“Cras amet qui nunquam amavit; Quique amavit, cras amet.”
In the word ‘love’, new meanings begin to spring. As young children we love and then hate, in the adult world this is considered a divorce of marriage. However, what if we could find that perfect person who shared the common things with us. In ancient times it was called 'anima socius' or soul mate as we now to refer to it. How many times have we thought “she's my soul mate” or “he's my soul mate,” with no understanding of the concept?
The sun glazed across the urban city landscape, shedding light on darkened streets and alleys. Smoke from heating pipes emerged though tiny openings in the concrete. Drainage ditches glowed a bright green from the newly laid sewage, for this was Manhattan, the city of crime. A street clock rang out the hour, "The time is now seven o'clock - July 10, 2025." Slowly, human life began to appear from the subway system below, people with briefcases and people with backpacks and walkmans journeyed down the sidewalks to their various places.
From within the crowd, a young girl 18 years of age breaks free from the people and steps into the street. Her yellow boots are tough and protect her from the splash of the puddle she just stepped in. She turns her head to the left then to the right, checking to see that there are no hover cars coming, she then proceeds quickly to the other side of the street. When she steps onto the sidewalk, she pulls out a small watch and straps it to her wrist. Talia Young is her name; she had just recently bought an apartment in one of the newly constructed megascapers, which had more than three hundred floors. She had also gotten a job at a bookstore, paying no more than twenty-two dollars an hour, about six or seven bucks over minimum wage. Talia’s parents had urged her to move to Manhattan and find a job with one of the science firms in the area, but this had been set back some. Subsequently, she ended up working for a bookstore to tide her over for the time being, until the firms required employees.
Talia looked at her watch and then looked up. In front of her was a large sign that read, “Beckman’s Traditional Bookstore.” She pushed on the door and it slid open, inside were rows of books with an identical three floors above that. The owner was a sweet old man named Ted Beckman; he waved at Talia as she proceeded down one of the rows to the back room.
“How are you doing today, Talia?” asked Ted
“I’m doing alright, some what too early for me, but I’m doing alright today,” replied Talia smiling uncontrollably.
Ted then reached down, pulled some books out of box, and set them in a cart, and then he repeated the task until all the books had been put neatly into the cart. Whistling, he proceeded down the second row from the right to put the books in their places. Talia still smiling, shook her head and went through the back doors to a storage area; she set her bag next to a small wooden chair and grabbed her apron off a hook on the wall. On the front, the apron proudly displayed “Beckman’s Traditional Bookstore.”
When Talia had finished setting up the displays for the new arrivals, she stretched her arms high into the air and yawned wildly. The clock rang promptly eight o’clock; she looked towards the door and heard a jingling. A young man about 19 years old walked through holding a briefcase in one hand. Talia stared at him and wondered in her head what his name was. When Talia saw Ted, she waved her hands in the air trying to get his attention. As soon as Ted had reached her, she grabbed his arm and began pointing at the man asking if he knew him…
“Yes I know him; he comes in here every morning at eight o’clock sharp.”
“But what’s his name?” Talia asks hoping for an answer
“I think his name is Ray Stanz, and he works at one of the Biotech facilities in the area, but darned if I can remember which one it was.”
Talia turned and saw the man standing at one of the counters beginning to pull out his wallet. She quickly ran for one of the registers. Ray stood about 5’10” and was clean-shaven. His eyes were a bright blue and showed his kindness to anyone who noticed them, and this is what set Talia’s heart pumping. She loved the eyes. They were one of the first features that she noticed of the opposite sex. However, this time it was different to Talia because she noticed him as a kind person. As he smiled at her, she picked the book off the counter. She ran the book through the checker and she reached for the credit card he had laid down. Talia could not think of anything to say to him, but she managed, “I’ve heard this book is pretty good, hope it’s enjoyable for you.”
He quickly replied with, “I hope it is too, which reminds me what is your name?” She was shocked that he asked for her name, taking a deep breath she answered, “I’m Talia Young.”
“Hello Talia, I’m Ray Stanz and I was wondering if you had any plans tonight for dinner.”
