Julius Silver arrived at "The Star Room Orphanage" when he was merely three years of age, only a few months before Ray did, and under the same mysterious circumstances. He taught himself how to read and write. Before they were adopted at age 12, his knowledge equated a Master's degree college student in several fields. Even now, he spent most of his free time reading and researching. And it was because of this he was used to being right about most things. Julius had a terrible feeling before he left for Mars. As he watched Ray squeeze the trigger, the hammer slowly pull back, he wished this one time he was wrong.
A booming shot rang off, and Ray suddenly screamed in agony. His body convulsed for a moment and he collapsed in a heap. Julius nervously turned to the bullet hole inches away from his head. Several shining yellow lightning bolts stick out of Ray's back as he lay motionless on the ground. Julius could hear the approaching footsteps of someone. He could hear the familiar clicking of heels on the ground, definitely a woman. With Ray's sword still pinning him to the ground (which had lost all of it's brilliant glow) he couldn't make any sudden moves.
"You know, I said we should just let him kill you all. It certainly would have saved ME a ton of trouble, at least." He heard a woman say; he recognized the voice.
Julius slowly and cautiously lifted his head. A blonde haired woman was standing over Ray's body with a look of absolute pity. Dressed in all black trimmed in electric yellow, her coat bore the emblem of the King of Stars on it's back in the same trim; the Earth's crescent moon with a slash going through it. Julius' head dropped back to the ground. She was the Messenger.
"If you had taken any longer, he would have." Julius muttered through quick breaths. "When you called you could have said you were nearby."
"Why would I have done that?" She said with a giggle. "I was watching. It was interesting. I think I stepped in at the appropriate time."
Julius couldn't help but laugh even though he was in blinding pain. He somehow wasn't surprised by her reasoning.
"Right. I probably would have sat back and watched this shit show too."
"Yes. It was riveting from the very beginning. Ray was absolutely fantastic for awhile. Every bit of what I heard. I can see why he's the King's favorite..." Her voice trailed off; she was clearly getting lost in her own thoughts.
She turned away from Ray and walked over to Julius. She stood over him inspecting his injuries, admiring Ray's sword. He could feel his body tense up; making his wound more unbearable. She ran her black, gloved fingertip along the slide of blade.
"This was my favorite part...I didn't even see him move." She whispered admiringly. "Really looks painful. I'm honestly surprised your still conscious."
"If you don't pull it out I'm going to bleed out. Just get it over with."
"You can't do it yourself?" She teased.
"Not without killing myself. Please...This is quite unbearable." He pleaded.
"Well...Since your begging."
The Messenger grinned and quickly pulled Ray's sword from his body and Julius howled in pain. She woman stepped on his chest so he would keep still and poured a white powder on his stab wound. Julius writhed in pain for a few moments more until he finally stopped and slowly sat up. She was a few feet away taking a closer look at the sword that held him prisoner.
"Geez...I don't remember the last time I've been injured like that." Julius mumbled massaging his throbbing wound. Clotting Powder, sealed almost any wound in moments and stopped bleeding. However it was only a temporary fix.
"Your probably still going to need a Body Weaver. I basically cauterized your wound so you don't bleed out before you get to where your going."
"I know what it does. I created it when I was a teenager. Thank you. I owe you a favor."
She looked up at him and grinned.
"A favor from you? That can be a useful thing. I will not forget that, Julius Silver."
"I wouldn't expect you to."
The Messenger parted her lips to speak again but was interrupted by Claire's screaming few feet behind her.
"Ray! Open your eyes! Open your eyes! Ray!" She exclaimed as she shook his lifeless body.
"I forgot that woman was still here..." Julius muttered. "Wait! Where are you going?!"
The Messenger made her way back over to Ray, sword in hand. She was only a few feet away when the clicking of her heels finally gained Claire's attention. She moved between them and out stretched her arms to guard him from her.
"Stay away from him! He can't fight anymore!"
The blonde stared at her with her for a moment in silence; taking in the scene, Claire looked resolute in her decision. She found it almost amusing.
"I wasn't given any orders on what to do with you...What to do..." The Messenger pondered.
"You could turn around and walk away. I'm not threat to you and neither is he. This is over. Please just leave him alone you don't have to kill him." Claire pleaded.
