=:= Stacey =:=
"Hi," Cindy said, looking up at her. "You're Detective Saunders, right? This is your card?" Cindy was holding a business card in her hand. The same card Stacey had given to Jessica Carlisle just over an hour ago.
Stacey's mind was racing. She was still holding the glass of wine she'd just poured a moment ago. It was still cold, it hadn't been spilled. She couldn't understand how she was here. She didn't even know where here was. A moment ago she was in her apartment. If someone had drugged her, kidnapped her... None of this made sense. She wouldn't have woken up on her feet still holding her cold glass of wine.
Cindy motioned towards the sofa, "Have a seat. Maybe have some of that wine you're holding."
Stacey took the girl's advice and had a sip of her wine. At the same time, she tried to surreptitiously check with her other hand, to see if her gun was still on her belt under her jacket. She was surprised to discover it was.
After a deep sip of wine, she slowly walked over to the sofa and sat down, keeping her eyes on the girl.
Cindy was sitting crosslegged on the large chair. She was barefoot, and wore dark leggings and an oversized black tunic-style top. She looked smaller in person than she did in her social media pictures. She was short, skinny. She barely looked sixteen. Even without her weapon, Stacey would have no trouble subduing this kid.
Trying to keep her voice steady, she asked, "Where am I? How did I get here?"
Cindy shrugged, "This is my place. I brought you here, so we could talk. Jessica said you had some questions?"
Stacey frowned at the girl's non-answers. "Where are we, exactly? And how exactly did I get here?"
"There's no meaningful way to tell you where 'exactly' we are," Cindy replied, rolling her eyes. "This place exists outside of normal reality. And I brought you here with magic. If you want the exact mechanism, I read your 'essence' or whatever off the card you left with Jess, used that to find you with a clairvoyance spell, then I waited till you were finished your dinner because I'm not rude. Then I reached out to the mortal realm and pulled you in here with me."
She frowned as she listened to the girl, then slowly shook her head. It sounded like the girl was spouting nonsense, except as far as Stacey could tell she really had been transported someplace else. She couldn't say if she was in some kind of other realm, but she certainly wasn't in her apartment anymore.
Cindy watched her for a few more moments then asked, "You had some questions didn't you? I'm here, so ask away."
She had another sip of wine then put the glass down, setting it on the arm of the sofa for now. She pulled her notepad and pen out of her jacket pocket, and with her eyes on the teen she asked, "Ok. Can you tell me what really happened on November sixteenth, that alleged terrorist attack?"
Cindy sighed, "Short answer is, three guys from the UK were going to kidnap or kill a couple high-school students. Me and Zoe stopped them. We saved the students but they got Zoe. I lost my temper and killed the three guys."
Stacey was jotting this down as the girl talked, but stopped at that point. She looked up at the teen. "You just confessed to murder."
"Yeah I know," Cindy shrugged. "There was a fourth guy on that team who wasn't in on the attack. I tracked him down to a flight back to England. I killed him too, though I don't think they ever found his body. I pushed him out of the plane over the Atlantic."
Stacey stared at the girl. "Why are you admitting this now, to me?"
"You asked."
She was still staring at the teen, frowning. "How did you kill them? What really happened that day?"
The teen's body language was relaxed, calm, casual. There was no hint she was lying, no indication she was worried or nervous. She sat back in the armchair and her expression became a little distant, as if she was thinking back, picturing the event.
"I'd got the two younger girls to safety, and Zoe got the three older girls clear. But the men got Zoe instead. They were trying to escape and I was looking for her. I teleported into the back seat of their SUV looking for Zoe, but she wasn't there. The 'tech' guy was driving, and he pulled out a gun. I shot a small fireball through his back, killing him. Then the SUV crashed and I was thrown clear. The 'wizard' guy survived the crash but he was stuck, he couldn't get his seatbelt off. He called Zoe an 'abomination' and said I'd never see her again. I got angry, and threw another fireball into the car and he probably burned alive."
She continued, "Then I found the killer, he was on the highway in a stolen car. I teleported into the passenger seat. He tried to kill me twice but I stopped him. Then I made another fireball but really, really overcharged it. I let it go and teleported away. It probably vaporized both him and the car." She added, "He killed one of my friends the week before that, and he told me Zoe was dead too. That's why I got so angry with him."
