A/N:
Thank you once again to Orthros for proof reading this chapter. It's really a huge help and ensures that the more inferior work does not make it through.
If you like this story, please consider checking out my Explorers of Sky fic, Into Darkness.
"…" - Spoken dialogue
Italics - Michael's thoughts
'Italics' - Telepathic dialogue
/\/\/\ - Lemon Scene
"The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself."
-Sun Tzu
Ch. 29 - Raptor
"Look, we're getting closer, aren't we? Pewter has been solidified as ours for the time being, and the possibility of securing Viridian will be present within another week or so. Things are at a stand-still right now towards the border, and the city's been evacuated, but with the way they're pushing towards Celadon to try and cut us off from the capitol, I seriously doubt they'll be focusing on Viridian. The only thing is I'll need to make a choice between those two cities: do I take the easy win, or do I hold off on that and make sure they don't get the upper hand in a territory that I will need to take over later? Or maybe a bit of both; could have some of my personnel ambush convoys in their attempt to head towards Celadon. I'm expecting that one to be a longer fight anyways - it's way larger than both the other two cities combined. I don't know yet. Looks like I'll need to speak with my strategists about this one."
Douglas had been speaking about his plan for action for over half an hour now, and honestly it was getting to be more than a little tiresome. "I mean, you should at least be showing some sign of appreciation," the insurgent leader said in response to Michael's silence. "I'm holding off on the CIC for awhile. But you've barely said a thing this whole time."
"My throat is sore," Michael said quietly. Raptor had managed to push his regenerative abilities to their very limits, as evident by the guards rushing in and finding him drenched in his own blood. Immediately a medic was called, but by the time he had arrived, the bleeding had slowed as the deep gash in his neck had begun to heal. It had missed his carotid artery by a fraction of an inch.
"Yeah, sorry about that," Douglas apologized. "I would have thought that she would have been able to exercise some sort of self control. But it seems like that's too much to ask for, isn't it Raptor?" She simply looked away silently. "Hell, I'd have been more than a bit pissed if you had gone and fucked up everything we're trying to create here."
"It will not happen again," she replied weakly.
"Oh you're damn right it won't happen again. You should have never been in his room in the first place. Now given what we're trying to accomplish with him, what the hell kind of an impression do you think that you're setting when you sneak around into his cell and attack him like some sort of wild beast?" His harsh tone made her recoil slightly in shame. "Anyways, I apologize again for that. To say she has a slight grudge against you given your previous encounters would be an understatement. She could hardly walk for months after that injury she took to her leg. We don't have TMA specialists like you all - that's still a very sought after field of medical expertise, and one that I haven't been able to acquire yet. She had to wait it out the old fashioned way."
"Ah. Not gonna lie, I kinda enjoyed sticking my dagger into her - especially after she tried to kill my friend." Through her helmet, he could feel the resentful gaze directed towards him.
"Yeah, I'm sure you did," Douglas laughed. "But you need to get this through your head: we didn't strike first. Had your country just minded its own damn business and stayed out of everything, then we wouldn't be at war with you."
"Yep, we should just stand by idly while you go around and get the country hooked on drugs or while you sell people. Sounds like a plan for a country that prides itself in its moral principles."
"Again, we can sit here and debate those moral principles all day long. But you cannot deny that the eradication of the left would lead to a better, more moral society," Douglas said.
"But at what cost? Your very souls? Must you step over the corpses of tens of thousands to get what you want? There has to be another way - and you know it," Michael said in annoyance.
"There is no other way. You cannot reason with the radical left. They are the pinnacle of entitlement and sheer stupidity. Their very creed is that of ignorance, and if it isn't exactly their way, then it's no way at all."
"But you seem to think that everyone that isn't some radical right winger is automatically in that group, and that you have to murder them…"
"They may not be," Stone admitted, "but they still put the radical ones into positions of power. And don't act like you don't know what even a little liberalism will inevitably lead to. It just starts the ball rolling - each new politician seeks to be farther left than the last, labeling the previous as a bigot in some way shape or form. We can't let even the moderates get through."
"But at the expense of killing them? Of selling people into slavery?"
"I fucking told you this already - we needed the money, and we needed to scare them. The days of that are almost over."
"They never should have started," Michael replied.
