Gabriel had an idea, a very neat one at that on how his father would have preferred if he could get stronger in another way instead of ripping people's skulls. Arthur had pointed out that Gabriel had the possibility of being as compassionate as Peter, and therefore gained powers the way he did. Emphatic mimicry – Gabriel wasn't sure whether he liked the sound of those words or not. Compared to his Intuitive Inaptitude, which require the beauty of concentration and understanding, Emphatic Mimicry really did sound like the easier counterpart of it. He just didn't like the idea.
For him, the most gratifying part of gaining new power was the thrill, the hardworking element. There were no words that could describe how he felt when he got information, caught the victim and studied him, saw how the power worked, duplicate it for himself, and finally mastered it after a numbers of trial and errors. If he was to take power the way Peter did, he would miss that sensation. However, there was a bigger demand than his own selfish pleasure. People wanted to live, whether they deserved it or not, most people did. His killing had placed him within misjudged view: people wouldn't see beneath his killer façade. The existence of Gabriel was pale in comparison with Sylar.
Sylar. Definitely he had abandoned the name of Gabriel ages ago. That name reminded him of the weak person he once became, and never intended to be again. Being admitted into Petrelli family and once again used the Gabriel name didn't change the fact that he wanted to be Sylar. Even now as he walked closer to the room, which his father said contained the very person who could change his way, his heart was still fluttering with doubt. He wished to be at his best condition, the way Angela and Arthur hoped of him. Nevertheless, he wasn't sure if their hope was the same as his.
Gabriel stopped at the starting point of a long corridor. He glanced around to confirm that he was at the right place. The corridor was adjoined to different sections, from A to G. He silently cursed the fact that he was so totally absorbed in his thoughts that he didn't exactly listened to Arthur's words. Was it B or D? Or even G? Against the better judgment of finding Arthur and reconfirm exactly where he should go, Gabriel stepped farther into the corridor. If his memory served him correctly, then it should be at D section. As he walked to the D section, he found himself amused with the sight of many lab equipments here and there, stacked neatly on the rack and glass cabinets. D section itself was divided into several parts, on his way Gabriel crossed path with several people, assumingly doctors, judging from their white coats. Some other people even walked around in lab clothes, which consist of alloy-foiled fabric and helmet.
Many of them took the briefest moment to glance at Gabriel. Arthur had announced his staff earlier that one of his sons was at the building. Even tough he hadn't posted his picture on the network yet everyone seemed to be civil toward him. After a while, Gabriel saw less and less people until finally he saw no one as he observed the decrease in the electric lights. At the end of the corridor there was a large door, made of steel. Gabriel hesitated to enter at first, not knowing what kind of person waited for him inside. After a moment of self-debate, he pushed the door open.
The sight of Mohinder shocked him, but he was more concerned at the rashes on the Indian's skin. It looked bleached and irritated, its white color stood contrast against Mohinder's chocolate colored skin. Mohinder was equally shocked, he was in the middle of inspecting himself (the result of his previous experiment) when he heard the door opened. He was expecting one of the forgetful doctors who saw him, in which he had to scold them later on. When he saw Sylar instead, he suddenly couldn't suppress the urge to kill him. Arthur's son or not, he still hated Sylar. He quickly put on his clothes before using his inhuman agility and strength to leap up from tables and pinned the taller man roughly against the door.
Gabriel didn't expect Mohinder to jump on him like that. Well, technically he should have had expected that since Mohinder had attacked him in pretty much the same way before. Mohinder's strength knocked his breath off his lungs and Gabriel gasped as he pressed his full weight on him. He could feel Mohinder's pleasant breath against his neck as he actually used his power to half strangle him. He resisted the urge to throw Mohinder off with his telekinetic. Gabriel was curious, the last time he saw him Mohinder was so weak that he felt like if he grasp him powerful enough he'd break. Things were so different.
"You…have power…" Gabriel managed to say.
