Chapter Text
The deck plunged into chaos, a vast quake ripped across the Beira as containers, pipes and debris fell out of place and turned the area surrounding Muir into a labyrinth. He only had one thing on his mind however, the safety of his colleagues and more specifically Innes. While the rest of the crew saw them as best friends who never did anything apart, the truth was much more private, him and Innes were in a relationship and had been for a good few months.
It had all started when Muir started developing feelings for Innes as the two worked together on the deck, his cynical nature and sarcastic comments while seemingly cold and bitter gave Muir a warm feeling in his chest. He knew that Innes secretly cared about him and had a heart of gold when he wasn’t upholding his personality out on the deck, in private Innes would often make sure Muir felt comfortable and safe on the Beira as if he had a secret soft spot for Muir. It was on a fateful day where the two were both drunk out of their minds on a bleak winters night that Muir’s hidden affections for Innes came out. Muir remembered the day exactly as it was, the hazy fog of the evening sky outside and the Smokey flavour of Innes’s lips meeting his, Innes loved a smoke on the job much to Rennick’s dismay his booming voice on the tannoy telling the older lad to ‘put that cigarette out’ and while Muir wasn’t big on smoking himself and was also one of the safety representatives aboard he never saw the harm in it, the two worked nowhere near oil and Innes would never leave it unattended. That was one of Rennick’s many complaints with how Muir handles his job in their meetings together saying that he’s always ‘too light’ on Innes which to some extent was true but he’d never want to scary any of his coworkers or make them fear him he wanted to be a likeable figure of authority since no good ever came out of being hard on others, a lesson which Muir hoped Rennick would learn sooner rather than later.
The two had become separated when Muir had gone to go help Banky by grabbing some welding supplies, Innes would still be over by the pile of metal pipes the two were originally moving before Muir was interrupted by the welders' needs. That was the only downside of being a safety representative, the crew seemed to think that made him the boss on the deck which quite frankly he wasn’t, he only had the power to recommend a different, safer approach to the crew members which a lot of the time ended up with comments on how they could do it themselves and would be fine which was usually the case but Muir wanted to do his job properly.
Coughing on dust that spewed up from the metal tiles of the deck Muir got closer to Innes trying to locate his fluorescent bright yellow hard hat, it was hard to miss but thanks to the unsettled layer of dust thanks to the disruption Muir could barely make out what was in-front of him. Dropping to the ground Muir decided the safest approach would be to army crawl across the deck, structural groans creaked and tore across the rig and gave it a sense of flimsiness and Muir wasn’t willing to take the chance of slipping off into the vicious seas below. It had happened to Sunil a while back where the drill hit an air pocket and a similar quake struck the deck, luckily Raffs and Brodie managed to grab him with their diving gear and he was taken up to the Beira medical ward. Muir remembered the report he had to file about the lack of deckhand safety with falling to which Rennick installed some flimsy metal railings on the side which would probably fall off if lent on too hard.
As Muir crawled closer to the hustle and bustle of the deck shouts and calls rang out across the place, he recognised the voices of Addair and Scooby in the crowd but nothing from Innes, Muir was surprised at how reactive the crew were with the disturbance considering they had likely just hit an air pocket and it was just a minor quake.
Maybe it did have a bit more of a kick than usual to it but it was nothing out of the ordinary, Roper told Muir all about the types of hazards when it came to drilling a few years back when Muir was new to the Beira and very fearful of the sea. He explained that a lot of the time oil drills hit air pockets full of natural gas which cause the rig to jitter but the Beira could never fall, while the lifeboats and safety measures of the rig probably could, the key rig components like the drill and flare stack were very secure and safe surprisingly. As the months went on Muir became sort of accustomed to a periodic quake and didn’t really deem them to be much of a problem so Muir wondered why there were so many cries and shouts all of a sudden, maybe someone was hurt? Maybe Innes was in trouble. Whatever it was Muir was worried and curious, maybe Sunil had another similar accident to the last time? He wasn’t sure and wouldn’t be for a while due to his lack of visibility.
