So, uh, it's been awhile. Sorry, a mixture of school and writer's block is to blame and I hope people are still interested in this story. After all, I'm only getting started. Fair warning ahead of time, violence is ahead. Tread carefully. All mistakes are mine.

10:

Hiro fidgeted in the shadows, back tense and taut like an arrow as he focused a steady gaze on the large building located in the middle of the city. It wasn't all that impressive, painted a plain beige color with little windows. It was also the tallest building in the whole city, almost as tall as the Wall.

Beside him, something moved and he glanced over at the sleek red and blue armor fitting tightly over Baymax's otherwise plush frame. It made him appear taller and more intimidating, which was good. They might need it.

"You ready buddy?" Hiro asked, turning to face his robotic friend directly as the beginning stages of unease settled in his stomach.

It hadn't been easy, he recalled, as the first suit had been a total fail forcing Hiro to immediately scrap it and it had been the first time he was truly thankful of Fred's money. The armor plates he installed weren't cheap and he remembered the headache as he tried piecing the minuscule parts together.

He was happy with the final product, at least, and after Baymax the others seemed like a breeze though none of them got much practice with their new gear. By the time he finished, though a whole day had passed and there was no telling what they had done to Tadashi by then.

"I have some concerns," Baymax admitted as he went to stand directly beside him, eyes focused on the building.

"I know," Hiro agreed because there wasn't really a use of lying to him since he was capable of body scans, "but we can't waste any more time. There's no telling what they'll do to Tadashi."

After all, there were worst things than death.

Hiro was going to ensure that none of those things happened to his brother, not while he was still capable of stopping them.

"I have located Tadashi," Baymax announced then, twisting his head so he could look down at Hiro.

Hiro's fingers tightened around the purple helmet he was clutching in a white knuckled grasp before he forced himself to relax as he nodded, "Okay. Inform the others."

He yanked the object over his mass of black hair, fitting it snugly before he climbed on top of Baymax's back. He clicked himself in place, realizing it was the first time they tested flying and that this could end so badly.

"Okay," he breathed once he was as settled as he was going to get, hunching over as he demanded, "Wings."

Large red wings sprouted from the armor before there was a whirring sound and they were hovering in the air. Hiro calmed down when nothing went too drastically wrong.

"You ready buddy?" he asked as he bent over, keeping himself steady as he willed the sick feeling in his stomach to disappear, "Forward."

Baymax moved forward in a quick motion, nearly knocking Hiro off his back, then the thrusters died and they ended up plummeting towards the ground at a speed too fast to be safe. He screamed or made whatever sound was equivalent to that as he dug his nails in the back of Baymax's armor in panic.

He was going to die, and the plan was going to fail before it ever even got started.

Something inside of him seemed to cry out then, a rush of wind blowing around them and slowed their progress but it still hadn't been enough. They were still falling and they were going to die. Tadashi was going to die.

"Baymax!" Hiro cried desperately and the thrusters sputtered once, twice before reigniting and the robot leveled himself out.

Hiro allowed his eyes to flutter back open as he continued clinging to the robot's red back like a terrified tick; the wind swirled madly around them, whipping at his clothes as his gloved fingers gripped the back of Baymax's armor tightly.

"You alright buddy?" Hiro asked just for the sake of checking to see if his voice still worked as he forced himself to relax fractionally.

"I am fine," Baymax reassured as he soared up to the top of the building, "Though my sensors have lost Tadashi."

"Find him, Baymax. He's here somewhere," Hiro swallowed as he narrowed his gaze at the deceitfully innocently looking building, "He has to be."

Baymax halted then, hovering in the air as he indicated, "I have relocated him."

"Okay," Hiro nodded as he continued to cling tightly, feeling shaky with slight panic and adrenaline as he bent so that the visor protecting his forehead brushed against Baymax's red armor, "Continue with the plan. Fist."

Baymax stuck out his arm as another whirring sound was faintly heard underneath the roaring winds and Hiro subconsciously tightened his grip. Baymax's hand deployed, spinning along the air and crashed through the plain wall. It cracked and after several more strikes it created a good sized hole.

Hiro urged Baymax with his body to fly towards the hole, feeling slight relief when they finally reached the inside and he slipped down from the robot's back. His legs wobbled underneath him, making him dizzy with amazement as a quick look around revealed they were in one of the rooms they had been keeping Hiro in his not-dream.

