Rise and Fall- The Fight Inside

Too Late to Apologize

Reagan carefully handed the gift to Ryland. Instantly, Ryland held the chain in front of him, letting the pendant swing side to side as he studied it. 

"What is it?" Ryland wanted to know.

"It's some kind of necklace but your guess is a good as mine as to what it is." Reagan answered.

Ryland raised his eyebrows as he gazed at the sparkling, purple, gem. He thought long and hard about what it could mean.

"It has to have some kind of power, right?" Ryland concluded.

"Not necessarily. It could just have value to Sofia." Reagan inputted.

"But why would it be locked away under such high security if it wasn't special?" Ryland argued.

"I don't know, just read the note." Reagan instructed.

Ryland sat the necklace aside and began reading the note.

Ryland and Ben,

Please take good care of this necklace if something were to ever happen to me. It is a piece of Amethyst and can help answer your questions and improve your powers. I have had this since I was around your age so please take care of it.

- Mom

"Amethyst? So it's just a gemstone." Ryland sighed.

"No, not just a gemstone! This one is special- people like you can use the gem to increase their powers and use it's power to see the future. It is extremely rare in this universe." Reagan explained.

"Well then, how do I use it?" Ryland snapped.

"Do I look like an instruction manual to you?" Reagan yelled, becoming intolerant to Ryland's attitude.

"I asked you a question, now give me an answer!" Ryland shouted.

"What has gotten in to you? You'd think people would be nice to you when you offer to help them. I strongly suggest you get out of my sight and back to your room." Reagan boomed.

"Do I look like a ten year old to you? Your not my mother and you can't tell me what to do!" Ryland screamed. 

"No I'm not your mother but I am in charge of you now so you will do what I say or else..." Reagan threatened.

"Or what- you'll call my parents?" Ryland murmured, dropping the note and retreating to his room.

Reagan sighed, feeling sorry for him. She picked the note off the ground and read over it herself. Quickly noticing that Ben's name was present, she slipped the note into her pocket. Reagan was extremely grateful that Ryland had not noticed this or she would have to answer questions she didn't know all the answers too. Meanwhile, Ryland had fallen into his bed. He laid still, on his back, staring into the ceiling. He wanted so badly for things to be the way he wanted them to be. He wanted to be happy. Reagan was nice but she wasn't his mother and she wasn't his father. It frustrated him to think he could have had it all. He was royalty. He could have lived happily with his mother and father in a big castle that looked out over all of the land. The knock at the door woke Ryland from his day dream.

"Are you okay?" Reagan whispered, opening the door.

Ryland sat up, still mad at Reagan.

"That seems to be a common question in this family." he snapped, glaring at Reagan.

"Look, I only wanted to help you. Sofia was my sister, in law, but my sister and I loved her like family. Grainger was my brother and I cared deeply for him too." Reagan empathized.

"Some help you are." Ryland muttered.

"What?" Reagan asked.

"I said, 'what should we do?'" Ryland lied.

"In my opinion, we should lay low and return to Earth. There we can begin a normal life and restart. What do you think we should do?" Reagan stated.

"If we go to Earth, then what are we going to do? Say we came from a foreign country, lie about who we are? Are you going to be my mother or are we going to try to cover up why my parents are dead?" Ryland yelled.

"Calm down. I will think of a cover story for the government and we can even use our real names if you want." Reagan continued.

"Calm down? My mother is dead, my father is missing but could be dead, we are moving to a different galaxy, and you want me to calm down?!" Ryland shouted.

"I mean just don't get yourself all worked up about this, everything is going to be okay. Ryland, this would be hard for anyone your age. Especially after recent events." Reagan sympathized. 

Ryland's eyes began watering no matter how hard he tried to hold back the tears. Reagan's words only reminded him of what he had lost.

"Ryland..." Reagan murmured, coming over to the bed on which he sat.

"I'm fine." Ryland declared, wiping the tears from his pale cheeks.

Reagan sat down beside him, waiting for him to realize that he didn't have to push her away. After several long minutes, he finally realized. Ryland looked up at Reagan with his brilliant blue eyes shimmering under the lights. 

"You definitely look like a member of the Cross family." Reagan pointed out, giving Ryland a hug. 

"What makes you say that?" Ryland asked.

"Well you got the bright blue eyes and the dark brown hair. You look exactly like Grainger when I first met him. Come to think of it, you act like him too." Reagan added on.

Ryland laughed, subtly but surely. Ryland got off the bed and attempted to exit the room but Reagan stopped him.

"Where are you going?" Reagan wondered.

"I am going to kill Olivia and bring my father back if it's the last thing I do. Don't you dare try to stop me." Ryland announced, leaving the room and turning the corner.

"I won't try to stop you but I want to come with you." Reagan told Ryland as she followed him to the control room. 

Together, they walked down the long, winding stairs and into the main room of the ship. Reagan sat down in the pilot seat with Ryland sitting beside her. 

"Can this thing go any faster?" Ryland asked with a hint of anger in his voice.

"How fast?" Reagan questioned.

"Super fast." Ryland suggested. 

Reagan laughed and pulled the black lever. Ryland was thrown back in his seat  by the sudden, dramatic, increase in speed.