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Author: Mamapranayama
Fandom: Sanctuary
Rating: Teen
Characters: Will, Helen
Pairings: none, for now
Summary: After an abnormal attacks, Will's resolve and friendship with Magnus is put to the test.
Disclaimer: Not mine, wish they were
Part VII
"And then the wyvern is flying over us and land right in front of me and it's thrashing its tail all around and I can't good a good shot at it. Then, just as it's about to strike here comes Magnus and she shoots and POW! The thing goes down like a sack of potatoes." Kate forked another piece of steak into her mouth and kept talking. "It was pretty awesome. She came out of nowhere to save the day like some kind of superhero. You should have seen it."
Will pushed around his food, his appetite lost, instead he took a sip of the wine that Tesla had brought up for everyone and pretended to be interested in the conversation. He was grateful for the alcohol's dulling effects as hearing of the day's exploits from Kate hadn't made him any happier about being left behind while they went into an obviously dangerous situation. If anything it only made his uselessness all the more pronounced.
Interestingly enough, he had never sought the excitement of running around chasing criminals when he had been in the agency or the police. Then he had been satisfied with crime scene investigation and interviewing suspects rather than being out in the field. But after he had joined with Magnus, that had all changed and he found that he actually enjoyed the action and adventure that came with working for her. It brought an excitement to his life that he hadn't felt before and now he missed it and was unsatisfied with sitting on the sidelines.
"Well, that sounds incredibly daring, you could have been seriously hurt if things had gone the wrong way." Tesla chimed in before taking a sip of his wine, sneeking a glance over in Will's direction. "Too bad you couldn't be with them, Will. I'm sure you girls could have used the back-up."
Will put his glass down, now his appetite was well and truly gone. It was bad enough that he was excluded from missions like these, but to be reminded of how dangerous they could be and how he would never be able to protect Magnus or his friends was worse.
"Hey!" Kate broke in with offense. "We did just fine by ourselves." Realizing that her words might be hurtful to Will she quickly ammended herself "But not that we couldn't have used you along of course, Will."
That's when it hit him. They really didn't need him at all for much of anything. Magnus and Kate were more than capable of going out and handling things on their own, he couldn't help Henry much with the computers and even Bigfoot's role as driver and butler to Magnus was more in need than anything he had to offer now. He felt a throbbing begin to pound inside his temples and a stirring in his stomach as he tried to push these thoughts aside.
There was an uncomfortable silence at the table for several moments. Helen looked to Will, who had morosely taken to stabbing at his food with no intention of eating anymore while across the other end of the table Nikola smirked into his wine looking mighty pleased with himself as he took a satisfying gulp.
"So, Nikola... How were things going in the lab today?" She ventured to ask.
Tesla's face darkened and Helen knew right off that something was wrong when the tension mounted in the room between him and Henry.
"Your little assistant here," Tesla looked humorlessly over at Henry. "and I are having a little disagreement over how to proceed. But I believe that the nano-cytes should be ready to go in short order. I've managed to avoid the problem with the duplicate programming fade by re-programming the original nano-cytes to be the only ones that duplicate themselves."
"There's no guarantee that's going to work." Henry cut in, his eyes narrowing as he glowered at the man sitting haughtily across from him. "I think there might be something fundamentally wrong with their programming or maybe their design." Henry explained as he tore his sight from Tesla over to Helen. "We were seeing even some of the original nano-cytes multiply uncontrollably even without the fading and many of them failed to shut down even after tissue repair was complete. We need to go back to the beginning and break them down to their basic design and start over"
"Oh here we go again." Tesla put down his wine angrily. "I've fixed the programming problem, what part of that doesn't your little mind understand?" Tesla then turned to Helen and continued passionately.
"It could be months, Helen. You want that? What about Will here? Do you think he wants to wait that long, especially when I've already assured you that the nano-cytes will operate properly?"
"We all know that you're not creating these things for Will's benefit." Henry shot back. "Leave him out of it."
"That's quite enough." Helen interjected, hoping to end the argument before it escalated into shouting. "If Henry believes that we need to start over then I am inclined to err on the side of caution and begin again. End of argument."
"Fine. Have it your way. But trust me, the nano-cytes will work as they are." Tesla rose from the table and left in a snit. No one was upset to see him go.
Will rested his elbow on the table and palmed his face into his hand, the noise from their voices had cut through to his brain and made it impossible to think past his hurting head, he felt a creeping achiness enter his bones and he suddenly felt exhausted. The thought of having to wait months for any kind of improvement to his vision was daunting.
Begging off Magnus' offer for a little tea after dinner, Will went straight to his room. He could hear in her voice that she wanted to talk to him, but he was just in no mood for that. He had to admit that he wasn't feeling very well and all he wanted was some sleep.
