Chapter Text
When she and Tyler didn’t find access to a basement, instead flinging open doors that provided them with a terrifyingly spectacular view of the tornado barreling toward town, Kate knew. No basement meant no hope of survival. The monstrosity bearing down on them was at least a mile wide and conditions were perfect for it to keep growing, to keep destroying everything in its path long after it was finished with El Reno. This theater wasn’t built to withstand anything more than an EF2; a tornado of this magnitude would destroy it in moments, and it wouldn’t even have to get close. Everyone in this building was going to die, including herself.
Her gaze swept through what she could see of the town, searching for a way out, a different place to shelter, but she found nothing that was better than where they already were. Then her mind caught up with her, overriding her panicked thoughts, and she saw a red truck, built to withstand tornadoes. A red truck with a chance hitched to the back of it. A small chance. Maybe less than a chance and more of a hope, more of a prayer. But a chance.
Kate looked toward the funnel inching ever closer. She was dead if that thing made it to the town, anyway. And if that was the case, why not try something insane that might just save everyone in El Reno?
She sprinted away from the theater, not even glancing behind her.
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Tyler saw her run from the corner of his eye, and in the time it took him to turn toward her to ask her what she was doing, she was already halfway to the truck. “Kate!” he yelled, immediately taking off after her, the nerves in his leg screaming at him to stop. He winced and kept going, limping his way toward her as fast as he could manage. He figured she’d come to the same conclusion he had, that this was not a survivable scenario, and she’d decided to do something about it. Well, he sure as hell wasn’t letting her do it alone.
“Kate!” he yelled again as he got closer, but the wind tore her name from his lips and smothered the sound. She’d reached the truck now, was struggling to open the door. If she got in before he could get to her, she’d be gone; he’d left the keys on the seat, only worried about getting people to safety when they’d arrived. He willed his legs to go faster, letting out a cry as his bad leg steadily became worse. It was worth the pain, though; he slammed into the truck next to her just as she managed to get the door fully open.
She spun, her eyes going wide. “Tyler? What are you doing? Go back!”
He grinned, maneuvering past her and snatching the keys from the seat. He held them up and winked. “My truck, I’m driving.”
Kate shook her head, a small grin forming as she rounded the hood of the truck and muscled the passenger door open, climbing in the same time he did. He stretched out his left leg in relief, the loss of pressure on it immediately soothing the fire. His door slammed shut on its own just after Kate had closed hers, and he wasted no time in turning the key and getting the truck started.
Within moments, they had strapped on their belts and harnesses and were racing away from town and toward the black wall of clouds swirling nearby. “Alright, I’ll get us close,” he said, keeping an eye on her even as he devoted most of his attention to the road and the debris flying through the air. “You take care of the rest.”
“Got it,” she nodded, gaze focused on their surroundings, helping him check for hazards. “I’m glad you came with.”
He smiled. “Couldn’t let you wrangle this one alone, now, could I?”
She laughed at that, though the smile that accompanied the sound slipped from her features only moments later. Kate wiped a hand across her face, pushing her bangs out of her eyes. “Ever tested this thing against an EF5?”
“Nope,” he said, voice subdued. “Always a first time for everything, though.”
“Tyler—”
“We’ll be fine,” he assured her. He didn’t believe it, not really, and he was sure she didn’t, either. But the last things they needed right now were morose thoughts and dimming hope.
“There, go!” she shouted, pointing toward an easy access into the field to their left, exactly where they needed to be if they were going to get in the path of the tornado.
“Here we go!” Tyler turned the wheel, grimacing when the truck bounced roughly across the field, the harsh movement bringing back the sharp pain in his leg. They were jostled as they made their way closer to the wall of dark clouds, the debris field getting thicker.
“In between those silos!” Kate pointed again. “It’s heading straight for them, it’s as good a place as any; maybe they’ll provide a little bit of shelter.”
Just as she finished saying that and they came alongside them, the tops of several were sucked off, igniting a fire. “Woah!” he yelled as one of them exploded, sending debris hurtling toward the truck and his driver’s side window. It pelted against the exterior but didn’t break the glass, thankfully. “I think here is far enough,” he pressed his foot to the brake, bringing the vehicle to an abrupt stop.