"Come on, Baymax," Hiro urged in a soft voice as he sprinted across the floor on silent feet, yanking on what served as the door to no avail.

"Stand back," Baymax commanded and Hiro allowed his friend to slip past, practically jerking the door from its hinges causing Hiro to wince at the sound though he grinned anyways.

"Alright Baymax, let's go," he hissed, stepping around his friend and sprinting down the hall.

Unlike the other night, there was no pull in the direction of his brother but it just seemed too natural to know which way to go. They turned another corner and came short when several guards stood to stare at them.

Hiro rose his arm, to bend or something, and was startled when nothing happened. He blinked, trying again and came up empty again.

"Intruders!" one of the guards shouted and Hiro knew his plan kind of depended on him being able to bend.

"Baymax!" he cried and Baymax rose his arm, giving Hiro just enough time to duck down hands over his head before his fist deployed and smacked several guards down.

Hiro rose back to his feet wide eyed as he stared down at the unconscious men, feeling his heart hammer inside his chest as he spun around to face Baymax, who already seemed ahead of him.

"Scanning," he informed before locking eyes with Hiro and explained, "The material of the walls and floors seem to block the ability to bend."

Which explained why Tadashi hadn't tried escaping yet.

"What about the others?" Hiro demanded in slight panic as he mentally went back over all his calculations, changing them slightly to try and come up with a new plan.

"They should be fine," Baymax informed, "They're not like you or your brother."

"Okay," Hiro nodded as he felt something in his chest loosen slightly as he undid one of his gauntlets and commanded as he removed the robot's chest plate, "Baymax, contact the others."

Baymax's white stomach lit up a bright blue, four small squares of the other's faces popping up and Hiro waited until they at least answered.

"Hiro?" Honey Lemon asked first, sounding confused.

Hiro didn't give her a chance to question him further, nor give the others any time to interrupt and demand answers, as he rushed, "Change of plans, guys. I can't bend."

"What?" GoGo demanded shrilly, causing Hiro to wince slightly.

"It's some material in the walls and floor," Hiro explained quickly as he ran several more calculations in his brain.

"That means that you're practically defenseless," Honey Lemon cut in with something akin to fear mixed with her voice and Hiro felt his chest swell when he realized she was concerned about him; that they all were.

"I'll be fine," he reassured quickly, "but that means I can't come to you."

"Wait. What?" Wasabi demanded this time and Hiro knew that his friends were smart and already piecing everything together now, "No, Hiro, you need to stick with the plan."

"No," Hiro denied with a shake of his head, "Just focus on your part. Find Tadashi and break him out of here. I'm going to have to cause a little distraction to buy you some time."

"Hiro," GoGo growled but he cut her off by hanging up on them, finishing his additional touches on Baymax's armor plates and placing the chest plate back in place.

"Hiro," Baymax said and it sounded like a question.

"Don't worry," Hiro reassured though he knew he had plenty of reason to worry, "I've got a plan."

He started down the hall, mind spinning with a million possibilities- a million ways something can go wrong- and realized that they were probably very screwed. Or, at least, he was. He put careful thought in ensuring the others had some sort of an advantage.

Such as being able to bend when they shouldn't.

"Baymax, can you scan for trouble?" he asked as he padded down the dull colored hallway carefully.

Behind him, Baymax blinked in confusion before he explained, "I cannot scan for trouble for my-"

"No, no, no," Hiro protested, spinning on his heel to gape at the robot in surprise, "I meant for other signs of life. You know, like guards."

"Oh right," Baymax said before shaking his head and explained, "The walls are interfering with my sensors."

Which meant they were blind and defenseless, and Hiro didn't really have much of a backup plan other than 'don't get caught.'

Tadashi was going to kill him when he finds out.

Tadashi was freezing.

Normally his temperature was hot, hotter than normal people's, and the sudden lack of heat made him incredibly uncomfortable. More so than being beaten, stripped, chained to a chair, and threatened by a lunatic with a vendetta. The only thing that made him more uneasy was the fact that the emperor himself was looking for the Avatar- and Tadashi was getting real tired of people who thought it was cute to target his brother.

But he was freezing and he couldn't bend, something that became known to him after Callaghan left the room still intact for if Tadashi had been able to control the fire swirling from within him then the man would be nothing more than a crisp.

The fact that he wasn't meant trouble for the older Hamada.

