„Hiro!"

Aunt Cass, who had been in the middle of preparing dinner, let everything drop once she set eyes upon her nephew. His head hung low, his shoulders were hunched, and he looked distracted. She figured that his thoughts must have been with the catastrophic attack on SFIT.

"Where have you been?" she ran over, her oven mittens dropping to the floor as she wrapped her arms tightly around Hiro. He gently pushed her away though, a hand on his ribs as he winced.

"Ow!" he shivered and took a small step back. "Careful."

Her heart sank and she gently cupped his cheeks. "Are you hurt?" as she started examining his head for injury she noted Baymax who had come into the room with Hiro. She was so worried about her nephew that neither she nor Hiro noticed how the robot had no reaction to the boy being in pain.

"I … I just got a little banged up in all the chaos at school." He wrapped his around his waist and looked up at her. His large, round eyes were filled with worry.

"I got so worried when I couldn't find you at the open house." She told him. Hiro looked down, his eyebrows furrowed. In a rather small voice he apologized for scaring her like that, but that was the last thing on Cass's mind. She was just glad to have her nephew and Baymax back in one piece, even though they both seemed to be traumatized with the events at SFIT. Technically, she thought, they were back in two pieces since they were two. But she pushed that thought aside quickly.

"You go up to your room and get changed." She told Hiro and gently brushed his hair out of his face. "I'll finish dinner and then we can just put this whole day behind us. What do you think?" a smile crept up on Hiro's face and he nodded. It warmed Cass's heart to see him smiling and she shushed him and the robot up the stairs quickly. Once she heard the door to Hiro's room close she turned her back, put the TV back on to the news and continued cooking the butter fish which she had gotten a great deal on at the fisher's market.

Hiro closed the door behind himself and Baymax and winced again at the pain almost every single movement caused him. He was sure that, even if he hadn't broken a rib, that there was one or two bruised ribs.

The fight had really taken a toll on him and he was starting to feel that more and more as the adrenaline slowly left his body. He noticed his left leg hurting and pulsating and figured that he must have landed on it when he fell earlier. Hiro carefully made his way over to the bed and sat down.

"Ow!" he exclaimed as the simple act of sitting down made his ribs ache. However, something strange caught his attention just then – or rather, the absence of something did. He raised his brows and looked over at his robot companion.

Baymax was just standing there and looking at him with his round, black eyes. It dawned on Hiro now, that Baymax hadn't reacted earlier, when he had said 'Ow', either. "I said 'Ow'." He repeated and stared up at his robot which still did not react. "Uh … alerted to my need for medical attention?"

He got up slowly when the robot still didn't react. "Nothing?"

Hiro was careful not to put too much weight on his left leg when he stepped closed and examined Baymax's face. There didn't seem to be anything wrong just from looking at him, but he realized that his friend must have gotten a pretty bad beating in the fight that he hadn't attended. He sighed and got onto his tiptoes in order to reach Baymax's chip port. More to himself than to Baymax he said "There must be something wrong with … what?" he froze when the port opened and exposed not two, but three different chips. Two were the ones he was familiar with – the healthcare chip from his brother, Tadashi, and the second one the superhero ability chip that he had personally put in. The third one however was foreign to him. It was purple and was decorated with the silhouette of a dragon like animal with only one eye and a snake like tongue.

In order to examine the chip more closely Hiro reached out and was about to grab the chip when suddenly Baymax's big hand grabbed his wrist and stopped him. Hiro's heart skipped a beat and his whole body tensed. The grip on his wrist was so tight that he couldn't free his arm. "Baymax?" he looked up from his hand into his robot companion's face. When his eyes turned red and the chip port closed it suddenly dawned on him – this chip bore the signature of Obake who now had control of his friend.

It all happened so fast that Hiro could barely process it all. Although Baymax was a robot he had always had something humanlike to him. The way he spoke and moved often made Hiro forget that his best friend was a machine. But not now. Baymax was now moving like the machine he was. He didn't care for Hiro or for his well-being, not even when he was the one who was hurting the boy. Hiro's wrist hurt from Baymax's tight grip and Hiro could see it turning red. When Baymax suited up Hiro's ribs and leg ached as he was being pushed around roughly, the robot never letting go of him so he couldn't get away. Although the thought of calling his Aunt Cass for help occurred to him but he was too scared to do it. This was not his robot friend, this was just a machine being controlled by his team's enemy. Who knew what it would do to his aunt if he got her involved?

