Mal's eyes opened and he blinked groggily, seeing nothing but a painfully white blur through his half-opened eyes. Trying to clear hi vision, he blinked furiously, but soon even the bright light was gone and he could see nothing. Before he drifted back into unconsciousness, he thought he could hear Natara calling his name.
But that was 10 years ago. It was now the year 2022 and Mal was still lying in that same hospital, but now he was in his own private room, still hooked up to the machines and still not waking up. It was now 7 o'clock on a Thursday evening and Natara, as he had every evening since the shooting, was sitting by Mal's bed, holding his hand and telling him about her day. Her tears had long since dried up, along with her hope of him waking up, but still she could not bring herself to stop visiting. And that, ultimately, had been what had killed her relationship with Oscar. He had grown jealous, maintaining that Natara spent more time with her comatose partner than him, her boyfriend. For once, Oscar hadn't been wrong, but even unconscious Mal had driven a wedge between them.
"Kai and Amy are having a baby," she told him, smiling weakly, "and they've asked me to be the godmother! I really wish you could have been at the wedding, Mal. It was really nice. Though I still wish Kai hadn't insisted on saying his vows in Klingon… " At that her voice trailed off and she suddenly dropped Mal's hand and went to the window. She ran her hands through her hair in frustration and looked down at her feet, wringing her hands nervously.
"You're never going to wake up, are you?" she asked quietly, casting her eyes over at Mal, who was dwarfed by the towering machinery, his face appearing pale against the crisp, white hospital pillow. Only the steady beeping of the heart monitor replied.
Mal, Natara and Kosito Shiguro, their latest serial killer, were standing on the roof of the precinct, a bitter wind and heavy rain whipping at their faces.
"Kosito," said Natara, taking a tentative step towards him and fighting to keep her voice level, "it's not too late. We can end this without any more needless death. We can even bring your daughter to see you." She knew bringing up his daughter was a risky move, but what choice did she have? Of course it was risky, in their line of work everything was risky, so despite realising that it was a gamble, Natara would never in a million years have predicted what happened next. It only lasted a few seconds, but even ten years on she played it over in her head every night. Every single night.
"NO!" screamed Shiguro, waving his medieval crossbow menacingly, tears welling up in his black eyes. "Don't lie! Don't you DARE lie to me. No one can make that happen. No one can bring Nishita back to me!" His hand darted towards the trigger, his eyes growing wild and frenzied. Frozen to the spot, Natara's life flashed before her eyes. But so did Mal. Seeing what was about to happen, he leapt forward, headbutting Shiguro in the stomach and sending them both flying off the roof, the crossbow clattering harmlessly to the floor at Natara's feet.
"MAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!" Natara screamed, hurling herself to the floor and peering over the edge, terrified of what she might see. And nothing would ever wipe that image from her memory. Side by side, Mal and Shiguro lay motionless on the pavement, their red blood being washed into the gutter by the unrelenting rain. Shiguro was clearly dead, his brain spilling out into his head, which had cracked like an eggshell on impact. But Mal…. He had landed on Shiguro. The impact had not been as great… Frantically throwing herself down the fire escape, she arrived at Mal's side within seconds, trying desperately to stem the blood flowing out of the gash on the back of his head.
Within seconds paramedics and officers swarmed out of the precinct, descending on Mal and Natara and immediately whisking Mal away into an ambulance. Trembling, Natara collapsed in the street, watching the rain wash Mal's blood from her shaking hands.
Once the crowds had cleared away, Natara felt a hand on her shoulder. "Nat," whispered Ken, gently, " we're all going to the hospital, if you want to come with. He'll want you there when he wakes up."