We'll
begin the interrogation of the Baronet of Shadowhand at 3:30 pm
Today. Come directly to the Strife House after school. I'll be
waiting for you there.
This
is the text that Primo sent me. After giving it one last look, I turn
my phone off and place it in my pocket. Waiting silently at the bus
stop with Blue and Trace, I stare into the grey sky, speckled with
cold bits of white that fall to the earth and cover the ground. The
wait is starting to feel like an eternity...
Ah, it's so cold. I don't like the cold... I have to remember to dress warmer tomorrow.
Ah, it's so cold. I don't like the cold... I have to remember to dress warmer tomorrow.
“It's beautiful,” Blue says, killing the
silence. “I always like it when winter rolls around. Somehow, the
snow always makes me feel peaceful...”
“I
don't like winter very much.”
He
gives me a look of disbelief after I say this. “Why not?”
“I
just don't like being cold.”
He
nods, understanding. “Yeah, I kind of get the feeling you're the
kinda person who would enjoy watching the season from your window,
though.”
“Hmm...
maybe. I can imagine it...” I start to picture the scene. “I can
imagine waking up on a Saturday morning, staying warm and cozy in my
warm, cozy house, pouring myself a mug of hot cocoa and just watching
the snow...” I smile just thinking about it.
“Bus sure is taking a second...”
“Bus sure is taking a second...”
“I
wouldn't be surprised if the buses ran late today,” Trace says,
after being silent for all that time. “It starting to snow a lot...
Some of the roads are probably already pretty bad.” I find it odd
that Trace would make that observation... but she might be right.
Quite a bit of snow is falling. “Welp,” she says, standing up.
“What
are you doing?”
“What
does it look like? I'm gonna walk.”
That's
a surprise. Primo's house is pretty far from here. “It seems like a
long walk, Trace. Are you gonna be okay? Do you even know where the
place is?”
“It'll
be fine... I've got Grey with me to help me out. It's okay if you
guys wanna wait for the bus. I'll meet you there.” Trace smiles,
and runs off, slowly disappearing...
...
How much time has passed? It's 3:00 and
still no bus. We're going to be late...
As
I get lost in my thoughts, Blue turns to me, wanting to say
something. “Cleo... can I ask you something more about Trace before
I met her... again?”
“Sure.”
I don't feel uncomfortable talking with him about it anymore, which
is good. It matters a lot to me that we can trust each other with the
subject... “So, what is it?”
“Well,
how do I ask this... When was the last time Trace killed anybody?”
“It's
been years, Blue. She hasn't killed a single person since she decided
to be a hero.”
Hearing
that, Blue seems very relived. “Oh, that's good to hear.”
“What's
wrong? Why bring this up, Blue?”
“Look,
Emerald knew Trace, remember? She was a friend of Karen's.” Right. Now, I
remember who she is. I believe Trace did run into her a few other
times before, over these last three years. “Emerald told me that
Trace just wants to hurt people, and the whole hero of justice thing
is just so she can hide behind her sadistic desires. That's not true,
is it?”
“Of
course not. Trace hasn't gone into crazy killer mode again until just
recently. Don't worry, I'm sure she'll keep it under control. You can
trust Trace.”
Blue
shakes his head. “I do. The problem is that Emerald doesn't.
Remember what happened yesterday? The only way I can see this ending
is with one of them dead.”
“Blue,
that's ridiculous--”
“Just
listen, okay!? Emerald... she said Trace was a criminal! She said she
was going to bring her justice! If we let things stay like this, it's
gonna get ugly!”
“Calm
down, Blue. You don't need to shout.”
“But--”
“Look,
I'll help you. What are we going to do about it?”
Blue
turns away from me, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I don't
know yet. I don't know what to do.”
I
give Blue a pat on his shoulder. “Look, I know we can figure
something out in time. Just relax. It'll come to you.”
“Well...
okay. For now.” With that conversation over, I look up at the sky
again.
...
As time passes, snow continues to fall, and it's starting to cover the ground...
...
As time passes, snow continues to fall, and it's starting to cover the ground...
“...there's
not gonna be any bus coming, Cleo...”
“Trace
was right about it getting bad out here.” I sigh... then suddenly,
a light bulb goes off in my head. “Hey, Blue!”
He responds to my smile and sudden shout with incredulity.
He responds to my smile and sudden shout with incredulity.
“Grab
on,” I say, reaching my hands out to grab him. “We're gonna fly
to Primo's place.”
“Wh—are
you sure?”
“Not
really. This would be the first time I flew someone else in a while.”
