Dream sequence…
Lucas felt Mycroft's strong hands tighten around his neck. He clawed at his throat wildly gasping for air. His eyes bulged and he felt his pulse racing. Bright spots flashed before his eyes and he felt himself losing consciousness.
"Please don't," he pleaded with tears streaming down his face.
"Shut-up kid! You ruined all my plans! You deserve to die!" screamed the man vehemently. Lucas felt like his lungs would burst from lack of oxygen, and he knew he was going to die. He wouldn't get to see Captain Bridger again and tell him how much he appreciated all the man had done for him…how much he loved him. The captain would only remember how much of a nuisance he was. All the crew of seaQuest would be relieved when he was dead. No more Lucas to get in the way and to screw up. Life would finally be trouble-free. Lucas-free.
"Noooooooo!" screamed Lucas weakly feeling himself falling into darkness.
Lucas woke up clawing at his throat. He moaned as he felt his nails ripping into his own flesh. He looked at his hands to see blood and skin buried under his nails. He shuddered at the sight and wiped his hands on his jeans. He felt like he was losing his grip on reality after the nightmares. It took him several minutes to control his panic and to remind himself that he was not in any danger. He glanced around his surroundings trying to figure out where he was. As his pulse slowed, he remembered that he had hidden himself away from the beaten path of the SeaQuest crew. He had lifted a floor grate and escaped into the floor of the sub. It was the same place he hid from Ben when they played games like hide and seek. No one would find him unless he came out. NO one would think to look in the floors. He had been so tired that he had fallen asleep almost as soon as he sat down. Lucas was frightened and feeling desperate on the verge of exhaustion. He wasn't sure how much longer he could hold onto his common sense.
Nathan and Kristen entered the c-deck and checked for Darwin. The dolphin was swimming around in obvious distress. He was clicking and chirping and splashing water. He nudged at Nathans hands expectantly. Nathan picked up the vocorder and attempted to switch it on.
"Damn, someone disconnected a bunch of wires," stated Nathan in frustration. Kristen looked at the vocorder and quickly took it to a work desk. She started to reconnect wires and do what she could to fix it. The machine bleeped and flashed as she attempted to switch it on and off to test it.
"Who would do that?" asked Nathan with his temper flaring. He could see that Darwin was upset and in misery. Nathan and Darwin were used to communicating vocally with each other, and it was evident how frustrated the mammal was to not be able to get his point across.
"Lucas hurt!" screeched the dolphin suddenly and Kristen's heart leapt in her chest relieved to have at least temporarily fixed the unit. Nathan grabbed the hand held device and ran to the moonpool.
"What's wrong with Lucas, Darwin? How is he hurt?" asked Nathan worry perceptible in his voice.
"Lucas blood eyes," replied the dolphin still screeching. "Bridger find Lucas! Bridger find Lucas! Lucas hurt!" The dolphin continued to swim in circles and breach and repeat himself. It was evident how distraught the animal was. Nathan looked at Kristen questionably. Kristen glanced at Nathan with concern written all over her face.
"Why would Lucas be hurt, Nathan?" asked Kristen feeling confused. Nathan shrugged his shouldered wondering the same thing. The boy appeared fine the last time he had seen him. It was his behaviour that was odd and out of character.
"To be honest, I haven't seen his eyes since he came back from Node Three because of those blasted sunglasses he's been wearing," replied Nathan attempting to stroke the agitated dolphin. "Calm down, fella, I'll find Lucas." Kristen suddenly had a thought pop into her head.
"Do you suppose he was in a fight? Maybe has a black eye? Has Darwin ever seen a black eye?" enquired Kristen. Nathan squinted his eye, pondering her words and stroking Darwin's chin thoughtfully.
"Why would he call it 'blood eyes'? Has Darwin figured out colours yet?" Kristen shook her head slowly and brushed a strand of hair from her eyes.
"It's not an exact science, Nathan. I haven't even heard Darwin use the word blood before. Blood can appear dark sometimes…maybe even black."
"Bridger find Lucas! Lucas scared!" clicked Darwin again looking deeply into Nathans eyes in earnest. It was almost like the animal was pleading with Nathan. Nathan looked into his friend's eye and patted him gently. It was almost like Nathan could feel the animal's distress in his head. Kristen stroked the dolphin as well. Darwin chirped a few more times and then swam away apparently on his own search for Lucas. Kristen and Nathan looked at each other quietly for a few moments.
