Authour's Note: So, this is my first attempt at a Sanctuary fanfic. Kind of nervous about posting it up, but I'm going to take that as a good thing. Plus, the nerves help my creative proccess. Anyway, this is set just after the Sanctuary self-distructs, very much centered on Will at the moment, but give it time =]. A great big thanks to the wonderful Arones, as she's been a great inspiration. Aaannddd here we go!
"Will, we need to talk," was all the text message said. Said man sighed heavily and dropped into his car uncaringly. His entire being was numb. Tragedy was no stranger to him; he'd seen more in his twenty-six years than most see in an entire lifetime. But this was different. This was Helen.
As his eyes began to water, Will shook his head and ran his fingers through his filthy hair. He couldn't remember the last time he actually used soap in the shower. His eyes caught his reflection in the rear view mirror of his car – a gift from Delcan after everything had happened. His motorcycle had been destroyed along with everything else in the Sanctuary. He barely recognized the man staring back at him. Dark circles hung beneath his pale blue eyes, his skin was gruff with stubble, and his mouth drooped in an ever-present frown. But his eyes, gentle cyan orbs, were dead. No gleam of life, no glimmer of happiness resided there; not any longer.
Will jammed his keys into the ignition and pushed the "Start Engine" button; damn if technology didn't cease to amaze him. The V6 engine roared to life and purred gently as it idled in park. With a quick, fliud motion, the sparkling white Optima was in gear, and Will pulled out of the FBI parking garage. He was stopped behind a line of cars paying visitors' tolls when he first saw it. His eyes drifted to his rearview mirror, and in the reflection he saw a familiar profile strutting across the parking lot in a pair of signature heels. Will snapped his head back to look out of the rear window, and as he did, she glanced in his direction.
Deep cobalt locked with sky blue, and for an instant, William Zimmerman couldn't breathe. Without thinking, he slammed the car in park, jumped out of the driver's seat, and darted toward the vehicle she'd disappeared behind. "MAGNUS!" he shouted, ignoring the strange looks he received from colleagues getting into their own cars. Will sprinted around the end of a large SUV and stopped just short of the wall seperating the garage with the street. "Helen..." His voice was a strangled whisper; his mind reeled and jolted and spun. She had been there, he had seen her. Either that, or he'd finally lost it completely.
The sharp beep of a car horn brought him back to reality. Not as quickly as he had left it, Will returned to his car and exited the parking lot, no longer attempting to stop the salty demons that streamed down his face.
/-/-/-/-/-/
Helen knew she shouldn't visit the FBI building so soon after the Sanctuary's demise, but she had to see him. Despite their age difference, she'd formed strong feelings for Dr. Will Zimmerman; feelings that ran much deeper than she cared to admit. She also needed to steal a certain set of security system shematics, though the former reason seemed more important than the latter.
She'd been walking back to her rental when she happened to glace at the lengthy line of departing vehicles. Their eyes locked in an instant, and her heart stopped. She had to move, and quickly. Helen continued her usual pace, but as soon as she was concealed behind the Suburban she parked next to, the elder woman dropped to the ground and rolled under her rental. She said a silent prayer of thanks for having rented a Jeep. She would have never fit under a sedan.
As Will rounded the edge of the larger SUV next to her, she had to cover her mouth to withold a choked sob. His voice was so hurt, so broken. He whispered her name hoarsely, then trudged back to his car. She turned her head away from the view of his feet and let out a haggard, choked sigh. What had she done to him?
/-/-/-/-/-/
The door of his old apartment creaked open, and his dragging feet thumped tiredly on the oak floors. Will tossed his keys in the gold, star-shaped dish that sat on the foyer wall, then kicked his door closed, not bothering to latch any of the locks. If someone wanted to break in, he wouldn't stop them. Most of his things were gone, and what little he had was still packed away. He'd replaced his wardrobe with his last check, as well as putting as much down on his appartment as he could. Will put in his two weeks notice with SCIU the day after the Sanctuary blew up before his eyes.