“Here goes nothing,” Kate muttered as she primed the rockets and then pressed the button marked with the word Boom. They fired from the back of the truck, and Tyler watched as they sped toward the swirling clouds in front of them. There was a near immediate reaction, but he tore his eyes away from the sight in front of him and pressed a button of his own, making sure the truck was burrowed into the ground and at least a little more stable in the rough winds than it had been.
The tornado inched closer with every moment, and his heart started to beat somehow faster. He looked over at Kate to find her gaze fixated on the clouds. “It’s working,” she said softly.
“Looks like it,” he agreed. “So far, so good.”
She nodded, fingers going to the priming switches for the barrels that lined the bed of the trailer behind the truck. He reached out and grabbed her hand, holding it tight. “Hey, it’ll work,” he said, giving her a small smile. Kate looked up at him, eyes wide.
“It has to,” she all but whispered, her words nearly lost in the howling of the storm outside.
The truck shifted in the extreme winds, sliding back a few inches, and his grip on her hand tightened in response. Tyler wasn’t sure what would happen to the vehicle in winds and conditions like this; they’d just have to hope it held together long enough to do what they needed it to do. The thick wall of clouds and debris was almost touching the front of the truck now, and he looked behind them to see the trailer lifted off the ground. Not good. “Now?” he had to shout to be heard over the roaring of the wind.
“Almost!” Kate yelled back.
The vehicle shifted further, almost lurching backward. Drilling into the ground didn’t seem to be doing much to help this time around. It felt like the entire frame was shaking. “How about now?” he asked warily.
“Now!” she shouted, pushing the button that would release the tops of the barrels. He kept looking behind them to make sure they came off as planned.
Nothing happened.
“Come on!” Kate cried, pressing the button again and again. “Come on, come on, come on,” she muttered, gaze going between the button and the trailer. “Shit!” she yelled. She nearly broke the thing trying to get it to work, and just when Tyler thought it was actually broken, he saw the lids fly into the air.
“They’re away! You did it, Kate!”
“Finally!” she exclaimed.
He laughed with her as he watched the chemicals within the barrels float through the air, sucked into the vortex that had now enveloped them. He hoped it worked. For better or worse, they were in an EF5 tornado, in a truck that had never been built for conditions this bad. “Cover your head, Kate, cover your head!” The truck slid back, lifting slightly off the ground. Something large and heavy slammed into the trailer, ripping it from the back of the vehicle. “Shit!” he yelled, taking his own advice and covering his head with his arms.
Without the extra weight the trailer had provided, the winds lifted the truck onto its side, and then they were rolling, caught in the force of the tornado. They were completely at its mercy now, their only hope of salvation from this nightmare a small chance dreamed up in a barn. Kate was yelling, and so was he.
Tyler’s leg struck the side of the truck, and a moment later his head followed, his vision turning white.
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He woke to the feeling of arms lifting him up, pulling him away from something, being propped against a metallic surface; something hot and wet was sliding down the side of his face, frantic words were being muttered over and over near his ear. “Come on, wake up. Wake up, Tyler. Not again, not again, I can’t…not again. Tyler, wake up!”
It was the urgency in Kate’s voice that finally shook him from his stupor. He blinked open eyes that were immediately sensitive to the bright light surrounding him. Nevertheless, he pushed past the unpleasant sensation and immediately zeroed in on the blood coating the side of Kate’s face and shoulder. “Kate,” he reached for her, only to have her stop him.
“I’m fine, I’m okay,” twin tracks of tears made a line through the dirt and blood on her face. “We’re okay,” she said, nodding and glancing around her.
That’s when he realized just how sunny it was. And just how quiet. He looked around for himself and his mouth slowly dropped open. “We’re okay,” he repeated after her, incredulously. The tornado was gone. The only sign it had ever been there was the debris littering the field around them. He looked at her as she flopped against the side of the truck next to him, smiling and crying. Tyler felt a tear or two of his own make their way down his face. “You did it,” he said, a grin beginning to lift the corners of his mouth.
She nodded, “We did it.” A laugh escaped her, hysteric and relieved and overjoyed.
He joined her without even meaning to, the joy coming from a place deep within him. His head was killing him, his leg even more so, but they were both alive, the town was safe, and the tornado was gone. His pain was nothing compared to this moment of pure triumph.
As their friends raced toward them, Tyler put his arms around Kate and pulled her in for a crushing hug. She’d saved their lives and an entire town. He realized then, if he hadn’t been falling in love with her before, he definitely was now.