Disclaimer: The movie and its characters don't belong to me. They belong to their rightful owners and I'm just borrowing them for this story.
A/N: Well... I don't know how it happened. I just wanted to write a story about Lane taking revenge on Ethan and Benji... then it turned into this! I should place a warning at this point for a few scenes being kinda graphic concerning violence (which would explain the rating M, which I haven't used since I don't know when). Anyway... Please enjoy the story! SPOILERS for "Mission Impossible 3", "Rogue Nation" and "Fallout" included.
~ One last reunion ~
"Rise and shine, Ethan."
A voice he knew all too well rang out right next to Ethan Hunt's ear but he needed a moment, wasn't able to ascribe it to someone. His head was pounding as hell and he felt nauseous.
'Concussion'. The thought crossed his aching head while he tried to remember the last thing he could.
He'd been on the road, driving Benji home. The younger agent had spend the whole night working at his computer and Ethan had decided that he should take some time off. So he himself had literally forced him into his car and they had set of track, heading towards Benji's small apartment. Benji hadn't even been able to keep his eyes open during the ride and Ethan had glanced at him for just a second. And then...
A crash, the car overturning.
Then everything went black.
„Ethan."
The quiet voice filled the room once again in a strange almost singing manner and Ethan finally forced his eyes to open. Slowly the blurred vision vanished and formed one image.
An image which made his blood freeze right away.
In front of him, in a short distance, sat Benji, wrists tied to a chair. The Brit had apparently received some injuries caused by their car accident. Blood ran down his forehead, scratches covered his face. His clothes were ripped at some points. But there was something that alarmed Ethan even more than that. He could see sheer terror in Benji's eyes. His friend seemed to be incredibly afraid of something... or someone. His eyes were fixed on the person who had awoken Ethan from his unconsciousness.
"Welcome, Agent Hunt. How nice of you to join us."
Ethan glanced at the person standing next to him and his hands immediately clenched into fists.
"Lane", he hissed through gritted teeth. How much he hated this man. He had hurt the people most important to Ethan in terrible ways. And Ethan would never forgive him for it. Especially since the man really seemed to have it in for Benji.
Benji. The person who had probably taken the biggest place in his heart during the last years. Every single member of his team was important to Ethan but he couldn't deny that his bound with Benjamin Dunn was way stronger. He couldn't really describe it but somehow he still felt responsible for the younger agent despite him having spend so much time out in the field. Sometimes he still saw the clumsy technician in him who was only safe in the laboratory.
"I always knew that we would meet again. And I have waited for that moment quite longingly."
Lane stepped in front of him, leaning into his personal space, staring at him with a look that was cold as ice. The corners of his mouth twitched into a superior smile.
"I hope that my men's car hasn't hit yours too hard. Wouldn't want you to pass out again and miss all the fun."
Ethan tried to free himself from the ropes which were tying his wrists and ankles to a chair but they didn't loosen, only cut deeper into his flesh. He had to get free so that he could help Benji. He tried to throw himself and the chair to the ground but he realized that it was firmly fixed in the concrete with some screws. Damn it!
"Who broke you out?", Ethan tried to ask calmy instead. He had to win some time so that Luther and Brandt would recognize their absence and search for them.
"I have my people, Ethan. Or did you really think that me getting caught would dissolve the Apostles? You knew that someone would break me out sooner or later."
Lane gave him a cold laughter as he looked into Ethan's furious eyes.
"I already told you once... you should have killed me."
Slowly he straightened up and walked over to Benji who automatically seemed to get smaller in his chair. The agent swallowed visibly when Lane's fingers touched the cut on his forehead.
"You remember the first time we met in London, Ethan?"
Ethan immediately knew what Lane was talking about so he wasn't surprised to see the man taking a gun from a table right next to Benji. He could hear a clicking sound telling him that the gun's safety catch had been released. Still he tried to suppress the rising fear as Lane pointed the gun at Benji's head. The blonde agent on the other hand squeezed his eyes shut, already expecting the gunshot. Of course he had grown during their last missions but having a gun pointed at his head, able to end his life in one second, was still a terrifying experience.
"Today you will watch Agent Benjamin Dunn die..."
For a moment the whole world around Ethan seemed to stop turning as Lane's finger was bend, pulling the trigger.
"No!", it escaped him. He couldn't suppress the desperate cry. His pulse got faster immediately, tears filled his eyes... but they didn't start running because Ethan realized that the bullet had missed Benji's head by inches, hitting only the wall behind him.
"Not yet though", Lane finished his sentence and Benji opened his eyes, giving Ethan a desperate look. This one just wanted to tell him that everything would turn out fine but he knew that it wasn't a promise he could make. They could only hope for their teammates to find them.
Slowly, Lane circled Benji's chair like a lion creeping around it's prey, just waiting to attack. And Ethan watched every single movement of his, only once glancing at his friend who was looking straight forward, swallowing hard when Lane put his hands on his shoulders, leaning down right next to his ear.