With a sigh, the good doctor rubbed his hands through his hair and kicked his shoes off, then haphazardly disrobed and entered his bathroom. He ignored his rough reflection and stepped into the shower, going through his usual nightly rutine. The water was hotter than he usually tolerated, but Will didn't care. He ignored the stinging of the pressurized water and stood under the stream lifelessly. After a few minutes of burning his flesh and scalding his scalp, Will hopped out of the shower and got ready to meet Abby in the Old City park. She was the last person he wanted to see, and he was pretty sure she knew it. He'd been avoiding her at work, ignoring her calls, and keeping her beyond arm's length emotionally. Deep down, Will knew he shouldn't keep her hopes up by continuing their relationship, but he didn't care anymore. He couldn't be with the woman he wanted, so why throw away the woman that wanted him?
The park was only a few blocks away from his appartment, so Will walked to meet with his girlfriend. Hoping she wouldn't show, or would leave when he was late, the young man took the scenic route to her predetermined meeting place. On arrival, he resisted the urge to sigh. Abby was sitting on a bench with a cup of coffee clutched in her hands, waiting patiently to give him the cup she'd bought for him.
"Will, I thought-" she began, but he held up his hand and sat next to her.
"Sorry I took so long," he mutterred, taking the paper cup with his name on it in his hands. "Lost track of time in the shower." He wasn't lying, but he wasn't being forward with her, either.
Abby smiled weakly and took a sip of her coffee. "I understand. I just wish you would have let me know." She noticed his lacking reaction and dropped her smile. "That's behind us now, so …"
Will sat quietly next to her for some time before taking a sip of his own coffee. He wasn't in the mood to talk, so he decided to let her lead in the conversation.
And the blonde did just that. "Will, I know it's been tough the past few days, but you really need to start trying to move on," she said gently, her left hand finding his arm. His skin was still radiating some warmth from his shower, and even in the dim light of the street lamp, she could see the pink tint of burns. "Will … is there something I should know about?"
The man in question shrugged, his eyes having not left the ground since he'd taken a seat. Abby's exasperated sigh prompted him to say, "I'm fine. I'm just tired."
She saw through his lie immediately; brow furrowed, the young woman dropped her coffee cup in the garbage can next to them and stood up. "Will," she began, her hands finding her hips. "You are not fine. You probably are tired because you smell like you haven't really showered in days. I'm tired of being locked out, Will. You need to talk to someone, and I don't understand why it can't be me."
Will sighed and took another sip of his coffee. Despite their continued time together, Abby had never learned how to order his coffee properly. "Please, Abby. Just let me … figure this out." His eyes were dull and his voice was near monotonous, which only angered his girlfriend more.
"Dammit, Will! I will not let you just 'figure this out'." She raised her hands in mock quotation marks, then crossed her arms over her middle. "You're going to tell me right now what the hell has been pulling you down so far." Abby sat down again, this time with her body pointedly directed toward Will. In response, he pulled away slightly and sipped his coffee again.
"I know the Sanctuary was important to you. It was important to me, too. But I'm not letting that loss completely divert my attention from other things, more important things." She reached for his hands, but he pulled away and sipped his coffee. "You and Kate weren't there. Biggie was … already gone, so he didn't have to see it go. And Declan said that all of the residents were safely relocated. Even Henry and Nikola got out. Will, everything was avoided."
Will winced at her words before moving to the trash recepticle to toss out his horrible cup of swill. His arms crossed numbly over his chest as he leaned against the light pole. "Not everything," he whispered averting his gaze to a small patch of lightening bugs near bushes across the walking path.
Abby sighed and turned to face him, deciding that any physical actions would probably be pointless. "She died protecting what she loved," she said softly, trying to read his body language. He was too well trained; all she saw was pointed defenses, and that's exactly what he wanted to express.
"Will, if you're not going to talk to me about this, then I'm going to have to file an injunction requesting a psychiatric evaluation of you." Despite her efforts, threatening his job meant nothing anymore. She didn't knew he was leaving at the end of the week.
