Title: The Past is the Beginning
Author: Shannon – shannyfish
Disclaimer: I do not own "Warehouse 13" or its characters, Syfy and other people do. This is merely for entertainment purposes only.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: My take of the aftermath of the Season 3 Finale – "Emily Lake" & "Stand"
Warning: Season 3 Finale Spoilers. Seasons 1-3 are fair game.
Author's Note: For some reason I have this like huge longing to make a soundtrack for this fic, but instead I found a good sort of theme song that works for me in my head with this story. It's very much the Myka theme song of the fic.
The Myka fic theme song - "Stand in the Rain" by Superchic(k)
Also! Reviews make me happy :D And I'll write faster too! So, keep that in mind!
. . .
Chapter 5 – "The Meaning of Family"
"Adapt or perish, now as ever, is nature's inexorable imperative." ~ HG Wells
"The regents are putting a new plan in motion," Jane reported. "They're watching Sykes and Marcus now."
"They have artifacts," Myka said. "They have to be careful. They have Cecil B. DeMille's Riding Crop, that's how they made Pete and Helena do what they wanted. And…Sykes is using Johann Maelzel's Metronome to keep Marcus alive."
"I've informed them of that and of the fact that Sykes has put together his own cache of artifacts," Jane tried to assure. "They'll be careful." She tilted her head. "Perhaps we should allow them to leave the office, Irene. Agent Bering doesn't look very well," Jane said looking over to Mrs. Frederic.
"I'm fine," Myka waved off. She was exhausted, but that was to be expected, right? It had been a long few days…and she was so very ready for it to all be over. "I just haven't slept in days pretty much… I'm just tired."
"I don't think she's really okay," Leena spoke up.
"I'm going to have to agree," Mrs. Frederic said as she moved closer to Myka.
"We could always crash at Leena's," Pete spoke up.
"I said no leaving…and though I said this office before," Mrs. Frederic stated. "I mean the warehouse."
"I know," Pete said. "There's a Leena's here… At least we know how to get out now."
"Just remember not to flush in there," Claudia reminded.
"Oh yeah…" Pete made a face.
Myka laughed. "I'm fine."
"You can sleep in my room for a while," Artie volunteered.
"I still have nightmares from the last time we were in there," Pete spoke up and then shuddered.
"You were in my room?" Artie asked, his voice escalating to angry.
"No!"
"No…" Myka said quickly.
"I have no idea about anything in your room," Claudia piped up.
. . .
Myka was fast asleep and Claudia and Steve were upstairs sitting in the room with her. Pete figured it was for the best. It also gave Claudia and Steve some time to talk. It was so nice to see them together and happy, especially after everything Myka had said had happened with Steve dying. That wasn't happening now… They were together and safe.
"She's really sick, isn't she?" HG spoke up.
Mrs. Frederic had allowed some of them to venture into the artifact Leena's Bed & Breakfast. Pete figured that even though it didn't have duplicates of their rooms that it would be more comforting than Artie's room. He and Myka had also thus far successfully avoiding Artie's questions.
"I think she's just really tired," Pete said.
"Vanessa's on her way," Artie said as he entered.
Mrs. Frederic and his mother were sitting on the couch, while HG stood off to the side. Leena was the only one missing. Who knew where she'd gone off to. Maybe the artifact made her uncomfortable. "I really don't think Myka's sick, guys…"
"The artifact," Mrs. Frederic said as she held up the watch. "We had an agent some years ago that used it to go back in time in order to change something. To prevent a catastrophe. That agent died once the watch stopped ticking. Agent Bering only has several hours left before the watch stops ticking…and she's already feeling the effects."
"If I gave the watch to Myka. I wouldn't have known that. I only knew that bad things happened when people used it and that you can go back," Artie spoke up. The reality of Myka's mortality obviously sinking in. He sat down in one of the chairs and covered his face.
