Perfect Sacrifice

by Parker, Jack

  "She's doing fine," he responded. "She's still as cocky and energetic as ever."

  "That's good to hear."

  Dr. Solaris said nothing as he looked over his eldest son. There was something Leon was keeping from them. David knew that spending any time with Ray was risky. She was a wanted person, and her enemies were everywhere.

  "Leon," called Dr. Solaris, catching his son's attention. "Just what did the two of you do?"

  "We had lunch, shopped around, talked about the tournament…rollerbladed through the city," he said, deciding to stop there.

  "Sounds like fun," said Chris with a smile.

  "Yeah, fun," agreed Leon as he closed his eyes, letting the events of the day repeat themselves in his head. He had probably never had a more eventful day. How many times had he nearly died within the last few hours? He had lost count around ten. He was beginning to wish he had never let her follow him. However, he had to admit that she wasn't that bad of company. If only trouble didn't follow her, he'd probably say that her presence was quite enjoyable.

  "Leon," said Dr. Solaris. Leon opened one eye, looking to his father. "Will you come to my office? There's something I'd like to talk to you about." Leon sat up on the couch, swinging his legs over the side. He stood up and followed his dad down the hall. They walked into the unorganized work room, and Dr. Solaris shut the door behind him.

  "What is it?" asked Leon.

  "What really happened?" he asked, sitting down at his desk.

  "I told you, we…"

  "I know there's more," he cut in, locking eyes with his son. "I want to know what really happened in Torran." Leon sighed, realizing that his father wasn't about to let this slide.

  "Okay," said Leon, preparing himself to explain this. "I spent half the day with Ray, that's not a lie. However, there were these men, and throughout the day, we were chased both on foot and by a car, shot at, we skated through traffic, and then Ray got into a battle outside of the city, during which I was shot at again and had a gun pointed at my head." Dr. Solaris looked horrified as Leon told his story, recalling every event he could remember. "I think that's about it."

  "My God…" whispered Dr. Solaris in disbelief, his heart racing from the shock of hearing all of that. A lot had happened to his son in just a few hours, and it was all because of Ray. A sigh escaped his lips as he began rubbing his temples.

  "It's alright," Leon told his father. "We're both fine."

  "I can see that. It's just that…that was so much," he said as he laid his head down on the desk. "I knew that Ray was dangerous to be around, but I didn't think it'd be that bad."

  "Relax," coaxed Leon as he walked towards the door. "It all turned out okay. She didn't abandon me or anything even though I did get in her way." Dr. Solaris smiled secretively after hearing that. Ray had always been good at not following the rules. She never sacrificed anyone for her own safety. It just wasn't something she was able to do.

  "I'm going," announced Leon as he opened the door, looking back at his father.

  "Alright," sighed Dr. Solaris as he sunk down in his chair. Without another word, Leon left the room, closing the door behind him.

  Dr. Solaris reclined in his desk chair, tilting his head towards the ceiling. There were hundreds of questions on his mind, not to mention that the worry hadn't quite subsided yet. He repeated the information that Leon had given him, realizing that his son had been only inches from death. He was both blaming and thanking Ray. It had been her fault that Leon had ended up in danger, but she had done a decent job of keeping him safe.

  "Ramirez," whispered Dr. Solaris, knowing full well that this could all be traced back to that single man. "What do you want with Ray?"

  Ray's face paled as that name fell from Brian's lips. She stumbled back a little, not fully believing what she had just heard. Her next opponent was the boy she had nearly gotten killed in Torran. He was the boy who got on her last nerve. The confident, good looking, cocky pilot, Leon Solaris, was the person who had challenged her.

  "You're serious?" she questioned in somewhat of extreme disbelief.

  "Yeah, he's the one that called in," explained Brian, giving her a quizzical look. Ray sighed in exasperation. Things never worked out right for her.

  "It's not fair," she whined as she leaned against the wall, her head lolling to the side, her attention now on the ground.

  "What's wrong?" he asked, tucking his clipboard under his arm.

  "He already knows who I am," she began. "However, he only knows me as Ray, not as the ace knight. Now both Leon and Chris are gonna figure it out! I didn't want them to know!"

