Chapter XIV – Ka Hope Loa Ho'oku'i – [ The Final Crash ]

A/N; This chapter is a bit shorter than usual, but it is filled with action so I hope you won't be disappointed! Anyway, I wanted to thank you for your support. It means the world, honestly. You guys are the best!

Also, this is the last chapter I am writing without a beta reader, so mistakes might occur. Apologies for that!

Now enjoy this chapter, and come back in seven days for the next! ;)

Everything happened all of a sudden. In one moment, Steve had all of the pieces of his life back in his hands – ready to glue them together. In the next moment – they fell from his hands, and collided with the ground into millions of pieces.

The Kevlar was on; and Steve grabbed his rifle, storming out of his office.

"Boss!" yelled Kono, from behind the keyboard. Steve's glance immediately got glued to her, and he stopped. His face was numb, which wasn't unusual – it was a surprise that Steve managed to stay sane after everything that had happened in his life. Walking a little bit towards her, Steve clenched his teeth and didn't say a word. "Danny and Chin just left, Joe's phone was functioning a minute ago so I managed to get a location," she spoke distantly. Then, noticing that he was about to break down, Kono walked up to him. Neither did she say a word; she just looked into his eyes.

"I can't thank you enough, Kono," murmured Steve.

"For what?" she asked genuinely confused.

"Everything," he whispered. Their eyes met and Steve felt the old flame blaze inside him; all the flashbacks suddenly came into his mind. None of this was supposed to be happening; he was supposed to have his happy ending. But, it seemed that the pain would never come to an end, and every day was a new struggle. Maybe he wasn't enough of a hero when he should have been, and this was the price to pay. Ridiculous conclusions suddenly overcame him, and Steve just weakly smiled at Kono.

"You'll thank me later, we've got some asses to kick," said Kono, forcing a cheerful tone. The truth was; she was scared. The fact that she had a Kevlar on and a gun in her hands didn't scare her. Not even the possibility of dying, which always came with a gun. What scared her was losing Steve, and this time it was horrific. She didn't want him to go and save the day. It was always expected from him to be the hero; but it was never about him. It was only important that he did his job, not what he really felt. Of course, his Ohana cared and it mattered. The thing was – even though they cared, certain things just wouldn't allow Lt. Commander McGarrett to have a cup of coffee and stay in bed all day.

They hurried out of the office; not even trying to be quick – they just were. Steve was quick because he kept thinking of Joe and Catherine, and how much trouble they were in. And Kono because she was following Steve; keeping the pace up with him. They ran outside; and the rain was pouring from the sky, as the clouds were covering it up – foreshadowing a dire storm.

Chin Ho Kelly was ready. It didn't matter what for – he was just ready. The rifle, tightly clenched in his hands, was ready to fire; and his body was ready to fall for his friends. No questions – just actions. Chin was ready to die for his Ohana; and the last thought before he glanced at McGarrett was what an honour it would be to die by his side.

"Chin, Danny, Officer Gutches – I want you to go in and find Joe and Catherine. Just get them out of there, alive," said Steve whilst charging his gun. Wade Gutches nodded, and quickly glanced at the members of his SEAL team, and they stood by Danny's and Chin's side.

The massive door suddenly burst open, though it didn't make too much noise. Danny entered first, and smacked a bulky man's face, so he tripped over. Pulling him up, Danny pushed him against the wall and aimed his gun at the man's head.

"Nobody messes with McGarrett," gnarled Danny as his hand was clenching the man's neck tightly, and fired a bullet into his leg. The man shrieked, and Danny's fist flew right into his face – knocking him down. The man's lip started bleeding, and he fell on the ground in silence.

Meanwhile, Chin got engaged in a fight with two men. Huskily groaning, one of the men tried to knock Chin's gun out of his hand. As he moved his hand, while Chin was stuck in a tight grip with the other man, he made a grimace and leisurely pulled the gun out of Chin's hand. Chin was struggling, but managed to tumble on the ground, along with his rival. Then, the shiny surface of the gun suddenly flashed before his eyes, as the other man aimed it at him. The gun fired, and a loud, ear-ripping noise, coming from Danny's mouth reigned the room.

Their steps were heavy on the wooden floor, as they stood against the wall. Steve glanced at Kono as he crouched. His eyes were glowing, and Kono smiled at him. It was a smile that was worth dying for. Even though nothing had gone wrong yet, Steve had a lump in his throat. He was dreading this moment – the moment he realised he had so much to lose. That smile – he didn't want to lose.

"You okay?" asked Kono silently, crouching behind him. Steve looked at her, making a nonchalant grimace, and shook his head.

"Yeah. Nothing we haven't done before, huh?" he said. It was a lie, though, he had never felt this way. The tiredness in his bones was dragging him down, and the dread he felt was almost unbearable.

Kono nodded, and whispered, so close to him. "Yeah."