“No not really.”
“Well then I would be honored to take you to dinner. What time do you get off here?” asked Ray with admiration. “I get off at six thirty-five,” answered Talia
“I’ll see you then Talia, have a good day.”
Talia watched as Ray exited the bookstore and got into his car on the street. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. A guy had asked her out on a date. It was usually the other way around. In high school, guys had wanted to go out with her so badly, but none of them ever had the guts to actually ask her out, so she would usually ask them. As she thought about it during the day, a smile lit up on her face, and made her happy. When six came, she couldn’t wait for him to come pick her up. What would they do she thought. Promptly at six-thirty, she walked to the back room, hung her apron on the wall hook and picked up her bag from the chair where she had put it in the beginning of the day.
She pushed open the doors and said goodnight to Ted and Lisa, one of the other girls who worked there full-time, and another man Jacob who worked the counter in the afternoons and nights. He waved to her while checking out a few customers; she pushed on the door and walked onto the sidewalk. There he was sitting on his BMW hovercraft, one of the new models that came out a few months ago. He opened the door for her and she stepped in. He was casually dressed unlike he was in the morning; starting the car he asked her what her favorite place to eat was. She said, “That Chinese place on 17th Street, Wang Fu’s.” He knew the place and replied, “I especially like the noodles they have. They’re perfectly cooked.” Talia shook her head smiling at him; he started the car and pulled into the street.
It didn’t take them very long to reach the restaurant. He pulled into the parking facility that Kung Fu’s had next door. They stepped out of the car and walked about 50 feet to a moving walkway that they both stepped on; it carried them into the main lobby of the restaurant. Where a man with some menus greeted them, how many will be dinning tonight. Ray answered, “There’s only two tonight.” The man nodded his head and escorted them to a table near the far side of the restaurant with a window view. He placed their menus on the table and said someone would take their orders in a few moments.
“Ray I’ve had a question to ask you all day. What do you do for a living, you seem pretty well off.”
“Oh, well I work in the Robotic Interface division at Jacobson Biotech International. Right now were trying to create a synthetic living machine, that can be piloted.”
“Interesting, but why would you want to make something like that.”
“Well the suits are to be used for deep space expeditions, where we have no idea what the threat is of alien races,” replied Ray looking at his menu
“Are they dangerous?”
“Very dangerous, we made them to withstand a lot and able to put out a lot,” with a disturbed look in his eye as he glanced out the window. “That doesn’t sound to good then.”
“Well not really, but we have tight security and something like this won’t slip through that.”
The night came and went, sitting in her apartment Talia thought about what Ray had said at the restaurant. She wanted to know more about the project that he was working on, this was the exact same stuff that she had studied in college. Talia a bit tempered and still curious reached for the lamp, and flipped the switch. The next morning she rushed to work hoping that she would find Ray, but he never showed up. Disappointed, Talia left the bookstore and towards a small coffee shop a few blocks away. She ordered a cappuccino, and paid for it using her debit card. This was used now a days instead of paper and coin money, which had been abolished world wide in 2002.
Sitting at one of the tables near the wall in back, she observed a young man in a jogging suit enter the shop. He ordered a small cup of black coffee and drank it without sitting down, the man looked familiar. Then she noticed his eyes it was Ray, Talia quickly sprang from her seat spilling her cappuccino all over the table and the floor. Ray from the commotion turned and noticed Talia; he began walking over to her…
“Do you like to spill coffee?” asked Ray smiling at her
“Not really that much, but it seems to bring a laugh once in a while.”
“I’m sure it does - do you need some help there?” replied Ray bending down to help her
“Yes, that would be nice, let me get some napkins from over here, there! That’s better.”
Ray then picked up the soaked napkins and threw them into the trashcan. Talia looked at him and ran her hands through her soft brown-blond hair. He smiled at her and asked her if she would like to take a walk with him back to his apartment. She nodded and bit her lip, a habit that she had kept since she used to take tests in high school. Ray held the door open as they both walked outside, and then proceeded towards his apartment in the Twin Tower Complex. It took them only a half an hour to reach his apartment. He asked her if she would like to come in.
