A nightmare wakes Phil up after a very short nap.  He jolts upright, shaking and sweating, and tries to regain some semblance of calm.  He can't.  The house is too overwhelming and filled with too many memories to be calming.  Shaking and sweating, he puts his glasses on and gets off the couch.  It's only early evening, according to the time on his phone.  These days, the villains haven't been getting out until late.

    Resolution made, he pulls on a jacket, grabs his bag, and heads off into the darkening streets of San Francisco.

    It doesn't take him long to reach the Curatrix building.  Quiet as a mouse, he slips through the front doors and places his bag by the front desk.  Matthias glances up and his eyes go wide.

    "Phil, what are you doing back?"

    "I wasn't really liking the quiet at home.  I thought I'd stop by," the Brit replies.  He shrugs.  "I should be with my teammates during something so huge."

    Matthias leans back in his chair.  "Huh.  Well, we're glad you're with us."

    Phil forces a smile and turns, looking through the windows to the silent city that lies outside.  Moments later, the other heroes emerge from their respective offices or change rooms and join him in looking out the window.  It's silent for a moment as everyone processes their current situation.

    "This is bad," Ken says without looking away from the window.  "I've never seen anything like this."

    "Everyone is either dead or in hiding," Matthias replies, typing something on his phone.  "On top of that, most media outlets are down.  The only news getting out is the stuff the NAI wants everyone to see."

    "Geez," Phil mumbles.  It's worse than he thought out there, and now he doesn't even have Dan to spend time with.  His throat starts to close up but he fights it, refusing to randomly start crying in front of his colleagues.  Oddly enough, he looks to Felix first, searching for that same sort of grief in his eyes.  The Swede stares out the window, a cold, empty expression on his face, and Phil hopes that his grief never turns him cold.

    "Hold on, guys."  Matthias raises his device once again as the New Age Institute seal flashes across the screen.  "They're broadcasting again.  Look!"

    They gather around, viewing the same brunet man that's been in every one of these broadcasts.  Dan told him once that that's Matthew and that even though he looks cold, he's more gentle than most.  He exudes confidence, but his eyes show an exhaustion and pain that Phil immediately relates to.  If someone were to look at them side by side, their eyes would reflect the same grief.  Matthew lost a brother.  Phil lost a lover.

    "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen of San Francisco.  This morning, your government buildings were destroyed.  It was a pity and has caused us to come to terms with the fact that a city cannot function without leadership.  So, it is our honour and duty to take the role of government and allow this city to function more effectively than before."

    "That's total bullshit," Ken grumbles.  "They're the ones that destroyed the buildings!"

    The anger and hatred towards the villains makes Phil want to scream.  The heroes know exactly what the villains are going through because of Marzia, and they still have no compassion?  Despite wanting to speak up, Phil bites his lip and stays quiet.  Confrontation has never been his strong suit, and suddenly standing up for the villains and getting mad at his teammates would cause more problems than it would solve.

    "But the regular citizens won't know that, will they?  Especially if the NAI is monitoring news outlets," Matthias replies, eyes flickering over to Ken.  "Now shush."

    "Our first step as your new leaders is to make sure that the police force is not controlled by an enemy group.  Curatrix has always been a corrupt agency, so now we will take the police force under our control and get rid of their leader," Matthew continues.  The camera pans to show Samantha Lewis, the head of Curatrix, tied up and gagged by a burly man with a gun aimed at her head.  Phil's jaw drops and his heartbeat is suddenly pounding a heavy baseline in his ear, his entire body frozen.

    "They're gonna kill her," Ken mumbles, covering his mouth with his hand.  "How'd they manage to get her in the first place?!"

    The burly man cocks the gun and Phil shuts his eyes, images of Dan and fire and blood flashing through his mind as the shot goes off.  He's distantly aware that his entire body is trembling, but he can't help it.  He's already putting too much energy into not collapsing.

    "With the police force under our control, San Francisco will be a better controlled, safer place to live.  Citizens, remember that compliance to the law and our rules will be rewarded.  The new world is here.  Goodnight," Matthew finishes.

