It had been raining for a week, Dez would give anything for some sunshine right now. His elbows were propped on the desk as his fingers rubbed his temples, he had a headache and still had a stack of tests to grade. He glanced out the classroom window, watching the water run down the window in small rivers, closing his eyes, he tried to picture the sun, it seemed like forever since he'd seen it. Now he was just waiting for his Guard unit to be activated, all the rain was causing mud slides, they were particularly bad along the Pacific Coast Highway. He turned back to his stack of tests, thinking that he would just take them home and grade them, he wasn't in the mood right now.

He cleaned up his desk and put the tests into his briefcase, turning the lights off and closing the door, he headed down the hall to the exit, more than ready to go home, the weather seemed to have him in a rather dower mood and he couldn't seem to get out of it. He stopped at the video store on the way home and picked up a couple of movies, choosing comedies, hoping they would cheer him up. Once home, he changed into sweats and a T-shirt, then fixed some dinner and sat down to watch one of the movies, he was about half way through the movie when the phone rang, he knew what it was, "Hello"

"Sergeant Dezmond, this is the National Guard dispatch, please report to headquarters right away, your unit has been activated."

"All right, I will be right there, has something happened?" He turned the tape off and walked to his closet where his fatigues where kept.

"There have been more mud slides, PCH is closed at present and we need more guardsmen to protect from looters and assist with evacuations."

"Very well, I am on my way." Dez hung up the phone, he was already tired, but now it was going to be a long night. He called the school to let them know he had been activated and not to expect him for a few days. He dressed in his fatigues and headed out, knowing that he would probably be up all night, but that was part of being in the National Guard.

Once he arrived at headquarters, he joined the rest of his unit for the briefing, things had gotten bad, several sections of the PCH were buried under a ton of mud. He was given orders to take a Hummer and head up PCH to where the first of the slides where, he was to check the situation out and report back, they needed to know where men were needed most. Dez saluted his Lieutenant and headed out, his hair quickly becoming wet from the heavy rain, sticking to his forehead, he made his way up the deserted highway, no other traffic was around, except an occasional emergency vehicle. He stopped at one point, he could hear something, but was unable to make out what it was, the next thing he knew, a wall of mud was coming at him, it was too late to get away and the mud quickly covered the Hummer, sending Dez into a sea of darkness, holding his breath that the mud would not fill the vehicle, which so far it hadn't.

Dez was panicked, he knew that being buried in all that mud was going to suffocate him, all he had was the air inside the Hummer and that wouldn't last very long, he could only hope that when he didn't check in, they would send someone to check on him. The other problem would be finding the Hummer under all that mud, it would not be visible and they would have to dig, if they could even figure out where to dig. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe shallow, not wanting to use up all his oxygen, he could hear rocks and other things hitting the side of the Hummer as the wall of mud continued it's journey across the highway. He closed his eyes and tried to relax his breathing as much as possible, all he could do was sit in the dark and wait, he had a flashlight, but he didn't know where it was and didn't want to use up oxygen moving around to find it.

Back at headquarters, Dez's platoon leader was pacing, he should have checked in by now and he wasn't responding to the calls to him over the radio. He had just been informed of another big slide and it was right in the area that Dez would be in, he had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Leopold, please take a couple of men out and look for Dezmond, I have a bad feeling he got caught in this latest slide."

"Yes sir, what should we expect?" Leo hadn't dealt with anything like this before, he didn't know what a mud slide could do.

"You probably won't even be able to see the Hummer, it will be buried, which is why time is of the essence, Dezmond will start to run out of air."

"I'm on my way sir." Leo turned and left, he was very worried about his friend now, Dez could suffocate under the mud. He gathered several men together and climbed into another Hummer, heading out into the pouring rain and darkness, a sense of urgency in all of them, knowing the consequences if they did not find Dez quickly.

Dez fell asleep, he was exhausted to begin with and the heat and stuffiness of the buried Hummer only made it worse. He had fought to stay awake, afraid he might never wake up, but it had become too difficult and he succumbed to the darkness of sleep, not even dreaming. Eventually he did begin to dream, he was on the beach, in the sunshine, soaking it up as if he would never see it again, his tan, glistening body relaxing on the sand, his eyes closed and the sound of the waves crashing giving him a sense of peace. He was suddenly jerked awake when something larger that rocks hit the side of the Hummer, leaving a large buckle in the metal. He also realized that there was mud under his feet, he could feel it. He decided that he needed to find the flashlight, mud had to be leaking in from somewhere and he wanted to know where.

As Dez slowly searched the Hummer for his flashlight, Leopold and the other men reached the mud slide that had buried Dez. It was a large slide and it was going to take them a while to find where to dig, but if they split up and moved carefully, hopefully they could find him in time. Moving through the mud was not going to be easy, it was deep and the continuing rain kept it wet. Leo called and asked that some bulldozers be brought in, they could clear the mud faster than men with shovels, now all they could do was wait for them to arrive.

Dez found his flashlight and turned it on, scanning the inside of the vehicle for the source of the leak. He discovered that the mud was leaking in through the passenger door, it was not sealed shut, all the debris hitting it had pushed it in enough for the mud to seep in, he had to hope that it didn't come in any faster, or he would be in real trouble. He began to cough, the air was already getting thin, there wasn't much in the Hummer to begin with, so it wasn't going to take long to be used up. He turned the flashlight back off and slumped back in the seat, alone in the dark with his thoughts, thoughts of dying and what lay beyond, what happened to you after you died, he slowly drifted to sleep again.

