They could feel and hear the building crying out in pain as they ran down the stairs jumping down four to five steps at a time.
"Let's go…" He yelled between heavy breaths, Mikoto close behind as they moved dodging the debris from above them as it bounced against the walls and floors as plummented towards the ground.
"Come on…" He gritted his teeth, "Mikoto…"
"Yeah…" She yelled between leaps as they dodge the falling debris, "call Shari…"
He looked up at the large hole in the stairwell; he raised his arm fingers wide. She could see the pulse run down his shoulders to his wrist exploding from his fingertips sending a widespread blast destroying large chunks as they fell.
"Shirai…" He heard Mikoto yelled into the phone.
"30th floor…" Ronan yelled, "Two more…"
"Can she…" He continued to yell then smiled as her voice echoed in the stairwell, he kept moving looking upward passing Shari, "grab her…" He pointed to Mikoto as he cleared the next level steps.
"What…" Mikoto shouted her eyes wide surprised by his actions as Shari moved quickly embracing her, "hold on… Sissy…"
"What…" Her voice echoed in the stairwell as they disappeared.
The ground trembled as the building screamed as people gathered across the street to watch as it sent out its death rattles. Nobody noticing the two girls that teleported next to Ruiko a safe distance away
"Shirai…" Mikoto yelled narrowing her eyes in anger, "sissy… He said… You would need help…"
"When…" She growled as bluish white sparks danced between her strands of hair.
"Last night…" She looked to the ground, "he said… This could happen… That's why… He told me last night in private…" She sighed shaking her head, "he is too heavy for me so…" She looked at Ruiko her eyes glued to the building as anti-skill and judgment arrived, the building slowly falling apart its own weight killing it. They watched as they heard another explosion inside the building. The building falling on itself pushing the air and dirt outward into the street as a collapse in a roar of sound.
She stood still her hand over her mouth with tears tracing a path down her cheeks. They could see her shoulder shuttering as the building surrender to gravity falling into a cloud of dust pushing it outward covering everybody. They could hear people coughing and choking as the area around them glowed in a dusty red aura as the sun shine through patches of clear skies in the gray clouds.
Not a sound could be heard as everyone stared at the building only the scattered coughs of passerby's stood shocked at the sight.
"Ronan…" His name slowly past her lips as she whispered under her hand. She held the DVD case in her hand pressed against her breasts.
"I need to get to work…" Shari slowly shook her head closing her eyes as she pulled out her judgment armband, slipping her hand through it, securing it on her sleeve. She slowly raised her chin looking at Ruiko, her eyes wet with tears, "I'm sorry… Ruiko…"
She didn't answer as Mikoto stood by her, putting her arm around her shoulders watching Shari turned to leave.
"Mikoto…" Uiharu's voice came over her phone. "Mikoto…" She spoke again waiting for an answer.
"Yes… Uiharu…" She took a sad deep breath closing her eyes.
"Ronan said meet him an hour after sunset…" Mikoto smile grew quickly, "is he…"
"He's fine… Pretty close…" She paused for a moment taking a drink of milk, "he was caught under some debris but he's alive…" She looked over at Ruiko, who smile grew at the news. She wiped the tears from her eyes as Mikoto wrapped her arm around Ruiko, cried in relief as Mikoto rubbed her back with her eyes closed and a smile on her face. They turned and started walking to the bus stop. They sat silently on the bus as it took them back to the apartment.
The streets were empty except for a few older students walking to their dorms. They waited at ruiko's apartment for sunset. She had fixed something light for them to eat. Shari had worked all day at the apartment collaspe. She told them that it is being investigated that most likely would be considered structural failure.
"Someone's covering it up…" Shari took a bite of her sandwich then a drink of tea, "you can plainly the scorch marks on the debris" she swallowed smacking her lips, "many of the anti-skill members even wrote that in the reports…"
"I see…" Mikoto leaned back on the floor with her arm supporting her body, "so… Then these ampoules…" She looked at the open DVD box on the table surrounded by the sandwiches and drinks "are the real deal…"
"I wonder what happened to Ami…" Ruiko sighed biting her lip her eyes gazing at the table, "she seemed really surprised… When he told her she had killed him…"
"Both bodies… Were taken to a certain hospital…" Shari nodded her head closing her eyes chewing her sandwich. "They were in pretty good shape after falling 40 stories…" She twisted her lips in thought and took a deep breath.
"Ummm..." Mikoto licked her lips shaking her head as she thought about her comment.
Ruiko turned her head eyeing the clock, "he hasn't called today…" She reached over to her plate, slowly moving her sandwich around, not eating it.
"He's probably just lying low…" Mikoto reached over patting her hand.
"Yes… I guess…" She sighed, her face expressing the worry that she felt.
