Asia held up her hands, "Relax Maria! She's a friend!"
"Who's a friend?" Maria asked.
Asia turned around, only to see that Flicker was gone.
Maria stepped up beside her and looked up at the deep furrows carved down the side of the tower, as far up as the eye could see, "Who did you say you got down here with?"
"Never mind right now. Where's Flint?" Asia asked.
"He took off for the basement with a bomb, when he saw the Code language change. Hey good work by the way! What's the matter?" Maria asked, as she saw Asia's face react strongly.
"John went to the basement to overload the reactor to blow up the building!" Asia said in a panic.
"Well I'm sure they'll meet up and everything will be fine, but right now we need to get to the other side of the tower, because we're about to be overrun here. We've called in the choppers. It looks like we might live through this yet."
"But John, he needs to be warned!" Asia said pulling back against Maria's grasp on her.
Maria didn't let go, "John would want you safe! Now come on!" Asia gave up and went along grudgingly with Maria, as her lips moved in a prayer for the one she loved.
Utah's thighs and calves snapped with muscular power, as he churned away in a hard run panting like the bellows of an iron forge, in his supreme effort to save two instead of just one.
"Stop! Utah you need to stop before you burst your heart!" Shalako said, wrapping hard against Utah's back, but the young man gave a negative shake of his head, as his air starved lungs gasped loudly for continued life.
Shalako saw a projecting wood slat and grabbed a hold of it. The sudden jerk was too much for Utah to manage, as he was already unsteady on his feet. He tumbled forward onto his knees, the heavy commando falling off one shoulder and Shalako off the other.
Shalako grimaced, as the impact with the ground sent razors of pain cutting out through him, but he recovered and got up to his knees beside the young man on all four still trying to catch his breath.
Shalako laid a hand on Utah's heaving sweat soaked back, "Bless you for trying Utah, but you were a fool to try it!"
Utah glanced to the side at Shalako, "Like you wouldn't have, if you were able to!" He husked out.
Shalako chuckled painfully, Utah had him there. "It's true; I guess that makes us both fools. You remind me a lot of myself, when I was your age I do have to admit."