Chapter 25 - Underneath The Power Plant

Time remaining: 34 minutes, 45 seconds

Both Claire and Raphael are assigned to locate and retrieve the Power Source at the underground infrastructure of the power plant. They were only given a maximum of 15 minutes to fetch the Power Source, so they have to be quick on this.

"Let's go." Raphael said as he take Claire's hand, but she immediately pulled it away from him.

"Right, let's go." She repeated. Her cold attitude really stings on Raphael as he still can't get used to the new version of her.

They begin searching for an entrance to the underground, and jumped right in when they found one. Scanning the whole floor, they were able to discover a map that had labels for the different floor locations of the Power Plant. And it goes to show that the Power Source is at the bottom of this place. "...we still have a few more floors to go down." Claire sighs.

"Let's get on the move. Time's running, we only have atleast 13 minutes left." Raphael kept checking on his watch, as he knows that they must do as they're told in time.

"Right, I don't think it's fast to travel by the stairs though. Elevator's also jammed." The two then have thought of a similar idea for a faster way down. "You thinking what I'm thinking?" She asked.

"Maybe." Raphael nods and grabs her by the waist to pull her close. "Hold on tight." He points his right fist on the ground beneath them, his shifter weapon forms on his arm into a cannon while mixing with the fabric of the Gamma Suit without tearing it. Claire didn't like this idea that much and as well as clinging on to him, but this was the fastest way they can think of.

Time Remaining: 33 minutes, 26 seconds

Although in the midst of doing their job, Raphael deep down is very flustered holding her very close to him. He can feel her soft and slender body with the hand he's holding her with. How long has it been when I've been this close to her? He wondered.

It was very long ago.

A distant memory.

When he unleashed his cannon, the ground beneath them collapses, forcing them to tumble down to the level below.

He barely remembers what was happening back then.

But he can vividly remember the way they embraced each other.

And the way Claire looked at him.

Raphael fires on their ground again, falling down to another floor below the previous one. And they kept descending floor to floor until they reached the second to the last underground floor. "We saved up a few minutes of travelling down, though we better find the stairs or we might harm the power source." Said Claire.

Time Remaining: 31 minutes, 42 seconds

They took the stairs down to make it to the last floor. And whilst Claire was leading the way, Raphael kept staring at her from behind feeling nostalgic. This scene takes him back to the time when they were younger and exploring places to find food. He would always follow her from behind as she acts as the older sister dragging him along.

"Raphael!" Then Claire would always look back at him and call his name like she did just now. "Raphael! Hey!? Snap out of it will you?!" Though she's not so easily pissed whenever she finds him in a daze.

He shakes his head, returning back to reality. "Ah, I apologize for getting distracted."

Claire rolls her eyes. "Whatever. Anyways, have a look!" She points at a far corner where a unique device is set-up and is connected to all the generators within the room. And on top of that device displays the battery piece that Captain Wright mentioned.

"We found the Power Source!"

The two approach the object they must retrieve. As Raphael was taking the battery piece-like Power Source, Claire watches him from behind and had this thoughts. She reached out her hand, attempting to grab him by the neck to choke him.

'If I kill him, will I obtain his rank and position?'

She pulls back her hand and smirks at herself. Of course not, if she did happen to kill him right now, the other would know and kill her. Claire badly wants to achieve her goal as soon as possible, and she hates the pressure Sleek puts on her.

Suddenly Raphael made a statement out of nowhere. "I know you're only pretending to have amnesia." He says as he turns back to look at her with the Power Source in hand.

Time Remaining: 27 minutes, 11 seconds

"Huh, you think I'm pretending?"

"I know I've done an awful lot of things to you back then, and I'm not asking you to forgive me right away..." the sad look in Raphael's face seemed genuine to Claire, though she doesn't know what to feel about it. "...but acting like I'm some kind of stranger, like you never knew me before... treating me so harshly..."

He looks down as he avoids Claire's gaze. "...please don't... I'd rather you hate and scream at me than to act as if you really forgot about me and treat me so coldly." His voice shakes.

For his pitiful display of his emotion, Claire found it quite interesting. She doesn't pity or look down on him. She just found it very interesting and made her say something that hurt him even more. "I'm sorry... I really can't remember you."

"You're lying again." He pressed.

"...you're right. I am lying..." Claire gives a faint smile. "...I won't remember someone who I never met before."

Raphael's heart sank. It's as if Claire have really abandoned him now.

"This person that stands before you, I don't have the slightest clue to what relationship you both had before. So it's better if you forget about that past, Raphael..." She then extends a hand to him. "Perhaps we should look at things in a more brilliant light. This might be a sign for us to start a new beginning, don't you think?"

To abandon their past and the bond they had before, it won't be that easy to forget something he had cherished so much. And yet he takes the hand of the girl he cares of the most, agreeing to start over their relationship.

Maybe as long as Claire is alive, even if she had disregarded or forgotten everything they had together, all that matter is that she's still there.

"We should get out of here now." She suggest.

Time Remaining: 25 minutes, 1 second