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Chapter 2:

The shot echoed loudly over the clearing and Danny watched in horror as McGarrett was get hit, the vest Steve was just about to put on slipping from his hands as he spun around, stumbling backwards.

Only a heartbeat later, before Williams was even able to react, he felt something slam into his ribs and the next thing he knew he was lying on the ground, groaning and gasping for air. Danny didn't hear the next shots over the ringing in his ears, he was only aware that he needed to move quickly.

The helicopter offered the only cover in the large clearing, he just hoped they would make it there in time. Danny laboredly rolled over and struggled to his feet, suppressing a moan at the pain that shot through his chest and abdomen. He stumbled a few steps toward the helicopter, trying not to get hit a second time as he frantically looked around for his partner.

Steve was only a few steps away, also struggling to get to his feet, his vest abandoned on the grass where he'd dropped it when the first shot had been fired. He pressed his right arm against his body, Danny could see bloodstains on McGarrett's T-shirt, but otherwise he seemed to be alright.

"Back to the helicopter," Steve shouted hoarsely as he approached Danny, grabbing his arm they hurried back to the aircraft. "I saw Baines over there at the house, at least three more shooters, all around the clearing," McGarrett said through gritted teeth, his face contorted with pain. "Get in, go, go, go!"

More shots rained down on them from various directions, proving McGarrett's statement about more than one assailant. Danny quickly circled the helicopter, ducking his head to avoid the bullets, metallic noises filled the air when the shots hit the aircraft casing, some of them missing Danny by only a hair's breadth. He jerked open the door, struggling to crawl into the seat.

Barely noticing that Steve had already started the engine as the rotor blades came alive with a buzzing sound, Williams ripped open his vest with trembling hands, trying to take a deep breath that ended in an abrupt moan. "Oh shit, that hurts," Danny cursed, squeezing his eyes shut against the pain from his bruised ribcage.

"You ok?" Steve asked, his voice strained as he pulled the helicopter up into the safety of the sky, away from the clearing.

"Think I cracked a rib or two," Danny replied through gritted teeth. Suddenly remembering the fact that Steve was also hurt, his eyes snapped open and he worriedly scanned his partner. "What about you, you alright?"

McGarrett nodded breathlessly, his gaze fixed on the cockpit instruments, "Just a flesh wound to the arm."

Trying to get a closer look at the gunshot wound, Danny leaned forward, stifling a moan as he wrapped one arm protectively around his midsection to stabilize his ribs. Taking in Steve's rigid posture and the amount of blood dripping from his arm, Danny asked concerned, "Are you sure you're alright? That doesn't look good…"

"It's okay, I've had worse," Steve replied, only briefly looking down at his right arm, the bullet had hit the inside of his upper arm, about halfway between the elbow and the armpit. He pressed the arm against his torso in an attempt to stop the bleeding, his right hand tightly wrapped around the cyclic stick, trembling slightly from the effort to keep the aircraft stable.

"Danny, try to radio the police, tell them what happened," McGarrett said gasping as he turned the helicopter to the right, heading back toward Oahu.

Danny nodded, putting on the headphones, immediately starting to play around with the radio controls. Steve could hear him shouting into the microphone but since he hadn't been able to put on his own headphones he didn't know if there was an answer.

McGarrett looked out of the window, a few minutes later he could already make out Oahu on the horizon, he estimated that they had covered approximately one quarter of the distance. Only belatedly it occurred to him that the Molokai airport probably would have been a lot closer but now it wouldn't make sense to return.

Steve sucked in air, suddenly finding it very difficult to concentrate on his surroundings, he was only marginally aware that Danny was talking to him and though he heard Danny's voice he couldn't make out any words. As a wave of dizziness washed over him, he had to blink a few times to clear his vision. McGarrett frowned slightly, what the hell was wrong with him?

Looking down, he was astonished to see that his whole T-shirt and part of his pants were soaked with blood. Very carefully he lifted his right arm, trying to see what damage the bullet had caused. For a few moments he just stared, trying to understand what the stream of blood meant that poured out of the wound, rising and ebbing in unison with his heartbeat, before Danny's voice finally pulled him out of his trance.

"Did you hear what I said?" Williams asked tetchily, still fiddling with the radio controls. "I don't think the radio's working. I've tried every single channel and frequency but all I got is random noise."

Wiping the sweat from his forehead with trembling fingers, Steve feverishly looked around, searching for something he could use for a tourniquet.

"Danny," McGarrett said breathlessly, cursing how weak his voice sounded. "Danny, give me your belt and then I need you to take over the controls."

"What?" Danny finally looked up, stripping off the useless headphones in one swift move.

"Take over the controls, now," Steve exclaimed weakly as his hand slipped off the controls, causing the aircraft to lurch dangerously to the right.

"What the hell…" Danny cursed anxiously as he gripped the cyclic stick, desperately trying not to lose control over the helicopter.

"Give me your belt," Steve repeated faintly, digging his left thumb between the muscles of his right upper arm, directly above the gunshot wound, in an attempt to squeeze shut the artery. Taking a deep breath, he tried unsuccessfully to slow down his breathing. "Hurry up, I don't know how long I'll be able to apply pressure." Steve's fingers trembled violently as he blinked away the sweat that ran into his eyes.

"Damn, McGarrett, can't let you out of sight for two seconds, what the hell is wrong with you? Just a flesh wound, huh? You stubborn idiot, why didn't you say something before?" Danny ranted, but he was not able to hide the fear and worry in his voice as he took in his partner's appearance, Steve's face had lost all its color, sweat stood upon his brow and his breathing was fast and labored.

