My mind scrambled for answers, anything I could tell this Thorns officer to avoid the pain that I knew was coming. I truly didn't know anything about Vanir, I had found it in a pile of trash while dumpster diving. It looked precious, so I took it, only later had I learned it was a Nexi.
I told Wellan everything I knew, it was all I could do. My eyes were sealed shut as I prepared to scream. I knew this was going to hurt.
I was confused when the pain never came.
The grin had disappeared from Wellan's face. "I told you I don't like hurting people. You answered truthfully, so you didn't suffer."
Only then did I understand the true horror of the Nexi that had been used on me. Wellan had no control over it, and there was no lying before it. If the information existed somewhere then it would be pulled out of you with no regard for the state you would be left in. Absolute truth, the greatest lie-detector.
I took several minutes to calm down before asking:
"What now?"
Wellan shrugged, "Even if you don't know anything about this card, you're still a possible anomaly. For now we'll put you with the others and continue as planned."
"The others?" I couldn't help but ask.
A faint smile appeared on Wellan's face. "You thought you were the only anomaly we captured recently? Usually we'd have you killed or imprisoned but with the recent Nexi theft we've suffered, I managed to convince the guys in charge to use you instead. This is where the favor I asked you for earlier comes in. Out of the seven anomalies we've captured, you're the weakest and therefore easiest to control , so I had the idea of putting you in charge.
"Of course, seeing as your case is a never before seen case, if you refuse I'll be forced to kill you immediately and collect that card of yours."
I wanted to slap the pleased expression off his face, but the golden yellow card in his hand stopped me. On it was a kneeling man with his hands tied behind his back, two sharp blades hanging at his throat.
Even I could grasp what the word "Exececutio" written on the back meant, the three lines above the word only threw the thought of slapping Wellan deeper into an abyss of forgotten thoughts.
"Can I meet these other 'anomalies'?" I didn't immediately accept the offer, this was my little act of defiance.
Before I could even finish my question, my vision began to swirl, it was as if I had just gotten off an intense roller coaster. The scene in front of me changed and I now found myself in what looked like a common room. There were two couches placed on opposite sides of a wooden coffee table, two figures sat on the one to right and three to the left.
"Didn't you say Nexi don't work in here?" I asked, clutching my stomach so as not to throw up my breakfast.
"Do you still not understand that the rules don't apply to me?" He answered my question. I was unsure if he had done it as an answer to my question or in a show of dominance but Wellan's eyes turned to the window. I instantly felt that the sun had grown brighter, even the previously cool room had become almost boiling.
Everything returned to normal the next instant.
After explaining our situation, Wellan disappeared, leaving me alone with the five strangers I was supposed to lead.
"Weren't there supposed to be six of you?" I asked.
"There are." A voice said behind me. I turned but there was no one. "Down here!" The voice said.
I looked down but the only thing I could see was my shadow.
Wait…That wasn't my shadow.
The black mass twisted and expanded, shifting from an amorphous glob into a defined shape. In seconds, the dark form solidified into a woman—a slender figure draped in an air of quiet authority.
Her wavy black hair curled just above her shoulders, framing a face that was both delicate and severe. Large, round glasses rested on the bridge of her nose, their lenses catching the dim light and obscuring her calculating, pale gray eyes. A dusting of freckles softened her otherwise sharp expression, but there was no mistaking the way she looked at me—like she was assessing my every move.
She straightened the high collar of her Victorian-style black coat, the crisp white cravat at her throat a stark contrast against the darkness of her attire. The ruffled fabric barely moved, as if the very air around her was hesitant to disturb her presence.
My brain crashed seeing her smile, it was in sharp contrast to her appearance. Her smile was warm but cold, welcoming yet off-putting. She was a living contradiction. I was trying to process an optical illusion—like seeing two things at once that shouldn't exist together.
"Elena Grace, it's a pleasure." She said, tilting her head in an innocent gesture.
"D-Denzel Nightingale," I barely managed, trying hard to remove myself from my state of confusion. Her simple appearance seemed to hurt my brain.
"Try not to look at me too much," Elena suggested, reading my thoughts.
I turned my eyes from her, making her figure only visible in my peripheral vision.
"Better? I'm really sorry about that," She smiled, concern evident in her voice.
I reassured her that it was alright and turned to the other five.
I hesitated for a second. Who was I to tell these people what to do? What did I have to lead them? Right, I was the Roach of the Fever Dream. I was the man who, no matter what, refused to die. If I couldn't escape, then I might as well try. How hard could it be?
"As you all know, I am Denzel Nightingale, and from this day forth, I will be your captain, I guess." My voice was lacking in the confidence a captain's should have.
Taking a breath I continued, imbuing as much confidence as I could muster into my words.
"For the coming months we will be in charge of the investigation related to the recent Nexi theft the Thorns of Justice have experienced. We will be in charge of the areas of interest the Thorns are either too scared or too busy to investigate. They've placed great importance on this matter but not enough to divert all their resources to it.
"We are absolutely disposable and can be replaced at any moment. That's one of the reasons I'm going to work so hard as your captain to make sure not only this mission succeeds but everyone comes back alive.
"I've been disposable my whole life and frankly it's starting to piss me the f**k off.
