The Holloway family exited the hotel elevator and started for the Shives's family suite. Donald glanced at his anxious daughter, whose expression was noticeably downcast. Concerned, he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Jojo, you don't have to come with me and your mom to speak to Shives's children. This is part of my duty as Shives's last overseer."
"I'm coming for the same reason Mom is," Joey replied.
"I came because Tessa and Percy's mother hasn't made it to the States yet, and they could both use a maternal figure's shoulder to put their heads on before she gets here." She paused, studying her daughter's face. "You shouldn't feel obliged to do something like this, Jojo. Especially not when you're probably so traumatized by what you saw."
Joey shook her head. "I... I want to help them too."
Her parents exchanged a look before relenting. Once they reached the door, Donald pressed the bell. After a moment, the door opened, revealing a tired and disheveled teenager. Tessa greeted them with an obviously forced smile, which the Holloways returned as the girl stepped aside to let them enter.
"Nice of you all to visit," she said, a hint of fatigue heard in her voice.
The moment Tessa shut the door, Sarah enveloped her in a warm embrace. The young girl melted into the comforting arms of Sarah, realizing only then how much she wanted to be held by another.
Donald cleared his throat. "So, how are you and your brother holding up, Tessa?"
Tessa gently pulled away from Sarah, straightening her posture. "We're managing. Mo will be here by tomorrow, most likely."
"That's good. The sooner you two are with her the better."
Tessa nodded before finally looking over at Josephine. "Joey, you saw Dad… 'pass', didn't you?"
Joey nodded slowly, her voice barely above a whisper. "Y-yeah..."
"I see. I'm so sorry."
"What are you sorry for? You're the one who's hurting."
"I'm hurting, but everyone who's family to a Hoplite has to accept that they might get killed in the line of duty. Same as being the kid or spouse of a policeman, soldier, or firefighter. It hurts. I've been crying a lot, and I haven't gotten a whole lot of sleep recently, but... part of me has always been ready to get this type of news one day. But you, Joey, you're just an eleven-year-old girl, and you had to see something so brutal with your own eyes. It's got to be haunting you."
Joey lowered her head, remaining silent. The memories of White Leon's rampage through the Acolytes flashed through her mind, the blood and carnage far more disturbing than Shives's death. She could never confess to this, though.
The awkward silence was disturbed by Percival's arrival. The boy didn't look as disheveled as his sister, but he was quite somber-looking, not greeting anyone he saw. He met eyes with Joey for a while but then dropped his gaze.
Sarah turned to Percival, offering a kind smile. "Percy, are you alright? How are you feeling? Your sister said you haven't been eating like you should."
The boy stared vacantly at her, never conjuring up a reply.
"Percy cut it out and say something already," she said in an annoyed tone.
Sarah waved his hand dismissively.
"The boy just lost his father. I'm not going to force him to be cordial. We only came here to check up on you two while your mother is still on the way from the UK anyway."
Tessa nodded. "We appreciate it, Mrs. Holloway. We were actually planning to stay here in America with Dad, but..." She trailed off, her voice catching. "Mum was already reluctant to move to the States as it was. This will probably be the last time we visit the United States for a while. Maybe... ever if it's up to mum."
"I get it. Can't really blame your mother for that, considering what's happened," Donald said. "If something happened to me while I was in ARES Europe, Sarah probably wouldn't want Jojo staying on that side of the ocean either." He paused, considering his next words carefully. "Is your mother already aware of the funeral details?"
Tessa furrowed her brow. "You mean when we're going to hold it?"
"No. Just the cost. When and where your father will be buried is a private matter for your family to discuss. I just want you two and your mother to be aware that ARES will cover all funeral expenses, as well as provide compensation for—"
Percival suddenly interrupted, his voice sharp. "Is that all my father was worth?"
The room fell silent as all eyes turned to the young boy. Percival's face contorted with a mix of anger and grief as he continued.
"Everything he's done for ARES and the general public, and the best he can get is a nice-looking casket and flowers paid for as a final reward?"
"Percy! Cut it out!" his sister snapped.
Percy stopped just as Tessa ordered him too. After a moment of staring at the floor, he started for the door and left the suite without another word. His sister tried to stop him, but he paid her no mind as he went.
"I'm so sorry about him, Mr. and Mrs. Holloway," Tessa apologized.
"I don't need an apology for a boy my daughter's age showing grief about his father passing," Donald reassured her. "Let him grief as he wants."