“Uuuuuuuh...”
“Come
on, Blue. I won't drop you.” I take hold of Blue, then link to
Flèche.
“Ventus.”
In a few seconds, I feel wind, and we're floating above the ground.
“Okay, Flèche. Fly!” We go higher... then start to flying
forward.
I
look down and see Dreamers City below. While it's beautiful as
always, it seems to be getting covered in snow rather quickly. Feels
unnatural.
Still,
traveling this way is great. Not having to follow the laws of the
road, not having to stop for passengers... This is much faster than
traveling by bus.
The look on Blue's face is priceless. “Wow. We're really flying! This is amazing!” It makes me smile.
The look on Blue's face is priceless. “Wow. We're really flying! This is amazing!” It makes me smile.
“Okay,
do you know where it is from here?” After having Blue point me in
the proper direction, We fly to Primo's house...
...
“Oh.
You guys made it.” Primo is there to greet us when we arrive. “I
was thinking about holding the interrogation because I didn't think
you'd get here.”
“Are
the roads all really that bad?” Blue asks.
“Yes.
I had to go get Baek myself, and I don't know how Ms. Crux got
here...” I can't help but think this snow isn't normal... winter is
never this bad here.
“Well,
here we are,” I say to Primo, after a moment of silence.
“Let's
go,” Primo says, “it's time to interrogate the Baronet of
Shadowhand.” We all go further into the house.
The
interrogation room, like Strife's lab, is hidden somewhere in the
house that normal people wouldn't be able to access without
permission, hidden by some sort of illusion magic, it seems. As we enter the
room, we see Trace, Baek, and Emerald standing in here, with the
Baronet in the center, laying on a table, with cuffs on his hands and
feet to keep him from getting away. I take a close look at his face for the first time... wait. He
looks familiar.
“What
else am I supposed to do!? This is the law's fault! Ever since CORE
was brought down, I've had nowhere to go!”
Are you kidding me... It's that guy from all that time ago! What's he doing with Shadowhand...?
Are you kidding me... It's that guy from all that time ago! What's he doing with Shadowhand...?
“You!”
He
looks at me when I say this. “Who are you?”
“You
were arrested about three years ago, right? After you were defeated
by two other Magic Knights?”
The
Baronet expresses confusion. “Yeah... Wait, don't tell me...”
“Yes,
it's me. I'm one of the Magic Knights that fought you that day.”
Suddenly, an expression of fear covers his face.
“W—Wait!
Don't you understand!? I've given up! I don't want to topple the
'Kingdom of Fear' anymore! I just--”
“Just
answer our questions and we won't hurt you.” Trace steps in and
says this. “So... you used to be part of CORE, right? Does
Shadowhand have anything to do with CORE? Are the other members also
people who had something to do with them?”
“I...
I'm not going to sell them out! Just let me go free!”
Trace
facepalms. “Do you realize the situation you're in?” She pulls
out a knife... I do hope she's doesn't intend to torture this guy.
“Look, we're not gonna kill you. We just want you to cooperate.”
“So
that's how it is... things really haven't changed. King was right! Do
whatever you want! I don't care anymore! You probably don't have it
in you to actually kill me, anyway...”
She
raises her arm... “Trace, don't do it!” I shout just before she
stabs him. Emerald pushes Trace out of the way.
“Leave
it to me.” She looks down on the criminal. In more ways then one,
it seems... “We can make you talk without killing you.” She takes
hold of his right hand... “Tell us what we want to know. You can
make this easy for all of this...”
He
whispers, “I refuse.” Then...
I
hear something. I hear the painful sound of ripping flesh, the cruel
noise of small bones and joints cracking and popping...
“AAAAAAAH!”
My eyes go wide. I stare at Emerald's hand... Emerald is holding a
bloody index finger, leaving a red stump where the man's finger once
was...
No one says anything. The only sound in this room is the screams from the
person on the table, which soon turned into uncontrollable sobbing...
“I will take your thumb next.”
He
just groans in pain.
“Who's
running Shadowhand? Where is your base of operations? I'm starting to
lose my patience!”
Again,
he groans.
Emerald
reaches out again... only to be stopped by Primo.
“That's
enough,” he says, grabbing Emerald's arm. “We can't interrogate
him like this.”
“Tch.”
Emerald pulls away.
After
a moment of silence, Primo speaks up. “Alright, let's get out. The
other Armis are going to treat him. We'll turn him in to the police
tomorrow.” As the other Armis come in, Primo guides us back to the
living room.
So, we've gotten nothing out of the man we took captive.
What a waste of time...
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