With some difficulty, Williams finally managed to remove his belt with one hand, the other one clawed around the cyclic stick. He fumbled the belt into a loop so that Steve would just have to slip it onto his arm, tossing the makeshift tourniquet carefully into McGarrett's lap. Danny hoped Steve would be able to put on and tighten the belt on his own because Williams had no real chance of reaching him across the center console while he had to handle the controls.

Danny watched worriedly how Steve clumsily slipped the sling over his hand, trying to push it up to his upper arm. He needed three attempts before he was able to place the tourniquet at the right position and tightened it.

Grimacing from exhaustion and pain Steve closed his eyes, letting out a shaky breath as he leaned back into the seat, trying to get rid of the dizziness, but Danny's voice didn't allow him to take a rest.

"Pull tighter," Williams ordered, noticing that there was still a considerable amount of blood dripping from the wound. "You're still bleeding."

Glaring halfheartedly at his partner, McGarrett unsteadily raised his left hand, weakly clasping the end of the belt, but his blood-covered fingers ineffectively slipped off as soon as he started to pull.

"I can't," Steve finally exhaled through gritted teeth after the fourth or fifth unsuccessful attempt.

"Dammit, McGarrett, you can and you will! Pull tighter!" Danny exclaimed furiously. "Listen, I'd try to reach over and help, but I can't let go the controls. I won't be of much help, you have to do the main part by yourself. Do it now, Steve, pull tighter, you have to stop the bleeding."

"Yeah, alright… no… no need to shout," Steve whispered, wiping his bloodstained hand on his pants before he once more gripped the end of the belt, pulling with all his might.

"That's good, just a little bit more. Come on, Steve, you can do it," Danny encouraged, relieved when he saw Steve follow his orders. Williams bent over to the right as far as he was able while operating the helicopter. As he'd already feared he could barely get a good grip on the belt to help Steve torque it, but he found that his hand above Steve's hand seemed to have at least some psychological effect. Danny noticed that Steve gathered all of his remaining strength, finally managing to tighten the tourniquet enough to minimize the bleeding.

"Enough?" McGarrett asked breathlessly after a few moments, his voice barely audible over the noise of the helicopter.

Though there was still blood dripping from the wound, it was no longer the uncontrollable flow from before; Danny nodded, that had to be sufficient for now, "Hey man, you did good, okay? It's working, you did it."

Steve's hand dropped to his lap, his whole body trembling while a cold sweat ran down his face.

"You okay?" Danny knew it was a stupid question right now, obviously McGarrett was far from okay. He asked anyway, he needed to hear Steve's affirmation that he would be alright, but Steve just shook his head, and that little gesture unsettled Danny more than he would admit. Noticing Steve's fast and labored breaths, he said, "Hang on, okay? We're almost there, I can already see Oahu. Perhaps fifteen, twenty minutes…"

In reality, Danny had no idea how long it would take them to return to the small airfield from which they had taken off this morning. He hoped it would be quicker but he supposed that his estimation was about right.

"Do you hear me? Hang on, okay, buddy?" Danny threw a concerned look at his partner. "Steve? You still with me?"

McGarrett nodded weakly, ineffectively trying to take deeper, calmer breaths. "Listen Danny, about landing the helicopter," he said after a few moments, panting for air. "You have to…"

"I don't want to hear this, Steve, you'll land the damn thing," Danny interrupted him, anger and fear evident in his voice.

But Steve knew his body and his limits well enough to tell that he soon wouldn't be able to do anything at all in his current shape, and the last thing he needed to make sure before he lost consciousness was to explain to Danny how to bring down the helicopter. He knew damn well that safely landing a helicopter was an almost impossible task for someone who'd never done it before, but with a little advice and a huge portion of luck, hopefully Danny would be able to at least prevent a fatal crash.

"Danny, shut up and listen. It's important…" Steve gasped, his hands trembling in his lap. "I don't… I don't know how much longer I can stay awake."

"No, no, no, McGarrett, you have to stay awake, you're not allowed to pass out!" Danny exclaimed, vigorously shaking his head. "Do you hear me? Do. Not. Pass. Out!"

Steve bluntly ignored Danny's objection, no longer having the strength to argue with his partner, the edges of his vision already dangerously graying. He blinked sluggishly as he went on, "Listen Danny, make sure the nose of the helicopter is always slightly below the horizon during everything you do." He spoke hastily, making only short breaks to draw breath. "Try landing the helicopter like you would a plane, do you understand? Just skid down the runway. Don't try to hover, okay? Always keep the nose slightly below the horizon, that's important…" Steve's voice trailed off, he couldn't prevent his eyelids from drooping, the noise of his blood rushing in his ears drowned out every other sound.

A slap on his left shoulder jolted him briefly back to awareness and he slowly turned his head to the left, blinking tiredly against his blurry vision. He hated the expression on Danny's face, the fear and worry he was seeing in those blue eyes but there was nothing he could do about it right now.

"Steve, stay awake, I can't do this alone," Danny said as he squeezed McGarrett's left thigh, a hint of panic arising in his voice. "Hey, come on, I need you… Steve, no… please, Steve…"

Steve blinked drowsily, his gaze unsteady. "Sorry," he offered in a low whisper, smiling slightly before his eyes closed and his head lolled to his chest.

(tbc)