Chapter 128: The Silver Choice
The air in the underground parking lot was thick with the smell of gasoline and cold concrete. Ren stood amongst his new team, the weight of his destiny finally taking a physical shape. But the silence of the lot was suddenly shattered by the sharp, rhythmic vibration of his phone.
Ren pulled the device from his pocket. The caller ID flashed a name that made his sapphire eye flicker with a complex mix of calculation and something he refused to call affection.
Mina.
He signaled his team to stay quiet with a sharp motion of his hand and swiped the screen. "Hi?"
"Hi... Ren," Mina's voice came through, sounding fragile, as if she were speaking through a veil of glass that was about to shatter. "It's me. Mina."
Ren's expression didn't change, but his grip on the phone tightened. "Mina."
"I... I need to see you," she whispered. "Can you meet me? There's a small park right across from the Sector 9 main parking lot. I'm sitting on a bench there."
Ren looked at the exit of the lot, his mind racing. He knew what Mack had discovered through the government's encrypted channels. He knew about the order Kimo and Hima had given her. He knew she was supposed to be his executioner.
"I'm coming," Ren said, his voice a flat, unreadable line.
He ended the call and turned to his team. The Rangers were already watching him, sensing the shift in the atmosphere.
"Hide," Ren commanded. "All of you. Get into positions. I'm going to the park across the street to meet Mina."
Steve, adjusting the servos on his mechanical suit, frowned. "Boss, you told us she's the enemy now. You know she's carrying a kill order. Are you really going to walk into a trap?"
"She is an enemy by order," Ren admitted, his gaze drifting toward the neon lights reflecting on the wet pavement outside. "But she is also the woman who dragged me through a blizzard when she could have left me to rot. I need to know what's in her head. Mack already confirmed the hit order, so stay ready. If anyone—including her—tries anything, be prepared to strike."
He looked at Kim, the hulking bodybuilder with the metal arm. "Kim, get to the roof of the building overlooking the park. Take a sniper rifle. Keep your aim locked on her at all times. If I give the signal, you fire. But listen to me carefully: Do not kill her. Disable her if you must, but she stays alive."
Kim nodded, his face a mask of cold professionalism. "Understood, Boss. I'm on it."
Ren watched as Kim vanished into the shadows of the service elevator. He took a deep breath, checked the concealed knife in his sleeve, and walked out of the parking lot.
The park was a small patch of dying greenery surrounded by the towering, indifferent skyscrapers of Sector 9. It was empty, save for the occasional gust of wind that rustled the brown leaves. Ren entered the gates, his senses on high alert. He could feel Kim's presence on the rooftop behind him, a silent guardian with a barrel aimed at the girl on the bench.
Ren saw her.
Mina was sitting on a wooden bench under a flickering streetlamp. Her short silver hair caught the pale light, looking like spun moonlight against the darkness. She wasn't wearing her Captain's coat; she looked smaller, more human. As Ren approached, he sat down beside her, the bench creaking under their weight.
He didn't speak at first. He looked at her and noticed that her eyes were red-rimmed. A single, silent tear was rolling down her cheek, shimmering in the lamplight.
"Mina," Ren said softly. "Speak. You called me here."
On the rooftop, Kim watched through his high-powered scope. The crosshairs were centered perfectly on the back of Mina's head. His finger was light on the trigger, waiting for Ren's hand to move in a specific way.
Mina turned to look at him, and Ren saw the absolute devastation in her gaze. "Ren... I... I was given an order."
"I know," Ren interrupted, his voice calm. "Your father and Ms. Hima want my head on a table. They want the 'anomaly' erased."
Mina choked back a sob, her shoulders trembling. "I came here because... I didn't want to do it. I couldn't do it. But they gave me no choice. If I don't kill you, they'll kill me, and they'll send someone else who won't hesitate. Someone who doesn't care about you."
She looked at him with a desperate, frantic intensity. "Ren, I'm not here to kill you. I'm here because I want to come with you. I want to join you."
Ren's eye widened slightly. "What?"
"In the bunker... when we were alone... you said you wanted to find the truth," Mina said, her voice growing stronger despite the tears. "I want to help you. I'm tired of being a puppet for my father. I'm tired of being a tool for King Zero. If you're going to fight them, don't do it alone. I want to be a part of whatever you are building. I want to stay by your side, Ren. Please... let me come with you."
Ren looked at the woman who had once been his captor, then his savior, and now, his would-be assassin. He reached out, his gloved hand gently catching a tear as it fell from her silver-lashed eyes. He wiped her face, his touch uncharacteristically tender, trying to soothe the storm inside her.
"Mina, stop crying," Ren said, his voice grounding her. "I trust you. I know you're not a killer like them."
He leaned in, his sapphire eye searching hers, looking for any hint of deception and finding only a raw, bleeding honesty. He thought about the Rangers waiting in the dark, and then he looked at the girl who had just betrayed her entire world for him.
"You said you want to stay with me... but what exactly do you mean by that?"