"Now, Agent Dunn, what do you think... What will Ethan Hunt offer to end your suffering?"
Lane straightened up and strolled over to the little table on which Ethan could see a few syringes and a pipette, filled with different fluids. He peered Lane suspiciously when this one put on a pair of gloves and picked up the objects one after another, checking if they worked.
"N-nothing."
It was the first word leaving Benji's mouth. His voice sounded hoarse and quiet as if it would break the next second. Still, Ethan could hear determination in it which confused him and obviously Lane too.
"Interesting. What makes you think so?"
Benji's gaze wandered over to Lane who was giving him a questioning look over his shoulder. He apparently hadn't expected that answer.
"Ethan is the best agent I know. He knows his job and he will never offer anything to someone like you. Not even... for my sake."
Ethan's heart sank when he heard these words. Benji still seemed to admire him as an agent just like when they had first met back then. He didn't believe that anyone could break Ethan. How wrong he was...
Despite looking at Benji, Ethan could feel Lane's eyes on him. The man had looked right through him. He knew that Benji was wrong. He knew that Ethan would do everything so that his friend would leave this room safely. The only question was what Lane was asking from him.
"Now... in the end it doesn't matter anyway. Ethan Hunt will give me what I want."
"And what would that be?"
Lane stepped behind Benji, the pipette in his hand, before giving Ethan a cool smile.
"The pain you will go through while watching Benjamin dying slowly in agony."
With these words he put his palm beneath Benji's chin and forcefully pushed his head up and slightly backwards, forcing the right eye to stay open with two fingers. With his other hand he used the pipette, letting a few drops leaving it, dripping right into the agent's eye.
A scream. A grief-stricken scream which broke Ethan's heart. Benji tossed and turned, pulled at his shackles but wasn't able to free his arms. He tried to shook his head madly but Lane's grip was stronger.
"And eye number two", Lane calmly added, opened the left eye and let a few more drops trickle into it.
The screaming got even worse and Ethan tried to loosen his shackles over and over again and, when that didn't work, he tried to knock the chair over. He shook it as hard as he could. He had to stop Lane! He had to help Benji!
"Stop! Please!"
At first Ethan didn't recognize the voice... until he realized the words were escaping his own mouth. He was begging. He was begging and pleading. He gave Lane exactly what he wanted.
"Acid. It causes an immediate, irreversible destruction of sight. The first step of the awaiting torture, Agent Dunn."
Benji didn't seem to hear Lane's words through his desperate screaming and sobbing but Ethan heard it precisely. He knew that Lane had surely planned this 'game' for a while and that this planned torture would only get worse. He knew Solomon Lane well enough.
"Stop it, Lane..."
It was not more than a mere whisper. Ethan didn't know where his voice was disappearing to but when Benji slowly stopped the screaming and carefully opened his eyes, even the last sound got stuck in his throat.
A mixture of red and milky white was exposed to him; tears kept streaming out of the eyes, mixing with the cuts' and scratches' blood.
It was only a glimpse he got before Benji shut his eyes close again but it was enough to turn Ethan's stomach upside down. Last time he had felt this kind of emotion had been when he had seen Julia die. With one significant difference. Back then things hadn't been real... this time they were.
Or... maybe they weren't.
Maybe this was all just a bad dream. Maybe he would wake up any moment, would walk over to the office, would meet Benji... healthy and unharmed. How much did he hope for that to be true.
But deep inside he knew that it wouldn't happen. Benji and him were here for real... in Lane's imprisonment.
"Did you say something, Ethan?", named man asked in that moment while taking one of the syringes, testing it once again.
Ethan gritted his teeth. Lane had understood every single word for sure. Still he repeated them, surprised by the strength in his voice.
"Stop it!"
Lane just closed his eyes, smiling.
"Ahh, that's music to my ears. But... There's something missing, isn't it?"
Ethan narrowed his eyes in confusion. What was Lane talking about?
"The magic word?", the man reminded him just like a parent talking to a little child.
Reluctantly, Ethan opened his mouth and spit out the word that might buy them some time.
"Please."
Even though he knew that it was exactly what Lane wanted, he couldn't stop himself. Something inside of him hoped that he could help Benji that way.
"You see, Agent Dunn, Agent Hunt will give me everything for your sake."
Benji's head jerked to the side, alarmed, when Lane touched his shoulder.
"Oh, please excuse my choice of words. You will never see anything again."
The laughter which followed send a cold shiver down Ethan's spine. Then it was replaced with burning rage. This damn...
"Don't touch him!"
Lane actually removed his hand from Benji's shoulder for one moment and looked at Ethan. He lifted the syringe he had taken from the table so that Ethan was able to see it. Once again the agent tried to move the chair... without success.
"This poison paralysis the auditory nerve. So... if there's anything you'd like to tell Benjamin you should do it now."
