The Rubber Band Theory

Chapter 8: Akuma

     "It's over, Krei." His voice was hard, but tired. Yokai started to stand, his back still to them.

     The man finally turned, hatred blazing in his pale blue eyes. Not the pale blue of Alistair Krei.

     The eyes of Robert Callaghan.

     Hiro stumbled a half-step back. "Pro... Professor Callaghan?" He heard the others gasp from above him.

     "The explosion... you died." Hiro blinked, uncomprehending.

     "No. I had your microbots," Callaghan said, his eyes hard.

     Hiro's mind raced, skipping around as it tried to make sense of everything. "But, Tadashi. He would have died!" Hiro put his hands on his head, taking another half-step back. Tadashi would have gone inside, and he would have died. He would have died, and it would have been for nothing. And now Tadashi was unresponsive somewhere in the room above them, hurt by Callaghan's own hand. He felt his mind prickle, the rubble in the control room shifting. He looked back up at Callaghan, his own eyes wide and empty. "You would have just let him die."

     Callaghan took a step closer, reaching out his hand. "Give me the mask, Hiro." His voice was low and dangerous.

     Hiro took a few steps back. "He was going to go in there to save you," Hiro cried, almost pleading, although he didn't know what he was begging for.

     "That was his mistake!" Callaghan spat.

     Hiro froze, his desperation turning into anger. He glared up at his brother's mentor, conscious of the rubble he knew to be creeping closer through the air. Callaghan hadn't noticed yet. Hiro heard Baymax land behind him, but he didn't bother to turn and look. It didn't matter.

     Callaghan's eyes widened, looking at something in the air behind him. All of the concrete and loose debris Hiro could find were floating at the ready in the air at his back. Callaghan's eyes flicked down to meet Hiro's, full of fear. He tried to keep both the boy and the impossible occurrence in focus, but all he was doing was dividing his attention.

     His venomous eyes still locked on Callaghan, Hiro sent the rubble at him with everything he had.

     The first thing Tadashi felt was pain. His head felt like he'd put his brain in a blender, thrown the resulting smoothie in a brain-shaped ice tray, frozen it, and stuffed it back in his head on a bed of cotton to melt a little. His body ached all over, but he didn't feel anything stronger then what would probably be a small bruise. How did this happen?

     His eyes fluttered open and he groaned, trying to remember. They'd flown to Akuma Island. There was a big room, a portal room. And then there was that footage, and-

     Tadashi hissed at the memory. He'd tried to shield them from Yokai, but he'd used too much power doing it. He could barely stand by the time the man had thrown the concrete, and the shattering of the shields he was maintaining coupled with being buried in the rubble had been too much. He blinked, confused. But he wasn't buried. What-

     Baymax's visored face filled his view. "You are awake," he said, soft but matter-of-fact.

     "Bay-" Tadashi coughed, his throat coated in dust. "Baymax, what happened?"

     The healthcare bot helped him stand, but he was unsteady. Tadashi leaned heavily on his arm. "Hiro and I found you and dug you out, but the others needed our help."