Perfect Sacrifice (48 page)

"Yeah," said Ray.  "What's wrong with that?"  Dr. Solaris just sighed.  He would never understand the way they thought.  He was a genius, not a psychiatrist.  As far as he was concerned, they were beyond help anyway.  Their minds were too warped.  There was nothing he could do.  It's not like it really mattered much anyway.

"I can't believe one Geno was able to rip off that armor," he said, seeming to think this over.  "What kind of weapon could do such a thing?"

"Whoa," said Ray, shaking her head.  "That Geno wasn't what ripped off my armor.  Give me more credit than that."  Dr. Solaris turned to her, obviously confused now.  If it hadn't been the Geno, then what had done it?

"Then how did that happen?" he asked, pointing towards her bare Geno with a missing glass eye.

"Um," began Ray.  "It was sort of my fault that that happened.  I was so focused on winning that I really wasn't thinking much about my Geno.  You see, I was using a four point cannon, and…"

"A four point cannon?" he questioned in disbelief, cutting her off in the middle of her explanation.  Four point cannons were rare; in fact, they weren't even supposed to exist anymore.  They had been destroyed at least fifty years ago because they had been seen as threats to the lives of the pilots.  Everyone had agreed.  Where had Ray gotten one from?

"Yeah," responded Ray, "but I only used two of them.  I'm not rash enough to use all four without my silver armor.  If I had, well…I'd rather not think about it."  She smiled as she finished that sentence, but it gave away how afraid she was of the weapon.  She should be.  A four point cannon was deadly.  All four points would have annihilated her Geno.  There would have been no escape, no hope in surviving.  She had gotten lucky the way it was.

"Ray," began Dr. Solaris, "where did you get it?"

"From an excavation site," she said.  "It was a few years ago.  I asked Gordan if I could install it, and he said it was alright as long as I didn't use it often.  This is the first time I've used it in two years.  I've never used all four parts of it, because, well…I have to admit, I'm a little scared about what might happen."

"I don't blame you," Dr. Solaris said while crossing his arms.  He was going to have to think about this.  What was a four point cannon doing in an excavation site?  If that really was where it had come from, then what about Ramirez?  Had he found one by now?  Did he have that kind of power as well?  The thought was bone chilling.  The idea of one of those horrific cannons still being around was enough.  They didn't need to have two.

"Anyway," began Leon, "this has been fun and all, but it's dinner time, and I'm hungry."

"No shame," sighed Ray with a small smile, earning her a glare from Leon.  Dr. Solaris just smiled at the two of them.  Things were really getting interesting.  With Ray living with them, everything was different.  Leon and Chris weren't bored that often anymore, thank God.  He hated having to put up with them when they were just lounging, being the lazy boys he had grown accustomed to.  Having Ray around had proven to be a good thing in more ways than one.

"I guess I should start dinner," said Dr. Solaris as he began heading up the stairs, back to the kitchen.  Leon quickly followed with Ray not far behind.  It was getting late, and they had both missed lunch.  It was kind of hard to think about food when you were in a life and death battle.

* * * *

Gordan ran to the console and slammed his hand down on a button.  The screen quickly brought up the image of a man dressed in a military uniform.

"General Gordan," said the man, saluting respectively.

"What's this about one of my knights?" asked Gordan, very anxious for the news.  If one of his knights was still alive, he needed to know.

"Yes, that," began the man, dropping his arm.  "We have reason to believe that one of the knights from Trin is still alive.  He was in the base during the attack."

"Yes," began Gordan as he crossed his arms, "but that base was obliterated.  Nothing but a hole was left."  The man on the screen smiled.

"Exactly," he said.  "Not just any hole.  We did some investigating, and that hole wasn't made by the destruction of the base.  A Geno in its water form made it.  We think he managed to escape before the base was destroyed.  He's probably heading your way as we speak."

