Starring:
Date: January 14, 2010
Summary:
Gabriel and Micah go somewhere the teen can get patched up and Cass and Lachlan stare daggers at Gabriel.
"On Your Side"
Cass and Lachlan's Apartment — Brooklyn
"You got it," Gabriel says, the smashed hospital entrance in front of them slowly closing off as people both inside and outside begin to gather around the wreckage. Slipping the car into neutral and slamming on the gas pedal causes the car to spin up, the loud noises of the engine catching the attention of those around the wreckage. They can easily put two and two together, and the moment Gabriel slams the car into drive and the cars begin squealing, they get to 'four' and get out of the way. The car tears through the hospital lobby, leaving two long, smoking tire tracks in the cars place. It bounces over a few pieces of wreckage just outside the hospital, gaining air for the slightest moment, but the car finally finds traction on the highway, and goes racing off to Brooklyn.
The blue Prius tears through the streets of NYC as the pair head towards Cass and Lachlan's Brooklyn apartment. All the while, Micah fights to keep his eyes opens. He touches his face and it stings as his fingers graze some of the embedded glass. He cringes as he glances down at his gauze covered arms — there's no way to tell what they look like underneath all of that wrapping. Overall the trek is uneventful, albeit fast.
Once the car comes to a stop in front of the apartment, Micah opens his door and then glances at Gabriel, "Maybe I should go first?" Generally speaking, Gabriel doesn't have the best track record with people. Regardless, the teen dizzily steps out of the car, pain surging through his head again — the adrenaline is gone. There is nothing to keep him alert and feeling good. With heavy eyelids, he trudges up to the door and buzzes the pair's apartment. Multiple times. In fact, he buzzes it three or four times. No, he doesn't feel particularly safe standing on the street corner.
Nor should he. People tend to look twice at young boys and men with glass embedded in their face and other injuries afforded to them. Inside the apartment, Cass lays sprawled out on the couch, the TV playing softly in the background. Abigail is getting put down for the night and she doesn't want to ruin all the hard work they put into getting her worn out to hopefully sleep through the night. Really, it's the brunette that needs the rest and not her daughter, but hopefully it will work for both of them. When the buzzer rings multiple times in the front doorway, startling her and most likely waking up Abby, she swears under her breath and moves for the door.
"I got it!" She calls out to Lachlan and then depresses the push to talk button. Obviously, she is unaware of the dire situation Micah and Gabriel have found their selves in. "Yes?"
The squeal from the other room would indeed indicate that Abby is now awake and alert. There's a curse from a deeper voice that quickly rights itself: "Shoot!" Other than that, there is thus far nothing more to be heard from that section of the apartment.
"Hey," Gabriel says, opening the driver side door and following Micah up the lawn. "You need to take it easy, you really should have stayed in the car. You could have a concussion or internal bleeding.. who knows. They took you to the hospital for a reason, so just take it easy, alright? It's all for nothing if you end up collapsing on me now." This is all said as Micah makes his way up the walk, Gabriel in tow. Once he rings the buzzer, however, he gets quiet, simply waiting for the other people to answer the door. He knows how Cass and Lachlan are, but he has no idea how they're going to react to his presence. Probably best he doesn't reveal it just yet.
"This is not a time to take it easy! This is a huge emergency! You don't know! They… they're doing terrible things… they…" he furrows his eyebrows and cuts himself off as Cass responds. "Cass?" There's a moment as Micah processes the yes, but he doesn't wait for more of a reply. "Cass! Cass, it's Micah! Micah Sanders — Niki and D.L.'s son! I need help… I need help! Please… we need… please let us in! I can explain everything I swear…"
Cass winces at hearing her daughter's cry and Lachlan's almost swear. "Sorry, baby," she calls out softly, but with enough force to travel into the other room. The sound of Micah's voice causes Cass' heart to lurch into her throat. There's no question about whether she will open the door to him or not. He's the son of Niki and a youngster in need of help. How can she say no? "Third floor," she tells him. "End of the hallway." The buzzer rings out long enough to allow Micah entry into the building and then she unlocks the door and props it open just slightly so the boy will be able to get into the apartment. "Micah's on his way up, Lach, it sounds like he's in trouble." Her own voice is laced with worry.
