It was well after midnight when Hiro woke to the sound of a phone ringing. It took him a moment to realize what was going and he absently reached for his phone. But, after listening a bit longer, he realized the tone wasn't coming from his cell. It rang a few more times before Tadashi answered it in a rather groggy voice.
"Tadashi speaking."
There was a moment of silence as whoever was on the other end spoke. That silence was broken when Tadashi assured them he didn't mind being woken up. More silence followed and Hiro strained to listen.
"No!" Tadashi shouted, almost giving Hiro a heart sat up in bed, phone pressed firmly against his ear.
Hiro rolled into his side, pretending to still be asleep, just in case his brother looked his way. With wide eyes, he strained to hear every word possible, still only hearing his brother's side of the conversation.
"You can't do that!" Tadashi threw his bed covers off and got out of bed.
Hiro was tempted to peek over and see what was going on but decided that wouldn't be a good idea. If his brother saw him still awake, complications might arise.
"Just don't do anything until I get there!" Tadashi said urgently as he emerged from behind the dividing screen. He was already dressed.
The phone snapped shut with an audible click as Tadashi pocketed it. He dashed for his helmet, all but yanking it off its hook. He didn't even look back as he ran down the stairs.
Cautiously, Hiro looked up, realizing his brother was gone. Not even bothering to dress, he threw on his shoes and ran after his brother.
.......................................
It was hard to keep up with a man on a moped, especially one in a hurry, but somehow Hiro managed. If nothing else, his brother could be counted on to obey the speed limit. The chase felt more like when he'd gone after Baymax that first time he'd visited the warehouse. He was a good couple of steps behind, but still managed to figure out where his brother was going. His year of training as a superhero was decidedly paying off.
What was strange was where his brother headed. It wasn't the fact that he went to the school. What was strange was that he didn't go towards the lab building as expected. If this was indeed about the project he was working on with a professor, shouldn't he go into the lab building? Instead, Tadashi went to an area off to the side, where a concrete embankment blocked the way.
Hiro watched as his brother uncovered a keypad and typed in a bunch of numbers. He was careful to observe the sequence so he could use it once things were clear. He was even more surprised when a door opened in the cement wall and his brother went inside. What was going on?
Double-checking to make sure no one else was around; Hiro raced up to the spot where Tadashi had been standing. He found the keypad with ease and only had a moment of hesitation as he tried to remember the exact numbers his brother had pushed, along with the correct order. But he managed to remember and punched in the code, making the door slide open once more.
A long tunnel met his gaze, with minimal lighting. It, too, was made of concrete. And there was nothing to indicate where it led. He'd have to thrust forward and hope he didn't get himself into too much trouble.
Some kind of whirring sound filled the air as Hiro moved forward. He wasn't sure what it was at first, but came to a starting realization. It couldn't be! He ran forward, stopping as light illuminated the end. He crouched, tiptoeing forward to peer around the open doorway, not sure what to expect.
Ahead sat a large chamber, the ground sunken down at least one story, maybe two. A track of sorts acted like a bridge from one end to the other down the middle, while metal walkways spanned the walls. And at the far end sat a very familiar giant circle in a cradle specially made just for it.
"No," Hiro whispered in dread. "No. No. No!"
He looked around, realizing the equipment he'd noticed missing from the island was in this large space. Someone had rebuilt the portal control room and track. The whirring he heard was the sound of the activated portal. He could see the swirl of energy in the middle.
"No! No! No! No!" Hiro pulled back, knowing this was very wrong. How on earth had it gotten there, and who had brought it? This couldn't be happening. But, more importantly, what was his brother doing in a place like this and just where had he disappeared to?
Not seeing anyone, Hiro moved forward into the room. He pulled up short the moment he realized there was someone there after all, just at the other end where the impromptu control booth had been constructed. And that very familiar figure stood at the controls. Yokai.
"Professor Callaghan!" Hiro yelled to be heard over the maelstrom created by the activated portal.
The man looked towards him, kabuki mask firmly in place over the dark hood. His eyes seemed to glow yellow as he adjusted something on a control panel and the whirring sound increased in pitch.
Part of the railing separating the catwalk from unwary feet began to shake. A piece of one section flew free and got sucked into the portal.