“So how long have you been living in Manhattan?”
“Only about a year, I moved her from Michigan, when my mom insisted,” replied Talia looking at the buttons in the elevator
“It just seems strange that someone as pretty as you would ever want to live in a crime ridden city such as this one.”
“Thank you,” replied Talia trying to stop from blushing
“Here we are!” exclaimed Ray as the elevator stopped on the ninetieth floor.
The doors opened and the two stepped onto a red carpet with a gold trim that ran along the edges. It had been recently cleaned and their shoes squeaked as the walked on it. Ray pulled out his keys from a small pouch wrapped around his waist, pushing it into the door, the lock unhinged, letting the large wooden door swing wildly open. Looking inside Talia noticed leather couches and arm chairs that must have been expensive from their appearance.
Ray closed the door behind her and asked if she wanted something to drink, Talia answered, “Yes I could use something to drink. What do you have?” He then walked over to a small steel refrigerator and opened it; from inside he pulled out a bottle of water and asked if she would like something else. “That’ll be fine, thank you.”
“I’m going to get a shower. I’ll be back in a second then we’ll go out and do something.”
“That will be great. I’ll wait for you here then.”
He smiled at her and turned closing the door to his the master bedroom. A few minutes later, the slight rush of water could be heard emanating from within the walls as he turned the shower on. Talia, drinking her water, walked over to the sliding glass door and opened it; she looked down to the street She couldn’t believe her luck. She had found a guy in this city who was sweet and caring. She smiled and ran her hand along her stomach, feeling the cool breeze glaze her smooth skin.
A few moments later, the shower turned off, and the rumble of the water faded. The sliding of doors on tracks now could be heard easily through the walls. In the living room Talia was taking small sips from the water bottle; she heard the snap of a door handle and saw Ray emerge wearing a blue shirt with light brown pants. He slowly began to put on his black leather jacket, while neatly adjusting his sunglasses. Ray then asked, “How do I look?” Talia putting the cap on the bottle replied, “You look great.”
“Well in that case, shall we go find something to do?”
“I have no problems with that,” said Talia placing the water bottle on the counter and grabbing her coat from the chair.
Ray opened the front door and held it open for her. As soon as she entered the hallway, he began to shut the door, which automatically locked behind him. They both walked over to a steel door with a light blue circle painted across the center of the door. Ray pushed a small clear button on a side panel next to the door, and the button lit up with a bright yellow color. The doors then began to open; Ray went in first pulling Talia by the hand.
Behind them, the steel door slid shut and the elevator started beaming down the shaft towards the parking structure below. The sound of dripping water and squealing tires filled the darkened structure with pillars every 20 feet to keep the massive weight from collapsing. Talia, a bit overwhelmed, took the chance to look around the parking structure, noticing all the exotic and expensive cars. Ray pulled from his pocket a small metallic remote that clanged against his other keys, pushing one of its buttons the doors to the car unlocked.
Ray pulled the right door open and helped Talia inside; he then walked around the back of his car and got in on the left side. Ray inserts a key into the ignition and starts the car. As he was pulling into the street, his personal data assistant begins to ring; he put it to his ear and begins talking into it. On the other side is his colleague on the Infinity Project, Thomas R. Kaine who graduated from Oxford with a Ph.D. in Particle Physics. He had developed the plasma cell that the Mechs use for their power supply. Ray pushes the PDA back into its holder and says he has to report to the complex immediately because there’s a situation. Stepping on the gas, the hover car accelerates to unbelievable speeds as he swerves in and out of traffic.
“I hope you understand that this might take awhile and I don’t want you to get bored, so I can drop you off somewhere if you would like,” said Ray keeping his eyes pinned to the road.
“Oh I wouldn’t worry so much besides I would rather go with you. This might be a little exciting for me in some ways, Ray,” replied Talia starting to bite her lower lip.