So he sat there, shivering, as he waited for the door to reopen and either his brother rush in to rescue him or for Callaghan to stroll in like he owned the place (he did, technically) and inform him that the Avatar had been caught and he no longer had any more use for him.

Tadashi almost wished it would be that easy.

It wasn't like he wanted for his brother to be caught, nor did he have any desire to die. He was just so tired of sitting around, useless, as he waited for something to happen around him. It was boring and he didn't play victim very well.

He hadn't even seen any of the guards, strolling in to mock him and make him hurt, and it showed how pathetic he was to wish that they would because he wanted pain. He wanted to suffer because then he knew he could fight and curse them and for the first time since he could remember, he wanted a reason to make them hurt too.

They didn't, though.

They seemed to be avoiding his cell, which was unfortunate because he had plenty of things to say in provoking them into doing something rash and stupid.

Something clanged outside, catching his attention, and voices could be made out from the other side of the door. His stomach dropped when he realized he knew those voices, have for a while now, and that hearing them now meant that he was either crazy or Callaghan had been right: people tend to get stupid when those they love are involved.

"Guys!" he screamed anyways, jerking on his bounds, because he knew this was his chance to escape and then beat his idiot brother though he knew that if the situation had been reversed then he would've done precisely the same thing.

"Do you hear that?" someone- Honey Lemon? - asked and he jerked again, the legs to the chair scraping millimeters across the stone floor as he shouted for them again.

"Yeah," Wasabi agreed that time, deep voice low and cautious and Tadashi could imagine him nod his head as dark eyes glanced around the hallway, "This place seems too pristine to have rats, though."

"No rats then," GoGo said almost too silent for Tadashi to hear and he called out again, thankful when they finally seemed to realize what was happening and the door was forced open as his friends filed in.

"Tadashi, man are we happy to see you," Fred exclaimed, relieved grin crossing his pale features and Tadashi blinked in surprise because they looked different.

For one, they all seemed more worn which was to be expected since he left them in charge of his idiot genius of a brother. Hiro could test a saint's patience with his endless questions and rebellious tendencies. Their differences seemed to extend beyond that, though, in what they were wearing.

They were no longer wearing peasant clothes he had grown accustomed to seeing them in, but instead clothes rich with color as silver bands wrapped around their bodies. Something in Tadashi told him that the silver bands weren't part of the design either, even though it seemed to blind in with the intricate design perfectly.

He blinked before grinning a smug smile he's seen on his brother more times than he could ever count as he asked, "What took you guys so long?"

They seemed to relax at that, invisible breathes they had all been holding releasing as GoGo moved forward to free him. Silver bracelets dangled from thin wrists as she bent over to check his bounds.

"Why didn't you just burn this chair?" she demanded, freeing him and helping him rise to his feet.

He rubbed his sore wrists, eyes seeking out the group as he explained offhandedly, "Something about the building interferes with bending. Where's Hiro?"

It was like he had said the magic words, flipping the switch, and they all ducked their expressions. His stomach soured considerably as he spun back around to face GoGo who, out of all of them was the most likely to give him a straight answer. Even if it wasn't what he wanted to hear.

"GoGo?" he growled that time, eyes narrowed and if the walls didn't seem to sap him from his fire, he might have been smoking slightly; not that he would ever hurt his friends.

"He's around," she explained finally, meeting his gaze with a harsh one of her own as she squared her shoulders and dared him to try and pick a fight with her.

He's not going to lie, the idea was tempting, but he currently had other things on his mind: namely, find his brother so he can kill him himself because rushing to rescue him was rash enough but to separate from his friends seemed almost suicidal.

"We hadn't known at the time that the tower blocks bending," Wasabi explained rationally while GoGo continued to stare him down.

"And once you realized that it does?" Tadashi demanded as he turned to stare at his dark skinned friend with a look very few people don't wilt away from; Wasabi, apparently, was one of those people.

He just met his gaze evenly as he continued as calmly as he could, "Hiro said he has a plan and I trust him. Besides, he has Baymax with him."

That caught Tadashi off guard.

He blinked as he asked, "The robot?"

"Oh yeah," Fred agreed, seeming to bounce on his feet excitedly as he added, "And you should've seen the upgrades he gave him. They're awesome."

That settled it: Tadashi was definitely killing his brother once he sees him again.

Dark eyes focused on the band wrapped around Fred's head as he asked suspiciously, "Did he by any chance 'upgrade' you guys too."