"In an ideal world without the left, they never would have," Douglas stated. "They started this, not me. I'm just ending it." He stood up and walked over to his desk, simply standing there for a moment before withdrawing a small brown book from a drawer within it. He tossed it over to Michael. "Take a good long look at that." The Reaper opened it, and on the very first page the names started, each with dates and locations beside them. Rachel Warner… Emily Ingram… Meghan Rowe… And he skimmed through the pages, finding all but a few in the back to be filled.
"So this is the list of all of them, then…"
"That is the list of every single girl that has been sold, yes. And you know what?" Douglas said. "It fucking horrifies me. I did it, yeah, but I have to live with each and every one of those names - all of them having their lives ruined because of what we did. But yet if we didn't do what we did, then countless more would be ruined at the hands of the left. I had to do it… but I never wanted to. And no amount of drowning myself in alcohol has ever been able to help with that. I get to live with that for the time being, and one day I will be killed because of it. That's my punishment for all this. But I care enough about the world - and even about Hoenn - to man up and do what needs to be done for the good of all mankind." Throughout his time here at base, Michael had never witnessed such emotional words from Stone. But no one could deny the tears streaming from his face. This was all real, and to him, it was the only way.
Maybe he deemed himself a martyr, or a hero of sorts. Truth be told, granted his mental instability and the terrorist's rationalized selflessness of his own actions, Michael didn't know what category he fit into any more. But regardless of what Douglas thought, his upcoming actions would undoubtedly lead to the deaths of millions. That couldn't happen.
"We can't keep going on like this," Douglas finally said. "The world can't. People aren't meant to live this way, and people don't need to be doing the stuff that I do. There will never be a need for this kind of activity again once we get everything straight. And then I'll get to rest. But for now, we have to stop them."
"There has to be another way… This just can't be it…" Michael said.
"Oh how I wish there were. But there isn't, and that should be obvious by now. You know how they are - you were educated in a country full of those types. There is no compromise, no reasoning. They are not going to budge, so this is what we must do."
"No," Michael said, shaking his head, "this is what you think you must do. But this isn't what needs to be done. Look at you right now - you don't even want to do this, but you've truly convinced yourself that there's no other way. You've blinded yourself to all the ways that you could have accomplished your goal without becoming what you are now. But your rage towards the radical left has clouded all of your judgement, and now you're just doing this as revenge against the political side that wronged all of you back in Hoenn. You've convinced yourself that this is about ideals… but really, deep down, I think that you are doing this to drag as many of them down with you as possible."
"I want them gone… yes. You have no idea what it's like for your country to turn its back on you. For your father to practically renounce you for beliefs that you developed independently of his influence. For horrid politicians to absolutely destroy everything good about society. For police to kick in a law abiding citizen's door, only to torture you for information and to imprison you for having a separate set of ideals. This is what their 'social justice' seeks to accomplish. It must be destroyed, and the only way to do that is over their dead bodies. Not one of them can be left alive."
"No… I don't know what any of those things are like," Michael admitted. "…But if you are going to target people for their beliefs - even if they're a bunch of ignorant leftists - you are still doing that which you are against…"
"So by ending the people that discriminate against us, then I'm just as bad? By acting in self-defense, I'm somehow the aggressor?" Well he may have had a point there. "It's time for you to see them for what they really are. They will not change - they will not grow up. Hell, they won't even do anything on their own. All any of them are is just a fucking vote; a bunch of votes that force those who want something better - those that strive for greatness or for wealth or for personal growth - to provide for them. They steal from our pockets with their taxes, and they promote their bullshit ideals by force in the education system. Step out of line and they want to run you over. The only way to fix this - the only way to make any of it better - is to go to the root of the problem. We will tear this stupid system of democracy apart, and never again will the uneducated, selfish prick have a say in what all of the rest of us do. We will burn that shit down, and we will create a world worth living in."
. . . . .
He would need to make a decision soon. Michael didn't know how much longer he had here until… well, until whatever happened, but he would have to attempt some sort of action relatively quickly. He could try to make an attempt at taking Stone's life, but that wasn't going to be a guaranteed success. And even if he did manage to kill him, then there were likely other similarly-minded idealists here that would just continue their mission. And the idea of taking out the entire base was idiotic.
