The Disparate One
XXIV

Droplets of water splattered on the sink as Ray stared at himself in the mirror. He blinked and continued to rinse his face with freezing water, hoping this was just a dream or some sort. Probably a test that Oxford and his colleagues made up. Maybe somehow they got Cal on board with this. Maybe the entire management and everyone in the facility as well.

Ray cleared his throat and fixed his appearance. He didn’t even know if he should call his subject “Oxford”. But there were more serious questions to think about. Like, how did he get here? And why him?

Ray reached out for the door handle when he froze. He glanced back at the mirror. Suddenly, he thought of an idea. It could make sense. No wonder Oxford was so desperate to know about it in the first place. It could also bring light to why Sion did it in the first place as well. Could it really be?

Could the management really be playing with the two of them?

Ray walked out of the bathroom and remained standing when he looked over to his test subject. There was really something wrong with seeing themselves swapping roles. For a few seconds, he observed him.

He caught him squinting and his hands instinctively moving, but both were cuffed to the bed, as expected. Next to the bed was a set of folded clothes. Strangely, they were simple ones. Bright colors. Paired with rubber shoes. His test subject continued to squint until it finally dawned on him. And it somehow made him shiver. Headaches. Would he also have dreams? If he would… then it could mean… Ray was in them?

Ray shook his worrying mind when he focused on what was in front of him. He apologized and did the same steps Oxford did to him. He set his hands free. Asked if he was experiencing some headaches. And told him to put on his clothes.

“Your name is Oxford, and you can call me Ray,” stated Ray before leaving the room with him following.

They strolled through the empty corridors, passing rows of metal doors. Ray was at the front, guiding Oxford. He continued to make glances over his shoulder, seeing how curious and scared the older man was. He honestly didn’t know what to feel after this. Should he feel angry for wiping Oxford’s memories or should he feel happy for seeing him still alive?

They stepped into the elevator and let the doors close in front of them. Ray didn’t speak. He stood there in silence, drowning in his deepening thoughts. He rubbed his eyes in frustration before looking straight where he found Oxford’s reflection. Before he could further think of these, he wanted to verify something. With that, he finally spoke up.

“Laboratory Section.”

They casually walked through the deserted labs. Particular ending in Chap’s laboratory. He told Oxford to take a seat as he searched for a syringe he could use. He grabbed one and froze for a moment. He was recalling Chap’s footsteps when he extracted samples from him. He wouldn’t certainly do the same exact thing. He was still traumatized by it.

Slowly, he turned around and gazed over the numerous pieces of equipment scattered around the lab. He gulped. He walked back to Oxford who calmly willingly gave a syringe-full of his blood. Ray felt in his hands how warm it was. He stared at it as he thought of his next steps.

Half an hour later, Ray sighed in relief when he found the right equipment that he was searching for. He literally did trial and error. He apparently had forgotten the particular machine that could identify which liquid was which.

“Scan,” said Ray calmly to the device when he placed the entire syringe into it.

The device automatically closed the lid as it examined the contents. It was correct for identifying that it was blood. A few more options appeared afterward. One of which caught Ray’s attention, “scan for matches”.

He watched at the monitor connected above it. He huffed seeing how it had to scan each profile in the facility. Though, at least he made clear to himself that he was not crazy about people in the facility disappearing thinking it was just hallucinations.

Ray looked over the monitor, checking Oxford still in his seat, admiring the vials and other equipment near him. He hoped Oxford was old enough to realize not to touch things without his permission. A few more minutes later, the machine finished its scan. Ray raised a brow.

No result.

He gave the search another go and waited. Same result. His right index finger tapped hastily on the table. The more progress he made, the more disturbing the idea that “the management was playing” gets. He scratched the back of his head to relieve some steam.

He eagerly walked Oxford out of the laboratory and brought him to a different place, the room that only had one window and a few cameras. Though, when they stepped in, Ray was shocked to see that the same trolley, which Oxford brought long ago, was still there. Unmoved.

The white cloth remained hanging on the side since the last time he saw it. Ray’s mind couldn’t comprehend what was happening. He sold himself to the facility in exchange for someone’s life. He found the penthouse on fire. And now this? What’s next?

Ray calmly told Oxford to sit down when he grabbed the wooden case from one of the compartments of the trolley. He placed it in the middle of the table. He opened it and revealed the telegram resting within. He looked at Oxford who was taking a closer look at the device.