Reaching a dark blue container Muir pulled its door open using it as a tunnel to protect himself from the possibility of anything crushing him from the sky, he had already seen the crane malfunction once and didn’t want to test his luck. As the blue metallic door swung open Muir piled over the bountiful stacks of supplies and equipment in an attempt to reach the other side. Metal clattered as Muir pulled his body over and through the piles of things that likely would never be used, for such a cheap company like Cadal they sure did have a lot of back up equipment and things that the crew definitely didn’t need. Giving the opposing door a heavy tug Muir pulled it open leading back onto the deck, this time a more visible one since some of the dust and dirt seemed to settle down. Continuing his crawl Muir made his way closer to the Derrick hearing the shouts get louder as he moved, breathing in some more of the now light dust Muir let out a small wheeze catching it in his elbow.
Pulling himself through an office vent which had swung open during the chaos, Muir found Scooby who was hiding underneath a desk, visible tears in his eyes and shaking. Muir approached the young man who noticed the noise being made and looked up at Muir, a mixture of fear and relief on his face.
“Scooby what's the matter lad, we’ve only hit a bit of air nothing to be afraid of eh?” Muir asked comforting the younger man
“Nae Muir, have you not seen the weird stuff near the Derrick?” Scooby said shaking “it’s all over the place, it got all over Gibbo and we have nae seen him since”
“What weird stuff?” Muir asked “an’ have you seen Innes?”
“It’s like… this weird flesh stuff? It fucking hurts my head to look at” Scooby said sniffling “I.. think I saw Innes taking cover near accommodation on the other side of the deck”
“Aye, thank ye Scooby” Muir said “do ye want to come with me to try to find Innes and any other crew members and we can head into accommodation?”
“But.. what if that stuff gets us” Scooby said worried “I dinnae want to become like Gibbo, he was screaming and then disappeared”
“Aye, I won’t let ye lad” Muir said patting the scared lads back “Do ye trust me?”
“Aye, Muir” Scooby nodded as the two pulled themselves back through the same vent Muir came through. Heading back onto the deck things felt different, the sound of fire blazed and the smell of oil lingered in the air. It definitely wasn’t just an air pocket. The trip to the Derrick was long and tedious, once an easy to navigate deck had become too dangerous to travel through thanks to the piles of debris and flames that roared across the deck, how did the fire even start? Muir wasn’t sure but that wasn’t his priority right now, he had to make sure Scooby and especially Innes were safe. He wouldn’t know what to do with himself if Innes got injured or worse, died thanks to Muir’s own doing. The thought made his skin crawl, he couldn’t imagine the man he loved hurt or on the brink of death and the guilt it would cause him.
If not for Innes chances are Muir would have no home to come back to on the mainland, Muir had two weens back home and a wife, life seemed to be going great until that day. Muir was put in prison for two years after physically assaulting another man in a bar, Muir couldn’t remember the exact details being black out drunk during the moment but he knew it was bad enough for his wife to file for a divorce and full custody of their children, it cut Muir deep and he realised that he was becoming the sort of man he never wanted to become. Violent, lonely and worst of all a criminal. After being released from prison Muir pushed through, taking a job as a deckhand at Cadal it was the only job that would be willing to hire him thanks to his criminal record, he was at first dubious of the conditions on board the rig and if he’d even survive out on the North Sea but little did he know he’d be making a decision that he would never regret. Innes was a grumpy old bastard at first but the two quickly warmed up to each other, he enjoyed Innes’s sarcastic remarks and realistic pessimism. The two even shared some fairly embarrassing moments together like that time where Innes fell on top of Muir whilst they were out on the deck, Muir swore he could see a slight tinge of red on Innes’s cheeks and it was the butt of many jokes from the crew for a good month or so. But aside from all of that Innes was most importantly supportive towards Muir and his struggles on the mainland, he would listen to Muir’s drunken cries as he sobbed about how his life turned upside down and when it was time for them to return home to the mainland let Muir stay at his house in which he found out that Innes was a loner, no wife, no kids and few friends to talk to but he didn’t seem too bothered by that.