"A'righ'~" Said in a sing-song. Baby go sleep now, k? Unintelligible humming follows shortly.
"You don't think I know that?" Gabriel says, his voice a bit harsher than he intends for it to be. "Two hours ago, I was fighting for them. "You're not the only one affected by them. I have someone who was taken, too. I fully intend on saving her, but until then, you have to take it easy. You want to be a hero— you are a hero, but you're no good as a hero if you're dead." The rest of his speech is cutoff by Cass' response, and once they're granted entry, he pulls the door open so Micah can make his way through it.
Blinking, Micah can feel that anger rising again. He fights hard to suppress it, managing to hold his tongue, but twitches under his mounting anger. Instead he walks through the door, still mad, focusing on the justice he has to hold to. Finally he murmurs something, "They didn't just take something or someone from me… they took everything…" Of course, that's as cryptic as he'll be for the time being. He blinks to fight back his tears. It's not the time or the place and he needs to hold it together so Cass doesn't totally flip; she's a mom, after all and moms have a tendency to do that.
He slowly climbs to the third floor, his head pulsating with pain. His knuckles turn white underneath his grip of the railing; he doesn't want to lose control of his faculties. Finally he makes it up the stairs and trudges down to Cass and Lachlan's apartment where he raps on the door.
That rap on the door is enough to push it open slightly and in a few moments, Cass is there. One look at the bedraggled form of Micah and she goes into full Mother mode - just what Micah was fearing. "Oh my God. What happened to you?" She'll barely let him get in a word edgewise before she's guiding him to the kitchen table. "Lach, could you get the kit?" The first aid kit that she's beefed up for occasions such as this. For some reason, her being a doctor but not an actual doctor seems to make other people think she's the best alternative to the hospital. And she can't dissuade them of the notion. It's hard for her to turn away hurt birds. She always wants to nurse them back to health. So wrapped up in making sure Micah is alright, she hasn't acknowledged Gabriel's presence. It may be her mind blocking him out, or it could be she has just tunnelled her vision to the crisis in front of her.
Kit? See, Lachlan was thinking "trouble" as in "people are after me please help". Sans-Abby (thankfully), the Scotsman appears from the other room and blinks before half-hopping, half-jogging over to the cabinet where The Kit is stored. "The bloody hell happened?" he grunts once said package is retrieved and brought over. Unlike Cass, however, he spots Gabriel and narrows his eyes uncertainly, gripping the cane in his hand a bit tighter. It couldn't have been Gabriel, because Gabriel is helping, right?
Once they're to the apartment and Cass sweeps Micah inside (without really acknowledging Gabriel, leaving him standing awkwardly in the hallway), Gabriel finally decides to step inside, too, closing the door behind him. He lingers around that area, half leaning against the door, half standing in front of it, not exactly sure of what to do. cass seems to be in Full On Doctor mode with Lachlan helping her, and it looks like Lachlan will be the first one to spot him. Raising his hands in front of him, that classic gesture of 'whoooa, hold up!', Gabriel speaks. "I'm on your side."
"I crashed a car," Micah says somewhat distantly as his eyelids begin to close. Shaking his head, he focuses on the present. "I'm okay. Cass. I swear." A glance is given to Lachlan, Gabriel, and then he shrugs and nods. Gabriel helped him escape and was going to let Tracy go before the AP killed her; the thought makes the teen frown again. So much for happy thoughts. In fact, all happy thoughts are gone for the moment.
He takes a deep breath before he manages to go on a semi-incoherent rant, "I just need to get better so I can gather everyone together because there's something going on and I don't know what it is and I have to figure it out because if I don't justice can't win and there's no hope but I don't need hope when I can have justice the government that's after us killed mom and dad they made the building come down I'm going to take Jensen out and make him pay or something except not because I'm a hero and heroes don't see revenge they seek justice," it's at this point he gasps for breath. Yes, he's got a lot to say. And then he adds as an afterthought, "They put this giant chip thing in me. That's how I know all of this is true. I couldn't find it before." He blinks. He doesn't say how he knows all of this stuff; Gabriel doesn't know that part.
