Chapter Sixty Seven: Missing Something
Panic was inevitable. Thankfully, they'd taken the time for precautions before making the general announcement for evacuation. All available officers were on duty to help with the process of moving civilians to a safer location, though some questioned where the intel had come from. Rumors said the information came from a kid, though how he'd known was anyone's guess. Wherever it had come from, it made more than one person anxious.
They hadn't gotten much, if any, warning for the previous bombs. And now they were saying there were three areas that would be hit at any time. All they could do was to try and get as many people as possible away from the blast radius and hope for the best. But some weren't sure if even that would be enough.
Cars and people clogged the roadways despite the police directing traffic. Overly anxious people started taking matters into their own hands and either ran into each other or tried to use the sidewalks, smashing through barricades to get to them.
Overhead, helicopter blades whirred as all available units patrolled the areas, trying to help figure out the best ways to get people safely away. It wasn't easy, even with different streets blocked off. There were more than a few casualties as the citizens slowly succumbed to the inevitable lock down. Even though most commuters were used to grid-lock, there were plenty who weren't or who simply didn't want to wait for things to clear up enough to get moving again.
Riot police were out in force, trying to help keep everything moving smoothly, but their job was an uphill battle and there were far too few of them to handle the masses of panicked people. Especially not when they had to spread out over three different areas. They weren't even sure if the bomb threats were real. But, given that the previous bombs had gone off relatively close by, they had no choice but to treat it as if everything were real. Failure to do so could cost a lot of people their lives.
"What I want to know is how these people managed to plant so many bombs and no one noticed," Chloe complained as she pushed back her hair. The wind had picked up since they'd created a temporary command post near the college campus in question. It was the most central to the other two expected blast areas. All the same, part of her couldn't help but wonder if something wasn't wrong with the whole picture. They were trusting a kid, after all, to know what was going to happen. How was it that he had these visions but no one else did? There were still too many unanswered questions, but it wasn't her place to go around asking them. Not yet.
Jack Harkness stood a few feet away, coordinating the bomb squads, who were having a hard time getting to their intended locations. Someone had dropped the ball in not calling them out before issuing the evacuation order. How that had happened was anyone's guess. But it would certainly be looked into once all was said and done.
The only exception to that was the college campus. Chloe still wasn't sure how someone could have planted a bomb, let along multiple bombs, without their knowing it. They'd had the place under twenty-four hour surveillance since putting the students from NYU there. And with Dr. Banner there, the idea seemed even less credible. But Hiro's predictions hadn't been wrong yet. At least they'd gotten the students and other staff safely out of the way.
Chloe was a little miffed that Lucifer had left Hiro to his own devices. If it had been up to her, she'd have brought the teen in to try and get any more information possible. They still had no idea when this was supposed to happen, though the working assumption was in the not too distant future. Any details could be helpful. But no, Lucifer had to rush out of there like a bat out of Hell, not that she could entirely blame him when all was said and done. Hind Sight was twenty-twenty, after all. But now they had no idea where he was and no one in his group was picking up the phone either.
"We've got activity near the campus," an officer called out as he partially removed a set of headphones from his ears. The station where he sat contained a laptop with specialized software.
Standing off in the shadows, Iron Man gave a brief salute. "That's my cue," he said as he made a running start before activating his thrusters. Chloe watched as he disappeared from sight, partially wishing she were right behind him.
It was fortunate that Tony's lab was separate from the safe room the billionaire had wanted him and his friends to hide. It also helped that Tony kept things well stocked, though Hiro felt sure he'd hear about raiding the supplies once all was said and done, especially if things didn't go well. He was only mildly surprised the billionaire hadn't gone after him for the whole power shove and other craziness. Maybe the guy was still trying to process it, much like Hiro was.
Hiro's hands seemed to move without him having to think about it, picking up tools and different parts. He'd done this so many times it was easy to go to autopilot as he worked, which was just as well. There was something bothering him about his most recent premonition, vision? Whatever it was, there was something he was missing but he couldn't figure out what it was.
One and a half transmitters lay finished on the work table by the time Loki joined him. "I've made sure your aunt is settled, along with Wasabi," he reported as he watched the teen work.
"Good," Hiro replied in an almost absent manner. He picked up the finished communication device, made a few adjustments to it, and handed it to the Asgardian. "This should pick up our frequency, Tony's, and the police."
Loki took the small device, which looked more like a tiny hearing aide, and stuffed it into his ear. "Most helpful," he commented, wondering how to switch frequencies.
Hiro picked up another small device, something that looked like a ring within a ring. "This controls the frequencies," he stated. "It's a little cruder than the ones in our suits, but will still do the job. It's all I could manage on such short notice." He then turned back to the other pair of communication devices.
The god of mischief slid the ring on his left index finger, using his thumb to spin the inner part. The frequency switched from static to the police banner. He rotated it again and heard Tony's voice over the line before switching it once more. Honey Lemon's voice came loud and clear.