"Baymax, please, let me go." Hiro demanded as the robot stepped outside through the rather large window and dragged him with him. The boy winced in pain as Baymax grabbed onto his arm even tighter. "Baymax, you're being controlled." He continued. "Let me take the chip and-" but Hiro couldn't finish his sentence. With his upper arm now in Baymax's grip the robot suddenly turned on the thrusters and before he knew it they were up in the air, hundreds of meters off the ground. Although Hiro was so used to flying by now he couldn't help but let out a scream. He was caught off guard and the pull on his arm was so strong that he felt like it might get torn off any second.

"Baymax! You have to listen to me!" Hiro shouted loudly over the sound of the roaring wind in his ears. San Fransokyo was rushing by beneath his feet and his heart was hammering in his chest. When Baymax only continued flying, his red eyes fixated on something in the distance, Hiro decided to try and get to the chip. The adrenaline that was rushing through his veins made him disregard the now screaming pain in his side and he tried to pull himself up on the robot's armor. However, when he suddenly got dropped a few centimeters he immediately grabbed onto Baymax's large arm. His eyes were widened and his hands shaking in fear. He had to remind himself that this was not his friend that was doing this to him – this was Obake.

"Do not." Baymax warned him and held him even lower as they continued flying. The way Baymax looked down at Hiro actually scared him and he decided to give up for the time being. He looked down at the red bridge rushing by beneath his feet and continued to try and hold onto his robot.

Baymax did not say a single word the entire flight and only continued to stare up ahead. For the longest time Hiro was unsure of where they were going but soon realized that it must be quite far outside of the city, with the huge bridge only appearing tiny on the horizon.

When Baymax eventually flew inside the entrance to a cave and landed in front of a metal door Hiro couldn't help but to stumble to the ground as too much weight was put onto his leg. He winced and tried his best not to cry out when he was pulled back up to his feet by Baymax in one swift motion. "Baymax, stop!" Hiro cried and struggled against his friend's grip on his arm. His hand was growing number with each passing second and he could feel the numbness creeping up even higher. But still, despite him hurting so badly he struggled more as Baymax stepped through the opened door and into the metal hallway. He knew where Baymax was intending to take him and he certainly didn't want to. He pushed his feet into the ground and pulled on his arm, trying to break free.

However, when Baymax's head turned and his red eyes looked at him and said "Resisting will result in further injury." Hiro froze. He had never expected to hear a threat out of his robot's mouth. It terrified him that Baymax seemed to have noticed that Hiro was injured but it wasn't enough to break through Obake's control.

Hiro gave up and obediently followed Baymax through one dark room after another. They passed Momokase, Noodle Burger Boy and Globby and eventually even Trina, the girl whom Hiro had meet previously at the bot fights. He was shocked to see that she was actually a robot that had been built by Obake. She teased him for not having figured it out much sooner, but he didn't really have time to react to her as Baymax pulled him longer. None of the villains had much of a reaction to him, so he figured that they knew that he would be arriving sooner or later.

When Baymax yanked Hiro around the corner and through a door he froze again. There he was, Obake, standing at some sort of monitoring desk. In front of him there were three large screens, one displaying some plans for his robots, the middle one a map of the San Fransokyo harbour and the last one a, what seemed to be live, broadcast of Hiro's friends. Hiro tried to take it all in, his throughts racing as to what Obake might be trying to do and what he needed all this for, but he was quickly stopped in his thoughts when Obake turned around and greeted him.

"Hiro Hamada. Welcome!" a big smile spread on his face and he opened his arms as if he wanted to hug the boy. Baymax stepped inside the room, dragging Hiro with him. Hiro looked from Baymax to Obake and just couldn't understand how all of this could have happened. His expression must have given him away as Obake turned to the screen and showed a clip of a dash cam of one of his accomplices. On the screen Hiro saw the fight which he had not attended take place. Baymax was so preoccupied with helping his friends that he hadn't been able to stop Noodle Burger Boy from getting to his chip port and inserting the foreign chip that Hiro had discovered earlier.