Soon, they found themselves exchanging eyes. Ray raised his brows when Oxford stuttered. He was waiting for him to say what it was.

“What is it?”

Ray sighed and his brows dropped disappointingly. He told him what it was before moving on to the next compartment. He replaced the wooden box with a tiny handheld device. He stared at Oxford who examined it for a second before shaking his head. Ray rolled his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

They moved to the last compartment which was the black matter. All three had the same disturbing result.

They moved on to the Manufacturing Sector where he brought Oxford to the same area filled with cabinets and tools. He instructed him to build a robot, or at least anything. He even provided hints. Though, the only thing that was built was frustration.

Ray played the grand piano when they got to Tria’s theatre. Nothing came to Oxford’s mind. He even managed to keep his eyes open, intrigued, unlike the Oxford he really knew.

He found the facility had a gymnasium where he placed Oxford under martial arts. However, Ray knew he wouldn’t be able to do any melee with the state of his left foot. Instead, he told Oxford to stay where he was while he grabbed a loaded pistol.

He aimed the gun at Oxford. If they were indeed being played by the management, then this would be the good time to stop. Ray pressed the trigger. A second afterward, he found Oxford catching the bullet instead of dodging.

Oxford rolled onto the mat, gripping his fresh wound. Ray ran over to him when he threw the pistol. He brought him to the infirmary where he found a painful way of taking the bullet out. He apologized countless times during their trip.

Ray froze again when he placed bandages on Oxford’s wound. He stared at his hand, covered with his Guardian’s blood. He suddenly had a flashback.

He was lying on burning sand under the shining sun. His hands were completely covered with blood. He didn’t know if it was his or someone’s. He could hear the waves barreling and crashing nearby.

He was brought back to reality when he heard Oxford called his name. Apparently, he had been frozen in place for an awkward amount of time. Ray sighed when he moved away. He remained silent when he guided Oxford to his designated cell on his document.

Many thoughts stayed in his mind when he stood next to the metal door. His head was slightly down when Oxford stepped into his quarter, admiring the boring furniture.

“You’ll be staying here until further notice,” said Ray calmly.

Standing silently in the elevator, he continued to put the pieces together despite lacking most of the puzzle. He bit his lip then touched his mouth while he stared at the open space. The elevator was waiting for him to say something.

He huffed when he brought out his phone. He opened his contacts and was surprised to see all of their names were gone. All except for Cal. Then, staring at the robot’s name, he thought of an idea. Cal could have explanations about these. With that, he told the elevator to bring him to the dome.

During his ride to the ocean floor, his mind wandered back to Oxford who somehow started to act differently. He didn’t stay on the surface for a long time which happened to be enough for someone to erase his memories. Then, he remembered himself holding a pistol, playing the piano, and doing all other human stuff despite his body being made out of robots and no memories of his past self. Only dreams.

Ray stepped out of the elevator and straight across the lobby to the glass hall to the dome. The silver robot was nowhere to be seen as well. Maybe he was with Cal. The doors of the dome were closed shut. One of the guards stationed there brought Ray to Cal’s office, which was on the opposite side of the hall.

Cal was holding a small number of papers behind his desk. He had a freshly poured glass of wine on a gold coaster on the side of his desk. His cane was on its holder. Cal looked down at him with a questioning look. He didn’t expect to see him again.

“What is it this time? Broke your hand while coloring?”

Ray simply said he wanted to know what he did to Oxford. This somehow raised Cal’s ear. He flipped through the pages quickly before stacking them on the corner of his desk.

“He survived.”

“S-so… why is he my-”

“Does it bother you?” Cal looked at him with a stance.

Ray looked down, keeping his posture straight. He didn’t respond to Cal’s question, but he brought up another one. A question which could make sense to everything. A beginning to a more serious topic.

“Are they playing a trick on me?”

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Ray explained his concept that Oxford might have been brainwashed. This could also explain how he ended up here without remembering his past while knowing how to build a robot, even improved it. He couldn’t exactly say everything in order and precisely. His mouth couldn’t keep up with his raging mind.

Cal had his head slightly tilted when he listened to the blabbering. He crossed his arms and leaned against his desk. A minute later, Ray seemed like he had finished talking, not pausing to catch his breath.

“It’s his punishment,” said Cal with a straight face, ignoring what other things Ray said.

Ray stuttered when he blinked confusedly.

“B-by brainwashing him?” he asked. Cal nodded.

