Hawk's Fight with Buck

(Alternative Scene from "Time of the Hawk")

by

Teresa Spanics

Chapter Five

Hawk looked around and tried to get up when searing pain lanced through him causing him to scream in intense pain.  Gasping in agony, Hawk tried to see where he was hurt.   He found that his right leg was pinned under a large rock and appeared to be gashed open by the knee as he could see his blood beginning to stain the rocks.

Hawk felt a jabbing pain in his right side and turned his head to see a sharp piece of rock stabbing him in that side.   This wound was bleeding a little more than his leg.  Hawk realized that he was now too badly hurt to continue to fight with Rogers and wondered if the human would finish him off by giving him a quick death now that he could not defend himself.  Perhaps Rogers would simply wait for him to die.

Buck saw Hawk at the bottom of the cliff and heard him cry out in pain.  Realizing that there was very little time to lose, he grabbed Hawk's cloak from where he put it, stuffed it into his shirt and carefully climbed down in order to not start another landslide.  By the time Buck reached the bottom of the cliff, it was clear that Hawk needed immediate medical attention.

"Easy, Hawk.  Lay very still.  I'm going to help you." Buck said as he ran up to where Hawk was laying.

"Human ...," began Hawk, when a coughing fit overcame him resulting in a trickle of blood coming from the side of his mouth, which instantly told Buck that Hawk had serious internal injuries.

"Shhh. Don't try to talk.  You're obviously hurt really bad, but I will try to do what I can for you," Buck said in a soothing tone of voice.

Managing to get his breath back, Hawk looked around to find a dagger-shaped piece of rock within reach and managed to grab hold of it.   Shakily holding the rock up for Rogers to see, Hawk said.   "Here, human. ... This should ... make it easy ... for you ... to end ... my life."

Stunned by what Hawk was asking him to do, Buck shook his head 'NO'.  He cried out as he took the rock out of Hawk's hand and threw it away.  "No, I'm not going to kill you, Hawk.  I'm going to do what I can to save you."

"But, our fight ... we never ..." Hawk began.

Interrupting Hawk, Buck snapped. "Our fight is over as far as I'm concerned." 

Kneeling beside Hawk, Buck ripped Hawk's cloak in half and made a tourniquet for Hawk's injured leg.  Carefully getting the rock off the leg, Buck saw that Hawk's knee had been gashed open and then bound the gash as tight as he could to stop any more bleeding.  Hawk groaned as the bindings were applied. 

Then Buck made a bandage for Hawk's gashed side by wrapping the bandage around the edge of the rock knowing that pulling out the rock would only cause more bleeding as First Aid class had taught him.  A strained hiss of pain from Hawk's clenched teeth told Buck that the injury to the side was definitely far worse. He continued to keep a steady pressure on it.  Hawk's painful reactions told Buck that Hawk had internal injuries, just how serious he had no way of knowing.

"Human ... Do not to try and save me. ... My injuries are ... too bad ... for me to live. ...  As I'm going to die anyway, my ... my request to be buried beside Koori ... still stands." Hawk gasped out as the pain got worse and worse.

"You just hang on, Hawk." Buck said, refusing to give up.

"Human ... I am ... asking you to ... to," Hawk repeated desperately in agony.

"All right, Hawk, all right.  If you do die, I will bury you beside Koori, but only if you do die." Buck interrupted. 

"Thank you ... now ... I can ... finally be ... with Koori," breathed Hawk as he tried to prepare for death to come.

Looking at Hawk, Buck told him. "You're not going to die, you hear me.  You're not going to die!"

"Nothing ... you ... can ... say ... is ... going ... to ... stop ... death ... from ... claiming ... me." Hawk choked out as another trickle of blood came out of his mouth.

The pain kept getting worse and worse.  Hawk was unable to stand it anymore and struggled to grab another smaller, sharp piece of rock with his left hand.  Once he had a hold of it, he tried to slit his throat with it but was prevented doing so by Buck who grabbed the rock out of Hawk's hand.  "Don't you dare!" yelled Buck as he threw the second rock away.

Despite the agony coursing through him, Hawk glared at Rogers for preventing him from ending his life.  Why did the human not see that he was suffering?  Was it that Rogers wanted him alive to be taken back to his 'Galactic Court' to stand before it?  If that was the reason, why try to keep him alive when he would be executed anyway?

Desperate to end the pain, Hawk tried to push the rock stabbing him in his right side deeper into him.  Buck grabbed Hawk's hands and pulled them away from the rock to stop him from doing anymore damage. "You will leave that rock alone!" Buck yelled.  "If you push that rock any further into you, you will probably puncture a lung!"

Hawk moaned in pain that twisted his features in a distorted mask of agony.  He would have to try again to end the searing waves of his suffering.  The human would not stop him from doing so no matter what.  Better to die now than endure any more agony.