Steve felt shivers down his spine, and he stood up. Then, walking into the room, Steve saw Maui Iona standing by the window. His face was turned against them, but the glass could reflect his deformed face, and the evilness in his eyes. He burnt with the desire to destroy; wipe out any and every sign of happiness in Steve's life.

"I hope you said all your goodbyes," he said darkly and turned around, aiming his gun at Steve. Then, in just a millisecond, it happened. Steve's hand reflexively rose, and as Maui's gun fired, Kono pushed Steve aside. Falling onto the floor, Steve heard a loud gasp, and his finger instinctively pulled the trigger. Maui Iona fell down, and the glow in his eyes disappeared. All that was left was the crooked half smile, and tears in his eyes. After all, he was just a man who had lost his son, and his own self somewhere along the way.

Steve threw his gun away, and flashed at Kono. Red, bright blood was slowly drenching Kono's shirt, and it dripped on the wooden floor. Kono's eyes closed, and a smile was stuck on her lips.

Danny's eyes met Chin's. Chin managed to push the bulky man off him, as the other one fell on the ground. Danny sighed deeply, and pulled Chin up.

"Thanks, brah. You saved my life," said Chin and gave him a little smile. Danny's lips stretched, and he looked at Chin's Kevlar.

"I can't take all the credit, though," replied Danny tiredly.

Followed by Danny, Chin made his way into the hallway. Next to them was a door, leading to the basement, Chin presumed. They pushed the door open, and stumbled into a cramped little hallway, leading downstairs. They took a few steps down, and walked into a room filled with boxes. Chin carefully knocked one of the boxes down, and saw the faces of Joe White and Catherine. They were sat on the ground, their hands tied together, and tape was covering their mouths.

"Danny, over here!" yelled Chin whilst Danny was examining the boxes. He quickly ran over, and they untied Joe and Catherine.

"Thank you, sonny," said Joe as Danny helped him to get up. "Is Steve all right?"

"Uh – we don't know. He told us to find you and... we, uh, don't really know where he is. The house is huge, he's probably somewhere upstairs or something..." Danny spoke, and then a loud noise came from upstairs. They exchanged looks, and Catherine rushed towards the stairs, but Danny grabbed her hand.

"Hey! You can't just go."

"Steve's in trouble!" she protested, and then Chin gave her a gun.

"Probably, but you are not leaving this room without a gun, at least. Ugh, I can't wait to hear Steve when he finds out we let you help us," groaned Danny as they followed the sound where the noise came from.

It was all over. SEAL Team Six cleared the house, and soon the HPD arrived. Danny was nervous, while waiting outside. He knew that both Steve and Kono were still inside, but he had no idea what was going on. He bit his lip, and made a grimace.

"Danny?" called out Catherine, and she stood beside him.

"Yeah," he drawled, crossing his arms on his chest. Even though he knew the whole story, from both sides, he was still kind of upset with Catherine for leaving Steve. As if he needed protection, Danny thought.

"I know you're still mad," she started.

"I'm not mad, Catherine," he immediately cut her off, and sighed heavily. "I'm really not the one who should be mad. I know you were trying to protect him, but you hurt him more this way. He's a SEAL, damn it, he didn't need your protection. You left him in the worst possible way, and it crushed him. He didn't eat or sleep for days when you left, and no – you can't say you're sorry. You don't get to destroy him and just come back. You don't get to do that because, right now, it's his turn to be happy. It's Steve's turn to be okay. So, Catherine, I'm not mad, I'm just really hurt. Because if he's hurt, I'm hurt. That's what Ohana means. It doesn't mean leaving anyone behind," he said and looked at her. Catherine had a crooked smile on her face, and she looked away.

"I didn't leave him behind. I just... left everything behind because I wanted him to be okay. I guess he got to be okay, in the end, right? It might have not ended the way I wanted it to end but, Danny, I saw the way he looks at her," she briefly said, and glanced at Danny one last time. She then slowly walked away, and left Danny alone with his thoughts.

It was true. Steve eventually got to be okay – until tonight.

It took some time before the HPD climbed upstairs and barged into the room. Kono was in Steve's arms, and he was sobbing loudly. Caressing her cheek with his bloody hand, Steve whispered to her sadly. Promising her the moon and the stars, he watched her slowly close her eyes. The whole world stopped for a moment when Steve couldn't feel her heartbeat. But – there it was. It was slow, but it was there. He had no power in his arms, or legs, or body – he was sat against the wall with Kono dying on his arms. The blood drenched their clothes, but Steve paid very little attention to it. When he noticed that Kono seemed a bit sleepy, he started telling her how much he had missed her. He even got a little smile from her, and tears rolled down her cheeks. Kono kept smiling numbly and then, just as he promised they'll be okay, her eyes closed.

Steve shouted from the bottom of his lungs, as the paramedics came.

"Don't die on me, Kono, I love you!" he shouted, and for a moment, it seemed that she had opened her eyes. "Please don't go, I am so in love with you," he whispered.

Once again, Steve's world fell apart.

to be continued...