But that wasn't all. Knowing Magnus, he figured that she would have picked up on his dour mood at dinner and he had a feeling that she would try to pry what was bothering him out, but just then he wasn't feeling up to anymore introspection and his headache was increasingly becoming more bothersome and his body was aching for rest. All he wanted was to go to bed and forget about it until the morning.
Will had just made it to his room, flopped down on his bed and was almost asleep when a knock sounded at his door.
"What now?" He groaned to himself, thinking that Magnus had come to talk to him despite his wanting some space and a good night's rest for his pounding head. He sat up and swung his feet to the floor, a small wave of light-headedness catching him by surprise as did so. He was definitely coming down with some kind of flu, either that or the wine he had that night was stronger than he was used to.
"Come-in." He called out to the closed door. When it opened it wasn't the distinct clip-clop of Helen's pumps that she was wearing that day, but a softer step.
"Who is it?" He asked.
"It's just me, Will." Kate answered and to him she sounded somewhat shy, which definitely went against her character.
"What's wrong?"
"Oh...uh....nothing. I uh...just wanted to...ya know. To say I'm sorry for saying stupid stuff at dinner tonight."
"You came here to apologize for dinner?" He asked.
"Yeah. You know I tend to run my mouth off. Sometimes things just blurt out of it before I can stop myself."
"It's okay." She was quiet as if she still had more she wanted to say and despite his tiredness and the headache, he felt himself slip into his role as psychiatrist, curious to find out what was bugging her. "Now why don't you tell me why you really came here."
He felt her weight settle onto the bed beside him and heard her sigh. "Am I really that obvious?"
"More than a little. I don't think you've ever apologized to me ...or maybe anyone before."
"Well....It's just that...uh...well, how do I put this?"
"Just say what's on your mind."
"Okay." She took a deep breath. "When I was a little girl, shortly after my father died, my mother took my brother and I to India to stay with her mother for a while. Right outside of her home there was this blind beggar who always used to sit there and he...he used to swear at us whenever we passed by because my grandmother would never give him any coins. Well, one day as me and my brother were going into the house, he managed to reach out and grab me by the shirt. He held me tight and no matter how much I tried to squirm out of his grasp, he wouldn't let go and he kept on yelling at me in Indian. Everything from his smell to his rotten teeth to the way he seemed so angry at me had me so scared. But what was worst of all was his eyes, they were....I hate to say it...but a lot like yours look now. And ever since then...I've kinda been a little nervous around blind people. I know it's stupid, I'm a grown-up now, I shouldn't be like this anymore but...."
"But you can't help the way you feel. I guess that explains why haven't been very comfortable around me. You were traumatized by that incident and when we're young, things like that can forever impact the way we view things. For me, I'll never go rollerskating ever again all because a boy tripped me at a roller-rink when I was ten and I broke my arm. You have nothing to be ashamed of, we all have fears, both rational and irrational."
"I know, but I just...I feel terrible about it. Henry, Magnus, even the Big-Guy have all been helping you, but I just don't know how. I'm sorry...I've been a rotten friend and I shouldn't have avoided you."
Will felt for her knee and gave it a quick, friendly pat. He was about to reassure her that she wasn't a bad friend when he was suddenly grabbed by another attack of dizziness and he had to put his head in his hands just to keep upright.
"Hey, you okay?" Kate asked, supporting him around the shoulder. "You just turned white as a sheet and looked like you were about to pass out."
"Nah....just a little dizzy and I've got a headache...It was probably too much wine."
"Why don't you lie down." She suggested and he couldn't argue with her, he was just so tired and keeping his eyes open was a chore. "Can I get you anything?" She asked.
"No. I'm okay...I just need to get some sleep." Will stretched out on the bed and Kate rose, still concerned.
"You sure you're alright?" She asked again.
Will didn't answer, but nodded his head and closed his eyes.
"Okay, then I guess I'll let you get some sleep."
He was fast asleep by the time she left his room and closed the door.
XXXXXX
From his darkened corner of the hallway, concealed from anyone that might be passing by, Nikola watched as Kate quietly closed the door to Will's room and turned to walk down the opposite end of the corridor from him. He was certain that she hadn't seen him, for if she had, she surely would have questioned why he was lurking there in the corner.
After she was well and gone, he checked his watch. He had surreptitiously placed the sedative in Will's drink before dinner and he had to be passed out by now. Judging by the way that Kate had left his room so stealthily he had to believe that the drug had finally taken its full effect. The kid wouldn't be awake for quite awhile, certainly long enough for him to get the job done.
From his perspective, he was not evil nor a mad scientist as many in the house would like to believe. He was merely ambitious and driven, qualities that he thought made him more than just your run-of-the-mill genius, but destined for legend. And he was not without a conscious, he had even toyed with the idea of coming to Will and offer him a choice in this, but he had dismissed that quite quickly, Helen had made it clear at dinner that she would back Henry up and she now had plans to scrap all of his work and begin anew. And Will was such a loyal puppy that he would do whatever Helen wanted and reject his offer, even if that meant that a cure for him might possibly be months away, so giving him a choice was now out of the question.
