Dominion (Futuristic Four)

"You Already Are."

A cold, dim warehouse.  That was where Wilbur had decided to hide.  It suited him.  At least, that's what Hiro told himself as he climbed out of the time machine with Wolf at his side.

Hiro had no idea where or when they were, but he knew that it was somewhere around where he had left Wolf to track the others after disabling Carl.

Was it all an ambush?  Probably, especially if Wilbur was involved.  But Hiro couldn't resist the bait.  He armed his laser gun which he had designed off of the ones mounted on the time machine and began circling the outside of the warehouse.  Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.  Wolf nudged his hand and pointed his nose at the front door, indicating that the others were inside.  Without many other options Hiro pushed opened the door.

"Violet, you have to do this."  The soft words fell on Hiro's ears like snowflakes.  It was Penny, he was sure of it.  So Wilbur wasn't alone.

"I can't," Violet responded.

"If you don't then he's going to destroy the world!"  That one was Wilbur.

"I don't think that's what he wants at all!  He's just upset that he can't save Tadashi.  He blames it all on you, you know."

"Yeah, I figured that out.  Did you see what he did to Carl?"

"Violet, please," Penny pleaded.  "You're the only one who can get through to him!  It won't end up like last time."

"But how can you promise that?" Violet asked.  "And if I fail, what happens to Hiro?  You guys don't know him like I do."

"If you fail," Wilbur began, "then we have to find some other way to stop him.  We can't let him use Dominion on people.  It's not right."

Hiro had heard enough.  He pushed the warehouse door the rest of the way open and stepped inside.  "Instead of talking about me, why don't you just talk with me?"

Three pairs of eyes turned to watch him as he advanced.  They looked scared, maybe even defiant.  But not the slightest bit guilty.  Not even Wilbur.

"You guys are disgusting," Hiro continued.  "I can't believe you'd pretend to be my friends and then betray me like that!"

"It's not like that at all, Hiro!" Penny yelled.  "There's just a lot that we can't tell you!"

"Couldn't tell him," Violet corrected as she lay a hand on Penny's shoulder.  "But we're past that now.  It's time to tell him everything."

She took a few steps forward, separating herself from the others.  Her eyes stayed on Hiro's.

"This wasn't just about fixing your memories," she explained.  "We've been trying to break out of a time loop."

"A time loop?"

"Yes.  We don't know exactly how long it's been going on so far, but it involves all of us trying to fix the mistakes we keep making over and over."

Hiro laughed.  "Does this have to do with that stupid Kyuubi guy again?  We haven't seen him in forever!  And besides, he's not the one stopping me from rescuing Tadashi."

Violet stared at Hiro for a long moment.  "This have everything to do with Kyuubi.  Kyuubi wasn't just some super villain, Hiro.  Kyuubi is you."

The word hung in silence.  Hiro almost burst out laughing.  "Me?  You're saying I turn into Kyuubi someday?"

"Not someday.  You already are.  Have you looked in the mirror?"

"No, I was busy . . ."  His mind wandered back to the sunglasses and hat.  The same things the stranger had worn when cornering Hiro at the Cafe and at the presentation.  The same things Hiro wore when finding himself in those same locations.  "But . . . but I'm not a villain!"

"But you're doing the same things a villain does," Violet pointed out."

"And you guys knew about this the whole time?"

"We were trying to keep you from following that path again.  We were trying to stop Kyuubi and save Hiro."

"But it can't be me!  Some of the things I did don't line up!  Like, I never attacked Wilbur in that version of the timeline where I didn't have my memories!"

"Sometimes the loop changes a little, but not a lot.  It's something we've come to figure out.  You can't change the future."

Hiro's mind was spinning, reevaluating everything he knew about Kyuubi.  "But if I'm Kyuubi . . . and I'm evil . . . doesn't that mean I'm the one who kills you?"

Violet's eyes shone with tears as she nodded.  Hiro stumbled backwards as Wolf growled.

"He's not going to change," Wilbur called.  "We should just get the Dominion and leave."

"No!" Hiro shouted.  "You know who's never going to change?  You, Wilbur!  Because you'll never give me a chance, no matter what I do!"

That was the moment that several things happened at once.  Both Penny and Wilbur charged Hiro as Violet turned invisible.  Hiro raised his ray gun and disengaged the safety.  Wolf howled and charged Wilbur, who promptly turned and ran the other direction.

"Wolf!" Hiro yelled.  "No!  Bad dog!  You can't bite them, they're not robots!"

Wolf completely ignored the commands and head-butted Penny out of the way like a rag doll.  She collided with some invisible surface which promptly flickered and turned into Wilbur's time machine.  Wolf kept doggedly after Wilbur as Hiro fumbled with the ray gun.  He couldn't let Wolf tear him to shreds.  He had to stop him.

He raised the gun and fired, just as the air right in front of him rippled and became Violet.

Time seemed to slow down, which Hiro knew was impossible because he wasn't holding his invention which did that.  The laser beam passed through Violet's chest and continued on to Wolf, tearing through his metal hide and hurling him against the wall.  The warehouse fell silent.

"No . . . Violet!"  Hiro grabbed Violet as she began to fall.  "You weren't supposed to . . . I didn't see you . . . You were invisible!"

"Penny, get in!"

Hiro glanced up long enough to see Wilbur haul Penny to her feet and into the time machine.  It roared to life and punched a hole through the warehouse roof.  Hiro didn't care.  None of it mattered anymore.

"Hiro," Violet whispered.  "You need to start the loop again.  You have to remove your memories and give us another chance."

"But it just means you'll die again . . ."

"You have to let us try.  We'll get it right . . . eventually."

"No.  The loop can wait.  I'm taking you to Baymax."

Her eyes slid closed as he lifted her and carried her back to his time machine.