Bart woke to the sound of a cleaning robot sweeping the floor. As he felt the warmth of the sunlight, he realized that he was no longer underground. Instead of the cold metallic walls of the blacksite, he was now in a hospital bed. No chains were binding him, only an I.V. line.
He tried to get up; this time, nothing stopped him. After getting up from the bed, he started walking to the other side of the room. His I.V. line started pulling on him. With a quick yank, his I.V. line fell to the floor. Bart walked to the door of the hospital room.
Before reaching the door, a nurse came into the room. "Mr Cain, you need to get back into your bed. Your condition is not yet stable."
Bart looked at the woman with an annoyed expression. "Listen here, Missy, I have to go check on my daughter and my grandson. I can not stay here. They are not safe."
The nurse was trying to get him back into bed."Mr Cain, please, this is for your own good."
"Mr Cain, please understand, and go back to your bed." The nurse tried to talk to him, but he was a stubborn man; there was no stopping him.
A familiar voice came from outside the room. "Bart, is that you?"
Bart looks at the person who just walked in. That beard was unmistakable. "Jack, you look bigger every time I see you."
Jack had an incredulous look on his face. His friend's current condition was something out of science fiction stories. "Bart, take it easy. Rachel and Mark are both fine. Frankly, I'm more worried about you."
Bart looked at himself. "Ah, yeah, this ...this is because that piece of human waste, Parker. He experimented on me." Bart pauses and looks at his current state. For some reason, he was not getting angry, and it was easier for him to think. Looking at Jack's worried face, Bart tried to put his friend at ease. "I'm fine, ...never felt better in fact."
"Look, Bart, I'll take you to see your family, but first, let's get you dressed. Your rear end is hanging out." Jack had a compelling argument.
Bart looked at the clothes he was wearing; he found that his hospital gown was a bit ...revealing. "You might be right on that, big guy."
"I will get you some decent clothes. Wait for me at your room." Jack succeeded in talking some sense to the man.
The nurse felt ignored, and after putting back the I.V. line on Bart, she went back to the nurse station in the hallway. Frustration was clear in her face.
A few rooms down the corridor. Rachel was hugging her son, tears falling from her eyes. Marcus watched the scene from the sidelines.
"Mark, you were so brave protecting your friends and all, but please, you have to watch out for yourself. My heart can not take another clip of you getting hurt." Between tears and hugs, Rachel scolded Mark.
"Mom, it was not that bad. Look, I have not even a scar." Showing up his pristine forehead, Mark argued with little success.
Wanting to change his mother's focus, Mark looked at the man standing on the sidelines. He posed a question. "Is he Marcus?" The young man knew very well who this man was. He intended to take Rachel's mind off the incident at The Pit.
Rachel looks back at the man behind her. With a smile, she gestures for him to come close. With nervous steps, the man closes in.
In his mind, Marcus was about to face something worse than the Supreme Court ...his son's expectations. Will he measure up, or will he disappoint his son? These thoughts gave his steps a bit of trepidation. But he pushed on.
Reaching the side of the bed, the man greets his son. "Hello Mark, my name is Marcus. ...It's very nice to meet you."
Mark, for his part, greeted the man as if he were greeting a family member he had not seen in years. "Hello, Marcus." A smile showed on his face. "Should I call you Father, or Dad?"
Marcus was elated by his son's reaction. A big smile drew on his face. "I have to say, ever since I learned that I have a son, I have been looking forward to meeting you."
Mark spoke with a sincere tone. "I have been wanting to meet you, too. My mother rarely spoke about you or her past. She did it to protect me. After seeing the things in the blacksite, I understand why. But I have always wanted to meet my father." Mark's words moved the man. Marcus hugged his son.
Rachel watched the scene in silence. Joyful tears rolled down her cheeks.
After his father's embrace, Mark looks at his mother. "Mom, I found grandpa. He was being held at the blacksite." The young man takes a deep breath before saying the rest. "The mad doctor experimented on him." Mark wanted to prepare his mother for the worst.
Rachel gasped. "He is alive. ...In my heart, I always knew." Rachel leaves the room to look for her father. Spotting the nurse station in the hallway, the woman walks there. Mark and his father were left alone in the room.
Marcus wanted to find common ground with his son. Only one topic came to his mind. "Mark, after talking to your friends last night, I learned of your workshop in A.M.S. I have to say, you have a lot of talent."
Mark, feeling a bit humbled, answers. "When Mom told me about you, I looked you up. Having a little workshop in a simulated world is nothing compared to running a company in real life."
