sorry, I don't. I don't know where the explosives expert is either. I do know we have a team of mercenaries down here who's job is to take down the GDF if they arrive and anyone else from International Rescue. They'll also herd you to Steven if you get away from me."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""If you were him where would you be?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Close enough to to Thunderbird Two for a hand gun to be effective or down here."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil shook his head./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I didn't park her close to any cover and the module is retracted so he can't use that."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Jasmine didn't follow that last part but stayed quiet as another series of flashes and taps shot back and forth. Finally Virgil growled in frustration before a short final message, then slapped the torch off. "Kayo is going to take Nick overground to Two."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""She should dig in and wait it out" Jasmine said./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I told her that but Nick needs help and Two has a fully stocked medbay."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Aren't you the EMT?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes but we've all got training. She can get him stabilised."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Providing she's not shot."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Do you have to be so blunt?" Virgil moved to run his hand through his hair only to have it rebound off the helmet. Jasmine chose not to comment on the little faux pas./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Sorry" she said. "We really need to move."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes, yes we do." Virgil gave one last look up to where his adopted sister had vanished but, as expected, there was nothing to be seen. He flicked the map that John made made for him on. With no connection to Five it couldn't automatically update his position. With a wry smile about the fact he was protecting one of the most advanced bits of tech on the planet with an analogue map he indicated the tunnel ahead./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""This way."/span/p
p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 22.5px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"One floor below Steven wondered at the crashing sound echoing down from above. It wasn't the first in the past few hours. He supposed it was the large drilling machine that International Rescue would have to use. Jasmine had promised no more than 30 minutes between contact and delivery. He checked his watch and savoured the anticipation. With any luck the pilot wouldn't give in easily. It had been so long since Steven had had a real challenge but something inside him knew this one would give him exactly what he needed. His only hope was that he got it before he got Salvatore's information. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty nine minutes. Steven picked up his pen and began checking through his list of questions and coercion's. Every question had a specific response should the pilot decide to challenge him. He'd debated but eventually allowed himself a few favourites early on in proceedings. There was always the chance the GDF might try and ruin things for him and Salvatore did want his answers promptly. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty five minutes. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty four. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty three…/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"It took more effort than she would have liked to get herself back onto level ground and, as much as she wanted to just lay for a moment and take stock, she couldn't. She was on her feet in an instant and moved the hover stretcher to a safe distance before quickly checking Nick. He was still unconscious, kept asleep by his own injury and the pain relief Virgil had given him. She tucked the space blanket round him more tightly then crept as close to the edge of the hole as she dared./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"It was a lot deeper than it should have been./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic; font-size: 17.41px;"What if they've fallen directly into Steven's lair?/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Despite the light being relatively good - the power was still on after all - she couldn't see anything of Virgil or Jasmine./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Virgil!" /span/p
p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 22.5px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Nearly two floors below Virgil opened his eyes having instinctively shut them as the ground rushed up to meet him. He had fallen forwards and found himself lying on this stomach, the weight of the exosuit pressing down on him. He winced as he moved, pulling his arms under him and shaking his head to clear it. The whine from the motors suddenly seemed very loud in the absence of the driving wind. He shifted causing debris to fall from his left leg, that was when he noticed the whine from the suit was subtly wrong. He twisted round ignoring the twinge from battered muscles. His left leg moved freely but the right was locked in place; the exosuit had taken the full impact of the fall, saving his own limbs but battering the metal framework. It seemed he'd landed on his leg first, but instead of breaking his bones the knee joint of the suit had buckled and twisted causing the metalwork to seize. In short, the suit was dead. He reached for the manual release and crawled out from under it, experimentally flexing arms and legs to try and free up some of the bruising form where he'd landed on the connection points./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Rising to his feet he got his first look at what he'd fallen into. A good twenty feet of corridor had collapsed into the basement below, a glance upward proved the basement to be deeper than a standard floor. Virgil guesstimated it to be about a floor and a half and counted his blessings that it wasn't any more than that./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Jasmine!" he called out unable to see any sign of her in the detritus ahead of him. He flicked on his shoulder lamp./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Kayo?" he tried turning. He looked up just in time to see a pair of boots scrabble over the edge and onto the landing above. Virgil smiled tightly and turned back once more to the debris ahead of him. Kayo would assess her own situation and stabilise Nick before trying to contact him. That was something they'd trained for; in this situation you secure yourself and any known victims before taking on any more, be that a member of the public or a teammate. Well, Virgil had secured himself and he had a potential victim to find./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"He began methodically scanning his light over the fallen pieces of ceiling and flooring. He thought that Jasmine had been no more than ten feet in front of him when she'd fallen but resisted the urge to start there. Search grids existed for a reason, no matter how infuriating they might seem./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"There!