Check 29 - The energy of the mind is the essence of life.

Once more, Hiro floated in the ether. He knew he'd dozed off while talking to Daisuke and could only hope he'd answered all the man's questions, but part of him thought he might have fallen asleep before he could. Were they talking about his gear? He wasn't sure.

The reason he knew he was floating in a dream-like state was because his body didn't hurt like he knew it should. After everything that had happened, he couldn't work up the energy to even feel surprised. Was he so drained, then, that his mind didn't have the power to think things through?

Normally, at least as of the last five or so months, he knew he dreamed about his many memories, reintegrating them while he slept. It was a nice change to reliving them in real time. And it was likely a lot faster, too. But, this time, he was just there, floating in an inky void of nothing.

It did vaguely remind him of the one timeline he passed out in his brother's lab after getting beat up by Yama's men. Except, there were no photos lying scattered around that he could look at. He'd compared that to a Magic Eight Ball that had broken, the inner pieces scattered among the inky liquid inside. But he didn't even have that this time.

One could argue that he was gently falling, not really suspended. Except there was no whoosh of air, no real movement of it at all. Maybe he was just hanging over the drop of some elevator-type ride, just waiting for the thing to release before it plummeted, only to be shot back up to the top. He hated those kinds of rides. Even though they were supposedly controlled, he couldn't help but feel like he was going to die all over again, his soul forcing its way out of his body.

In a way, Hiro could say that it had sort of felt like that when he'd been knocked back by Aunt Cass only the day before. His body had flown back so quickly, everything else had sort of remained behind. And, now that he thought about it, he could actually picture that, except as a third person observing it from above. It was definitely true to say that if it weren't for Baymax, he wouldn't have made it back, in more than one sense of the word.

Okay, why was the ether showing him that?

The image paused, with him lying there, lifeless, heart beat absent, on the ground where Baymax had placed him prior to shocking the life back into him. It was like someone had hit a pause button, except he knew it wasn't him. So, if not him, than who?

Hiro turned around to face the giant bank of monitors he knew would be there. Daisuke, Suzue, and Katou were frozen in varying poses of shock. It looked like Daisuke was about to head towards the teen but had looked back to check on Cass, who lay back in the chair, eyes closed, almost in repose. Except there seemed a sort of film covered over everything, separating it from the physical world.

Something oozed from his aunt, not unlike the tendrils of memory he'd once mistaken for some kind of cancerous energy inside his own mind. They were dark, like blood devoid of oxygen, almost black but for the red sheen. It was dark, like the two energies he'd noticed at the shrine when reviewing that footage. Except those had been darkest green and blue.

Perhaps 'tendrils' was the wrong word. It was more like liquid in a vacuum, slowly seeping out in random streams of energy, taking on various forms that made no sense. The thought made his breath come faster, his heart to accelerate just a bit.

Had he felt hints of that before? He wasn't sure. What he did know was, like those tendrils of memory from before, he didn't want to touch whatever it was leaving his aunt's body. Except that it was spreading. The only upside was that whatever it was seemed to detach from Cass before spreading out in some nebulous mass that seemed lifeless and yet not.

Almost as if the mass suddenly took on a life of its own, possibly mimicking something he'd seen in a horror movie, the mass contracted into a single form before rushing at him, spreading out in what could only be a membranous net.

Hiro tried to run, to throw himself over the balcony to the garage floor below, but it was too fast. The inky thing wrapped around him as if intent on absorbing him or shrink-wrapping him. He wasn't sure which.

The teen felt the substance harden around him on the outside, invading his body from the inside. Terror to an extend he'd never felt before threatened to overwhelm his mind. He tried to open his mouth to scream, only to have the substance flood into his mouth and nose, suffocating him further. He couldn't fight it, no matter how hard he tried.

When all hope seemed lost, a small seed of heat blossomed inside him, burning like a dying star. The next moment, it went supernova.

…

The most ungodly scream escaped Hiro's lips as his body arched away from the bed, his blankets somehow thrown back and away from him, along with anything not held down in the room. Whatever force had taken hold of him lifted him off the bed several inches, his feet and hands barely touching the surface. And the scream was so loud it could probably be heard throughout the entire mansion.