"Noodle Burger Boy …" Hiro mumbled and felt his heart grow heavier. He felt so guild ridden that he had disappointed his friends and had left them to fight all by themselves. "I should have been there." He said quietly, more to himself than anyone else. "But I was-"

"Doing vital work, for me." Obake interrupted him. He was smiling again and stepped closer to Hiro. He seemed happier than Hiro had ever seen him before. Obake pulled out the energy amplifier that Hiro had built and gestured for Baymax to let go off him. Once the strong grip on his wrist was gone Hiro winced and held his upper arm carefully. His hand had turned slightly blue due to the lack of blood circulation and he saw many bruises as he carefully pushed up his jacket.

"If you'd please excuse the rough transfer." Obake said with his back turned to him. "But I just knew you wouldn't just stop by on your own."

Hiro furrowed his brow and looked up at Obake's work on the screen. "Lenore Shimamoto?" he asked as he noticed the familiar work that was now on-screen.

"I'm a big fan." Obake explained. "Shimamoto built a rather unique machine." Images passed by on the screen as he continued speaking. "It created a star."

"A star?" Hiro repeated in disbelief.

"It collapsed quickly." The man added. Hiro watched the small hologram that demonstrated the collapse of the star Lenore Shimamoto had allegedly built. As he took in all the new information it suddenly started to dawn on him.

"That would create a giant shockwave!" Hiro exclaimed. "That's how she created the Great Catastrophe."

Obake smiled happily and pulled up new holograms. "You really are sharp. But new San Fransokyo is so much larger now so I need a bigger bang." Hiro stared at the large screens, shocked and in utter disbelief of what he was seeing – this guy couldn't be serious, he thought. "I improved on Shimamoto's inadvertent discovery." He went on, the same strange smile still plastered on his face. When he looked down at Hiro next his smile turned into a grin and he said "It should be quite a show."

Hiro felt his blood freeze. What he was seeing on the screen seemed to melt the last remainders of hope he had still left in him. This man was going to destroy the city, kill his friends and, worst of all, the only family he had left … Aunt Cass. And it was all his fault. If he hadn't built that energy amplifier, just like he had been told not to, then none of this would have happened.

"Why didn't I listen to Granville …" he muttered, his eyes gazing down at the floor. He couldn't stand to look at the simulation of the catastrophe this man was planning.

"Because, Hiro," Obake said and turned to stand next to him, "like me, you were meant to push limits. You're not meant to be tied down." With an almost gentle touch he lifted Hiro's chin and made him look at the screen to see the simulated horror of what would be left of San Fransokyo after the star had collapsed. Hiro's eyes widened and reality settled in for real. This man was really going to destroy the city!

"Don't touch me!" he quickly shook Obake's hand off of him. "If you do this, then everyone will be- Aunt Cass. I have to warn her!" he immediately turned away from the screens and from Obake and ran without giving it much thought. He could see Aunt Cass's crushed body, lying deep benatch tons of debris … and whatever else was left of the café. His leg and sides ached as he stormed forward, only to be stopped by Baymax stepping into his way. When he tried to duck beneath Baymax's arm though the robot simply grabbed a hold of him again, squeezing his already bruised arm. Hiro gave a cry of pain but didn't stop resisting. He had to warn his aunt. How could he afford to lose her after he had already lost his brother?

"If it's any comfort, she's not going to suffer for long." Obake said behind him. Hiro shivered when he felt the man's hand on his shoulder and quickly pushed it away. "It'll only be a second before she's already gone." He added and gave a lighthearted chuckle.

Hiro stared up at him in shock. From the corner of his eyes he could see Momokase, Noodle Burger Boy and Globby, but none of them seemed bothered by this. They must have known that this was Obake's plan …

When Baymax's grip on Hiro's arm suddenly tightened the boy winced. "But don't worry, Hiro. You will be quite safe here with me." Obake patted his shoulder, ignoring how Hiro pushed his hand away again. The man stepped over to his accomplices and started fixing something at the burger robot. "We'll be the sole two visionaries, just 'hanging out', as you kids say."

"It's not about me!" Hiro cried suddenly, unable to control the rage that was forming within his chest. He had to get out of here and save his family. "You're going to kill millions of people! My friends! My … my aunt …"

Obake didn't seem to be bothered by the thought of this at all. Instead he turned around with a soothing smile and reassured Hiro that he would be safe. "Together, we're going to create a star." He then gave a light chuckle when he added "Congratulations, Hiro, that's some final project for school."