“I did promise you to save him, didn’t I?” Cal stepped forward.

Ray’s posture disappeared, expelled from the frightening sight of Cal inches away from him. His gold eyes glowed when Ray was consumed by his shadow. Ray’s bottom lip was scared to move. A new series of questions and ideas flooded his already saturated mind.

“Is there a problem?” Cal asked.

Ray didn’t dare to look into Cal’s eyes.

“W-where’s everyone?”

“As I said, they’re in a meeting. Now, answer my question. Do. We. Have. A. Problem?” Cal showed a smile. It reminded Ray of Fier. An evil version of him.

“N-no…” Ray murmured, taking a step back and looking to his side.

With straight arms and fists, Ray stomped away, muffling curses to himself. Was this the life of someone working here? Was this the real reason why Oxford didn’t want anybody to know about his life? Did these happen to everyone? Could this be the reason why they all suddenly vanished? Being brainwashed? Being prepared to be Ray’s next test subject?

He stood in the elevator. His mind was boiling. He couldn’t form words. If his theory was correct, then there was more to this facility than what met his eyes. If it was possible for them to remove someone’s memories, then bringing them back should also be possible!

But how? Ray thought.

There must be a device that they used to do such things. Of course, there would. This was the facility. The only place he knew that held more secrets than anyone in the world. Enough to change the perspective of reality. Enough to destroy the human race.

Think! Where would one place it? Ray said to himself.

Where would they store technologies or other stuff when not in use?

A bulb was switched on. Ray smirked and inhaled deeply.

“Bring me to the P.G.P.”

Upon stepping out of the elevator, Ray found the decorated hall blocked by a steel barrier and yellow tapes dangling on each side. A sign hung over the barrier. “Authorized Personnel Only”. Ray glanced at his reflection from the elevator, assuming he now had the authority to disobey it. Besides, after scanning the hall, he found no CCTVs.

He went over the barrier and calmly walked over to the other end where a white plastic curtain blocked the colossal doors. He got to the desk that looked exactly the same as he last saw it and searched for a button to open the doors. He began backtracking the moment when Oxford brought him here.

Standing back to his feet after checking the undersides, he found the dusty, silver bell near the green lamp. He pressed it, however, it didn’t make a sound. He pressed it again, but this time with more pressure. Nothing happened. No sound at all.

He clicked his tongue when he turned to the plastic curtain behind him. He walked around it and found something interesting.

The doors were left ajar. He inched closer and found deep grooves, scratches, and dents all over it. The giant texts fixed on it were gone as well. Their silhouette remained.

Sliding through the tiny space between the doors, he found the entire place under complete blackness. The air was colder as well.

“Shit,” his soft voice echoed as his hands searched through the darkness for the railings of the staircase.

A second later, he smacked himself for forgetting he had a phone with him. He turned on its light and flashed it on his path, down to Sion’s desk where he found a dried puddle of blood on the floor nearby. It must be Sion’s.

He continued to backtrack everything. He moved behind the desk and stared at the black monitor. He looked at the dusty keyboard, also covered with droplets of dried blood. He pressed a random key but nothing happened. He tried pressing the On switch on the monitor itself, same result.

His plan of searching the device on Sion’s computer was ruined. He figured the power was cut off. Something that made him really suspicious about it. If he couldn’t search for the device with ease, then he could at least search for it manually, but to do that, he needed a map. Luckily he happened to know where.

He found a key from one of the drawers and hopped onto the buggy. He slotted the key into the hole and hoped it still had power. Its headlights shone brightly in front of him, bringing him joy. The motors on each wheel began to whir when he departed.

He carefully navigated through the dark maze. He kept both hands on the wheel as he recalled the path to his destination. He kept an eye out for numerous landmarks which he gladly remembered as clear as day.

Tunneling through the darkness, squeezing through the tight path, passing the cavern where Oxford got the folder, passing the white marble statues of animals, and finally, after passing the numerous shipping containers, he parked the buggy near the yellowing computers. He hopped off, which made him squint from the pain. He completed his trip by foot until he arrived at the familiar-looking table in the middle of the space where three towering shelves pointed at.

He approached the table, walked around it, then gently pressed his palm on the surface. The familiar ant colony reappeared.

He raised both hands in front of it when he enlarged the structure.

There’s Cal’s dome… Ray pointed at the top where a small dome protruded from the surface.

His finger followed one of the elevator shafts which was when he discovered that all elevators could travel in six directions, making it more difficult for him to pinpoint certain landmarks.