So of course there was the option to try and escape without raising alarm, but that seemed equally as improbable. If he could manage to kill one of them in secret, hide the body, and slip into their uniform, then maybe he could sneak out of the base. And if he could pull that off, then all he would need to do would be to make contact with the others, who would probably be able to trace the call, and order a strike on the island. But that could take hours, he thought. From the time that he'd manage to fully get out of the base, look for civilization of some sort, and manage to make the call, surely someone would have discovered that the Reaper was missing, and the whole base would be on high alert. Douglas and the others would probably take that time to escape… There just wasn't any way out of this it would seem.
But one thing was for sure: he absolutely refused to have anything to do with the Assembly. Even if Douglas simply wanted to use them as a tool to stir things up within Johto, those were people that he refused to go near if he could help it. It would simply be leading both him and the girls straight into danger. Not to mention that he didn't particularly like the idea of helping instigate a war within the very country he had sworn to protect… No matter what he did, he just couldn't seem to win…
He dreaded the idea of what may become of all of this - Michael knew very well that his refusal to cooperate with Douglas could lead to his death. And regardless of what he did for a living, or the physical and mental toughness that came with their field, that scared him. The idea of never seeing any of the girls again was enough to make him tear up just thinking about it. He wanted to go home, but he couldn't morally agree to this man's conditions in exchange for that.
But despite this, the conversations continued to happen. Douglas wasn't giving up on him - he didn't particularly care for the Assembly personally, but he knew that there would be a significant advantage in getting them involved in this revolution. "We owe it to the world to get all of this done as quickly as possible," he often said. "Getting the Assembly to occupy Johto - or maybe even throw the region's ideals - will do just that." But despite his persistence and after being turned down time and time again, it was obvious that the terrorist's patience was wearing thin. It was on one particular morning - nearing Michael's second week on the base - when the conversation had taken a turn for the worst.
"See, this is exactly what is wrong with the right wing nowadays," Douglas said in a clearly irritated tone. "You've all got your principles that you value, morals that you support - and yet you will do absolutely nothing to get that stuff passed. You won't go out into the streets, you won't try to engage in the cultural wars, and you just take whatever shit they throw at you through the media! You all will do nothing to make the world a better place, all while hoping that everything somehow magically works itself out. As horrid as the leftists are, they are willing to go out and cause some sort of commotion. That's why the world is shifting left as fast as it is - because the conservatives are just standing by and watching it happen! The only ones in your country willing to actually defend its ideals are the members of the Assembly!"
"We don't need to do that kind of shit. My country will always remain right." Douglas seemed to find humor in those words.
"Yeah, sure. Let me tell you, they were saying that exact same shit less than a hundred years ago in Hoenn. And before long they'll be full-blown communist. Johto is only safe for now. If you value your country's morals, then you will do the one thing that you can to make sure that it stays the way it is forevermore."
"I've already told you this," Michael stated. "I'm not going to have anything to do with the Assembly, or with you for that matter."
"Oh? And why is that? You think they'd even be able to lay a finger on you, provided they did find out? I would have enough guards around you to make your own president jealous," Douglas retorted.
"That's one of the reasons - of course I wouldn't want to knowingly put any of us in danger. But I could never align myself with someone like you. I couldn't possibly look the girls in the eyes after doing something like that." It was then that Douglas had finally snapped.
"Well you know what?! Who gives a fuck what a bunch of pokémon think?" Michael fell silent upon hearing this, and it all started to make sense now.
"What in the fuck…" Michael murmured to himself, before looking Douglas in the eyes. "You can't seriously mean that…"
"Why the hell are you going to throw away the potential to save your very country - to actually be someone who did something worthwhile - over a few of their kind?" he asked.
"So then that's why you don't have any remorse over the pokémon you've sold into slavery," Michael said. "You don't even consider them to be people…"
"Oh give me a break," Douglas said. "You're almost sounding like one of those pissy liberals right now." That was interesting to hear - somehow every single matter had to involve politics. Somehow, it was always liberal or conservative - no in between or nothing apolitical with this guy. And something like this? This was just common decency. But Douglas now seemed to lack that. Above all this though, what was far more interesting was the fact that he had seemingly forgotten of the third person's presence in the room with them.