It was happening all over again. Callaghan had somehow transported the portal to another location and was trying to make it work. What wasn't clear was why. Had he figured out his daughter was still in there? Or was he trying to make it strong enough to pull all of Krei Tech into its alternate dimension before unleashing it on the city? Either way, this was not good.
"Professor!" Hiro called out again. "You need to stop! This isn't going to end well!" He had to brace himself as the pull of the portal threatened to knock him off his feet.
But Yokai didn't seem to heed him. In fact, he merely adjusted another control, making the portal's force even stronger. "More power!" he yelled. "I need more power!"
The force of the vacuum the thing created pulled Hiro into the railing with a jolt. He cried out as his hip rammed into the metal.
"Hiro!"
The boy looked up to see Tadashi running towards him, white lab coat flapping behind him. "What are you doing here? You were supposed to be in bed!"
Hiro couldn't help but show wide eyes and an expression of shock. "You're working with him?" But before he could ask anything else, the portal yanked him off his feet and would have sucked him in, except Tadashi grabbed his hand at the last possible moment, pulling him back over the railing.
"You aren't supposed to be here!" Tadashi yelled over the sound of the machine.
The look Hiro gave his brother didn't have a name, but it conveyed all his fear, doubt, and incredulity at what he was hearing. "But you're working with the man who killed you! It was because of him that you died in that fire! Why, Tadashi? Why!"
A look of determination crossed Tadashi's face. "Not here. Not now," he called out. "Come on. I've got to get you out of here." He sheltered his brother from the force as he moved towards the hallway.
But before the older Hamada could get proper footing, the portal's force pulled him towards the railing, his back smashing against the metal before going over. This time Hiro grabbed his hand to keep him from being sucked in. "I'm not letting you go!"
Tadashi gave a rather sad smile, realizing something had broken inside him. He could feel a sense of pain near the middle of his back, but below that was numb. "Hiro, you knew it was only a matter of time before this happened," he reminded. "You've got to let me go. You still need to figure out a way to reset things so you can fix your timeline. You can't do that if you keep holding on to me like this. You have to let me go."
Tears leaked out of Hiro's eyes, splashing against Tadashi's face like rain. "Not like this!" he protested. "Not like this, Tadashi! For once, I just wanted to grow up with you being there! Is that too much to ask? Please! Don't give up! Come on! You gotta fight this!"
Tadashi reached out a hand as if to try and wipe the tears away from his brother's face but grabbed Hiro's hands instead. "It's okay, bonehead. I know. But you know you can't have it both ways. Besides, I'll always be there for you. You can't get rid of me that easily."
"But I don't want to live without you!" Hiro bawled, his face a blotchy mess. "No matter what anyone says, you are worth saving! Tadashi! Please! Just this once, let me save you!"
The older Hamada gave him a sad smile, his face at peace. "Not this time." With that, Tadashi pushed Hiro's hands away from his own. "Goodbye."
"No!" Hiro tried to grab his brother once more but couldn't. He'd already been pulled too far towards the portal. "Tadashi! No!"
The force of the machine began to drag Hiro back to the brink as his brother disappeared. He tried to grab onto the railing, but it snapped under his fingers from the strain. He was going to die there, just like his brother. Was it such a bad thing, he wondered. It was one way to restart the cycle. He knew it had to happen at some point. But he wasn't thinking straight. He wasn't sure if he'd ever thing straight again.
"Hiro."
Hiro turned at the feeling of soft vinyl holding onto him by the wrist. When had Baymax gotten there? He didn't remember activating him. "It's okay," he tried to tell the robot. "If I go in, it should restart the cycle. I can finally fix things. Tadashi's sacrifice won't be in vain."
Baymax blinked at him as he stared intently into the boy's face. "This is not how it is supposed to occur," he said as he pulled Hiro closer.
Hiro shook his head as he felt the pull of the portal calling to him. If he went now, maybe he could still see his brother. Maybe he could still save him.
"You must fight against it," Baymax ordered in a tone he never used. "Do not give up."
But Hiro didn't have time to head his words as he saw Yokai coming up behind the robot. And he knew the professor held something heavy in his hands. He had enough time to scream as the man brought the long pipe to bear, knocking it into the boy's head, sending both him and the healthcare robot over the railing. Hiro had enough time to see the mask glaring at him before his world went dark once more.