CHAPTER 3 - THE MATERIALIZED PHANTOM
When Lory summoned me to say that I would probably suffer an attack when I was elevated to Clan Master status, I found it a bad joke. Lory and his dramas.
Of course, they want me dead, this I always knew and it was not what surprised me. However, the mere possibility that there was anyone in this world capable of misleading Ruto sounded ridiculous to me and for a moment, I thought Lory had finally gone mad.
Until Ruto himself confirms me. Lory is given to games and exaggerations, but Ruto does not play in the service. Hell, he just does not play. Never.
Whoever it was had stealth skills out of the ordinary. How an Exceptional managed to escape the Council radar is an absolute mystery and left everyone worried. If we do not detect one, how many more are out there with unfamiliar talents? Are they organized? Are they a threat?
Stupid question. Of course they pose a threat. Everything is a threat.
We decided to act with caution, to let them act first. We were confident that it was not a single person; after all, in this world no one has the balls to act alone. This was the only certainty that has been confirmed, because she certainly has no balls.
I watched the Digger intently before me, but nothing in him told me that he was a she. There was something disturbing about his appearance, and I figured it was his head covered.
I'm very good at unraveling people, but for that I need facial expressions and body language. Everything I saw in the supposed brat in front of me was a small, arrogant complexion. A typical trapped animal clinging to the basic instincts of struggle or flight. Maria clinging to him told me that they knew each other, but this did not reassure me: frightened people commit atrocities if they imagine that they will be able to derive some benefit of their own.
At least he let Maria go, which made it much easier for me to work. The decision to kill him before or after making him speak only depended on Lory, since courtesy would not allow me to ignore the will of my host. Morbid etiquette of an insane world.
Another surprise was the invader's refinement. There was an undeniable hatred in what little he said, but who has no hatred nowadays? However, the level of education he revealed might rival that of a Clan Master, created to take on a leadership role in society. When I begin to wonder whether the Digger's outfit is a mere disguise of a killer of some rival, probably a Clan's heir, Lory makes the most bizarre deduction of all in the form of a question.
"It's a bold guess, but... you're Kyoko, are not you?"
Kyoko. Kyoko. Kyoko. The name pulsates in my ears, bringing me unwanted memories of the only case I have not solved in my trajectory as a judge.
I was little more than a rookie at the time, sent to the Fuwa territory to investigate and apply justice against the guilty. Each territory has a judge, but the law dictates that a judge can not act on his own territory, a way of trying to prevent justice from serving conflicts of interest.
Bullshit. What happens most among the Clans is the exchange of favors.
The mere fact of asking the most inexperienced judge for one of the most controversial cases told me that the Fuwa's intention was to cover up some shit. The false smiles they gave me while claiming that it was an honor to them that the heiress Hizuri was investigating the case is still fresh in my memory, as well as the scratches on Sho's face, which they said were caused by a fall.
"My legs are long, sometimes I mess with them. You know how it is..."
He did not even bother to hide his sarcasm. There I already knew that Kyoko was dead. The call was to investigate her disappearance in the middle of the night, which by itself already represents great chances of the person not being alive, but before seeing Sho and the whole circus the Fuwa armed, I still had a spark of hope.
The worst thing about a judge's job is always act after the crime has been committed. I only dealt with scraps of stories, and after mounting the macabre puzzle I could see the whole succession of terrible events. Until Kyoko's Case, I kept the stupid desire to save someone, for a change. After Kyoko's Case, I just hoped that in the next case I could put my hands on the real culprit.
During the investigations, the reports I heard about her from people who knew her intrigued me. They told me that she liked to wander along the Fuwa territory, to seek refuge in any corner where Nature manifested itself; she used to get lost in thought and think aloud. She was diligent with all her chores and never complained. They said there was no better food, and they all seemed genuinely worried and sorry, if not out of affection, for the inconvenience of losing an important part in everyday dynamics. Except, of course, of the Fuwa, the last ones I questioned.
If (by a miracle) I found her alive, I would not leave Fuwa territory without taking her with me. I would pay a hundred times the value they gave her parents if I had to. I was young, silly, emotional at this point.
Kyoko's Case has transformed me in many ways.
It did not take me more than two days to follow the well-mounted trail to the Exiled who lived outside the walls of the Fuwa territory. Straight to the abode of a decrepit man who mechanically narrated as he found her walking along the river, seemingly lost, and raped her before stabbing her. After making sure she was dead, he put her in the boat, paddled away from the shore, and dumped her into the watery grave.
There was still blood on the edge of the river and a huge red spot on the makeshift boat that confirmed a huge loss of blood, but even if there was no trace, I did not need to hear much more to have confirmation that Kyoko was one more victim of the rotten system in which we live. Certainly raped by Sho, she became a nuisance to the Fuwa as she proved one of society's greatest crimes.
