80A/N: First off, this story is finished so updates are going to be weekly, unless the chapter is short. Then, I'll update two times in the weekend. Also, to understand this chapter (without reading the first story), you just need to know that the first story ended with one of the detectives (Yuriy) killing the murderer, a non-human creature (stvorenjie) working for him. Also, as a warning, the first story explained that four of the detectives (S., Kevin, Rowan, and Cirasu) are dead but are somehow able to travel in the living realm of the Sphere. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask in the review or PM me and I will answer them as best as I can. Enjoy this chapter!
Witness One: Ultimatum and ulterior
The door slowly creaked open. Cirasu walked into the room glancing around at her surroundings. The room was dimly lit, but she could clearly distinguish everything in it. It was ornately flourished with long tapestries and grand, glowing paintings. Each decoration told a story whether it was a heart-wrenching romance between two star-crossed lovers or a grueling duel for justice. The room was lit by dim candles, which flickered in the slight breeze from the opened doors. At the center of the room, there was a long table lined with chairs, all occupied by various grim men and women. The occupants had turned their heads towards Cirasu with serious, frowning looks. But it didn't matter to her, and she entered without any change in air or gait.
"Ah, Cirasu Millieu, you have arrived," a man at the far end of the table said gravely. The man had a lanky body and sickly face accompanied with red eyes and thin lips always pulled into a sneer.
"Yes, it appears I have," Cirasu agreed in her soft, even voice.
"You understand why you are here?" the man questioned.
"I presume I am not here to drink tea and chatter about worthless subjects, Sorilus Lors," she replied as she approached the table.
"Cirasu," a black-haired woman interjected, "this is serious. Now, I know you know why you are here."
"Well, Yvonne," Cirasu stated, "you want me to give a status report."
Yvonne closed her eyes. "Yes," she affirmed.
"Well, there's not much to say," Cirasu said. "We've just begun – only one case solved."
"That's the point," Sorilus said. "Him is probably out there preparing to act on him's plan, and murders are occurring everywhere. And you've only solved one case!"
"We are doing the best we can," Cirasu said staring at Sorilus. "You cannot hurry good work."
"Well, your work isn't very good!" Sorilus furiously slammed his fist on the table. The sound reverberated ominously throughout the silent room.
"That is true," another man piped in. This man was a clear contrast to Sorilis in that he had a stately appearance and strong build. "I must assert that the Group didn't handle the Chir case well. I didn't see any good work at all."
"See?" Sorilis exclaimed. "Even the Great Steinn Ungaretti, who never agrees with me, has to admit I'm right this time. The Group made a mess of things! We could have brought that stvorenjie to interrogation about him's whereabouts, but look at what happened. One of your detectives went and shot it! Killed! Nothing accomplished, and only one case finished!"
Cirasu tapped her fingers on the table, slightly tilting her head to the side, and answered the man's outburst with an indifferent smile.
"Unexpected events occur every day," she explained, "and one must learn to adapt if one wants to survive." She proceeded around the table gazing at every member with clear, uncompromising eyes. "So, one of the detectives killed Eray Kelki in a fit of terror. But he did save an innocent life, which might have been lost. So, we now don't have anyone to interrogate. Well, if you allow me to return to the Group, we will promptly find another case to investigate and another stvorenjie to question. This is life, my dear friends. We must learn to adapt." At that exact moment, Cirasu halted in front of Sorilus and looked at him steadily. "Instead of fuming like an overgrown child."
"Do you mean to challenge me, Millieu?" Sorilus asked spitefully.
"Never," Cirasu tersely replied quickly returning to her previous spot.
An unnatural silence filled the room as Sorilus continued to glare at Cirasu and the other members of the Parliament shifted in their seats uncomfortably. After a few minutes, a cough was heard. All heads turned towards its source. A middle-aged man wearing round glasses, which made him appear owl-like, stood up and turned to face the whole congregation. He smiled and proceeded to talk.
"My dear friends," he said choosing his words carefully, "Cirasu is indeed right. Events have occurred and actions have been taken that are beyond our control, and we must learn to accept what fate has given us with grace and acceptance. Bickering amongst ourselves will not get us anywhere. As you have said, Sorilus, the times are uncertain, and any moment now, him might launch him's plan. We have to act quickly and with unity, or we will never be able to survive what him has in store for us."
"Yes, Worsthinh is right," Yvonne quickly agreed, grateful that the uncomfortable spell had been broken. "We must act swiftly and carefully. You need not be worried, Cirasu, for the Group will continue to solve murder cases as they have always done. However, to ensure that everything follows protocol, we will of course continue to watch over the Group. In fact, we have sent investigators to study what happened in the Chir case. However, I hope you understand that we do not mean to anger you, Cirasu."