/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"The edge of his light caught movement and, as he carefully picked his way across downed floorboards, he saw fingers reaching upwards. The hand managed to make enough room to free itself then turn and push against a large chunk of debris. The debris didn't move but Virgil managed to reach the her before Jasmine could batter the offensive object in frustration./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Jasmine" he said catching hold of her hand and stilling it. "Jasmine, calm down, this section is pinned down, I need to remove the obstruction before I can move this piece. Are you injured at all?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""No" she said. "Just stuck. I can move a bit but not enough to shimmy under this bar."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Okay" Virgil said deciding to make his own mind up when he saw her. "I need to you stay still and not move until I tell you. Can you do that for me?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes sir" came back the crisp and clearly conditioned response. There was a beat of silence as they both digested that before Jasmine said, "well that was fucking weird, saying that to you." Virgil had to agree. A thought occurred to him then and, deciding it might alleviate some of the tension he decided to roll with it before he thought about it too much./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I don't know. I can think of a time we might have a use for it."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"There was a beat before Jasmine laughed./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I've been in a bad influence on you. In possibly a great way."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"He gave her hand a final squeeze before releasing it. Job done, victim at ease and the rescuer? Well he could probably light the place with his face rather than the flashlight but he should have it under control before Jasmine ever got to see./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Moving fast he started playing the torch across the beam Jasmine had been pushing against until he found what was stopping it from moving. It looked as though a fire station had fallen into the pit as well, the heavy red box and fire hose which should have been securely mounted to the wall now wedged between the basement wall and the bar. It took a few solid kicks but he got the thing loose and then returned to Jasmine./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""When you said you could nearly shimmy under this bar, which way did you mean?" The hand pointed towards the closest wall. "Alright, one moment." Moving in the direction she'd pointed he quickly cleared the assortment of insulation and floorboards making a small space for her to slide into. In the process he uncovered a boot and ankle. He put a careful hand on it trying, and failing, not to make her jump./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""When I lift the bar you need to move in this direction, understand?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes, s-" /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil decided not to comment on the uncut of word. Instead he moved back to the bar and braced himself./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""On three then. One, two, three!"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Even with the large fire box removed the bar was damned heavy. Fortunately he didn't have to hold it long. Jasmine moved straight away and was pulling herself to her feet before Virgil had a chance to put the load back down safely./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Are you sure you're not hurt?" he asked moving over to her./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""No I'm fine" she brushed the question off. "We need to move."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Would you know?" He asked catching her elbow as she made to leave./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Know what?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""If you were hurt, would you know?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes. If it was serious I'd know, now come on!"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil remained unconvinced and it must have shown on his face./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Oh for gods sakes" Jasmine said throwing her arms out wide and then holding stationary. "Come on then."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Er" Virgil was baffled./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Sticky damp test" she said exasperated. "It's the only way you'll be happy that I'm not actually hurt anywhere. You'll be able to feel if something is broken - which it isn't - or if I'm bleeding - which I'm not. You'll feel better, we can move on."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil waited a beat before extracting a med scanner from his sash and holding it out pointedly./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I forgot you had those" she said a little lamely. "My way would have been more fun."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil hummed a response, too intent on the readings the med scanner was giving him. She was fine. She was better than fine. Gordon's stats hadn't been this good when he was in full olympics training and, no offence to Jasmine, but she wasn't carrying the physique of an athlete./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes I'm a freak of science" she said pushing the scanner away. "Where's Nick and Kayo? Would the hover stretcher have kept Nick up there? Also what happened to your armour?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""It's called the jaws of life or the exosuit, not armour" he said, "and it twisted in the fall. The right leg is seized up." Virgil turned back to where he'd seen Kayo's boots disappear./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Rather it than you."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I saw Kayo pull herself back over the lip and no, the stretcher would have crashed down too. They can only hover about a meter or so."