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r6-unifiedlands · 5 days

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The Confrontation

[Remington "Espion" Harmonics & Gerald "Deimos" Morris]

Summary: Finding out that your uncle took the lives of your boss and your parents sucks. What's even worse is that after all this time, Espion still couldn't help but miss him as someone she'd dearly seek comfort from.

A/N: My friends on Discord horrifiedly watched me on VC every day, late night to morning to write this

Reth couldn’t sleep.

Ever since Deimos’ capture, she’d been watching the interrogation process from behind the glass, along with Sebastien and Gustave. It was the usual matter of Eliza trying to pry off the lid of the former Rainbow agent, and the other would avoid telling her.

There were times when another operator barged into the room – weapon in hand, to kill this man – but got stopped by other operators.

For herself, she didn’t know how to process this newfound information.

Gerald “Deimos” Morris was the one who killed her parents.

It’s tiring. Her brain felt like short-circuiting, but she kept trying to pay attention to the ongoing attempt to squeeze out the needed information. However, the information dripped slowly from the current situation, and Rainbow had limited time to keep him for long.

Not much progress had been made. The Rainbow’s unwearable patience was currently being tested. And most importantly, Deimos’ existence in this base felt like a drop of lethal poison in a drinkable water source.

Emil and Jamie became restless, Kana couldn’t even stay still, Julien was struggling to keep himself from breaking his promise to Gustave about keeping the criminal alive, and more.

She didn’t want to think any longer. She craved a place she could call home once again.

[The previous place she once called home was gone a long time ago.]

A click of a tongue snapped her from delving too deep into her dark mind, and she saw Eliza strutted out of the interrogation room. Another failed attempt of the interrogation. Reth wondered why they didn’t bring Taina into the room before remembering the demise of her victims after the end of her interrogation.

“Put him back in his cell,” there was a pause in her sentence, “while I’ll dig more into his background.”

The other two men cussed in their mother language. “At this rate, we’ll lose our source of info.” Gustave gritted his teeth. “I don’t know what to do at this point. We tried a lot of tactics, and he doesn’t budge ‘til this point.”

She couldn’t keep up with the rest of the conversation. Her mind was afloat, detached from her own body. None of her attempts to refocus were successful.

Instead, she saw another figure in her stead of controlling her body.

Someone that looked like her, but was dressed in her Nighthaven R&D uniform. Her hair was tied into a small bun, and the supposed Nighthaven emblem was ripped off, leaving an uneven patch.

She watched as her body moved on its own, using the current frustration of the other operators as a cover to approach the interrogation room’s mic and turn it on.

“Uncle Gerald. It’s been a while.”

Those two words worked like a charm. Deimos’s cocky expression was replaced with a more surprised look, knuckles turning white by how hard he squeezed them. The rest of the operators stopped their quarrel and stared at her with mouth agape.

Her tone was almost devoid of life. Almost.

Deimos adjusted his seating, now facing the one-way glass. “You’re supposed to rest, sweetpea. I know you’re currently recovering from your injuries.”

Sweetpea. The nickname that his uncle gave to her when she was little. When both he and her father were close to each other.

Her teeth clacked together, anger in her eyes. “After all this time, you still call me that,” her breath became more ragged, “after you took my parents away. Taking my dreams away. My brother had to let go of his dream of becoming a rocket engineer, and we had to survive with their insurance money.”

“I had to work as a weapon engineer in my father’s stead. I studied so I could get more chances to be accepted into higher-paying jobs. I put myself on the line in the military so I get a sense of purpose in life.” Reth let out a breathy laugh. “I flew myself too close to the sun on purpose to seek something other than this pang of guilt in my chest. All because you took the only thing that could keep me grounded and safe.”

Despite her body being tugged by the older operators, she didn’t budge. Her eyes were fixated on the man in an orange jumpsuit. The prisoner of this place.

A sob escaped from her lips. “At least,” she whispered, “tell me what my father’s last words were. I wanted to hear his words one last time.”

Deimos' hardened face softened, and he leaned back onto his folded chair. Silver handcuffs glint under the fluorescent light. His expression now looked more like that of his old uncle whom his father had gently scolded because he fed them pea snacks outside the scheduled mealtime.

“He wasn’t supposed to die.” He started, and Gustave quickly set up a voice recorder to contain the self-confession. “Keres Legion was trying to reactivate Rainbow, and they needed a switch. So they targeted someone that could be bait for it. Ivan Kovalyov was the perfect candidate for it.”

“I put together a plan. It took me weeks because I didn’t want Ivan to die on me, but I perfected it. Your family wouldn’t get harmed, but the casualties would be enough to satisfy the group.” He bit his lips, dark eyes now looking down to the ground. “I forgot that Ivan was the most selfless person in Rainbow. He wouldn’t fall onto the safety net I gave him.”

