THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS DEATH AND VIOLENCE SO IS RATED "M".

Chapter 13 - Search and Avoid

The next barrier, Leonard had to overcome, was not a barricade like the previous one, it was getting in the building without getting caught. The building the terrorists were in, was one of three identical buildings in a row, the terrorists having the end building in the chain. Their building was impregnable so Leonard needed an easier route, he needed to get in the building on the other end of that chain. The building the terrorists occupied was a hotel and the next two buildings were office buildings, that were currently evacuated except for military personnel. The building next to the hotel was filled with military personnel, was all lit up and would be impossible to enter from the street, but the building on the other side was empty too, dark, and only guarded by military personnel. That building was the weak link they had found and Leonard's goal, he needed to get into its parking garage.

Leonard moved up to the building staying behind all the beautiful trees and shrubbery that were in place to decorate the building. He then watched the patrols for about 10 minutes before he figured how long he had to get to a back access door that would lead him inside. He was scared and worried, but he knew he had to do it, so after the patrol went around the corner, he moved as fast as he could to the door. The door was heavy steel and barred, but with the suit Leonard yanked it open, the steel door frame groaning in protest before the door lock finally broke, he then slipped inside, pulling the door closed behind him.

"My God Howie." Bernadette looked from the monitor screen to Howard, her face in awe, every time Leonard did something, it was more amazing than the previous time. "You guys built that, it is amazing.?"

Penny looked at him too, "Leonard is really a superman in that thing."

"Not really, he is in a mobile suit with an enhanced mechanical exoskeleton, that is bulletproof, not bomb proof." he looked at them both again, and thought came back into his mind, the one he had been thinking since he let them in the truck. 'They needed to leave, things were getting more and more serious fast'. He steeled himself for the exchange, "This has gone on enough, I don't want you guys to die. Please girls leave now, leave fast."

"I'm am not leaving Leonard." It was unarguable statement and Penny glared at him, daring him to say another word. There was nothing from heaven or earth that would make her leave and she even wished she was with him, following him, as he tried to do this impossible task. "Again Howard, show me how to operate this stuff, you and Bernadette can then leave."

"Howie, we can't leave him, you are the only one that can help him and I'm not leaving you." Bernadette leaned over and kissed her husband. "I love you Howie, but some things or people are worth dying for." Howard looked at her for a couple seconds, a frown on his face, then he nodded reluctantly. So much for being the tough guy, as Howard accepted their fate.

Penny watched them, and the comfort they gave each other, ashamed for feeling so jealous she couldn't hold Leonard right now, kiss him, and tell him she loved him. The thought of being without Leonard was now unbearable to her, she really did love him, she wanted him in her life forever, if they lived through this, she was never going to hold back on him again. Penny didn't ever want to take a chance again they would break up again or something would drive them apart, she knew she wanted to marry him, and now there was no hesitation in her thoughts. She would ask him if his offer from months before was still open and if not she would propose to him, her mind was now made up, Leonard was hers and she was not letting him go.

Leonard moved down the stairs and into the parking garage complex, he was lucky, the military had sealed off the parking garage and didn't have anyone inside. He cautiously walked across the garage to a storage room on the other side, trying to make as little noise as the suit would allow, the echoing sounds of him moving through the garage making him cringe. He never realized he had been holding his breath, the last few feet to the storage room, until he got inside and was gasping for air, he was sweaty and had been so worried. He just wanted to stand there, for a little while, and get his senses back, but he didn't have time and it was probably better he didn't think what he was doing, otherwise he would be terrified. He took the framework from the bag on his chest, then started to assemble the same motorized jig, the same one he used to make the Super Kevlar material sheets, attaching the motorized laser last.

Howard and Leonard had found a weakness it the buildings that they thought could be exploited. All three buildings were built, one after another, so they were almost exactly the same, with parking garages, that were larger in area then the floor plan of the buildings. It was a method of making them stand up better to earthquakes, the bases being bigger than the building itself and it meant that the underground garages shared common walls, and since they were all the same, the storage rooms against the walls were all in the same place, just on the other side of the wall he was at now. The building plans, Howard called up, allowed Leonard to determine the laser power and beam duration for them to calculate what was needed to burn through the wall to the storage room in the next garage. There was some risk, but the whole plan was a big risk, from the beginning, so as Leonard assembled the equipment, he just hoped they had some luck.