  "Why not?" asked Brian out of confusion.

  "Because I don't wanna get them in trouble. When people know me personally, Ramirez tends to target them."

  "Then just don't converse during the battle. He won't figure it out."

  "One problem," pointed out Ray as she shoved off from the wall. "At the end of a battle, the pilots have to shake hands, remember? Not only that, but he'd probably recognize my fighting style. Man, if only I'd known it was Leon, I wouldn't have accepted the challenge!" She sighed as she turned around and began to make her way down the hallway once again.

  "One more thing!" called out Brian, catching her attention. "Gordan wanted to talk to you about your report."

  "Okay," she called back as she turned the corner, heading towards Gordan's private office. It didn't take her long to reach the room. She opened the door, peering inside. Gordan sat at his desk, looking over hundreds of papers. He sighed when he read over a few. He obviously wasn't having a good day.

  "Hey Gordan," greeted Ray as she stepped into the office, closing the door gently. "You wanted to see me?"

  "Yes," he said, setting aside his current stack of papers. "It's about your report." Ray walked over and sat down in front of his desk, pulling the chair up a little.

  "What about it?" she pressed, curious as to what he wanted to know.

  "Are they really mining sacri crystals?" he asked softly, his eyes showing how serious this was.

  "Yes," she told him, taking on a very severe tone that was rather unlike her. "I saw it with my own eyes. They're digging up sacri crystals in the desert. Why, I don't know, but I'm sure that's what I saw." Gordan leaned back in his chair, sighing as he placed a hand to his forehead.

  "This isn't good," he stated. "The only reason to dig up those crystals is to create Genos. I'm sure Ramirez is planning to build a small army."

  "Then we've gotta shut it down," stated Ray as her eyes flashed with excitement and a hint of urgency

  "I'll send a team out there after your battle on Friday," he told her as he began picking through a few papers. "You do know that we'll be monitoring the battle between you and Leon Solaris." Ray cringed as she was once again reminded about that. She turned away, a scowl on her face.

  "Stupid Leon," she muttered.

  "What was that?" asked Gordan. Ray snapped her attention to him, a slightly nervous smile on her face.

  "Nothing, nothing," she assured him with a wave of her hand.

  "Ray," he began seriously. "Don't underestimate him. Leon is one of the top in the ranks. He's not a pilot to be taken lightly. In your current state, you may have a few difficulties. I'm sure you've noticed that your Geno is much harder to pilot now." Ray nodded, waiting for him to continue. "I'd like to point out that it'll be incredibly hard to operate during the aerial transformation. You'll have to pull much harder on the controls to move it. I'd feel better if you'd simply not use that form during this battle."

  "But that's probably the best aspect of my Geno!" she exclaimed. "You're asking quite a bit from me."

  "I know that," he said with a sigh, "but if you were to end up in a nosedive, you probably wouldn't be able to pull out of it. Despite the strength of your Geno's armor, I doubt the cockpit would survive that kind of collision. I'm not about to lose my ace knight in some battle challenge simply because she's stubborn."

  "You don't have to worry about me,"
she said with a smile as she stood up. "I'll be fine. Aren't I always?" Gordan just sighed in frustration and slight disappointment as he placed his head in his hands. It was pointless to try and tell her anything. Ray just wasn't the listening type.

  "Just be careful, alright?" he told her as she went over to the doorway.

  "I will," she said with a smile as she walked out the door, closing it silently behind her.

  CHAPTER 6

  Regulation

  Friday had come around quite quickly, and the day was rapidly approaching noon. The battle would take place any minute now. Ray was already on the desert battlefield. In the distance was a large, steadily approaching transport. It was made of black and silver metals. It was a square shape, rolling through the desert on its many wheels. Next to the large transporter walked a white, feline shaped Geno.

  Ray stood stalk still on the battlefield in her refinished Geno. Its armor was no longer the standard black. Instead, it was silver with red streaks going along its sides and black ones down the legs. Like the white one, it was in its feline form.

