Chapter Twenty Five: Chemical Reactions
Because Wasabi's van wasn't large enough to transport eight people, and a robot, they opted to leave it where it was. Instead, everyone piled into the TARDIS.
Wasabi nearly freaked out when he stepped inside, quickly stepping back out. It took both GoGo and Fred to pull him back in.
Honey Lemon's eyes went wide as she set foot inside the tiny blue box, but she went with it, mostly because Hiro, GoGo, and Baymax did. Fred just thought it was cool.
Looking rather like a mad scientist, the Doctor ran to the console, now repaired, and began throwing switches. "Let's how she doesn't have a sense of humor today," he announced as he set the appropriate coordinates and activated the drive.
Wasabi screamed like a girl, clinging to one of the support beams for dear life as the typical grinding noise filled the air, the floor shaking just a bit as the time machine dematerialized from the manor, then settled neatly inside of Hiro's garage.
"Oh stop being such a baby," GoGo complained as she walked over to the freaking out student.
Rose couldn't help but smile at the reaction. She'd been unnerved her first time in the TARDIS, and she knew many others had been as well. It was almost a rite of passage when traveling with the Doctor.
Jack tentatively opened the door and looked around. The garage, as per usual, was empty, the door closed. "Looks clear," he announced as he pushed the door open all the way. "Everyone out."
After some convincing, Wasabi let go of the support beam and entered the garage, freaking out even more. It got to the point that GoGo simply smacked him to bring back his common sense. While that occurred, the others shuffled out.
"I will need to recharge soon," Baymax announced, reminding Hiro that he'd left the robot's charging station up in the second floor living room, the others following him to the back door, outside the garage.
With a bit of a groan, Hiro headed towards the short flight of stairs leading to the door, then paused as he looked up at the sky. "Wait a minute. Back at the Manor, didn't you say it was eight?" He glanced at Fred.
Fred looked up from staring back at the TARDIS through the open garage door. "Yeah? Why?"
Hiro glanced back at the sky. "I think we've gone back an hour or two. The sun hasn't even set yet," he admitted as he pointed upwards.
Looking a bit proud of himself, the Doctor sauntered over, hands in his pockets. "Well, I did try to get you back a bit early. Wouldn't do to have you in trouble, now would it?"
Rose snorted. "Did you do that on purpose, or did the TARDIS do it?" She had her answer when he gave an almost flustered look, giving her good reason to laugh. "That's what I thought."
Hiro shook his head and started up the stairs, clenching his teeth as his sore muscles protested the activity. "Ow," he uttered under his breath.
Hearing the cry of distress, Baymax shuffled over. "What seems to be the trouble?" he asked.
The boy paused, one hand on the door frame. "My leg's just a bit sore from the bruise," he admitted, remembering what Tadashi had said in his dream. "Probably just need to work out the muscle a bit." With that, he reached over to unlock the door.
"I suggest taking something to reduce the pain," Baymax said.
Absently patting the robot on the arm, Hiro stepped through the doorway. "I'll do that, buddy. Be right back."
Sounds from the café came from his left as he started up the stairs, praying his aunt was busy with customers. The upper level seemed silent so he continued on up, holding to the rail for support.
Jack shook his head. "If he's that sore, there's no way he's going to be able to carry that charging station down on his own," he reasoned, despite remembering that the boy had done so a day or so earlier. "I'm going to help him."
GoGo decided to head back into the garage. "We should probably scan those documents in before he gets back," she reasoned. "Honey, you remembered that liquid metal stuff, right?"
Hearing her name, Honey joined her friend, nodding in answer to the question as she patted her pocket. "Right here."
Wasabi decided to follow. "Might as well pull out our gear and get going on that too," he said. They'd somehow managed to stuff the pieces inside the TARDIS while he was whimpering like a lost puppy.
"Good idea," the Time Lord said, pausing to look back up the stairs before following them, along with Rose. He wasn't sure leaving Hiro and Jack alone was such a good idea, but they did have things to do.