Finally she shrugged and said, "Later that night I found the last guy on the plane, flying back to England. I teleported onto the plane and asked him some questions. When he didn't have the answers I wanted, I teleported him like a couple meters to the right, so he was on the wrong side of the window."
Stacey hadn't been writing any of this down. She was staring at the girl, listening to the story. She remained quiet for a minute or so after Cindy had stopped talking.
Finally she said "There's no such thing as fireballs or teleporting. That's make-believe..."
Her voice trailed off as Cindy raised her right hand. A ball of fire appeared in the air over her hand. It was about the size of a golfball, its surface was orange and red. Stacey could see the flames flickering and rolling. Cindy tossed it into the fireplace and there was a flash as the flames suddenly reached up to the ceiling. A wave of heat passed over Stacey, then the fire was back to its former size again.
Cindy shrugged, "That was a small, weak fireball. As for teleportation, how'd you think you got here?"
Stacey's heart was racing and her hands shaking. She was speechless, her mind having trouble comprehending what just happened.
Eventually she found her voice again. "There were two other people I connected to the four you claim to have killed. William Laughlin and Liam Butler. Did you kill them too?"
Cindy shook her head, "They're not dead. They were both captured. William's body was a fake."
"Then where are they?" Stacey asked, frowning.
"I don't know where Liam is now. He was transformed and 'let go'." Cindy hesitated, then said "I'm not going to tell you where William is. I can say, he's not unhappy. He's doing ok."
Stacey was still frowning, and asked nervously, "What do you mean, Liam was 'transformed'?"
Cindy sighed "I was told, he was transformed into a young girl. A baby, I guess. And left with some nurses in a hospital. He, or she now, is probably with Children's Aid or whatever. In foster care by now I guess, or maybe even adopted."
"Which hospital?" Stacey asked.
The girl frowned, "I think it was the one in Newmarket? I'm not sure though."
Her hands were shaking slightly as Stacey set her notepad aside and picked up the wine glass. She had a deep sip, before asking "Was William 'transformed' too?"
"Yeah," Cindy shrugged. "I didn't do her or Liam, that was someone else and I won't say who. I'm not saying where William is because the person he's become is doing ok and I don't want her involved in anything."
Stacey was silent for a few moments, then finally asked "How or where did you find Zoe? I know you found her, your social media has you both travelling together again this year."
The small blonde sighed, her expression growing dark. "They'd sent her back to their bosses in England. She was held prisoner, tortured and stuff. At the end of November, someone helped me rescue her. Or I helped them. It was a team effort, I guess."
Stacey nodded slightly then drained the last of her wine. She set the empty glass down and took a deep breath.
"Zoe's ears and tail... They're not fake, are they?"
Cindy shook her head and grinned, "Nope. She's a real live catgirl. And lilac purple is her natural hair colour. And fur colour too."
"And you? How old are you, really?" Stacey asked.
"I'm not really sure," Cindy shrugged. "It depends how you count it. I've only been me for three and a half years, but I was twenty-two before that. And my ID says a different age, and I look different from that."
Stacey nodded slowly, then frowned as she tried to process everything she'd just been told.
"So. You used magic to kill four people, and you have accomplices who kidnapped and ah, 'transformed' two others..." She hesitated. "I don't know what comes next. I don't want to believe anything you've said, but I don't have an explanation for how you brought me here, or what you've showed me."
She hesitated again, then asked "Why are you telling me all this? I mean, beyond that I asked."
Cindy replied, "Jess told me you'd figured it out. She used magic on you to find out why you were looking for me, and she said you'd pieced it together or whatever. So I wanted to see what you were going to do about it."
She added, "I know it's not an official investigation. You're doing all this on your own time. If it's just like, out of curiosity? Then that's cool. I can respect that, I'm curious about stuff too."
Stacey gulped "Are you going to kill me? Or uh, 'transform' me?"
"If you threaten me or my friends, then yes." Cindy replied calmly. "If you're planning on making life difficult for us, then I will make life very difficult for you, and I promise you that is a game I will win."
There was a cold edge in the girl's voice, that sent a chill down Stacey's spine. She still didn't want to believe any of this, but she was starting to suspect it might all be true.
She frowned, still staring at the girl as she asked softly "What are you?"
Cindy shook her head, "I have no idea. Before that stuff in November, I was a sorceress. Now I'm more."