"I do understand," Cirasu responded.
Yvonne nodded her head with the affirmation, but the other members of the Parliament still looked hesitant. They simply didn't understand the young woman standing before them as Yvonne did.
Cirasu regarded the congregation before her. She sensed something in the atmosphere that she didn't like – a feeling of unwillingness and uncertainty. There was more to the meeting than just a report of the Group's progress. The report was a precursor to another request – no, a demand – that the Parliament was about to make. And Cirasu knew she wasn't going to like it.
"Is there anything else?" Cirasu asked in a voice so soft that it sounded like a whisper.
The Parliament muttered quietly, and its members looked towards each other for guidance. Everybody appeared unsure, and even the defiant Sorilus looked at a loss of words. Finally, Worsthinh cleared his throat and turned to face Cirasu.
"We have a matter to discuss with you; it is one that concerns you personally," Worsthinh stated gravely. "The Parliament has decided to restart the Order, the organization you led before you died. We feel it is the best way to keep a close eye on the fragments and to work efficiently."
"There's a 'but' here, isn't there." Cirasu didn't ask the question; she stated the fact.
"Yes." Yvonne closed her eyes. "We feel that Parliament should make the executive decisions for the Order, while you remain only as the nominal head."
"So, you want to make me a pawn," Cirasu reasoned, "in your little games."
"You have no right to be offended, Cirasu Millieu," Sorilus said harshly, "might I remind you that you used to play such little games when you were still alive."
"Except I created those little games," Cirasu retorted.
Sorilus scoffed. "And that makes a difference, how?"
"I had a right to play little games with the Order, since it was Karian's and mine, but the Order wasn't created by the Parliament. If you want to direct the fragments behind the scenes, create your own inter-fragmentary organization."
"Cirasu, please do not be difficult," Yvonne pleaded.
"The people who worked for the Order pledged their allegiance to Karian and me – not the Parliament," Cirasu continued ignoring Yvonne's plea. "And they only will serve me or Karian – not the Parliament."
Suddenly, noise erupted into the room. Shouts and yells rang through the air as Parliament members responded to Cirasu's words. While some tried to reason with the young woman, many chose to insult her and force her to see the error of her ways. To them, Cirasu undermined the Parliament's power even though they were the ones who gave her life again. However, those members were met by an equally stubborn set of voices supporting Cirasu and her dissent against the Parliament's request. Many members felt that the Parliament was going too far in their battle against him. They feared the potential abuse of power.
The arguments continued to fly across the room, and the Parliament was slowly losing its unity. Worsthinh and Yvonne tried in vain to bring back order, but nothing could work. Everybody else was too passionate about their cause, whether it was in support of the Parliament or Cirasu. Sorilus continued to challenge Cirasu, but while there was chaos everywhere else, it was different with Cirasu. No matter what was thrown at her, Cirasu regarded everything calmly and carefully. When cruel words were thrown at her, she only blinked and replied to the comments coolly with quick intelligence.
At the moment, when one angry member of the Parliament questioned her actions, Cirasu did just that. She explained herself prudently.
"I will not deceive my subordinates when they pledge loyalty to me," she said. "It is a matter of morals and principles."
"This coming from the 'Immoral One'!" exclaimed Sorilus.
And suddenly, with that one statement, the whole situation changed. A faint breeze rushed into the room burning out all the candles. The room became pitch black, and the inhabitants were left stunned to silence with the turn of events.
Cirasu's silver eyes glowed in the darkness, and an unsettling presence emanated from her. It wasn't the presence of anger, but for some reason, a cold chill ran down the spines of all who gazed upon her. It was clear that Cirasu was not amused, but her exact emotion was hard to pinpoint. And that only made the situation worse.
"I might not follow the principles that the common man believes in," Cirasu stated coldly, "but that doesn't mean I don't draw a fine line between immorality and morality. And if I am to work with you, I hope that you learn to respect me and my wishes and to also trust me and my beliefs."
Cirasu slowly scanned her eyes across the room focusing on every single member of the Parliament. She waited for a response, but the members chose to remain silent.
"Are we done then?" Cirasu asked.
Sorilius opened his mouth to speak, but Yvonne cut him off.
"If you feel so passionately about the matter, then we will allow you to run the Order as the true head with Karian as our representative," Yvonne stated on behalf of the Parliament. Yvonne glanced uneasily across the room to gauge the reaction. Though there were mutters of discord, many shook their head in agreement. She turned back to Cirasu. "You may leave now, Cirasu. This meeting is over."
"Thank you." Cirasu immediately turned around and began to walk away.
"Cirasu," Yvonne called out.
Cirasu looked back. "Yes?"
"Can you please relight the candles?"
