She didn't know how long she'd been descending for, hours it seemed like, but she really had no way of knowing. Finally, her foot touched the bottom, the solid, expanse of rock providing a strange source of comfort in that she had now reached her destination. She ignored the fact that she'd have even more difficult task of the assent, and instead, concentrated on the matter in hand.

Despite having touched down a few minutes ago, she still clung to the taught rope, providing her only contact with Frankie and Steve above. It also provided her with some stability as she slowed her breathing, attempting to stop the quivering that affected her whole body. Looking up, she could see a dim area of light through the small opening, which illuminated the top part of the pit, but below that, everything was black. Releasing one hand from the rope, she reached down and eased the torch she had brought down with her from it's position between her waistband and her stomach. Her shaking hands fumbled with it, and for a moment, her heart grew cold with fear as she lost her grip, but she managed to clasp it again in her sweaty palm. Her fingers found and pressed the switch, and suddenly, a circle of the rock in front of her feet was illuminated. Slowly, she passed the beam in a sweep around her, but it shone upon only rock and occasionally some of the rotting wood that had provided the support for the shaft and tunnels. Some of which had broken away to leave many areas destabilised, providing explanation for the cause of the collapse where she stood.

She shone the beam in a circle at a larger radius, and eventually, it alighted on a dark, awkward shaped heap. With a leaden feeling in her stomach, Jill studied it; no jagged or splinted edges, just the smooth, softness of what appeared to be skin and clothes. The rope clasped in one hand, and the torch in the other, she picked her way carefully over the debris, her heart thudding louder and harder in her chest than she thought it ever had.

Eventually, she reached it. She crouched down beside it and shone the beam along it, showing what was easily recognisable as a young child, but a broken one- limbs bent at odd angles, bloods trickled from cuts, wounds, gashes.

The sight was enough to make her cry, but she forced the tears back, the girl, the mother, everyone depended on her, she was the only one that could possibly save this little girl and she was going to make sure she did everything she could.

With dread, she picked up the tiny wrist.


Throb.

She held her breath.

Throb.

She exhaled slowly, the blood pulsing through the vein fingertips, slow and weak, but there. She carefully laid the arm down and moved up to Julia's head. "Julia, I'm Doctor Weatherill, I'm going to help you. Can you hear me?" She paused, shining the torch beam in the direction of the child's head but there was no response. She leant in closer and spoke slightly louder. "Julia, open your eyes for me." Once again she paused, but there was no movement, not even a flicker. She quickly checked the breathing and placed a finger under the child's chin to maintain an airway as she checked for injuries. From the brief examination, Jill discovered fractured bones in both legs and the right arm. There were also several lacerations, some superficial, but others bleeding quite profusely. Thankfully though, there didn't appear to be any injuries to the head

"FRANKIE!" She yelled as loud as she could, wincing as the sound was too loud for even her own ears.

"Yes doc?" Came the distant reply.

"I NEED MY BAG AND SPLINTS!"

She listened intently as Frankie shouted down to her, telling her to untie the rope around her.

She did so, and after calling back up that it was free, the rope was pulled quickly up. She felt slightly bereft; her only physical link to the world above her was getting steadily further away from her.

Within minutes, the rope was descending again, and on the end were the objects she'd asked for. Although in a totally alien environment, her professional instincts took over and she quickly but careful administered an injection of morphine to ease the pain she surely must be feeling. Then, she strapped the splints to both legs and the arm to prevent to fractures from worsening. Flicking the locks open on her doctors' bag, she lifted the lid and immediately pulled some bandages and pads from the organised contents. She placed pads on the worst bleeds, wrapping a bandage around them and tying a knot over the pad on the wound to place extra pressure on the wound.

Once this was done, she closed her bag and flicked the locks shut again, the metal snapping sound pronounced, harsh even, in the silence. Now all that was needed was to get the child in her critical state out of here, as quick as possible and without injuring her further.

She gazed up with some sense of hopelessness at the small opening of light so far away from them.