The Princess and the Papoose - Part II
Chapter 3
Mohinder, Bethany, and Matt had, through a series of questions, directions, contacts, and short driving trips, found themselves in an old military hangar. It was no longer in use by the US government, but everybody they talked to said that a retired Air Force pilot still lived there and would sell cruises or moves or whatever.
"Hello?" Mohinder's call echoed through the huge building. Old air crafts littered the lot. A streak of gray light traveled the floor in a straight line, shining down from the ceiling where it looked like it opened up.
Mohinder tried again. "Is anybody here?"
"What's that?" An elderly man appeared from behind a dark green huey helicopter. Black oil streaked his face and stained his hands and the assumably-once-white rag he held. A pair of headphones hung around his neck, like he'd just taken them off.
"Um," Mohinder stepped forward, and said, "we were told you were the person to talk to for a ride?"
"Yessir! Samuel Cameron at your service!"
"Mr. Cameron-"
"Son, my name's 'Sam'."
Mohinder apologized and tried again. "Sam, we're looking for a boat."
"I ain't got no boats. Helicopters, jet planes, if it flies, I got it. Water's a whole different thing."
"We don't want to rent a boat," Bethany cut in, growing increasingly impatient with Dr. Suresh. "We want to find one. Much easier to do that from the air than the water."
"Indeed it is!" Sam exclaimed. "For that I'd say you want a chopper. Hard to fly in them winds, sure, but-"
"Have you even been outside?" Exclaimed Bethany, "It's storming!"
"I seen it out there," Sam assured them. "The water don't bother me, unless that wind starts howlin'."
"Then we would like to go as soon as possible." Said Matt. "It's a little urgent."
"Well," Sam turned to the machine he'd just been underneath. "She's small, but she's fast and mighty steady."
"How much?" Asked Bethany.
"Depends on if you need a pilot or not." He smiled.
Cold steel contacted Rain's wrist. Her heart raced in anticipation of whatever it was Sylar was about to do.
Rip!
He'd cut the tape and yanked it from her skin. It started to turn red. He did the same on her other side.
"We're here." Sylar took Rain by the hand and led her at a run away from the dark room, through a few dim passageways, and suddenly Rain could smell fresh ocean air. Sylar threw open a door several seconds before they reached it. Land was visible, yes, but it was several meters away from the open door.
"Better jump!" Sylar exclaimed.
"Jump that?" Rain nearly screamed as Sylar pulled her close to him and launched across the water. She shut her eyes tight, gritting her teeth, and braced for a hard impact into cold water. But in a few moments, her bare feet made contact with beach sand. She didn't even really realize that she'd been swaying before until the ground lurched from beneath her feet and she crumpled.
"Wha...what just happened?" Rain felt for the ground around her.
Sylar sat down, cross-legged next to her. "I jumped. I brought you with me. You didn't trust me."
"Why should I trust you?"
"Have I ever given you reason not to?"
Rain stared.
"Okay," Sylar nodded slightly. "I lied to you when we first met. But I learned my lesson! What say we call it a truce?"
"...a truce?"
"If we're gonna be partners, we have to be on good terms!"
"Partners, you say?" Rain didn't bother masking the suspicion in her voice. "And how, exactly, am I going to forgive you your tresspasses?"
Sylar raised his eyebrows and shrugged. "I was hoping you'd give it to me on credit."
Rain narrowed her eyes. "Okay."
"Partners?"
"Agreed."
"Good." Sylar nodded, slowly. "There's still one thing I need from you."
Bethany couldn't help gripping the bottom of her seat until her knuckles turned white. She was well aware that her face was roughly the same color.
"Are you alirght?" Asked Mohinder. Dull light filled the hangar as two overhead doors swung apart.
"Yeah," Bethany replied, "just a little terrified of flying, that's all."
"What did I tell you before?" Mohinder's voice was low, presumably inaudible by Matt and Sam up front.
"I don' t know - what?" As Bethany finished her sentence, a slow whirring sound filled their ears.
Mohinder pried her hand from the seat and gripped it. "I said I wouldn't let anything happen to you. Now stop holding your breath or you'll turn blue."
Bethany exhaled sharply and smiled. "Thanks, dad."
"Can you walk?" Sylar asked. He stood to demonstrate his own ability to do so.