"But Doctor Vanessa's coming," Pete said. "She'll be okay."
"She will only be able to keep her comfortable until the watch stops," Mrs. Frederic announced.
"There has to be something else we can do," HG spoke up. "Myka did it in order to save the warehouse… To save Agent Jinks, myself, and you…Mrs. Frederic."
"I'm not saying it's fair."
"We have to at least try, Irene," Jane spoke up after remaining silent for some time.
"Believe me, Jane, if there was something we could do to save Agent Bering, I would," Mrs. Frederic said. "But for now…we have to wait."
It still wasn't safe. The regents were transporting Sykes and the artifacts to the warehouse. The artifacts would be neutralized, inventoried, and shelved while Sykes would be becoming a permanent resident in the Bronze Sector of the warehouse. They'd announced that while they'd been heading to Leena's. Pete felt like going through the shelves of the warehouse to find something to help Myka. He wasn't going to lose his partner.
"Myka told me that the way to beat Cataranga's Chess Lock was to change the rules," HG spoke up. "Can we do that here… Can we change the rules?"
"Of time?" Jane asked.
"The only way to beat Agent Bering's death at this point would be to bronze her in hopes that we could find a way to keep her alive. It would keep her in a state of stasis," Mrs. Frederic offered. "But right now, that's the only way I can think to…change the rules as you call it, Agent Wells."
"Agent?" HG asked, obviously surprised.
"You did sort of prove that you're cool again," Pete said. He'd decided leaning against a nearby wall was a good idea. "You lived in Wyoming as Emily Lake and didn't even try to blow up Yellowstone."
HG smirked. "I'm not sure I'm really up for being an agent again."
"Think about it," Mrs. Frederic said.
. . .
"Claudia, I'm going to need your help," Vanessa spoke up as she examined Myka. "Can you do that?"
"Whatever you need," Claudia said quickly.
Pete had settled in the back of the room with Jinks. Artie was right in the hallway. Vanessa had arrived at about the same time that they'd finished the bronzing process on Sykes. The artifacts that had been recovered had been doused with purple goo just to ensure that they weren't active. Things seemed to be settling down, but things didn't feel safe.
"Myka doesn't have any family close, does she?" Vanessa asked.
"Her parents live in Denver," Pete spoke up.
Vanessa just nodded and went about checking out Myka. She finally looked over at Claudia. "I need you to go into the database and to do a search. The warehouse keeps all warehouse agents and regents' DNA and blood types on record. I need you to cross reference for matching blood types and if there's anyone that's nearby that has a close DNA match. The perimeters should already be in the computer for that."
Claudia nodded and hurried off, Steve was right behind her.
"You're going to be able to help her, right?" Pete asked quietly after a moment.
"I'm going to try," Vanessa told him. "I just want to be ready for anything. A blood transfusion isn't too complex. That's fairly simple, but if her organs start to shut down…especially vital ones… A kidney or something that can be transplanted without much harm to the donor or the patient is what I have Claudia working on. I honestly would suggest bronzing her before it gets to that point."
Pete just nodded to himself and swallowed hard. The reality that he very may well lose his partner…his best friend…the person who probably knew him better than anyone else in the whole world… It hit him like a truck. He would give anything to save her. Myka had brought out the best in him, in everyone. She'd come back to save them…and now she was paying the ultimate price. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right.
"I'll let you have some time with her," Vanessa said as she got up from Myka's bedside. She turned to Pete and put her hand on his shoulder for a moment before leaving him alone.
Pete sat down at her bedside where Vanessa had been sitting. She looked pale and sick. How could he have missed that before? He reached out and gently laid his hand on her cheek. She was a little cooler than his hand. He frowned. "I don't know what to do," he whispered. Was it the best option to bronze her? Would she be okay with that? Would she understand? Would they ever be able to reverse the process and save her? It weighed heavily on him. Who would even make that decision? He wasn't sure that Myka would be awake enough to say yes or no if asked.