    The sound fades away and Matthias' phone screen goes black, leaving stunned silence hovering in the air around the heroes.  Phil's breathing comes out in a thin whistle, panic threatening to consume him.  As soon as he's free from this room, he might need to go and vomit.

    "With Mrs. Lewis gone and the police force taken from our control, we're on our own.  I'm only a missions coordinator, but I can take control for now.  We may have one more push against the villains before all is lost," Matthias says, tucking his phone back into his pocket.

    "Wow, that transition was just peachy, Matt," Felix grumbles, crossing his arms across his chest.

    Phil ignores him and instead focuses his attention on Matthias, his voice squeakier than usual.  "If we lose, what do we do?  We can't stay here."

    Matthias watches him for a moment before looking to the rest of the team.  "If we win, we take control of the police force again and hopefully get to a point where we're able to fight back against the NAI.  If we lose, we'll probably go into hiding."

    "So, to put it simply, the odds are stacked against us," Ken states.

    Matthias pulls his lips into a thin line.  "Yeah, pretty much."

    Mark glances away from the window and lets his gaze hop from hero to hero.  "In the case that we do win, what happens to the villains?"

    "The public will probably decide."  Matthias' blue eyes fill with pity.  "That's not certain yet, of course."

    Mark nods and looks down at the tile beneath his feet.  "Yeah, I got it.  I understand."

    Phil wishes he had some encouraging words or something to say at all, but he doesn't.  He's on the verge of a severe panic attack and at least Mark still has Jack.  Phil is all alone again, and nobody knows that he was with Dan at all.  So, he remains silent.

    "In a week, we're going to do one last push," Matthias states.  "Is everyone okay with that?"

    Phil meets Mark's eyes and nods, and the American nods back.  The group murmurs their agreement and Matthias dismisses them, letting them all go home to their wives or boyfriends or family in general.  Phil grabs his bag and steps out into the cool night air before promptly rounding the corner and crumpling.  He presses his hands and forehead to the concrete, the cool cement doing nothing to soothe him.  He lets his tears pour down his face and wet the ground, the hollowness in his chest hurting more than he could ever describe.  He wants Dan back.  Why did the world have to take him away?

    Once the sobs have finally stopped, he pulls himself to his feet and walks down the street, not bothering to hide.  He doesn't say it, but part of him wishes that some group would pop out of nowhere and stop the pain he's feeling with a single bullet.  He nearly scoffs out loud at the thought.  If only it was that easy.  One bullet wouldn't be enough to kill him unless he got hit in the head.  His body is remarkably fast when it comes to healing itself.

    If only I could be that fast when I'm saving others.

    Phil grits his teeth and quickens his pace, although he doesn't really know where he's going.  Somewhere to escape his own thoughts?  Somewhere loud and chaotic, perhaps?

    The bookstore.

    His feet carry him to the bookstore.

    He reaches the decimated building and steps inside, his shoes crunching over pieces of broken glass.  It's the same as when him and Dan came in here the last time, although some of the pages that had been here earlier have been blown away.  Phil feels his eyes burning and shoves his feelings down, too tired to cry more.

    A piece of paper lies atop the broken glass, and for some reason Phil reaches down and picks it up.  The moment he reads it, his breath catches in his throat.

"Good night, good night!

parting is such sweet sorrow,

That I shall say good night till it be morrow."

    The words of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet stare at him from the page, resonating deep within his soul.  He folds the page and tucks it into his pocket, his heart aching as he walks towards the piano.  He runs his fingers along the keys and sits on the bench, taking a moment to collect himself before tapping out a simple tune that Dan taught him.  He imagines Dan sitting beside him, pressing kisses to the side of his neck and his shoulder, arm around his waist.  He imagines a world where they had the chance to grow old together.

    Phil opens his eyes, unable to cry despite how badly he wants to.  He has nothing left to give except a dry sob, which he attempts to choke back.

    He sits at the piano for a long time.