A/N: Written and then promptly forgotten about not long after the S2 finale last year. Whoops?

The second that they pulled away from the compound, he knew. Ramse wouldn't say that he was an expert in reading women, least of all Cassie, but in those few moments he knew without a doubt that he was going to Titan alone.

Despite the red storm biting wildly at their heels he slammed his foot on the breaks and the vehicle skidded to an abrupt stop. He was giving her one last out... and she took it. Her steely gaze, the one that he used to hate, the one that he'd slowly grown accustomed to, had softened. That was probably the closest to an apology that he was going to get.

He wanted to be mad at her. Hell, part of him was fuming on the inside. But he'd always known that she'd never be able to leave Cole for very long. Someone had to look out for his skinny ass, and it wasn't going to be him this time, not after everything. He had hoped to make it more than a hundred yards away from the building before she came to the same realization, but there wasn't much that he could do about that.

Heaving a heavy sigh, Ramse dipped his head in an understanding nod, and didn't try to stop her as she practically flung herself out of the car and slammed the door shut. He watched her retreating form in the reflection of one of the cracked mirrors, her blonde hair the only flash of color in an otherwise crimson soaked scene as it whipped wildly in the wind. He sincerely hoped that she made it in time, but the rational part of his brain told him that she probably wouldn't.

A few minutes after she disappeared from view, and only about thirty seconds after he'd climbed out of the driver's seat to see if he could spot her entering the building below, the ground began to rumble ominously. The storm had finally hit the towers, ripping the roof clear off on the far side.

"Dammit!" he cursed, heart beating wildly.

He couldn't wait much longer. He didn't want to just leave her, not if she was forced to turn around and come back. Tugging the door open, he watched helplessly as the rest of the facility started tearing apart- bricks, shingles, cement, furniture, all of it flying through the air before it was sucked up and taken by time. Disintegrated. Turned to dust. Gone. And, if he didn't get his ass in gear, he'd be next.

With one last glance, he hopped back into the drivers seat and put the car into gear before the door had even had a chance to slam shut, speeding off into the forest. One of the daughters had waited anxiously for him about a mile down the road, her horse rocking back and forth like it was about to bolt at any moment. Once she saw him though, they were off. He pressed on the gas and followed her through a maze of bumpy roads until they finally hit a large expanse of open fields, the ground cracking open in multiple and random spots as lightening struck it.

Clenching his jaw, Ramse's fingers tightened painfully around the steering wheel and he prayed that at least one of them succeeded. They had to. They'd already lost too much.

End.