Perfect Sacrifice (35 page)

This whole situation was horrible.  Their proud group of knights was slowly dwindling down.  There were originally eleven knights.  Four were on Azran, four were on Trin, and three were on Nerid.  Nerid was often referred to as the main continent, since it happened to be the one where the most GRC bases were located.  However, when you were looking at size, Azran was definitely larger.  It made sense to have more knights there and on Trin, seeing as how Nerid was smaller.  Besides, it had her.  She was equal in power to five knights.  What more could you ask for.

Ray sighed as she rolled onto her back and stared at her white ceiling.  She had to figure out what to do about this.  That monster was going to go for Trin next.  Perhaps Gordan would have the knights evacuate.  She couldn't bare the thought of losing anymore.  They were the closest thing to a family that she had.

"Family," she whispered out loud as images of her family, her real family, flooded her mind.  "I'm…alone."  That one thought hit her hard as she realized just how lonely she was.  She was the only one left.  The last member of her family.  For some reason, she alone had been left alive.  She alone had to live with the pain of memories.  They were memories that haunted her mind, that tore at her soul, and that resounded through her dreams.

She sighed deeply before sitting up, deciding that it was best to stop thinking about this.

"I guess I won't be getting much sleep tonight," she said as she stood up and walked to her door.  After all that had happened, how could she not be haunted by nightmares?

* * * *

"No!" shouted Gordan as he slammed his hands down on the console before him.  He had just watched as his last knight on the continent of Azran was annihilated.  He was beyond angry, his hands clenched and his teeth grinding together.  Behind him stood Abby, who had just witnessed the onslaught.  This was horrible, and it wasn't fair either.  None of it was.

"How…?" whispered Abby sadly as the monitor went blank.  In the matter of one day, she had lost four of her dearest friends.

"It's Ramirez," stated Gordan in a deep, very low tone.  "He's the only one who would so something this sick."

"What are we going to do?" asked Abby as she looked to her general.  He was still leaning over the console, his arms supporting him as his back was hunched.  He was apparently thinking this over.  What could he do?  By their calculations, this thing was huge.  There wasn't a single Geno that would stand a chance against it…well, other than Ray's.  However, he wasn't even sure if she'd be able to.  What he did know was that the monster had to be stopped.  There was only one thing he could do now.  He had to prevent the same massacre from happening on Trin.

"There's only one thing we can do," he said while straightening himself out.  "We have to pull the other knights out of Trin.  I want them all to come here."

"But sir," began one of the nearby officials.  "If you do that, then those continents will be easy targets for Ramirez."

"I don't care," he stated while lowering his head, his voice sounding very much like the general he was.  "I'm not about to lose any more of my knights."  No one said anything more to his plan.  They knew that Gordan loved each and every one of his knights as if they were his own children.  They were all trained by him, after all.

"I'll issue the command," said Abby as she left the control room, heading off to do her task.

* * * *

Ramirez stood in his office, watching the news with glee.  There was a cold smirk on his face, one that reached the icy region of his eyes.  He was enjoying this.  He wanted every last knight dead.  What better way to execute them than during a Geno battle?

"Sir?" began one of the officials watching with him.  He seemed somewhat disturbed by the way his general was enjoying the slaughter of the knights.

"Yes?" questioned Ramirez, not bothering to look at the man who had addressed him.

"Um…I just wanted to know why you're killing the knights," he said, seeming a little unsure of himself.  This earned him a small glance from Ramirez, causing the man to nervously elaborate his question.  "I mean, it's not like they're a threat to you.  You could easily handle them on your own."  Ramirez turned his full attention back to the screen, his cold smile still playing on his lips.

"I know that," he stated.  "I'm not doing this because they're a threat."  The official seemed confused at that statement.

"What other reason is there?" he asked curiously.

"I'm going to torture that arrogant GRC dog," he stated somewhat angrily.  "I'll make her pay for what she's done."

"You mean the ace knight?" questioned the official as he raised an eyebrow.  He didn't quite understand how this was supposed to get to her.

"Of course," responded Ramirez as he turned to face the official behind him.  "She's different from most pilots.  If she battles with her emotions, she doesn't fight as well.  Most enraged pilots find that their strength goes up, along with their reaction times.  It's very much the opposite for her.  If Rayla's mind isn't clear when she's battling, she starts messing up."  The official nodded in understanding, but he still didn't quite understand what killing the other knights had to do with the ace knight.

Ramirez turned back around, and as if sensing the official's question, he cleared his throat.

"By killing the other knights, she'll become enraged," he explained.  "If she's angry enough, her skills will falter, and she'll be easy pickings."  The official nodded, even though Ramirez couldn't see him.  He understood now.  "Also," added Ramirez, "it's fun simply to torture her.  I can almost see the look on her face.  I'm sure this is really hurting."  He let out a deep laugh, which sent a chill down the official's spine.  His general was incredibly creepy.  He seemed to greatly enjoy torturing the ace knight both mentally and physically.  The official had to admit that it all made sense to some extent.  If you were going to get revenge, what better way than making the opponent suffer?  And what better way to make one suffer than to destroy everything they really care about?

CHAPTER 18

A Harsh Reality

It was finally time for dinner.  The day had passed by so slowly.  Ray had spent most of it working on her Geno.  Afterwards, she had gone to her room and hadn't come out.  It was a shock that she came out to eat dinner.  However, eating wasn't exactly what she was doing.  In fact, it was far from it.  She was staring at her plate, a distant expression upon her face.  She was currently just spreading the food out, pushing things back and forth with her fork.  She had yet to take a single bite of it.

