The moment he'd told the guard that he needed to go up to Level 4, Leon instantly knew that something was very wrong: "I need to go up to Level 4. Dr. De Luca asked for me," He said. The guard simply nodded and let him in without any hesitation.
It occurred to Leon that he didn't even have to provide any key card. He hadn't even been asked his name. It was as though he had been expected.
As the elevator went up, he tried to understand what could possibly be happening. What was Arsenio De Luca playing at? On one hand, he could simply be calling him up because he noticed that he wasn't acting like the person whose access card he'd taken, but this was Arsenio. Leon knew him better than he wanted to admit. If he was calling him up, then he'd already been found out.
If Arsenio already knew, then Leon had to be both quick and careful.
Suddenly, he heard Bella's voice, frantically worried in his earpiece, "Leon? Leon, are you okay? We're going to come after you, okay—"
"No!" Leon responded almost instantly, "Don't come for me, I can handle this on my own! You guys focus on securing a way out of here. Just trust me, I can do this."
Before Bella could reply though, Mina spoke up, "Besides, I'm pretty sure we have a bigger problem right now—"
The sound from the other side was cut off abruptly and Leon spoke again, "Guys? Guys, are you alright? What's going on?" He bit his lip, worried.
"You need to get out of there, Leon," Bella responded, breathing hard, "He knows we're here, they all know we're here. Oh, fuck—Fenix!"
"Guys?!" Leon called, but this time, he received no answer, "Guys, I'm not going to be able to answer in a little bit but keep me updated, are you all okay?"
There was heavy breathing, and then Fenix responded, "I'm fine…We're fine, Leon, focus on yourself."
"No, you're not fucking fine, you got stabbed!" Bella said, sounding more frantic than ever, "Mina, can you stop the bleeding?"
Leon's eyes widened, "Oh, fuck, he's—"
"Anemic, yes, but I can stop the bleeding. Fenix, I'm so sorry, this is going to hurt but it's the only thing I have on me right now," Mina said. Leon assumed that Fenix had continued to keep his mic on since he could hear the distant fighting.
Leon cursed under his breath, now regretting that he'd left the group, "What the hell is going on?" He asked.
"Stop worrying about us," Lumina said, "You're the one in the most danger right now. Worry about yourself and don't talk to us unless you need help. Now, go! Or you'll keep worrying about us!"
"How am I supposed to stop worrying about you guys—Fuck, I'm here. Okay, I don't think I can talk anymore but if anything happens," Leon said under his breath.
Owen responded, "We'll let you know. Now, go!"
He stepped out of the elevator and took a deep breath as he saw the nameplate on the door right in front of him. For a moment, he wondered if he could delay this meeting by taking the hallways to the left or right but before he could even take a step, the door opened, and he was faced with a familiar figure standing in front of him.
"Hello," Arsenio De Luca said, and if Leon hadn't been sure before, he was absolutely sure now that Arsenio knew who he was, "I suppose you should come inside," He turned around and headed into the room.
Leon let out a shaky breath, his whole body tensing as he mentally prepared himself for what was coming next.
Then, he followed Arsenio inside.
The door closed behind him, but he was too busy looking around the large room to be concerned with it. He had expected this to be a normal office, but to his surprise, it was a large room with multiple control panels lining the walls and many, many buttons on it. There were large screens everywhere, and Leon could see that they were monitors showing hundreds of different cameras.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Arsenio asked, "So many people controlled so easily. All of them are placid and follow a strict, regimented set of rules. All of them are under observation. You know, crime rates are practically zero here between those who have been chipped. It's a small piece of a perfect world."
"...Why are you telling me this?" Leon asked, crossing his arms, "I already know that you know, what's your point?"
Arsenio smiled, "I'm just trying to make you understand what you're missing out on, Leon Song. What you've given up."
Leon scowled, "If this is your attempt to try and get me to regret this, then I can tell you that it's certainly not working."
"Of course, I wouldn't expect anything less from you," The older man replied, "You're quite an interesting one, you know, Song? How many times have you tried to save your friends?" He leaned forward, "Do you even remember how many times you've failed?"
"Shut up," Leon shot back, "You have no idea what you're talking about, so shut your damn mouth."
Arsenio laughed lightly, "Oh, but I do know what I'm talking about, don't I? After all, you know the drill. You're all stuck in this…I suppose we can call it a situation for now…Until you or Manon figure something out. And so far, you've never managed to figure it out."