Humanity is struggling to survive, and in such a struggle, women are precious resources. Much more than men, in fact. There is no perpetuation of the species without a male and a female, but only a few males are enough for the breed to persist. Females, however, need to be numerous, since they give birth only once every two years. This, under favorable conditions. Currently conceptions are scarce, which makes the "carriers of uterus" even more important.
It was with this concern that two laws were created: one does not touch a young woman until she reaches the age of 16, a rule necessary to give them a minimum of development before eager men take them as procreative; and a woman is not treated brutally, as this could jeopardize the integrity of her precious inner organs.
Certainly Sho failed both, which meant trouble for the Fuwa Clan. If I had found one irrefutable proof of what he had done, I could pluck his heart out with a spoon and no one could stop me, not even the Fuwa, and they knew it. So much so that they solved the issue by sacrificing Kyoko and forcing an Exiled to take the blame. They also made him admit the rape because, unlikely as it was with the marine life we have, it would be embarrassing if the body emerged and someone found out the rape without the scapegoat having assumed responsibility.
They asked the inexperienced judge to lead the case, imagining that I would be happy to solve it quickly and reap the rewards. They have made me part of the sordid plot from which they escaped unharmed, and for this I will never forgive them.
As much as I knew of the farce and the Exile knew that I knew, he asked me to die. He said that if I did not kill him, not only would he end up dead anyway as there would still be severe retaliation against the other Exiles. With me, he had some hope of a quick death.
One more crime for me to put on the Fuwa's account: they made me their killer.
Kyoko's Case torments me to this day. It was the first time I realized that it would not be like a judge that I would bring some justice to this fucked world. No, I needed another plan. Therefore, I started my career to become a Clan Master.
It is a poetic irony that the very day I conquered the position I swore to take when I saw Kyoko's bloody traces six years ago, her ghost finally left my mind to materialize in front of me.
How? What did I miss?
I frantically recall all the details of the two days of investigation, looking for the breach through which I have not looked. Until... Fuck! The river! Every river has two banks! How could I have been so stupid?
No wonder the Exile did not tell me anything. How to ask a Digger to trust a judge?
Of course, back then I was not as paranoid as I am today. If the case had happened yesterday, what would I do? I would not content myself with the absence of a body, even less with a forged confession. I would not accept so easily that she could only be dead, since that is how things are in this miserable world. No, I would go to the other shore, interrogate everyone I met there. I would search for a shack falling apart by Kyoko's battered body, wrapped in improvised bandages, and find her fighting for life even three days after the attack.
This world belongs to the strong. The weak are not even born. That is why humanity is dying.
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"It's a bold guess, but... you're Kyoko, are not you?"
How? How? How?
For six years I am not called by that name. How can anyone remember me? How could he have concluded who I was? What denounced me?
I feel the panic sharpen its claws all over my body. No time to seek answers, I need to take action! I need to take advantage of Yashiro and Ren's appalling expressions and Ruto's absence to get away from here!
One good thing about panic is that it makes me stronger. I do not even need to focus on the small but numerous black creatures around me. The invisible blast tosses my three opponents away and knocks the bedroom door open. I need to take the chance, it's now or never. I have no time to celebrate the astonished expressions of my enemies, imprisoned by an invisible force and powerless in the face of my wild escape.
There are sounds of footsteps and screams everywhere, but noisy people do not concerns me. Silent people, on the other hand, scare the shit out of me.
I've spent a lot of energy today, energy of all kinds, and I can clearly feel that I could not contain Ren's amazing physical strength for long. I do not even need to look back; not, when I know I would just confirm that he is on my trail.
He is fast for his size. Dammit, he is fast to any size. No doubt, agility is another exceptional trait he has. No doubt, he is a predator.
This world tries to kill us all by the second. It is no wonder that the survivors are terrifying perfectly selected killing machines.
Darwin would be satisfied. But why the hell do I even dream up at a time like this? Focus, Kyoko!
He may be able to compensate his size with agility, but size is size. Unless he also has the ability to shrink to half of what he is, there is no way he can follow me into the tunnel into which I am about to dive with the skill of an experienced Digger.
I smile. Bunch of suckers, getting away from you is almost as good as my original goal of taking Maria with me!
One thing at a time: I escape today to come back tomorrow with a better plan. Well, at least with a plan!
Ren shouts something. Something that sounds worryingly like "Ruto, no!" before my body gets soft and everything turns black.
N / A - I do not even know what to say about this chapter. The whole thing is writing by itself, I swear! XD
Some fics have a life of their own, which is scary. And exciting!
Kisses and thanks for coming with me! Sorry for improvised English, it's not my language. I basically go to a translation program after writing in Portuguese, and then I make minor corrections here and there.
Erza, thank you for the tip, I will make the corrections in the previous chapters and I will be attentive from now on.
Ktoll9, I'm glad you're fangirling XD
¡Mutemia, sienta abrazada!
