Chapter 3

Somehow, MacGyver ended up crashing hard when he returned home the previous night. He'd barely made it through dinner, he didn't even bother to wash the dishes, he simply plopped down on the couch again and fell asleep.

While he slept, he had an odd dream. He would later account to himself that it wasn't anywhere near as weird as the dreams he'd once had where he was in the Wild West a couple of times, or when he went on an adventure with Merlin in the Dark Ages, but… it was still weird enough.

It was all a blur in some areas of the dream, but in others, he found himself coherent, where everything was as vivid as if he was awake.

To start with, he found himself strolling through the depths of a thick forest, the kind of place he loved being the most sometimes, where he could lose himself in the midst of nature and get away from people, responsibilities, and perhaps to an extent, even his own mind and thoughts.

Was that why he was here? Had something happened where he just wanted–needed–to get away for a while?

Then he stepped into a clearing, and things… changed. Actually, there was some kind of paradigm shift where his perception altered, making him unable to tell if it had somehow been this way all along and he hadn't noticed, or the transition had been so smooth and sudden his mind just accepted it.

He felt only a moment of confusion as he slowly pivoted himself around on the soles of his shoes, turning in a complete circle to take in his surroundings. Hadn't the forest and the trees been normal a moment ago? He could no longer tell, the only thing he knew now was that he was surrounded by a very different kind of forest.

It wasn't even the kind of thing you might find in a children's storybook, it just looked weird. The trees were far larger than they should have been and they had an ominous quality to them now, with bark that was so dark in color it was almost black. Plus the tree bark was quite thick and, in some places, had an almost jagged edge.

MacGyver found himself walking over to the nearest of the trees, scrutinizing it carefully. He could swear the tree looked like at least part of it was made of some kind of near-black metal he had never seen before.

He tentatively reached up to touch one of the jagged edges, just to hiss slightly and yank back his hand when he felt a sharp sting. He looked at his hand, quickly noticing a small cut on the side of his index finger… a similar ouchie one might get if they foolishly touched a piece of broken glass.

Mac held his cut hand slightly away from himself as he peered up at the tree again. What was this place? What were these trees? His mind wasn't giving him any answers.

A sound from behind caused him to start and whirl around, just in time to see someone coming out from between the trees into the clearing. For a moment, he couldn't make out who it was because the figure was shrouded in shadows, to the point where they looked like a silhouette.

When Mac realized the person was falling, he immediately rushed forward to catch them, but somehow the figure fell right through his hands, as though the being was made of air. When the person hit the ground and rolled over onto his back, Mac recognized him immediately.

"Bill!" Mac stumbled as he got a little closer, allowing himself to half-fall beside his friend to get a closer look. What was Bill doing here?

Mac checked the man's pulse. Nothing.

He then fumbled around in his pants pocket to extract his knife, careful to hold the non-sharp end against Bill's face, just under his nostrils. The knife blade remained clear and shiny, no signs of breath clouding it up.

That's when Bill's body suddenly disintegrated into dust, some of it merging with the soil underneath while the rest of it blew away in the breeze. MacGyver yelped involuntarily and leaped to his feet, taking a few steps back and dropping his knife in the process.

Just as Mac had a chance to catch his breath and slow his heartbeat back to normal, he caught a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned just in time to see someone who looked just like Ruby, her black hair flowing behind her as she strolled casually into the clearing like wisps of smoke. Her eyes were clouded, her expression wooden.

Mac opened his mouth to try and say something to her, anything, but he suddenly felt like he was trying to speak through an ocean. His throat felt tight and words wouldn't come out, except for a few garbled ones.

He wanted to ask her so many questions. He wanted to know what happened to her and Bill the other day, since he hadn't been there to see it. He wanted to know how she was doing. He wanted to know… and he just couldn't get any words out. His face contorted into a rictus of frustration and grief. He felt helpless, and he hated that.

Even as he watched her, he suddenly found himself witnessing a horrible sight as she sat down on the ground, hard. Her legs had disappeared as though someone had hacked them off, leaving bloody stumps behind. Her face contorted as her mouth opened in a silent, heart-wrenching wail, tears streaming down her cheeks as she touched her lower back. Somehow, it seemed like she barely even noticed what happened to her legs, but some area of her spine was giving her a lot of trouble, causing her pain…

Then a man stepped out from between the trees, a tall person who appeared to be almost the same height as MacGyver himself. The mysterious individual seemed featureless; Mac was unable to make out anything distinguishable. It was as if he had defined cheekbones, jaw and lips, but they eluded Mac's notice even though he was looking directly at the man. Mac couldn't even make out the guy's hair or eye color for some reason, just the fact that he was tall, and he was coming toward Ruby rather ominously…

Mac wanted to run over to Ruby, to get her out of arm's reach of that man and out of here. He opened his mouth to yell, but no sound came out of him. He couldn't move…

Why the hell couldn't he move?!