Head trauma can do a lot of things to a person. It's jarring and makes them think and say things they normally won't. But, at least the kid is talking, which is a good sign. As soon as Lachlan brings over the medical kit, she opens it to get gauze, disinfectant, tweezers and wound tape. "Shhh, Micah," she tells him in a soothing tone. It's much like she would talk to a skittish animal. "You're very brave Micah. I need you to stay still now, though." With that said, she gently lifts his chin up toward the light so she can survey the damage up close, also so she can check his pupil dilation and make sure he doesn't have a severe concussion.
Gabriel's voice startles her, however and she throws a glance over her shoulder. It's hard to read - scared, confused, angry - but she doesn't fight him just yet. Micah's more important. "Watch him, Lachlan." Her tone is one of distrust. "We'll decide whose side you're on. Tell me what happened to Micah."
And watch Lachlan does. Very carefully. Like a dog, in fact.
… and there's a dog now. Bonnie pokes her head out of the bedroom, tail wagging slowly. O hai wat's happenin' up in here?
He's been putting up with this for about two years now, and while it's always bugged him, some days it just really digs deep. A day like today, for example. "If I wasn't on your side, do you really, honestly think any of you would be standing here right now?" He shakes his head, leaning up against the door, eyes locked with Lachlan's. "I'll tell you when I'm sure Micah is going to be okay."
The teen is still for a few moments as she checks his pupils. The concussion isn't severe, but he's definitely concussed. "Leaping to his feet, Micah shakes his head, "No! No Cass! You don't understand! It happened! They killed Mom and Dad! They made it fall down — Jensen did! It's his fault! And they implanted me with this chip thing when they caught me — I can hear it now because of…" The voice in his head? He thought he was crazy. "…because of Wireless." That's what the voice said to call it. Her. Well it's digital tones said that.
"And …" Sylar? Gabriel? What his he supposed to call the former serial killer? Does he even know? "…Mr. Gray is on our side! He helped me get away — I was taken to the hospital and they were going to take me again and I don't wanna be taken again, I can't get justice with a tube in my nose!" At this he nods a little before getting another surging pain through his head, forcing him to sit once again.
"Micah." The more excitable Micah gets, the worse he can make his condition. A concussion of any sort is no laughing matter and the semi-doctor presses her hands onto Micah's shoulders to push him back down into his seat. Sternly, she continues. "You are injured. You're the one that came to me for help. Now, you've got to let me look at you or you're not going to be able to help anyone." And if she lets Niki's son bleed out on her kitchen table, or get brain damage because of whatever happened before this, she's never going to forgive herself. "So sit still. We'll talk about what happened as soon as you're taken care of."
Then she whirls around on Gabriel, "And you, if you're on our side, you will not threaten my husband or me again. Or I swear I will break you. You've killed people - many people - for your own profit and if you think I'm going to trust you when my back is turned just because you've done one thing right, you're just as crazy as you're supposed to be. If you want to be helpful, you'll tell us what happened. Otherwise you can stay quiet in a corner and Lachlan will try very hard not to tell Bonnie to bite your kneecaps off."
Lachlan actually raises a hand toward Cass in an attempt to stay the rage-splosion. "S'a'righ'," he utters. Scotsmen can issue their own threats just fine. He decides to issue his by keeping a glower fixed on Gabriel. Yeah. You. Stay.
"One thing right?" Gabriel says, his anger starting to get the better of him. Which, really, probably isn't a good thing considering the topic of discussion at hand, but he's about had it with these two, and he hasn't even been here for fifteen minutes. "I think by my count, yours too, Aldric, the official number should be at at least two. Remember the last time we were in each other's company? Some men were attacking you, looked pretty bad to me. I also believe it was me who saved you from them. So I think it's safe to say you wouldn't be standing here if it weren't for me." He turns his eyes over to Lachlan, the same look he was giving Cass only moments before directed at him. "Your girl wouldn't be standing here." He gives a nod in the direction of the backroom, where little Abby is currently resting. "Your kid? Wouldn't be here either." He turns from the two of them, opening up the door to the hallway. "You haven't seen me for two years. Don't act like you know who I am still." With that, he steps into the hallway, where he'll wait to see if he's needed. He would like to stay inside and watch over Micah, as he almost feels responsible for him now, but he knows that he's in good hands.