Leonard hooked up the first two chemical packs to the intermix bag, then connected the electron collector to that. Once satisfied the chemicals were connected safely he hooked of the discharge capacitor then wired that to the laser, through the current regulator. It wasn't a pretty set up and there were heavy wires exposed everywhere, which he needed to make sure didn't short or contact him. He then checked the wiring again, going over every circuit and connection, he had to make sure this worked, he couldn't make any mistakes.

There was only two things he had to do to make it all work, open the intermix value for the chemicals and then when the laser fired, after the capacitor started its discharge, start the motor to the frame. The laser would travel for a set time around the loop of the frame cutting a sort of doorway into the walls, big enough for him to squeeze through, if everything worked. The big risk was that this was a one shot deal, once he started it, it wouldn't stop until the electricity generated by the chemical reaction energy died out. He stood there for a second, took a deep breathe then hit the chemical intermix, then waited the long seconds for the beam to start, so he could hit the laser movement motor start. It happened fast and it was brighter then he thought, so he quickly dropped the darkening visor on his helmet and just stood there and watched. The wait for laser to work, probably the longest few seconds of his life.

It took 20 seconds and Leonard almost panicked when the motor hit the end and the laser was still on. It only lasted a second, but he knew it would burn through the storage room walls on the other side and across the garage, maybe destroying their whole plan. So after laser shut down he just stood there looking at the laser and frame, his mind trying to process that the whole US Army could be waiting for him on the other side. However he had no other choice, this was their only plan, so with the strength of the suit he pushed down the cut concrete and looked through the opening to the other side.

The beam did burn through the storage room and flashed across the length of the garage, two inches above the floor, until it hit the wall of the other storage room, burning a small hole in it. The intense light from the beam, was noticed by a couple of soldiers who saw what they thought was a flash, so they walked over to see the cause. Their goal, going to where they thought they saw the flash to investigate. "I think the flash came from around here."

They both looked around, frustrated that they could see no cause and were about to call their superior, until one of the soldiers looked up. "Oh, that is probably it, see the spotlight above here is burnt out. It must have flashed when it burnt out." The other soldier agreed and they both moved back to their post, again calmly taking about girls and dates they missed because of this duty.

After Leonard pushed the wall in, he walked into the storage room, stopping for a minute to listen. He heard nothing so he peeked out the door, there was no one standing outside waiting for him, he actually couldn't believe it, their plan was working and for the first time since this started he felt a little confident. But his confidence was only fleeting, he went back and grabbed his equipment, then peered back into the building's parking garage, there was another wall he had to go through and he had to get to it. He looked around the garage, the soldiers were at all the entrances preventing everyone from entering except other soldiers, therefore, they were looking out and not in, so maybe they won't see him.

However there were a lot of them and as he watched a few crossed the garage, he was starting to have doubts. There was too much light and too many of them and the other storage room was on the complete other side, things were stacking against him, his felt luck was now dissolving with his chances of success. Therefore it was a surprised, when he heard the yelling, "Chows here!" then saw all the soldiers move to a truck near the front to get food. It was the break Leonard needed, a distraction made just for him, so he slipped out of the storage room and made for the other side storage room.

Leonard moved quietly around the back wall, trying to stay in the shadows, while he made his way to the opposite storage room. He would catch glimpses of the soldiers eating and each time he saw them his heart would beat faster. He felt took forever, he fought to overcome the fear, but finally he made it and slipped inside the door. Once inside he leaned against the wall, he was so tired from stress and his mind started to wander as he wished he could just lay in bed and relax, his thoughts going to Penny remembering how she use to lay by his side. He shook his head, he needed to move on, he was thinking too much, so he started to set up the laser again, he couldn't waste time.

"He made it!" Howard had a big smile on his face.

"Howard you act surprised?" Penny just looked at him in disbelief.

Howard shook his head. "This was one of the big risks, if the laser could burn a path for him, we really didn't know if it would work or work right."

Penny stared at him in astonishment. "You guys were just taking huge chances with Leonard's life!"

"Penny, remember this was Leonard's idea. I tried to talk him out of it."

Penny slowly nodded, taking each breath carefully, defeated. "I know."

"Penny you have to calm down, it doesn't get any better from now on, only worse."