Raptor immediately headed for the door, catching Douglas' attention. "Come on, don't be like that," he said. She was already out the room before he finished his sentence. "Fucking great, now I'm gonna have to deal with that for who knows how long…"
"Well what did you expect - for her to just sit there and take it? To be called worthless like that?" Michael asked. "You asked me why I couldn't join you? It's shit like that right there."
"Alright, I think we're done here. The way things currently are, I have a feeling that you'll be useless to me. Guards!" The two that escorted Michael to the office showed up at the door. "Take him back." Michael stood up and headed their way. "You're getting one last chance," Douglas said. "I want you to seriously think about your decision. You think about what your country truly means to you and then you give me an answer. But if you're content with just sitting around and letting the enemy take it over, then you are against those of us who wish to restore sanity to this world. And I can do that with just fine over your dead body."
. . . . .
Michael had been pondering the latest discussion for some time, but he simply couldn't understand. How could anyone look at a sentient being - one that can communicate with them and has the exact same mental and emotional capabilities - and say that their entire kind was beneath them? Ethan had seemingly shared the same concept too, so it sure as hell wasn't only Douglas. And this sort of backwards thinking had potential to make its way into society now. Many of Stone's higher-ups likely thought the same way, and if they accomplished their goal of taking over who knew how many regions, then they could put people in power that would also feel the same way. That could have disastrous effects on everything regarding pokémon…
Even as bad as the Assembly was - and even with their atrocious actions - they never denied the sentiency or the intelligence of pokémon. Hell, most of them even had pokémon with them throughout all of this. Douglas had actually managed to sink to a new low. Fuck, if he was anything like this, I can see why his father wants little to do with him…
And yet despite their feuds, part of Michael couldn't help but actually feel bad for Raptor. From the way things sounded, she and Douglas had always been there together - throughout everything. And to hear something like that from someone that she had likely deemed her closest companion… He couldn't even imagine what that must have felt like. Had the sceptile not been wearing her suit, Michael was almost certain that there would have been visible tears. As much of a monster as she was, she didn't even compare to Douglas.
. . . . .
Nearly another week had passed, and he had not been let out of the cell once. The only time the door opened was to deliver food and other necessities. The sheer boredom was starting to get to Michael, and he found himself engaging in whatever opportunity he could to pass the time. But he could only sleep so much, and there wasn't anything to do here aside from thinking - which was likely Douglas' intention. But rather than consider once again the insurgent's proposition, his thoughts tended to drift back to those of everyone back at base, particularly the girls. He knew what could very well come soon, so the next time he would be brought in he would do his best to kill as many of them as possible.
He had memorized the route there, and decided that his best opportunity would be on the elevator. If he could manage to stab the guards, then he would be able to take their weapons and take the few stationed in the hallway by surprise. Then he would make the attempt to kill Douglas and Raptor. Even if someone took his place and continued the mission - which was the likely scenario - he would have made them suffer a massive hit with the death of their leader. Michael didn't know when it would all occur, but he was prepared for it, and he kept the bone shank hidden but within reach at all times.
Every time that door opened, he wondered if he would be called there one final time - if it was time for him to put his own plan into motion. Michael hated the very idea of doing this; the thought of dying wasn't really appealing to anyone. But it was going to happen, so he might as well take Douglas down with him. That fucking door though, it was really making him anxious… When it finally opened, though, everything changed.
Michael had just finished dinner, and it seemed that sleep wouldn't be coming anytime soon for him. As he stared up at the ceiling, which he had memorized seemingly every facet of, he heard someone coming. Given the fact that they had already delivered his meal, this time it was likely time to go. His heart started beating quickly as he stood up and slipped the bone discreetly into the side of his pants. How he wished that he could see the girls one final time. But he would die here, and no one would likely know what became of him. It fucking sucked. The door was opened, and Raptor walked in. But this time, she wasn't wearing her armor.
"Sit down," she said simply. "I'm not here to fight. Not this time." Something had changed; her usual animosity was gone, and the sceptile's tone was filled with sorrow. He probably had a guess as to why. "I just want to talk. At least, with someone who thinks of my kind as people…" She took a seat at the desk, with her tail wrapped around and sitting in her lap.
"Yes, you are a person. But you are also a monster - what you have done in the name of the greater good." Rather than becoming hostile with him, she just remained silent, before finally looking up and making eye contact with him.