"Shut up." Mohinder hissed before he flung Gabriel towards a steel table. He landed wrongly, causing his arm to be trapped beneath his body against the metal. A loud enough snapped sound could be heard as Gabriel groaned in pain and Mohinder's face displayed shock before a second later smiling. Gabriel stood up uneasily, his left arm bent at unnatural angle and he let out a hiss as he set it back. Being able to heal was a precious gift but it didn't mean that he could ignore the pain which came with the process.
"What happened to you?" Gabriel asked as took a rather measured step toward Mohinder, telekinetic ready at hand. Mohinder looked at him sharply. His eyes darted to his side for a moment before he ripped the door hinges, which is quite large like a bar and made of metal. Gabriel tried not to wince at the sound of metal being ripped off. His eyes widened as the sight of Mohinder holding the metal piece effortlessly. He considered using his other ability other than telekinetic.
"I'm stronger now." He simply answered as he swung the metal directly to Gabriel. He jumped right in time to avoid it, looking at the weapon with slight horror as Mohinder's strength had actually sent it embedded on the floor. He quickly touched his hand on it, effectively liquefying it into harmless metal puddle.
"You're experimenting with yourself." Gabriel stated. It was the only theory he had, after all Mohinder was a very formidable doctor. His experiments were amazing, he could even find the cure for the most dangerous virus known to evolved human – Shanti virus – and saved lives, including himself. Although he did it unwillingly, a part of Gabriel still worshipped Mohinder's excellent mind. Mohinder opened the door and walked out.
"I don't need to answer that. Get out of here now in one piece, before I send you out in bits." He growled. Gabriel stepped outside himself, not believing this really happened. Mohinder was dangerous, he was somehow different from the weak Mohinder that he, as Zane or Sylar, used to encounter. Like a time bomb, he was ready to explode anytime and Gabriel found himself itched to find the switch off of that bomb. As intriguing as this new Mohinder might be, he still preferred the old one.
"You're getting stronger, Mohinder but with a heavy price." Gabriel said. Mohinder realized that Gabriel had seen his skin rash, and he doubted if he wanted to just leave it. He had known the other man long enough to safely guess that Gabriel want to make the most of it. He glared at Gabriel, but his glare seemed affect nothing as Gabriel still stood there, now even with the playful smirk on his lips.
"It's none of your business!" he spat angrily. Gabriel shrugged.
"Every strength had its price, Mohinder. And yours cost your heart apparently."
Gabriel defiantly called forth another power, this time the familiar frost formed around him. The corridor was gradually dropped in temperature as bits of frost started to form here and there, especially around Mohinder. Mohinder saw the puff of his breath became smoke-like and the ice around him turned shape into pillars. Some of them were jutted out of the tile ground while others were hanging proudly from ceiling just like they did inside a cave during wintertime. He hadn't exactly guessed why Gabriel would do that until he tried a step forward. The floor became slippery to the point that it would be dangerous for him to launch any kind of attack toward the other man.
"At least mine doesn't cost others' lives." He replied. He tried another step, and almost stumbled face first to the floor if it wasn't for invisible forced held him upright. Mohinder growled. Gabriel had the nerve to touch him using telekinetic, and it irritated him beyond measure. He carefully transferred his energy to both of his fist and with one clean hit, he punched the floor and side wall at the same time, causing ice to break everywhere. Mohinder dashed to Gabriel as he saw chances, but Gabriel was too busy deflecting ice blades which fell from the ceiling to see Mohinder's attack.
Mohinder jumped on him, on reflex Gabriel held his waist and back before Mohinder could hit him and rolled both of them away from the path of ice he'd just created. Lying on the tiled floor now, Mohinder threw punches at him, on every part of his face and body that he could touch. He was well aware that Gabriel would regenerate himself, the cuts that he managed to make had started to heal one after the other. Mohinder's hand stung and hurt from his ice-breaking attack; both of them were bleeding now. The geneticist noted with amusement that Gabriel had made no attempt to use telekinetic to throw him off. As he hit him over and over again, he realized that Gabriel had actually searched his eyes whenever he could. Finally, Mohinder stopped.