Turning a corner, they had finally arrived at the dock for the hover-ships. Much like the hovercraft of the past, but their predecessors were much larger, faster, and easier to operate. Ray pulled up into one of the hover-ships, which had the words “Jacobson Biotech International” painted boldly in bright red letters on the side. There were no other passengers on board, because the crew usually arrived on the island at 6:30 in the morning for preparations. Some of the senior staff didn’t arrive until much later and would stay well through the night working on their various projects. But today there were not any senior staff assigned Thomas would usually take, as many opportunities as he could to work on the Infinity Project, but most of them couldn’t wait to get a day off from it.
The hover-ship pulled up next to a large wooden dock that looked dilapidated, but was really supported by steel beams, which ran underneath the old broken down wood. Rays car seemed to make the journey from the hover-ship to the main bay in no more than a few minutes. He stopped next to a metallic box supported by a curved steel pole that protruded from the ground. On the box was a small black plate with a series of green lines running across it, next to that stood a red eye that blinked constantly.
Ray placed his hand on the grid and a white light scanned his handprint. He then put his eyes in front of the blinking eye, waiting for his retina to be scanned. Ray then said, “This is Doctor Ray Stanz, Robotic Division.” The metallic device read the three types of data that were entered and confirmed entry into the complex. The huge doors in front of the hover car cracked open and slid loudly into the mountain walls. This was the main complex for the bio-robotic division, mainly for the sole reason that it was well protected from attacks.
White cement walls washed by, and the rows of lights beamed on and off the hover car. Talia felt as if she was inside a tunnel in New York City, from the way the yellow lights flashed by the hover car every few seconds. Ray pulled into a small tunnel that branched off from the main one; they entered into a large room with rows of cars parked in designated places. Even here, the area seemed bland and boring in a way that was almost sterile in appearance.
Ray and Talia opened their doors, and stepped out of the hover car. Talia got a slight chill that ran up her spine and made her feel uneasy. Ray noticed her uneasiness and put his left arm around her trying to do his best to comfort her. When he said that there was nothing to be worried about, with his arm stretched around her, she began to feel at ease and her fear faded.
They both walked up to a white door with a glass window in the center. Inside the glass was titanium mesh to prevent false or unwanted entry. Ray knocked on the door making it rumble; the white door then unhinged and opened into a large circular room with four MPs holding their SG7 automatic rifles firmly across their chests. Ray walked into the room still holding Talia, and helped her over to a row of chairs on the far side of the room. He then walked over to half circle desk signed his signature next to his name on a sheet of paper. The guard sitting behind the desk handed him a blood content indicator, which pierces the thumb by a needle and reads the DNA it is given to confirm the identity of the recipient using it.
“Hello, Doctor Stanz, here is your Access Pass. Please return it to this desk before departing the complex.”
“No problem, MP my guest needs an entry level access card. I request that you set her up with one, and stay by her side no matter what throughout the complex.”
“As you command, sir,” replied the MP firmly placing his hand against his helmet with his gun lowered next to his right leg.
Ray turned from the MP and smiled at Talia, then walked into a door directly behind the desk. The MP walked over to her and told her to follow him. Since Talia did not know what was really going on, she nodded and kept close to him. They both entered a hallway just to the left of the main desk; from there, they entered a room that was completely square. The MP then directed her over to a man wearing a light blue jumpsuit, with a radiation badge pinned to the collar. Unlike all the other people she had seen, this one did not wear an identification badge. From a drawer he pulled out a small laminated ID card with a red and blue strip on the front, which indicated level one access on the front of it. He directed her to follow him to two doors behind the desk. In the middle was a small blinking red light; by waving his hand in front of it the color turned to green and both the doors swung open. “This way,” he said as he entered into the room, which resembled the appearance of a room for surgical procedures.
“I’m not going into surgery, am I?” asked Talia a nervous, now biting her lip harder.
“Of course not, this is where we take blood samples, handprint idents and scan your retina so that you can gain access to the complex and so no one besides you can use this card,” replied the large man chuckling with delight at her fear.
“ Oh well that’s a relief.”
“Here sit down I’ll get the needle ready,” said the man as he worked quietly at one of the stations set up near the back wall.