[The gas canisters were planted in several hidden spots, strategically placed to fill the stadium within a short amount of time. His undercover, disposable crew helped him with his whole plan without knowing there was a small air pocket being left out in the crowd.

Deimos didn’t wear his mask to make himself blend better with the civilians. Kids were running around the bleachers to get their seats while the adults were purchasing food or souvenirs.

Too bad most of them would be part of the casualties.

The security guard’s uniform fit him perfectly, with his fake ID card displayed right in the pocket. He still pulled down the cap to cover his face, though. Old habit dies hard, or something like that.

Should he recheck the canisters? He could’ve asked others, but he’s not sure if they would do their job properly or–

“Excuse me, can you help me locate this seat?”

It was a familiar, warm voice, laced with the signature thick Russian accent on the top that made his head snap its way towards the voice’s direction almost instantly. Deimos’ dark eyes widened.

Ivan Kovalyov. The supposed target. His old friend whom he’d still cared for to this day.

It took him all of his willpower not to drag him away from the incoming chaos of the place. “I…could try.” Deimos stared at a piece of paper the man was currently holding. “I’m unfortunately a security guard, but I could help ya with this.”

The other man froze in his tracks, the greenish-blue eyes glued to him. “Repeat that again?” He asked, leaning closer to him. Deimos internally cussed to himself.

Ivan always paid attention to people’s voices and accents.

“Did I do something wrong?” He forced his voice to squeak in a high-pitched tune, and it felt like a lump clogged his throat.

‘Gerald’ would never squeak like this, and he hoped this would throw the Russian man off his trail.

Ivan blinked, before backing away from him. “Apologies, I was…” he sighed. “I didn’t take my meds today. I thought you were my old partner.”

Partner. His chest tightened and felt like it was about to burst out, but he prevented himself from doing anything stupid using the little willpower he had left.

Deimos took a deep breath and cleared his throat. Calm down. “Don’t worry, sir. People have been saying I have a very recognizable face.” His tone was higher than the usual baritone one, expression beaming with a wide smile, too wide for his taste. God, his face would cramp the next day. “Do you still want the direction? I can ask my friend to cover up for me.”

The Russian gave him a small smile. “Ah, American hospitality. Good to know they exist!” The passive-aggressive comment made him laugh. Good to hear his voice, still. The same warmth in every word contrasted with the cold exterior during their times in Rainbow and until now.

He wished they could stay like this forever.]

It was the first time Rainbow got a major breakthrough about Keres Legion. The planned assassination of a former Rainbow operator, their past motive, and even how they carried the plan. They never expected to get this information without having to use any force. Ash and Sebastien scrambled in and out of the interrogation room, looking around the archives to verify the claims.

Listening to his uncle’s voice also helped Reth ground herself up. Soothing baritone, the same one when he sang lullabies from his hometown to her and Polar.

Deimos stared at the glass – right through the youngest operator’s soul. “At that point, I was ready to execute my plan. To get this over with.” He fidgeted his thumbs. “But I want him to enjoy his time watching you, even if I have to keep postponing the time.”

“You know you wouldn’t be placed in that situation if you didn’t join Keres Legion in the first place.”

A fist slammed onto the table, making the young operator’s heart jump from her chest to the throat. “Staying in Rainbow would be worse.” He growled.

She’s not going to be intimidated by this man. Not this time.

“Did you know how bad my father coped with your fucking shenanigan?!” She slammed her fist onto the glass barrier, and that made Deimos cringe a bit. “He couldn’t sleep, ate far less, and almost died during most of his missions until the time Rainbow got disbanded. He dug too deep, making deals with multiple PMCs to try and track you down. Meds and your jacket that you never picked up from our house were his only solace in getting at least a shuteye.”

Deimos remained silent. Both of them knew he wouldn’t say anymore today.

Unless…

“Fine, have it your way.” She backed away from the mic, purposely letting the mic on. “Doc, mind telling me the next mission? Or should I ask Cav for it?”

A sharp gasp came out from Gustave. “Non, you’re still recovering–”

The young operator slipped her hand into her chest pocket and pulled out her phone. “Oh, no need. Zero would probably help me with training. Maybe I can negotiate my way with Cav if I did well on it.” Her fingers danced across the screen of her phone as she typed a short message, Mr Fisher’s phone number displayed above it.

“Mon ami, you’ll get in danger once again–”

“I’ve done my physical therapy, Doc. You were there when the hospital let me return to my duty.” A soft chime came out from her phone, and she gave him a shit-eating grin. “I couldn’t just stay here and sit on my ass. I gotta go do my duty as a soldier.”

