ACT III – CORE-COLLAPSING INFERNO

 

Part V: Knowledge is Terror

 

For the first time since starting to watch the recording did the interrogators’ reaction mirror that of Reimei herself. But in truth, the scarlet-haired beauty had been shocked from the very start, having been bombarded with so many surprising facts that she could no longer decide which part of the interrogation had affected her the most. Whether it was the revelation of the tortures Zoran, Obur and Aguaro had resorted to in order to extract the needed information, the truth about Rafael and Jill’s relationship and past or Mara’s involvement in all of that.

Returning her attention to the video as quickly as possible after overcoming this latest shock, she now saw Zoran was the one who managed to come to his senses the fastest out of the veteran trio and ask Miss Kilzarad another question.

(Zoran) ‘To bring down the ordinari in charge … in charge of what exactly? Deckstoru? Barilia?’

(Mara) ‘Deckstoru will be the starting point, but she plans to eventually lead a movement to engulf the whole country. Not her, anyway, but the Nightsongs and any other allies they might have.’

(Aguaro) ‘So she plans to break them out of prison?’

(Mara) ‘That’s what the Sunbird forces are for. Jill didn’t like the Nightsongs before, but seeing as how they openly preached about standing up to the ordinari during their trial and the tightening of the restrictions for deviants after what happened at Nebula, she’s had a change of heart. Now she sees them as the symbols of the revolution she dreamt of when she was a child in Quraz and believes it’s time to take up arms against the ordinari here before things get as bad as they were in her home.’

(Obur) ‘And she means to have the Nightsongs lead that revolution? What about the deviants who won’t go for something like this? Jill have any plans for them?’

(Mara) ‘She didn’t choose the Sunbird students and staff just because you’re strong. It was also because you and your families are among the strongest supporters of the friendship between ordinari and deviants in this city. By using all of you, she’ll have the biggest obstacles in the way of the revolution take the fall for her crimes and while the police are busy dealing with you after the mind control is removed, Jill and her allies will make their move. She believes that when you annoying shits are no longer around, the rest of the deviants in Deckstoru will be easy to sway to the Nightsongs’ cause.’

This time none of the interrogators seemed surprised, their expressions being of people who had almost been waiting to hear exactly what Mara had told them.

(Aguaro) ‘That’s a great plan. One thing I can’t wrap my mind around, though. Just how in love with Rafael are you, Mara, to be willing to take part in all this as the mind controller? And how much do you love your sister, Rafael, to do the same?’ – after neither of the two answered, the PE teacher kept questioning them, becoming progressively angrier – ‘Or maybe both of you think Jill’s got a point? You think we need to rise against the ordinari and destroy the peace that cost so many sacrifices none of you brats could possibly know about?’

(Zoran) ‘Leaving Rafael and Jill aside, you were born and raised in Barilia, Mara. If their way of thinking became radicalized because of their childhood, what made you go this far? Was it really just your feelings for Rafael?’

Obur tried to calm Aguaro down now so he wouldn’t start hitting Mara as he had done with Rafael, the Psychology teacher focusing her resentful gaze on Zoran after the PE teacher moved away from her.

(Mara) ‘You haven’t had a class of your own since you became headmaster, Zoran, so you probably don’t remember how strong the bond between a homeroom teacher and their class is. For me and my students that was even more true than usual.

I don’t have the Summerbolts, Blackscales and other friends like you.

Before I even had Rafael, I had Ulura and the other brats. What they did in Nebula might have been wrong, but it was your new class, the Summerbolts and you yourself who put them all in jail. When Jill told me I would get a chance to get some revenge on you and free my students, I finally agreed to help her with the plan.’

(Obur) ‘So what’s with the sudden change of heart now? We didn’t even have to force you to tell us any of this like we did earlier.’

Mara looked at her lover then, Rafael starting to speak before she did.

(Rafael) ‘Let me tell you the truth. I don’t care about Mara’s class much. Most of the students at Sunbird, either. They’re good fun, though, so spending some time with them is not that bad. It’s sure a lot better than what we went through back at Quraz. Though I don’t want it as much as Jill, it’s still important to me that things here don’t become the same as there. Never.’