The months passed by and Muir felt new feelings arise towards his bunk mate, feelings he hadn’t experienced before. His heart fluttered when Innes was nearby and he yearned to hear his voice when they had shifts apart from each other, it almost felt like he loved Innes? Since he was a ween Muir never understood the stigma against same sex relationships, Muir felt like he could love anyone no matter their gender. Love was about actions, about care and about consideration not about whether they had a pole or a hole. His feelings remained hidden though despite Muir feeling as though their love for each other was mutual until a drunken night in the winter where Muir accidentally kissed Innes, he couldn’t hold his emotions back any longer and the older man seemed to reciprocate the feeling. Muir remembered the kiss in detail, the feeling of Innes’s scratchy beard and the smokey flavour of his lips touching Muir’s. It was his first relationship with another man.
Scooby and Muir continued their journey across the deck, both army crawling to squeeze under the many holes and gaps between debris so they could reach accommodation quicker. The sky began spewing rain from the clouds as the two did so which extinguished some of the flames which littered the area, reaching the pile of pipes and metal Muir and Innes were working at in the morning Innes was no where to be found, Muir hoped he had managed to get inside and away from the deck so he wouldn’t end up crushed.
Pushing further towards accommodation the Beira began to rumble and let out groans from its giant infrastructure, did the weird flesh that Scooby spoke of damage the Beira? If so it could leave everyone at immediate risk, from what Muir understood the Beira’s height in the water was controlled by pontoons which filled the legs to the Beira with water so if it managed to reach those the whole crew could sink underwater. It didn’t help that the sea wasn’t exactly accommodating to float in if such a thing were to happen, it was winter time and they were in the North Sea miles off of land. Their only hope would be to either take the bird off the rig or to get into a life boat both of which being tedious.
The two finally reached the other side of the deck, Muir recognised the area, it didn’t look as battered as the rest of the deck did, only a few containers and parts awry now all he had to do was find Innes.
“Scooby can ye go to accommodation and try to find anyone if it’s safe to, maybe see if anyone’s in the canteen with Roy eh?” Muir asked
“Aye Muir, I’ll report back with anyone I can find” Scooby said, this time feeling confident. Muir was pleased that he managed to make the young lad feel safe enough to go search on his own, it would make things much more efficient and give them all a higher chance of survival
“There’s a good lad,” Muir said, patting Scooby’s back as he watched him head up the stairs to accommodation.
Muir’s head turned back to the deck behind him to continue his search, the heavy fog present prior continued to roll in only thickened by the douses of rain. Muir wiped the droplets of rain from his freckled face before trudging carefully across the other side of the deck calling out to Innes
“INNES, ARE YE OUT THERE?” Muir shouted before hearing a cough come from a faraway container.
“MUIR! MY LEG’S FUCKING JAMMED IN SOME RUBBLE” He recognised Innes’s voice in the distance calling out to him
“IM COMING INNES” Muir shouted back in response. Muir’s pace quickened as he moved closer to the direction of where he heard Innes’s cry for help, only blocked by the array of containers and pipes.
Crawling through a gap in a fence Muir heard a pulsating sound behind him, turning around and his stomach almost dropped through the floor at the sight. Scooby wasn’t lying, there was definitely something aboard the Beira. In that moment he felt sick, it was like a fleshy vein had pierced through Dalgleish turning him into a husk of his original body, he still wore the same headphones he had worn this morning when he was working the cargo hoist. His eyes were hollow and a weird bloody substance dripped from his body. Muir’s head pounded as he stared at the amalgamation in-front of him out of both disgust and fear, having no choice but to continue Muir tried to put what he saw to the back of his mind. Whatever was on board with them had the power to kill and it looked to be spreading rapidly.
Crawling out of the other side of the fence Muir approached the Derrick which was where he heard Innes’s cries from originally, he once again shouted for his bunk mate this time met with a louder reply. Innes had to be nearby.
Reaching a pile of rubble Muir recognised a familiar flash of yellow, Innes’s hard hat and sure enough under it the older man lied looking frustrated and scared.
“Innes I’m here, I’m gonnae get ye out of there” Muir said tired but still with optimism.