Marcus smiles, a bit of pride leaks through his expression. "Son, you have only started. I have been toiling for almost 20 years. It is unfair to compare us. Besides, I have seen your work with the McCain Reaper. When I say you have talent, it's not empty flattery."
With an awkward look, Mark tries to set the record straight. "Well, to tell you the truth, the first version of the McCain Reaper is an unfinished design. It was submitted by accident. I'm already working on the intended version."
Marcus remembered his conversation with Roan. "Well, a friend of mine was talking to me about that. His daughter showed him the actuators you designed. My friend was impressed and wanted to use them for a design of our own."
Mark saw a stream of TP in his future. "Well, Dad, I have designed a set of actuators based on them. They can fit Mechs with the same configuration as the Reaper."
Marcus was moved by the way his son called him Dad. Hearing it for the first time gave him a warm feeling. Marcus tried to hide this. "I would love to see them some other time." The man takes a breath to calm his emotions.
In the hallway, Rachel approaches the Nurse's station. "Excuse me, can I get some directions? I'm looking for Bartholomew Cain.
The nurse's face showed frustration when she heard the name of the person the blond woman was looking for. "Honey, he's over there. Try to see if you can keep him in one place." The nurse pointed to a room in the same hallway.
When Rachel saw the nurse's face of frustration, she knew it was her father. He tends to have that effect on a lot of people. Without hesitation, she walked towards the room. Because she was in a hospital, she was not allowed to run, but Rachel moved as fast as she could.
Mark's words rang in her head. Horrifying images flashed through her mind. She imagined her father full of grotesque scars and extra limbs. But no matter his current state, she would be there for him. As a family, they will be able to overcome anything.
Reaching the door, the woman looked inside the room. All she saw was a man around 25 years of age lying reluctantly on one of the beds. Seeing the other bed empty, Rachel thought he might be in the bathroom. She walked into the room and was about to open the bathroom door when the man suddenly spoke. "Is that you, little Bird?"
As she heard these words, she froze. The voice, the tone, and even the way that the word bird rolled off the man's mouth. They sounded as if the words were spoken by her father, but this man looked younger than her. Rachel slowly turned away from the bathroom door. Looking at the man in the bed, the question fell from her mouth. "Is that you, ...Dad?"
The man stood from the bed. This time, he dragged the I V stand. The man wanted to spare the nurse any more frustration. "It's me, little bird. You have never seen this face, after all, when your mother and I had you, I was almost forty."
Rachel looked into his eyes. His warm and loving gaze was so familiar to her. In that moment, she knew the truth. This young man in front of her ...was her father. With no further hesitation, she moved to hug him. Bart received her with open arms.
Their hug lasted for a minute. As Rachel opened her eyes, she saw the back of the hospital gown he father was wearing. She found the sight a bit funny. "Dad, you'd better lie back on the bed. We don't want to give the nurses a heart attack."
Bart decided to follow his daughter's suggestions. Lying back on the bed, he wanted to catch up with his little bird. After all, he had not seen her for eight long years. "Don't worry about my clothes, Rachel. Jack went to get me some."
Back in Mark's room, the young man was talking to his father about mechs and special projects when he started hearing Melinda's voice in his head. "Big Brother Help, they want to take my blood again!"
Concern showed on Mark's face. Using the map function, he was able to see where Melly was. Since she was on the same floor, it would not take him long to get there. Without a second thought, the young man jumps from the bed and starts running.
Marcus worried for his newfound son followed behind him. "Mark, what's going on? Where are you going?"
Mark moved with haste. Running down the corridor, he dodged the patients and nurses with ease. Marcus had a lot of trouble catching up to him. He could only follow after his son, apologizing to the people as he passed them by.
Mark turned the corner and passed a few more doors. After reaching the room where Melly was, he lost no time in opening the door. As he entered the room, he was met with 3 people surrounding Melly's bed. A doctor, a nurse, and a woman dressed as an office worker. The nurse had a blood collection tool in her hands.
Melly was terrified of the three, but her big brother told her not to use her abilities. She was trembling in her bed. Mark saw the people were not exactly bad guy material.
The doctor looks at the young man who stormed into the room. "What are you doing here?"The nurse and the office worker turned to look at the young man.
Marcus arrived at the room after running behind his son. At the moment, he was trying to catch his breath. " Son ...huff, what's ...huff, going on?"
Mark was expecting someone else in Melly's room, someone sinister. Looking back on the event, he never saw a red arrow on the map function, only white arrows. The young man felt like facepalming himself. "I'm sorry, doctor, I was worried about Melly, and I came to check on her."
The office worker spoke next. "What is this girl to you?"