The swell and bruises on Gabriel's face fade, but he could still feel the pain. His broken nose mended itself easily as Mohinder, with sick glee, twisted it back in place. Gabriel watched him in amazement as he realized Mohinder was still on top of him, he even lowered himself closer to his face and gently put his hands on his shoulder. Mohinder still glared, and when he saw Gabriel's face relaxed he quickly use his power to crush his shoulder blades. Gabriel's scream mingled with the sound of bone breaking was like music to his ears and Mohinder smiled.
"All of my pain, I wish I could return it to you." He whispered in Gabriel's ear as the other man choked back a sob. The bone-breaking experience was extremely painful feeling, almost equal to the fork-tuning torture Mohinder inflicted on him before. Perhaps the new Mohinder was his old self, after all.
So lost in their own world of fight, neither of them heard the sound of footstep came closer.
"What do you think you're doing to my son, Dr. Suresh?"
Both of them literally jumped out of their skin as familiar voice addressed them. Mohinder jumped off of Gabriel as quick as he could; realizing how wrong their position would seem to Arthur. His jump took him back to the ice path, causing him to fell down and landed on his bottom painfully. Gabriel groaned lightly as he felt his bones started to repair themselves within, completely forgetting to laugh at the silly scene. Never before he thought Mohinder would land square on his butt; the man was too graceful for that. He stood upright, felt graceful for his healing ability otherwise Arthur would've seen him in black and blue.
"And I thought I had directed you to section B? Did you find Elle?"
Gabriel stared at his father dumbly. Reality hit him like tons of bricks as he realized he was lost. He wasn't supposed to be here seeing Mohinder or fighting him, he should've been at different section of this confusing building.
"So you're lost?" Arthur asked again, and Gabriel nodded his head shamefully. "Trust me, Gabriel. When I tell you there's someone who can help you to acquire Peter's power, Dr. Suresh is definitely not the one I had in mind."
Mohinder had done licking his wound and he appeared shocked at Arthur's words. Gabriel didn't need any more power, as if all those killings weren't enough. He was that powerful already, Mohinder really hate to imagine the terror he might be if he was stronger.
"You don't need to empower him." He stated sourly. "Your son," He paused at the word 'son', spat it out like he would to a poison. "is dangerous."
"I know who he is." Arthur said sternly. "It doesn't change the fact that I want the best things for my sons."
Mohinder glared at his back when Arthur led Gabriel away from the place. He didn't understand the concept of loving someone who was a murderer. Gabriel or Sylar or Zane, whoever he was Mohinder didn't exactly care, had killed his father and many others. If he thought his sin could be washed away, then he'd be sorely mistaken. Those people left behind would never forgive him, including himself.
Mohinder was angry; he was angry at himself for the fact that he indeed, back there at Montana, treated him kindly. He also angry for when he got him in his hands, he didn't have the ability to kill him. The anger was also there for the moment he cured Gabriel, wished he hadn't. But above all, he was angry for today, the moment when he finally could end him for good but stopped when he looked into Gabriel's eyes.
He frowned as he remembered he had made his own lab a mess and now he had to rearrange things. Damn Gabriel and his self-righteous existence! Mohinder kicked shards of ice with his shoes, some of them had melted into puddles of water as Gabriel's power no longer freeze them. His dark eyes looked all over the place; remnants of their battle were still there, blades of ice strangely seemed like they knocked themselves against the wall. He looked up at the ceiling, watched with amusement at the almost clean surface. Mohinder's previous attack had somehow managed to knock down the stalactite of ice. In his mind he pictured the ice fell down hastily, it could've hurt him or Gabriel. Then he remembered that Gabriel wasn't actually standing on the ice; he stood on clear surface. Mohinder was the one who stood on the ice.
Now that he calculated it more clearly, the ice which fell down from the ceiling should have hurt him. They could break his skin, or even knocked him unconscious if a part happened to hit him on the head. But none of them did. That reminded him of another thing. He glanced at his hands, which by now had stopped hurt. Mohinder frowned. If he remembered correctly, his hands were supposed to be still bleeding now thanks to his attack to the ice. They were healed completely already.