"Let's finish up… then clean up and leave…" Mikoto smiled nodding her head as she took a final bite of her sandwich followed by the last drink of her soda.
They had gotten off the bus, walking up the Treeline sidewalk that led to a certain hospital. In the distance they could see the orange and red streaks of the dying sunset as it slipped behind the horizon. The clouds had passed leaving a few stragglers but the night sky was filled with stars. On ruiko's back she carried the ampoules in her book bag as Mikoto and Shirai kept their eyes opened as they pushed the doors, stepping into the main corridor of the hospital.
They moved quickly across the marble floor to the elevator. They looked at each other as Ruiko pressed the up arrow. The door slowly opened to an empty elevator as Mikoto shoulders dropped, "really… The same song…" She shook her head as they entered the elevator waiting for the doors closed. The elevator rose upward as an awkward silence filled the area as the music played.
"Isn't this…" Ruiko furrowed her brow; Shari tilted her head, narrowing her eyes, "yes… It is…"
All three of them closed her eyes as they frowned shaking their heads.
"I know what you mean…" Ruiko and Shari turned to look at Mikoto.
"I know…"
The elevator chimed as the doors slowly opened as Mikoto guided them to the nurses' station. As they moved they could not help but notice how quiet the floor was as they walked through the dimly lit hallway. The only light provided by the exit signs above the doors and by the nurses' desk. They could see a nurse moving papers around the desk.
They stopped at the nurses' desk and Mikoto started to speak, "um… Hello…" She whispered leaning over the desk. Ruiko and Shari stood behind her watching.
The nurse turned with a smile on her face, "good evening… Mikoto…" It was Mary, her eyes shined as bright as her smile as she stood up moving around the desk to greet them.
"So…" She clasped her hands together holding them in front of her, her eyes already asked the question she wanted to know. Mikoto nodded her head as Ruiko moved her book bag, "not here dear…" She chuckled, turning and moving quickly down the hall, "follow me…" They moved down the hallway towards the very private office of a certain doctor. She stopped, taking a deep breath as her smile remained on her face, and then softly knocking on the door. They waited until they heard someone unlock the door and it slowly opened. The nurse nodded her head, letting them pass, "I will go to the room…" She spoke almost giggling closing the door behind them.
"So… Everything go well…" A certain doctor smiled as Shari and Ruiko blushed as they recognize the resemblance to a certain frog or geckota that a certain rail gun obsessively collected.
"Where's… Ronan…" Ruiko's voice cracked as she looked around the room.
"He is in the room with Tommy…"
Mikoto smiled, nodding her head. The doctor shook his head, "Mary and I can't believe the results…" He released a short breath, "Ronan was pretty beat up… But he's healed… Really, really good…" He paused for a moment bringing his hand up rubbing his forehead, "Mary's been by his side watching him heal with wide eyes."
"How bad…" Ruiko's face dropped, "oh not to worry…" He paused becoming serious, "we have a limited window… All the cameras are down for maintenance…" He made air quotes around the word maintenance, "so… Let's move to the room… Next to this one…" He stood up grabbing some charts as he stood up from the chair passing them to the door.
"May I…" He smiled holding his hand out as Ruiko nodded her head opening the box, letting him take one out. He raised it up, taking a small flashlight shining it on the ampoules.
He nodded his head, "good… This seal is good…" He paused and then looked at the injector he smiled opening the door. They followed him to the private room that Tommy lay sleeping in the bed. Next to him were Mary and Ronan. He smiled, standing up as Ruiko ran to him, wrapping her arms around him, "I was so worried…" She buried her face in a shirt, "jerk…"
He laughed bringing his hand up as he took a deep breath stroking her hair, "its okay… I'm here now…" He looked over at Mikoto and Shirai with cheeks red, their eyes moving nervously around the room. He smiled, "want me to hug you to…" He chuckled as he started to speak, "so… Let's get started…" He moved towards the bed, his arm wrapped around Ruiko as she put the box on the bed as Tommy slepted.
"Okay…" He looked at Shari, "you have it…" He held his hand out; she nodded her head pulling his computer from behind her back. She had a stuffed inside her skirt and her shirt was covering it.
"Thank you… Is uiharu at judgment tonight…" Shirai nodded her head, "Mikoto can you…"
"Already done…" She smiled, "she copied it to her computer so she can watch…"
"Good…" He sighed, looking over Tommy from head to toe and then at the ampoules, "okay… Accessing…" He entered his name and password on the keyboard, the word linking flashed as his left eye displayed the data.
"Okay… Vitals… Heart, breathing, body temperature etc.…" He looked over to the machines as he verified the information.
"Should we wake him…?" Mary asked placing her hand on Tommy's forehead.
