Names by Icecat Looking down, Gage accessed the situation. It wasn't a rescue that had the word 'emergency' written on it, but to the man trapped on the cabling, it wasn't exactly something they were use to. He waved down the thirty or so feet to the where the man hung suspended another fifty feet over the ground. Gage almost laughed as his 'victim' rolled his eyes, clearly embarrassed about his predicament. Grinning, Gage took a moment to look around at the spectacular view. Leaning back slightly, he looked over his shoulder at Roy. "Man, isn't it beautiful up here?" He couldn't help teasing his partner, knowing how much he disliked high rescues. Roy's reply was wooden. "Yeah. It's nice." Snickering, Gage began preparing to repel down. Checking the ropes and knots, he flashed Roy a bright smile. "I'm going down. Keep my line straight, okay?" "Sure." As he made his way downward, Gage glanced around. He couldn't help checking things out when he was at this height, suspended between the earth and sky. It reminded him of climbing the mountains or in a small way, flying. When he reached the man, they chatted amicably, then they both began laughing when they identified themselves. ********************* Roy watched as Gage made the decent. He cringed at the rate at which his partner slid down the rope. Gage may have been only a few years younger than he was, but sometimes his enthusiasm and level of energy made it seem like they were decades apart. Roy tried to blank out how high he was, trying to concentrate on the two men that dangled below him. He couldn't make out their chatter and when they both began laughing, Roy shook his head in disbelief. How could anyone have a fun time while they were hanging fifty feet in the air? In only moments, Gage waved a hand, indicating that they were prepared to be lowered. Bracing himself, Roy released the rope, bit by bit, carefully lowering the two men to the ground. He breathed a sigh of relief when they touched ground. Picking up the handi-talkie, he called to them. "How are things down there?" Gage's cheerful voice came back. "He's okay Roy. You ready to come down?" "Yeah. Be down in a few minutes." Drawing the rope up, he coiled it over his shoulder and carefully made his way off the scaffolding and toward the building, breathing a sigh of relief that he'd be taking an elevator down and not the rope. ******************* Walking over to the squad, Roy found Gage waiting for him. "It's about time you got here." Packing the gear away, Roy looked around. "Where's our victim?" Gage snickered. "Ah, he was okay, just a little embarrassed. I recommended that he get checked out after he gets processed, just to be safe." "What?" "The cops took him. Our 'victim' wasn't supposed to be up there. He's an amateur photographer and he saw the scaffolding and all he could think of was the great shots he'd get from there. So the more he thought about it, he decided the shots would really be cool if he hung half way down. The problem was once he got there, he got stuck." Roy shook his head in amazement. "What a nut case." Gage frowned. "Ya' know Roy, he was right. I could've taken some great shots from there. He promised that when he got out of jail or whatever, he'd send me the copies." Roy shook his head again, amazed at the crazy way his partner sometimes thought. Then he remembered Gage and the man laughing. "What were you two laughing about?" Gage's face lit up in a bright smile. "Take a wild guess what his name is." Roy gave him a blank look. "I have no idea." "Aw come on Roy, guess." "Um...John?" Gage grimaced. "No, it's better than that." Gage smiled. "His name is Tom Cage. Get it? John, Tom. Gage, Cage. I do photography and so does he and ya' know what? He likes to hike and climb mountains too. Isn't that cool?" "Uh...yeah. I guess." Gage's face fell. "You guess? Roy, what're the chances of me rescuing a guy who likes the stuff I do and has a name almost like mine?" "One in a million." Gage's expression immediately brightened. "Exactly!" As Gage walked around the squad and hopped into the passenger seat, Roy shook his head again. "Yeah Johnny...you're one in a million." |