Her statement wasn’t for Gustave. It was for the one behind the glass, eyes now widened in slight horror.

She’s waiting for what he’d do later on.

————————————

“He asked me to get him involved in our field operations in exchange for more information.”

Jordan clutched his head, pulling his hair out. “No. Fuck no.” He growled, hatred in his eyes. “He almost crippled me, ‘Liza. He fucked up our assets. We lost multiple recruits in Korea because of him!!”

Taina raised her hand. “It’d be better to pull the whole operation from the root down, Trace. You don’t cut the leaves to make weeds disappear.”

“Agreed with Ms Pereira,” Gustave added, “we should make use of this chance to get more intel. We got a breakthrough this week, and we will spend it wisely.”

“This is the first time I disagree with you, Gustave.” Yumiko crosses her arms. “His presence in this base is already impacting Rainbow’s morale. Remember the last time Kana managed to slip past our defenses and attempted to murder Deimos? Emil has been wandering around the hallway like a ghost already.”

The team leaders sighed out loud. Once again, they’re in the middle of an impasse.

Jordan glanced at Jamie, furrowing his eyebrows. “James, waddaya think? You’re the one who knows him personally.”

Reth and Jamie were unfortunately dragged into this meeting as soon as the news of them being somehow related to Deimos came out. So far, only a handful of people know this fact. Limiting access to the information was mainly for the siblings’ safety, especially those who had a grudge against the detained man.

“God, Jordan, you would be disappointed in me.” He gently nudged at Reth. “She’s the second closest one after Pa. I’m not that close to him.”

All eyes went straight to the young operator, expecting her to say something about the matter. She didn’t like the feeling of pressure on her.

“Well, he’s my godfather.” She tucked her hands onto her thighs. “My father wanted his daughters to have someone that we could look up to, and Uncle Gerald was his closest bud during that time. Really, really close buddies.”

“He visited us a lot, went to family holidays together, and even took care of us when he was on solo missions and mother was outside town. He taught me circuits and stuff related to electrical when I was around… six? Seven?” She let out a hum. “At that point, I saw him as a parent. Another family figure. Thus, the name ‘uncle’ came out.”

“James wasn’t close to him. At least, not as close as me.” Her eyes glanced at the taller operator beside her. “Still, Uncle Gerald tried to be close to him. I remembered him getting James some books about applied physics on one of his birthdays. He’s like a stepdad who was trying to get his new stepkids to like him.”

A gloved hand nestled onto her messy hair, and Reth tilted her head upwards to see Seb's familiar neatly trimmed beard. His gentle scalp scratches made her purr. “I have an idea now that we have his relatives.”

Gustave raised one of his eyebrows. “Go on.”

————————————

Reth couldn’t sleep. Again.

Lack of sleep had its consequences. Gustave had warned her multiple times, but she kept ignoring him. In exchange, her hyperawareness to her surroundings has increased tenfold.

The atmosphere was too humid. Oxygen in the air wasn’t enough. The fluorescent light made the room too hot. She could feel her own throat tightened as if her own body wanted her to suffocate.

Calm down, Espion. Sebastien’s plan came first after her own need.

Her trembling hand held onto a cup of black coffee, pushing her focus onto the comfortable warmth of the mug. Sipping the dark liquid, the bitter yet robust taste filled her mouth and snapped her out of the tiredness for now.

Door creaked open. Shuffles of footsteps. Chair shifted away a bit. Breathing noise.

“...It’s been a while, sweetpea.”

Familiar deep voice lulled the young operator away from the discomfort around her, with the same soft tone he would use whenever she threw a meltdown tantrum during her childhood. She could hear the smile in his expression. A genuine one, she hoped.

She put down the mug on the table and finally took a good look at the man right in front of her.

Deimos, now sitting down across her. Smiling warmly at her.

As if he didn’t kill her parents and her boss.

Deep breaths, Espion.

“Yeah, it’s been a while.” She hid her hands under the table, now trembling from the brink of exhaustion. “Did Ash treat you well? I think Rainbow’s containment cell is still humane enough.”

“They provided me with a couple of my favourite Russian poetry books. Good to spend my time reading them.” He tapped the plastic table in a rhythmic pattern. Dark eyes remained sharp. “But I know you’re not here for idle chat. Especially since the last time we’ve met.”

Of course this man knew the motive. Ever since that situation, Eliza kept Reth away from the area. Might be out of fear, or maybe because he could use her to negotiate his way out. Her sudden appearance here would be for something.

To be honest, she wasn’t so sure about Sebastien’s idea. Using her as a so-called ‘bait’ to extract more information on his motive and upcoming plans. And most importantly, the Keres Legion itself. Deimos wasn’t that stupid.