As Dezmond slept, the bulldozers started to arrive, it was still raining hard and the mud continued to travel across the highway. The task of clearing the mud wasn't going to be easy, more mud was just going to take it's place. Leopold began to give the bulldozer drivers instructions, letting them know that there was a Hummer buried there somewhere, with his best friend trapped in it, he let them know that the oxygen would not last very long in the Hummer so time was of the essence.

Dez began to have nightmares, dreaming of the time when one of his students died and he couldn't save him, it was during the solar flare incident, that had been the worst time of his entire life, especially when he had to kill his own platoon leader, trying to prevent him from raping a female student, he had lost his mind and killing him was the only thing he could do. He had to see a psychiatrist after that, the nightmares had made him ill and he couldn't sleep, it took a month for him to get where he could sleep without dreaming about it all over again. Now here he was having those nightmares again, as his body struggled for breath in the thinning air of the Hummer. He relived the moments when Louis died, he remembered his words to the doctor, "Do something, can't you save him?" And of course the doctors words, "I'm sorry, I wish I could, but he's gone." Dez was moaning now, as the dream became more intense.

Meanwhile the bulldozers were making slow progress, the mud filled in what they moved almost as soon as they moved it, all they could hope for was that one of the bulldozers would find the Hummer and they could dig Dez out from there. Leo was worried, he knew Dez wouldn't have a lot of oxygen and he feared they wouldn't find him in time. "Leopold to base, come in base."

"Go ahead Leopold, have you found Dezmond yet?" Franklin was very worried, a lot of time had already passed and they still didn't have Dezmond, soon he would run out of air.

"No sir, it's slow going, the mud just fills in where we've cleared it." He knew the concern showed in his voice, but he didn't care, he knew his platoon leader, Lieutenant Franklin, was just as worried.

"All right, keep me posted Leopold, find him as fast as you can." He sighed, he did not want to lose Dezmond, he was a good man and the best Sergeant he ever had.

"Yes sir, out." Leopold put the walkie talkie down on the passenger seat of his Hummer and turned back to the activity just beyond. The bulldozers were making a valiant effort, but it was still very slow going, he knew Dez was running out of time, just how much oxygen did he have? How long would it take for the oxygen to be used up inside the Hummer? He didn't know the answers to these questions, he wished he did. The thought of his friend trapped in that Hummer, alone in the dark, made him sad, he must be so scared and lonely. He knew of the nightmares Dez had after he killed their platoon leader, and hoped he didn't start to have those again, but he knew that Dez would be afraid and that was liable to make them resurface, that was what his therapist had said. He paced back and forth, unable to do anything but wait, he hated that, he wanted to be doing something besides just telling others what to do, he wanted to be working.

Dez jerked awake, not realizing he had fallen asleep. He moaned, his chest felt heavy as his lungs fought to take in the thinning air, he knew he was running out of time and running out fast. "God, please don't let me die, I am not ready to die yet." He then coughed and decided not to talk anymore, that just made things worse. What he wouldn't give for a bottle of oxygen right now. He had never been more afraid of dying than he was now, hell, he felt like he was already buried, even the heat of the solar flare and it's threat to the planet, hadn't scared him this much. He felt so alone, he didn't even know if anyone was aware of his predicament, he hoped they were, but there was no way he could know. The darkness threatened to consume him, making him feel the fear and loneliness deep in his bones.

Leopold continued to pace, he grew more and more worried as time passed, Dez was running out of air, he didn't want to lose his best friend, really his only friend. Dez was a rare individual in today's society, he actually cared about people, no matter who they were or what they were. Leo found that to be so refreshing, he wished more people were like Dez and certainly didn't want there to be one less in the world. He just wished he knew where to dig, he would start doing that himself if he knew.

Lieutenant Franklin was also pacing, at least he had things to keep him occupied, giving out orders to other units, organizing evacuations and rescue efforts, but he still kept thinking about Dez, buried under all that mud, the darkness and loneliness he must be feeling, the fear he must be feeling as the air slowly got thinner. He thought he would go mad if he didn't hear something soon, Dezmond was not only the best Sergeant he had, he was a friend and he didn't want to lose him. He prayed that this would have a happy ending, Dez didn't deserve to die this way, any way. He wanted to be out there, helping rescue Dezmond, but he was needed at headquarters more, he knew there were a lot of peoples lives at stake, not just Dezmond's, so he had to concentrate on that.

Dez turned on his flashlight and found a piece of paper, he began to write out his will, it was hard, he didn't want to believe that he might not come out of this alive, but that was the reality and he had to face it. He didn't have any family left, his only real friends were Leopold and a few of the teachers at school, so he didn't have many people to leave things to, most of it would go to Leo or charity. He closed his eyes as he finished, the thought of writing his will made him sad, he never felt so alone in all his life. He once again fell asleep and the nightmares returned once again, when would this nightmare be over? One way or the other.