"What does that mean?" Stacey asked. "Why did all that happen in November?"
The teen sighed deeply. "It's a really long story. Basically what happened was sort of like a war between a couple Gods. A bunch of mortals got dragged into the mess and some got hurt. I guess it's always like that. Anyways, it ended up with me winning. I beat two Gods and have a 'friendly' truce with a couple others."
Stacey gulped, "Gods? Like, real Gods?"
Cindy shrugged again, "Yeah. Immortal, divine, reality-bending power, Gods. They're real, just like magic is real."
"And you killed two of them?"
"Nah," Cindy shook her head. "I don't know if they can be killed. I guess by definition they wouldn't be immortal if they could die. I beat them though, I have them trapped and confined. And I can tap into their power."
"You can tap into their power?" Stacey asked, staring again. "The power of two Gods?"
Cindy nodded, watching Stacey as she answered "Yep."
Stacey was quiet for a few moments, letting it all sink in as she stared at the teen. It was obvious now why the girl had no hesitation about confessing to murder. It's not like any jail could hold her. No-one could even arrest her.
"You teleport around the world, don't you?" She asked. "That's how you travel back and forth between Canada, Australia, and the UK. I know you don't have a passport."
Cindy nodded again, "Yeah. When Jess contacted me after your visit, I was in Australia. I teleported back to Canada to pick up your business card, then came here."
Stacey was quiet again for a few moments. Finally she asked, "What are you going to do? I mean, you could rule the world, couldn't you?"
"I don't want to rule the world," Cindy replied. "But I am going to change it. I'm going to make it a better place. Friendlier, more inclusive, kinder... It'll start off slow, but it'll happen. It's already beginning."
That sounded equal parts idealistic and terrifying to Stacey. Not that she didn't want the world to be a better place, but it depended a lot on who's definition of 'better', and how they went about achieving it.
Cindy smiled, "Don't worry Detective. It won't be bad. Now, do you have any other questions? Or should I send you back home?"
"You're just going to let me go?" Stacey asked, surprised.
The girl frowned, "Well, yeah. I mean, unless you flat out tell me you're gonna go mess with my friends. Or I guess if you pulled your gun on me or something, then things would get unpleasant."
She nodded "Right. I guess I was expecting some sort of dire warning at least."
Cindy smiled, "Well consider yourself direly warned. I know where you live, I can find you no matter where on Earth you go. I can reach across the globe with magic, and I can bring you here. This place is my domain, my power here is limitless. Leave my friends, my family, and me alone, and you need never hear from me again. Cross us, and your life as you know it will be over."
After a pause Cindy asked, "Was that dire enough for you?"
Stacey gulped and nodded, "Uh, yeah."
"Good," Cindy smiled. She stood up, and said "Here, this is for you." She held out a sheet of paper that seemed to come from nowhere.
Stacey stood up as well and took the page. It was a simple laser-printed sheet. At the top it read "#ChangeTheWorld" and the bulk of it appeared to be instructions for working some kind of spell. At the end was an email address with a UK domain name. And below that, written by hand, was a phone number with an Ontario area code.
"That's my email at the bottom and my phone number, incase you need to get in touch. Texts and emails are better, and I don't always respond right away, but I will get back to you when I can." She added, "I could tell you were curious about the transformation stuff, hence the rest of the info there."
She added, "F.Y.I. the new moon's in a day or two and full moon is like, nine fifty-three in the morning on the twenty-third, so if you decide you want to try it out, now's the time to get started."
"Uh, ok. Thanks." Stacey frowned as she stared at the sheet. When she looked up her heart skipped a beat.
She was standing in the living-room of her apartment again, in front of her sofa. Her empty wine glass was on the coffee table. There was no sign of the teen, nothing to indicate she'd ever left her apartment at all.
The only evidence she had of the entire experience was the piece of paper in her hand.
Stacey got herself a third glass of wine, then sat down on her sofa. As she sipped her wine, she started carefully reading the instructions on the page. Her eyes widened as she realized what it was describing.
It couldn't be real though... Could it?
Cindy's way is really the only way of handling near-absolute power I can get behind. Just give people an option to improve their own selves and be sure that you don't have to give a f*ck about anyone who may try to stop you.
Agreed. Using it to try snd genuinely better the world in thr long term for minorities who are oppressed, while simultaneously not having any interest in ruling.