"Oh yes," Fred nodded, oblivious to Tadashi's hard look as he clapped his hands and added shrilly, "They make Freddie so happy."

"Do they work?" Tadashi inquired as he spun back around to GoGo, more shocked than anything else because his brother would've had to throw all that together in less than three days.

"Better than you," GoGo affirmed with a nod before she passed him and added, "Our job was to find and rescue you. We did so now we can stand around and wait for them to find us or we can find your brother and get out of here."

Tadashi didn't even bother arguing with her.

He hurried after her in the hall, his friends following him as they cocooned their bodies so he was safe and protected in the middle; something he was too tired and worried to protest on.

"Hiro?" Wasabi asked, holding out a small black box as he furrowed his eyebrows and awaited an answer, "You better answer."

Silence and then-

"Wasabi?" Tadashi's little brother's voice crackled through static and he sounded confused and slightly concerned as he asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"

"We found your brother," Wasabi explained immediately, dark eyes meeting Tadashi's as he flashed him a pearly white grin, We're headed your way."

"You found Tadashi?" Hiro demanded, voice bright with hope and Tadashi's heart ached by how happy his brother sounded before the words seemed to catch up with the younger brother and he demanded, "Wait. You're coming to me. No. That's a terrible idea."

"Why?" Wasabi asked as he focused back on the black box, GoGo spinning to glare at it herself.

Tadashi realized then that sometime they were all living at the shelter together his friends had grown quite fond of Hiro. That was one of the only reasons they've stuck with him this much, risking their lives to break in an unbreakable fortress to rescue him.

They also must trust him a lot, if they're willing to trust Baymax too.

Tadashi would be sure to get that explained much later when they all have the time.

"Because," Hiro explained exasperatedly and it sounded like he was running, probably trying to find a way to them, "that gives Callaghan more time to find you. No. Stick to the plan. Get Tadashi and get out of there. I'll meet back up with you once I'm done."

"Done with what, exactly?" GoGo demanded this time, crossing arms over her chest as she walked over to glare at the device.

Tadashi was eager to find out the answer to that also.

"Nothing important," Hiro reassured and he seemed to have slowed down at least, "and I promise to explain it all to you guys later. In person. For now, stick to the plan."

"That seems like a terrible idea," Wasabi protested the same time GoGo growled, "If you think we're leaving you here by yourself than you're crazy."

"We don't really have time to argue this," Hiro interrupted and Tadashi wondered why it sounded like he had stopped moving altogether; why would he break in and not try to rescue him?

"Hiro," he spoke up moving so he touched shoulders with GoGo, "What're you planning?"

There was a long pause before Hiro seemed to breathe, "Hey big brother."

"Hiro, I'm serious," Tadashi warned, voice low as he glared at the device in Wasabi's hand, "Whatever you're planning on doing it can wait."

"No offense but how would you know? You've spent the last couple of hours playing prisoner to a deranged lunatic," Hiro replied sarcastically and if Tadashi had been capable then he probably would've smacked the back of his brother's head.

"Hiro," he growled, eyes glistening despite the fact that Hiro was unable to see him.

"Its fine," Hiro reassured quickly, "I know what I'm doing."

"Hiro-" Honey Lemon never got to finish as alarms started blaring overhead.

Tadashi jumped in shock, turning to face GoGo's furious expression as Wasabi continued to clutch at the device in his hand. Something told him that this wasn't part of the plan.

"Hiro, what did you do?" GoGo demanded, voice low and threatening as she seemed to listen to the shrill noise echoing through the halls around them.

"Uh… long story," Hiro explained, "but you guys need to move. Get out of here. I'll be right behind you."

A lie, obviously, and from his friends' expressions Tadashi knew he wasn't the only one who had heard it.

"Hiro, we're coming to you," GoGo informed instead, already moving down the hall and Hiro never even had a chance to protest.

Instead, static seemed to crackle through the other end followed by silence.

Hiro knew he was in trouble the second Wasabi called him to inform him that they've found his brother.

At the time, though, he had been too overcome with relief to remember that his brother had never been the target and the rescue had gone a little too smoothly. Especially considering they haven't ran into anyone else since taking out the guards when they first arrived.

Normally he would've been smart enough to piece it all together. He would've been able to figure out Callaghan's master plan but the fact that his friends had found his brother, alive, seemed to reset his brain back to their default settings.