Dez lost consciousness, every breath was a struggle and his body could not take in enough oxygen to keep him conscious. At least he could no longer think about dying, what it would be like and how it would feel, he wasn't thinking at all right now. Every ounce of strength in his body was being used to breath, to take in what little air there was left in the vehicle. Just before he lost consciousness, he had prayed for God to spare him, telling him he wasn't ready to die yet, that his life felt incomplete, but as he drifted into unconsciousness, he realized that it was not to be, he knew he was going to die.

Leopold was angry, it really wasn't his platoon leaders fault, he had been ordered to send most of the men and bull dozers to another location, he had pleaded with Franklin not to do it, he knew they were close to finding Dez, but Franklin had no choice, there were dozens of other people out there that needed help too. At least he had persuaded Franklin to let him stay, so he could be there when they found his friend. Now he was riding on the bull dozer, keeping an eye out for any sign of Dez's Hummer, shovel in hand and ready to dig when they did find him, praying they would not be too late. Suddenly he thought he saw something in the mud about 50 yards from where they were currently plowing, "I think I see something over there, head that way."

"Yes sir, what did you see?"

"I'm not sure, but it could be a piece of the Hummer, go as fast as you can, time is running out."

"Yes sir." Corporal Watkins moved the bull dozer in the direction that Leopold had indicated, he was right, there was *something* there, but he couldn't quite make it out either. He drove the dozer as fast as he could, he liked Sergeant Dezmond and did not want to see him die.

As they got closer, Leo began to be able to make out what was laying in the mud, it was one of the Hummer's mirrors, they had to be close. He decided that the best course of action would be to move up flow of the mud, figuring the flow would have sent the mirror down from that direction. "It's the Hummer's mirror, keep this thing moving and pray we find him quick."

"Yes sir." He pushed the big dozer ahead, trying to move quickly, but not so quickly that they would hit or run over the Hummer, that would be counter productive. As the mud was pushed aside, he caught a glimpse of the back of the Hummer, mud sliding off of it as he cleared the area. "This is it Leopold, we found him."

"Yes, lets just hope we aren't too late." Leo jumped from the dozer and began using the shovel to move the mud away from the cab of the Hummer, wanting to get to Dez quickly. "Have that oxygen ready to go Watkins."

"It's ready sir." He had the mask unwrapped and the flow set to the right setting, holding it while Leo got the door to the Hummer open, he watched as a lifeless Dezmond fell into Leo's arms.

"Get that oxygen over here, he's not breathing." Leo was panicking now, Dez was not breathing and he was turning blue, he needed to get oxygen into him quickly or he would be at the very least brain damaged. "Come on Dez, don't give up on me." He placed the mask over Dez's face, turning the flow on, praying all the while that he hadn't been too late.

"Come on Dez, breathe Dammit, breathe" Leo pleaded, holding the oxygen mask over his face, all he wanted was for Dez to breathe, he didn't like the way his lips had turned blue, it was a bad sign. It took a moment, one that seemed to last an eternity, before Dez finally gasped and sucked greedily at the oxygen, he didn't wake, however. "That's it Dez, hang on buddy."

"Leo, an ambulance is on the way." Watkins bent over Dez, looking down at the unconscious man, grateful that he was at least breathing.

"Thanks Pete, now help me get him out of this mud, it could start flowing or shift at any moment."

"Sure Leo." He helped Leopold lift Dez onto the bull dozer, making him as comfortable as possible. He was alive, but barely, Leo had found a very faint pulse and his breathing was still very labored, they also didn't know what damage might have been done to his brain, due to lack of oxygen.

They no sooner got back to Leo's Hummer when the mud began to move again, quickly burying Dez's Hummer once again. It shook Leo to the core to think how close they came to having that Hummer be Dez's final resting place. He and Watkins put Dez in the rear of the Hummer and waited for the ambulance, keeping the oxygen on him, both hoping Dez would be all right. "Watkins, radio in to the Lieutenant that we've got Dez, but he's in bad shape, let him know that we're waiting for the ambulance and will follow it in to the hospital."

"Yes sir, anything else?"

"No, that's all for now." Leo touched his fingers to Dez's neck, checking his pulse again, it was no stronger and that worried him. "Come on Dez, you gotta fight, you can do it buddy."

A few moments later, the ambulance arrived, the EMT's examined Dez, got an IV in his arm and loaded him into the ambulance, Dez and Pete climbed into the Hummer and followed closely behind. The ambulance wasted no time and that worried Leo, he knew it must be serious if they were moving that fast. "Pete, what did Franklin say when you called in?" Leo needed something else to think about, not wanting to think about Dez's condition.

"He was very relieved that we found Dez and that he was alive, but he told us not to leave the hospital until we knew Dez would be all right, he also said to keep him informed with any news." Watkins tried to maintain a pace with the ambulance, but they were moving fast.

"OK, once we are to the hospital, that is your assignment, keeping Franklin informed."

"Sure Leo, I know how worried you must be, you and Dez are very close, I am worried about him too." Watkins swerved when the ambulance did, avoiding a tree in the road.

"Thanks Pete, I know your worried too." He grabbed the dash board as Pete had to swerve again, for a large tree branch, the place was a mess and it was still raining, the Hummer's wipers worked frantically to keep the windshield clear. As soon as they reached the hospital, they rushed through the ER doors right behind the gurney carrying Dez, he still didn't look good, his skin was pale and clammy. A nurse stopped them at the swinging doors.

