ACT III – CORE-COLLAPSING INFERNO
Part I: Introduction to the Other Side
Reimei couldn’t get what Mara had said out of her head.
Not while the ordinari police officers that came to the zoo shortly after Zoran and Cane left with their prisoners questioned everyone present. Not while she took her classmates to the hospital where she ended up meeting another member of the Summerbolt family in the same day – Hikaru’s violent nurse of a mother Saya. Not even while she took a stressful shower due to the amount of water it exposed her to after returning to the Sunbird girls’ dorm completely mentally and physically drained.
Just before Zoran’s departure from the zoo, the scarlet-haired beauty had asked if he could tell her about all that they would learn from Mara as soon as possible because she was very worried about her classmates’ and her own fate, the former headmaster promising to give her answers soon enough. But he had also told her no one else would be allowed access to Mara or Rafael for the time being and it would be in Reimei’s best interest not to go around school grounds looking for the two suspects.
All those words from Mr. Lawell had done had been to further agitate Miss Scarlettail, rousing yet another question for her – what were Zoran’s motivations exactly? While Mara’s methods were highly immoral and criminal even, the scarlet-haired beauty didn’t really know what her end goal was and she couldn’t stop replaying in her mind the conversation she had had with the mind-controlled Annabel next to Sunbird Fortress the previous day.
What if there was some truth to what Miss Kilzarad had said through Annabel then? What if Zoran really had some special plans for Reimei’s class and for the school as a whole and considered the Psychology teacher to be the biggest obstacle in the way of those plans?
Maybe he planned on getting whatever information he could from his prisoner before killing her, that being the real reasoning behind his decision to leave the zoo with her before the police came – so that no one would ever suspect what he had done or what he planned to do next? Considering their history and how Cane had told Zoran of the mind control issue first and had called on him of all people to come to the zoo to ensure Mara’s capture, was he a part of whatever the former headmaster was plotting?
After everything she had been through for her first two days at Sunbird, Reimei simultaneously hoped the third day would be less eventful so she could catch a break and just as eventful as the previous ones so she could dwell less on all the questions in her mind. In retrospect, that day had been a disturbingly perfect combination of both.
*
On the 8th, first up came the stressful part with everyone from the class relentlessly questioning the girls involved in the zoo battle about every possible detail from that event. Many raged about how little they actually knew as of yet (the most prominent among them being Hikaru), others were cautious still about the possibility of further developments (led by Yuki) and a small group was simply too terrified to even be involved in this (their opinion being voiced most actively by Exo).
The questioning was followed by the confusion caused by the absence of not only teachers the youngsters knew were busy with other stuff (Zoran, Mara and Rafael), but of Sunbird’s Languages teacher as well. Cane Garasu at least was present for his Biology class with the Earthlings, not sharing any actual discoveries with them, but promising a certain someone would provide information later the same day.
That someone was the albino man looking not much older than Zoran, with pale blond hair tied in a medium-length pony tail, pink eyes and wearing a thick purple scarf, who was waiting for Reimei, Yuki, Hikaru and two more of their classmates in front of a certain room after classes were over. The albino was Sunbird’s Literature teacher Obur Segune and the room was the one used for rehearsals by the Drama Club he led – the club Reimei was supposed to be a guest member of on the 8th.
Obur had his arms crossed while leaning on the wall until he saw the five approaching him, at which point he let his arms down and smiled as he faced them.
(Obur) ‘There you are! Just in time!’
As excited as the Literature teacher seemed, the Earthlings had nothing but an air of seriousness about them, Hikaru being the first to ask out loud what all of them were thinking.
(Hikaru) ‘In time for you to tell us what you and Lawell-sensei have learned?’
Mr. Segune became as serious as his students now, sighing and looking around for a moment before turning to them again.
(Obur) ‘That’s going to have to wait until after the rehearsal, actually. Cane didn’t tell you? We’re going to need your whole class to come check the intel out and that can only happen when all of you are done with your club activities.’
Reimei didn’t even have time to get angry at the revelations she so much wanted to hear being delayed because Yuki asked another question, which was just as important, then.
(Yuki) ‘How come you’re helping Lawell-sensei with this, by the way? I thought he wanted to have as little people know about the whole plot as possible.’
(Obur) ‘Containing the situation after what happened at the zoo’s been a lot harder, so Zoran decided to just come out and tell me everything. Aguaro, too. We three are best friends and the strongest deviants at Sunbird, you know, so it only makes sense we’d work together on this.’ – noticing the youngsters wanted to say more to him, Obur interrupted them before they had even started, pushing the five students toward the Drama Club rehearsal room with an awkward smile – ‘We’ve got more pressing stuff to do now, though, so let’s not keep the others waiting and get to re …’
Whatever the Literature teacher was about to say upon entering the amphitheatre-like structured room after the Earthlings, he was suddenly rendered speechless due to great surprise. The other hot heads around Reimei and especially Hikaru were just as shocked, while the scarlet-haired beauty herself was more confused than surprised.