Tessa still didn't appreciate how her brother behaved, but she did appreciate and respect that the overseer and his family were so understanding about it. After some more time talking with Tessa, the Holloway family bid her goodbye and headed on their way. Joey parted with her parents on the ground floor to head to the restroom for a moment. It was on her way back that she spotted Percy sitting in the lobby, a canned tea before him on the table he sat, and his eyes staring aimlessly outside of a window. Joey wondered if she should talk to him or not, but Percy made the decision for her by spotting her walking and calling out to her.
"Josephine," he said.
The girl stopped and looked back at him. Getting from his seat, Percival walked over to her, his canned drink in his hand.
"Josephine, can I ask you just one thing before you go?"
"Uh… sure. Go ahead, Percy."
"…Did Father go down fighting?"
Josephine blinked. "What?"
"Just answer the question. Please."
After a moment, Josephine forced a smile, pumped her fist, and exclaimed, "Yeah! He gave as good as he got! That Rogue that killed him wouldn't have stood a chance if it wasn't for—"
"You're lying."
"What? No, I'm n—"
"Yes, you are. I can tell. Father probably didn't even see it coming, did he?"
Josephine remained silent, unable to think of a response.
"I appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but what I want right now isn't well-intentioned lies."
"Well… What do you want?"
"Strength. The strength that would have allowed me to save my father or at least catch his killer. What I need is to kill every bit of weakness in me so that I make Rogues like the one who just took my father's life to pay. That's all I want. Nothing else matters anymore."
Percival's gaze at that moment was so intense that only White Leon's and a certain next-door neighbor of Joey's could compare. Without another word, he left Josephine in the lobby to start toward the elevator. Joey watched him enter before turning and finally heading for the exit.
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"Shouldn't you be off investigating right now?"
Renée asked this while she was slicing up an apple next to Ellie's bed. Arthur, who was doing something on his phone near the window, shot her an annoyed look.
"That's what I'm doing right now, Renée."
"Playing phone games is detective work?"
Arthur was actually waiting for Matthias to contact him again. The boy had gone cold ever since the Hoplite provided him with all the information relating to the Emerald syndicate that he had. Waiting until Matthias contacted him with a new lead was how his 'detective work' usually played out.
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.
"I'm already in the middle of making progress. Just give me a minute," Arthur said.
"You're overstaying your visitation in Ellie's room by a lot," Renée said while cutting her final slice.
"It's fine, Renée. I actually appreciate Arthur keeping company like this," Ellie said. "We rarely got to hang out before because we were on different assignments. Besides, isn't it fun for you to be able to talk so much with an old friend?"
"Arthur and I aren't old friends. He and Kris used to chase my big brother's tail like puppies back before they got their shields, so I just ended up hanging around them a lot as a result."
"Damn, even Kris is catching strays now, Renée? And we didn't use to chase Ant's tail. We were just both assigned to him as junior squadmates during the final part of our Agoge program."
"Oh? Your Agoge chief was Renée's brother?"
"Yeah. When Kris and I were both 21 and still cadets."
"Wait… So, how old was Renée's brother when he was your chief?"
"Antoine would have just turned thirty if he was still alive," Renée said while handing Ellie her plate of sliced fruit. "So… about twenty-four."
The bedridden Hoplite nearly dropped a slice from the plate in shock when she heard the young age.
"They let guys only three years older than me be Agoge chiefs?! My chief was almost a decade older than Woodie."
"Well, Ant wasn't your regular young Hoplite. He was a monster," Arthur said while leaning in his chair back. "I know we use that expression a lot in ARES, but he really was one of those 'in their own league' types. He didn't start getting any formal PEC learning until he was, like, fourteen, and he had only become a Hoplite two years prior to me, Kris, and Renée joining ARES, but he was still better than almost everyone — junior and senior Hoplites both. He was already an A4 when he passed. With how he trained and how talented he was, he definitely would've been a Level S by now. He wasn't even an Adept, by the way, and he was still that good."
Ellie blinked. She had never heard Will-O-Wisp gush about anyone like this. The way Arthur was talking about Renée's brother, one was thinking he was talking about his favorite superhero. Ellie could even see the sparkle of nostalgic admiration in his eyes as he spoke.
"Alright, Arthur, she gets it. Stop salivating over my brother."
Arthur's brow scrunched up. "Salivating?"
Ellie just giggled. She knew Renée would never admit it, but the rookie could tell that her senior had the most energy when she was arguing with Arthur than when conversating with anyone else.