Leon grabbed him by the lapels of his coat, shaking him harshly, "Then what the fuck is it that I need to figure out! Why can't you just tell me?! You people are the reason we're stuck like this!"
"If I did know, what could you offer me that could possibly be worth that information?" Arsenio shook his head, "There is nothing that you could possibly give me that could be equivalent to that sort of information."
"So, you don't know either," Leon gritted out, letting go of the other man and shoving him back, "Useless. This was a waste of my time."
Arsenio sighed, "Well, you certainly can't leave now. So, you might as well answer some of my questions. Why are you doing this?"
"What?" Leon looked at him, confused and annoyed, "Are you really asking me that? With the kind of shit that the White Lotus has pulled here? Of course, I'd want to destroy you all. Plus, it helps that I get to take revenge for all the people I love and myself—"
"No, that's not what I mean," Arsenio said slowly, "Why are you trying so hard to stop everything? It's not like if you were to succeed at what you're trying to do, things would be much better. I'll tell you right now, it really isn't better. Whatever you think you can do to stop their bigger plan, I highly doubt it'll work. Even if you do manage to get out of this situation, it's already too late. You don't know what's really happening. Honestly, you're actually better off abandoning your plans and living a normal life. It would bring you the least pain."
Leon scoffed, "And just ignore everything else? I could never do that. Unlike you, I refuse to endorse the indoctrination of hundreds of thousands of people."
"So, that's what you think this is about. I had wondered what you knew…I wouldn't say their goal is indoctrination. I can't tell you exactly what their goes is, but tell me, were you aware that everyone here is like us, except that they do not know the truth about what is happening?"
"...What?"
Arsenio nodded, "The White Lotus made far more progress with the general public than what you were aware of, Leonardo Song. It's very unlikely that you'll be able to save yourself and your friends, but if you do…What about everyone else?"
"...Fuck," Leon whispered. He needed to talk to Apocalypse. He knew that her plan to use the Relics could possibly save them, it was something that he wouldn't have known without her so he knew he had to try it but…Would it only save them? Or could they save everyone? Trying to school his expression, he looked back at Arsenio, "Then I'll find a way to stop the White Lotus. I'll destroy them if I have to. I will save everyone."
"And you think you're enough to stop them? What an adorable sentiment…But let's look at this from another viewpoint. Logistically speaking, who is it that has had more casualties on their side? You're fighting back, but you're losing. And people are dying. Is that really a battle you want to fight? Aren't you just leading people to their deaths?"
"...Why are you asking me these questions?" Leon asked, "What do you even get out of this?"
"Because I want to understand. We trained you all to be the most logic-driven subjects of the experiment, but you and Manon were an exception. Even Mirabella Callahan was an exception, but she abandoned us much before you both did. Even after everything the White Lotus took from you, you still continue to provoke them. Are you not afraid?"
This tore a laugh out of Leon's throat, "Afraid?" He asked, "What the hell do I have to be afraid of? You've already taken everything from me. Now, all I want to do is tear you all apart."
Arsenio clicked his tongue, "You really think you have nothing left to lose, don't you? What about your friends, your lover…Your sister?"
"Don't you get it?" Leon growled, gripping him by the collar of his shirt, "I have already. Lost. Everything. I have failed, over and over again, and every time, I had to watch them—" He let out a cry of pain and gripped his chest, breathing heavily.
"Ah, ah, ah. For your own sake, I suggest you don't continue that sentence," Arsenio tutted, walking past him, "But…You really don't know?"
Leon looked up at him, "What?"
Arsenio hummed, "I suppose that makes sense. You couldn't have known. Listen to me, Leon Song. This time, things are different. I do value my life and I'd rather not be branded a traitor and have my heart stop instantly, so I'm not going to tell you how or why. Though you're a smart boy, you'll figure it out eventually. For now, I'm just letting you know that if your plan goes wrong…" He leaned in, "There are no more chances. It really will be over."
"...So, I was right," Leon murmured, unfazed, "I was hoping I wasn't but this really is my last try."
"You did know," Arsenio raised an eyebrow, "Interesting."
Leon was quiet for a moment, and his hand crept towards his weapon, which had been compartmentalized, "Of course, I knew. I was the one who came up with the idea for the device and created it, I know when it's on its deathbed...Now, you tell me. What if I killed you right here, right now? What would happen to you?" He said, his voice low and threatening.