"I'm going to stay right with you," he told her and reached down to take her hand. He held it in both of his and watched her. He watched as her chest rose and fell. "You know, I can't have you bronzed… Who's going to make sure I stay out of trouble? Or at least fix the trouble I cause? Claudia, Steve, and I will drive Artie insane in no time. We need you." He squeezed her hand for a moment and waited with her hand between his two.
She didn't squeeze back. He frowned, but hoped to at least warm her up a bit. "Doctor Vanessa's going to fix this, you just have to hang in there. They caught Marcus and Sykes. They put all the artifacts away, so you know…Marcus is gone. Sykes got bronzed, so you know…it's safe. No one's going to hurt anyone. We're all safe." His voice got dead quiet. "Because of you."
Pete leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead and then leaned back and resumed his position. He wasn't going to leave her. He needed to be there when she woke up.
"You should tell her, Agent Lattimer, before it's too late."
The voice made him jump and he turned to see Mrs. Frederic standing in the doorway. "How exactly do you do that?"
"Make people jump?" she asked as she took a step further into the room.
"Suddenly appear without a sound," Pete clarified.
"If I told you then you'd know," Mrs. Frederic said. "It's better this way."
Pete didn't think so, but he just sort of vaguely nodded. He looked back at Myka and then finally processed what Mrs. Frederic had said when she'd scared him. "What should I tell her?" he asked.
"About your feelings."
"She's my best friend," Pete said. "She knows that."
"Is that really all it is?" Mrs. Frederic asked as she took another step closer. "It's not uncommon for warehouse agents to work quite closely together on a daily basis and then end up in a romantic relationship whether or not we approve of it."
Pete just stared at her for a moment and squinted slightly. "Myka doesn't think of me that way. She thinks of me like a brother."
"Are you sure?"
Pete nodded.
"How do you know?"
Pete shrugged. "She's said it before."
"But have you ever told her your feelings…and challenged the previously stated ones?" Mrs. Frederic asked.
"No…"
"Well, then," she said. "I think you know what needs to be done when Agent Bering wakes again. "Do it quickly, though. I'm afraid that Agent Bering will soon become the newest resident of the Bronze Sector."
Pete shook his head. "No! She's going to be okay. She's my partner. I'm not training a new one! Claudia has Steve and I have Myka. That's how the partner system works for us."
"Just know that time can be rewritten, Agent Lattimer, but that fate can not be bent to our will," Mrs. Frederic said before exiting.
With Mrs. Frederic gone, Pete turned back to Myka and just stared at her. Did he really think of Myka that way? She was beautiful; he knew that…he'd told her that before. It wasn't just outer beauty but inner beauty as well. He would give his life for hers, in a heartbeat, without really thinking. He'd happily take a bullet if it meant her living. Was that what Mrs. Frederic meant? He'd do that for Claudia too, but he knew he wasn't in love with her. He definitely felt like Claudia was his little sister. They were a family, was that why it was so complicated?
"Why do things have to be so complicated?" Pete asked Myka.
She didn't speak. She didn't open her eyes. She remained still. Pete sighed and continued to hold her hand there at her bedside. Maybe it would have helped Myka if they were in their own respective bedrooms at the Leena's they were used to. Her things were there and everything was familiar to her. There was really not anything familiar here.
"I often ask that question."
The voice was female, but it wasn't Myka's. It belonged to his mother and Pete sighed again. It wasn't that he didn't want to see her, it was just that right now he was trying to get Myka to wake up and Myka and his mother didn't always see eye to eye. "She shouldn't have to die because she came back to save us and the warehouse."
"I can't control the artifact, Pete," Jane admitted as she further entered the room. "I would if I could."
"She's my partner, Mom," he said as he turned to look at her. "I don't want to lose that. I know being a warehouse agent means that there's a good possibility that an artifact will kill you on a daily basis...but Myka and I pretty much figured if it came to that that we'd go together."
