"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep, Hal." Karen circled Hal slowly, her eyes gleaming with hatred.
Hal watched her, his bloody lips pursed. He swallowed tightly, fighting the urge to gag on the strong, rusty taste in his mouth.
"I don't." Hal mumbled quietly, closing his eyes as he spoke. Karen spat out a laugh at this.
"Oh, but you do, Hal. You promised me you loved me, didn't you? And then that precious Maggie floated into your life. You promised your mother you would always protect your family, no matter what. And now look at you." Hal's eyes shot back open at this, and he glared at Karen with such fury it could have burned a hole through her.
Karen caught his glare and smiled widely, her eyes dancing with a devilish joy. "And now you've promised Matt that you would keep him safe, and look where he is." Her voice was taunting, and Hal found it difficult to control his rage, even in his weakened state.
Karen stopped next to Hal, cocking her head as she looked down at him. His gaze never faltered from hers.
"So… Do you feel like talking yet?" Karen watched him closely. Hal opened his mouth, as if to speak, but instead spat a mixture of blood and saliva at her face. He did not smile, or laugh, this time. He simply watched her, anger and hatred permanently etched into his features.
Karen wiped the spit from her cheek slowly and examined it in her hand. She briefly glanced back at Hal before laughing softly. She raised her hand to her mouth and licked her hand, his bloody spit staining her tongue. Hal grimaced in disgust, but did not look away.
Karen dropped her hand back to her side and smiled at Hal. She resumed her circling, periodically disappearing behind his head.
"You know, I chose you for a reason, Hal. To interrogate, I mean. You do not know as much as your father, but you are weaker. Tom Mason may have a pure heart, and a passionate desire to protect his family, but in the end, he will always choose the safety of the entire human species over individuals, even if those individuals are his sons."
Hal gritted his teeth and stared at the ceiling as Karen continued.
"But you, Hal… You allow yourself to become so emotionally attached to those you love that the overall goal of saving the world is blinded to you. And this is what makes you so useful to me. To us." Karen gestured around the room, her smile remaining.
"Now. Are you going to tell me what I need to know, or should I make you?" Karen's tone indicated a warning to Hal.
Hal let his head fall back against the table, and he closed his eyes.
"How about I tell you in hell?" He said quietly, his jaw tight.
Karen's eyes flicked for a moment. She was growing more and more impatient by the second.
"By force, then." Karen stated simply.
Hal's eyes opened once more as he heard a door somewhere behind him creak open.
"Hal!" Matt's cry was so small and frightened that Hal's heart sank to his stomach.
"Hal!" Hal breathed in sharply, wincing at the great pain this caused in his chest. No. He thought. No, please.
Matt and Ben appeared before him now, both escorted by a Skitter, both their faces covered in various bruises and cuts. Both were frightened, looking to their big brother for safety and reassurance. He could offer them none.
Hal swallowed tightly and looked at Karen, unable to contain the fear and anger in his voice when he spoke.
"Let them go, Karen." Hal tried to sound threatening, but his voice cracked and the fear broke through completely.
Karen shook her head, walking over to Ben, her movements easy and fluid.
"I can't do that, Hal. Ben and Matt are here because of you, and only you can let them go." She smirked at Hal as she reached Ben. She put her hand to Ben's face, and he flinched in response, gritting his teeth.
Hal tried to sit up so he could get to Ben, but he found he was too weak and in too much pain, and he collapsed back to the table, breathing heavily.
Karen stroked Ben's cheek. He turned his head away from her, and she grabbed him by the throat harshly.
He gagged loudly, his hands flying to hers immediately. Matt cried out and struggled against the Skitter who kept him firmly in place. Hal yelled loudly, the rage evident in his strained voice.
"Karen! Let him go!" Hal struggled to sit once more, but he was too weak.
Karen smiled. She tightened her grip on Ben's throat and lifted him from the ground. His feet kicked angrily as he struggled to break her grip.
"Give me what I need, Hal." Karen spoke without looking at Hal.
Hal tried once more to sit, groaning furiously. He managed to sit, and as he was rising to his shaky feet, he coughed, and a mouthful of blood rose to his lips. He spat it to the side, and fought the wave of dizziness and pain that crashed over him as he rose from the table.
Ben was still struggling to break free of Karen's suffocating grip, but he was noticeably weaker. His face was beginning to take on a pale blue tint, and his legs were no longer kicking in protest. Matt was sobbing angrily, still fighting the Skitter.
"Hal, give me what I need, or I break his neck." Karen spoke without hesitation.