Penny slowly nodded and leaned against the side of the van, unable to say a thing. She just kept thinking, 'Leonard was risking his life, this was impossible and the odds were all against, what did he think he was, one those heroes in his comic books. Damm him, damm him.' Tears formed in her eyes.

"Penny you okay?" Bernadette looked with concern at her friend, she could see she wasn't taking Howard's words well.

Tears were falling down Penny's cheeks and her voice cracked, "Bernadette if we survive this, I'm going to burn all his comic books, so help me." Bernadette just looked at her friend with sympathy.

Leonard was set up again, however now the doubt wasn't there, he just had to worry about what was on the other side. He started the chemical mix and when the beam appeared he started the laser motor, like he did before. Leonard didn't know the results would be different, because when the beam travel ended and the beam burnt through the storage room, there was a terrorist walking in the wrong place at the wrong time. His movement caused him to walk across the area the beam appeared, slicing his foot completely off, during the half second it was on. Blood poured from the amputated limb, the man screamed from the pain drawing the other terrorists in the garage, the problem for them was they didn't know how it happened, even the man it happened to didn't understand what happened to him.

Leonard went through the opening again then to the door of the storage room in the garage to the building held by the terrorists. He peeked outside to see several men standing around a man screaming while someone tried to help him. He didn't know what the distraction was, but he decided to take an advantage of it, slipping out of the room and moving along the wall till her found a door with stairs to the ground floor. It was easier for him to move now that he wasn't carrying anything and he could still hear the man screaming as he closed the door behind him to head up the stairs.

The terrorists didn't know what to do, the man laid dead at their feet, he had gone into shock, then died from loss of blood, The problem was no one could figure what happened, it was crazy, his foot being cut off in the middle of the garage, with no one or nothing around. They reported to their leader, what happened and that everything was still secure, being told to try and find out what happened. The men shrugged and looked around, each one of them now nervous, because if something like that could happen to one man, it could happen to another.

Leonard made it to the lobby and looked around from a shadowed doorway, seeing a couple terrorists near the doors of the building behind cover. He had to avoid being noticed, therefore, he started to make his way to where the stairs were, located in the plan, while trying to keep furniture and counters between him and the terrorists, so he wasn't seen. He had just slipped behind the hotel front desk when he suddenly stopped, the sight behind the desk, surprised him, making his stomach go sick.

Penny, Bernadette and Howard were surprised just like Leonard and gasped at the scene from Leonard's helmet camera. There were three bodies laying there, peppered with bullet holes, blood everywhere, and they were all young, in their 20s and 30s. Penny watch as the camera centered on one of the bodies, a blonde girl in her 20's, them she saw Leonard's gloved hand reach to touch her. The girl was obviously dead, her skin pale her eyes lifeless, but Penny knew Leonard had to confirm it, Penny knew by the way he was acting. Leonard was seeing her, he was seeing Penny, and he had to make sure this Penny was not alive. She also knew, it was hurting him, Leonard was that kind of guy, this was eating his insides, he never had to experience this before, and she wished she could hold him in her arms and tell him everything was going to be okay.

Leonard pulled his hand away, the girl was really dead, he couldn't believe it, she so reminded him of Penny, his heart broke for her. He saw the engagement on her finger, her shoulder length blonde hair, her innocent face and suddenly inside he changed. He thought about the Cheesecake Factory and how he could never let something like this happen to Penny, the man he killed tried to do this to his Penny. The Cheesecake Factory would have been littered with bodies, like this, if he didn't go there, what he did was right and he saved those innocent peoples lives, he saved Penny's life, 'IT WAS RIGHT' his mind shouted. Leonard now felt no remorse anymore, what he did was right, he didn't care what anyone said to him, he didn't care if he went to jail, he was right. All doubt about how he was going to deal with these terrorists was gone, they killed innocent young girls, they just lost any sympathy Leonard had for them, anyone of them who tried to stop him was going to be neutralized and if they died, well so be it.

The fury built in him and he looked out to spot them, they were hidden behind furniture, and he hated them beyond belief. "Targeting" the crosshairs came alive.

"No, Leonard no." Howard said to himself.

"What's happening." Penny was on edge everything happening with Leonard tearing at her heart.

"No Leonard, move on, don't do this." Howard said reaching to turn on the microphone.