“Im glad to see ye Muir, I dinnae ken how I got myself like this” innes started letting out a wheeze thanks to the dust around him “I was over working by the Derrick when the quake happened and then I woke up with all this debris on me, fucking joke eh?”
“Aye, well ye could be worse” Muir said “Poor Dalgleish has been ripped apart by this stuff all over the rig, makes me fucking sick thinking about it”
“What stuff?” Innes asked his eyebrows raising with skepticism
“Aye, I ken” Muir sighed “I was skeptical too when Scooby was banging on about it, the lad was terrified. Apparently Gibbo’s gone missing after touching the stuff”
“Where’s Scooby? If ye’ve seen him since the quake” Innes asked
“Sent him to accommodation to find ye or anyone else, found him hiding in an office weeping under a desk and led him out” Muir replied before dropping to his knees and digging at the pile of debris trapping Innes’s legs from escaping.
Muir continued to claw at the pile as it kicked up dust which blew up into his face but that didn’t matter right now, he had to get Innes out before this fleshy stuff all over the deck got any closer. He didn’t want them to end up like Dalgleish, Muir still felt haunted by the sight his eyes had to endure, he didn’t know Dalgleish very well besides the odd few encounters on the deck and being neighbours with him and Roy in accommodation but he definitely didn’t deserve whatever fate that was.
“How are ye holding up Muir?” Innes asked breaking the silence
“Im honestly kinda scared Innes, especially after seeing how Dalgleish is holding up “atleast ye’re with me now, I can do anything when I'm with ye”
Muir noticed a slight blush on Innes’s cheeks as he continued to dig, loosening the rubble around his lover's leg. “Can ye give ye’re leg a wiggle see if it’ll loosen Innes?” Muir asked, the older man complied and was able to slip out of the rubble before getting up and embracing Muir in a hug.
“I missed ye you daft prick” innes said before taking Muir’s hard hat off and ruffling his hair playfully
Heading back to accommodation to find Scooby, Muir and Innes crept slowly along the deck as to not disturb the compromised infrastructure of the rig. Groans and creeks sounded out loud as loud splashes thudded into the water, whether they were lifeboats or parts of the Beira, Muir didn’t know but their priority right now was finding Scooby, he promised the young lad that he wouldn’t let him get hurt and he wanted to uphold that promise.
Turning his head back towards the Derrick as they walked, Muir caught a glimpse of the fleshy tendrils yet again, this time they seemed thicker and more concentrated. They made his head buzz and pound as he continued to glance at the ever growing mass.
“Lay it down and the deck eh nice and easy” he heard Innes say faintly but not loud enough to make out the words “DON’T BASH IT”
“Innes did ye say something?” Muir asked looking over towards the older man who looked at him confused
“Nae?” He responded confused “I think ye’re hearing things love” what the fuck was happening.
As the two started walking again Muir slipped as another quake struck the Beira falling straight into a container, as he did so a fleshy tendril crashed through the container slicing at part of Muir’s arm. Gasping in pain he cried out as a warm burning sensation seared across his forearm. Innes rushed over pulling Muir out of the container as Muir tried to brush off the substance the tendril splashed on him, he shouldn’t have to worry about being taken over by the stuff like Dalgleish was since none of it seeped into him before he swept it off of himself.
“MUIR” innes shouted “What the fuck just happened are ye okay? Your arm looks like it took a hammering”
“Aye.. got that shite all over me but I brushed it off” Muir said feeling dizzy “arm fucking burns but I’m okay”
“Are ye sure?” Innes asked “ye don’t look okay lad”
Before he responded the buzz of the tannoy sounded only to hear Rennick’s booming voice ring out
“ATTENTION, CREW OF THE BEIRA. ALL PERSONNEL NEED TO GO TO THEIR NEAREST EVACUATION POINT. DON’T YOU ALL GET TOO EXCITED NOW, YOU’LL ALL BE BACK TO WORK IN FIFTEEN MINUTES ONCE I GET ALL THIS NONSENSE STRAIGHTENED OUT”
“Aye Innes I’m fine I promise” Muir said slightly annoyed at innes’s persistence
“I dinnae believe ye lad, let me take a look at ye’re forearm” Innes pressed
“Fine,” Muir said, rolling his sleeve up to reveal a long clean cut surrounded by small bumpy blisters that seemed to pulsate a little. Muir felt his breathing deepen as he panicked, his chest grew tight as he remembered what the fleshy thing had turned Dalgleish into.