"I'm not going to argue against that at this point," she sighed. "I believed in him - he has valid points. And he was once a loving trainer… they took him from me. He wasn't always like this - not at all. But those horrible people took him in when he was only eighteen years of age and tortured him. He never really came back…"
"I didn't notice anything like this when I was in Hoenn…"
"Well then you were very fortunate. He got taken in for simply believing that what the government was doing was unjust, and that there should be a change. They couldn't accept anyone having different views, and they turned him into something else."
"Why should I believe any of this? I'm not about to start sympathizing for him," Michael said.
"I'm not asking you to sympathize for him," she replied, "I just want you to understand… how it went wrong… That is, if you'll listen…"
"I'll listen, but I'm not promising you anything."
"It's not like you've got anything better to do."
"Fair point." This was the most interaction he'd had with anyone in some time now. "Go ahead."
"He chose me as his starter when he was thirteen. I never saw a single gym battle. We fought whenever a trainer came by, and I got really good at it too, but he never wanted to go through with the whole trainer thing. Douglas was content just having a friend while he grew up and went through his school years. The way that he was headed, he was going to be a doctor."
"That's a little ironic," Michael said. "To think that had everything gone well, he'd have actually helped save people…"
"He is brilliant - that had to have been his calling. I have no doubt that he would be world-renowned right now, had it all not gone south. And he knew that, too. It was when he had an internship over in Johto when everything changed. He wasn't really concerned with politics at first, but when he went there, he was fascinated with how their economy worked and with what they believed. People in Hoenn have their wages set according to the government. There is no free market. And all of a sudden, he goes to Johto and learns that the same work that in Hoenn will make him the same wages as some useless bureaucrat would make him a millionaire over in your country. People in Johto are actually paid according to what they bring to the table, not according to what the government sets by force. All of a sudden, he's exposed to moral principles that have been denounced in Hoenn as 'hateful' or 'discriminatory.' Truth is, it wasn't either of those things - ideals like those are just not what the politicians of Hoenn wanted to tolerate. Not one bit."
"Yeah, leftists in my experience tend to be like that," Michael said. "But that still doesn't justify—."
"For the love of Arceus, please just let me finish," Raptor said. Michael relented. "Needless to say, he took to it all very well. He was fascinated with the concepts of social morality and with economic freedom. The ideas of conservatism had been vilified for years in Hoenn, but when he had been able to travel outside of the border and learn otherwise, it became apparent that the politicians had used the education system to try and brainwash the youth.
"But he simply decided to bide his time. He needed the degree, and he was going to get it. What could one single person do about it anyways? Well keeping to himself still wasn't enough. Come to find out, they look through everyone's internet history. The concept of privacy has been dead there for years, but yet the left has managed to justify it for 'safety' reasons. To fight off those who they accuse for bullshit like 'hate speech' and 'bigotry.' Really those two terms mean anything that a leftist doesn't agree with. And Doug's trail was riddled with it. He only read news sources from your country, participated in several political chats with right wingers, and denounced everything about his country numerous times. And he was completely right to do that. But they couldn't accept that, and one day, they sent the police.
"I remember running outside and trying to stop them from taking him away. I got knocked out. Steven was at the league at the time - some trainer had managed to beat the Elite Four - and so he didn't know what had happened until it was too late. I didn't see him again for several days. Eventually they told us that he was in the hospital, and we both rushed to go get him. But when I saw him…" She looked down, shaking her head. "It wasn't the Douglas I knew - it was something else entirely. I haven't seen a single trace of emotion aside from rage in his eyes ever since then. And he never spoke to me the same way again… We used to hold conversations for hours, and he told me everything. He was my best friend, and he meant the world to me. But after that day, I became only his pokémon.
"They used a fire-type. They wanted information about his contacts. He had learned that there were others in the region that also wanted something better, something aside from what their leftist dictators forced upon them. He wouldn't give. They burned him badly, and staged it as some wild pokémon attack. The police said to him that if he ever told anyone what really happened, then they wouldn't hold back this time. He actually went and got himself tattooed just so he could hide it. But the damage was both physical and emotional. I think that's when he stopped caring for pokémon.