Talia lifted herself onto the bed in the middle of the room; a lamp just above it beamed a large circle of light onto the floor. This room was white; no color at all could be seen. She fixed her eyes on the somewhat white floor, staring at every crack waiting for the man to finish preparing. When he had finished, he placed the needle among a barrage of other equipment onto a cart and wheeled it over to her. He first picked up the needle; Talia slowly pulled her right arm out of her jacket and exposed it. He quickly stabbed her with the needle and extracted just enough blood to make the need half-full, then pulled it out and placed a piece of cotton on her arm and placed a band aid over that to keep it in place. Talia put her coat back on and waited for what was next.
Before long, Talia had finished all of the tests, and the man was typing in the access numbers for the card to work. He then slid the card through a barcode machine and handed her the card, with a strap to hang it around her neck and a radiation shield to protect her from most things in the complex. He smiled at her and watched as the MP followed her out. “So what do I do with this thing now? Do you know?” asked Talia trying to pin the card onto the strap around her neck.
“With the clearance you have just been given, you can see some of the lower level robotics work around here.”
Talia nodded as the MP switched the gun onto the next shoulder. They stopped in front of a door that was curved and had a big black number one painted on the door. She slid her card through the slot on the wall and the doors slid open, with a slight breeze hitting Talia’s face.
The two stepped in and pushed the button marked “up”. Talia took a quick glance back at the MP and noticed that he showed no emotion. His jaw was locked like a steel trap, his eyes locked forward in utter attentiveness to what was before them. The lift jerked to a stop and the doors opened up into a large room with a huge glass window tilted at a forty-degree angle near the front, and about seven rows of chairs behind it. The room was dimly lit, and not a lot could be seen, but the window beamed some light onto the front row. Out the window was the main research bay, which encircled two large Mechs, each held up by sixty-foot beams. Hundreds of scientists lined the floors; some were standing on platforms set up around the Mechs.
Behind the first two Mechs, were arms partially finished, which meant they were starting a new mech. Sparks splashed along the metal pieces and collided against the cold tile floor. She looked around the room watching them run from place to place with their clipboards tight in their hands. On the far side, a man entered the room wearing a black leather jacket. Quickly, a man with a while lab coat came up to him. They were close together in heated conversation; it was hard to tell what they were saying to each other. As she strained to listen, she enjoyed the view before her.
These huge robotic structures stood off the ground with their massive steel plates and gears glistening under the fluorescent lights. Ray and Thomas were locked in an intellectual conversation near the Mechs…
“You don’t understand, Ray, the biological links are breaking down; we can’t find a reason why. The preservation systems are all in working order!” exclaimed Thomas with his outstretched hands waving in front of him.
“Okay, how much energy do you have running through the nerves at the moment?” asked Ray, putting his hands into his coat pockets.
“Um…roughly 6.3 teraquads,” replied Thomas, bringing his eyes off his clipboard.
“There you go, right there, you should know that synthetic nerves can only handled 4.7 teraquads. I’m surprised you haven’t fried them already. I bet if you turn down the inhibitors you should be just fine…”
Thomas, consulting his research papers, realized that he had raised the power to above acceptable limits and quickly realized his mistake. He told Ray to hold on for a second, and quickly yelled out to the rest of the people, “Bring the threshold to 4.7 now, move it, move it, now!”
The technicians and scientists quickly looked at Thomas and then began going to work to correct the assignment given to them. In a matter of minutes, the power correction had been made and the two Mechs were back in working order. They now became a productive area once more, with the confusion fading. Ray and Thomas walked next to first Mech talking about additions that they might want to add to it.
These new Mechs were to become the next generation of robotic interfacing spacecraft, which were able to transform from fighter crafts to full assault vehicles. This was a new dimension of warfare since a pilot could fly through a planet’s atmosphere and then transform to an assault vehicle to engage in land combat. These were new war creatures, and everyone had reason to fear them.
“Ray, I’ve heard rumors about a group for militia that were going to attack this facility, but I have heard many other things…what do you know?” asked Thomas, swallowing hard.
“I’m not quite sure, this facility has always been under close observation by our enemies and who knows what could happen at the moment. There are many possibilities, Thomas, and it’s hard to say what could happen. If you need to take some time off, I’ll understand,” replied Ray, putting his hand on Thomas’ shoulder.