"I'm the one who rescued her from the lab she was trapped in, and you?" Mark answered while looking at the woman."
"I work for the Department of Family Affairs (D.F.A.). Given that the child is a minor and no one has claimed her, we have to take custody." The woman fiddled with her glasses while she spoke.
Since the woman in front of him represented the authorities, Mark tried a softer approach. "Can I take custody? I consider her my little sister."
She looked at Mark and judged the way he looked. "Can you even take care of a minor? At the moment, you are at the hospital, not to mention that you may not be equipped to deal with this child."
Melinda, thinking that this woman wanted to take her away from her big brother, activated her ability unintentionally. Suddenly, the people around the bed started feeling uneasy. They reflexively backed away from the bed.
Mark walked forward and grabbed the little teen's arm. "Melly, it's all right. I'm right here, just stay calm."
The feeling of unease stopped. It was clear to everybody where it came from. Mark looked at the woman again. "I might be the only person here equipped to help her."
The woman, cut off guard by the event, remains silent. A look of disbelief hung on her face.
The doctor had the same expression on his face, but composed himself quickly. "Young man, what was that?"
To Mark, it was best to tell the truth for the moment. "I really don't know. When I found her, she was in an automated lab, and they were running cruel experiments on her."
The doctor had an expression of skepticism. "And why is it that her ...ability does not work on you?"
"I do not know that doctor," Mark spoke the truth to some extent. He really could not explain most of the system's abilities.
The doctor stayed silent for a few moments. Finding no better course of action, he relented. The man wanted to avoid damage to the child and the other patients in his care. "It's best if you stay with the girl for now. In fact, let's move her to your room. I don't want a repeat of this ...event. However, we need a blood sample to run tests and find the next of kin."
Mark looks at Melly. "Melly, can I take your blood? I promise it will be quick. You trust me, right?
Melly nodded with her head and closed her golden eyes. Mark took the blood-collecting device and quickly grabbed a sample. "...There you see, all done." With a gentle touch Mark collected her blood.
After the event, Mark carried Melly to his room. The medical team prepared a bed for her. But Melly chose to sleep with her big brother. Soon after, Rachel came back, and Marcus told her about the event.
"Poor thing. No one deserves a life like that." Rachel's motherly instincts kicked in. She wanted to protect this girl.
Marcus looked at her. "If you had not taken Mark away, this could have been him." In his mind, Rahel's actions were justified. Having gone through his father's tender mercies, Marcus wants to help this little girl as well.
A few hours after the event. Rachel was brushing Melly's hair. The teen had taken a liking to both her and Marcus. Little did they know, she could read their thoughts. The doctor comes back along with the D.F.A. agent. They came to inform everyone. They had found Melly's next of kin.
"We have compared the results with our database and have found a match." After the statement, the doctor paused for a moment. As it turns out, this child has a familiar connection to Mr Parker." The doctor looks at the man. "The DNA testing shows that the girl is your niece."
In the doctor's mind, this explained why Mark seemed to be immune to the little teen's ability.
The D.F.A. agent spoke next. "Mr parker, I have brought with me some documents I need you to sign if you are willing to take custody of the child."
Marcus signed the documents without a second thought. A hint of anger was visible in his expression. His thoughts were filled with a question. "How is it possible that my father has such low regard for his own Family?"
A knock at the door called for everyone's attention. Jack came in. "Hello, everyone, ...I hope I'm not interrupting. I brought someone for a visit."
The doctor and the D.F.A. agent left the room as the two men entered. They wanted to give this family their privacy.
Bart entered behind Jack. He moved towards the bed, inspecting the state of his grandson. "Let your grandfather hug you, little Mark."
"I'm sorry I look like this. I feel weird moving around in a young body with an old soul." The man said while hugging his grandson.
Mark knew exactly what his grandfather was feeling. After all, he was also an older man in a young body. "I don't care what you look like, Grampa, I'm just glad that you are OK.
Rachel thought for a moment. "We are going to need a bigger place, our family has grown. The apartment at Miller Hills is not big enough."
Marcus saw a golden chance. "Well, I have a big house, you can all come to live in it."
"I'm sorry, Marcus, I'm not ready yet for that, yet," Rachel said, crushing his pretension.
Mark thought about the droid boutique. "This was meant to be a surprise, but yesterday I bought a property in Riggan's Point. It comes with a large living space that is already furnished."
Everyone looked at Mark but said nothing. Mark felt a bit awkward again. "It is a droid boutique. I wanted to give Mom a surprise. The paperwork is not finished, but I think we can move in next week."