(Aguaro) ‘You really think Barilia will go that far? We’re nothing like Quraz.’

(Rafael) ‘Things change, don’t they? Quraz has become a bit better now. If that can happen there, what’s to say it won’t become worse here?

I honestly didn’t believe the whole revolution Jill had planned would work, even with the Nightsongs in charge. As troublesome as that family is, though, I think the Summerbolts and those who follow them are a whole lot worse and cause more destruction than anyone else. So I agreed to help my sister to get those guys sent to prison instead and neutralize the bigger threat to the peace you mentioned earlier, Aguaro.’ – he paused, a lump of regret seeming to be stuck in his throat, the Fine Arts teacher continuing only after he was able to swallow it – ‘But after all we’ve already done … making the students fight and hurt each other … I feel like we’re only gonna make things worse. Better leave it to someone else to worry about this whole thing.’

(Obur) ‘And Mara’s with you on this?’

(Rafael) ‘We’ve been talking a lot since you put us here. And we decided to wait until the end of the school year and then leave Deckstoru together. To get away from Jill. Away from Sunbird. Away from the Summerbolts. Just away from all the trouble. Mara knows some people in the capital, so we were planning on moving there to start fresh. Together.’

The interrogators and their prisoners didn't say anything for some time after that, eventually Zoran breaking the silence.

(Zoran) ‘Now we know why you’re doing this. At least according to what you two are saying. So how about you tell us how you’re doing it next?’ – the Earthlings’ homeroom teacher pointed at the door to his side while staying behind Mara’s chair, directing both her and Rafael’s attention to that door – ‘Cane told us his theory before we left him to keep watch outside the room and I’d like to confirm if he’s on the right track.’

Neither of the people being questioned answered, Aguaro getting ready to pummel them again and Obur no longer seeming intent on stopping him. This managed to scare Rafael a bit, starting to talk just before another jab could knock more of his teeth out.

(Rafael) ‘It’s a serum! A serum for spreading particles in deviant bodies!!’

The Literature teacher now pulled back his colleague a little from Rafael, both of them having become intrigued.

(Obur) ‘What kind of particles?’

(Rafael) ‘They carry traces of Mara’s DNA and anyone infected by them can be put under her control. If she relies just on her deva, the number of people she can control at the same time is limited, but if they have these particles in them, she could control a whole city all at once.’

(Zoran) ‘Cane suggested the particles are passed from deviant to deviant via a powerful release of an infected person’s deva. Is that true?’

Rafael fell silent, but the rather annoyed Mara joined the conversation in his stead, the interrogator trio instantly turning their gazes to her.

(Mara) ‘It’s true, yes. First someone gets injected with the serum and then they start spreading particles from it to others by releasing a lot of power. Anything else you want to know about? Or have you had enough of torturing us for one day? I don’t think either I or Rafael can tell you anymore in this state.’

Zoran and Obur looked at each other, meanwhile Aguaro leaning closer to both prisoners as he grabbed them by the head, their heads looking so small in his massive hands, the grip of which kept tightening to the point where he could just squash their skulls. The PE teacher had his back to the camera in this pose, but seeing how strained all his muscles were helped Reimei imagine what his face looked like at the time – the face of a madman ready to inflict as many injuries as necessary to learn what he wanted to know.

(Aguaro) ‘Is that what you think? Too bad, then, because we’re just starting with the questioning. There are ways to keep you awake and functional for as long as we want, so don’t worry about that.’

Zoran leaned in closer to Mara from the side then, Aguaro continuing to squeeze both her and Rafael’s head hard enough to hurt them, but not too much so as to allow them both to speak when asked something.

(Zoran) ‘There’s something else that’s been bugging me. How could you manage to put so many under your control at the same time both at Sunbird Fortress and at the zoo while having only a 15% output? Even if you did it while still at school, you’d only be allowed to use 30% within the grounds. Which still doesn’t seem enough to me to be able to pull off something like that.’

(Mara) ‘Maybe my deva’s just that strong, Lawell. You’ve never been up against it, so you could never know.’