Arsenio let out a laugh, "Nothing would happen to me really, of course. We're still different from the rest of them."
"...And what about me?" Leon asked, "Am I like them? Or am I like you?"
The older man let out a pitied sigh, "Poor boy, you really don't know much about what's going on, do you?" He shook his head, "Do you really think they'd let you die? After everything you did for them before? No, you're too valuable of an asset, Manon as well. I would have said Callahan too but she was too…Rebellious. They couldn't control her the way they could you and Manon. So much of the White Lotus's plans were held up by the things you both created, they're obviously not going to let you die. But they couldn't have you escape death unscathed. It would hurt," The man crossed his arms, "Plus, you know that bump on the back of your neck?"
Leon's hand automatically moved up to feel the slightly raised skin, "That was a failed experiment, they just couldn't take it out because it was so deeply ingrained in my nervous system and cardiovascular system—"
"They lied," Arsenio stepped back, "Really, Song, how do you believe the things they said? Honestly, if I were you, I would have suspected everything was a lie until proven true. That thing," He pointed to the back of Leon's neck, "Is a more intricate and complex version of the normal mind control chips we use. That one can't be removed the way normal control chips can. Do you want to know how it works?" He asked, smiling, "Once your heart rate drops to zero, that chip will act as a defibrillator. As soon as your heart starts beating again, it'll move to affect your nervous system and, most importantly, your brain. And you," He began to walk over to a window, "Will be a mindless, walking zombie, just like them."
Leon followed him, looking out the window, "I…But in the past, I—"
"It wasn't activated until now. A last-ditch effort, I presume."
"A last-ditch effort for what?" Leon turned to him, "To keep me under their control? To continue their experiment? Why are they so afraid of me?"
Arsenio shrugged, "Can't really say, though it's probably the same reason they kept trying to isolate you before. I do value my life more than helping you, so if you'll excuse me," At this, Leon growled and pulled out his knife, moving to press it against the older man's throat, "Before you try and slit my throat, I think there's something you'd probably want to see first," He gestured over behind the blonde.
Cautiously, Leon let go of Arsenio and followed the man to the largest screen in the room. The scientist pressed a couple of buttons and pulled up a certain screen, and the younger man felt his heart drop when he recognized what he was looking at.
It seemed to be footage inside what looked like a large, decrepit hall, almost like a ballroom. It was partially overtaken by nature, but strangely, there was no green. All the branches and vines looked dead and dry. It was barren. But Leon's focus was on the large formation in the center of the floor.
"I'm assuming you already know what this is," Arsenio said, watching Leon's face, "A formation that if activated in one way, could destroy everything. If activated the other way, it would put everyone under the White Lotus's control, in a matter of speaking. That isn't exactly what would happen, but you could consider the actual outcome synonymous to being under their control."
"...Why the hell would the White Lotus even make something like that?" Leon muttered, "If they're going to make a formation, why bother giving it a self-destruct option that could ruin everything they've worked for?"
Arsenio shrugged, "Beats me. But what I want to understand is what is your motive for activating it?" He asked, looking over to Leon, "Because you've tried it before, haven't you? Except there was also something missing. You could never get it to work."
Leon shook his head, lying through his teeth, "We don't want to activate it. We never have. As long it's not in your control, we don't care what happens to it. For all I care, I could destroy the key to it."
"The Wings of Grimmstol, no? And yet…" Arsenio looked closer at it, "It doesn't add up."
"...What?"
"Thinking logically, you don't think this is the first time people have tried to activate the formation, both on the White Lotus's side and on your side. And it's a well-known fact within both groups that you want the Wings of Grimmstol. But not everyone knows that you all want to activate it. The problem for you all is that something is missing, isn't it?" Arsenio asked and then smiled as he looked at Leon, "From your reaction, I'm right. Ah, I thought I'd figured it out but I just needed confirmation. It's not just the Wings of Grimmstol. There's something else and you see—I think I found the map to it," He swiped a couple of times on a touchpad, and on the large screen, there was a map of an area that was known as a barren wasteland.
The remains of Sector 4.
However, looking closer, Leon could see that there was actually a marking on the map, almost of some sort of formation. He let out a pained breath, "If you've already figured it out, then why did you even bother to ask?"
Arsenio hummed, "The White Lotus doesn't know."