Then his last words finally clicked, and everything seemed to narrow down on that one specific thing.

"Wait. You're coming for me. No. That's a terrible idea," he protested instantly, Baymax giving him a strange look he promptly ignored.

"Why?" Wasabi demanded and he sounded uncharacteristically impatient, which Hiro chose to ignore because he had much more pressing matters to attend to.

Taking another corner he explained as calmly and rationally as he could while running, "Because that gives Callaghan more time to find you. No. Stick to the plan. Get Tadashi and get out of there. I'll meet back up with you once I'm done."

"Done with what, exactly?" GoGo asked and Hiro winced because he realized he never filled them on the rest of his plan, mostly because he knew they would protest and Tadashi needed to be their number one priority.

"Nothing important," Hiro reassured as he finally came to the door he had been looking for, slowing down to a stop, "and I promise to explain it all to you guys later. In person. For now, stick to the plan."

"That seems like a terrible idea."

"If you think we're leaving you here by yourself than you're crazy."

Hiro suppressed a grimace because he knew what they were still thinking: risk their lives to try and find him. He opened the door and strolled in the dark-lit room, Baymax following close behind.

"We don't really have time to argue this," he protested because, they didn't, and he could concentrate so much better knowing they had taken Tadashi and escaped.

"Hiro," his brother suddenly demanded, his voice enough to cause Hiro's knees to go weak as he willed himself to remain strong, "What're you planning?"

Once he recovered enough to trust his voice, he breathed "Hey big brother."

"Hiro, I'm serious," Tadashi warned, voice lowering the way it does whenever he's worried, "Whatever you're planning on doing it can wait."

"No offense but how would you know? You've spent the last couple of hours playing prisoner to a deranged lunatic," Hiro replied sarcastically, hoping that if he sounded like a confident little brat then he'd be able to convince his brother and get all of his friends to escape.

Yeah right.

"Hiro."

"Its fine," Hiro reassured quickly though his hands shook slightly as he stopped what he was doing, fingers hovering over the keyboard, "I know what I'm doing."

"Hiro-"

His finger slipped and he pressed the wrong thing, causing a loud alarm to echo all around them; loud enough that he leapt several feet in the air, spinning to face Baymax who was standing there watching him. Hiro held up a finger to stop the robot from stating the obvious.

"Hiro, what did you do?" GoGo demanded, voice low and threatening, though Hiro reasoned that she always sounded like that and that in no way was his well-being going to be threatened once he got near her again.

"Uh… long story," he explained instead, trying to figure out a way to shut the alarms off, "but you guys need to move. Get out of here. I'll be right behind you."

"Hiro, we're coming to you," GoGo decided and Hiro could've banged his head in frustration if the situation wasn't so dire.

He opened his mouth to argue when the blue light illuminating Baymax's stomach suddenly went out. He blinked in shock, dark expression moving to where Emperor Callaghan was standing in the doorway. His large figure casted a long shadow across the floor, something sick twisting Hiro's insides as he crept around from the safety of Baymax's girth.

"You're the man who killed my aunt," he accused immediately, his fear turning into hate as he clenched his hands at his sides, "and stole my brother."

"My condolences on the woman," Callaghan offered before he stepped forward, Hiro matching it with a backwards one of his own before the man added, "You're brother, however, that was his mistake."

Hiro flinched as something white hot scorched his chest, making it ache, and he bumped back against Baymax and was reminded that he wasn't alone.

"Baymax," he commanded, voice fierce, "Destroy."

The robot didn't even protest.

It was like a switch had been flipped, something changing from the loveable robot Hiro's grown so fond of to something imposing. Something dangerous. His eyes turned red, which Hiro took wasn't a good sign for the Emperor.

"Enough!" Callaghan demanded but neither Hiro nor Baymax was listening as the robot stepped forward, arm outstretched as he steadied his aim; Hiro did nothing to stop him because this was the man who's hurt everyone- killed his aunt and took Tadashi.

Baymax's armor whirred before his hand disconnected with his body, flying rapidly towards the Emperor, who barely had enough time to dodge. He ducked, rolling on the floor before standing back straight and his eyes were wide as he gazed up at Baymax in shock.

"Call off your robot!" he demanded, eyes seeking out Hiro still glaring from behind Baymax's red frame.

Hiro made no move to intervene.