Bright light engulfed the room like the supernova in Hiro's mind. It was so bright; it rendered sight impossible, even for Baymax, who had to close his hyper spectral eyes against the onslaught, bracing himself as best he could. Even the chest Daisuke had used earlier flew against the nearest wall with a thud.

Footsteps thudded in the hallway, followed by pounding at the door. The rectangular barrier wouldn't budge, though, keeping whoever was outside where they were. And the scream continued, the walls starting to strain against the force of whatever held the teen aloft.

An almost silent sonic boom seemed to sound. It knocked anyone in the hallway back, like a back draft from a fire, energy spread out and over them in a wash of invisible waves that moved away from the source, and then flowed back again.

As the energy refocused around Hiro, his body fell back against the mattress, lifeless. Except he was staring up at the ceiling, stars reflected in his unblinking eyes. A second jolt lifted his body and he inhaled so loudly it hurt the ears of the four people in the hall, like he was trying to inhale all the air in the world. And then he coughed violently.

"What in the world?"

Daisuke was the first back to his feet, but no one sure who has spoken. Whatever force had taken hold of the teen had pushed them all back against the wall, somehow pulling the door open as it returned to its source. Suzue had landed against him and he held her until her balance returned.

For his part, Katou groaned, his arms wrapped around Cass. He'd managed to grab a hold of her before being thrown back, an action that hadn't done his ribs any favors. He still had his head turned downward, eyes closed. He only opened them when he felt Cass trying to escape his embrace, though it took him a moment to re-calibrate enough to make his arms work to release her.

"Everyone all right?" Daisuke asked, releasing Suzue from his supporting hands. He looked towards the now visible bed and Hiro, who still hadn't managed to regain his composure. He hesitated to enter though, not sure what had just happened.

At the sound of Hiro's initial scream, which even Daisuke and Suzue had heard down in the basement, everyone had come running as best they could. Arriving at almost the same time, ears covered from the intensity of the sound, the two males had tried to break in, without any luck. And then whatever it was had thrown them all back like rag dolls. Daisuke was only glad no one was dead, though he wouldn't be surprised if Katou might partially wish for it. He could see the man wincing, wondering if the incident hadn't done further damage.

Ragged breathing announced that Hiro's coughing fit had ended. It was more than loud enough to be heard by all. The only question was where was Baymax?

"Suzue, help Cass and Katou," Daisuke instructed before heading into the room to investigate. He looked around, noting the loose furniture was now lying against the surrounding walls, porcelain lamps broken. Even Baymax had been thrown back, looking more like a deflated balloon with a skeletal frame inside than the huggable marshmallow he usually resembled. It was a miracle none of the windows hah shattered.

Approaching the bed, Daisuke noticed Hiro had flopped back onto his back and was breathing heavily, like he'd just run a marathon he was ill-prepared for. His eyes were still pitch black with stars. Only, now, he seemed to reach one hand upward, as if trying to grab something the older man couldn't see. When the teen blinked, his eyes changed to the gold color Daisuke had seen many times before. And then they settled back to his usual brown and white, pupils dilated, but more or less back to normal.

Not sure what he could do for the teen at the moment, Daisuke made his way over to Baymax, who continued to remain unresponsive. He looked around the room, noticing the robot's charging station, and somehow manhandled the healthcare companion into it. The charging light came on, barely registering any juice in the robot's batteries. Well, at least that answered one question. He left the robot there to charge.

Out in the hall, another set of footsteps sounded as the medic joined the party. Daisuke glanced towards the open doorway, indicating he should check on Katou first. In the meantime, he approached the bed, cautious, not sure what to expect. Whatever energy the teen had released had momentarily disrupted pretty much every electrical device in the manor, including the lights. Not even HEUSC was responding yet, the super computer possibly having to reboot.

"Hiro?" Daisuke inquired, hesitant to reach out and touch the teen. He felt an almost static electricity-like cocoon around the bed, which made the hairs on his arms rise.

Turning his head, Hiro looked Daisuke's way, though the man wasn't sure if he actually saw him or not. "The miasma almost took me," he stated. "I couldn't fight it."

Daisuke mouthed the word, not sure what Hiro meant by miasma. What was apparent was that he'd somehow tapped into some greater energy that had almost caused a system-wide blackout. There was no denying Hiro's claims of being something more. He could feel the questions of his colleagues from the hall, not sure how to answer them.