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""That's a bit rubbish, what's the point of it hovering if it can only do it occasionally?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""To hover any further than that it would need to have full VTOL" he explained, irrationally irritated that she was dissing their state of the art kit. "Kayo!" he called only to have Jasmine virtually jump on him and slap a hand over his mouth./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""What are you doing!?" she demanded. "Sociopath! One floor down! Who wants your guts for garters, or had you forgotten?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""The collapse would have alerted him already" Virgil pointed out./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes but he doesn't know we fell into it! He's also been ordered not to leave his little lair but he /spanspan class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic; font-size: 17.41px;"wants /spanspan class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"you. /spanspan class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic; font-size: 17.41px;"You, /spanspan class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"not the information, not the Thunderbird. Steven wants you. You announcing your presence is the only thing that might make him come up here but by all means, keep shouting!"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil was struck dumb by her quiet but emphatic tirade. He was only ever a means to and end. Yes he was the one on the hook, but that was because he was Thunderbird Two not because he was himself. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Why me?" he managed./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Jasmine huffed out a breath./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I think he's compensating. He's short, for a man, scrawny, prematurely grey. Basically everything you aren't. He'd take Scott, as a second choice, but in all the stills we have, all the footage cobbled together, he's only ever been interested in you. Everything down there is set up for someone your size. Hey, hey! Look at me" Jasmine took hold of his hands and gave them a squeeze. "That's why we're leaving. Breathe, Virgil. It's not going to happen."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"It was only then that Virgil realised he'd been holding his breath. He let it out in a whoosh and inhaled deeply. Then he did it again, focused inwards on calming the dread that threatened to take him over. A few moments later he was back in the room./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""That's it" Jasmine smiled encouragingly. "Now, can you talk to her without shouting?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yeah" he reached up to his shoulder torch and began flicking it on and off. A few moments later a series of taps came back./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Do you know where the sniper is?" Virgil asked, listening intently./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""No, I'm sorry, I don't. I don't know where the explosives expert is either. I do know we have a team of mercenaries down here who's job is to take down the GDF if they arrive and anyone else from International Rescue. They'll also herd you to Steven if you get away from me."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""If you were him where would you be?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Close enough to to Thunderbird Two for a hand gun to be effective or down here."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Virgil shook his head./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I didn't park her close to any cover and the module is retracted so he can't use that."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Jasmine didn't follow that last part but stayed quiet as another series of flashes and taps shot back and forth. Finally Virgil growled in frustration before a short final message, then slapped the torch off. "Kayo is going to take Nick overground to Two."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""She should dig in and wait it out" Jasmine said./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""I told her that but Nick needs help and Two has a fully stocked medbay."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Aren't you the EMT?"/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes but we've all got training. She can get him stabilised."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Providing she's not shot."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Do you have to be so blunt?" Virgil moved to run his hand through his hair only to have it rebound off the helmet. Jasmine chose not to comment on the little faux pas./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Sorry" she said. "We really need to move."/span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""Yes, yes we do." Virgil gave one last look up to where his adopted sister had vanished but, as expected, there was nothing to be seen. He flicked the map that John made made for him on. With no connection to Five it couldn't automatically update his position. With a wry smile about the fact he was protecting one of the most advanced bits of tech on the planet with an analogue map he indicated the tunnel ahead./span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;""This way."/span/p
p class="p2" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; min-height: 22.5px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"One floor below Steven wondered at the crashing sound echoing down from above. It wasn't the first in the past few hours. He supposed it was the large drilling machine that International Rescue would have to use. Jasmine had promised no more than 30 minutes between contact and delivery. He checked his watch and savoured the anticipation. With any luck the pilot wouldn't give in easily. It had been so long since Steven had had a real challenge but something inside him knew this one would give him exactly what he needed. His only hope was that he got it before he got Salvatore's information. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty nine minutes. Steven picked up his pen and began checking through his list of questions and coercion's. Every question had a specific response should the pilot decide to challenge him. He'd debated but eventually allowed himself a few favourites early on in proceedings. There was always the chance the GDF might try and ruin things for him and Salvatore did want his answers promptly. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty five minutes. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty four. /span/p
p class="p1" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"Twenty three…/span/p