Leonard had the cross hairs on the first terrorist's head, the man needed to die, he had forfeited his life when he did the thing behind him. However, Leonard was always a peaceful man and the longer he stared the more his mind settled down, until his mission took his thoughts back over. A small smile formed on his face, if he really wanted to hurt them, he needed to defeat them, take away their power, stop the bomb, the Army would do the rest. "Targeting abort." the crosshairs blinked off.

"Thank God." Howard moved his finger from the microphone button, then looked at Penny. "It is alright, things are back to normal."

"What happened?" Penny croaked out.

"He almost over reacted, he just forgot what he was suppose to do, he is okay now."

Penny just nodded, then looked again at the screen, Leonard was moving again, and her heart was racing. It was basically a whisper, it was only for herself and him, "Please Leonard." Howard and Bernadette never heard a word.

Leonard slipped over to the stairs and closed the door softly behind him, never alerting the terrorists in the lobby, who were ignorant that they almost died. He moved up the stairs with as little noise as he could and came to the 2nd floor door, peaking in the window, seeing a terrorist guard sitting in a chair, his back to the door, and suddenly discovering he didn't know what to do. He just watched for 10 minutes and observed as the man reported to someone every 5 minutes, now realizing that his wandering from floor to floor looking for the bomb was going to harder than he thought. Leonard backed away from the window and leaned against the wall, he was confused and tired, saying to himself, out loud. "Now what do I do?" He almost jumped out of his skin when he heard Howard's voice.

"Tin Man, this is base."

"Base, I thought you left."

"I couldn't leave you alone, pal."

Leonard felt a wave of relief, he wasn't alone anymore. "Have you been watching my progress?"

"Yes, I've seen everything."

Leonard almost asked him if he saw the young girl, but stopped himself. "Base you then saw the guard and the radio contact. I can't stop at every floor and take out the guard then search the place. As soon as they loose communication, they will know something is up. Base I am open to any suggestions you have."

Howard stood there a minute in thought. What should they do?

"Howard, I've seen a lot of your action movies and in every one of them the bad guys tried to protect their plan, so wouldn't they try and protect something like that with more than one person?" Penny had been racking her brain trying to think of anything to help.

"Howie, Penny's right, there would probably be more guards on the floor it is on."

"That makes sense. I'll tell Leonard." Howard keyed up the mike. "Tin Man"

"Go ahead Base."

"There is a possibly that the guards on the subject floor would be greater to account for what they are guarding."

'Of Course', Leonard thought, 'More men to protect the bomb', "Roger base, that is a better idea, that I have come up with. I am going to move up and check each floor."

Leonard then noticed the time on his head's up display, it was after 10 PM, he had wasted too much time and now there was less than 2 hours. He had used up part of the 3 hour buffer they were going to give the military, they needed to tell them now. "Base, you need to notify the military."

Howard froze for a moment, then looked at the time, he had not been watching it, he had been too engrossed in Leonard's progress. Howard wanted to tell Leonard they could wait, but he knew they waited too long already. "Roger Tin Man, sending a message now." Howard already had the message made up, so he just hit send and watched it go.

"Tin Man, message is gone."

"Okay, base I'm going to check out the other floors."

Penny had watched the whole thing in confusion, but the way Howard acted made her feel like something bad just happened. "What did you just do?"

Howard's first instinct was to lie to her, but they were all in this together now, so she should know the truth. "We found out the bomb is on a timer and is going off at midnight. The military has a plan to bomb the building, destroying the terrorists and the bomb, so it doesn't go off. I sent them message telling them about the timer so they could initiate their plan before midnight."

Penny stared at Howard in disbelief. "But Leonard is in the building."

"Yes, I know."

Penny was now hysterical, "NO! Call him back, tell him to leave, hurry!"

"Penny he knows what is happening."

"NO HOWARD NO!" Penny started to head to the microphone. Bernadette grabbed her and Howard stepped in front of her to block her.

"Penny, he has some time, it will take them some time to send the jets, he knows that."

"NO HOWARD NO!" Penny was sobbing and fell to the floor on her knees, "NO PLEASE NO!"

Bernadette knelt next to her and held her in her arms. "Penny he still has some time, he knows what to look for, nothing is certain yet." Penny sobbed in Bernadette's arms, she just felt like she was dying.