He could only watch, helpless, as the man seemed to grow larger, taller, more powerful somehow. The stranger then stooped over Ruby's helpless form on the ground, his strong and mighty hands hovered over her, and then he yanked and tore her right arm off of her body and threw it away, where it disappeared amongst the trees like it never existed.

Then the man stretched his arms out over Ruby, and new limbs grew out of her almost plant-like. She soon had a new pair of legs and an arm to replace the one that the stranger had torn off.

Except… the new limbs had the same color and texture of the dark, metal-like trees that surrounded them. The skin on those legs and arm even had rough, jagged edges, much like the ones on the trees… the one that Mac had cut his finger on…

The phone rang, and Mac awoke with a start. He found himself on his couch, although it took him a moment to absorb the familiar sights and smells of his own home.

He was so disoriented that he didn't even move when the phone rang a couple more times. He brushed some hair out of his forehead, feeling the cold sweat running down his face… and that's when he noticed an odd cut on the side of his index finger.

There was a fourth ring from the phone. Mac grunted as he moved stiffly, putting his legs down on the floor and repositioning himself into a seated position. That's when he noticed his pocket knife on the floor, right next to the spot where he'd planted his right foot. It was though he'd dropped it…

He picked it up and turned it over his fingers, almost scowling in thoughtful puzzlement, especially as he re-examined the cut on his finger…

The phone rang a fifth time, then the machine picked it up. "Hello, MacGyver? This is Irina from the hospital. I just wanted to let you know that Ruby is awake this morning, and she is able to receive visitors now. I told her that you might be by. Take care, I'm sure we'll see you later."

The call ended.

Mac stood and slipped his knife back into his pocket, then went into the bathroom to get a bandaid out of the first aid kit. He washed the cut off with some soap and water first, then dried it and put the bandaid on. It would no doubt be all healed in a few days or so.

He then took his shirt off, filled the sink with water, and did a brief wash up and put on a fresh coat of antiperspirant before giving himself a quick shave. It just wouldn't do to go visit someone at the hospital if he still looked like an unkempt bum who just woke up from a weird dream on his living room couch.

Besides, the cool water seemed to wash away any lingering effects of drowsiness, and the eeriness of that dream…

Once he finished that, he dried off, put his shirt back on, then ran a comb through his hair. He then left the bathroom and went into the kitchen to grab one of his quick-yet-nutritious "to-go" breakfasts from the fridge along with a small bottle of water, then headed out the door toward his jeep.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Ruby wasn't sure how she felt when she first awoke. There was a part of her that felt like she still didn't understand what happened, like it had all been a dream or something she witnessed in third-person on a TV set. Another part of her still felt a little numb and found it difficult to concentrate due to the pain meds she was on.

All she knew for certain at the moment was that both of her arms were fine, she could feel and move them–although she was discouraged from moving the one that had the IV in it too much, of course–and she could feel her chest move when she breathed. She could not, however, feel anything below her abdomen.

She had been informed that both of her legs were broken and there was some kind of back injury. Beyond that, she had simply been told to rest, so… that meant she was going to get better soon, didn't it? She just had to wait, eat her food to remain healthy and strong, and she would be up and about in no time.

Breakfast consisted of some dried out scrambled eggs, a piece of unidentified meat that felt and tasted like shoe leather, and some weak coffee that tasted extremely bitter. Even so, hunger compelled her to devour all of it like it was fine dining from Buckingham Palace.

Besides, there were some areas where Ruby prided herself, at least somewhat, on not being a picky person. There were some things that had to be just right or she'd avoid them like the plague, but other things… well, food was food.

After she finished her breakfast, the orderly soon came by to take the tray away. She then simply stared up at the ceiling for a while, somehow finding herself in a state of being where she was trying to process everything that happened… yet it also seemed like part of her brain just wasn't working.

In truth, she felt like a zombie. Everything seemed unreal.

"Ruby?"

She responded immediately to hearing her name, her head turning toward the door. Irina was standing there, with a rather tall man standing at her shoulder.

"MacGyver came to see you," Irina went on. "I'll leave you two alone now." The nurse gave each of them a nod, then she slipped out of the room.