"Which knight?" he questioned, wondering who could have escaped.  He had an idea, but he needed to know for sure.

"Jace," the man answered, and Gordan couldn't help but smile.  He had been expecting that.  Jace's Geno had originally been a water base.  That explained how he had gotten out in time.

"Thank you captain," said Gordan.  "I'll contact you if he shows up."  The captain only saluted one more time before the screen went blank.  Gordan couldn't help but feel good about this.  Everything was going his way.  The knight killing Geno was gone, another one of his knights was alive and hopefully coming to Nerid, and there hadn't been any disturbances in Torran.  Everything was great. 
It looks like things are finally going my way.

Ray was walking through the park in Torran, a smile on her face and her head in the clouds.  It was another day, and it was rather early.  She and Leon had taken their Genos into the shop.  The man who usually fixed Ray's Geno nearly passed out when he had seen the damage done.  Needless to say he had never seen a Geno in that bad of shape.  He said he'd fix it though, and she was going to take his word for it.

Currently, she was just walking around Torran, not having anything she needed to do.  She was slowly making her way towards the hospital, and she decided that she might as well see how Aaron was doing.  It's not like she had anything else to do.

She walked up to the hospital's front doors and just went right in, heading to the front desk.  The receptionist looked up and smiled when she saw Ray.  They all knew her there.  She had been in too many times for them not to know who she was.

"Hello Ms. Cayden," she greeted kindly.  "What can I do for you?"

"I'm looking for a patient," responded Ray.  "His name is Aaron.  He should have been brought in yesterday around…four or five o'clock."  The receptionist began looking through her records, looking for one that fit Ray's description.

"Ah, here it is," she said, pulling out one of the files.  "He was the man with the chest wound, right?"  Ray nodded, and the receptionist stood up.  "Follow me.  I'll take you there myself."

"Thanks," said Ray as she began following the woman down the hallway.

"It's no problem," she assured her with a sweet smile.

They passed room after room, going down about three different hallways.  After a while, they finally arrived at the right room.  The receptionist opened the door, and Ray walked in, going over to the bed.  Aaron was lying there, staring out the window.  The television was on, but he wasn't paying it any attention.

"Hey Aaron," she greeted, startling him.  He snapped his head in her direction and sighed in relief.

"It's just you," he began with a small smile.  "What are you doing here?"

"I came to visit you, of course," she said with a smirk.  "I had to make sure you made it."

"I'm fine," he told her as she made her way over to his bed.  "I've been waiting, though."

"Waiting?" she questioned, deciding not to sit down.  She didn't plan on being there for long.

"To see Andy," he said.  "You know, that kid is the only one at the base that's not a blood thirsty jerk.  He isn't insane like Ramirez, and he isn't sick like Nathan.  He's the only one worth talking to there."

"Yeah," agreed Ray, and she didn't even know the people there.  She would take his word for it.

"Ramirez was wrong about you knights," he told her.  "You're a lot different from what he said, Ms. Cayden."

"Ray," she corrected him.  "Just Ray."

"Very well then," he said with a smile.  "And if I may ask, what are you doing in Torran?"

"Leon and I were dropping our Genos off at the repair shop," she said.  "The four point cannon really did a number on my Geno."  He only nodded, remembering the damage done to the once black Geno.  The armor had been torn completely off.  She was lucky her Geno hadn't been destroyed.  The ace knight without her Geno wasn't much of a knight at all.

It was silent for a moment as Ray looked out the window, surveying the area.  The park wasn't far.  Maybe she'd go there next.  As she made that decision, she turned to Aaron, a smile on her face.

"I've got to get going," she told him.  "If I see Andy, I'll send him over, alright?"

"Yeah, okay," responded Aaron with a small yawn.  He was starting to get tired.  Hospital rooms seemed to do that to people.  Maybe it was the calming white color that was everywhere.