"If I wanted to kill him he would be dead, love. Why did you travel to Mars with him? Surely you knew of the danger after your home was destroyed." The Messenger twirled the blade in her hand as she talked. "You could lose your life at any moment..."
Claire's eyes couldn't help but move back and forth from the woman to Ray's weapon. She was scared and it was clear, but her arms didn't waver. If she was going to die it was going to be protecting Ray.
"I came...to help him. That's all."
The blonde raised an eyebrow. "But your not one of us...What could you possibly do to help a man like him? Hmm?"
Claire nervously glared at the woman in front of her searching for a way to answer; hoping the truth wouldn't get her killed.
"Could you watch the person you love kill themselves without trying to help? I know you're a cold-blooded killer but I imagine there's someone you care about the much."
"A "cold-blooded killer"? What do you think he is? Do you have any idea of what he really is? What he's capable of? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. But just going by what you've witnessed so far, you have to realize he's a monster. Despite what you feel, there's no way someone like you can tame him."
Claire laughed nervously before saying,
"Then maybe I'll try and sing him a song."
The Messenger stared at Claire for a moment before laughing herself. She spun Ray's sword around with one flick of her wrist and stuck the sword in the ground between them.
"Please, remind me of your name again."
"Claire. Claire Wilde." She said tentatively.
The Messenger's eyes widened and a grin crept across her face. She suddenly looked excited.
"Luna. Luna Nyght. It's been a pleasure, love. You have a spark in you. Perhaps it'll keep you alive."
She gave a half-hearted wave and walked back over to Julius, who had patiently waited for the scene to play out. Luna stopped in front stopped in front of him and yawned as she looked through her PPC.
"What was that about?..." Julius asked staring past her at Claire; who was still trying to wake an unconscious Ray.
"You know...Girl talk...None of your business." Luna looked up. "Why are you still here?"
"I have questions. Quite a few actually. Wh-" He stopped when she raised her hand to interrupt him.
"I have no answers. That's not what I'm here for. I was sent by the King to make sure you didn't kill each other and to make sure Ray didn't run amok. Again. Not to satisfy your curiosity."
Julius glared at her in silence for a moment, choosing his words carefully.
"Am I to assume the King will continue to interfere with our vendetta? He's clearly interested if he needs us alive." He flashed his signature cocky grin.
Luna sighed. She wanted him to leave her alone.
"He will if it interferes with our agenda."
"So he needs us for something?"
"You clearly don't know what your getting yourself into by dealing with Ray Hikari while in that state. The King knows that. By sending me here, he was doing you a favor. That's all I have to say. Now, I can't leave until you do." Luna was starting to get impatient.
"Why?"
"I'm to make sure Ray Hikari leaves here alive. And destroy those who try and prevent that. Now are you going to make me destroy you love?" She asked taking a step forward.
Julius laughed. "I'm in no condition to fight you. So I'll leave. But the King of Lumiere should know that I'm a bit more informed than he thinks."
"But nearly as much as you think. Goodbye Julius Silver. And remember, there's no place Lumiere doesn't shine." Luna said ominously; with a smile
"Of course." Julius smiled back and gave a slight bow before fading away. Luna turned a gave one last look at Claire and the injured Ray before disappearing herself; finally completing her assignment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Bruno never liked to spend a lot of time on Pluto. It was bitterly cold on the planet most of the time, weather he didn't particularly enjoy. Most of the world's inhabitants were either born there, wealthy enough to live on the secluded tundra where they couldn't be bothered. Some on business. It was also a place assassins came to lay low and lick their wounds, work on their next scheme. People with naturally silver hair and eyes call this place home.
As he walked the streets of Phrost he began to remember one of the only reasons he did like coming to Pluto. It was arguably the most beautiful planet in the solar system. Snow touched everything the eye could see. It hushed any and every sound. And the sun reflecting off the ice covered skyscrapers made the metropolis seem as if it was made of diamonds.
If the King of the Stars actually intended on meeting Bruno in person, he had no doubt he was gone by now. Any emissary he would have sent wouldn't be, compared to the King, worth talking to. And Julius, the only person that WAS worth speaking to on this planet, was on Mars.
As Bruno walked down the street amongst the other citizens on Phrost, he could feel someone watching him from the other side. The gaze lacked the ominous bloodlust he was accustomed to. He looked through his sunglasses to see the culprit. A strikingly beautiful woman stood directly across from him on the pavement. Her wavy, brown hair was icy from the snow. She had been walking around for awhile. Bruno couldn't stop looking at her stocking covered legs. The black, floral-fishnet design was captivating. The contrast between her pale skin was perfect. He had stopped walking completely without even realizing it. Now she was walking across the street towards him.