"It's just over here," Hiro called out as Jack followed him into the living room. He'd kind of figured the space captain was bent on helping him, especially after his comment back at the manor.
Jack moved into the living room, which looked much the same as it had the first time. "Looks like we might be in the clear," he commented back as he looked over his shoulder. It was kind of fun pretending to be stealthy, even when it wasn't really necessary.
Hiro unplugged the charging station, pushing it away from the wall with one foot. "I think I'm going to take Baymax's advice and take something," he admitted when Jack looked up at his slightly flushed face. "Be right back." He headed towards the bathroom, where the medicine cabinet was kept.
At that moment, Jack heard footsteps heading up the stairs. He looked around, his expression a little wary as he tried to decide whom those steps belonged to. He didn't have to wait long as Hiro's aunt came into view. He gave a little wave, smiling with his whole face.
Cass hadn't expected to see anyone in her living room, but when she looked up, she almost fainted. Blinking a few times, she realized she wasn't dreaming. Standing in front of her was that dreamy captain her nephew had introduced her to not too long ago. "Hello," she said, coming to her senses. "What are you doing here?"
Jack moved in, not giving her time to adjust to the situation. "While I would like to say I dropped by because I was enchanted with your beauty," he paused, as he looked deep into her eyes, his hand around her waist, "I'm helping your nephew."
Having the captain in such close proximity made Cass's heart skip a few beats. "My nephew?"
Jack too her hand in his and kissed it. "Yes, your nephew," he emphasized in a gentle voice.
Just as the captain was really warming up, Hiro exited the bathroom, pain pills in hand. "Could you get me some water?" he asked as he entered the larger room, looking up at the odd giggle coming from his aunt. "Jack?"
His aunt looked over a bit guiltily, and quickly moved away from the overly charming space captain. "Hiro. You're home."
Hiro's mouth hung slack as he stared. "Uh, yeah," he managed, trying to pull himself together. "What are you two doing?"
Cass blushed, hiding her hand behind her back. "Have you been at school all day?"
Feeling it best not to lie this time, even though his aunt had totally evaded his question, Hiro shook his head. "Crashed at Fred's place. I was really tired. Now we're working on some stuff down in the garage." He skirted around Jack to get into the kitchen.
Cass followed his progress with her eyes, brows furrowing as he reached up to get a cup from the cupboard. "Hiro, what did you do to yourself?"
Hiro froze mid reach, realizing his pants had ridden up enough to show the edges of the spreading bruise on his leg. He quickly grabbed a glass and filled it with water. "Oh. That. Must have gotten it during the earthquake."
His aunt watched as he downed the pills, not looking convinced. "Why didn't you mention it earlier?"
Giving his aunt a quick kiss on the cheek, Hiro moved back towards the stairs. "Didn't want to worry you. Baymax already took a look and he's not worried about it," he hedged. With that, he headed back down the stairs.
Cass stared after him. "Oh. Well, please try to be more careful."
Jack took that moment to head after the boy. "Don't worry," he said, giving her a kiss on the other cheek. "I'll keep an eye on him." He gave a half salute and, grabbing the charging station, headed after the boy.
By the time Hiro returned to the garage, he found Wasabi and GoGo already looking through their gear to see what was salvageable. A small pile had grown for the discards.
The Doctor leaned over the far computer, tapping away at the keyboard. "Got that lot scanned in," he announced as Rose lifted the last sheet of paper from the file.
"You've been busy," Hiro stated as he moved towards Fred and Honey, who were messing with a small chemistry set.
Everyone looked up as he spoke, Jack bringing in Baymax's case behind him. The captain set the red docking station down and plugged it into the nearest outlet. "Here you go," he said, glancing over at the robot.
Baymax shuffled over and stepped into the station. The battery bar showed he had less than half a full battery.
"We wanted to get a jump start on things," Honey said as she measured out some liquid chemicals for her apparatus.
