Chapter VI: A Raye of Hope

1640hrs, 31 May 2013, "Top Secret" Medical Facility, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan.

"While there's life there's hope, and only the dead have none." Theocritus.

"GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Raye was in pain.

"I'm sorry, we have to put this cream on to help heal your back." Nurse Kuroi was putting on an antibiotic solution on her back in order for the burns to heal. Even two weeks after the explosion, they needed more time to heal and to be treated.

"Dammit," she hissed to herself.

Raye had been laying on the front of her body for the last two weeks because of the burns, unable to do much of anything because her arms were broken, her legs broken, pelvis broken in addition to a lot of other things. Going to the bathroom was not a pleasant sight.

She didn't take the news of her family giving her up very well either. Raye actively resisted medical treatment, trashing painfully about to avoid being treated, but the pain was too much and she settled back into a resentful quietness.

"What do you think of this one, Kobayashi?" Kawasaki and Kobayashi were sitting in the medical facility cafeteria. They were talking about Raye, of course.

"Painful for now, but in the long term, she'll make a recovery. We can speed up the healing process once we get that special solution in." Kobayashi took a bite out of his sandwich.

"When did you order that?"

"About a month ago, they wanted to conduct more 'tests' on it."

Kawasaki rolled his eyes. "We all know what it does."

"Increased healing time by 1000%? Removal of scarred tissue? Repair of internal organs? Yes, it does all that. But the Nakanishi Group wants to get ahold of it." Kobayashi, usually composed, sneered when he said "Nakanishi Group."

"And there's only a few liters of it," Kawasaki said. "It's so expensive to make though. Maybe if the Nakanishi Group helped to improve the manufacturing process…"

Kobayashi shook his head. "Nope, that greedy bastard Yamada sees yen signs. And since he helped the PM get into office, no doubt that it's already made its way to them."

Kawasaki shrugged. "I don't have much a problem with them."

An audible sigh came from across the table. "You'll see soon enough," was the reply.

Kawasaki tried to shift the topic onto something else that pertained to the project.

"How much?"

"How much what?" Kobayashi replied.

"How much does this project cost?"

"Per person modified?" Kobayashi did some quick calculations in his head. "About 480,000,000 yen."

Kawasaki whistled. "Damn. That's a lot."

"Quite." Kobayashi went back to eating.

Kawasaki changed the subject after they ate in silence for a while.

"Have you memorized the script?"

"Yeah, I have."

"Why are we asking them? They're already here and they can't go anywhere. So why ask for their permission?"

"We could torture them, yes. Break their minds, their bodies, their heart and souls, strip the humanity out of them, build them back up like robots," Kobayashi said. "But if we give them a sense of purpose, a sense of duty, of commitment at this point in their lives, we can win them over. We've taken all that they know from them already, and they are completely dependent on us. It will just take a little bit more prodding and ego stroking, then the real work can begin. And plus, any physical torture might send them over the edge, and they would become just broken shells, with no hope or spirit. They would be no use to us then."

"It's just so weird," Kawasaki replied, poking at some rice.

"I know." Kobayashi looked at him. "But it's something we have to do."

Kawasaki continued to play with his meal, until Kobayashi spoke up again.

"You know, there's a program like this already."

"Yeah, that one in Italy?"

"That's the one. I heard it wasn't as successful as they wanted to be. Too many dead bodies, and they kind of didn't get anywhere with the Republican faction or whatever they're called."

"We can do better then," Kawasaki said confidently.

"I hope so," was the reply.

Raye lay there, staring at the wall.

I can't take much more of this, she thought. I gotta get out of here.

But she couldn't. Trapped.

She looked at the video camera on the wall, focused on her.

"Fuck you!" she yelled. "Ow, that hurt."

I wonder what everyone else is up to.

The door opened suddenly.

Great, the fucking nurse again. "What the fuck do you want?"

"Raye, it's Lita."

"Oh."

She couldn't really turn her head to look, but Lita came over to her and kneeled down to eye level.

"Hey."

"Hi."

They stared at each other for a minute or so. Lita was looking at Raye's body. Her back was completely covered in bandages, and she look like she was in pain most of the time. Lita couldn't help but feel sorry for her….She was suffering, like herself. Like everyone else.

Then Raye broke the silence.

"I'm sorry about your arm."

"Don't mention it."

More silence. Raye didn't feel like talking to Lita. She was always this tomboyish person that got along with the rest of her friends, but Raye was different. She was cool, the alpha girl, the shit. And now…

"I really want to leave."

"We can't."

Raye continued to stare at Lita. This is going to be the most awkward, and shortest conversation in my life if this keeps up, Lita thought. I have to help her in any way I can.