"I'm hoping that I can be important to more than one person. This, even though I was forced into it, I hope can be my chance to truly live."
I took a deep breath and cast my gaze on each of my teammates. Some looked at me with respect, others with indifference, others with ridicule. I didn't care, I had said what I needed to say.
…
It took all the willpower in my body to hold back the grin that threatened to show itself on my face. I couldn't stop now, I had to endure just a little longer before I could laugh.
I internally scoffed at the mission they had given to me. Me, a captain!? Even the thought of it made me want to burst into laughter. But I couldn't, I had already convinced Wellan and those six of my reluctant participation.
No, Wellan isn't convinced. I don't believe he would be in his position if he could be so easily fooled. A few of my "teammates" also seem quite experienced so I can't expect to have fooled them yet…
My eyes briefly darted to the officer behind me before looking forward again.
We passed the transparent research room from earlier and took a right at the end of the hall.
Going up the stairs led us to the second floor, another hall with doors lining both sides, at its end the hall opened up and led to seven different doors. I read my name on the door in the middle.
Elena, Moral, Baldwin… The names of my teammates flashed through my eyes as I scanned each door.
"I can take it from here," I said to my assigned guard. He nodded and took a step back. Seeing that he wouldn't go any further, I headed for my "room".
Calling it a room would've been an exaggeration, what I opened the door to was more akin to a comfortable prison cell. A bed, four bluish grey walls, a wooden drawer, and a roof.
I couldn't help comparing it to my previous home. Living with Gelda, we often sleep on the floor. Sadness couldn't help but pull at my heart thinking about the orphan, I had left her alone for who knows how long!
No better time than the present… I thought as a misty black card appeared in my hand. My eyes quickly darted to the room's corners before relaxing when I saw no cameras. My lips parted to chant the required incantation before closing just as quickly.
Something was off… There was no way the Thorns placed so much trust in me as to remove all supervision. I was still an anomaly.
Vanir vanished as I carefully scanned the shadows. There were two Nexi I had seen work in this Anti-Nexi environment, and one of them could easily be ruled out. I immediately eliminated Wellan from my list of suspects as his Nexi seemed to be in the domain of light or fire. That left only one possible supervisor.
"Elena Grace…" I muttered, identifying the shadow that looked off.
"Wow! That's the first one someone's seen through that!" My expression was stiff watching her form.
I could sense the malice swirling in her ghost-grey eyes, but it was pacified by her smile that seemed to shine like the sun. The contrast of malice and benevolence, light and dark, made my skull throb. This was Elena Grace, this was the Walking Contradiction.
Only after almost a minute of struggle did I manage my first words, "W-what are you doing here?"
My voice came out shakier than I would've liked it to, in the presence of Elena Grace; all confidence seemed to drain out of my body. Before her unyielding eyes I held no secrets.
She laughed at my question, the sound a mix between the gentle chime of bells and the horse caw of crows. Her laugh carried a friendly tone of ridicule, as if I had said something absolutely ridiculous.
Her smile widened naturally as she said, "Come on, Denzel, you're more than smart enough to figure that out yourself. Isn't it obvious? I'm here to…"
She gestured for me to finish the sentence.
"Kill me?" I tried, assuming that I had been caught. Wellan had said that if I refused his offer, I would be killed.
That thought made it even more surprising when her face contorted in shock. Even her usually expressionless eyes arched upwards slightly, just enough that if you weren't paying attention you'd miss it.
"Heavens no!" She let out, concern and a bit of offense written in her voice. "Why would I do such a thing?!"
I shook my head, "Sorry, I just have a habit of assuming the worst. What are you here for then?" I asked, still not daring to look at her directly.
I could only see her figure through the corner of my eye.
Elena flashed another mind-breaking smile as shadows condensed in her hands, forming a small decorated box. She reached into it at pulled out two objects: a handmade card and a small bottlecap pin.
The card was made of white printer paper, on it was a crude drawing of Elena, Wellan, our teammates, and I holding hands, a big WELCOME had been written in several colors at the top of the page. The pin was also made by Elena and had the likeness of the Thorns of Justice emblem.
She handed the gifts to me and waited for my response, the smile still hadn't faded from her lips. After examining the gifts for cameras, I looked at her.
"Why?" That was the one question that bugged me more than the rest.
She briefly lifted her head as if in thought before replying, "I've been a part of the Thorns of Justice since before I can remember; these people are like family to me. You're a member now, which means you're also part of my family. "
Simple, so simple that it was paralysing. I couldn't even muster enough focus to think, my brain was like an overloaded computer.
Her reasoning was so innocent, bordering childish, that my battle-hardened heart couldn't imagine that she was telling the truth.
I was tempted to believe her unchanging, malice-filled eyes, but I had quickly learned over the course of our conversation that they were simply an aspect of her person, an aspect she either couldn't change or was unaware of.
"O-ok, thanks."
She beamed with a joy that didn't seem right on her face before falling into the shadows. No shadows looked odd, indicating that she had left the room.
I was left alone and confused. For a long moment I stood paralysed, unable to form thoughts or take any action. This was partly due to Elena Grace's nature that attacked one's psyche by stacking two impossibilities on the same face but most of my paralysis was due to the feeling tugging at my heart.
I shook my head, denying my feelings.
No, I have to leave this place…