Authors: Jack Parker
Confrontation
In Dr. Solaris's waiting room, they were just sitting there patiently, waiting for Leon to get back from his trip to the parts shop. Chris was awake now, and he had pulled up a chair next to his father's bed. He just sat there, staring out the window, wondering what had happened to his brother. It had been over an hour now, and all of them were getting a little worried. However, Ray appeared more agitated than worried. She had her arms crossed, and she was tapping her foot impatiently. She was indeed worried though. Despite the irritation marked so cleanly on her face, her eyes gave away the uncertainty and anxiousness she felt. She finally couldn't take it anymore.
"That's it," she stated as she stood up and walked to the door. "He's been gone long enough."
"Where are you going?" asked Chris as she walked out the door.
"To find Leon," she answered as she walked away from the room, heading down the long hallway. She would find the older boy and drag him back to the hospital. He was probably getting caught up in some argument with the parts shop manager. It wasn't like it hadn't happened before. That was just Leon for you. He'd argue with anyone over anything, no matter how trivial it was.
Ray stepped outside the hospital, pausing on the stairs to take a deep breath and admire the city. Torran was beautiful at night. The lights were just like stars, but perhaps not quite as elegant. However, it was indeed a sight to see, despite the fact that it wasn't a natural beauty.
Ray began her trip down the stairs, but she stopped when she saw a shadowy figure at the corner of the rather short sidewalk. It was pretty easy to tell that the figure was a man. He seemed rather tall as he stood with his hands in his pockets, his long trench coat hanging clear down to his ankles. He suddenly snapped his head in her direction, and Ray prepared herself for a possible fight.
"Hello Rayla," the figure greeted as he stepped into the light shining from the hospital. There was a smirk on his still shadowy face. "So good to see you."
"Nathan," she cursed deeply. "What do you want?" She tensed up as he took a step closer, but instead of rushing her, he simply shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know," he told her with an amused smirk. "I'm just the messenger, after all."
"Messenger?" she questioned, still keeping her guard up. She wasn't about to let herself get ambushed by his men. She wasn't so sure about Nathan himself either. He could very easily pull a gun on her. After all, she wasn't armed anymore. Her weapons had been forgotten in her haste when saving Dr. Solaris.
"I have a message for you straight from Ramirez," he told her with a sinister smirk, one that Ray didn't like one bit. "He says he hopes that you enjoyed the little attack on the Solaris base. He'd also like to point out that it was your fault it happened."
"I'm already aware of that," she said through clenched teeth, using every bit of willpower she had not to crush the "messenger" where he stood.
"Also, he'd like to point out that one of you is now missing," stated Nathan, his eyes glinting as he saw the confusion wash over Ray's face. "But don't worry…" he began, and Ray realized exactly what he was talking about.
"You monster," she snarled dangerously low, cutting him off.
"…He's still alive," finished Nathan, not seeming to care what she thought right now. He was, however, getting a great deal of amusement from the glare she was shooting him. Any normal person would probably parish under that kind of acidic look, but Nathan just didn't care. To him this was amusing.
"Where's Leon?" Ray demanded, her lone cherry eye containing every ounce of hate in her being.
"He's with Ramirez, alive and well, and if you want him to stay that way, you'll shut up and pay attention to the rest of the message," he told her, enjoying the power he now held over her. He could probably do whatever he wanted with her right now, and she wouldn't be able to do anything about it. He could easily use this hostage situation to his favor. However, Ramirez would kill him for screwing around. He was a messenger, nothing more.
"What?" asked Ray, not liking the way he was staring at her. There was lust in his dark eyes, and it sent chills down her spine. "Dream on, lecher." He only sighed in defeat, his smirk reappearing right after.
"Field section ten," he told her, earning him a rather confused look from the ace knight. "Field section ten, area twenty-three Z. That's the location of Ramirez's base." Ray's eyes widened in extreme disbelief. What exactly was Nathan up to? Was he betraying Ramirez? Or was he simply following his orders? Maybe Ramirez wanted her to find him. Maybe this was all part of his plan. This was all making sense. That's why he took Leon. He wanted her to come. This was a trap, one that she would willingly walk in to, and they both knew that. She wouldn't allow them to kill Leon. She'd go, no matter what the circumstances were.
"What does he want from me?" she asked softly, unsure exactly why Ramirez would go through so much trouble just for her. He obviously wanted her alive. The question was why.
"You have to come tomorrow, and you have to be alone," he told her as he turned around and started walking away. "If you bring anyone with you, he dies. It's that simple. We only want you."
"But I…" she began, but he had already disappeared into the shadows, leaving her alone to make one of the biggest decisions in her young life. She knew this was a trap for her. If she went, there was no telling what could happen. It was possible that Ramirez would just kill them both anyway. However, she wouldn't risk it. She couldn't do that to Leon. She'd go, and that was final. Now she just had to do one thing first. She had to break the bad news to Dr. Solaris and Chris. It was then that the severity of the situation really hit her.
* * * *
The door to Dr. Solaris's room opened, and Ray walked in, barely making a sound. However, both boys heard her, and both turned to watch as she walked in, dragging her feet. Her head was down, her hair obscuring her face from their vision. They couldn't tell just what her expression was, but by the slouching of her shoulders, she was obviously not in a good mood. They noticed another thing, however. Leon wasn't with her.
"Ray, I thought you said you were going to find Leon," began Chris. There was no response though. Ray was silent, her head still down. It appeared as if she was thinking, as if there was something heavy weighing down on her mind. Dr. Solaris knew that something was seriously wrong. He was wondering if it had to do with Leon.