Ethan swallowed. What should he say? That he was sorry? That he never meant to see Benji hurt? That he would save him? He didn't know...
"Benji, I..."
He fell silent when he saw Benji shaking his head.
"There's no need to apologize, Ethan. For nothing. All of this is not your fault. I know that you hate yourself for all of it, that you blame yourself. But we both know that it's not true. You always tried to protect me..."
"And you failed", Lane interrupted him.
"Shut up!"
The anger and choice of words of Benji surprised Lane but Ethan hadn't expected them either. Yet still he couldn't suppress a feeling of pride about Benji's courage.
"Ethan... I... I just want you to know one thing..."
Benji was hesitating and Ethan didn't know what the Brit was withholding from him.
"I love you."
A strange silence filled the air. Nobody said a word.
Ethan just stared at Benji whose eyes were wandering around the room, not focusing on anything. Had he understood the words correctly? Love... Benji had told him that he loved him. The person who had enriched his life in the last years, who had made him laugh... and sometimes infuriated him, had revealed his feelings for him just now. And there was only one thing Ethan could reply to it.
"And I love you."
Benji's eyes seemed to widen, once again Ethan could see the whole damage the acid had caused and the lump in his throat grew bigger. Hot tears started to stream down his face, fighting their way out of his eyes. How did they end up in this place? How did he get Benji into a situation like this? Even though his friend didn't want him to blame himself...
Lane's voice brought him back from his painful thoughts.
"How... touching. Really. At least you heard the truth once."
And before Ethan could say anything Lane stabbed the syringe into the back of Benji's right ear.
Another grief-stricken scream followed by Ethan's 'No!' echoed through the air but it was too late. Tears ran down his face and he shook his head.
Enough! It was enough!
Ethan gathered all his strength and finally! The anchorage broke loose when he tried again and Ethan fell to the floor together with the chair. This one broke underneath the weight and Ethan was finally free. He ignored the pain the car accident had left and rushed towards Benji and Lane.
Lane reacted as fast as he could. When Ethan attacked him he grabbed hold of the agent and they fell, hitting the cold ground together. He dodged Hunt's blows, eventually winning control over the situation.
Ethan cursed. His obviously broken ribs didn't make this an easy fight and the concussion seemed to affect him more than he had originally thought it would. At the last moment he realized that Lane was trying to stab the syringe into his neck and he grabbed his opponent's wrist, stopping the attack right before the needle could touch his skin.
With all their strength both men tried to control the syringe and Ethan could feel it coming closer and closer. He wouldn't be able to hold his defense up for much longer.
He heard Benji's voice, calling his name over and over again in confusion.
"Ethan? Ethan, what's going on?! Ethan!"
He had to survive this fight. He had to save Benji!
But his hand was getting weaker and weaker. He would not be able to hold against Lane's strength for long anymore.
And in that moment realization hit him. His biggest fear would become reality...
Benji would die. He would die. He wouldn't finish this mission. His mission to protect the person he loved would end today in defeat.
A shot echoed through the room.
The other man's hand lost its strength and Ethan watched in confusion as Lane's body dropped motionless to the floor.
Carefully, the agent sat up, looked at the door which he hadn't even recognized before. Luther and Brandt were standing there, a gun in the hand of last one which was now lowered. Both of them ran into the room, got to Benji who was still moving his head around, scared, without orientation.
Ethan's eyes wandered over to Lane. Blood streamed out a hole in the temple of his head, gathering on the floor. With an expressionless face the man he hated so much still seemed to look right into Ethan's soul.
It was over. Lane... was dead. Brandt had finally fulfilled the action Ethan couldn't fulfill up until now due to some reason he didn't know.
In trance Ethan recognized that Luther was helping him to stand up and he gave him a thankful nod before turning to Benji whose shackles were just released by Brandt. At every single touch the Brit winced and when he finally tried to stand up, Brandt trying to help by putting one hand beneath his arm, he immediately pulled it back in panic.
"I- It's me, Benji", Brandt explained with a soft voice and the other man's breathing slowly calmed down and he accepted his friend's help.
„Benji..."
The blonde's head turned to Ethan who carefully addressed him in that moment.
"Ethan", he whispered, reaching out his hand. The insecurity in his voice was unbearable.
Ethan softly took Benji's hand in his own... and then pulled him into a hug, holding him close to his chest.
The trembling of Benji's shoulders and the sobbing only caused him to hold the man even closer. He would never let him go again. He would hold Benji in his arms forever.
"It's over, Benji. He's dead", Ethan whispered into his left ear while softly stroking Benji's head.
Of course he knew that it wasn't really over yet. He knew that they would all have to fight with the aftermath of this day. But Lane would never hurt them again. And that was the only thing that mattered right now.
A/N: So... this is it. One of the longest and cruelest stories I've ever written. I wrote a short aftermath-Benthan-OS too though I'm not sure yet wether I should upload it or not. We'll see.