I love Cindy
tl;dr At this point it looks like she is just having a power trip and enjoying a chuuniyobi fantasy.
I don't like it when protagonist make power plays. It makes them look petty and like bullies, instead of trying to account for her actions her first instinct is to threaten. I mean it is not like she is a bad person, but the fact that she reacts like that is the sign that she SHOULD NOT be trusted with that kind of power. It speaks of arrogance and naivete. How do I put this? I do not trust someone that threatens somebody who is just trying to find answers, uncover a coverup and get justice.
Instead of gathering people figuring out the best ideas, policies and have a serious discussion of how to run the worl and change it, she is going to wing it. I mean seriously people arrogantly think that there's an innoncence to the common folk but those who gain absolute power don't become corrupted, rather it is difficult to be corrupt without power, and power reveals one's inner nature. If this is how she reacts to challenges, believing she has the right to kill willy-nilly or to "make someone's life difficult" all to self-righteously protect those she loves (she probablly feels morally justified) then that kind of self-righteousness speaks of an authoritarian mindset that will threaten and bully when she feels just as justified.
Laws and rights exist for a reason. People would like to think that politicians are just evil mutants and everyone else is mostly okay. This is dumb. One needs to understand why people fall to corruption, why one must first seek to compromise to use soft power, to sway instead or coercing.
Despite the fact the law system gets criticized a lot, one single brutish tyrant with god-like powers is WORSE. No due process, judge jury and executioner all rolled into one. Like Watchmen, one must ask who watches the watchmen? If she came out in public and tried to do things in a more democratic way, instead of just arrogantly deciding what's best, that would be great. But even the advice of her friends alone is not enough.
I mean even fair and just justice systems took hundreds of years to craft, how is she going to replicate that? I truly think that she is quite likely to become a villain, specially if she thinks she is safe as long as she lisen to her friend. Her friends judgements are not enough, she need external output, from a consenting people that have particupated in a process that allows her to balance the interest of other.
I know this is a super late reply, but I do have to disagree on a couple points.
First, that Cindy's immediate response is to threaten Stacey here. Cindy doesn't have any problem with Stacey looking for answers and in fact readily answers everything she asks. The threat only comes after Stacey asks if there is a 'dire warning', and then Cindy threatens Stacey with her power in the specific case that Stacey try to hurt Cindy's family. I understand where you're coming from, those with power ideally have a responsibility to avoid hurting others with that power. But here we're talking about Cindy's personal strength being used to protect those she cares about.
Unfortunately, there is currently no government in this story's (or our own) world that can be trusted to handle personal disputes fairly, especially with a cop involved. If someone said they would hurt my family, I'd make the same threats.
I agree that society needs more than one person to govern it. But I don't think that applies to this scene, or to Cindy in general. Cindy's not trying to govern anyone and specifically does not want to. She wants to change the world for trans people in particular by solving one of our biggest pain points. I would say she's more like a brilliant scientist or inventor, an independent person with strengths that can help the collective.
I think there's a lot more nuance to what you're saying than I'm able to reply to right now without writing an entire essay on personal liberty versus collective responsibility. So I'll leave this here for now and admit that I'm biased because I love Cindy with my whole heart.
@KristenOfTheCoven I totally agree with your reply
I think you're naive if you don't understand people having power trips is how power works. People who seek power are most inclined to abuse it, which is why politicians in all countries are corrupt. None of those people will back down to anything less than a greater power. The world you want to be cannot be as long as this world exists.
Due process? Only for the rich and powerful, not the average citizen. Who watches the politicians? Not the media, the media simply repeats their lies. Who watches the cops? The judges? The people aren't informed and the politicians are only interested in their own power, so noone watches them. Noone controls them.
Cindy is in no position to take her time fixing things properly. Later chapters will show the why/how/etc. She's not willing to do nothing and good for her. The only reason anything ever changes is because someone puts their foot down and says NO MORE and drags the rest of the world behind them. Womens rights, black rights, anti slavery, every single step of social progress in history was paid for by blood sweat and tears.
My only problem with what Cindy's doing is that people acquire immortality with her spell. Including the rich and powerful. People whose power only slips because everyone and everything dies sooner or later. If they could all suddenly be any age then the human species would be doomed. No more progress, no more evolution. Just a world stuck in time with the same group of assholes in power forever.