"What happened?" he asked her softly yet seriously. He knew that this was probably not something she wanted to talk about, but if something had happened with Leon, he needed to know.
"…I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice sounding so quiet that if he hadn't been listening for it, he probably wouldn't have heard her at all. For some reason, she still refused to raise her head and face them.
"What do you mean?" he asked her gently, not wanting to rush the answer from her.
"It's all my fault…" she said with a sniffle. Dr. Solaris examined her position, trying to see her face. He then saw a small glint of something as what looked like a tear drop gently rolled down her cheek. She was crying. "I never meant for this to happen," she told him, still not coming out with the answer he wanted. He was starting to fear this topic. Ray was crying, and for someone like her to cry, it had to be serious.
"Ray, I need to know," he told her, his voice a bit more demanding now. "Tell me what happened to Leon." Ray stood stock still, afraid to say the words she knew had to be said.
"Ramirez has him," she told him softly, her voice quivering a bit. "…I failed. I'm sorry."
Dr. Solaris and Chris were both wide eyed as the answer registered in their racing minds. That man's name was one to be feared, but it was more than the name. Ramirez was a terrible person, one who wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone. If that demon had Leon, then there was no doubt in Dr. Solaris's mind that he would lose his son. Ramirez never left anyone alive for long. His sick mind wouldn't allow it.
"I'm leaving tomorrow morning," she stated, drawing their attention for a moment. "I'm going to see Ramirez."
"Are you insane?" questioned Dr. Solaris, earning him a smirk from the young ace knight.
"Come now Dr. Solaris," she began with a pinch of sarcasm in her voice. "Surely you already know the answer." True, he did. He knew very well that the ace knight was perhaps a little crazy. It if wasn't insanity though, then it was arrogance. Perhaps the line was much thinner than he had thought.
"Then you really are leaving," he sighed, knowing that if she did go, she'd have to face Ramirez.
"Don't worry," she told him. "I actually have a plan this time. I'll make a trade with him. It seems it's not my life he's after, otherwise Nathan could have easily killed me a few minutes ago. I get the feeling that he needs me for something." A sly looking smirk crossed her face, which instantly made David Solaris worry. He knew her well, and he knew exactly what was running through her head.
"Ray, you wouldn't…" he began, only to get cut off by the arrogant knight.
"If he refuses to let Leon live, I can always threaten to kill myself," she told him with a sad smile on her face.
"Ray…" began Chris, sounding a little worried about this.
"Don't worry," she told them. "I promised that I wouldn't let anything happen to Leon, and I won't. It's my sworn duty as a knight to keep all promises, and…" She paused, continuing her sentence in a soft tone with a small smile present on her face. "…It's my duty as a part of this family…to keep us together." They were all quiet, not wanting to argue this. If Ray wanted to go, they weren't about to stop her. If anyone stood a chance against Ramirez, it was her. She was the only one who could take him down, the only one capable of rescuing Leon. She was their only hope. It was kind of sad to think, though, that if she failed, they wouldn't just lose Leon. They'd be losing Ray. Two members of their family would be lost to them. It would be too much to bear.
"Excuse me!" they heard someone shout from the hallway. "Is Rayla Cayden here? I have to see her!"
"She's currently visiting someone in room 123…" began the nurse, but she was about to tell him that visiting hours were over.
"Great, thanks!" shouted the voice, escaping the nurse before she could shoo him away. He ran to the doorway, and Ray was surprised to see Andy standing there, out of breath. As he looked to her, his eyes welled up with a deep sorrow and an extreme amount of guilt. He looked sick too, as if he was about to collapse.
"Andy, what are you doing here?" Ray asked him, confused at seeing the fifteen year old before her.
"Ray, I'm so sorry," he began, trying to catch his breath. He obviously had run quite a long distance for him to be quite this tired. He was panting profusely.
"What do you mean?" she asked him, knowing that this probably had something to do with Ramirez.
"I know what happened to Leon," he began, now standing up straight and taking in a deep breath before continuing. "I heard Ramirez talking the other day about something. He's trying to create the perfect army, one of Genos that have no pilots." Andy suddenly seemed a bit angry, but Ray wasn't sure if his frustration was aimed towards her or if he was perhaps irate with himself. "Why didn't you tell me you had sacrum?" he asked her, clenching his rather small fists. "If I had only known…I wouldn't have built the amplifier."
"Amplifier?" questioned Dr. Solaris, becoming rather interested in what Andy had to say. He suddenly understood what this all had to do with the ace knight and his son. He only wanted reassurance from Andy to prove his theory.
"A sacrum amplifier, something that can use sacrum to control a Geno that doesn't have a pilot," explained Andy. "He wants to create the perfect army…" He turned his attention back to Ray. "…But he needs you to do it."
"So that's why he took Leon," she deciphered. "He needed a way to guarantee I'd come alone." She spoke so softly that it was as if she was talking to herself. She seemed to be contemplating something, as if all of this had suddenly clicked in her mind. She clenched her fists out of determination, her eyes flaring a bit with the realization of what had to be done.
"Ray?" questioned Andy softly. "What will you do now that you know?"
"Isn't it obvious?" she asked with a determined smirk and a now visible pair of fiery eyes. "I'm going. I have to end this. I'll do whatever it takes." Ray walked past Andy, but she paused in the doorway, sparing all of them one last glance. "I guess I'll see you all later. I have a lot of preparations to make if I'm going to head out in the morning. I promise you I'll bring him back, okay?"
"Ray!" called Dr. Solaris as she was halfway out the door. She didn't even glance back at him, and her shoulder length hair was hiding her face from his view. "I want you to promise me one last thing. You have to promise that you'll come back too."