Baymax's fist clicked back in place as he moved to re-aim back at the Emperor, and some part of Hiro knew that what he was doing was wrong. That in allowing Baymax to kill the Emperor, he was no better himself.

He just didn't care.

All he could think was to hurt Callaghan, make him pay for everything he's ever done, and the thrill of it all sent something vibrating through him. Tadashi would be disappointed if he saw.

"I'm begging you!" Callaghan protested as he managed another dodge, Baymax moving forward to corner him even further in the room, "Call off your robot!"

"Like when you've called off your army when they were hurting innocent people? While they were murdering countless?" Hiro challenged and though some part of him was able to make out why he should back off, he didn't want to.

Baymax rose his arm for his next attack, Callaghan too close to be able to dodge again.

Hiro watched, numb, as his brain told him that the next strike was going to kill him.

Baymax was going to kill someone.

"Hiro!"

He blinked, coming to some sort of his senses as he called, "Baymax! Stop!"

Baymax did, his eyes turning back to black as he seemed to blink back in his surroundings about the same time Tadashi and the others rounded inside the door. Hiro blinked again, taking in the sight of his brother whole and mostly unharmed- a mirror of the one he saw in that weird dream several years ago.

He was still shirtless, revealing pale skin. Black tufts of hair poked every which way on his head and though he's yet to master Hiro's brand of bedhead it definitely looked odd on him. Dark eyes were wide, though, and aware as he took in the scene before him.

"Hiro," he repeated, his gaze finally locking on him and Hiro just remained standing, gapping at his brother as what he was about to do sank in.

The thing that frightened him, though was how he didn't necessarily feel bad about it. There was no guilt and the only reason there was even a tint of horror was because Tadashi would've known what he had done.

Hiro knew, given the chance, that he wouldn't do it again. Now that reason was settling back inside him he realized that he never wanted to be like Callaghan- like a monster.

"How touching," Callaghan spoke suddenly, breaking the silence and drawing Hiro's wild gaze to where he was leaning against the wall.

Baymax remained several feet away, arm still outstretched, but he no longer appeared threatening. If anything, the robot looked confused.

Hiro snarled, remembering his earlier anger, as he glared and growled, "You murdered my aunt," because his brain seemed to keep running on repeat over that.

Aunt Cass had been killed.

This man in front of him was the one responsible for that.

"To be fair," Callaghan spoke slowly, deliberately, as he focused his hard gaze at Hiro and explained, "I hadn't thought she would've died in that fire. Who stays inside while the building burns around you, anyways?"

"I had given her sleeping supplements in her tea," Tadashi explained, surprising Hiro as he realized his brother had unintentionally been one of the factors of their aunt's demise.

Not as much as Hiro, though, who knew that if he hadn't been out bender-fighting then they would've been able to drag her out in time. The fact that neither one of them had been home was probably the only reason she had died.

That made it Hiro's fault.

Then again, he had already known that.

"And where were you in all of this, I wonder?" Callaghan demanded, drawing Hiro back to the present as he realized the man's dark expression was focused back on him.

Across the room, Tadashi was tense- like he was readying himself for a battle. Around him, his friends looked equal parts grim and determined and it was then that Hiro realized he might've messed up. After all, this confrontation wasn't supposed to happen at all.

Now someone was probably going to get hurt; that someone most likely Emperor Callaghan, though Hiro suspected that he wasn't the type of man to go down alone. If he was getting hurt, so was one- or all- of them.

They needed a plan.

"I was out," Hiro admitted, locking eyes with Callaghan as he prayed that stalling would be enough for one of the others to think of a way out, "breaking the law."

To his surprise, Callaghan just snorted. Almost like he had already know, already figured everything out, and everything that's happened afterwards has played exactly the way he wanted it to.

"I'm sure," Callaghan replied, inching forward while casting wary glances towards the still motionless Baymax, "and because of that everyone you've ever loved has suffered. Everyone Hiro Hamada."

Hiro's heart froze as he forgot how to breathe.

Callaghan was right. His parents were dead because of him; Cass was killed because of him; Tadashi had been captured because of him. It was all his fault. It had always been his fault.

"You're wrong," Tadashi protested and Hiro turned a wild expression towards him, eyes wide as he realized Tadashi's face had hardened into something fierce and protective.

Hiro didn't deserve that, and he never really had.