Hal moved in slow motion, unable to lift his feet at a steady pace. He kept his eyes on Ben, whose eyes were beginning to flutter shut.
"Have it your way, then." Karen's grip on Ben's throat tightened greatly.
Hal heard the crunch, but it didn't register. He didn't understand what he had just heard, what he had seen. Matt's sobs fell silent as Karen dropped Ben's lifeless body to the ground.
Hal halted to a stop, his breath catching in his throat. He couldn't even feel the agonizing pain in his chest now. He couldn't feel the thick blood rising into his mouth.
Hal stared at Ben, his eyes blank. He couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
Suddenly, the ground beneath Hal began to shake violently, and he fell to his knees. He didn't notice, though. All he could focus on was Ben.
Matt suddenly began to sob uncontrollably, and he called out to Hal, but it sounded distant and faint to Hal. Still, he remained kneeling, his empty eyes staring at his dead brother.
The ground shook again and a loud explosion cracked beneath them. Karen ran to Hal and lifted him to his feet. He allowed her to, unable to fight. Hal couldn't seem to focus on anything.
He was suddenly thrust back into reality when he felt an explosion of pain in his chest, and a fresh, hot slow of blood pulse down his body quickly. He cried out weakly, and only then did he notice that they were no longer alone in the room anymore. Hal looked around at all the familiar faces, his eyes glazing over.
Before Hal stood his father, Captain Weaver, Pope, Dai, Anthony, Tector, and two of the three soldiers from Charleston. They were all armed, all ready for battle. They looked so far away, even though they were right in front of him.
Hal could faintly hear Matt screaming behind him, but everything seemed so far away now.
Tom rushed in, followed quickly by everyone else, and he pressed his rifle to Karen's head furiously.
"Save him!" Hal heard his father yell. He wasn't sure who he was talking about.
Hal's legs gave out suddenly, and he fell harshly to the cold ground. He didn't cry out as his head slammed against the metal floor. He couldn't feel it.
Time disappeared now. Hal couldn't track the movements or screams of the other people in the room. It was all too quick for him to follow. Everything looked frozen.
Hal blinked weakly, fighting to keep his eyes open. Nothing seemed real in that moment. Everything was distant and faded.
But then reality flooded back to him in a single, agonizing wave. He felt something jolt inside of him, and then everything came crashing down.
Hal sat up instantly, barely turning his head before the heavy burst of blood exploded from his mouth. He vomited up the blood until he had nothing left. Hal coughed and gagged for several long moments, wheezing deeply.
The pain was overwhelming. Hal lifted a shaking hand to his chest, and he felt something sticking out. He tugged weakly until the thick needle fell out, gasping as it did.
"Hal, we have to go!" He heard the voice, but everything still seemed so unreal.
He was in such a great state of shock. Hal was conscious, but he was not with the rest of the group, mentally or emotionally. He was in a terrible daze. He might as well have been in a coma.
Hal could not recall the next moments to come. He could not find his mind or thoughts, and so he remained in the darkness, letting it settle around him.
It was almost an hour later when Hal felt himself resurfacing. He found that they had somehow gotten to an open field. He was sitting on a rotting log, completely alone. It took Hal a moment to register everything, but when he did, he wished he could sink back into the darkness.
Hal watched as his father cradled Ben's dead body. Matt knelt beside him, sobbing helplessly, choking on hiccups. Dai was standing off to the side, holding in tears, as was Tector and the Beserkers. Maggie was still unconscious, lying in the grass, her face pale and bloodied., her chest rising and falling weakly. Captain Weaver stood with his back facing Hal, a hand pressed firmly to his mouth as he held in choked sobs.
And Pope was near Hal, standing but a few feet to his right. His face was hardened and dark. He seemed to notice that Hal was more alert, and he took a seat next to him on the log.
Hal still continued to watch his father and brothers. He swallowed loudly and blinked his eyes to his feet.
"It's a damn shame, huh?" Pope spoke lowly, his voice grave. "He's just a kid. I'm not the biggest fan of you or your family, but he didn't deserve that."
Hal wanted to scream, to punch Pope in the mouth just for speaking of his brother, but he felt so drained he couldn't do anything but stare at his feet.
Pope glanced at Hal out of the corners of his eyes, looking him up and down closely. He looked terrible. His eyes were shadowed with such dark circles they could have easily been mistaken for bruises. He was covered in deep cuts and dark bruises. His lips were coated with dried blood, and he was devoid of all color and life. He looked very gaunt, his eyes were sunken into his head from exhaustion, and he had a permanent expression of pain and anger scarred into his features.