"No…" Ronan shook his head, "I don't want to scare him… It should be painless but with his weaken muscles and atrophy… It could hurt…" She raised her arm wrapping her hand across her mouth. They could all see how worried she was. Ronan nodded his head assuring her it should be all right. The doctor handed him the ampoule as Ronan smiled placing his thumb on the top flat surface then twisted the large glass vile opening it slowly.
"This device on top, recognizes my DNA so it will open safely… If not it would corrupt the specimen…"
"Could you hand me that glass… Ruiko…" She nodded her head as she reached out and grabbed the cup holding it out as he tilted the vile pouring out the contents. "It's harmless to us…" He shook dry, "this is the injector," he pointed to top of the ampoule. "And this is where the micro needles are…" He explained, "Hold it like this…" He pulled the blanket down off Tommy shoulders exposing his neck, "anywhere is good, but this is better…" He leaned close placing the injector to Tommy skin then to his neck. They could see the liquid in the ampoule slowly disappearing. He removed the ampoule exposing little droplets of blood, "this shows it entered the bloodstream," he nodded his head looking at each one of them.
"Are you getting this…?" Mikoto asked uiharu, "yes…" She watched wide-eyed as the data stream across the screen.
"Blood pressure is rising…"
"Heartbeat is rising…"
"Body temperature rising…"
They watched as the monitors flashed with new numbers as the organisms started their jobs. "What's happening to this…?" Ruiko stared at the injection site. "The droplets of blood had been absorbed into the skin," he nodded his head as he looked at everyone.
"That's a good sign…" He smiled then Tommy's face and body tensed up as he let out a low moan. He was moving slowly under the covers as sweat beads covered his skin.
Ronan reached under the blanket, taking Tommy's arm sliding it out to observe his fingers unnaturally intertwined slowly moved and cracked. He moaned again as each finger returned to normal. His mother watching as Ronan reached out taking his hand slowly moving his fingers.
"Is that…" Shari whispered, Ronan nodded his head then he raised Tommy's arm as his wrist cracked and hung in the air, then popped as he freely moved it. The doctor checked his other arm, the same results. Ronan was watching the numbers as Tommy's vitals were in the normal range, his body temperature was a little high at 100°, but he was watching the compatibility numbers rise.
"0%, 15%, 33%, 55%,
Uiharu was telling Mikoto, she was telling Shari as they watched Tommy's body slowly twist and pop as his face tensed up.
Then Tommy's eyes and mouth opened wide as he gasped for air. He stared up into the ceiling. They jumped in surprised by his reaction, "Momma… It hurts…!" He took another deep breath, "Momma…!"
"I'm here… Tommy…" She leaned, speaking softly, over putting her head on his chest. She could hear his heartbeat and his breathing become deeper. He was taking rapid deep breaths as she cried her tears wetting his PJ tops.
"Momma… It hurts…!", his tears flowed down the side of his face as his eyes moved to each of them.
"66%, 77%, 88%, 99%.
"Come on…" He watched anticipating as it flashed 99%, 99%,99%
"What is this… Windows…" He chuckled shaking his head as he watched the numbers flash.
Tommy screamed as a loud crack filled the room as his legs jumped underneath the blankets. Mary reached out taking his hand, looking at Ronan then to tommy.
"100%… Done…" He spoke, "Tommy… How do you feel…?"
"It hurts… A little… Not like before…" His body and voice trembled as his body temperature slowly returned to normal. His face wet with tears as his mother raised her head kissing his cheek. "Okay… Shari…" He held his hand out, "can you give me one your spikes please…" They looked at him with a what the hell look on their faces.
He smiled as he gazed at them, "I need to check his reflexes… His pain reflexes…"
"Oh…" Shari shrugged her shoulders reaching under her skirt taking out a spike handing it over to Ronan.
"Now… Does this feel…" He ran a spike across the bottom of his foot; Tommy nodded his head, "how about here…" He tried the other foot.
"Okay… This is going to hurt…" Ronan reached out taking Tommy's arm, "open your hands…"
He licked his lips as he dragged a spike across his skin, Tommy screamed as the wound opened, the blood flowed from his wound then slowly reversed direction going back into the wound sealing it. They all stared in amazement and looked at each other as Uiharu's voice was ignored.
"What's happening…?" She repeated as Mikoto chuckled as she told uiharu the fantastic results. "The next few hours will tell if it's permanent…" Ronan reached his arm out shaking the doctors' hand, "therapy will be needed to strengthen his body."
Mary was crying and hugging everybody as Tommy struggled , slipping out of the bed. He smiled as he stood by the bed, slowly walking towards his mother's open arms.
"So…" Ronan took a deep breath, "we have 14 more…" He smiled looking around the bed. "I've got three in the NICU and a few in the burn ward… To start…" The Doctor nodded his head with a smile on his face, "also…" Ronan looked out the window," this must remain secret… For whatever that's worth…" He laughed as they work through the night until the sun's rays chase the dark away.