"I'm sure it's nothing serious. Nathan," reassured Kristen patting the man's hand. "You know how teenagers can be." Nathan nodded. As much as he wanted to believe that, an unsettled feeling remained in his gut. He silently chided himself for not being more attentive when Lucas returned from the Node. No matter how often he told himself that the boy wasn't his personal responsibility, his heart never agreed. Lucas had touched his heart forever, and he genuinely loved and cared for the boy, even when the kid drove him to point of distraction most of the time. "Where are you, kiddo?" mumbled Nathan. Kristen and Nathan joined hands and left the c-deck resuming their search with determination.
Ben sat down on the stairs scratching his head. He was baffled. Lucas had hundreds of places he could hide because the kid was so damned skinny. Any time the two of them played hide and seek, Lucas won and half the time, Ben didn't even know where the kid had hidden.
"C'mon, Krieg, THINK!" he hissed out loud tapping the side of his head with his finger. Where would an annoyed teenager hide? He would need easy access to food and to the washroom. The kid was small enough that he could crawl through the ventilation system, and Lucas had done that before when he played pranks on him. Damn, it was a submarine for Pete's sake. How far could the kid go? Why did he feel so worried?
Ben stood up and walked down the corridor almost stomping his feet. He walked briskly not noticing part of the grate protruding from the floor. His foot caught the corner of the grate and sent him tumbling to the floor bringing him almost eye to eye… with Lucas. Ben blinked hard a few times as he focussed on the kid below him.
"Lucas, what the hell?" stated Ben. He felt irritated and relieved at the same time. He quickly tapped his PAL "Krieg to Captain Bridger, I've got Lucas. Second floor corridor b-deck." Lucas dropped his head and ducked down crawling into the darkness.
"Lucas, what's the deal?" demanded Ben removing the grate completely and dropping down into the floor.
"Lemme alone, Ben!" shouted Lucas angrily sitting in the darkness not looking up.
"The hell I will. Damn it, kid! You've got every person on this tub searching for you. What's going on?" demanded Ben trying to understand. Lucas was like a kid brother to him, and he cared about the kid. This strange behaviour was out of character for Lucas, and the teenager had never been one to be an attention seeker. This conduct was classic textbook attention seeking. Lucas shook his head and still refused to look up.
"I'm fine, Ben. Please just go away!" whispered Lucas sounding weary. Ben sat down and sighed. Being annoyed and angry with the kid wasn't going to help the situation. It was obvious the teen was distraught.
"C'mon, kid, it's me, Ben. You can tell me anything…" Lucas shook his head.
"No, I can't! I can't tell anyone." Ben could hear the pain in Lucas' voice. The kid was on the verge of tears. Ben reached out and put his hand on Lucas' knee gently to reassure him. Lucas pulled away and manoeuvred himself with his back to Ben in the darkness. Ben sat back and attempted to stretch his legs in the cramped quarters. Up above he could hear footsteps running down the stairs.
Nathan and Kristen approached the second floor corridor to see the floor grate removed. They exchanged a confused look and walked to the opening. Just as they approached Ben popped up with a look a concern. Ben quietly explained the situation to the captain to the best of his knowledge. Nathan sighed and felt his pulse calm as he caught his breath. What on earth was troubling the kid? After giving Ben instructions to call off the search, Nathan lowered himself into the floor of his sub. It took a few seconds for his eyes to adjust enough to see Lucas sitting with his back to him. Nathan crawled towards Lucas and sat down in the darkness.
"My knees are getting old, Lucas. Crawling into places like this is hard on this old guy," commented Nathan softly. Lucas shrugged his shoulders but didn't say anything. "Hey, now, talk to me kiddo. What's going on? Darwin is beside himself insisting you're hurt. Did you disable the vocorder?" Lucas stiffened and nodded his head in the darkness. Nathan could just barely see the movement. "Why, Lucas?" Lucas shrugged again turning around and leaning against the wall of the small space. Nathan reached out and put his hand on his knee kindly.
"Eventually you need to talk to me, Lucas. You haven't been acting like yourself at all since you came back from node three. Its evident something happened there. You have been bad-tempered and ill mannered since you returned to SeaQuest. You have been shirking your duties and avoiding everyone. It's unlike you, kiddo."
"I can't talk about it," said Lucas softly. Nathan squeezed Lucas knee firmly. Lucas winced in spite of himself.
"You can tell me anything, Lucas. You know that. Look, did you get into a fight? I'm not going to be upset with you, I promise. It's not so unusual when you get all that testosterone in one room. Perhaps over a girl?" began Nathan good-naturedly. "Darwin said your eyes are hurt. Do you have a black eye?" Nathan felt Lucas pull away from him backing further into the darkness.