"How did you escape?" The words escaped Daisuke's mouth before he'd even realized he'd said them. He had no idea where they'd come from. All he could do was stare, waiting to see how the teen would answer.

Closing his eyes and swallowing, Hiro shuddered. "Something intervened."

Understatement of the day, Daisuke thought, though he doubted Hiro had anymore idea as to what than he did. Three beeps sounded from the charger and he looked that way, noticing Baymax was slowly inflating. It looked as though he was going through some kind of self-diagnostic routine. Part of him wondered if the robot could shed any light on what had happened.

"We should probably get you to a hospital," the medic said from the hallway, drawing Daisuke's attention. "I recommend x-rays, and maybe an MRI to check for further damage."

Cass chose to enter the room, looking more tired than anything. Chances were good she was still a bit hung over, but she looked a lot better than the occasion might have warranted. "Is he okay?" She had her arms wrapped around her chest, as if holding herself together.

Not sure exactly how to answer that, Daisuke frowned. "He's conscious," he stated. "And speaking. As to anything else, I couldn't tell you."

"Hiro has experienced a shock," Baymax stated from his charger. He'd fully inflated at this point, but his charging status, which was projected on his stomach, barely registered two bars out of five.

It was a decided understatement. Whatever energy the teen had used, or had used on him, was more than enough to possibly light up all of Tokyo for a year. Daisuke wasn't sure on that, though, since he hadn't exactly seen any measurements in real time. But the intensity certainly felt like something that might.

Katou pushed past the medic, Suzue behind him. "Kambe," he winced. "Think you can manage things for a bit? I don't really feel that great."

Realizing his partner was probably beyond even what help Baymax could offer, Daisuke nodded. Lock down or not, Katou needed more than emergency medicine at the moment. "Go. I'll handle things from here."

The medic had to offer Katou a supporting arm, careful to not jostle him too much, as they made their way to the elevator. It was better to make sure he was good, and to get the medic out of the way. He just wasn't sure how he was going to explain any of this to anyone else. He could only hope the medic thought it was some kind of power surge in the manor and accept that as the reason.

Now that the other party had left the area, Suzue entered Hiro's room, stopping a few feet inside the doorway. Like Cass, she stared at the bed, arms wrapped around her torso as if cold. "What happened?"

Hiro closed his eyes, breathing in deeply. For the briefest of moments, everyone's hair seemed to stand on end, or at least felt like it did. When he opened his eyes again, the room no longer felt like it was filled with static-charged balloons, and his coloring had improved greatly. Slowly, the teen pushed his way up to a sitting position. "Definitely don't want to do that again," he said, sounding more than a little tired.

Cass made her way to the bed, sliding towards him across the mattress before taking him up in a hug. Despite trying to be gentle, she felt Hiro return the gesture with far more energy than she thought possible. "Are you okay?" She pulled back to look at him, feeling his forehead, which no longer felt too warm to the touch.

"Outside of feeling like I'm made out of putty, I'm doing pretty good," Hiro replied with a bit of a laugh. He lifted his shirt a bit, realizing the bruises were now gone.

With more energy than was perhaps necessary, Cass turned him this way and that, examining his back and chest for the expected bruises. Realizing they were no more, she gave him another hug. "I'm just glad you're awake," she stated, willing to take the miracle for what it was.

"Master Daisuke?" Suzue tried again, taking a few more steps into the room.

For his part, Daisuke had taken a step back, waiting to see what would happen. The decided change in energy in the room was nice. His whole body felt more relaxed now, but the question still remained. "I don't know," he admitted. He gave Hiro and Cass a pointed look.

Feeling his gaze, Hiro looked up. The curiosity was obvious and warranted. He still wasn't entirely sure what it was either. "I think I tried to do battle with something I wasn't ready for," he admitted. "A higher power had to step in."

Battery now halfway charged, Baymax stepped free from his charger. "I concur with this diagnosis," he said. "I detected a large amount of energy prior to shutting down."

This explanation didn't exactly help Suzue. Daisuke could tell as he turned to look at her. He released his breath. "I think you should know that Hiro is no longer quite human." He ignored the look Cass gave him. "What he is, I don't know. But it is safe to conclude that whatever entity stepped in on his behalf is likely on the level with the thirteen Kami."

