Baird smirked to himself. "Oh don't worry I'll…what the…Sam? He'd lost the signal to her tac-com. "Oh wow, that's real mature… Yeah, well, two can play that game," he said, clearly frustrated before shutting off his own tac-com. "Now I hope she does faint," he thought as he attempted to focus on the task at hand. He'd made little progress with the damaged vehicle. "Those things really did a number on this one…,"He repeated as he noticed each problem. He slid even farther beneath the packhorse, hiding his whole body to work on the rear, which had a lot of random parts and debris hanging down. He tried to remove a chunk of torn metal from between the fuel pipes, but it wouldn't budge. He tried again, with more force this time then cringed. "Oh, you bastard...," Baird looked at his hand to see blood on his fingertip. Something sharp had sliced a small groove into his right index finger.
"Great…" he muttered to himself. It was the type of cut that didn't hurt much at first, but seconds later started to pulsate and sting. Whatever had snagged his skin had left some rust behind too, which wasn't helping. The blonde gear pursed his lips for a moment before sucking on the cut, putting pressure on it with his tongue. After two seconds, he made a face and spit. The taste of blood always bothered him. It reminded him of being inside the giant rock-worm a couple of years ago, a not so pleasant experience for the strictly hygienic gear. He sighed and laid his head down on the ground, looking up at the mass of machinery above him for a while. "Oh screw this…" he said aloud, pressing his fingers to his ear, turning his radio back on. "Hey guys? This thing's shot to hell. We're probably gonna be here a while 'cause…" his sentence was cut off by the sounds of screams and gunfire. At that same moment, he heard an explosion in the distance. "Oh, God! Get down! Holy sh-"
Baird's face contorted with confusion as static buzzed in his ear. "What the… Uh, hey! Hello?" His head went up with a start as he attempted to get to his feet, crashing against a metal pipe on the underside of the pack-horse. He was just about to scream in pain when he saw a huge pair of boots walking slowly on his left. His eyes went wide with fear as he remembered his lancer in the front seat.
"Sam! Oh God, no. Sam, wake up! Baird shook her hand frantically. He checked her pulse. Damn it. His hands were too shaky to get a good read. He pressed his ear against her chest, and then sighed, not realizing he'd been holding his breath. Her heart was still beating, though very faintly. He put his ear next to her mouth and listened to her shallow breathing, not wanting to pull away. As long as he heard her softly inhale, exhale, he felt a little better. He wiped at his eyes and looked around at nothing in particular, then back at Sam.
"It's going to be fine, they'll be here," he said more to himself then his companion. As he gently rubbed her hand, Sam coughed weakly while her eyes slowly opened, rolling back a little, trying to focus. "Sam? Sam! I'm right here, look at me. Sam!" He lightly slapped her cheek a couple of times, trying to keep her awake. "How…Bad…Where…?" she groaned. Baird stroked her hair away from her face. "Shhh, it's ok. Just keep your eyes opened. What's my name? Sam, what's my name?" Sam tried to focus her gaze, but she could barely make out his face. It was too dark and too bright at the same time. She tried to shield her eyes, but that only aggravated her injury. She whimpered weakly, a tear rolling down her cheek. "B...Bair…Baird? She stuttered, wincing. Why did her head hurt so much?
The male gear looked into her eyes. She seemed confused, almost surprised to see him. "Yeah, I'm right here, don't worry. Just", he cleared his throat. "Just stay awake for me ok?" He squeezed her hand. "Just stay awake," he repeated in a whisper. "Baird I…So c-cold…" "I know," he said, tears filling his eyes again. "God, I know." He reached for his bag and retrieved two over sized hand towels. They were stained with oil and whatever else from his garage, but it was the closest thing to a blanket he had. "Here, hang on." He covered her arms with the towels, bringing them up to her chin. She was shivering. "Please, just hold on ok? Sam, can you hear me? For God's sake, just hold on a little longer, alright?" Much to Baird's surprise, Sam nodded her head ever so slightly as she huddled closer to the towels.