"Fine," was his only response.
"For goodness sake, Will!" Abby shouted, standing to confront him. This was ridiculous. If he couldn't get over the loss of his extremely well-preserved boss, then there was no hope for their relationship, and Abby wasn't ready to let that go. "Do you care about anything anymore?"
That stabbed in just the wrong place. Will's back snapped straight and his arms dropped to his sides. In two strides, he was leaning over the bench they'd been sharing, his face inches from hers. "I did," he growled, his eyes glaring and his lips pursed. "I cared about a lot of things. Biggie, the residents, MY HOME!" He quickly moved around the bench as Abby took a step back toward the walking path.
"Everything I loved went down in flames with that building, and I will never get her back!" His words did not go unnoticed, but he wasn't finished. "You've never had everything that was ever important to you ripped away in a moment, and I've had to deal with that twice in the past twenty years!"
Abby's hand went to her trembling lips as he shouted at her, and she turned away when he backed down and sat on the bench again. She breathed deeply once, twice, and a third time before turning back toward the man she loved, her eyes filled to the brim with tears. "Everything you loved?" she croaked, her chin puckering as she held back a sob.
Will sighed and put his face in his hands. She'd stabbed a stick in the wrong place, and now his own grief was taking away the one thing that wasn't so terrible. Part of him wanted to apologize instantly, take her in his arms, and kiss away her pain. But the rest of him knew that they were never meant to be. His heart was never in it. He loved the Sanctuary first. He loved Helen. Did he? He wasn't sure, but he knew he didn't love Abby.
The woman in question descretely wiped her eyes and sat down on the bench, her hands twisting in a knot and resting in her lap. "Have you ever …" her words trailed off as a lump formed in her throat.
"I thought I did," he muttered, crossing his arms around his middle. "I wanted to, but … I never felt it, no."
A unbidden sob escaped Abby's trembling lips, her hand quickly covering her quivering mouth to prevent her swirling emotions the ability to escape. After composing herself, she sat up straight and whispered, "I wish you would have told me about her earlier." Her eyes overflowed with tears, but the FBI agent maintained her compsure, denying Will the oportunity to see her break under his words.
Will huffed out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, then stood and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I'm sorry, Abby," he said, his voice soft for the first time that evening. "I really am." With that, he turned and walked toward the park exit, his mind blocking out the quiet, heart-broken sobs that escaped his ex-girlfriend.
/-/-/-/-/
The Sanctuary was burning, the stench of sulpher and magnesium filled the air. Henry and Nikola staggered away from the side entrance as Will was running in. "Wait!", Nikola cried, chasing after the good doctor. "Will, you don't want to go into that!"
But the normal man wasn't listening. He was determined to find her. Maybe she hid in catecombs in a place that was fortefied. Or maybe she used Henry's armour. He had to find her. Ignoring the vampire at his feet, Will dug through the rubble, ignoring the burns on his hands. She was okay; she had to be.
Nikola caught up with the younger lad easily and stood back while the boy dug through the scarred rubble. How could he tell him? He was still denying it himself. "Will..." he said softly, his pale hand finding the younger man's shoulder. "William-"
"Either help me or leave, Tesla!" he cried, his eyes filling with tears. "I'm going to find her!"
The vampire sighed and pulled Will away from the rubble, flattening the mortal to the ground with ease. "You will find her, Will!" he growled. "You will find her charred, scattered bits near Sally's tank. Do you want to find her like that?!"
Will woke with a start, his body and pyjama pants soaked with a cold sweat. He trembled as he swung his legs over the side of his bed and flicked on his bedside lamp. He could hear his mother's voice in a distant corner of his mind whispering, "It was only a dream, William," but he knew better. It was a memory; his worst nightmare come to life. After he regained control of his limbs, he walked over to his window and drew the curtain aside. First, his eyes went to the sky – the moon hovered neatly over the adjacent building, the half circle gently lighting the streets below. And then his eyes drifted to the street, where they stopped and stared at a ghost.