"You have to wait out here, we will let you know as soon as we have something." She turned and walked through the doors, moving to where they had put the patient on a bed and the doctor was beginning to examine him, leaving the two men standing on the other side of the doors, looking worried and wet.

Leo was pacing in the waiting room, it seemed like forever since Dez was brought in and still nothing, he didn't know how much longer he could stand to wait, he needed to know how his friend was. He looked at Watkins sitting in a chair, he was reading a magazine, looking calm, but Leo could see the subtle signs of his nervousness too. He at least had a chance to dry off, a nurse had brought both of them a towel, and he felt much better now. He looked up as he heard someone come into the room, it was a doctor and he hoped the doctor was looking for him. He watched the doctor glance around the room, the gaze settling on him and Watkins.

"Excuse me, are you here with Sergeant Dezmond?" The doctor was pretty sure they were, considering how they were dressed in camouflage, but he had to be sure.

"Yes, I am Corporal Leopold, Dezmond's friend, how is he?" He shook the doctors hand and they all sat down in chairs.

"I won't lie to you, he's not in the best of shape, he was deprived of oxygen a little too long, we have sent him for a CAT scan to see what, if any, damage was done to his brain, for now he is comatose."

"How soon will you know doctor?" This was not what Leo wanted to hear, but he would have to deal with it the best he could.

"The test results will take a few hours, after that, it's up to Dezmond, if he wakes, then we will know." The doctor stood, he had other patients to take care of and he wanted to make sure Dezmond got settled into the ICU when he was done with the CAT scan. "I will keep you posted, you men should go home and get some rest."

"Thanks doctor, but we are under orders not to leave until we know that Dez is going to be all right." Leo stood and walked to the door with the doctor.

"Watkins to base, come in base." Watkins was reporting the new information to Lieutenant Franklin, as he was supposed to, he knew that Franklin would not be happy.

"Franklin here, how's Dezmond?" He was worried, Watkins voice didn't sound too good.

"He's in a coma sir, the doctor says he was deprived of oxygen for a little too long and they have to do a CAT scan to see if any damage was done."

"That's not what I wanted to hear, but thank you for reporting in, you and Leopold should go home and get some rest, you can return to the hospital in the morning."

"Yes sir, but I don't think I can get Leo to leave, he's worried sick."

"Understood, don't force him, if he wants to stay, let him."

"Yes sir, out." He put the radio down and moved to where Leopold was standing, he knew Leo would not leave, but he still had to tell him. "Sir, Franklin says we should go home and get some rest, we can come back in the morning."

"I'm not going anywhere Pete, not until I know." Leo turned to face the young man, he could see the exhaustion in his eyes. "You go, I will be fine here."

"Yes sir, I will bring you some breakfast when I return."

"Thank you Pete." He watched Pete leave, he was a good man, it was no wonder Dez liked him. He moved back into the waiting room and sat down, picking up a magazine, but he wasn't able to focus enough to read it, so he looked at the pictures, anything to pass the time.

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Doctor Turner stepped into the ICU, he could see that Sergeant Dezmond was settled into one of the beds and the necessary equipment had been hooked to him. The CAT scan had not revealed much, so he had to hope that any damage was not severe. He also knew that there could be damage that the CAT scan would not detect, he needed Dezmond awake to tell if there was any damage, so all he could do now was wait. "Nurse, I want an update on Sergeant Dezmond's vitals every hour, without delay."

"Yes sir, did the CAT scan reveal anything?"

"No, not really, it shows some broken blood vessels, but nothing of significance."

"I will keep a close eye on him doctor." That would not be a problem, he was very pleasing to look at, she had a special feeling about him, he had risked his life to save others, that seemed so rare these days.

"Thank you nurse, I will be in my office"

"Very well doctor." She moved back to Dezmond's bedside, checking all the readings, making sure everything was hooked up properly. This man had the softest skin she'd ever seen or felt and that included his hands, they were very soft and smooth, yet somehow she knew they also held a lot of strength. She wrote down the results of the monitors, his heartbeat was stronger, as was his breathing, but his brain waves were not what they should be, she prayed that became stronger as he healed.

Dez was drifting in a sea of blackness, he could feel the weight of his body, feel himself breathing, finally breathing, but he couldn't remember why he hadn't been breathing. He strained to think, his mind was a hazy, confusion of images, he couldn't remember why he had stopped breathing, couldn't remember what day it was, or even what year, and where was he? The last thing he remembered was being in a classroom, a student? No, a teacher, but of what? God he was scared and confused, he didn't understand what was going on and the strain of trying to think was making his head pound, so he shut it all out and let his mind drift back into the calm blackness.

The nurse watched Mr. Dezmond's brain waves fluctuate, they rose dramatically, reaching a point where he had to be trying to think hard. They dropped again, back to the level of a comatose patient, nurse Suzy was worried, he shouldn't be doing that. She wrote everything down on the chart and immediately took it to the doctor, knowing he would want to know about this. "Doctor, Mr. Dezmond's chart." She stepped into Doctor Turner's office and handed him the chart.

"Everything all right?" He asked as he took the chart from her.

"I don't know, his brain waves have been fluctuating drastically."

"Really?" He opened the file and looked at the information, his brow creasing with concern. "This is drastic, it's back down now?"

"Yes, what is wrong Doctor?" She sat down and waited for his opinion on the matter.