"I didn't know. He's been so distant all these years, and I was scared to ask. But hearing what I heard the other day… I think he holds a grudge against all of my kind over the actions of that one fire-type. It isn't fair… I did nothing aside from always being there for him! Even after the threats from the police, I participated in the revolution with him! When Hoenn went to hell, I went with him - it was me all that time! But he… none of that seems to matter…"
"Yeah, I can kinda see how that'd be upsetting to hear."
"He needed help after what happened back in Hoenn. What they did to him was wrong. I begged and pleaded, but he would never get therapy. They took him from me… so I decided to make them feel that very same pain. I went through with what he wanted to do. I never liked fighting Johto's forces, but you all kept getting in our way. We had to go through with all of it in order to make the left pay for what they had done to all those innocent people. To my trainer. Now I fear that the damage has been irreversible." Michael nodded.
"Given the fact that he's had tens of thousands of people sold, I would say that's a fair assumption to make," he said.
"But are the numbers not favorable?" she asked. "I hate the very idea as much as you do. That's someone's life that has been permanently ruined. But it is better to trade the wellbeing of one person for that of hundreds. Don't you agree?" she asked.
"I know that what the left has done in these countries has made things harder for a lot of people," Michael admitted, "but it's not our place to make those decisions. We can't play god with people's lives. We don't get to choose who lives and dies like that." Raptor tilted her head.
"You seem to have no problem with it. You made the choice each time you pulled the trigger - you picked who died, even if you were just following orders. And you mentioned the other day that you supported the death penalty. What about that?" Admittedly, she had made some good points.
"I think… that those are different matters. We are punishing the people that have hurt others in those cases - people that really are detrimental to society. They earned what they got. But all those young girls that were snatched… what did they do to deserve any of that? They were innocent. We can't just make decisions of this magnitude based on what they could potentially do in the future, or who they could potentially vote for… And what about all those poached pokémon - taken from their homes like that and sold like property. How is that justified?"
"…It… it's not," she sighed. "Most of the people here… Douglas admits that a lot of them are idiots. Even some of his so-called 'thinkers.' He's just using them to put his vision into play. Most of them don't care for our kind at all - they'll just do whatever it takes to forward this mission. They think that we're somehow lower than them… and they treat us as such. As inferiors. And I thought… I thought that Douglas was different. He used to be different. But now… I'm afraid that the Douglas I once knew is gone for good…"
"From the way things sound, he's been gone. I think that he thinks that this is about ideals, but really he is using his hatred towards the left to commit all of these horrible actions towards innocent people. If he wants to make these regions right wing again, why not just take out their governments? Why did teenage girls need to be targeted for that to happen? Why not just attempt another revolution in Hoenn? There are tons of ways he could have gone about doing this without killing and selling off innocent people… He shouldn't be holding them accountable for the actions of their politicians, even if they did help put those crooks into office. The average voter is just too stupid to understand…"
"Yeah, they do tend to get fooled easily… But a lot of them don't seem to really care how the policies they vote for will affect anyone else. The far left shows no concern for what their absurd taxes will do to small businesses, or anyone above the poverty line for that matter. They don't care at all," Raptor said. And Michael knew that to be true from his personal experience. Even trying to speak about lowering taxes back when he was in school was a sure way to start a huge debate, so he generally kept his opinions to himself.
"But all the same, we can't just group together everyone left of center and punish them all according to the stupid or selfish ideals of a few of them. It's not fair to them, just like Hoenn wasn't fair to Douglas or the other conservatives. We just can't be like that, especially if we're trying to act in the name of justice."
"Well then how would you have gone about it?" Raptor asked. Michael had to think that one over. Unfortunately though, he didn't really have a set answer for that.
"I'm… not so sure," he admitted. "I know what I believe, and I know that my viewpoints are morally right, but I don't know for sure how I would deal with issues like this - trying to set up a moral and just government in place of crooked ones. I feel like I might fuck that one up, so it'd be best left to someone who actually knows what they're doing. But if I had to make a choice… if I had to act in a situation like this… why not just take out their politicians? They're the evil ones here, not the people that have been targeted so far. I'm sure it would have problems of its own, but it'd be a hell of a lot better than ideological genocide…
"That's what he should have done, I think," Michael continued. "If he wanted to make Hoenn a right winged government again, then he could have just gathered his supporters and launched a revolution there. He could have taken out their government without targeting average citizens - without having to resort to fear tactics and trafficking. And if blood simply had to be spilled, it would still have been kept to a minimum, and it wouldn't have involved the innocent."