Once again, he saw, very clearly, Helen Magnus standing in the street, talking to what looked like a Red List dealer. Will rubbed his eyes and grabbed his glasses. By the time he returned to the window, she was still there, but walking toward an alley way just down the street. As fast as humanly possible, Will dressed himself and threw on his shoes, his mind and body racing; one toward the door and the other into oblivion. He decended the steps from his apartment two at a time and flew out of the street entrance just as Magnus's heels clicked out of view. He made chase quickly, dodging a cab and another oncoming vehicle. The horns from each echoed incessantly off of the multi-story buildings around them. Will skidded to a halt in front of the alley entrance before grabbing his phone and flicking on the flashlight application. He quietly, but hastely, made his way down the alley, listening for whispers or laughs or the familiar click of Magnus's shoes. But it was quiet, almost silent, as he made his way to the end.
"Magnus!" he cried, turning in circles trying to find where she could be hiding. "Please, Magnus!" He backed against the dead end wall at the very end of the alley, shining his light back and forth across its width. "Helen … Please. If you're there, let me see you. Let me know that you're okay!" His voice cracked as a sob bubbled out. Will hadn't even realized he was crying until his tears splashed down on his extended arm. With no sight of the woman he so desperately missed, the young doctor slid down to the ground and hugged his knees tightly to his chest. With no care as to who may be watching, he burred his face in his knees and let his emotions flood out; his body was wracked with harsh sobs that tore at his throat. He had lost so much in that one night, and his mind could no longer take the pressure of containment any longer.
The distraught young man would be awoken later that evening by a homeless man requesting his usual sleeping space. Will obliged groggily and managed to find his way back to his own bed, only after stripping of his filthy clothes.
/-/-/-/-/-/
Helen Magnus had just tucked away in the side room of a partially vacant building when Will entered the alley with his phone lit up. She listened to his cries through the door while the dealer she was speaking to gathered the Red List abnormals she'd purchased. Her heart broke little by little as he cried out for her and then broke down in gut-wrenching sobs. How could she let this continue? Was this not exactly what she'd hoped to avoid? Magnus bit down on her bottom lip to keep it from trembling as her own tears formed in her eyes. As she wiped away the salty demons, the dealer returned to the room and told her that her order was loaded and ready for transport. She thanked the man and tipped him for his good manners, (which were few and far between in his line of work), then silently drove to her delivery point.
/-/-/-/-/-/
The end of the week was bittersweet for Will Zimmerman. This job had been forced upon him, much to his chagrin, but it had given him a chance to work with the girl he thought he might have feelings for. On the same note, his job became the only thing he had once the Sanctuary was gone, and it was a torture chamber after he revealed his true feelings to Abby. His last day was simple and very much like the days preceding it, except on his last day, he brought home the few keepsakes and collectables he had on his small desk. He left the picture of Abby behind.
As he entered his apartment, Will sighed and flopped the newest addition to his stack of boxes down on his small kitchen table, then turned his attention to the few TV dinners in his freezer. Spaghetti and frozen steak were his choices for the evening. He made a mental note to go grocery shopping in the next few days. As his spaghetti cooked in the humming microwave, Will took the opportunity sort through his latest box of stuff. The baseball his father gave him at the Sanctuary, a glow-in-the-dark, hack-proof jump drive that Henry gave him, and a sparkling, heavy pen set that Magnus gave him. The third made his eyes water; he growled in frustration and slammed the pen set back into box and threw the baseball across his living room. The ball hit the leg of a small table, which toppled a stack of books onto the floor. His face fell into his hands as he let out an airy groan of frustration. The beeping of his microwave elicited a swear from him. Will quickly got his food and set it out on his TV tray. Nothing entertaining was on regular cable, so he flicked on his Internet-connected streaming device and looked for something through his collection of applications.
Just as Will found something decent to watch, his phone began buzzing on the kitchen table. With a disgruntled sigh, he retrieved the device and checked the caller-ID. "Hey Henry," he answered, his voice tired and gruff.