"I'm sorry, kid... About your brother...-" Pope started his apology, but Hal's quiet voice interrupted.
"Please, Pope. Don't... Don't say anything." Hal was pleading with Pope. His voice was terribly strained and weak. His eyes never lifted from the ground.
Pope nodded after a moment of hesitation, still watching Hal. He looked away, back to where the others stood crowded around Ben. He sighed and cleared his throat.
"When she took you... What did she want? She ask you about the rebels?" Pope's voice still had a hard edge to it, but he softened it a bit for Hal, who was in a terribly fragile state.
Hal closed his eyes, feeling hot tears well into his eyes. He was unable to keep them from spilling down his cheeks.
"Please stop talking, Pope." Hal begged him quietly, his voice cracking.
Matt suddenly turned around, seeming to notice that Hal was awake. He weakly rose to his feet and sprinted to Hal, crying out as he did.
Matt ran to Hal, leaving his oblivious father behind, and stood before him, seeming hesitant and scared. Silent tears flowed down his cheeks.
Hal looked up instantly and met his baby brother's pained eyes. Hal felt a choked sob escape his lips, and without a word, he pulled Matt into his stiff arms, ignoring the pain that ripped through his body as he moved.
Matt curled up in Hal's lap, his arms wrapped tightly around him. Hal buried his face in Matt's grimy hair and held him as tightly as he could. Matt sobbed into Hal's bloody chest, his small body shaking violently as he let out all the pain and fear inside of him.
Hal pulled Matt even closer to him, cradling him, rocking back and forth gently. He managed to hold in most of his own sobs, but a few escaped into Matt's hair. The pain Hal felt, both physically and emotionally, were so great it was unimaginable. He couldn't control it. And he couldn't control the horrible guilt that tugged at his heart.
Ben was dead, and it was all Hal's fault. If Hal had just stalled Karen, given her some false information, he could have bought enough time to come up with a decent plan, and Ben would be alive right now. But Hal had been foolish. He had acted without thinking, and it had cost his little brother his life. Hal choked on another weak sob, holding Matt tighter.
Pope watched silently as the two brothers held each other. Matt was crumpled in Hal's arms, sobbing viciously. Hal was trying to be strong for his brother, but his exterior was quickly shattering, the tears beginning to fall, the sobs beginning to choke out. As Pope watched them, he felt a definite sadness. He couldn't deny it, but he wouldn't show it. Instead, he looked away, giving the two boys some privacy and time to grieve.
Hal stroked Matt's hair gently, desperately fighting back his own emotions.
"It's okay. I'm here. I've got you." Hal murmured to Matt, his voice as soothing as possible. Matt clung to Hal, his body trembling terribly.
"I don't want Ben to go to heaven, Hal." Matt wept in Hal's drenched, bloodstained shirt.
Hal stifled a sob and nodded against Matt's head. "Neither do I." He whispered.
Matt pulled back suddenly, looking at Hal. His face was pale and splotchy, tears staining his dirt-coated cheeks. He looked at Hal with big eyes, his lip trembling.
"Hal... What did Karen want with you?" Matt asked quietly, his voice shaking.
Hal remained silent, not because he didn't want to answer Matt, but because he suddenly had a strange feeling creep inside of his chest. He looked at Matt with confusion filling his agonized eyes.
"Did she ask about the rebel attack?" Matt continued, studying Hal's face.
Hal opened his mouth to speak, but found no words would come out.
"What's so important about the rebel attack that she would do all of this?" Matt's voice was small and innocent, his eyes full of pain.
"Was it about Boston? Or Chicago?"
Hal gently pushed Matt out of his lap and looked up to find the whole group watching him closely. Something wasn't right.
"What difference did it make if they're attacking Boston or Chicago, Hal? Why couldn't you just tell her? Ben would still be alive if you had just told her." Matt's voice was rising now, and he seemed different.
"Why don't you tell me what's so important about it, huh? Don't you think I deserve that much? Why don't you tell me what was so important about this plan that it was worth my brother dying over! What's the plan, huh, Hal? What's the plan?"
Hal stood shakily now, watching as the group of fighters slowly surrounded him, the same intent expression on all of their faces. He backed up slowly, watching them closely, unable to hide the fear in his eyes.
"What's the plan, Hal?" Matt yelled angrily again, stepping towards Hal.
Hal began to back up more quickly, until he felt his back slam against a tree. He was trapped.
"What's the plan, Hal?" But it wasn't Matt who spoke this time. It was Karen. Karen was surrounding him.