  Above the desert battlefield, a large blimp like device floated, keeping still where it was. It was slim, but in no way was it small. It was covered in thick black metal, the plane like wings splashed with red paint. It was a transportation devise used for the members of the GRC, their regulation ship. It allowed them to monitor the battle and keep a safe distance from the Genos. There were usually just a few officials inside to monitor the field, but today it housed General Gordan and his two subordinates, Brian and Abby. There were a few other officials, but they stayed in their seats, setting up everything that was needed for this battle.

  The transporter that was on the ground stopped, now slowly backing up. Leon and his Geno continued forward. Transporters weren't allowed on the field, only outside of it. He continued on his way, taking his sweet time. He was in both ways excited and terrified. He wasn't sure which was more dominant. This was going to be an exhilarating battle, and he was definitely looking forward to it.

  Ray, on the other hand, was dreading this encounter. She was currently tapping the control stick in front of her, biting her bottom lip out of apprehension. She wanted to be anywhere else but here. She knew that Leon was going to quickly figure out who she was if she tried to hide it. Perhaps it would just be easier to get it over with as quickly as possible.

  Leon's Geno stopped walking, now standing only a few meters away from Ray. The sun bounced off the two metallic bodies in the vast desert, their glass eyes shining with a bright light, making the two creatures seem very much alive. The battle would start in about three minutes.

  "Good luck R.C," said Abby over a communication link through the Geno. Ray looked to the small screen that showed her all three of her companions. Abby seemed incredibly enthused, Brian wore a smile, and Gordan just sighed. Ray couldn't help but smile. She knew that her commanding officer would have rather been anywhere else but here. He still disagreed with her decision to battle. Her arm was still in a sling.

  "Thanks," she said to Abby, flashing her a small thumbs up. "I won't let you guys down."

  "Just be careful," warned Gordan. Ray nodded and turned off the holographic screen. Just one minute left. She flipped a small switch and sighed mentally.

  "Are you ready?" she asked Leon, but she didn't receive a response. She quirked an eyebrow, knowing full well that she had turned on the speaker, linking it to his Geno. However, she heard nothing. "I said are you ready?" she repeated a little louder this time.

  "Yeah," he responded, sounding somewhat confused or perhaps shaken from his thoughts. Ray was praying that he didn't recognize her voice. She would defeat him and then reveal who she was. She'd skip that part altogether if she could. The less they knew about her, the better off they'd be.

  In the transporter outside of the battlefield, Dr. Solaris and Chris stood in the main room, watching the battlefield through a screen. The battle would commence soon.

  "I don't get it," said Chris as he looked over the battlefield.

  "What?" questioned his father.

  "Don't they usually broadcast the battles on TV?" he asked, looking around for a camera of some kind.

  "They never broadcast the ace knight's battles," explained Dr. Solaris.

  "Why not?" questioned Chris out of pure curiosity.

  "Because she has enough enemies the way it is, and the last thing she needs is for them to know where she is. If the battle was being broadcasted, they'd probably come and try to take her out during it." Chris nodded in understanding. It made sense.

  "It's time for the battle to begin!" boomed Gordan's voice over a speaker that projected across the area.

  "That man," began Dr. Solaris, catching Chris's attention, "is the general of the GRC, General Gordan Striker." Chris's eyes widened in surprise as he looked to the huge floating piece of metal.

  "Why is he here?" he questioned.

  "Gordan always comes to Rayla Cayden's battles," explained Dr. Solaris as he sat down at a desk chair in the large monitor room. "She is his knight after all."

  Outside on the battlefield, Ray was fidgeting slightly in her seat. She really didn't want to do this.

  "Get ready…" began Gordan. Ray reached out and grabbed the control stick, planning her first move. She knew exactly what she wanted to do. She was at a decent distance from Leon, so it was a perfect opening move. "Let the battle…begin!" Both Genos charged each other. Ray flipped a switch, the two boosters located on her Geno's back beginning to glow. In a split second, her Geno shot off at lightning speed, blowing right past Leon. The force of the winds nearly shoved him back, but his Geno dug its claws into the ground.

