The Descent

Chapter 57 - Recovery

Denton woke up with a start when his body was thrown forward against the dashboard. He let out a groan as his nose and forehead took the brunt of the impact and then slid back into his chair, his hand on his head. Gently, he rubbed his nose. It seemed ok. At least, there was no nosebleed.

He shot an angry look at his partner. "What are you doing, Tanner? I could have hurt myself."

"There's this thing called a seatbelt" Tanner replied with a quick sideways glance. If it wasn't for the robotic face, Denton knew there would have been a smirk on Tanner's face. "I highly recommend the use of all available safety devices," Tanner continued.

"I don't see you using it," Denton objected and grimaced as he opened and closed his mouth and moved his jaw around.

"My current physical configuration is unlikely to be impacted by sudden slowdowns."

"Right. You tell yourself that."

"You will find that all other passengers are using the appropriate safety restraints."

Denton glanced over his shoulder and sighed. Tanner was right, of course. He usually was. The seatbelt should have been on from the moment he sat down. It was a sloppy omission on his end, one that could have cost him his life if the circumstances had been different. He couldn't help himself and sent one last jab Tanner's way.

"If you drove more careful, we wouldn't need it."

Tanner's head turned, and the bright blue orbs that were his eyes stared directly at Denton. Not a word was uttered. Denton returned the stare but moments later averted his eyes. There was no point in continuing the standoff.

"How long have I've been out?" Denton said instead, changing the topic of the conversation as he strained his neck to get a better view of the landscape outside. He grimaced as pain shot through the back of his neck. It was likely a result of his awkward sleeping position.

"23 minutes and 45 seconds," Tanner replied immediately.

Denton glanced at his partner. "Keeping track, huh?"

"I can't help that. My system is designed to keep track of all the significant events around me. You know that."

"Falling asleep is that significant?"

"Maybe not normally but under our current circumstances, yes."

"Are you alright?" Gabi asked from the seat behind him. Denton sighed, thankful that another combative with his partner had been interrupted. He had to learn how to restrain himself better. Tanner was, after all, not human and logic was supposed to drive his decision making. Or, that was the thought at least. Sometimes, Tanner just drove him nuts.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you," he said over his shoulder and smiled. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you guys and not help with the search."

Gabi returned the smile. "It's ok. We found him." She nodded towards the front window.

"Oh yeah?" he said and turned his attention to the outside. She was right. Barely visible in the swirling snow in front of them was the missing snowtrekker. Denton couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as he leaned over the dashboard to get a closer view through the front window. They had indeed found it, thanks to Tanner's abilities. Just the fact that Tanner had been able to locate the snowtrekker at all was a miracle. There was just no way he could have done it by himself, not considering how the conditions outside had deteriorated since they boarded the transporter.

It was hard to tell through the deteriorating conditions outside whether anyone was still in the snowtrekker. The canopy appeared closed, but that didn't mean Jarell was still inside.