She yawned while keeping her mouth closed and exhaled it out of her nostrils. “I’m just asking a bit of questions, personally made by me.”

“Uh-huh. And they talked you out for this?” He squinted, unconvinced.

“Coming here on my own will.” Fuck, her consciousness was slowly dipping out. “Let’s get this over quickly. I still have a bunch of paperwork to fill.”

Deimos hummed a bit. Something was in his mind. “If the papers are related to Rainbow’s self-report on personal damage, you’d get compensation for the injuries.” His feet lifted up and settled down on the edge of the table. “I hate Rainbow, but this organization gives fair pay and has its own life insurance.”

“First, the compensation money was spent on my whole recovery. I was planning on filling the mission one, actually.” Reth glanced at the one-way glass barrier, smiling at the people on the other side. “It’s a soldier’s duty to save lives. And I’m a soldier myself.”

The calm expression in the former Rainbow operator changed, replaced with irritation. “Soldiers have their time to retreat after a failed mission.”

“Like the time you put me into a coma?” Dominic’s blunt and sarcastic influence on her came out. “You don’t have the right to tell me what to do.”

Nothing beats the satisfaction of seeing the supposed enemy flinched, hurt written all over his expression. She sneered, pushing herself back onto her seat, as silence grew between both of them.

[Comatose wasn’t a fun experience. During that state, she could still listen to the people beside her bed. From Mr Fisher’s weekly visit to tell her about Jamie’s condition, to Gustave checking her vitals and aiding the medical workers to see if they did what he’d told them before.

The constant beeps and whirrs of multiple support machines were the ones that kept her mind intact when people weren’t talking around her.

The silence was the malicious accomplice of her flashbacks.]

He opened his mouth, about to say something, but seemed to hesitate. “...At least,” Deimos’s voice broke the layers of ice between them, his voice now softer than usual. A small hiccup came out of his mouth. "Let me protect you all, like Ivan’s final wish.”

“...Huh?”

Another silence filled the room. This time, it wasn’t because of the other’s lack of cooperation or hostile tension between them.

Right in front of her, the ‘Deimos’ persona seemed to melt away. Like an iceberg chipped away with a small chisel and leaving trails of puddles. Sunlight passed through the clear ice, creating a familiar pillar of light that radiated warmth.

That’s how she felt when she saw his uncle, vulnerable right in front of her. Pleading at her to fulfil her father’s last wish. To let him return to their remaining family.

Her lips trembled. Her whole body shook visibly. Exhaustion has finally caught up to her, whether she liked it or not.

“...I’m tired, Uncle Gerald.” She squeaked out. Warm tears trailed down her puffy red cheeks. “Because of you, I lost a place called home. Because of you, all of us had to go our separate ways to thread our own paths. I couldn’t close my eyes without seeing myself back into the chaos that happened that day. To see my father’s body in the middle of that stadium’s grass field.”

[His body was cold when she finally found him. She was too late.

Young Remington screamed at the sky, and her small body tried to drag her father’s massive physique. Was this because she had beaten those American kids on the track? Was this because God wanted her not to throw more meltdown tantrums? What did she do wrong to make God hate her??

She prayed. She promised to be kind to her classmates who pushed her around. To eat her vegetables without gagging. To hold back her tantrums. All for a miracle.

No matter how loud her screams and prayers were, her father remained limp on her body, dragged away to safety by his own daughter.]

“I wish,” Reth’s voice now barely a whisper, her consciousness slipping out, “you were there when I needed you.”

“I missed your warm hugs. I missed you.”

At this point, her hyperawareness was almost nonexistent. All she could feel was the dark spots dancing in her sight, and her body grew heavier, refusing to budge from the seat. She didn’t notice the sound of the chair skidding against the floor and a pair of light footsteps moving toward her.

Warm fingers gently touched her reddened cheeks, wiping off her tears. “I’m here now, sweetpea.” Deimos softly cooed. “Do you wanna take a nap, kiddo? I can try hugging you while you’re asleep.”

It only took her a small nod for him to smile — the same smile he had when she was still under his care.

[Jamie was about to burst into the room and grab his sister, but Sebastien pulled him aside to calm him down. The Canadian felt that if he disrupted their moment, Deimos would rip open a new hell in Rainbow. Currently, the only thing that seemed to keep the former operator from doing exactly that was the petite woman wrapped in his embrace, quietly snoring her exhaustion away.

Choosing her to do the interview was a good idea.]

#r6s #r6s oc #r6s deimos #r6s doc #r6s ash #r6s buck #r6s hibana #r6s thermite #r6s caveira #When your wife and your soulmate are two different person #I joked about this a lot to my friends hdkgh #Why Ivan's last name is different? He enlisted to Rainbow with his actual russian name #Harmonics is his new name when he settled down in US

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