  "Nice move," he complimented, drawing a small smirk from Ray. She spun her Geno around, hitting a small button. Tons of side panels opened, revealing many different guns. She quickly released half of her ammo, showering the battlefield with hundreds of rounds. However, Leon's white Geno quickly transformed into the water form, burying itself underground, out of harms way.

  Ray closed all the panels and stood stock still, waiting for the slightest tremor from above. When she felt the ground shake beneath her, she sprang into the air, going straight up. Leon's Geno surfaced, and she came down on his Geno with her claws. Before she could do too much damage, he used a hidden gun to blast her away. His Geno transformed into the ground form again. He took a second to look over the monitor, making note of the damage done. Luckily, it was minimal.

  Ray was doing the same thing, slightly disappointed that she had allowed him to get in a shot. She scowled despite the fact that she was impressed.

  "Congrats," she told him. "Not many people can land a shot on my Geno." Leon didn't respond, only smirked to himself. He pushed a button, allowing five guns to extend from his sides and on top. He began to fire off rounds at her, but Ray just flipped a small switch. In an instant, her Geno began transforming. She flipped another, and the boosters came on, launching her unfinished Geno into the sky.

  In their transporter, Dr. Solaris and Chris were watching intently. Their eyes widened when they saw Ray's newest trick.

  "What is she doing?" asked Chris, sounding panicked. "Using the boosters during a transformation is dangerous."

  "Amazing," whispered Dr. Solaris. "I can't believe she was able to time that."

  Back on the battlefield, Leon watched as Ray's Geno blasted into the sky, avoiding all of his rounds. He stared in slight awe as he watched the Geno finish its transformation to its bird like state.

  "I know I've seen that before," he said to himself as he tried to remember where. That move was familiar. It then hit him as he recalled his day out in Torran. It was the same technique Ray had used during the battle in the desert.

  Ray began firing at him, but he managed to dodge to the right. His Geno quickly changed into the aerial form, blasting off into the sky after her. She cringed inwardly as she watched his Geno come closer. Aerial battles were no loner her strong point. The control stick was at least ten
times harder to pull up on now that she only had the use of one of her arms.

  Leon released a barrage of missiles, but she managed to just miss them, reading the projection of his guns. Each time he fired, she dodged within seconds, the bullets coming only centimeters from the metal of her Geno. She had to stay focused. With how difficult it was to steer, every prediction had to be perfect. There was no room for error this time.

  Ray cursed to herself as she realized that the battle had been going on for a while. Her battles were usually done within a few minutes. This one was lasting longer. Also, she had yet to land a fatal hit on Leon's Geno, not to mention that her own had taken in some damage. Gordan had been right when he had said not to underestimate the eldest Solaris son. Leon was obviously much more skilled than the other pilots she fought on a regular basis.

  "I have to say I'm impressed," she told him as she began firing at him, now following behind his Geno. "However, this battle needs to end. It's gone on way too long." Ray flipped a small switch, the boosters on her Geno's back heating up.

  "Leon!" shouted Doctor Solari, a screen popping up on the inside of Leon's cockpit. Leon gave his father a sideways glance. "She's about to break the sound barrier." Leon only smirked as the screen faded. This was his chance to try the technique for himself. He flipped a small switch and quickly spun his Geno around to face Ray's. Her Geno shot off at break neck speeds, and only a millisecond later did his follow. Both Genos passed each other, but the forces of their sonic booms clashed in the center, causing not an explosion, but a large bang. The force of the blow nearly sent Ray down to the desert ground, but she managed to keep her Geno in the air. However, Leon's was now heading downward. Just as it reached the desert, his Geno quickly transformed back into the feline form, making a decent landing. However, it wasn't moving anymore.

  Ray sighed in relief as she watched him land his Geno. However, that relief was quickly replaced by anger.

  "Leon, you idiot!" she shouted over a communication link. It allowed everyone to hear the words she was currently speaking. "What the hell were you thinking?" She was barely able to keep the worry out of her voice. He didn't respond, so she continued speaking. "No one is allowed to attempt that kind of attack unless they've been put through special aerial training from the GRC. Do you have any idea what could have happened to you? Breaking the sound barrier can easily rip the armor off of your Geno, not to mention possibly kill the pilot!"