"Bye!" she called as she walked through the door, only receiving a wave from the ex-commander.  It was time to go look for something to do.  She began to wonder where Leon had ended up.  There was something he had said that she was supposed to remember. 
Oh well, it doesn't matter.  I'll remember it later.

* * * *

Andy sighed to himself as he walked down the next to empty pathways of Torran city's park.  He had come to visit Aaron, but he realized that he had no idea where to even start looking.  Torran was a huge city, and he was trying to find someone who didn't really want to be found.  How was he supposed to go about doing this?

He walked with his head down, unaware that on the path that intersected with his, Leon Solaris was running, not exactly watching where he was going.  He was too busy looking for something or someone. 
Ray, you jerk!  Why did you just ditch me?  Just wait until I get a hold of you.  You'll pay for this.

Leon was so caught up in his own thoughts that when he stepped into the intersection, he nearly knocked over Andy.  The fifteen year old boy genius stumbled back a little, but he didn't fall.

"I'm sorry," apologized Leon.  "I didn't mean to run into you."

"That's alright," said Andy, not really caring much.  He hadn't really been paying attention either.

"Hey kid, can I ask you something?" asked Leon.

"Sure," responded Andy, still not really caring.  He might as well help this man out.  What harm could it cause?

"Have you see a girl about this high?" he questioned, placing his hand at Ray's height or what was pretty close to it.  "She has red eyes, blue hair, keeps the left side of her face covered…"  Andy was quickly snapped from his small stupor.  This man was talking about Ray.

"You mean the ace knight?" he asked, not sure exactly what this man wanted with his "sister".

"Yeah, have you seen her?" Leon asked, seeming rather anxious.  Andy only shook his head.  He had yet to see Ray today.  Usually if she was in Torran she ended up at the park.  "Oh well," said Leon with a sigh.  "Thanks anyway."  With that said, he ran off down the path, still searching for the ace knight.

Andy continued on his way, now keeping his eyes on the road.  If Ray was in the park, he was going to find her.  Maybe she would know where he could find Aaron.  He began to wonder what that man had wanted with Ray.  He was sure he had seen him somewhere before, but he wasn't sure where.

"Andy!" called out a cheerful female voice, one he would recognize anywhere.  He looked down the side road and saw Ray approaching, a smile on her face.  "Hey, I was looking for you."

"Hi Ray," he greeted, and his mind returned to Leon.  "There was some guy looking for you."  Ray paused, a confused yet thoughtful expression on her face.

"What kind of guy?" she questioned, having a pretty good idea about who it was.

"He had brown hair, kind of violet colored eyes, and a red headband," began Andy.

"Leon," she sighed, her suspicions being proved accurate.

"You mean Leon Solaris?" questioned Andy, now realizing why Leon had looked so familiar.  "Why was he looking for you?"

"I don't know," answered Ray as she crossed her arms and contemplated this.  Why would Leon be looking for her?  It suddenly hit her.  "Now I remember," she stated, a slightly surprised look on her face.  "Man, I completely forgot.  I was supposed to wait for him at the repair shop."  She sighed out of either disappointment or worry.  Andy couldn't tell.  "I just got so caught up in what the repair man was saying that I sort of forgot.  When he was done explaining, I just kind of left.  We were supposed to go run some errands for his dad."

"You could probably catch up with him," said Andy, but Ray just smiled.

"Nah, I've got better things to do," she said, "like take you to see Aaron."  Andy smiled brightly.  How was it that Ray always knew what he was looking for?

"Where is he?" Andy asked.

"At the hospital at the end of the park," said Ray.  "He's doing really well.  I just saw him this morning.  Let's go.  I'll show you where it is."

"Ray, wait!" called Andy, stopping her in her tracks.  She turned to look at him, a question playing on her lips.  Before she could ask "why", he continued.  "Some of Ramirez's men are out today, including his new commander.  We can't go together."  Ray crossed her arms, a slight scowl on her face.  She had to think of something then, and it didn't take her long.