He lifted his head quickly, “No, I believe I’ll be alright. I’ve just had some complications with the project in all, you know the pressure that is on us.”
“Of course, for some reason being on the senior staff, you get the blunt end of the stick all the time. Ya, just think about it one more year and you’ll know what I mean,” said Ray, laughing uncontrollably. Thomas quickly followed with his own laugh and the two men lost all concern for the problem before them.
The hills on the perimeter of the installation had lots of wildlife and plants, but that’s not the only thing that the hills contained. Near the base was a small cavern. Inside the cavern was a group of militia; the command was under the direction of Russian General Kinoff. The second in command was Lieutenant Wilkins of the United Federation or the New United States as it was commonly called. After the third world war, the United States laid claim to more than a third of the known world. Russia and France claimed what the states considered unfit territory. The Federation has since been a prosperous nation, and has very low poverty rate, ever since the creation of the fifty-sixth amendment in 2017.
Many people or other countries despised the Federation because of its great prosperity and independent growth. With the development of the perpetual battery, petroleum reserves and products were no longer needed. In addition, with gas producing and consuming machines outlawed, the environment of the world slowly began to recover within the last six years.
Near the back of the cave, General Kinoff stood with his back pressed against the hard rock wall. His second in command Lieutenant Wilkins was kneeling, hunched over a crude diagram of the complex’s interior, contemplating their next move after they had entered the installation.
“As soon as we break from here, we should be able to move quite easily throughout the complex…”
“Your still missing the crucial point number two. We are still going to need access cards in order to reach the construction bay or we’re just going to be waiting for hell to break loose before more reinforcements arrive from the reserve station…here in the rear of the complex. Wait! That’s it, begin operation wildfire!” exclaimed the General with a spark of inspiration.
Lieutenant Wilkins looked at him strangely, but had no reason to doubt his authority and proceeded with his command. The troops quickly sprang to their feet as the Lieutenant, began shouting, “Move it! Move it!” The men grabbed their weapons and equipment bags that lay next to them in the damp cave, and darted out to their locations. Now the once crowded interior was nothing more than a memory of what once was.
“Um, sir I’m not one to question your authority, but I would feel much better if I knew what your plan exactly was,” said Wilkins holstering his small firearm.
“Don’t you remember what our contact told us, that the guard at the front desk always has a universal pass card that can open any door into the complex,” replied the General scanning the mountainside making sure the men were in their locations to begin the next stage of the operation.
“I remember, whenever your ready sir.”
“I believe now is the most opportune time to move…Go!” shouted General Kinoff as he darted off for the main door.
From out of nowhere, massive numbers of troops sprang out and rushed for the main door, where Ray and Talia had just entered only a few hours before. Setting small detonating charges against the door, the troops knew their mode of entry. Click; the charges set off a devastating explosion that ripped the massive door to shreds and sent in tumbling to the ground. Alarms sounded and the incoming troops showed no sign of worry. They pressed on for the parking structure, when they had made it their they fanned out and moved in from many locations to converge on the door.
One of the soldiers walked up to the door and banged on it; from his pocket he uncovered a shrapnel grenade and pulled the pin, while still holding the grenade the soldier threw it inside after one of the MPs opened the door, and said, “Here’s a present”, and dove to the ground. The grenade exploded and the door became warped as the shards collided with it. Moving slowly to the door the troops pulled open the door to uncover a horrifying site of blood and other objects lying sprayed across the room.
General Kinoff stopped at the main desk, and ripped the card off the guard’s neck, making his head smack the floor as the force was relieved. “We have what we need, group two West Section and group three East Wing. Group one is with me, Lieutenant command group two…I want it secure and take prisoners do not kill unless you have to, do you understand?” said General Kinoff checking the magazine in his gun to make sure it was loaded.
The troops shouted out, “Yes sir!” The General then waved giving the signal to proceed, and moved through the back door. He let some troops take charge in front of him just in case someone decided to start shooting.