"I need to help grandpa."

"We can't leave Raye. You know that."

"Fuck that, first chance I get, I'm busting out of this joint."

"Then what?"

"I'll call my dad." She thought about that for a second. Her dad had fallen so far from power as the leader of the DPJ that he was reduced to living in a small apartment after that scandal had broken out about him and his secretary, Kaidou. It had to do with a large cucumber, a bottle of whisky, ten rolls of duct tape and a pot full of ramen noodles, but no one could really figure out the details behind that.

"Okay, maybe not."

"See?"

Lita took her right hand (well, her only hand now) and squeezed Raye's.

"Please Raye. I don't know why they're keeping us here, but it's really important. If they went to all this trouble to keep us here, to treat our injuries, to do all stuff, then I guess we're important in some way, shape, or form."

Raye pulled her hand back. "Don't believe them for a second."

"Raye…"

"Go away."

Lita sighed. She took Raye's hand again, squeezed it, then left.

As the door closed behind her, Raye looked at the hand that had held Lita's only remaining hand.

Shit. She's fucking right. I'm being a complete ass.

"Gramps…" she said to herself. "I'm sorry."

She thought back to a conversation with her dad some time ago. When he was a powerful man, and he was going to be one of prime ministerial candidates.

"Raye," he said over a plate of curry at one of the fancy restaurants that he liked to go to. "How is school going?"

"School is going fine, dad." It wasn't, of course. Raye hated going to that Catholic School.

"Well, that's good to hear. And the temple?"

"The temple is fine, dad. Grandpa says hi." Grandpa of course, didn't, but she had to say something.

There was a slight pause as Raye's dad took another sip of umeshu.

"Very good then. Listen, I have something very important to tell you."

Raye put down her chopsticks. "What is it, dad?"

"I'm going to run for Prime Minister."

Raye scoffed. Of course he would. "That's great dad," she replied, contempt in her voice oozing out with every word.

"Oh, don't be that way," her dad chided. "This will be great. Daughter of the most powerful man in all of Japan. Think of the opportunities. You could be somebody!"

"Dad, I want to be the head priestess at Hikawa Shrine. You know that."

"Dammit Raye, I didn't raise you to be some Shrine maiden at that temple!" He was becoming more and more impolite with each glass of umeshu he took. That bothered Raye a lot. And the fact he slept with more women that she could count…but Kaidou was the special one. They fucked each other a lot, and Raye knew that. She heard them sometimes when she stayed over at his house on occasion.

"You know what dad, fuck you!" Raye threw down her napkin and got up from the chair. The people in restaurant knew better to look up and interrupt the argument between one of the most powerful men in the country and his daughter. "I really don't care if you run for President of the world! You never raised me! Grandpa raised me, and you fucking know that! So, why don't you go bang your secretary and have a nice term as the PM, okay? Just leave me the fuck out of it!"

She got up and left the restaurant. That was the last time she talked with her dad. Shortly thereafter, the scandal hit, and that Hasegawa person took over.

Raye lay there, tears rolling down her eyes, angry at herself, angry at dad, angry at mom for dying, angry at grandpa for hitting on some of patrons sometimes…there was so much sadness rolled into the anger.

The door opened. This time, it was the nurse.

"Time to change the bandages," Kuroi said. "Please don't struggle, like you did last time."

Raye obeyed this time, much to Nurse Kuroi's surprise. "Well, this should help the healing process. I'll have some dinner brought in and we'll feed it to you. Sound good?"

Raye nodded.

Kuroi left the room, and wondered what Lita had said to Raye that made her calm down so much.

"I talked to Raye today," Lita said to Mina. They were eating dinner, again, but now in Mina's room.

"How is she doing?" Mina replied, stuffing some ume in her mouth.

"She's still mad, but she'll get over it."

"If I were Raye, I would be too," Amy said quietly. She thought of her own mother, left behind.

"Well, here's to our family." Amy raised her teacup in the air. She immediately realized her mistake and looked at Lita apologetically.

"Don't worry about it Amy," she said with a smile. "Hear hear," Lita continued. "They're in heaven, but still."

"And to our new one," Mina added. "All of you."

"To all of us," Amy said. "And that Serena and Raye get better soon so we can get on with whatever program they have set up for us."

"I'll drink to that." Lita drank from her cup, as did everyone else.

"Damn, I could use some more of that, Nurse Kuroi! A refill please!"

Serena lay in her bed, asleep.

She dreamed of her old boyfriend, Mamoru…no, Darien, he changed his name when he moved to the U.S last year.

I need you. I want you. That was the last thing she remembered saying to him. Please help me again. Please.