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Chapter 175: Good News and Better News?
🕑 Added 2023-04-29 23:23:39 +0000 UTCDetective Fincher could be heard breathing heavily while he sat with his feet propped up on his desk sipping on coffee, eating donuts, and watching baseball on the television.
He mumbled and grunted to himself in disappointment as his favorite team, the New York Yankees, continued to underperform.
Suddenly, Bobby came rushing into the room, “Boss! Boss! I have good news, and I have better news!”
Fincher threw a fit as his team gave up a run and the lead, “God damnit!” He picked up his box of donuts and threw it at the television. The box fell to the ground with donuts spilling across the floor.
Fincher then calmly grabbed another box of donuts nearby him and looked to Bobby as he took a bite out of a fresh donut, “Good news and better news? Okay. Go on.”
Bobby walked up to Fincher’s desk with a big smile and slammed down a thick packet of data analysis, “The good news is that the hair I found was loaded with residual ki. I’ve never actually seen anything like it before. It is… well… terrifying really.”
Fincher grimaced with impatience, “So the good news is you’re terrified?” He threw up his hands with frustration, “Get to the point, Bobby!”
Bobby nodded, “Right, boss! Sorry sir.” He flipped to the summary page of his data analysis and pointed to the bottom line, “The strand of hair has a ki signature profile which is identical to that of a BloodStar. Now that in itself doesn’t prove anything because all BloodStar’s will have that signature; however, this strand of hair also has a female karyotype. So it must be Xenia BloodStar!”
Fincher eyed Bobby with an annoyed look, and Bobby back tracked his words, “I mean. I meant to say. Well, we at least know the hair doesn’t belong to Nero.”
Fincher then nodded satisfied that his assistant walked back his previous assertion without proper evidence.
Fincher once again grew annoyed at the pace of their conversation, “I stopped watching my game to listen to your good news and better news. The better news had better be just that. Better!”
Bobby nodded frantically, “Right!” Next, he slammed down another even larger packet of data analysis, “My contact at the Basilica provided me with this. These records are sealed from the public. Apparently there was a massive ki surge recorded last night which emanated from Bella Domina.”
Bobby had a huge smile on his face as he continued, “And this surge matches that of Xenia BloodStar’s identically from previous records of her battle in Houston, Texas… only… this one was much much stronger.”
Fincher had an annoyed frown on his face as he stared at Bobby expectantly. Bobby continued with an eager smile, “St. Michael himself has apparently spoken with Master Heraklinos who confirmed Xenia to be dead, but what they don’t know is that this hair is female, and this hair has BloodStar ki on it!”
Fincher pushed his chair back with anger as he stood and threw his second box of donuts at Bobby as donuts crashed all over Bobby and subsequently fell to the ground, “You shit!”
Fincher picked up the data analysis packets and threw them off his desk, “That’s not better news! That’s worse news! You have given me evidence which points to the most logical explanation of Nero somehow transferring BloodStar ki to a different woman, Sareena Night, just as he received it from Victoria BloodStar.”
Fincher walked around the desk to continue yelling in Bobby’s face, “And the surge is best explained as being Nero himself! And my main suspect, Xenia BloodStar, has been confirmed dead by the most trusted source in the world… Jarek Heraklinos himself. How could this be any worse news?! I now have a mountain of evidence to overcome if I am to prove Xenia is alive, and I still think she is!”
Bobby bent down and picked up a donut as he handed it to Fincher. Fincher side eyed Bobby but ultimately swiped it from his hand and took a bite out of it as he glanced at the television to see the Yankees retake the lead, “It’s good data analysis Bobby. But your conclusions need work. Not all is lost though. All we need is to catch this murderer red handed.”
Bobby looked to Fincher, “How do we do that, boss?”
Fincher nodded to himself and stroked his moustache, “I’m not sure just yet, but I think we need to speak with First General Curtis soon. We can work together with him to make it happen. That’s our best shot.”
Bobby eagerly reached for the phone. Fincher nodded, “Now you’re running on all cylinders, Bobby boy.”
Fincher finished his donut and collapsed back into his chair as he watched the game thinking to himself, “This won’t be easy. This won’t be safe. But… this won’t be for nothing.”
__________________________________________
St. Michael sat in the Holy Empire Basilica treasury vault with a bothered air about him as he sat staring at a large black trunk with weathered leather straps.
He sat in thought recalling the time Xenia and he had discussed this very trunk.
Michael mumbled to himself, “Not even Xenia could open this trunk. But she did say whatever is within is laced with blood and powerful ki.”
Michael continued to stare at it in thought, “This entire basilica was built by my ancestors for the sole purpose of protecting this chest and hiding whatever is inside it.”
He stood up and put his hands on his hips as he began to pace, “So why did it explode with a menacing aura and tremble during the ki surge from Bella Domina the other night? It’s almost as if the contents of this chest were calling to… yearning for… whoever caused that massive ki surge.”
“Could it have really been Nero?” Michael bit his lip, “It must be. Xenia is dead. Jarek says so. Xenia is dead, right?”
He let out a huge sigh, “I won’t alert Jarek to this chest just yet. I’ve bothered him enough as it is. I don’t want him to think I’m losing it. And what could I really tell him about it anyways. An ancient chest… of which no one knows the contents… lit up, possibly coincidentally, during the Bella Domina ki surge… who we both agree was likely Nero.”
He shook his head, “There’s nothing I can do. One thing is for sure though. Xenia sat upon this very chest with no effect previously. There may be an evil running afoul, but the evidence at hand actually suggests whatever evil it is… isn’t Xenia for once.”
He walked out of the treasury vault and sealed the vault door behind him as he continued to think, “Though maybe I should pay Nero a visit sooner rather than later just to keep an eye on any developments.”
As he ascended the staircase to the ground level and then onwards up the grand staircase to the upper levels, he recounted the history of his ancestors, “Angels and demons waged a great war. The angels won, yes. But there was a demonic artifact so powerful and indestructible that the angels elected to seal it away as a last resort. And now on my watch, that item has begun to stir once more. A great devil is in our midst. Let’s hope an equally great angel appears as well.”
Michael arrived at his room and changed into a robe. He then fell into his fluffy comfortable bed and softly said to himself, “How did my father maintain such strength as a ruler? All I do is diplomatic and bureaucratic tasks all day. I grow weaker by the day. Tomorrow, I will force myself to find time to train.”
He rolled over and quickly fell asleep within minutes. As he did, the large black chest deep within the basilica vault began to pulse with a sinister red glow. The glow emitted pulses of ancient ki which were entirely confined by the vault’s structure as if it were designed to perform such a task.
However, although the glowing ancient ki was not incredibly powerful, it was devious. After pulsing with a glow for several minutes, it suddenly emitted a surge sending a wave of ancient ki at the weakest point of the vault door.
A small crack appeared where the wave made contact, and a tiny sliver of ancient demonic ki slipped through the vault’s containment. It went wholly undetected by those in the basilica as it was a subtle, meager amount. Nonetheless, the contents of the chest had made real headway in sending a signal to its rightful owner. A signal that would not go unnoticed.