Maria stopped in front of him. Her stare was searching, trying to remember. Bruno waited; expressionlessly. As she drew closer to him, he realized exactly who she was. Maria tiled her head slightly to the side.
"I know you." She said finally.
"Are you sure about that sweetheart?" Bruno said reaching into his pocket for a cigarette.
"Yes. I'm even more certain now that I've heard you talk. Don't call me anything that's not my name please. Your one of Julius' friends aren't you?" She looked over his attire for emblems or sigils as she spoke.
"I don't know if "friends" is the right word." Bruno muttered.
"Either way, I've seen you at our house before. More than once. You two know each other."She pointed behind her to the behemoth Julius built into the side of the mountain just outside the city."Your Bruno Krona. "The Man That Owns The Galaxy." Right?"
Bruno couldn't help but grin. Although the he thought the nickname was silly, he couldn't help but laugh at how accurate it was. He had his hands in every illegal business in the Milky Way.
"Well I'm not surprised I've left an impression on you. What's Julius' princess doing so far away from the castle? Did you walk all the way down here?" He teased.
"I'm not his fucking princess. And yes, I did walk down here. It's not like I have much else to do."
"You could have drove. Stayed out of this weather."
Maria scoffed. "I'm fine. I'm just going to one of Julius' labs. I'm looking for something."
His eyebrows rose slightly.
"Here? In the city?"
"Yes." Maria thought for a moment. "Actually, you might be able to help me with something. Do you know anything about something called "Royal Flush?""
Bruno was silent for a moment. "I've never heard of it. Besides poker of course. Is it at the lab?"
"That's what I'm going to find out. I'm looking for someone. I think...whatever this is might help me with that."
Bruno was quiet as he smoked his cigarette looking around the city for anything that stood out. It would make sense for Julius to have a lab on Phrost; it was the first place Bruno looked initially. Neither he or the best members of his team could locate any trace of it.
"Where is this lab your heading to?"
"I don't need an escort." Maria said flatly.
"And I'm not offering to be one. But I think I can help you find what your looking for. Save you the trip."
Maria's eyebrows slowly rose as she put together his meaning.
"The place that monitors the weather core." She said without hesitation.
Bruno grinned. It was genius. Now to cause Julius some inconvenience for foiling his plans on Saturn.
"Did Julius tell you where he was going?" Bruno asked.
"To Mars. To meet with the other members of 5 Diamonds. At least that's what he said he was going to do."
"You didn't believe him?"
"It's not that...He just said he had a bad feeling about the trip, so he didn't take me." Maria said reflecting on the events before he left. "Julius usually takes me everywhere with him; whether I want to or not. It was just weird."
"Hmm...Well he wasn't lying. He is meeting his former team. The first time all five diamonds have been together in years."
Maria could feel her pulse quicken. Her entire body felt like it suddenly caught fire. Bruno watched her hazel-brown eyes widen and fill with tears from behind his sunglasses.
"Please don't lie to me...Do you mean..." Maria almost whispered his words shocked her so.
"I had a meeting with an associate, that's why I'm all the way out here on Pluto. However they cancelled our arrangement because of what's going down on Mars. If Julius did go to Mars to meet with them, I don't think Ray Hikari attacking them was apart of his plan."
Maria could feel the warm tears begin to stream down her face. She couldn't speak, only form one thought.
"He's alive..."
Bruno flashed a toothy grin as he watched reality settle in on Maria. He felt like he did a good thing.
"It was nice to see you Maria. Give Julius my regards when he returns." Bruno said with a nod.
He continued walking in the direction Maria was going. He pulled out his PPC and put it to his ear.
"Phoenix. Is Noir with you? Good. I need you two to come to Pluto immediately."
When Maria snapped out of her trance Bruno was long gone; his footprints already covered in fresh snow. She looked up at her home. It was time for Julius to come back.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Sloane stepped out of the Body Weaver and immediately inspected her injured arm. She flexed her hand to work out the numbness and started to get dressed.