His fingers tapped on the table as he bit his lip, staring at the nose-bleeding detailed structure. He hoped the table was like the elevator.

“Show me the Manufacturing Section,” said Ray and immediately, the hologram began to move. A pin appeared on a large area within the structure. The text above it said “Manufacturing Section I”.

Of course… as if having one large one isn’t enough.

Ray rubbed his face, leaning down on the table while staring. Oxford should have specifically told him where they were heading in the first place. He kept his eyes locked onto the hovering pin until his gaze cascaded to another one in the distance. His eyes immediately furrowed.

He returned to his posture when he turned the hologram around and examined the other pin. No text displayed on top of it. He didn’t remember seeing this before. This pin was at the very bottom of the structure with only one elevator shaft connected to it. He enlarged the hologram.

He brought out his phone and opened his maps there. He scrolled down as far as he could until he reached the very bottom. It showed the same exact thing. No text. That was when he knew he had to go there. He assumed Sion must’ve placed it for someone else to see it. Though, it could also mean someone else must have seen it, hence he died. Poisoned.

He ran back to the buggy and bore through the darkness, returning to Sion’s desk. He properly parked it before throwing the keys on the desk and running up the stairs, to the elevator. He ordered the elevator to bring him to the lowest floor possible. He could feel it inside that he was somehow getting closer to discovering something extraordinary. Like Sion.

However, this sent chills down his spine when he thought it could also be the reason why Sion was killed. There must be something that the facility didn’t want anyone to know.

The elevator chime came when the doors slid open, bringing him to a foreign section. He brought out his phone again and scanned the map, tapping a single button to show his current location.

He blinked confusedly when he found out that he was not on the lowest floor. In fact, he was just above the lowest floor in the facility. Once the elevator doors closed behind him, he began to search for another way to get to his destination.

At the end of the short corridor for the elevators was a door that led to a staircase. Strangely, there wasn’t a way to go further down aside from up. He stepped back to the elevators where he stood in front of one. He inhaled deeply and inserted his fingers into the middle.

Screeching pierced through the halls as Ray pried one of the elevator doors open with all his might. Once he got enough space for him to slide through, he looked down and smirked.

There it is, Ray thought, seeing a few meters more of the elevator shaft where he found another elevator door below him.

Although, upon sliding through, he found the rails of the elevators drastically different from the ones below them. It was old-fashioned. The smell of rust spreading on the steel rails lingered around the bottom of the shaft.

Ray carefully slid on the side structure of the metal frames of the shaft where he found a catwalk which he used to go down.

The deeper he went, the more tarnished the entire sight became. The catwalk began to wobble on his steps. Little parts of the metal floor gave way and turned to reddish flakes when they hit the bottom. Ray knew this catwalk won’t handle him. Instead, he carefully grabbed the steel cables and slid down carefully.

He got to the bottom where he found an elevator door left ajar. He slid through the small crack and ended up in a gloomy hall. He brought out his phone again and turned on its light. He waved it around, seeing dust particles floating all over the path.

This hall had a different design compared to the halls he had seen in his life. Its floor was made out of wood panels. Old fashioned light fixtures, some of which were hanging by their wires. The green paint on the wall was flaking off. The wooden baseboard and cove somehow matched the one in his dream. His nose was overpowered by the smell of centuries-old air. He could taste the deteriorating environment.

As he walked further, he began to see jackhammers, hardhats, reflective vests, and other construction materials. The railings were ripped from their places. The lighting fixtures were gone. They were replaced by numerous, tall halogen construction lights. He found a generator a few steps later. He debated if he should have the satisfaction of seeing this place in full light.

He kneeled and flicked some switches, then, softly pressed the big red button. The machine coughed and puffed and rattled on the floor and soon, each construction light flickered to life.

The entire stretch of the hall was lit up, showing a clear path to the end where there was a metal staircase. Ray moved forth when the walls of the corridor were gone, revealing the main metal structure of the hall. Beyond the frame was complete darkness of space.

When he got to the stairs, he found more construction lights ahead of him, however, they were not lit. He looked back and trailed the wires on the floor. He found two connectors unconnected. Once he slid them together, more lights flickered.

The darkness beyond the corridor vanished as lights beamed throughout the giant space where a colossal door stood. Ray’s jaw was dragged down the staircase.

As he approached the bottom, a sensor underneath from one of the steps on the stairs started blinking.

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