Nikola, however was not willing to wait any longer. Ever since that fateful day when his vampire abilities had been stolen from him, he was desperate to get them back and soon. He had felt hollow since then, a shell of the man he used to be and he longed for the days when he could enjoy the strength in his muscles, the heightened senses and the power again that being a vampire had given him. But most of all, he desired to feel that all-consuming, drug-like blood-lust once again; to taste the slick, metallic blood against his tongue. That alone was enough to drive him to this and he just could not wait any longer or surely he would perish. Helen's agreement with Henry to start over was most frustrating and he wasn't going to stand for it, not when his goal was so close at hand.
Seeing that the coast was now clear and he could hear no sounds of approaching footsteps, he stepped out of his hiding place and into the light, quietly and quickly hurrying to Will's door. He darted his head around again, to ensure that he was still alone as he slowly turned the doorknob. He slipped inside the dark room and entered as silently as possible.
Though there was only the light coming through the window, he could clearly see that Will was out cold and he walked over to him, lifting a limp hand and allowing it to flop down. The boy didn't so much as stir and Nikola sneered at how easy this was going to be.
He crouched down beside the bed and pulled the vial out of his pocket along with a syringe which he unwrapped and stabbed into the stopper. He pulled back on the plunger, filling the syringe to the required amount and then flicking it a couple of times with his finger to release any air bubbles.
Nikola paused a moment and took in the face of the sleeping psychiatrist. He was so vulnerable at that second that he realized how simple it would be just to kill him then and there. The kid was a miserable thorn in his side and he obviously had the affections of the beautiful Helen Magnus which raised his hackles to no end, but if he was to kill him, where would that leave him? As much as he hated to admit it, he needed him for his own purposes. Ending him would have to wait.
After all, he needed his guinea pig. How else was he supposed to find out how the nano-cytes would react to a human host? He had been tempted to test them out on himself, but reason had won out and he concluded that in his current and pathetically normal, human state that any repair that the nano-cytes could accomplish within himself would hardly be calculable. But with Will on the other hand, his results would be far more pronounced and if his creations were to indeed restore his eyesight and reverse the nerve damage that had been done, then it would only be a matter of simple reprogramming to get them to return him his vampire abilities.
Of course, Helen would be livid that he had taken this step and without Will's knowledge or her permission, but sometimes sacrifices had to be made. She would no doubt boot him from the Sanctuary and deny him entrance ever again, but she would forgive him, especially after her favored pet was healed. But just to be on the safe side, he had had the forethought to mail-off half of the vial to a secret post office box which he could retrieve later
Setting the syringe down on the nightstand, Nikola raised Will's t-shirt sleeve up. If only the nano-cytes could have been administered as easily as the sedative had been, then he wouldn't have to be doing this, but as it was, the best way to ensure proper insertion into the body was through injection rather than ingestion. He grabbed a pre-soaked swab and rubbed a circle over the skin of Will's shoulder before taking up the syringe again and inserted the needle, pushing the plunger down until all of the contents were injected. Even after all of that, Will never moved a muscle.
Satisfied that there was little else for him to do but wait, Nikola policed up his trash and stashed it back in his pocket before getting up and heading for the door. Just before he placed his hand on the doorknob, he heard a clomping of heels striking the hard-wood floors in the hallway outside. He held his breath hoping that the footsteps would pass by and fade away, but when they stopped just in front of the door he quickly looked about for a place to hide.
"Will?" He heard a knock and Helen's voice from the opposite side of the door. "Kate said you weren't feeling well so I thought I would come and check on you."
Out in the hallway, Helen waited for a response, but received none. "Will?" she knocked a little louder, growing concerned from the lack of sound coming from within. She had been on enough overnight trips with him to know that he was a light-sleeper and would wake from even the slightest of noises, it wasn't like him to sleep through this. Worried that he might be more ill than Kate had described to her, she tried the door handle and opened it.
"Will" She called out to him again as she walked in and came by his side. He still did not move and as she bent down beside him, she noticed the up-raised shirt-sleeve and the small, but distinct spot of blood on his shoulder. She shook him gently about the shoulders to wake him, but still he would not respond.
From his position in the closet with the door slightly ajar, Nikola berated himself for not locking the door. The jig was up now and he knew that he might as well come clean to Helen, the deed was done and there was no going back. She was going to find out what he had done anyway, but he had hoped that they would have seen some results first, but there was no point in hiding any longer. He pushed the door open the rest of the way. She whipped her head around and shot an angry and malevolent glare his way.
"Nikola! What have you done?"
TBC.....
( Part 8 )