“Dinnae panic love, I’ll stay with ye this will all be okay” Innes said grasping Muir’s shoulders giving them a careful massage “let’s go find Scooby and we can all get to the bird together aye?”
Muir felt a surge of emotions wash over him, feeling a mix of panic fatigue and a weird overwhelming feeling of rage. Muir wasn’t sure why he felt so raging but he didn’t like it, it made him feel weak and useless reminding him of the reason his ex wife broke off from him. Looking back down to his arm Muir felt sick, the blisters that were once small had turned into lumpy blobs that flowed around his skin like bubbles going from the size of specks of dust to the size of miniature golf balls. Muir’s heart rate began to quicken as he broke into panic, Innes noticed his heavier breathing and tried to calm him down looking him dead in the eyes, there was something calming about Innes’s tropical blue eyes that felt safe and familiar but deep down he knew that Innes was just as worried as Muir was, the smile he wore only worked to soothe Muir, it was so fake, so deceiving. Feeling a surge of betrayal and rage through him Muir couldn’t help but throw an unexpected punch at Innes who immediately fell to the floor before getting up and flashing Muir with a look of sympathy, he wasn’t upset. Instantly Muir felt guilt wash over him, he shouldn’t have done that, Innes only wanted to help him and give him a sense of hope. Muir felt tears well in his eyes as he broke down sobbing, his vision fading to fog as he felt Innes’s arms hold him tightly
“Im so sorry Innes” Muir could just make out
“Aye lad, it’s okay” Innes said warmly “I’m here for ye”
The warm moment was quickly cut off by a sharp pain in Muir’s head, it pounded like a drum and Muir’s vision continued to fade as he saw flashes of oranges and reds burst in and out of sight.
“INNES, HELP ME INNES” Muir screamed as he felt his body scream in pain, looking down with his new watered down vision Muir could only see bulbous lumps of flesh writhing aggressively below him and a taller perspective, it felt as if he’d grown and was standing on stilts.
“MUIR, what the fuck happened to ye?” Innes said, his voice boomed feeling as though a thousand needles scraped his eardrum “can ye hear me still”
“It hurts so much, Innes” Muir said, his head felt like it was about to burst as he felt another searing pain in his back as if part of his spine was removed and stuck out of him like a cocktail stick.
“I ken Muir, I ken” Innes said quieter and softer this time "I'm gonnae give the phone a quick ring, stay here ken?”
The pain soon overwhelmed Muir as he grew tired and fatigued, his face felt strained and moulded into a specific position and his skin burnt like a volcano. Muir let out a weak howl as he sat there alone. Minutes passed and Muir began to hear fearful cries ring out across the deck from many different directions, each one sounding like music blasting in his ear, the pain was unbearable and he couldn’t hold it in anymore. He had to silence the pain and find someone to help him, specifically Innes.
Picking himself up off the floor he lied on Muir began to trudge across the deck moving to the direction of the sounds, hearing a cry that sounded distinctly like Banky Muir fastened his pace before recognising the faint outline of a black jumpsuit reminiscent of Banky, the man seemed to stare at him for a few seconds before turning and running as fast as he could.
Muir pleaded and sobbed as he chased the outline of the welder across the deck, he managed to grab him by the foot as the welder screamed and cried, Muir’s grip on his foot loosened as he dropped Banky out of his grasp to which the welder let out terrified screams before going radio silent. Once again Muir was all alone
“I just need help eh?” Muir called out trying to hold in his tears “ye’re all cruel bastards ye ken that”
As the cries quietened Muir listened closely as he searched profusely across the deck, after a few minutes his ears sharpened to a familiar voice
“CAZ! JESUS, I.. I NEED HELP” Innes began in a petrified frantic tone “I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO IT’S.. CHRIST SOMETHING’S HAPPENED TO HIM”
It was Innes. The man that was supposed to love him, leaving him for dead. He needed to find him.