"But we need money to even get to that point," Raptor said. "That's what the drugs and the trafficking were for…"
"You couldn't have just stuck with drugs?"
"A single girl could fetch up to half a million. It was wrong… but it made the money that he needed."
"Well you must not be aware of the sheer amount of drugs that we've seized over this past year then," Michael laughed. "We've torn bases up, only to find hundreds of millions in cocaine, crystal meth, heroin… everything that I could think of, and in higher quantities than I thought could fit into one country alone."
"This whole operation costs far more than you could imagine," Raptor replied. "I think last year's expenditures were over ninety billion total. He's got people in all kinds of high places on his payroll. The trafficking did help generate money, but… I often wonder if it was worth the price that we paid. What we did, and what we turned ourselves into…" She looked at him with sorrow in her eyes. "It's just too late now to go back… We've gone this far, and it's just too late."
"No… no it isn't," Michael said. "It's never too late. A man that I work with has done some horrible things in the past - all for the sake of money and power. Not for ideals or anything of that sort, but just for his own benefit. He did most of the same damn things that you all have. And you know what he's doing now? He's helping lead the fight against Stone. He came to regret the life that he had been living, and he made an effort to right his past wrongs. It wasn't too late for him. If someone like that can turn around, then I think that almost anyone can. It's never too late to start doing the right thing." She initially stayed silent, clearly pondering his words. Before long though, she stood up and slowly made her way towards the door.
"I'll be back soon. You've given me a lot to think about, and I would like to talk again before… well, you know…" That didn't sound good…
"Well as you can see, my schedule is pretty open…" She managed a lighthearted chuckle.
"Alright." She knocked on the door, and the guards opened it for her, allowing for the sceptile to leave the cell. Michael laid back on the bed once again, his mind being occupied with thoughts of the previous conversation. He didn't know if he trusted her to tell the truth, but then again, Raptor didn't really have anything to gain by deceiving him. Despite their near-death experiences in the past, he couldn't help but feel sorry for her and what she had to go through. To have gone through all that, only to be treated in such a way by not only someone that you trusted dearly, but also by everyone around you… He couldn't imagine what that must have felt like.
And as much as he hated to admit it, a small part of him really did feel sorry for Douglas. Aside from being unfairly persecuted by his country, he was proven to be mentally unstable, and perhaps not fully responsible for his train of thought, although he was responsible for his actions. He was doing all of this not for money, power, or fame, but only because he thought it was truly the best way to deal with the issues that an ever-growing liberal population had raised. But it was obvious that in his distorted state of mind, he was not suitable to live along with others. Not anymore. As Raptor had said, whoever Douglas once was, that person had been long gone. This Douglas would lead to a global war if he succeeded. He needed to be killed before any of that could happen.
As smart as he may have claimed to be, Douglas surely didn't know what would actually happen if he managed to launch a nuclear weapon. And from the way it sounded, he had one of the most powerful types in his arsenal. A blast like that would vaporize millions if dropped on Saffron, not to mention get other countries ready to utilize their nuclear arsenals… No matter what Stone thought would happen, the very idea of him being able to launch only one nuke, and the rest of the regions be completely content with not only that, but also by the eradication of their very own forms of government, was not sound. Michael just hoped that they weren't as well built as Douglas had originally thought…
As he drifted off to sleep, he was recollecting thoughts of the conversation with Raptor. He didn't know what the hell to really think of her, to be honest. He would admit that there was more to her than he had originally thought. But that didn't mean that she was exactly good, either. She had still participated in a lot of the activity that this organization had dealt with. He wasn't sure what to expect from her at this point. One thing was for certain, though - if she hadn't been lying throughout their talk, then there still was a chance for her. Perhaps not for Douglas, but she still possessed the capacity to tell right from wrong.
There was still something there. Maybe she wasn't such a revenge-crazed individual after all, and maybe she wasn't all bad. But as things currently stood, she was still the enemy. And if she tried to interfere with him taking Stone's life, then he would put her down as well.
A/N:
Two more chapters left until the end of Part One! They will be out pretty soon, too, so keep an eye out! If you enjoyed reading, please consider leaving a review, or checking out my other story, Into Darkness.