"Well, he might just be trying to think, to remember, oxygen deprivation can do some odd things to the brain, he could have some sort of damage, or just some memory lose, it's hard to say."

"When will you know something?"

"When he wakes and we can talk to him." He handed the chart back to nurse Suzy, "Keep a close eye on him, let me know if it happens again."

"Yes doctor." She stood and left, she wanted to find Mr. Dezmond's friend, he needed to know what was going on. She walked down to the waiting room, finding the man sprawled out on several chairs, sound asleep, she hated to wake him, but knew he'd want to know. "Mr. Leopold, wake up sir."

"Um.....yes, oh nurse, how is Dez?" He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he hadn't even realized he'd fallen asleep.

"He's in ICU and still in a coma, his brain waves are somewhat low, but they have been fluctuating drastically, we don't know yet what that means, we have to wait until he wakes to know what, if any, damage was done." She sat next to the man, it was obvious he cared about Dezmond, he had been there all night and looked like hell. "Can I get you anything? Some coffee perhaps?"

"No, thank you, the man that was with me last night is bringing me breakfast and some fresh cloths." He ran his hand over his face, he really could use a shower. "Actually, is there any place to get a shower around here?"

"Certainly, I will arrange something for you, then I will take you to see Dezmond." She stood to leave, she would arrange for Mr. Leopold to use an empty room to shower and change.

"Thank you Nurse."

"Your welcome." Then she was out the door.

As Leopold rubbed the remainder of the sleep from his eyes, Watkins walked into the waiting room carrying a box, he could immediately smell it's contents, eggs, bacon, toast, his stomach growled, he was very hungry. "Thanks Pete, I am starving."

"Your welcome Leo, I also have a thermos of coffee, any word on Dez?" He sat the box down in front of Leopold and handed him the thermos, sitting down next to him.

"Some, but not much encouraging yet, the doctor seems optimistic though."

"Aren't they supposed to be?" He smiled at Leo, trying to lighten the mood.

"Good point Pete, the nurse is arranging for me to take a shower, then I can see Dez." He began eating, not realizing until he smelled the food, just how hungry he was.

"That's good, I have a bag of clothes in the car for you, I'll go and get them." He stood and began to walk away, wanting Leo to have fresh clothes to wear after his shower.

"Thank you again Pete, I appreciate your doing this for me."

"Your welcome Leo, I just want Dez to be all right, there's no point in you being uncomfortable while you wait." He nodded to Leopold then turned and left, he was happy to help Leo and he hoped that Dez would be fine.

Leo finished his breakfast rather quickly, satisfying his hunger. Pete had come back with the clothes and then left to go to headquarters and check in, Lieutenant Franklin needed to know what was going on. He stood when nurse Suzy came in to get him, he was more than ready for the shower.

"This way Mr. Leopold, I have an empty room that you can use to take a shower and change, how are you feeling?"

"Better now that I've had breakfast, thank you." He moved into the empty room, walking towards the bathroom as the nurse closed the door and left him alone. He really couldn't wait to see Dez, he needed to know for himself that he was doing ok, maybe not great, but at least ok. He turned the shower on and got the water nice and hot, climbing in and enjoying the heat, taking his time and letting the heat soothe his body.

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In the meantime, up in ICU, Dez's brain waves took a dramatic leap again as he tried again to think, to remember where he was and what had happened to him, but it didn't seem to be coming to him, everything was hazy, like a thick fog was filling his mind. He fought for the memories longer this time, it still made his head throb, but he ignored that, needing to remember. The blackness was frightening and yet soothing at the same time, he felt safe there and did not want to leave, despite the pull he felt to leave, he didn't know where the pull came from, but he fought it.

Nurse Suzy watched Dezmond's brain wave activity, the dramatic leap worried her, she didn't know if it was a good thing or not, but somehow she felt it was not a good thing, she hoped she was wrong. She quickly left to tell doctor Turner, he had wanted to know when it happened again, "Doctor, Mr. Dezmond's brain waves have taken another dramatic leap, I am worried, is that a good thing or bad?"

"I wish I knew for sure, it means he's using his brain, but it shouldn't spike so dramatically, he may be trying too hard to think, if that's the case, then there must be some kind of damage, possibly temporary, but he shouldn't have to work that hard at thought." He walked down the hall with Suzy, headed towards the ICU, he needed to see this for himself and to examine Mr. Dezmond.

"I hope there isn't any permanent damage doctor, he seems like a special person." She stood on one side of the bed, while the doctor stood on the other, looking at the readings on the monitors and examining Dezmond.

"Well, he may be starting to wake, but it will still take time, he was in a deep coma and he won't come out of it easily." The doctor made some notes on the chart and moved around the bed, "Continue to monitor him closely, let me know if anything drastic happens, I will be arranging another CAT scan for him."

"Yes doctor, is it all right if his friend comes in for a short visit? He's been here all night and would like to see him."

"All right, but not too long, Mr. Dezmond does not need any extra stress right now."

"Thank you doctor, I will let him know." She watched him leave, then looked at her watch, Mr. Leopold should be done with his shower by now. She went down to the room that she had taken him to, knocking on the door. She smiled when a fresh, clean gentleman opened the door, "Are you ready to see Dezmond? The doctor doesn't want you to stay too long, but you can see him."