"Hey yourself, dude. You sound terrible," came the reply from his very good HAP friend.
Will smiled for the first time in what seemed like an eternity. "Yeah, I probably look like shit, too." He returned to his seat near his TV and crammed a fork-full of his dinner into his mouth. "How's London been treating you?"
Henry paused for only a moment, not enough for the emotionally disoriented doctor to notice, then said, "Just fine. You should see Erika. She's glowing!"
"You should send me a photo," was muffled by a mouth-full of spaghetti.
The HAP laughed and tapped on his tablet PC. "It's on its way. As is another little packet. Declan wanted me to get it to you, and I was calling to make sure your number was still active."
"Why wouldn't it be?" He flicked through an application's selection of shows with one hand and swirled pasta on his fork with the other.
"Well..." Henry began, his arms crossing over his chest. "You didn't answer for a few days."
Will stopped chewing and set his fork to the side, then turned his TV set off. "Yeah, sorry about that," he muttered, sitting back in his chair. "I've been …"
"Forget about it," he muttered, clacking away on his laptop. "You should have both messages now. Look, I gotta go. Mag-uh-Declan needs my help with something, and I promised Erika I'd have breakfast with her. I'll talk to you later, man." Before the good doctor could say anymore, the call was disconnected from the other side.
Almost simultaneously, his phone chirped in response to receiving two data messages. The first was just as Henry promised, a lovely photo of Erika with a baby bump that might be construed as an early sign, but she'd been pregnant for nearly eight months. She still had a long way to go, but she and Henry were up to the task. Despite the distant pang of jealousy, Will was happy for them.
The second was a strange packet that had to be uploaded to a computer before being properly viewed. So, the young man did so, and while waiting for the data to stream, he finished his TV dinner and tossed out the plastic packaging that it had come in. A light beep came from Will's laptop to alert him that his file was ready for viewing. A quick click of the mouse opened a series of documents – the floor plan to an abandoned warehouse along with its address, a photo of the warehouse exterior, and a video file. The computer immediately found the proper software to play the file and popped a new window open as Will was examining the floor plan.
"Will, if you're watching this, then the Sanctuary is gone. I want you to know that it was a last resort; it pains me to know that my system, mine and my father's lives' works are completely destroyed. But it had to be done. You should also have received an interesting bit of information along with this message, thanks to Henry's ingenious creativity. Meet us there exactly one week after you watch this file, down to the minute, if you please. And don't worry, we shan't be late." With a gentle smile, Helen ended the recording with a quick flick of her mouse.
Will sat completely still, his mind perplexed beyond what he could comprehend. Magnus left him a message with specific instructions for what to do when the Sanctuary was destroyed. Which meant she planned it; somewhere, sometime, in some far away place, which meant she knew that he would be there. She planned on shutting him out and leaving him in the dark, flying blind. The young doctor grabbed the arms of his chair and squeezed until his nails penetrated the faux leather fabric upholstry before jumping up, grabbing his shoes and keys, and storming out the door.
He drove for hours, aimlessly, before stopping to get gas and an energy drink. After getting back in his car, he clicked open his phone and accessed his home cloud. It took Will all of three minutes to get the address he was supposed to arrive at in one week's time. He punched the quardinates into his phone's GPS system and sped of toward the warehouse district. After about ten minutes, he arrived at his destination, completely hell-bent on finding Henry and asking why he would pull such a wise-ass prank on him. But instead, Will found an empty lot with a poorly constructed fence around it, said fence playing host to a for sale sign.
His hands flew up to his head and through his hair, fisting in his messy locks until he was sure he was going to pull out chunks of the fur. Then he slammed his fists against the steering wheel, his head following suit. Ragged sobs wracked his body, shaking him to his core. Why would Declan have this sent to him? As he tried to pull himself together, Will thought of logical answers to his question. Perhaps it was in her will, or maybe it wasn't even Declan's doing. Maybe it was implanted into the data package remotely. But who would do that?