The Solaris family just watched her with sad eyes.  It's not like they blamed her.  She had just suffered through two horrible ordeals.  Brian was still unconscious in the hospital, and now Ramirez was wiping out her fellow knights.  Things couldn't get much worse for her.  However, they probably wouldn't get better either.

"Ray, you should eat something," coaxed Dr. Solaris, drawing a small glance from her.  She was just sitting there, her elbow on the table, her head resting against her hand.  She hadn't realized it until now, but they were all watching her.

Ray stopped playing with her food and set her fork down.  She promptly shoved her plate away and stood up.

"Sorry, but I'm just not hungry today," she said as turned away.  She left the kitchen, heading back towards her room.

Dr. Solaris sighed deeply as he set down his silverware.  He propped his head up with his hands, resting his elbows on the table.

"What are we going to do about her?" he asked aloud, knowing that his sons probably couldn't provide an answer.

"I don't know," said Chris, his simple response proving Dr. Solaris's point.  They probably wouldn't be able to come up with a solution to this problem.  Ray was depressed, and she was probably going to remain that way for a while.

"Just leave her alone," said Leon as he continued eating.  His solution drew their attention for a few reasons.  First off, he wasn't the type to offer advice for situations like this.  Second, Leon never left anyone alone.

"But shouldn't we try to help her?" asked Chris.

"There isn't really much we can do," said Leon as he finished eating and pushed his plate away.  "After all, we don't know what she's going through.  There's no way for us to relate to this problem."

"But still…" began Chris, only to be cut off.

"Just leave her alone," repeated Leon.  "She'll feel better in a few days."  He left before either his father or brother could get in another word.  Chris turned his attention to Dr Solaris.

"Well?" he questioned, wanting to know what his dad thought of the situation.  Dr. Solaris only sighed in response.

"I think Leon is right this time," he said.  "If we give her time and space, she'll eventually come around."  Chris nodded, even though he didn't like the idea.  In his mind, Ray shouldn't be alone in her state of mind.  She looked so depressed.  She needed someone to try and help her.  Misery loves company, right?

* * * *

A little girl walked down the halls of the GRC base.  She looked no older than seven, and she knew exactly where she was going.  She was dressed in nothing but her moon blue nightgown, her bare feet padding softly against the carpet.  In her arms she clutched a stuffed dog, one of its beaded black eyes missing.  Its fur was worn thin, showing how old the toy probably was.

The base was dark, and the hallways were frighteningly quiet.  Then again, there weren't many who were still awake at this time of night.  She knew her brother was, and so was the general of the base.  He rarely got a sufficient amount of sleep.  He always seemed to have a lot of work to do.

As she neared the door she was looking for, her body began shaking.  She had a horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach, as if she knew that something was wrong.  However, she shook it off, seeing as how she was only seven.  It was probably just a feeling left over from the nightmare that had awoken her.

She reached out a shaking hand, ready to turn the doorknob and open the door before her.  She froze when a loud crash, followed by a bang came from behind the door.  Another came, then another and another.  She began to back away, her hand now at her side as she clutched the stuffed dog to her quivering body.  She continued to listen as more sounds came, followed by a scream.  The last sound she heard was the same as the first.  It was a crash, like glass breaking.  After that there was just nothing.  It was silent again.

By now, she knew that if she just waited, someone would come.  It was impossible for the people still awake not to hear that.  However, she was too curious, so she reached out to the door again, placing her hand on the doorknob.  She turned it and slowly pushed the door open.

As it swung slowly to the side, it began revealing the room to her.  She just stood there, confused, as it opened all the way.

"What was that noise?" asked a voice down the hall.

"I'm not sure," asked a younger one.  Coming down the hallway were two familiar faces.  One was that of their general, Gordan Striker.  The other was Lee Cayden. 

As they came down the hall, their eyes landed on the little girl as she stared into the room of her parents.  Lee made it over to her first.

"Ray, what are you doing?" he asked, noticing the horrified expression on his sister's face.  It was then that he looked into the room.  His eyes widened, and his face paled at the sight.

The room was dark, but that meant nothing right now to him.  He could see it.  His sister could too.  Blood.  There was blood everywhere, covering everything.  His parents' room was a mess, full of bullet holes that graced the walls, furniture, and their bodies.  Their blood had been spread around the room, splattered on the mirrors, walls, their ceiling; it was just everywhere.

"My God," he whispered as he walked inside, only to find that it was worse than being at the door.  The strong smell of blood overwhelmed him, and he felt like retching.  Tears quickly began to fill his seventeen year old eyes as the harsh truth hit him.  His parents had been murdered.

Gordan came up to the room and took a look inside, his reaction being the same as Lee's.  His face paled, and his eyes went wide with shock.  He quickly looked down to Ray, who was still staring inside with that expression of sheer horror.  Gordan quickly got down and enveloped her in a hug, trying to keep her from seeing the room.

"No, don't look," he told her, his voice holding a great deal of fear.  It was fear for her, for what her mind was probably going through.  "Don't look Ray.  Don't look."

It was too late for that.  She had already seen it, already seen the horror that lay behind her parents' door.  They were gone.  Someone had killed them.  She had heard it.  Those sounds would ring through her ears forever, haunting her mind with their horrid memories.