(Obur) ‘Or someone has put special implants in you to allow increased output without detection from any of the deva sensors in the city. Like the ones the Nightsongs had in them during the Nebula Battle.’

(Mara) ‘Now you’re not making any sense at all. The Nightsongs and all their allies are in prison. I wasn’t a part of their plan after the student board decided I wouldn’t participate in the Class Battle, so how could they put implants like that in me?’

(Aguaro) ‘Who said anything about the Nightsongs putting them in you? If someone else knew about their tech and was able to get their hands on it before the police could during the investigation on all of that family and company’s property, they could put it to use.’

(Obur) ‘Plus there’s that particle-spreading serum you’re using. No offense, but none of you three is smart enough to cook up something like that. For this kind of operation … there’s no way only you and Jill could make it all happen.’

(Rafael) ‘What’re you saying?!’

(Zoran) ‘We know someone else has been helping you. If you want us to ease up on the torturing, tell us who they are. Maybe then we’ll leave you alone for the night.’

(Mara) ‘Oh, yeah? And what’ve you got to back that statement up?! You got any proof?!’

(Zoran) ‘Not that I need to prove anything to you, Mara, but as it so happens, I do.’ – he went over to the other corner, coming back with a satchel that looked dark brown when lit by the room’s dim light source, taking out a folder from it and showing some of its contents to the prisoners after dropping the satchel on the ground – ‘I was quite curious about why they’d sent Reimei Scarlettail to Sunbird and put her in my class in particular a month before the end of the school year, so I’ve been doing some digging around for the past couple of days.

Turns out she wasn’t even an official student back at Saraley, but came from an orphanage. And she was transferred here via the student support program you’re a part of, Mara, all this having been done with our regional education manager’s approval.

I can only think of two ways this has happened – either you forged her transfer details or Kar Devibolt knew the truth from the start and helped cover the whole thing up himself. Which is it?’      

Both Mara and Rafael remained silent for some time after hearing that question, eventually Miss Kilzarad giving an answer when her interrogators moved away from her a bit, now that her face was visible again Reimei being able to see it looked more menacingly confident than ever.

(Mara) ‘If you think I would dare sell out Kar Devibolt after only this much torture, Lawell, you’ve got another thing coming. As scary as you three might be, you’re nothing compared to him.’

(Obur) ‘I guess that means you won’t tell us anything more about him?’

(Mara) ‘You bet I won’t tell you.’

(Rafael) ‘Mara, maybe we should …’

(Mara) ‘Don’t! You want to go to hell before your time, Rafael?! Because that’s what’s going to happen if we mess with the Devibolts!! Whatever these bastards plan to do with us, we can take it!! Don’t worry!!!’

(Aguaro) ‘Alright, then. We tried giving them a break and it didn’t work. Zoran, Obur, you know what we’ve got to do next. Right?’

The History and Literature teacher sighed while looking at the other with reluctance written all over their faces.

(Zoran) ‘I guess we don’t have a choice. You two get started. I’ll get the camera and help you out then.’

Zoran went over to the camera to shut it off, behind him being seen how Aguaro dragged Mara along with her chair further away from Rafael while initiating the creation of clones from his body, Obur starting to transform into an inhuman creature clad in pink lightning whose silhouette looked similar to Kar Devibolt’s demon form.

(Obur) ‘We’ll start with Mara. I’ll hold Rafael, so don’t worry about him, Aguaro. Go ahead.’

(Rafael) ‘Wait! What are you …?!’

(Aguaro) ‘It looks like you’re the more eager one to talk, Rafael, so I’ll just give you a bit more of an incentive by hurting your girlfriend! It won’t be too bad if you tell us …’

The video ended then, a deep silence the likes of which Reimei had never experienced having fallen over the room, the weight of all the shock crushing the scarlet-haired beauty down until she lost her balance. Hikaru caught her then and turned to his teachers while continuing to support her.

(Hikaru) ‘Y-you … what did you do them after that?’

(Zoran) ‘We did what we had to do.’

(Obur) ‘For the good of Deckstoru and Barilia.’