As Will gathered his puzzled brain and put it back in its right place, blue and red flashing lights appeared behind him. "Great," he muttered as he wiped his eyes and rubbed his face. The knock on the window was expected. Will aready had his paperwork and identification ready.
"What are you doing out here this evening, sir?" the officer asked as he handed the doctor's information back.
"I'm on my way to see my sister in New City," he replied. "My GPS must have gotten scrambled."
The officer nodded and asked, "What address are you looking for? I live in New City; I can probably point you in the right direction."
Will nodded and gave the man his own address, then zoned out the instructions on how to get there. He greatfully accepted the ramblings and bid the officer a good night before heading back to his apartment.
/-/-/-/-/-/
He was determined to find her. Maybe she hid in catecombs in a place that was fortefied. Or maybe she used Henry's armour. He had to find her. Ignoring the vampire at his feet, Will dug through the rubble, ignoring the burns on his hands. She was okay; she had to be.
Nikola caught up with the younger lad easily and stood back while the boy dug through the scarred rubble. How could he tell him? He was still denying it himself. "Will..." he said softly, his pale hand finding the younger man's shoulder. "William-"
"Either help me or leave, Tesla!" he cried, his eyes filling with tears. "I'm going to find her!"
The vampire sighed and pulled Will away from the rubble, flattening the mortal to the ground with ease. "You will find her, Will!" he growled. "You will find her charred, scattered bits near Sally's tank. Do you want to find her like that?!"
Will awoke with a start, his body drenched and sticking to the upholstry of his living room chair. He'd fallen asleep in front of his TV again. Though, subsequently, it was the loud beeping alarm of his laptop that awoke him. The machine needed to be plugged in, and after nearly crashing his system twice from lack of proper power, Henry had installed an alarm system that would remind Will to plug the thing in before it lost all power.
Sleepily, the young doctor reached over toward his laptop and plugged the power cable in. A light green glow was coming off of the screen, which aroused his interests just enough to keep his eyes open. With the screen dimly lit, Will could see the faint outline of something behind the schematics of the fake warehouse he was supposed to meet Magnus at. With a quick flick on his mouse pan, will brightened the screen back to normal. The transparent image disappeared as the screen brightened.
"What the hell?" He then tapped the button that brought his screen brightness level down until it was barely lit. And then he could see it clearly. It was a descretely disguised photo of the jump drive Henry had given him. Will smirked, fond memories flitting through his mind, then grabbed the small drive and plugged it into his computer. The jump drive then ran its own programs, scanning for viruses and back door programs, then loaded a new series of documents, including another video file.
This time, instead of Magnus, Henry was on the business end of the camera. "Hey, man. Sorry about all the confusion," he began, his eyes glued to the screen on which his camera was attached. "We just gotta cover our bases; you know how it is. Anyway, the blueprints that probably just finished downloading are legit, and so is the address. Be there this coming Friday, six o'clock. You'll see the spot on the prints."
The HAP's head snapped to the side as the muffled voice of Helen Magnus shouted, "Come on, Henry! You have to leave!"
Henry sighed and looked up at the camera as he finalized whatever he was working on. "Good luck, Will. Hang in there." The screen went black and the video file closed itself, revealing a set of new blueprints with a destinct path marked out. The address in the corner was on the outskirts of Old City, in an area of town that Will had heard of a lot of abnormal activity since the Sanctuary was removed from the equasion. Of course, he didn't witness any of it; everyone over his head agreed to keep him on indefinite desk duty as long as there was an abnormal presence in the city.
With a haggard sigh, Will turned off his computer, unplugged the jump drive, and headed toward his bedroom, throwing the glow-in-the-dark stick back in the box he'd gotten it from. Despite his hatred of medication, the good doctor popped a sleeping pill before heading to bed.
Now, to wait for Friday.
A/N: Thanks for reading! I'd be incredibly grateful if you left a review. Praise or critique, I love to know what my readers are thinking. Thanks again, and check back soon!
PS: Let me know of my spelling errors you may see, please. My word processor is being angry at me and won't let me use spell or grammar check.