Jayzmyne had four Body Weavers in her home for situations like this; even though they seldom occurred. Sloane glanced across the room to see Gabriel still floating in the glowing fluid. She could see into his torso from the wound he obtained from Ray. It was going to take some time for even a Body Weaver to fix it. Something else caught her eye.
Sloane walked over to the machine to get a closer look at his wound. There was a faint white glow around it's edges; similar to light Ray's weapon gave off.
The sound of someone yelling in another room diverted her attention. She pulled her shirt over her head and walked out into the living room.
"That's bullshit Julius! I don't care if it was the King himself! You should have put them both in the ground!" Jayzmyne screamed.
Sloane entered the room to find Julius, Jayzmyne, and Robyn sitting around the table in the living room. Both of them had already healed from their respective injuries. The three of them all turned to her when as she walked straight to the kitchen.
"Sloane. It's good to see your finally awake." Julius said in a sarcastic tone.
She didn't even look at Julius. Instead she looked out the window. The sun was rising. She slept almost 24 hours straight in the Body Weaver.
"I'm surprised you didn't get killed settling your score." She replied in the same non-chalant voice.
"I was assisted. Unfortunately though, Ray isn't dead either. The King doesn't want him dead yet apparently."
Sloane stopped pouring her drink
"By who? Who helped you?" She demanded.
Jayzmyne audibly sighed and rolled her eyes.
"During the fray I got a call from someone close to the King. I was instructed to abandon the fight. Right after you left with Gabriel and when things got a bit close for me, the woman showed up and was able to finally subdue Ray with a fierce electric shock." He explained.
"But who was this woman? And since when has the King been concerned with us?" Sloane was growing impatient.
"I managed to find out her name is Luna Nyght. She works very close to the King with a partner. No one knows he is. In fact, no one seems to know anything about them. Just rumors and hearsay. The only reason I was able to get her name is because I was able to describe her to someone. But apparently she's strong. As for the King, like I told Jayz here, all of us still hold places in his "kingdom". Technically, we are always his concern. All ranked members of Lumiere are. And our group consist of some of it's highest."
"That still doesn't explain anything. Why personally interfere with our fight? What stake does he have in it?"
"I don't know Sloane. The call came right before Ray...woke up. Whatever stake he has, he knows something about that."
Silence fell over them as they all let the information sink in. The event brought up a lot of questions. Jayzmyne sat with her arms crossed, furious.
"I can't believe this. The King is watching us? Protecting him? None of this makes sense."
"I will get to the bottom of it. You don't have to worry about that." Julius was going through information on his PPC while he sat there.
"So, great leader, what's our next move?" Sloane said sarcastically.
"Nothing. We have explicit orders not to."
"And since when have we taken orders from anyone?" Jayzmyne exclaimed.
"Since I'm pretty sure the King will bring his full force down on us if we don't comply. None of us need that kind of attention. He clearly wants Ray alive for a reason. We simply have to find out. After that we can go finish this without worrying about putting targets on our backs."
Jayzmyne scoffed. "There's always been targets on our backs. I don't care what the King says. This is between US. We barely participate in anything he does. Considering us apart of his "kingdom" is a stretch. Ray almost killed Gabriel for the second time. I won't live in fear of anyone. I'm going to find him and kill him. Even if I have to do it alone."
Sloane stood silently in the kitchen, loading her injection gun. Robyn sat staring at the coffee table. She kept stealing glances at Julius. He wouldn't return them, much to her dismay.
"Jayzmyne I would suggest you reconsider that stance." Julius said with a sigh.
"Julius I don't give a fuck what you think. He was right there you rolled over like a coward for a leader we don't follow!"
Julius returned her glare. Before he found the words to reply his PPC vibrated in his hand. A picture of Maria appeared on the screen; her expression was somber.
"I have to take this."
He walked out onto the balcony looking back as he closed the door behind him. Sloane was watching closely with glowing eyes.
"Maria. Are you alright?"
"Where are you?" she asked pointedly.
"I'm still on Mars. My business is finished. I should be back on Pluto in a few days. Is there something wrong?"
"There is. We need to talk." Her tone was glacial.
Julius was silent for a moment. He could tell by the sound of her voice that she had found one of his skeletons.
"I'll be on the first thing leaving the city."
"Good."
Maria hung up her PPC and threw it across the room. It shattered into pieces and she let out a scream as loud as her body could muster.
Julius walked back into the living room. Sloane was still staring, watching his every breath. He could feel it.
