Sarah crouched down at the top of the stairs as Kevin headed out in front of her. She could barely hear the men behind her, down the stairs, as they battled the fire below them, trying to keep it from engulfing the lower structure. If the whole building caught fire, it would likely collapse, keeping the bottom of the building from coming down kept the whole thing up. But even so, the fire spread quick. It was an old building, with dry wood for its main structural support. This wood burned quick and hard, and the thick carpets took on fire like it was a junkie to their fix. The building was creaking, popping and the wounds of wood giving way to weight came with its wailing and then a loud, harsh snap. Sarah knew what all this meant, it meant they didn't have all the time in the world to get everyone out.<br/><br/>Reaching the 5th floor, Kevin moved out in front of her and she could see feet and legs of people, standing straight up in the smoke, seemingly just mulling about. She frowned at this, and began to tell Kevin to wait but he moved on without her. She couldn't believe it, smoke this thick, these people would be on the floor in seconds. It was like drowning, you tried to breathe but all you got was a thick, coarse smoke that choked your lungs the second it was inhaled. The heat was starting to effect even Sarah, but she managed through it, following after Kevin just as he reached the first man.<br/><br/>"<strong>Fire department, sir.</strong>" Sarah yelled just as Kevin reached the man. She began to speak again, but the man tackled Kevin to the ground and bit him. Sarah had seen people panic and fight firefighters, survival instincts kicked in and anything stopping you from moving was a bad, bad thing. But to bite right into a Nomex suit, Sarah could see the mans teeth falling out of his mouth as he bit Kevin.<br/><br/>Sarah worked quickly, the man was burned by otherwise seemed unharmed, surprising given the thickness of the smoke. "<strong>Sir, we're with the fire department, I need you to stay calm, we are here to help you.</strong>" Sarah yelled, trying to pull the man off Kevin, when the ... city emergeny alarm went off?<br/><br/>Sarah had to pause, even with what was being done to her partner, to fully understand it. Almost immediately after, as if on cue, her PASS device started whining a very special, never heard except in demonstrations alarm. The evacuation alarm, meaning get out of the building, drop whatever your doing and run. Even as a building was toppling over, which Sarah had been inside of at the time, they never used that alarm. Not the warning alarm, building was losing integrity or there was an unexpected issue that concerned her safety, not that alarm. Sarah didn't have time to think, she just acted.<br/><br/>Managing to push the man off Kevin, Sarah began to help the man to his feet as the other man tackled both she and Kevin to the ground. She could feel him moving over her, and if her mind were not on the job, she could reasonably assume he was coping a feel. Nothing to feel, an inch of heavy fire proof fabric between him and her, but none the less desperate people did insanely dumb things, this topped the kettle. Sarah elbowed the man in the head, but he didn't even notice as he tried to bite her helmet, knocking her head into the floor. She felt it hit, but not the impact, and a sudden wash of fear ran over her as Kevin kicked the man off her, and a familiarly distressing creak made its way into her ears. The floor on the opposite end of the hallway, just a few feet from them, gave way in a brilliant rush of flame, blocking her view of the other people but cutting them off as well. The building creaked again, and some more floor gave way, even closer. Sarah pushed herself up to her feet and went to grab the man, but now noticed he was on fire.<br/><br/>She could only stare, dumbfounded, as he continued to claw at her leg, even as flames rushed over him, furiously biting out at her steel-toed, puncture resistant boots. Kevin grabbed her by the arm and dragged Sarah back towards the stairs, her mind finally returning as they began to descend. The stairs almost seemed to move as Sarah caught up with other fire fighters, and Kevin slowed down back at the stairs. Noticing this, Sarah glanced back towards him and ran back, moving to grab him when the floor gave way.<br/><br/>In whatever time had passed, the first thing Sarah heard was her PASS alarm going absolutely nuts. Her personal distress alarm was on, so she'd been still for at least 15 seconds, likely more. Her radio crackled and hissed uselessly, and a tense feeling was tugging at her every muscle. She could see nothing but darkness, smoke mostly, but some shreds of light pierced the wall. A sudden realization struck her, Kevin wasn't near by. She thought he'd fallen too, but he wasn't next to her. Sarah stirred, pushing herself onto her left side and then onto her stomach. First she got up to her knees, and then stood, her body fighting her all the way, especially her back. She looked around, her gear was still on and the axe she'd been carrying was next to her. She grabbed it, picking it up with a groan of pain. Sarah heard an alarm near by, and quickly moved to follow it, running straight through a small layer of wood that was on fire, and coming up right in behind some fire fighters going out the front door. As she began to follow, something fell down behind her, and Sarah spun around to see the stairs were on fire, as was the entire first floor. "<strong>Holy s-</strong>" Sarah began as the stairs collapsed over, wood splintering and fire engulfing almost everything in her view. "<strong>No no no!</strong>" Sarah yelled, looking back frantically as someone grabbed her and pulled her out the door, smoke billowing out after her. She saw 4 trucks now, and a dozen hoses spewing water at the building, but it didn't matter, things were falling apart, almost every window was spewing out flames by now.<br/><br/>She struggled, but relented as the chief came into view, and some others from her department. She walked over to him, her gear covered in a dark layer of soot. "<strong>Ryman, which ambulance is he in?</strong>" Sarah asked, looking around in an almost frantic pace.