"Cass. Lachlan. Mr. Gray. Don't." Micah's getting increasingly despondent. "We need each other here. I need all of you. Please. Don't… I'm not a hero. Heroes don't do what I did. I need justice. I need it! I I can't do this alone. Please, Mr. Gray, come back! I know… something is… something is wrong.. I know…" he blinks hard to fight the tears.
His tone has slowed down considerably. "Listen to me. This is important. If something happens to me, you need to know so Mom and Dad can have justice," Micah's tone is quieter now. "Wireless told me. She said. It happened. They killed mom and dad. They made the building fall." He frowns before he sighs and sits still. A few seconds pass before he tacks on in a squeaky whisper, "It wasn't entirely my fault." And there's the truth. In a way it's relieving to lose some of the blame in a way, but the guilt is obviously not gone. He still blames himself.
"And it's not one protocol. The museum was only the first of many targets… I… it's real. It's not just because I'm hurt. It's real. Please. Listen to me," his eyes glisten with tears.
Outright glaring at Gabriel, Cass has a retort ready, but Micah interrupts her. He's ranting and persistent. And, because of Sylar, the woman still hasn't properly treated his wounds. "Micah," she reminds him softly. "Please." He's not making much sense, but she wouldn't expect him to with a blow to the head like that. The best way she can think of to get him to calm down is to agree with him. She's not exactly lying, but she's placating. "We're listening. Please, sit down again."
Putting her hand underneath his chin, she tilts it up again and picks up the tweezers to look for the glass that's still pressed into his skin. With a motherly tone, she tells him, "I don't know who Wireless is, or what museum you're talking about, but we'll talk about it. I promise. But you have to let me take care of you first." After a pause, she makes a gesture with the tweezers and her tone softens, apologetically. "This is going to hurt a little. I'm sorry."
Lachlan, meanwhile, remains completely silent. He hasn't taken his attention off the door or Gabriel. Bonnie, meanwhile, pads across the room to the table and plops herself down next to Micah, watching things with tail still slowly swishing. Hihihi.
Outside in the hall, Gabriel begins to pace back and forth, already regretting his outburst. Some small part of him still feels they deserve, but the rest of him knows it wasn't exactly the best time or idea to go off of them like that. Still, there isn't anything he can do about it now (not without the help of Hiro Nakamura, at least), so he continues to pace, listening to the conversation inside. Luckily, he doesn't have to be inside to hear everything they say.
With a sigh, Micah sits down again and cooperates some, wincing at the tweezers, Micah calms down a little. A little. "Wireless is… the person who told me about the device inside me. See they caught me…" He takes a deep breath.
"Okay. I'll start at the beginning." Butterflies persist in his stomach, he's thus far refused to talk about his parents' death. His eyes well with tears that he fights, "Mom and Dad died because a museum collapsed on them in Las Vegas. Jensen made it happen, apparently. Beta Protocol; just a test, but it killed people. It killed my parents and it destroyed my family. I need to find out what they're testing for… I don't know who he is, but he made it happen."
"So when the Alpha Protocol took me in October, they put a device inside me. It's a tracking device. Like… it shows where I am at any given time. So they could find me. Wireless — I think she has an ability like me — communicated with me through it when I was in the ambulance. There's more, a lot more. The Alpha Protocol's endgame isn't what I thought. I thought it was about bagging and tagging people like us. There's something else going on, I think. It doesn't end with tagging us… but there's more to it than that… I don't know. Well I do know. I need to gather everyone."
"I want justice. They stole my only chance at my family. They stole the little bit of happiness I finally found. And while I caused mom and dad's death — they weren't supposed to be in Vegas, that was my fault, I don't deserve this." The tears are now streaming down his face.
"I deserve justice," his tone is a whisper.
(TO BE CONTINUED…)