"Yes, thank you for all your kindness." He followed her out of the room and up to the ICU, he couldn't believe how much he wanted to see Dez, he just hoped that he didn't look too bad. He stepped into the room and was almost shocked at the number of tubes and wires hooked to his friend, all leading to so many monitors that it looked like a space ship. He slowly moved forward, looking at his motionless friend, worried about whether he would ever be the same again. "Hey Dez, how ya doin? You best get your butt out of that bed, before the Lieutenant kicks your butt."

Just at that moment, several alarms went off on various monitors, he found himself being pulled from the room by the nurse, "What's going on? Why were those alarms going off."

"I don't know, please wait out here while I check on him." She ran back into the room and checked the monitors that had sounded, one was on the oxygen level, it had gotten too high somehow, so she turned that down and that alarm stopped, the other was on the heart monitor, his heart was beating too fast. She paged the doctor to the ICU stat, then moved a cart with the necessary supplies on it, over to the bed.

The doctor rushed into the ICU, quickly studying the readings and applying the necessary medication to Dezmond's IV, to bring his heart rate back to normal. It took several minutes, but his heart rate finally dropped to a more normal level, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, most especially Leopold, who stood in the doorway watching, he had been afraid that it was his fault, that perhaps something he said had upset Dez. He watched the doctor approach him, he was about to ask him what happened. "Doctor, what was wrong? Was it something I said?"

"No, not likely Mr. Leopold, it was most likely a result of what his body and brain have been through over the last day, I think he will be all right."

"What about brain damage? Do you know if he has any?" Leo was worried, from everything he'd seen, Dez didn't seem in too good of shape to him.

"It's too soon to tell, we really won't know much until he wakes up and we can talk to him, now I must go, we are about to take Mr. Dezmond down for another CAT scan."

"Thank you doctor." Leo watched him leave, then his eyes moved back to his friend, laying in that hospital bed, a half dozen machines surrounding him, yes, he was definitely worried about Dez.

********************************************************************************

Dez had felt the change in his heart rate, it felt like it was beating so fast it would explode, that had scared him, not that he wasn't already, he never felt so scared, alone, or confused. Why was all this happening? Why couldn't he remember? And why couldn't he wake up? He had no answers to any of those questions and that frightened him more than anything. The constant darkness that surrounded him was beginning to feel suffocating, feeling like it was closing in on him, smothering him. There was something familiar about that feeling, but he couldn't quite place it, like everything else, it was just out of reach.

Dez finally drifted deeper, until all thought left him, all feelings left him and he was no longer aware of the darkness, all that remained was him. He was not aware that his body was trying to heal, his mind was trying to heal, he did not remember what had happened to him, not at present anyway, perhaps he would remember eventually, if all went well. At the present time his body was in control, he was at the mercy of his body, doing what it wanted, letting it be in control so it could try to heal him. He wasn't aware of the people around him, the doctors, nurses, and especially friends, none of that registered right now, nothing registered right now.

Another twenty-four hours passed and there was little change in Dez's condition, Leo was worried, so was the doctor, he could tell by the look on his face. Leo began to get angry with himself, for not finding Dez sooner, if he had only found him sooner, he would be ok now, if only. Lieutenant Franklin had stopped by for a while, going in to see Dez for a few minutes, when he came out he looked very worried, having never seen Dez like that before. Leo knew the feeling, Dez was so strong and full of life, it was hard to see him laying there motionless.

Dez was fighting, fighting for thought, fighting to remember, fighting to wake up, he hated this darkness he was in, it was cold and he felt so very alone. He knew that there were people around him, taking care of him and worrying about him, but he couldn't reach them, couldn't touch them. He was more afraid now, then when he thought he was going to die, he didn't want to live if he was going to be unable to think, unable to use his mind. He knew he had use of his mind, he was using it now, but when it was really important, would he be able to reason? To put thoughts together to know what to do? Right now he didn't. His thoughts seemed random, bits and pieces coming to him, but unable to put them together.

"Nurse, I want another CAT scan done on Mr. Dezmond, this has me very puzzled, the previous scans don't show any damage, but he's not regaining consciousness." He continued to read Dezmond's chart, puzzling over the readings.

"Yes Doctor, what do you think could be wrong?" She was worried too, she really liked Dezmond and she knew he must be a special person, he had so many friends. It turned out that he was a High School teacher, many of his students had come by to see him, the principle of the school had come by also, but aside from checking to see how Dez was doing, he also needed some tests that Dez had been grading, Mr. Leopold took him to Dezmond's apartment to look for them.

"I wish I knew, the CAT scans should show if there is any damage, but if there's not, then why isn't he waking up?" He put Dezmond's charts down and moved around the bed, checking the monitors, then looking at Dez's eyes with a small flashlight, his pupils responded the way they should, he just didn't know.

"Is there anything we can do?" Nurse Suzy had been around people that had been through this before, but they usually came to before this.

"All we can do is wait, he will wake when he is ready, which I guess he isn't right now." He moved away from the bed, heading towards his office, he had rounds to make. "Page me if anything happens, anything at all."

"Yes Doctor, the orderlies will be here to take him for the scan in about twenty minutes." She touched Dezmond's hand, hoping the contact would help him wake.

"All right, let me know when they have brought him back up and I want the results of the scan immediately."