Jane smiled at him. "You know, I never wanted this life for you...but it suits you... Your father would be so proud of you."
Pete would take her word for it. She knew his father better...longer. He believed it, though. What about Myka's family? What about her parents? Pete loved Myka's mother...and her cooking. His stomach twisted at the thought of having to tell them such a devastating thing. How did you do that? It was one thing if it was people you didn't know, but quite another when you'd been invited into their home and their world.
"Myka's parents live in Denver, you know... They have a bookstore there," Pete told her. "Warren and Jeannie."
"You've met them?"
"They're Myka's parents," Pete said with a shrug. "MacPherson used a Poe artifact against her father."
"That's right," Jane said. "You never came home and brought your partner with you."
"Well, in all fairness it's less cool to be a regent," Pete pointed out. "You're all at the top of the authority pyramid."
"Good to know..."
Pete looked back at Myka, his face saddened a bit more. He'd allowed himself to get distracted. She was his real focus and he'd allowed himself to be pulled away from her. He squeezed her hand again for a second. He looked back to his mother. "Are you sure there's nothing you or the regents can do?"
"Besides bronzing?" Jane asked and then shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid not."
He had to be sure. Pete knew that the regents kept things from them, but he had to ask again. He'd hoped that maybe there was something his mother could tell him that she wouldn't say in front of everyone else. Maybe something experimental...something.
"I would do anything to spare you pain, Pete," she told him.
Pete just nodded and turned his full attention back to Myka. He heard his mother's footfalls as she made her way back out of the bedroom.
. . .
The sound of arguing woke him. He didn't remember falling asleep but apparently he had. His head had been resting on Myka's stomach. He got up and scratched his head as he yawned. Pete was quiet as he neared the door. He didn't want to interrupt whatever they seemed so upset about.
"Are you sure that search is accurate?" Jane asked.
"I double checked it," Claudia said. "That's what took so long. Both times had the same result."
"Myka's my...niece?" HG asked, obviously confused. "Or something like that..."
Claudia shrugged. "I didn't pull out the Wells family tree, but somehow Myka's related to you."
"So, will that help?" Jane asked, this time turning her question to Doctor Vanessa Calder.
Pete stayed back, so that he was in the bedroom, but that he could still hear. HG and Myka were related? He thought about it for a moment and then tilted his head as the information trickled through his brain. He could maybe see that. Maybe... They both had similar coloring and were both far too smart. He'd also realized that with Myka's hair straightened, she looked more like HG. How odd... It was odd, wasn't it?
"Honestly, I think the best option is going to be to bronze her until we can come with a more permanent treatment. Blood transfusions and transplanting organs that will keep both HG Wells and Agent Bering alive is going to be much more complex and would risk them both possibly dying during the procedures. I also still wouldn't be able to assure that Agent Bering would survive even with the treatments," Vanessa spoke up.
Pete sunk back into the room and sat back on the edge of the bed. He just stared down at the ground. They weren't going to be able to do anything for Myka... How was that possible? They worked in Warehouse 13, land of endless possibility...there had to be something... He felt like passing out and throwing up all at the same time as he tried to process the thought of losing Myka.
"I'm sorry," he heard Vanessa add.
Sure, technically he wasn't going to be 'losing' her, but that's what it felt like. It felt like loss. They didn't even know if they bronzed her if they'd be able to reverse the process and then save her...and even if the event came about where they could...what year would it be? Would it be like with HG Wells? Would she be brought back a hundred years from now? Was that really fair?
"We failed you, Myka," Pete whispered.
All he could think of was that there'd been this horrible, tragic timeline and Myka had fixed it. People they loved and cared about had died. They'd lost the warehouse. Things had just sounded like they'd spiraled out of control. That hadn't happened this time. Myka had taken charge and everyone was safe. Everyone, but her.
. . .
TBC...