Burnt (book1)

The accident

The accident

Fire seared through Evan's skin. His face and arm, up his shoulder and along the side of his torso. His body burned but all he could think was Micah where's Micah? He was a year younger but still his best friend, he felt responsible for Micah. Evan tried to move to feel for the seat next to him, where Micah had sat but, Evan couldn't move. He tried to wiggle his fingers to his buckle but he didn't think he was in the car anymore. He ignored the pain or at least tried to as his brain searched for Micah. He had to find Micah, he was in charge of Micah, but Micah was nowhere to be found.

Screams blared through the morning and smoke filled the sky. He couldn't tell what was cloud and what was smoke. The once puffy white clouds were now blocked behind a layer of dust and debris. Evan tried to open his eyes, to look at the sky but he couldn't see anything, even if he could move he wouldn't have even been able to see a hand in front of his face let alone Micah.

Evan couldn't move, his chest felt tight and he lost feeling in his fingers and toes. His face tinged with pain and a burning sensation flooded through him. He tried to scream but he couldn't open his mouth. He tried to open his eyes again but one eye was sealed shut and the other was blinking rapidly. He was still trying to call out for help. He was still trying to move, to find Micah but with all his effort he just couldn't move. So, without moving the rest of his body he tried focus his eye and search for a sign of life, a sign that someone was coming. But, his pain grew and there was no sign of Micah or any help coming. He couldn't breathe now, his lungs contracting and throat burned so severely, he gasped for air.

While Evan sat in searing pain, his brain screaming out for help, for safety. Micah lay 15 feet away, or parts of him at least. The explosive that went off was a set of traps. Explosion after explosion, more bombs, more fire, more pain. It was Cameron all over again. But, instead of in the air, the ground was a layer of raging fire. The base camp saw it happen and immediately got ready to go in but the bombs kept going off and they were told to stand down, to wait until it settled, it could be another trap. So while Micah lay unconscious and bleeding out, Evan sat, bits of the car jamming into him. His skin melting away from the flames and his now bald head looked to be like Harvey Dent from Batman.

The car was in pieces and as a final bomb went off and Micah took his last breath. While Evan still alive, still awake and screaming out, tried to move, tried to open his mouth, his eye, to show that he was here.

"Please!" He called out but it sounded only of a terrible moan. The fire blazed higher and higher, exposing muscle and bone. "Micah!" He tried again to scream out but no words came. Micah he thought, then his mind went to his brother. Cameron. Cameron, this is it, I get to see you soon, he thought as he gave up on living.

Men came in and blazed through the fire, found bits of the car. They located Micah first and went to find Evan. They all wondered if Evan could still be alive. If limbs torn off from the socket is what happened to Micah Cooper, then what did Evan Brooks look like?

"Oh my God!" solider Adams screamed as he reached Evan, he got down placed a blanket over his burning body. "I think he's alive." The rest of the group rushed forwards and a medic confirmed that he still had a pulse. He was still alive, for now. They would come back for Micah later, Evan was still alive, they could try and save him.

Carefully and quickly Adams and Green lifted Evan off the ground and gingerly brought him back to base. They talked to the commander on the walkie talkie telling her of Evan's condition. She called for an emergency air lift out of here and to the nearest hospital.

"Stay with me bud" Green said as he placed Evan down on the gernie, the helicopter was still 5 minutes out. The onsite medic came and wrapped Evan up, placing temporary skin grafts and medication all around Evan. She shoved a few antibiotics and pain killers down his throat and before they knew it the helicopter was arriving. Those five minutes seemed so long at first. In five minutes he could have died. In five minutes he could have lost an arm. In five minutes he was wrapped up like a mummy and delivered to new medical care, still shallowly breathing.