"I have to go. I need to tend to some things. This trip has taken longer than expected." He fought to cover the panic in his voice while he spoke.
"So Maria is tugging on your leash?" she said with a smirk
Julius ignored her comment. "I think you should all leave the planet. Ray is undoubtedly still in the city, at the very least still on the planet. And as soon as he's able to, he will try to hunt us again."
Jayzmyne laughed. "I'll be counting on it."
Julius sighed and shook his head. "Contact me when Gabriel awakes. We'll move from there. I'll be in touch."
He crossed the room and exited the condo. He gave Robyn a passing glance as he walked out. Sloane exited the kitchen and sat down on the couch to put on her boots. Jayzmyne quickly sat down across from her.
"If your going to look for Ray I'm going with you."
"I'm low on Gaia. I'm going to find some more. Besides you heard what Julius said."
"And your just okay with this?!" Jayzmyne said incredulously.
"Of course not. But I agree with Julius. We don't need Lumiere bearing down on us while Ray is hunting us. And to that point, I'm positive Ray will find us when he's ready. He didn't seem to have too much trouble the first time."
"So what should I do?"
Sloane sat up and gave her a long, complacent look before saying, "We probably need Gabriel right? You should wait for him to wake up. I'm sure you the first person he's gonna wanna see anyway. And someone needs to fill him in one what's going on."
Sloane walked over to Jayzmyne and made her stand up. She was beyond frustrated.
"By the time I get back I'm sure something will have happened. Just relax and get ready for the next fight. I'll see you soon."
Sloane leaned over and kissed Jayzmyne on her forehead. She stopped before she walked out the door and turned to Robyn.
"Watch out for your sister for me. I'll be back before you know it."
Robyn watched her sister glare at the door. Jayzmyne's fist shook in anger.
"I'm going to end this while he's still in my city. Robyn I need you to do something for me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A familiar sound cut through the silence.
"Open your eyes." A woman's voice whispered softly.
It was the perfect symphony to his ears.
"Wake up baby...Your going to be late..."
Too good to be true. No matter where he turned, darkness still.
"Open your eyes!" she exclaimed one last time.
He heeded her command. His eyes focused on the hazel brown eyes staring back at him. Maria was sitting on his lap. Her body, her face, close to his. Ray could feel his heart stop when she smiled at him.
"There you are. I thought you were never going to wake up. Your going to be late for your briefing. I don't need Jayzmyne blaming me for it again..."
As he processed her words her turned and looked out the window. Neo-Aquaria, Neptune's capital city, was outside and they were high above it. He could see the through the crystal clear waters of Neptune straight the bottoms of it's seas. His mouth opened and he responded automatically, as if reading from a script.
"You worry too much about them. Her especially." His voice was monotone, still trying to understand what was happening.
Maria rolled her eyes and got up. He wanted to reach out for her to stay. His body wouldn't obey.
"Right. Just go do what you have to do so you can come back." There was sadness etched in her voice. She hated when he left her. Especially for Contracts.
"I won't be gone that long. It's just a briefing."
"Yeah..." she replied solemnly as she stared out the window; arms crossed.
He got up from the chair and walked over to her. Ray took her into his embrace and stared into her eyes.
"Maria...I'm going to leave this all behind soon...I promise you that."
"I know you will...I don't know what I'd do if you left me...Ray I...I just don't want you to get yourself killed...There has to be another way..."
He parted his lips to speak, and before his words left his mouth the door swung open.
"Ray I'm not going to keep coming to-"
Sloane stood in the doorway with wide eyes. He turned back to Maria. Darkness. He opened his eyes to a pure white ceiling with matching lights. The sunlight pouring through the window warmed his body under the blankets. His limbs felt like they weighed a ton each. He struggled through turning his head away from the light to find Claire sleep in the chair next to his bed; covered by his coat. Ray's vision was still blurry. It felt like he had a dagger stuck in his left eye. As he started to black out he could see a man in a white coat stop outside his room and take his chart off the wall. It was then he realized he was in a normal hospital and let the darkness take him once again.
~~~
"You know...I must have read every magazine in this hospital by now...If you take any longer I might have to go buy another book..." Claire muttered after a long sigh.
Her irritable complaint was the first voice he heard over the steady beats of hospital machines.
"There's worse things to suffer through than a book you know..." he replied with his eyes still closed.