Smiling, Hiro went to retrieve his swivel chair, sitting down in front of the holographic computer. Cracking his knuckles, he pulled up the designs for his friends' gear. "Let's see what we can do to improve things, shall we?"
The 3D printer hummed. The Bunsen burner hissed. The welding tools sprayed liquid light as the team of intrepid heroes prepared their new gear.
The Doctor helped Hiro and Honey with some complex mathematical equations as both tried to figure out how to apply the information they'd received in a meaningful way. Jack helped Wasabi and GoGo at the welding table as they joined pieces together and smoothed off jagged edges.
Rose and Fred worked on repainting the armor once the new metal layer had set. After all, it wouldn't do to change the iconic colors of their suits.
Hiro called out instructions as he continued to work on finding a weakness in the plans he did have to the exoskeletons. He hadn't felt this alive and excited since they'd first built their original gear.
Slowly, components came together. Baymax kept watch in case someone should need medical attention, but otherwise stayed out of the way. It was easier that way.
Every now and then, the group met up near the back computer to plan some strategy, or to look over something the Doctor or Hiro had discovered about their foe. And, occasionally, one of them went out to find either a snack or something more substantial.
As the ten o'clock hour rolled around, most of them wiped away sweat and exhaustion. "Whew," Wasabi said as he finished some details on his gear. "That was intense." He removed his headgear, impressed with the addition of several channels on their radios. Hiro had obviously given a lot of thought to the upgrades.
"Maybe we should call it a night," GoGo said as she inspected her new skates. They didn't seem to weigh any more than the old ones, though they felt much more durable. It could have been a trick of the mind, though, with the new coating of durable metal.
Hiro, looking wide-eyed and bushy-tailed, gave his friends and incredulous look. "Already? I've just about got this figured out!" At the incredulous looks of his team, he backed down. "Okay, okay," he amended. "We can pick back up in the morning, but I'm going to keep working."
Honey glanced at Baymax, who blinked back. "I will make sure he does not work too hard," he assured her.
"Guess we'd all better head home then," Fred said, a bit disappointed.
Rose and the Doctor exchanged looks. "Well, I don't know that that's necessary. I mean, if the TARDIS is willing to cooperate, we should have several guest rooms inside, if anyone's game." He looked around like a kid at Christmas, a hint of mad scientist in his eyes.
Wasabi eyed the blue box. "Sleep? In that thing? No thank you. I'd rather sleep on the couch." He indicated the old couch at the back with a wave of his hand.
"Suits me," GoGo said as she put her gear down.
Fred grinned from ear to ear. "Think we could go exploring?"
"Not tonight," Jack said, stifling a yawn. "You might get lost like I did that one time."
The Doctor and Rose rolled their eyes in unison. "Yes, let's not do that again," the Time Lord said.
They kept bantering as all but Hiro, Baymax, and Wasabi disappeared into the blue box. The noise only stopped with the closing of the door.
"Finally," Hiro breathed. "Peace at last." He moved back to the holographic computer, pulling up a 3D model of the exoskeletons.
Wasabi headed towards the couch. "Wake me if I start to snore," he requested, getting a nod for answer. He slumped onto the worn cushions. "That's more like it," he sighed before dozing off.
Now more than fully charged, Baymax moved to observe Hiro's work. "May I be of some assistance?" he inquired.
Hiro spun the image he was working on. "There has to be more than just buttons and gears controlling those things," he stated. "I'm willing to bet they're using neural transmitters to control them." He jabbed at the holographic headgear. "If I could just figure out the frequency, I might be able to cancel it out."
Baymax contemplated the holographic projection. "If you could access their interiors, you could use Captain Harkneness's serum to incapacitate the pilots," he suggested.
Contemplating the idea, Hiro began to get excited. "Yes! It would take out the pilots without hurting them, leaving the skeletons intact! You're a genius!" he gave the giant marshmallow a hug, but pulled back as a thought struck him. "There's only one problem, how to get the serum through the metal skin."