spark

Chapter 19 : The Searchers

Buck gasped as he came to, looking around in a daze as he took in his surroundings. Feeling below him, Buck was met with wet metal, causing him to look down at the surface to find the roof of a red car—Scott's car. "Oh my god, Alex." Buck breathed, clambering off the vehicle as he cupped his hands and looked inside the vehicle. The werecoyote lay in an uncomfortable position across the backseat, unconscious. Tugging on the door's handle, Buck breathed a quiet thanks for Scott as it clicked open, allowing the former firefighter to reach inside and pull Alex into his arms. "I got you, bud. I got you." Carrying Alex in his arms, Buck started marching down the street, intent on tracking down Scott and Christopher. A small crunch sounded underneath his feet, causing Buck to glance down, his eyes widening at the sight of Christopher's glasses lying in the water. Picking the spectacles up, Buck placed them around his neck with his free hand, adjusting Alex in his other one so that his son wouldn't fall from his grasp.

The former firefighter trudged through the water, shouting out Christopher and Scott's names. Movement on his back caused Buck to halt in mid-step, the man kneeling down as Alex came to. "Dad? Where's Scott?" Alex asks, looking around them in confusion.

"I don't know, Alex. I had him take care of Christopher so that I could get to you." Buck replies, the young boy standing on his feet, staggering slightly in dizziness. Without wasting a breath, Buck pulled the boy into a bear hug, Alex wheezing slightly as he returned it. "I'm just so glad you're okay."

"Me too." Alex whispered, tightening his hold onto Buck's shirt. Backing away from the hug, Alex grimaced as Buck ruffled his hair. "Are we going to go look for them?"

"I was just doing that when you woke up. Want to help me?" Buck inquired, getting an eager nod from the werecoyote. "Then hop aboard the Buckley Express." Buck turned around, allowing Alex to get onto his shoulders. "Okay, you keep an eye out from above, I'll get the ground."

"Let's find our friends, Dad." Alex proclaimed, the firefighter continuing the trek down the streets.

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A pained shout caused Scott to surge upwards, shaking the delirium from his skull. Turning backwards and forwards, Scott tried to gauge his surroundings. "Christopher... Christopher!" he yells, getting back onto his feet as he shouted for the young boy. "Christopher! Can you hear me, Chris?!"

"Stop yelling." a voice whined, causing Scott to whirl around. The curly-haired boy was sitting on the concrete, having been outside of Scott's periphery when he initially awoke. Christopher was rubbing at his jaw slightly, where Scott could see it going red. "Your skull's hard."

Chuckling slightly at the statement, Scott knelt down, assessing Christopher for any other injuries. Aside from the welt that was probably going to be forming on the boy's chin, some scratches from stray debris, and his glasses missing. Christopher was okay. Christopher was okay. Unclipping his pack and placing it in between the two of the, Scott unzipped it, assessing the contents for any damage. "Okay, buddy. It looks like most of everything's intact. The gauze is a little wet, but it should be fine." Scott states, the young boy peering into the bag. "Your crutches are probably helping out a fish right now. Guess I'm gonna have to carry you."

"Okay." Christopher replies, giggling slightly at Scott's fish joke. Once the boy was safely in his arms, Scott stood back on his feet, Christopher letting out another giggle as they started walking down the road.

"Help! Help us!" a voice shouted, causing Scott and Christopher to snap their heads in the sound's direction. Jogging down the way, Scott and Christopher entered a convenience store. Items were strewn all over the place, water still seeping out of the broken windows with the receding tide causing a bit of a pileup on aisle six. A young woman was knelt next to a shelf, a young boy close to Christopher's age was leaned up against it, crying his head off as he held what looked like paper towels to his head. "He hit his head, and I'm too afraid to move him! Please, can you get help for my son?"