"Yes Doctor." She watched him go, then looked down at the handsome man laying in the bed, completely motionless. "Come on Mr. Dezmond, you need to wake up, so we can find out what brain damage you might have." She also wanted to see some life in those amazing green eyes of his.

They took him for the scan, it was a good thing that he was currently unconscious, those scans were time consuming and sometimes uncomfortable. They took him back to his room and all anyone could do was wait for the results of the scan, hoping this time it would show them something, anything that they could work on treating. Standing around and not being able to do anything, except keep him breathing and keep fluids in him, was making everyone crazy.

Finally, this CAT scan finally showed them something, a slight swelling to part of Dezmond's brain, now they could act, could give him medication that would bring the swelling down, hopefully allowing him to finally wake. The doctor was relieved and yet worried at the same time, they could finally take action, but what kind of damage did the swelling indicate? Was it temporary, or permanent? None of that could be answered until Dezmond woke, that was still a source of frustration for him, there was nothing he could do, but treat the symptoms that presented themselves.

The darkness was suffocating, he desperately wanted out, wanted to see light, see the sun. Something about that was familiar, like it had been some time since he had seen the sun, but he couldn't put the pieces together. He had never felt so alone, the darkness was complete, endless, unfriendly. Several times he had found himself struggling against the tide of darkness, feeling like he was drowning in it, like it was taking over and filling his mind, but he fought, it was all there was for him to do.

Leo was fighting too, fighting to stay in control, he would not let his fear and panic take over, he needed to stay in control, for Dez's sake. It was hard, he watched the hours go by and there was no change in Dez's condition, it was driving him crazy, he'd never prayed so hard in his life, then he was right now, Dez didn't deserve this, he was a special man, but what was the saying? "Only the good die young" He refused to believe that would happen to Dez, no it couldn't. He was jarred from his revere by Franklin.

"How is he Leopold?" He was worried too, Dez had been out for too long.

"The same, but the doctor did say that this last CAT scan did show some swelling and that was something they could work on treating, he hoped it would finally allow Dez to wake, if they could get the swelling down." He sighed and looked at his hands, he couldn't even look Franklin in the face.

"He'll make it Leo, he's tough and a fighter, he won't give up" He put his hand on Leopold's shoulder, trying to reassure him. "Let me know if anything happens, I've got to get to headquarters, now that the rain is letting up, we can get more work done."

"Yes sir, I will." Leo had noticed that the rain had let up, but there was still no sign of the sun, he wished to see the sun more than anything, the clouds and rain only added to the gloom he felt.

The doctor administered some medication to Dezmond, it should reduce the swelling on his brain and hopefully improve his condition, all they could do now was wait again, in another twelve hours he would have another CAT scan done to see if the swelling was down, he sure hoped so. This had been one of his most difficult cases, he'd dealt with people suffering from oxygen deprivation before, but none had been this puzzling, this mysterious. Mr. Dezmond should have wakened by now, even the swelling wasn't really that bad, but he wasn't waking and it had him frustrated.

The next twelve hours proved to be crucial to Dezmond, the medication the doctor had given him for the swelling must have been working. They would know soon, the CAT scan results should be back shortly, but they could see other signs that Dez was improving, or at least changing. Both the doctor and nurse Suzy could see subtle changes, the way his vitals improved, he seemed more aware of his surroundings, but he still had not wakened.

Dez knew something was happening, he could feel more and some of the fog seemed to be lifting from his mind, his thoughts were still a jumble of confusion, however. He craved light, he wanted, no needed to see light, the sun, the darkness was too much, he couldn't stand it anymore. He felt depression wash over him, feeling so alone and lost, he needed to feel some human contact, see a human face, any face. He felt himself rising slowly out of his pit of blackness, everything looked more like gray instead.

"Come on Mr. Dezmond, I know you can do it, just keep fighting." Suzy reached down and took his hand, knowing from experience that the contact would help, giving him something to focus on as he fought to regain consciousness.

A moan, it was the first sign of life that had come from Dezmond since he was brought into the hospital, until that one small sound, he had been motionless and silent, it was encouraging and the doctor felt certain he would be ok with a little time, of course he still didn't know if Mr. Dezmond had any memory lose or other damage. He went to the waiting area to speak to Mr. Leopold, the man was a good friend, not having left the hospital the whole time, he wished he had a friend like that. "Mr. Leopold, how are you?"

"Fine Doc, how is Dez?" He stood, looking expectantly at the doctor, hoping for one small shred of good news.

"He seems to be improving, he even moaned a few moments ago, that's the most we've gotten out of him since he came in." He smiled, he loved to give people good news.

"That's great, but what about his mind? Was it damaged?" He was so afraid that Dez had suffered brain damage and he felt responsible, if only he'd found him sooner.

"I still don't know for sure about that, when I can talk to him and get him to answer questions, then I will know, I must get back, the CAT scan results should be back and then I'll have a better idea." He turned to leave, some of his frustrations disappearing.

"Thanks Doc, please let me know." He sat back down and picked up his magazine, it seemed like he'd been there forever, at least Dez seemed to be getting better, he sure hoped so.

The doctor was very encouraged, Dezmond's vitals were stronger and all the monitors showed improvement, the CAT scan results had also been encouraging, the swelling was way down and there was no sign of any new damage, or swelling. Still, all he could do now was wait for Dezmond to wake, he needed to ask him questions, in order to determine the extent of the damage his brain might have suffered. He wanted to keep a close eye on Dezmond, but he had so much work to do, so that was where Suzy would come in, her job now would be to keep a constant watch on him. "Suzy, I want you to say with him, don't leave his side for anything, unless he wakes, then come get me immediately."