"No! Just because you can, doesn't mean you should! Granville was right! She's been right all along!" he couldn't stop himself from letting out a sob, but bit back any tears that were threatening to come out. He was not going to give this crazy man the satisfaction of seeing him cry.

"Nonsense. Do you know why Icarus plunged to his doom?" he asked Hiro with a calm voice but a strange look in his eyes. When Hiro replied that Icarus flew too high Obake gave a bellowing laugh and grabbed him by his shoulders. Hiro cried in pain when his arm got twisted within Baymax's grip. "Icarus needed better wings." He said and stared down at Hiro with a mad grin. "You and I, we have the ability to remake the world, starting with this city!" he looked over at the animated image of a destroyed San Fransokyo, his grip on Hiro's shoulders tightening. "And only the worthy may survive."

Hiro squirmed in Obake's and Baymax's grip, desperately trying to break free, but it was no use. His arm was throbbing painfully as it was twisted in the robot's large hand. He gritted his teeth and forcefully removed one of the man's large hands from his shoulders. "Why am I here!?" he asked loudly and glared up at the man. His heart was starting to hammer in his chest, but not with fear. No, this was pure rage. He was so angry with Obake and especially with himself for having built that energy amplifier when Granville specifically told him not to. How could he have been that stupid? "What more do you want? You have my energy amplifier. I'm of no more use to you!" his cheeks and eyes were burning and he knew that he was going to cry from being so angry.

With a strange smile on his lips Obake leaned down to him. His face was uncomfortably close to Hiro's but when the boy tried to push him away again he yelped in shock when Baymax grabbed his other arm too. He was completely immobile. "A student."

"Sorry?" Hiro raised his brows in confusion.

"Granville doesn't understand your potential." Obake started to explain. "But I do. When my new city is complete, it will be a paradise for learning and research, exactly what someone like you needs. I just can't wait to see what you'll, no, what we'll accomplish … together."

Hiro stared at him in disbelief. His blood had stopped boiling and he just felt so confused. "You're mad." He stated simply and leaned his head back to gain more space between them. "You'd have to be to think I'd ever join you."

"You're a bit worked up right now, I understand." He stated simply and stood straight. "But don't worry. I have seen this coming and prepared accordingly."

"Prepared?" Hiro questioned. "Prepared wha-" he yelped in surprise when Baymax suddenly picked him up and held him by his arms.

"Did you really think that robots are the only things I can reprogram?" Obake gave a low chuckle and gestured for Baymax to follow him. The robot did as it was told and carried the struggling boy with him. "I prepared a special reprogram just for you."

Hiro pulled at his arms with all his might but just couldn't break free. He didn't like where this was going. "People can't be programmed." He spat and tried to kick the man in front of him. When Baymax gave him a rough shake he gasped at the rising pain in his arms and immediately stopped.

"No, Hiro. You can't reprogram people. But don't worry," he stopped in front of another metal door and opened it with the swipe of a card, "one day you'll be able to."

When he turned on the light Hiro's entire body froze. He had been brought into somewhat of a hospital room. In front of them there was a bed without bedding, a syringe, an oxygen mask and other medical supplies spread on the table next to it.

"What …" his heart was starting to beat faster as his fear grew, "what are you going to do to me?"

"Oh, don't worry, my boy." The man said and stepped further inside the room. When Baymax let Hiro down on the bed he was immediately being held down by a belt of some sort that was wrapped around his wrists and ankles. He immediately began to struggle but couldn't move properly when Obake tied the same belt around his neck and head. As Obake grabbed the syringe from the table Hiro couldn't help panicking. "In just a few minutes you won't even remember why you were so upset." He continued. "You won't remember your friends, your family, not even your silly robot friend here. It will be a fresh start for you as my student. You'll be happy to be here, to be at my side as we prepare the new big catastrophe. As we start to plan the future, a better world for everyone to live in."

When Obake pulled some liquid from a tiny bottle into the syringe Hiro started to squirm as hard as he could. "No!" he shouted as loud as he could. Tears were starting to run down his cheeks, panic having taken over him. "Please, no! Let me go!" he pulled at his hands as hard as he could and felt the leather fabric leave bruises on his wrists.