"Oh," Hiro paused as he soldered something, "one more thing, if you want to talk, just squeeze the ring. It'll turn off the microphone or turn it back on. Right now, it's set to off. Just don't forget you have it on when listening to the other guys or we might all get in trouble."
Loki nodded at the simplicity of the design. He could feel the delicateness of the device, even if it was crudely made. Hiro obviously knew what he was doing. He toggled the frequencies a few more times, listening in to everyone else before turning it back to the main frequency, watching Hiro out of the corner of his eye.
"Something's bothering you," Loki stated. Even though Hiro appeared to be concentrating on his work, he knew that distracted look. He'd worn it himself more times than he could count.
The teen let out a sigh as he put down the soldering iron. "I feel like I'm missing something, something crucial to what's going on. I just can't see it." He ran his hands through his hair, wishing he had Baymax with him so he could flip upside down and look for a new angle. But the healthcare robot was upstairs, presumably getting into his armor.
Not sure what to say, Loki placed a hand on Hiro's shoulder while he tried to figure that one out. "You've been through a lot today," he reminded. "It's not surprising if your mind is having trouble processing everything that's happened. And it is precisely because of that that I intend to stay as close to your side as possible. Out of all of your friends, I'm the most likely to be able to help you should something go awry, aside from your robot."
Hiro didn't need the reminder. His body still tingled from the accidental encounter with Dirk's energy, even if he didn't want to admit it. And then the whole blasting Tony and having to disperse energy between Lucifer, Loki, and himself while seeing a vision of what was to come certainly hadn't helped. Truth be told, he was mentally exhausted but didn't have time to give into it.
Seeing that Hiro wasn't going to object, Loki pulled back a bit. "I'm going to give this device to Kally," he decided, taking out the earpiece. "If you could equip the one you're working on with a fourth frequency for just the two of us, I would be obliged." He gave the teen a curt nod before leaving the room.
Only slightly surprised at the short encounter, Hiro found he had to agree with Loki's wisdom. There was a lot going on he didn't want the others to know about just yet. Either way, he'd need to program in the frequency to his equipment, not to mention providing it to Aunt Cass so she didn't get too worried. After all, he had promised not to keep things from her, for all that was working.
By the time the Big Heroes had suited up, double-checking their gear and making any last repairs, Hiro had rejoined them. He nodded to each in turn. "I'm not sure how this is all going to shake down," he admitted, looking more than a little worried behind his helmet, "but we've got to try and help out as much as we can. Even if we have to split up."
GoGo gave him a look, arms folded, hips thrust to one side. "Yeah right," she quipped as she blew a gum bubble. "We're not leaving your side, dimwit. Not after everything else that's happened."
She had a point; Hiro had to admit so he simply nodded. "Okay, then we'll go to where the biggest trouble is. Right now, I'm not sure where that is." He glanced at his faithful companion. "Baymax, any suggestions?"
Out of all of them, Baymax was the best at sorting through all of the information over the air waves, compiling it, and determining the most useful. At least he was a lot faster at it than anyone else in their group, including Hiro. "I am getting reports of activity at the college campus," the robot admitted. "Perhaps it would be best to start there."
With all in agreement, the six heroes, plus Kally, headed out onto the lawn. Loki had already transformed into Wasabi mode, complete with voice, which everyone but Hiro and Kally thought weird. "This is going to take some getting used to," GoGo admitted as she watched Hiro clamber into place on Baymax's back.
Honey took up her usual spot to one side of Hiro, while GoGo took up the other. This left Fred, Loki, and Kally to figure out their placements. "Something says we didn't exactly think this one through," the chemist admitted as she realized the problem. "Can Baymax handle all of our weight?"
The robot turned his head to try and look at Honey, blinking in his usual slow manner. "I am capable of lifting over a thousand pounds," he reminded. "However, I do see how it might be a problem in regards to space."
Fred gave a bit of a knowing smile as he sauntered over to his usual position on Baymax's right. "I have an idea," he stated. "One of us can hold onto Kally while Baymax holds on to us, since there probably isn't a whole lot of room on his back."
It was a good idea, Loki had to admit. "As I am the strongest, physically, of any of you, I suggest I be the one to do the honors," he advised. "If Kally will permit me?" He'd moved to Baymax's left. And since he didn't suffer the same inhibitions that Wasabi did, he felt confident in being able to maintain his grip on the teen so long as Baymax could maintain his as well.
Kally gave a somewhat wry look. She didn't have the same kind of gear as the others, no helmet or armor. She still carried the retractable staff she'd taken from the Hydra base though, and that helped give her some confidence. "Only if you don't mind holding me so I face against the wind," she finally answered. It was probably the best option, given the circumstances.
"I think that can be arranged," Loki agreed, still using Wasabi's voice. On a whim, he made sure to soften his version of the hero's armor, so it wouldn't cause problems. He then signaled for Kally to come over, wrapping his arms around her as soon as Baymax grabbed him from behind.
Sure everyone was settled, Hiro gave the command to fly. Baymax activated his thrusters and shot into the air, heading towards the area in question.