"Yes doctor, anything else you need?" She would do as he asked, her concern for Dezmond was stronger, she knew he seemed to be improving, but would he be ok?

"No, just stay with him, do what you can to try and wake him." He moved to the door, looking at Suzy and smiling, he knew she cared about Dezmond, they all did, but she especially did.

"Very well, I will let you know if he wakes." She watched the doctor leave, then took Dezmond's hand, holding it tightly, it was so soft and smooth. She hoped he would wake soon and even more, she hoped he was not suffering any permanent damage. "Please Mr. Dezmond, you have to wake, and you have to be all right."

*********************************************************************

The first thing that invaded his vision when he opened his eyes was sunlight, it had just begun to poke through the clouds when he began to wake. He closed his eyes against the brightness, but basked in the warmth on his face, as the rays streamed through the window of the hospital room, even though at that moment he didn't know where he was. After a moment he opened his eyes again, squinting at the bright sun that he thought he would never see again. A wave of happiness and relief flooded his body, he was so glad to be out of that pit of lonely darkness, now if only he could remember how he got in it. Suddenly a vision of beauty blocked the sun from his eyes, she was so beautiful to him, anyone would have been a sight for sore eyes at this moment, but she truly was beautiful. "What?.........."

"Shhhhh, don't try to talk yet, just take your time and don't push it." She was so happy to see his beautiful green eyes open, they were the most striking eyes she'd ever seen. "You take it slow, I need to get the doctor." She stepped away, but he did not let go of her hand. "Please Mr. Dezmond."

"Please.....don't...go." He needed the human contact, it felt like forever since he'd felt it.

"I will be right back, I promise." She tried to let go of his hand, but he wouldn't release her, she was amazed at his strength. She decided to just push the nurse call button and let someone else get the doctor, it was obvious that he needed her to stay. "Ok Mr. Dezmond, I won't go, just don't get yourself excited, try to relax."

"Where am I?" His voice was raspy and weak, he hadn't spoken in days and his throat was dry.

"Your in the ICU, at the hospital, just relax, everything is fine." She felt bad that he seemed so confused and lost.

"What happened?" He wanted to know, but he couldn't remember, the last thing he remember was being in the class room, giving his students a test.

"It's a long story, we can talk about it when your stronger." She squeezed his hand for reassurance, she now knew he at least had some short term memory lose.

The doctor came into the room, he was glad to see Mr. Dezmond awake, now he could ask some questions and find out what, if any, damage he had suffered. "Hello, I am doctor Turner, I need to ask you a few questions."

"Ok." He hadn't let go of the nurses hand, he needed the human contact and security he felt with it, he felt so weak and disoriented.

"What is your name?"

"Wil Dezmond." He watched the doctor write on his chart.

"What is your profession?" He was encouraged so far, he knew his name at least.

"I am a....High School......history teacher." It was a little hard to speak, but he managed to answer the questions.

"Anything Else?"

"I don't.......understand?"

"Do you do anything else, besides teach?" Now he was getting a little worried.

"I....no, I don't think.....so, no." He was confused, he felt like the answer to that should be yes, but he didn't know why.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I.....no, I don't know." He closed his eyes, struggling to think.

"Just a few more and you can rest, what day is it?"

"I don't....know." He didn't, as far as he knew it could have been weeks or hours, since he was in the class room, he wasn't even sure he knew why he was here.

"What's the last day you remember?" He wanted to be thorough, he was already certain of some short term memory lose, but there seemed to be some other gaps in his memory as well, such as his National Guard duty.

"It was........the twentieth, I think." God it was so hard to think.

Well, that was the day that it all happened, so he hadn't lost too much memory "Ok, last question, do you know what happened to you?"

"No, I have......no idea." He didn't, the last thing he remembered was being in the class room and hating all the rain.

"All right, get some rest Mr. Dezmond, I will check on you later." He finished his notes and went out of the room to speak to Mr. Leopold, leaving Suzy to watch Dezmond. "Mr. Leopold, Dezmond has wakened, however he is suffering some memory lose, I am hoping that with time, he will remember some of the things, but I don't think he will ever remember what happened to him."

"Well Doctor, I think that's probably a good thing, it had to be a nightmare for him, trapped in that Hummer with no way out." Leo was relieved that Dez was finally awake, but worried about the memory lose.

"He doesn't seem to remember being a part of the National Guard, I think seeing you might bring that memory back to him, but I want him to get some more rest before you go in." He shook Leo's hand, turning to go back to his office.

"Thank you Doctor, please let me know when I can see him." Leo paced in the waiting area, then went and called Franklin, giving him the news.

Dezmond slept for another twelve hours, it was a deep, healing sleep and when he woke, Leo was waiting there to see him. It took him a few minutes to remember Leo, then after that he remembered his National Guard duties, but he still didn't remember what happened to him and never would. He was allowed to go home a week later, and back to work another week after that. He had begun to develop a relationship with the beautiful Suzy, she visited him every evening and their affection grew, everything turned out for the best in the end and Dez would never again know what it felt like to be alone in the dark.

THE END

Enid