Suddenly, the door to Ellie's hospital room opened. Everyone looked to see Woodrow stepping in with a bag in tow.
"Ellie, I'm back. I got all the things from your apartment that you asked for," he said, placing the bag on the side table near the bed.
Arthur raised an eyebrow. "What's all that, Woodie?"
"Ellie said she needed a few things from her place, so she gave me a list and told me to go fetch them for her."
"Ah. Turned you into her gopher boy, huh?" Arthur teased with a smirk. "You have been real obedient to her lately."
Woodrow looked away awkwardly. The reason he agreed to this task and the previous ones with no hesitation is because he felt obliged to. As the man who put a knife in Ellie's back, even if his mind was not his own when he did it, the guilt of it still burned him and compelled him to be as much a gopher as Ellie wanted.
Renée, who understood this clearly, shot Arthur a pointed look for his insensitivity. Arthur just snorted in response and returned his attention to his phone, scrolling through something. Ellie hummed while she nonchalantly rummaged through the bag, shuffling through various items — hygiene products, makeup, and a few personal trinkets and snacks. She seemed content with what Woodrow had brought her.
"Ah. You forgot something," she said. "My favorite blue comb."
A pained expression came over Woodrow's face. "Shit. Sorry, just tell me what it is, and I'll—"
Ellie snorted at his exasperation. "Woodie, calm down. Jesus, it's almost impossible to talk to you anymore because you're always walking on eggshells around me now."
"I'm not… I mean, I don't mean to—"
Arthur glanced at Woodrow. A myriad of thoughts rushed through his head that Arthur couldn't quite make out coherently, but he could clearly determine the nature of this specific breed of mind stuff: guilt. It was no wonder he couldn't look Ellie in the eye when it was that strong.
"You do understand that it wasn't your fault, right?" Ellie asked him.
"You say that, but it was my pulse blade that—"
Ellie exhaled so much hot air that one might have thought she was an aerokinetic.
"Look! There's no reason why anyone, including you, should feel worse about how my condition than I do! You think I'm not bothered by being stuck in this bed? By having to either be carried to the toilet or having to roll my way there in a wheelchair now? About how low my chances are of ever walking again? Of course I am! But I don't… No. I won't cry about it! And if I'm going to still put on a smile and keep trucking through this, you're not going to keep coming here and trying to ruin my tough girl act by beating yourself up every day!"
It was a shocking exclamation. One that would usually earn a patient a visit from a nurse to remind her to keep her volume down. Befuddled about how to respond, Woodrow scratched at his head. Ellie sighed again and rummaged through her things until she held up a single object. An object that made Arthur's eyes widen the moment he saw it.
"What's that?" Renée asked.
"This is a bracelet. A boy gave it to me a while ago before Overseer Holloway's daughter got kidnapped, and we fought all those gang Rogues."
"I remember. You showed it to me before," Woodie said.
"Yeah. I realized after that night that wearing stuff like this during those types of operations is an easy way to get your things either lost or destroyed. Still, it was too cute for me to just get rid of it, so I kept it. Anyway, here."
Ellie held the bracelet out toward Woodie.
"What?"
"I want you to take this."
"But… why?"
"All the things you've been doing for me lately with no hesitation, and now you ask 'why?'"
Woodrow awkwardly looked askance.
"It's proof that you're forgiven. That's what you wanted, right?" Ellie asked. "For me to forgive you. It's dumb you would even need that when I've told you a hundred times already that's not your fault, but this will solidify it. You don't have to wear it or anything. You don't even have to keep it on you at all, but I still want you to take it, Woodie. Please."
Woodie did take it, making Arthur's brow twitch at the sight. He then stared at it for a moment before stuffing it away in his pocket.
"I, uh… Thanks, Ellie. I promise I'll keep it."
"You better. You know what they say about guys who lose or throw away the gifts they get from girls, don't you?"
Woodrow snorted. "I'll go check to see if I forgot that missing comb in my car."
The Hoplite then dematerialized and teleported, presumably, down to the ground floor of the hospital.
"Ya know, El, I think Ant would have gotten along with you better than anyone if you two had ever met," Arthur commented.
"Really? Do we have similar personalities or something?"
"Oh, yeah. He was basically a taller Haitian version of you."
Ellie got a picture of such a person in her head and immediately started giggling at the thought. Arthur, bearing witness to Ellie's conjured thought with his clairvoyance, began to snicker along with her. Between the two of them was Renée, who silently pondered when Arthur was going to finally leave and go do some detective work.