Cirasu turned her head away and proceeded to walk towards the door without any indication of her consent to the request. However, just before she stepped out of the room, there was a burst of light in the room. Stronger, brighter flames than before glowed on the wicks of the candles. The door slammed shut, and Cirasu was alone.
She quickly walked down the narrow hallway, while several thoughts ran through her mind. For one, she was immensely disturbed by the events. She was disappointed with herself for not realizing what eventually would have happened. She used to work in a position of power similar to the Parliament, and she knew how the psychology of such organizations worked. It was obvious that they would make a request that would widen their range of power, but nevertheless, Cirasu had not thought about it until she was in the room. However, the thought that disturbed her the most was the future.
Cirasu was puzzled at her next course of action. The Parliament was right in some respects. Him was becoming difficult. Nobody could predict his actions or understand what he was doing and why. Cirasu was at an even greater disadvantage because she had absolutely no knowledge about him. In fact, she had never even met him. Or at least, if she had met him, then she wouldn't have known it. As much as she hated to admit it, it was clear that Cirasu was lost. It felt wrong to her. She had always enjoyed the benefit of knowing everything, but that was when she was alive and her life was centered on stopping one man, one man who she spent years meticulously studying and researching. Now, she was on a new playing field, one she never explored before. If she wanted to meet the Parliament eye to eye or help the Group, she had to learn just exactly who him really was.
Cirasu continued to think about her options, but she lost her train of thoughts as she heard a familiar voice.
"Sister!"
The voice was undeniable, but she couldn't help but wonder how the man was able to get out of the room so fast.
Cirasu turned to confront the man. "Orion Worsthinh, is there anything you need?"
Worsthinh only gave her a wider smile. "No need to be so formal! I just wanted to greet my wonderful older sister."
"You know what you look like right now?" she asked with some amusement at Worsthinh's demeanor. "A middle-aged looking man like you whining? And let's not mention how your actual age eclipses your appearance."
Worsthinh feigned pain as Cirasu finished her words. "You're too cruel dear sister!"
"I simply took you in as an orphan. I do not see how that makes me your sister."
"Why, you took me in and raised me, so that makes you practically family. And, under normal circumstances, I would call you 'mother' but somehow it seems dreadfully wrong when you look so young compared to me. Always did…"
Cirasu sighed accepting the fact that some things would never change, especially when those things were associated with Worsthinh.
"But, tell me, how is your dear nephew?" Worsthinh asked.
"I don't recall having a nephew." Cirasu said.
"Yes, you do. You know! He's 6'2", has blonde hair, has eyes grey as stone, and always has a weary frown on his face. He's my son!"
"Well, Inspector Worsthinh is doing quite fine," Cirasu answered trying her best to emphasize her distant relationship with Dmitriv Worsthinh. "He is impatient as ever though. Can't seem to help it."
Orion Worsthinh didn't seem convinced, and he began to throw questions out similar to every concerned parent. "Is he healthy? Does he have enough to eat? Does he still stay locked in his room all the time?"
"Yes, yes, and yes. Is that all, because I have other things to attend to?"
Cirasu was about to turn around and leave, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She shifted her eyes to gaze at Worsthinh, who suddenly looked deathly pale and serious.
"Cirasu," Worsthinh said, "I hope you understand that the Parliament – "
"I know," Cirasu quickly said interrupting him. She really didn't need a lecture from him. "I do not need you to tell me what is obvious. The Parliament is only doing what they feel is best, but they are like all living creatures – ruled by emotions that sometimes cloud their vision of best."
Worsthinh raised his eyebrow as if to say that he didn't believe that she truly accepted everything. "Well, what will you do now?"
"I'll contact Rhianne to restart the Order and assemble the members. That is if they want to return. I'll tell Karian once the Order has started again, and she can pass the message to you."
"And?" Worsthinh asked prompting her to explain more.
Cirasu couldn't help but give a small smile. The man never did change. He always knew when she was hiding something and when to press her for more information.
"Him is quite interesting," Cirasu simply said.
"So?" Worsthinh looked incredibly uncomfortable with the sudden change in topic. However, he stared at Cirasu directly in the face, something few ever dared to do.
She smiled and raised an eyebrow as she looked at him. "In my experience, to understand somebody who is interesting, one must talk to someone who is similarly interesting."
"Well, you certainly are interesting enough." Worsthinh's eyes glinted in a reminiscent, amused manner. However, Cirasu wasn't at all in the mood.
"Yes, but in a different way." She turned away from Worsthinh. "To truly comprehend how to play him's game, I must consult an expert on insanity. To be more specific, I must talk to Yuriy's father."
Cirasu heard Worsthinh take a sharp intake of breath. She grinned even wider.
"I think it's time to pay Radulf Juris a visit."