Suzue's eyes went wide at this implication. "But what does Hiro have to do with Shinto Gods?" She shook her head. Every Japanese child knew the legends and lore, though not all took stock in them. And she was having a hard time believing Hiro somehow had any connection to them. But what other explanation was there?

At that moment, Daisuke's earring beeped, indicating it has reconnected with HEUSC. Suzue's must have done the same thing, because she subconsciously touched her earring as well. "Status update," the man demanded as he kept an eye on Hiro and Cass.

Whatever HEUSC reported must have been acceptable because Daisuke nodded. "Good," he said, refocusing his attention on the two Hamadas.

"Not gonna lie," Hiro spoke up, a bit of a strained smile on his face, "I could sure go for a burger about now. With lots and lots of bacon."

Recalling the teen's previous reaction to food, Daisuke couldn't help but speak up. "Are you sure that's wise?"

Hiro laughed at that. "Outside of having next to no energy, whatever that was seems to have thought it a good idea to heal my body."

A glance over at Baymax encouraged the robot to respond to that claim. "What Hiro says is true. He has no current injuries. However, his blood sugar levels are low. I recommend a good source of protein and rest to rebuild his energy."

The teen gave a sort of shrug to his shoulders as if to say he'd told him so. But with Katou gone, that left Cass, or maybe Suzue, to do any cooking. Unless they ordered out, which Daisuke wasn't sure he wanted to do just yet. The staff was still taking a day off, and they were supposedly still on lock down, despite Katou having to leave for the hospital.

"Just leave the cooking to me," Cass declared, rolling up her sleeves. She had slid back to the edge of the bed and now got to her feet.

Still more than a little unnerved by the whole experience, Daisuke couldn't help but give her an upraised brow. Either this was something that had happened before, or she was beyond caring, which also hinted at this not being the first time something similar had happened. "Are you certain?"

Cass smiled, possibly guessing he hesitated due to the hot wings incident. "I promise I'll stick with something palatable to all. No more hot wings."

Eyes wide, Hiro glanced at his aunt. "I missed hot wings? Ah man!"

As if his more child-like reaction had broken the ice, the tension seemed to melt from the room and Daisuke had to hold back a laugh. "Very well," he allowed. "But perhaps it would be best if Suzue were to accompany you since Katou had to leave."

Cass looked over at Suzue, who seemed to have trouble bringing herself back to the present. "I'm all right with that. Maybe we can finish that conversation we started the other day." She gave her fellow female a conspiratorial smile.

Swallowing hard, Suzue gave her an uncertain look. "Uh, sure." She followed the older woman out of the room.

With all but Daisuke gone, Hiro sort of scooted his way to the edge of the bed, wobbling as he stood. The older man partially reached out before suspending the motion at a look Hiro gave him. His limbs weren't going to get their strength back by being carried everywhere. Then again, it might be warranted. "A little help?" he asked, realizing his muscles weren't up to the challenge just yet.

Before Daisuke could offer his assistance, Baymax waddled forward and took Hiro up into his arms. "I recommend taking things slow," he stated.

Hiro gave a good-natured roll of his eyes. "Maybe some of my emergency stash while we're at it," he agreed.

"Emergency stash?" Daisuke wasn't sure he wanted to know but couldn't help but ask.

Again, Hiro laughed. "Yeah. After Los Angeles, I decided it was a good idea to keep an emergency stash of gummy gears in a pouch as part of my gear. Think you could get it for me?" he glanced towards the suitcase, which had flown across the room and now lay partially open near the far wall. It was a wonder its contents hadn't become strewn across the floor. "Maybe I should just keep a packet in my pocket at all times though."

Asking the Shinto Gods for patience, Daisuke made his way over to the luggage, rummaging around a bit until he found the pouch attached to the armor. He pulled out one of several individual-sized packets and brought it over. "Need me to open it?"

Hiro ignored his tone, accepting the candy. "I got it," he said instead. "How about we talk about what you found out while I was out of it. Maybe I can offer a different perspective."

Resigned, Daisuke led the way out of the room. He gave the hinges a critical look on the way out, relieved to note they should be fully function and in no need of repairs after the energy assault on them. "Fine." He headed towards the elevator, intent on killing two birds with one stone by heading to the control room. At the very least, someone had to check on the hardware, though he felt sure Suzue would want to give it all a good look over once she was released from kitchen duty.