The thumping of boots rattled through the hallway, General Kinoff’s troops kept on their guard. As doors came up along the hallway, small groups broke off to make sure the area was clear, just in case. The troops stopped abruptly at a titanium door, with the number six painted on the front with a circle around it.
The door appeared as a barrier from the treasures that the soldiers’ seeked, General Kinoff pulled a key card spotted with blood from his jacket pocket. He wiped it on his pants, then slid it through the slot, the light flashed green and the door opened with a foreboding screech.
The hallway stretched for no more than sixty feet, a walkway extended from one door to the next. The pipe around the walkway revolved counterclockwise, creating a magnetic disturbance, which kept the path level. The large group of soldiers proceeded along the path; it felt almost like a funhouse, creating an optical illusion to discourage guests from entering. A second door did not require a key card; it slid open when the General got close to it.
Behind the door, another hallway was revealed, which went on for about fifteen feet before jetting off at two sharp right angles. Along the new hallway windows adorned scenes of scientists working heavily on the newly constructed Mechs, the soldiers could not help but look at the amazing sight of the robotic creatures. Even from their experience with machines of destruction, these were truly magnificent creations of a genius’ insane mind.
At both ends of the hallway, two sliding doors stood. With troop support at both ends, the General gave the order to move in and secure the area. From both ends, armed soldiers entered the white walled room; scientists dropped tools and clipboards that they were holding to surrender their lives to the oncoming fury of shouts and screams. Ray surprised at the site of the soldiers, reluctantly thrust his hands up, waiting for the next move of these sinister men.
From the closet door to Ray, General Kinoff sprang forth with his pistol holstered under his jacket. “Excellent work, now which one of you is Ray Stanz?”
Not wanting to reveal himself, Ray replied, “That would be me. Who are you and what are you doing inside the complex?”
“Such trivial questions you ask Doctor, why can’t you just take into mind that we are here to take these amazing things.”
“They are not things, they are the next step in man’s progress in space,” replied Ray clinching his teeth together in utter disgust. “Why do you despise me so much Doctor I have done nothing to harm anyone here…at least no one who has shown some intelligence not to fight me!” exclaimed General Kinoff pulling his gun from his holster and pointing it on Ray’s forehead.
“Pull the trigger, and find out how much your life is not worth!” screamed Ray, with his voice echoing throughout the building.
The General laughed and pushed his gun back into its place. “You truly are everything that the papers have said about you, arrogant,” said the General placing his hand on the cold metal shell of the mech. “What do you plan to use the Mechs for anyway, General.”
“So you know me Doctor?”
“No I do not, from the insignia on you jacket I could not have though any lower rank of you.”
“Smart man…now tell me how to work these creatures, I want to know everything,” said General Kinoff pulling his broad hand away from the metal and folding it elegantly behind his back.
“What makes you think that I have any intention of letting you know anything?"
“Because Doctor if you don’t you will end up just like your friend here,” replied the General pulling his gun out one more time; aiming it at Thomas, he pulled the trigger. Thomas’ body shuttered as the bullet entered his head, as he dropped to his knees there was no more worries for her had already died, even before he hit the ground. The shot rang out all around leaving an air of darkness. Ray could not even move he was so overcome by fear; a single tear ran down his face and splashed on the cement floor. Now it had become clear on what Ray had to do…kill the General at any cost.
“The Mechs can only be activated from the main control room, which is at the end of that staircase over there,” Ray did everything he could to hold his emotions back and for the moment it seemed to be working.
“Let’s get this over with shall we.”
The two walked about four hundred feet passing in front of the second Mech; they reached the staircase with five armed soldiers behind them. He and the General climbed slowly up the metal stairs, and came to a control room. Ray pulled out his key card and slid it in front of the access plate, the door opened to a room of blinking and beeping lights. On the far wall was a huge mainframe of computer equipment that held the research for the project. Ray sat down in front of a console that was next to the mainframe, and began typing in a series of numbers that would activate the cores of the Mechs, or the main energy supply for their basic functions. Next, he proceeded to charging up the main plasma weapons on board each of them, but the final procedure was something that he had never hoped to do, Ray started the silent countdown fro the destruction of the complex. He thought about Talia and could only wonder where she was at that moment in time.