"Shh." Obake leaned over him and held down his arm. Hiro wasn't strong enough to resist. "Just bear with it for one moment. One, two … and three." When he felt the prick of the needle Hiro cried out. He didn't know what was going to happen to him, but he didn't want to forget. He didn't want any of this. He didn't want to be this mad man's student, didn't want to lose all the people and the life that he had come to love so very much.

"Well done, Hiro." Obake praised him and smiled down at him. Although Hiro's vision was blurred with tears, he could make out the proud expression on Obake's face – and he was disgusted by it. This man was enjoying seeing him in so much panic, was loving what he was doing to him. "Now, be a good boy and breathe in and out deeply." From behind his back Obake pulled the mask Hiro had seen laying on the bed. Immediately he tried to turn his head away from this horrible man, but it was no use. Obake grabbed Hiro's jaw easily and no matter how much he struggled he couldn't stop it. He could feel his whole body tingling but didn't know what to make of it. Maybe whatever had been in that syringe hadn't worked and this was just his body's natural reaction to his panic? At least he hoped it was.

In a final attempt to stop him Hiro turned his head down and bit into the man's hand as hard as he could. Obake let out a cry and dropped the mask. He quickly held his own hand and stared down at the small, bloody bite Hiro's teeth had left on him.

"Why, you little-" he snarled and stepped close to Hiro. He raised his unhurt hand and for a second Hiro thought he was going to hit him. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the pain, but it didn't come. Instead Obake seemed to collect himself and put his hand down. "I understand that you're upset, Hiro." He stated, his voice calm again. "But I also must ask you to consider that, in your current state, you cannot comprehend how much of a favor I am doing you. Your friends are never going to help you advance in life. Neither will your professor nor your aunt. They all poison you with laziness and unhealthy habits. A young boy like you must be nurtured and challenged to achieve his very best. And the only one who can do that for you is me."

Hiro's heart was hammering so hard inside his chest that he was getting more and more scared that it was trying to break out of his chest. He just couldn't believe what he was hearing and what was going to happen to him. No-one knew where he was, no-one could help him. He was all on his own. Except-

"Baymax!" he shouted panicky and tried to turn his head to his robot friend behind him. "Baymax, please! Help me!" the robot just continued staring on ahead with those red, unsettling eyes of his. "Ow!" Hiro shouted in a desperate attempt to get his attention. "Ouch! Ow! Baymax!" when Obake grabbed his jaw again Hiro once again called out to his robot, but to no avail.

"Don't waste your energy, my boy." Obake said with a chuckle and quickly pressed the mask onto Hiro's face before he could react. "Your robot friend will be turned off and scraped for parts. My little sidekicks need repairs, after all."

"No …" Hiro started crying heavily now. His body was tingling and he could feel his toes getting numb. "Please … I don't want this. I don't want any of this …"

"You just can't understand yet." Obake insisted and tied the mask to the leathery band around his neck and head so that it couldn't slip away. "When you wake up again you'll see that this is the only way to nurture your true talents. You'll be thanking me."

"Baymax … please …" Hiro felt his eyelids getting heavier as he was breathing in the air that came from the mask. It was making him drowsy. "I … need of …" he blinked and tried hard to keep his eyes open. "… medical … care …" the tingling feeling spread all the way up to his chest now and rendered him powerless. He couldn't help but to let his head fall limp and sleepily blink up at Obake who was grinning down at him.

"Rest now, Hiro. I need you well rested tomorrow for the big move." The man put a hand on Hiro's head and gently stroke his black hair. Hiro weakly tried to move his head away from him but couldn't. He was growing so weak that it was hard to even keep his eyes open. His whole body was numb and he could feel his conscience slipping away. Although he was fighting so hard not to give into the darkness that threatened to take over he soon realized that it was too much. With one last attempt of struggling in order to break free he had to give up the fight and let his eyes close. "Sleep well. I'll see you soon." Hiro heard Obake's voice like it came from behind a glass wall. He wasn't even sure if he had heard correctly. The next thing he was that Obake's face above him blurred and eventually faded into darkness. His head was spinning and spinning until he felt like he couldn't take it anymore. All of his thoughts, his worries and his fears, they all melted together until they overwhelmed him. When it all grew to be too much to bear Hiro couldn't help but to let out a sigh of relief when he felt his mind slipping away. Before he knew it he had been engulfed by unconsciousness, his body lying tied up and limp in the bed Obake had prepared for him.

Obake had won.