"No I'm not," Callaghan replied, eyes never leaving Hiro as he seemed to scrutinize every minute detail, "Hiro knows that. Just like he knows exactly how this is going to play out."

Something sharp pierced him through his center, making him dizzy as he swung his gaze towards the others.

"It's a trap!" he called perhaps a split second too late.

Guards flocked from nowhere, surrounding Tadashi and the others and somewhere in the back of Hiro's head he wondered how it could've all gone so bad so quick. Then he remembered that he was probably the target and knew it was his fault.

"Wait!" he called but no one's ever made it a habit to listen to him.

A guard swung towards Honey Lemon's skull, the blond girl facing the other direction and it was only GoGo's quick reflexes that saved her life.

A rock flung through the air, smacking one of the guard's fingers. He cried out in pain, dropping the prod as he spun towards the dark haired girl- hand still outstretched, eyes narrowed in a furious glare.

"That's impossible," the guard protested and Hiro felt something lighten in his chest as he realized they still had one advantage.

Callaghan and his guards weren't expecting for any of them to be able to bend.

He risked a glance towards the Emperor, finding satisfaction in Callaghan's stunned expression as GoGo allowed several more of the hard round objects to float around her.

"How" Callaghan started to ask before his gaze locked onto Hiro's and he spat, "You."

Hiro beamed him a bright grin before commanding, "Baymax, fist!"

Callaghan actually flinched when Baymax raised his fist again before it flew past the old man's head and knocking a crater sized hole in the wall.

The Emperor paled further though he now looked a lot closer to angry than scared, which was fine with Hiro. As far as he was concerned, they were all out of there.

"Baymax, the others!" Hiro commanded, turning his head to re-seek out Callaghan only for something hard and solid to smack across his head.

He tumbled, hitting the ground on his side as he blinked back the shock. Above him, Callaghan was rearing back to strike him again and Hiro reacted more on instinct than anything else.

He lashed out with his foot, heel of his shoe catching the man's chest on his way down, and it was enough to send Callaghan sprawling backwards. The metal rod he had used to club the side of Hiro's face clattered uselessly to the ground as the youth scrambled back up to his feet.

"Baymax!" he called, spinning back around and was relieved to find the robot had managed to herd his brother and the other's towards the hole, though the guards were already creeping towards them.

They were running out of time.

Tadashi must have realized that he wasn't over there with them because his head suddenly swiveled over towards him, widening in horror as he exclaimed, "Hiro!"

Hiro spun around in time to see Callaghan strike him again.

He fell back to the ground, vision swirling as something wet tickled the side of his face. Tadashi was screaming though the ringing in his ears made it close to impossible to make out what he was trying to say.

With great effort, Hiro managed to knock Callaghan away as he spun to face his robot and others.

Baymax looked as concerned as a robot could be, while the others were pale ad clearly horrified. If they weren't currently battling the several guards trying to get to them then they probably would've attacked Callaghan.

"Baymax!" Hiro called, putting as much command as he could in the words, "Get them out of here!"

"Hiro, I cannot leave you," the robot protested and Hiro probably would've been flattered if his head didn't ache so much while panic literally tried to envelop his entire being.

"Baymax! Now!" he screamed the same time Callaghan struck him across his skull, hard.

Stars filled his vision as he concentrated on not passing out. Several feet in front of him, Baymax all but forced the others to cling onto him as he herded them back out through the hole.

He was struck again and blackness swallowed him whole.

Callaghan tossed aside what he had used to literally beat the younger Hamada into submission. He sneered down at the limp body, a new type of hatred burning through him as he realized how much trouble the youth had caused him.

For one, he created a giant hole through his walls and he had managed to let the others escape- not that that should matter. After all, he had only wanted the Avatar.

That is, until the girl had bended.

They all had bended, which should've been impossible.

"Sir, what do you want us to do?" one of the guards asked, coming over to stand next to Hiro's limp form without a second glance at the youth.

Callaghan took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, as he commanded in a tone made of ice, "Take him to the cell with the traitor."

SPECIAL NOTES:

- Many of you were asking on why Tadashi didn't just escape since he's obviously so powerful and I hope this chapter explains most of it. I'm reluctant to say too much but the gist is that the building is made of a special material that blocks out all bending- meaning that any bender trapped inside cannot bend. Its also the reason they've been able to keep as many benders as they have subdued.

- Callaghan's mental condition is about to come to light, as well as the reason he's fallen so far so make sure to stay tuned.