"Yeah reading to- Your awake?!" Claire said dropping the magazine on the floor.
"So it would seem..." He said with a hint of regret in his voice.
He slowly sat up with the help of Claire. His body was still very heavy and it hurt to move anything. Ray was used to this level of pain. Claire watched him very closely as he looked around the room taking in his surroundings. He had only been in an actual hospital on a few other occasions. When he was still with 5 Diamonds, Julius took care of their injuries. It was also a service that Sanctuaries provided.
"Are we still on Mars?"
"Yeah. We're still in Helio City. Ray you've been sleeping for two days."
He gave her a long stare and sighed; rubbing his eyes and putting his head in his hands. Claire moved closer and put her hand on his thigh.
"What happened? How did I even get here?" he asked wearily.
"Well, what's the last thing you remember?"
He tried to focus. Fragments passed through his mind, but not a single clear picture.
"I remember getting to the fountain...I fought them...Sloane..."
He put his hand over his heart. His torso was wrapped in bandages. Sloane's claw in his chest, tears in her eyes were the last pieces he could put together.
"Are they dead? Did I kill them?"
"No...Well I don't think so. Everything was so hectic. And you were moving so fast. You hurt everyone pretty bad. The short one with red hair, you only hit her once and the other guy, Gabriel I think, carried her away. She was coughing up blood. He returned later on, but by then you had crushed Sloane's arm after she had it in your chest. She seemed to back off after that. You slashed Gabriel pretty badly...and she took him away. You fought Julius alone and by the end of it you impaled him."
His eye's widened with shock.
"And he survived that?"
She sighed looking away as she reflected on the events. Claire wanted to tell him about Luna and his rampage, but she felt he would do something reckless. He looked at her waiting anxiously for her answer.
"I'm sorry. Yes he did." She couldn't keep looking into his eyes while lying to him. "You injured Julius pretty badly. He had to retreat like everyone else. You tried to chase him but you passed out...So I brought you here. I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do."
Ray groaned in frustration as he lay back down in his hospital bed looking up at the ceiling.
"Thank you Claire. For helping me. You probably saved my life by bringing me here." He said finally.
She blushed. "What else was I supposed to do? Besides you saved my life. More than once already..."
"And you did the same by bringing me here. It's the perfect hiding place. I've never even considered it honestly... They would never look for me at a hospital."
Claire stared in confusion. Ray's expression didn't change. He was completely serious. "What?...Why?"
"Assassin's take care of their wounds themselves, in house, or at Sanctuaries. Never at hospitals. Assassin's consider hospitals to be apart of the "real world" so to speak. The one we don't interfere with unless commissioned to do so. It's mostly so we stay out of the public eye. One of the many ways the HUC stays out of our business and we don't bother the general public. More or less."
Ray couldn't help but think about all the collateral damage their fights usually cause. Even though Lumiere pays for the damages, he was sure it was a bother to the general public.
"Either way, Claire, I have to go. I can't stay here." he said firmly.
"You just said you were safe here. And your still injured!" she exclaimed pointing at his torso.
He gave her an annoyed look. "I'll stop by a Sanctuary and use a Body Weaver."
"They don't have those here?"
"No. Doctors are firmly against them. They're a product of assassins and cause as much harm as they do help." He said pulling the sensors off his body.
Ray slowly swung his legs over the edge of the bed and started to get dressed. Claire watched begrudgingly trying to find words to convince him to rest. She somehow knew her efforts would be futile. Her time with Ray wasn't long, but Claire knew already he was a stubborn man.
After leaving the hospital Claire got a car to take them to the Sanctuary even though Ray insisted he could walk. They sat in silence for sometime. Claire kept stealing glances at him while he staring out the window; obviously in deep thought.
She finally said "Ray...I know this might not mean anything to you. And I know you've suffered a lot...You still are. But I don't want to see you like that again, I...I thought you were dead..."
Ray could hear her voice starting to break. He knew then he couldn't look.
"Ray I...I just don't want you to get yourself killed...There has to be another way..."
He stared at the Apollo fountain in the distance. It's arm was still missing. Collateral damage. Her voice echoed with Maria's in his head.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bruno was staring at his PPC when the knocking on his hotel room door broke his attention. He sauntered across the room. His body was heavy after he had taken more Gaia than he realized. Bruno opened the door to find a glowing pair of green eyes behind a pair of his sunglasses.
END