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Matthias was getting sick of the snail's pace of this case lately. Even with all the new data he had been given by Arthur concerning what was known about the syndicates operating throughout Denver, especially Emerald, he felt like a wagon master trying to move his horses through quicksand.
"There's got to be something I'm missing…" he muttered while staring intently at the photos of syndicate members on his computer screen.
It was while he was in deep concentration that he heard a knock, not at his door but at his window. Matthias looked over and spotted a redheaded girl peering blankly at him.
"Joey?!" he snapped, nearly falling out of his chair.
The girl, having grown impatient of waiting outside, simply pushed one of his windows aside to enter.
"Oh? You don't lock your windows?" she asked while letting herself in. "Ah, but I guess you ordinarily wouldn't need to when you're not asleep, would you?"
"How did you get up here?" he hissed while quickly closing the files on computer before she could see them.
"I climbed? How else would I get up here?"
"But why?"
"Because I wanted to talk."
"We can't do that tomorrow outside of my room?"
"No, because you'll act all aloof and stuff and avoid the actual conversation," Joey said while settling down with her legs crossed on top of Matthias's bed. "I can't call you either because you never answer. I'd talk to Leon, but he's worse about answering calls than you lately, which is actually insane and kind of has me worried."
"What's so important you have to bust into my room to harass me abou— Oh." Matthias sighed as he remembered what intense event Josephine had personally bore witness too only a few days ago. "The death of Void Knight… it's still bothering that much, is it?"
"No. I mean, yeah, of course it is. But… That's not the main thing that's bothering me. I visited his kids recently with my parents. He had a daughter who's daughter named Tessa and a son who's our age named Percy. When I spoke to Percy, he said something that won't stop gnawing at me. He said that he hates his weakness and that all he wants is the strength to catch the Rogue that killed Hoplite Shives. When he said that, it, I dunno… touched a nerve in me or something because I've been feeling the same way lately. I've been feeling that way ever since what happened..."
"What happened? You mean, what happened to Marshall?"
Joey nodded. "There are times when I wish I was there to do something when he was murdered."
"But what could you have done?" You couldn't have stopped Marshall from being attacked by the Ripper, especially if he's the same as the person who just killed Void Knight. The best case scenario was you becoming his victim instead, and that's not any better."
"I know! But that's still how I feel. I feel like I should have been there to at least throw a punch even if I know it wouldn't have done a thing. That I should have done anything. I just… I just hate feeling weak. I hate not having the power to protect anyone. It's worse than being hurt myself. It's way worse…"
Matthias blinked. He was getting a strong feeling of déjà vu, and he knew the reason why. He had a similar conversation with another Josephine from another world. He could recall clearly when that Chosen One explained how the reason she trained so hard wasn't to 'fulfill her destiny' or anything like that, but because she had already hated the feeling of helplessness or being unable to help those around her when they needed. He remembered the conversation so clearly because it struck him how at odds her thinking was to his own. The Chosen One had craved strength for the sake of others, while the Overlord had craved him for the sake of his own ambitions. Still, their diametric beliefs both stemmed from the same place — hatred of their own weakness.
"…I get it," the Overlord eventually said.
Joey's eyes widened, and her head cocked slightly to the side. "You do? Like, really? You get what I'm feeling?"
"Why did you bother breaking into my room to whine your problems at me if you're not going to take what I say back seriously?"
"It's just weird for you to be so… 'understanding,' I guess? Usually, you just brush off anything I say."
"Yeah, well… Everyone says something thoughtful every now and then. Part of the human experience. I know what it's like to feel weak and helpless too, so—"
"You do?!"
Matthias got up, rushed to where Joey was, and put his hand over her mouth.
"Stop being so loud!" he hissed quietly. "Last thing I need is for one of my family to realize you're in here. Look, if you're done giving monologues on my bed, get out."
Joey looked annoyed after she was released, as if asking her to leave another person's bedroom that she had entered uninvited was unreasonable of Matthias. She started back for the window. She stopped when she had one leg out to look back at Matthias.
"Hey, Matt. What is it that you stay up doing every night?"
"Studying."
"For what? We don't have any big tests to take or any summer homework."
"I'm studying for a personal project. Now stop being a nosy busybody and go home."
Joey made a face as she left and shut the window behind her. Matthias listened closely the sounds she made outside as she climbed her way back down before reopening his files. While cursed himself when he realized he couldn't refocus on his work. Josephine had effectively derailed his mind for the night.
"Dammit. I seriously might need to start locking my windows now."