"My eyes are fine," came the terse reply from the boy. Nathan sighed. He wasn't getting anywhere with the kid, and his legs were getting cramped from sitting in the small space. "Just leave me be, Captain."
"I'll tell you what. I will leave you alone for now if you come out of here, and go to your room. It's cold and drafty down here, and I think my legs went to sleep." Lucas didn't move or acknowledge the words. "Well?" asked the captain expectantly.
"I'm not going anywhere," came the stubborn response. Nathan sighed again. He leaned against the wall and stretched out his legs with a groan. It appeared like he was going to be here awhile so he tried to make himself as comfortable as possible in the cramped space. "Don't you have a ship to command, Captain," mumbled Lucas softly.
"I'm confident that Jonathan can handle things. He even volunteered to give you a kick in the seat of your pants for me," commented Nathan poking at Lucas' backside with his foot. He felt the boy crouch away from his foot without comment. "Well, kiddo, I'm not going anywhere either so you might as well spill it."
"I deserve a kick in the pants," whispered Lucas softly tears brimming his eyes. Nathan heard the teen sniffle in the darkness.
"How about you let me be the judge of that, Lucas. C'mon, just spill it. It's obvious that the problem has become bigger than you, so let me help you. I could spend all day guessing and never come close. Help an old guy out…" pleaded Nathan gently. He heard Lucas sigh and sniff again.
"I screwed up, Captain. I did something you won't like, and after I tell you, I know you will want me to leave SeaQuest," stammered Lucas with tears falling down his cheeks. Nathan let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding and shifted in his spot.
"Listen to me, Lucas. Before you continue, let me tell you this okay? Nothing could make me send you away from SeaQuest. This is your home. You may have 'screwed up' as you call it, but nothing you could do would make me send you away from your home. Got it?" responded Nathan in a firm tone. He heard the boy choke back a sob in the darkness. "Lucas, talk to me!" beseeched Nathan with concern.
"Mycroft wanted me at the Node to break into the World bank," choked Lucas pitifully. "It was all a ruse to get me there. They never needed anything from SeaQuest but me. Nick and Juliana hacked the UEO codes and contacted SeaQuest. Mycroft wanted power so he could control and re-allocate money where he saw fit. I'm sorry, Captain, I knew it was wrong, and I should have contacted you right away!" rambled Lucas with an audible sob. Nathan saw the boys shoulders shaking as he sobbed into his hands. As much as the situation was serious, it was still odd how the teenager was reacting to the circumstances. It was like he had convinced himself that the issue was beyond his grasp to mend.
"I see. Is there anything else I should know, Lucas?" asked Nathan in a mock stern voice. "How much damage was done?"
"He moved some money around, but I shut him down before it got out of hand," answered the boy. "I will accept any punishment you give me, Captain." Nathan scratched the side of his head thoughtfully. He was genuinely concerned about the kid's reaction to the state of affairs and was having a hard time understanding. His gut told him there was a lot more to the story than Lucas was telling him. Nathan cleared his throat carefully pondering his next words.
"Alright then, Lucas, I want you to come into the light and look me in the eyes when I discipline you," commanded Nathan sternly. Nathan strained his eyes to see what if any movement the boy would make. He saw the boy's head come up off his knees. "Now, son." He watched as Lucas turned himself around in the small space and inch towards him. As the boy came into the light, Nathan reached out to lift his chin. Nathan's jaw dropped when he saw Lucas' face. His face was tear-streaked through what looked like skin coloured makeup. Under the child's eyes appeared red pin-like spots speckled under each eye almost like freckles. The whites of his eyes were filled with what looked like broken blood vessels, giving each eye an eerie bloody look. Nathan also noticed scratches on the kid's neck that were still oozing blood. He reached out and pulled the high neck of Lucas' shirt down to see what was left of old scratches and green bruises. "What the hell? What happened, Lucas?" thundered Nathan anger apparent in his voice. He watched the boy grimace and pull away fearfully.
"M-Mycroft was angry. H-H-He…" stammered the teen.
"He did that to you?" sputtered Nathan trying to not frighten Lucas any more. Lucas nodded with fresh tears streaming down his cheeks. Nathan reached out and awkwardly pulled the boy into an embrace. Lucas seemed to melt into his arms releasing more mournful sobs. Nathan placed his hand on Lucas' head ruffling the child's blond hair soothingly. Damn, the kid appeared so fragile. Nathan's mind raced as he thought about what happened to Lucas. It looked like the kid had been nearly strangled. Nathan closed his eyes holding the boy close as the boy sobbed. "It's going to be okay, kiddo," whispered the captain quietly.