"Not sure," Rain tried to follow. Her knees shook, and Sylar could tell she was gonna fall before she even did. He caught her, both exasperated and amused by her incompetence.
"I'll carry you." He decided.
"No, I've got it." Obviously she still held resentment toward him. Oh well, he hadn't expected her to get over it right away. She pried his arms away from her waist and took a wobbly step. "Okay." Rain breathed. "Where are we going?"
"My favorite place in the world." Sylar began walking. The ground did seem to sway, but he ignored it.
"Where's that?" Rain asked.
"Here. On this island." Said Sylar.
Rain huffed. "What kind of place?"
"You'll see."
"You're not treating me very 'equal'," she pointed out.
"We're not equal," Sylar countered. "Not yet. You have something that I want, I know something that you don't. Be fair, Rain!"
"Okay, Sylar. I'll be fair. Fine." She crossed her arms and closed her mouth, then continued walking, staring straight ahead.
Sylar was content with the silence. His past few years had been spent in silence. He could easily sense that it made his female companion uncomfortable, but he was alright with that too. She was very obviously used to discomfort. That was good; it would make things much easier. Particularly the next few hours, which promised to be rough.
As they walked they came upon a pile of rocks - quite aesthetically pleasing on the outside, but Sylar knew what lay behind. He pushed a boulder aside with his mind and, though he didn't have to, threw his whole body into the action. He deserved to be a little showy!
"Nice." Rain muttered.
He lead her into a tunnel within the rocks. The pathway slanted downward, and at one point became unbearably narrow, but the narrow pathway suddenly opened up into a large, pitch-black room.
"Still with me?" Sylar called.
"That depends," Rain responded, right next to him. "Still plan on keeping me alive?"
Sylar laughed and pulled a flashlight from his pocket. "Now, there's a hook on the ceiling...ahha!" He hung the light up and turned the front so that it shown about the rock cavern like a lantern. He then looked up at Rain just in time to catch her initial reaction. Her eyes widened, sparkling with the same glittery purple streaks that the walls bore. She caught herself, though, and cleared her throat.
"It's...very nice. Sparkly." She said, casually.
"It's beautiful." Sylar said. "My mother and I used to come here when I was a kid. We'd bring sleeping bags and food and spend the night."
"You still see her?"
"My mother?"
"Yes."
Sylar flexed his jaw. "She died two years ago."
Rain's expression softened. "How?"
"I'd rather not talk about it."
"But you miss her very much."
He glared. "Of course I miss her. She was my mother."
"Then you should talk about it. Sometimes it helps - especially when it was tragic." She said, quietly.
He looked at her. "She tried to stab me with a pair of scissors."
"So you killed her?"
"It was an accident!"
"Defending yourself from an old woman with a pair of scissors?" Rain looked at him sideways. "Did you really believe she was going to kill you?"
"No! I did-" He stopped and steadied his breathing. He mustn't become agitated. "She was scared. I was too. Things got ugly and somebody was gonna die."
"So you killed your own mother?"
This girl had an awful lot of gall! He didn't respond, and her voice got quieter.
"I just lost my mother, too. She died less than two years ago and left me in charge of my little sister."
"You think you understand," Sylar spat. "You don't."
"I didn't say I did," Rain corrected. "But Bethany knows how it feels. What it's like to go through every day knowing that you're the reason she's not around. That if it weren't for you, she'd still be here."
Sylar could feel his pulse racing. What kind of card was she playing? "What are you saying?"
"That I can't imagine what it feels like, and I think we have more in common than you realize." Rain took a stance very close to him. Against the dark purple walls she looked menacing. "I wouldn't kill someone, and you would. But what else would we do differently? Maybe murder is even the next step in my evolution. But you're sad and lonely, and deep under that shell of yours you're scared. Scared that your humanity, the one thing you cling to, is slowly dwindling and that your last tether to reality is about to be cut." She stepped closer so suddenly and forcefully that Sylar found himself stumbling backward, barely catching himself.
"You asked me about my ability," Rain whispered. "I don't know how it works, and I may not understand it in it's entirety, but I do understand that it requires teamwork and friendship. Between Bethany and I there is a lot of love and a lot of trust. If you want to recreate that bond then you're going to have to really try and really trust me. And I have to trust you." Her face suddenly went pale, and she did what Sylar had been wanting to do for some time now; she fainted.