“Its done the Mechs are all ready for you.”
In the observation room, Talia stood watching with the MP at the drama that was unfolding below. She did not understand everything that was happening, but she knew that she had to get to Ray fast. Behind her, a clock lit up with numbers that began counting down from twenty minutes. The MP knew what this meant and said that they should get out as soon as possible, because this place wasn’t going to be around when that clock hit zero.
Talia knew that this was the best thing to do, but couldn’t abandon Ray no matter what, because for some reason she felt an uncanny pull towards him. The MP gave in and said, “The best way to get to him would be to get captured by the troops, they would take you to the leader, which is more in likely down there in the main facility.”
It didn’t take her long to be captured by the troops and she was taken directly to the main facility with no problems. When the troops holding Talia leeched their way through the door, Ray was shocked to see her there. He began to smile, but was quickly made mad when the General decided to kill her. “You can’t kill her she offers no threat to you.”
“But she also has no real importance for me, so why should I keep her around?” asked the General rubbing his chin.
“Please!” exclaimed Ray running out of ideas to keep the General from killing her. “Fine, fine, I don’t really want to get into this right now, let her go.”
“Thank you!”
General Kinoff shrugged and went back to reading the operating manual for the Mech. Ray held Talia close to him as he helped her over to a seat that was placed near a welding desk.
“How did you get here?” asked Ray
“Long story, we have to get out of here, now.”
“I know, I activated a detonation sequence…we have less than ten minutes left, but I have to get you out of here, no matter what!” said Ray contemplating a plan in his head at that very moment.
“Ray looked to his left and saw the staircase that led to the control room, there he thought was an experimental system that could send someone a maximum of ten miles from the base. “I have an idea, but we have to move slowly and hope that no one sees us.” Talia nodded her head and held oh to his hand tightly as they walked across the cement floor. They reached the staircase, and Ray looked at his watch a little over than four minutes were left in the countdown. Ray told Talia to run and not to stop until she was inside the control room. They both started up the stairs, one soldier looked over and saw them then shouted out, the General lifted his head up and yelled, “Stop them!”
Bullets rang out along the wall and Ray slid his card in the door, and then pushed it open. Talia and Ray rushed in, slamming the door shut behind them. Ray called out a command for the door to be sealed and only opened by his authorization. Pointing towards a door, Ray directed Talia through it into a large room with two tomahawk reactors on each side of a cylindrical tube that stood at the end of three steps.
Ray told Talia to step into the chamber, and that it would get her safely away from the complex unharmed, she had no reason not to believe him. Talia put her arms around him and hugged tightly. Suddenly she pulled her arms loose of him and stepped into the chamber.
Ray pressed a button on a console no more than five feet away; this started the thirty-second countdown sequence. Stepping back to the tube, he placed his hand on the glass, waiting for her hand to meet his own. With tears filling his eyes once again, he uttered the words, “Goodbye, Talia…I’m sorry!”
“What are you talking about?” questioned Talia with her hand beginning to quiver.
“There’s only enough power in the machine to send one person, and that person is you Talia,” replied Ray using his sleeve to wipe his tears away.
“No!” screamed Talia, “Shut it down, I’m not leaving you here to die!”
“The countdown can’t be stopped, this is the way it must be.”
With those very words, the tube sparked with life, and Talia was gone. Near a small mountain range roughly ten miles from the complex, Talia reappeared. She instantly dropped to her knees sobbing in grief, the next few minutes seemed like an eternity, but soon as the sequence reached zero, she knew it was over.
The sky lit up with light, a beam of energy surged from the mountain where the complex was and extended high into the air. Talia watched as her feelings could do nothing but feel pain at this moment.
Clouds filled the cemetery and an eerie atmosphere floated over, Talia stood in front of a tombstone. Its gray features could do nothing but burn an image of pain and suffering into the mind of the young girl. As she stood, an even darker presence was at work, in the shadows stood a man watching her every move from a far. Silent was the watcher who was engulfed in darkness of trees and a broken heart.