Mac stepped just a little closer to Ruby's bedside, his hands in his pockets. She felt herself being scrutinized a tad by intelligent, observant eyes that seemed to survey her in some way. Somehow, she got the sense that it wasn't meant to invade or intrude, it was out of genuine compassion.

"Hey, Ruby," Mac said after a moment. "I'm sure you remember me from a couple of days ago." His mouth shut, and she thought she heard a trace of rawness in his voice.

"Yeah… when I dropped Bill off for the hockey game you guys wanted to see," Ruby answered. "I remember you."

Mac gave a small smile and a slight nod. "Do you mind if I sit down?" He indicated a nearby chair.

"Sure."

He picked up the chair and quietly set it next to the bed, where he proceeded to sit beside her. She eyed him warily, suddenly uncertain of the close proximity from a man she didn't even know, but he did lean back a bit and kept his hands to himself. Besides… Bill really seemed fond of the guy, so he couldn't be all that bad.

And he did make an effort to come see her.

"Hey, I haven't heard anything about Bill," Ruby said after a moment. "He hasn't come to see me yet… when can I see him?"

Mac sucked in a breath. His eyes softened as he met hers, unblinking. "Ah, Ruby… Bill won't be coming by anytime soon," he hedged.

"Why not?" Ruby demanded. "Was he hurt bad in the accident? Where is he?"

The man at her bedside looked down toward his shoes briefly. "Yes," he said quietly, gently. "Bill was… hurt badly in the accident."

"Is he going to be okay?" Ruby tried to push herself up, only managing to prop up on her elbows just a little. Her eyes bored into his as she silently communicated that she wouldn't rest until he gave her the full truth.

"Ruby," he held her eyes with his own, unwavering, never blinking or looking away. "Bill didn't make it. He died not long after both of you were brought to the hospital." He reached out and placed a gentle, tentative hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

She stared at him for several seconds, too stunned and shocked to respond. It seemed to take a long moment for the meaning behind his words to fully penetrate her brain enough to be absorbed and understood.

Then she collapsed back down against the mattress, as though whatever strength she had left her. "Oh, God…" she gasped, her eyes going wide and then squeezing shut as her face scrunched up in a mixture of grief and anguish. A strangled sob escaped her mouth as tears began to stream down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey," Mac was leaning over to gently grasp her hand, giving it a light squeeze to make his presence known. "I'm here." He looked like he wanted to take her into his arms and hug her, to comfort her, but wasn't certain if he should go that far. Plus there was an indicative glance on his part toward the IV in her arm, and an uncertain glance at her legs… he was clearly nervous about doing anything that would disturb her too much.

He instead stayed close and continued to hold her hand, occasionally murmuring softly to her, but mostly just trying to comfort her in small ways. He alternated between gently wiping the tears off her face and stroking her hair or placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. All the while, he never let go of her hand.

Eventually, she finally settled down when the tears ran their course. She looked up at the ceiling for a long moment, then finally looked up at him.

She opened her mouth to say something, but whatever she was going to say would forever remain a mystery, because her words were forgotten when Dr. Bruce Cooper stepped into the room, his expression grim.

"Miss Allen," the doctor addressed Ruby, "I'm here to discuss the results of your X-rays." There was a heavy weight in his words, like he had brought nothing with him but bad news.

MacGyver was the one who spoke. "Ah, Doctor? Could I see you outside for a moment?"

Dr. Cooper looked at Mac, then back at Ruby. His face softened when he realized she must have been crying her eyes out. "Did you tell her about…?"

Mac nodded.

"I'll be right back, Ruby." Mac exited the room with the doctor and disappeared just out of sight.

Ruby stared after them for a long moment, unsure what was going on. She stared up at the ceiling, taking in a few slow, deep breaths. This was just so much to deal with, to process… Bill was gone. She had barely known him, she wasn't even sure if she loved him yet, necessarily, but she definitely liked him and valued his company.

Now she would never see him again.

And now the doctor apparently wanted to tell her something about her X-rays and exam results, his words had been heavy, and Mac just left the room with him.

So what did any of this mean? She began to feel annoyed that they had just left the room like that. Was the news going to be that terrible? If it was, then didn't she deserve to know?

As a few minutes ticked by, she began to feel more anxious and upset. If the news was going to be bad, she wanted them to get their butts back in here and just tell her already! The worrying and waiting was too much for her right now. She knew she was going to have a reaction to whatever they said, (and maybe that was what worried them) but she also needed to get this over with.

When the two men finally re-entered, both of their expressions were grim. MacGyver hung back slightly while the doctor moved to bedside, clearing his throat.

"Ruby," Dr. Collins began, "I'm afraid I have some bad news."