Someone else was standing where Miss Scarlettail guessed Obur was usually supposed to be, explaining something with their arms crossed and a slightly noticeable smirk on their face to the other Drama Club members, but pausing when the Earthling group came in. As the man turned to Mr. Segune and his students, Reimei instantly realized a very important fact.
He was much older and his skin was paler, his hair – black, but the shape of both it and his face were almost identical to Hikaru’s and above all else – his eyes were the exact same grass hue of green as those of the mad genius. And even though there was a great difference between the two’s attire with this man’s bright red waistcoat and trousers combined with dark purple shoes and shirt whose sleeves he’d rolled up to the elbows, the close blood relation between him and the young Summerbolt was more than obvious.
(Mr. Devibolt) ‘Ah. I guess all club members are now gathered. Sorry for intruding like this, Obur, but as regional education manager I thought I might stop by Sunbird a few times to see how all the clubs are preparing for the Presentation Day. You don’t mind if I stay for today’s rehearsal, do you?’
The Literature teacher needed a few more moments to compose himself before answering, smiling as politely as he could when he did.
(Obur) ‘By all means, Mr. Devibolt. I only wish you would’ve told us you were coming in advance so we could better prepare for today.’ – Mr. Segune then paused for a moment and looked around before returning his attention to the club’s guest – ‘How did you come in the room, by the way? I’ve been waiting in front of the door for a while and didn’t notice …’
Mr. Devibolt proceeded to point at the window behind him before answering verbally, all the while the satisfied smirk not leaving his face.
(Mr. Devibolt) ‘Through the window. I meant for the visit to be as much of a surprise as possible, so I decided to sneak through there.’
(Obur) ‘You always were one for theatrics, sensei.’
(Mr. Devibolt) ‘Don’t call me that. I haven’t been teaching since you started.’
(Obur) ‘My apologies, Mr. Devibolt. Please, make yourself comfortable. We’ll start the rehearsal in just a moment.’
From there Obur went to check on the other Drama Club members along with the two Earthlings who had come to the rehearsal along with Reimei, Yuki and Hikaru, Deckstoru’s regional education manager going over to the latter trio with his attention focused solely on the mad genius to greatly annoy him.
(Mr. Devibolt) ‘How’ve you been, Hikaru?’
(Hikaru) ‘I was doing quite great until now.’
The man’s attempt to alleviate the tension between him and the young Summerbolt with a chuckle failed miserably, Reimei noticing everyone else in the room was staring at the two of them and looked quite worried. It felt as if the very air could be set ablaze at any moment by the intense emotion exuded by the relatives and it seemed that made the others just as uneasy, not daring to do anything until either member of the pair calmed down.
(Mr. Devibolt) ‘If you’re worried about my comment on everyone’s performance, don’t be. This is just a rehearsal, after all, so I’ll save my official critique for Presentation Day. Just act as if I’m not here. I promise I won’t be a hindrance to your or any of the others’ work in any way.’
Hikaru even clenched his fists now, rather than being relieved, the tension seeming to have built up even further, a trickle of sweat going down from Reimei’s forehead to her cheek, realizing she was shaking a little due to being closest to the young Summerbolt and the old Mr. Devibolt.
(Hikaru) ‘Your very presence is a hindrance, so if you don’t want to bother us, just go ahead and leave. You’ll see the whole play on Presentation Day, anyway.’
(Kar) ‘Well that’s no good, my boy. I go out of my way to come and see my grandson’s extracurricular activity progress and this is how you treat me? Plus, I’m your senior in both educational and familial terms, so you don’t have the authority to turn me away even if you wanted to.’
The mad genius became angrier the more he listened to the regional education manager, the scarlet-haired beauty next to them reaching the height of her shock at the same time with the revelation Mr. Devibolt was actually Hikaru’s grandfather. And considering what his last name was and how differently he behaved and talked from Rose and Saya, he could only be related to the young Summerbolt on his father’s side – a side Reimei knew absolutely nothing about.
(Hikaru) ‘I don’t remember ever saying I recognize your authority as anything in my life, so I think I have all the freedom in the world to turn your away. By force, if necessary.’
Yuki suddenly came up behind the mad genius and the scarlet-haired beauty to pull them away, her piercing cold gaze being focused on the regional educational manager. And though she was much more passive about it, Reimei could tell by her facial expression and the grip on her neck tightening that no one in the room was more willing to unleash unparalleled amounts of violence against Hikaru’s grandfather than Miss Iceflame herself.
(Yuki) ‘If it’s about beating the crap out of Kar Devibolt, you can count me in as well. But that’s not why we’re here. We’ve wasted enough time as it is, so I say we get on with the rehearsal and focus on dealing with him after we’ve secured our victory on Presentation Day.’
