A feverish heat slowly displaced the cold in my body, causing sweat to soak through the brim of my hat. Why was it getting so hot in here? It felt as if the heat of a thousand suns had poured into the room while I wasn’t paying attention. Or the fires of hell coming to take me.

My flight or fight instinct almost kicked in, nearly forcing me to make a preemptive move. I bit my lip, attempting to reel in my screaming instincts. Even if I tried to run, there was no easy way out of here and I’d have to fight through the entire station to get out.

“Yes, sir. T-two days ago, remember?” I tried to put on an innocent expression. In the reflection of the Inquisitor's mask, my face twisted into a gruesome sneer, with a disdain for all life. Slowly, my eye started to glow red with blood lust-

My heart pounded in my chest, the sound obtusely loud in my eardrums in the silence that followed. They both stared at me, almost mockingly. Finally, as if to end my misery, the Inquisitor spoke. “I guess so… is that the evidence from the Idishm Case?”

I knew better than to give into my hope. I could see the sadistic distaste through his one-way mask. He was just cruelly drawing this out so as to make me squirm under the force of my own guilt-

“Y-yes, sir.” I chattered out. For being so hot, why was I chattering? Pull yourself together, Shiro! You’re almost home free, just take a deep breath and calm down. Why was I getting so worked up in the first-

“Perfect, I was just on my way to grab it. Come along, Squire.” The man said in his ice-cold tone. He shifted, the reflection of his mask tilting away from my anxiety-wracked body. “Thank you, Mary.”

“Um hmm… you still owe me a cake.” The woman said as if that was some keyword to pass along a message. I knew it! This was just a setup. I was a fool to trust Shinobu. When I get outta here, he’s the first person I would put a-

The man’s voice lost a bit of iciness as he sadistically chuckled at my plight. “‘Courshe, Marry. I’ll bring one to you.”

“You better.” The Evidence Technician left the counter, going back into the lockers. Probably to report that I had been traded off to the Inquisitor.

Inquisitor Strumgard led the way out of the evidence lockup, glancing over his shoulder to make sure I was following like a good prisoner. I could hear the pure loathing in his ice-cold voice as he talked to me. “So… My Squire? I do have some bad habits, but usually I remember a name at least…” He rubbed at the back of his head, probably sending a secret message to the others in the hall.

The walls were slowly closing in on me, it was only a matter of time till I was suffocated by the Crusade. Till they stepped on my throat and-

No, no… I w-was just being paranoid. There was still a chance, however small, that they didn’t know anything. I should just play along for as long as I could. I took a breath, the air surging into my lungs like fire attempting to devour me. “Zuku Ichima. I-It’s only been t-two days, sir.”

“Weird… well, you were already taking the evidence I needed, so I must’ve told you about my theory at shome point.” His voice slurred slightly as if he was holding in insidious laughter at my plight.

I took another breath, attempting to force my unease back as we walked. My vision swam, everything distorting into a hellscape for a mere moment before it snapped back as my head throbbed in pain. “Y-y-you were in a h-hurry.”

“I guess so.” He returned to silently leading the way; clearly not wanting to talk to a traitorous psychopath.

As we walked, one of the dark rooms to the side seemed to digitize, growing impossibly dark. Faces and shapes ominously lurked in the shadowy depths. They were familiar ones, ones that had cried and screamed at me in nightmares. Yet now they were here, once more alive as if to drag me to Hell with them.

A clawed hand reached forward from the doorframe, scraping at the doorway with an eerie screech reminiscent of the floundering cries of a young child. The long claws dripped with blood as it slowly moved towards me. I need to run. To fight. To get out of here-

I slammed into Inquisitor Strumgard’s back as he stopped, the darkness fading back into the shadows. I barely managed to keep a grip on the evidence as I stumbled back. He immediately turned toward me, intent on striking me down- “You alright, Squire?”

“S-s-sorry, sir. Just jumping at the shadows…” I tried to give a well-meaning smile, though my reflection showed my true warped self. Maybe I would be better off if he did strike me down.

“Ah, I get it… they shometimes seem to scream, don’t they?” He chuckled mockingly, just playing with me like a cat and mouse. “Well, we do have a psychiatrist on shtaff, if you need one.” He opened the door to an office just off the hall and stepped in, attempting to lead me into yet another cage.

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With no other choice, I followed after him, surprised to find the Inquisitor had his very own office. It was well lit too, leaving no room for the rampant shadows. For once, I took a relaxed breath. Now if something could just be done about the sweltering heat. “I-I’ll think about it.”

“Shet it down here.” He patted his desk as he cleared some room and sat down.

I placed down the box, wasting little time to open it up. “S-so, what was your theory again?”

“Ah, you know.” He slowly began to pull evidence out, carefully observing each one. He was just giving me time to stew, to rot. I knew it! They just wanted me to confess to my crimes, to give in. Maybe I should just pull my gun-

“I suspect that Drew Idishm was part of a bigger crime ring.” He pulled out the ring’s small evidence baggy, looked at it for a moment, and then placed it somewhat close to me as if to mock all my efforts.

I slowly leaned forward, psyching myself up to snatch it as I once again activated Hidden Hands. “Course, sir. D-d-due to the kind of items he klepped?” I threw a guess out into the dark. I would play along for as long as they let me while I tried to formulate an escape plan.

“Yeah…” He held a thick black necklace up into the light to get a better look at it. This was my chance! I moved like lightning. Before my heart could beat twice, I took advantage of the blind spot caused by the necklace and replaced the real ring’s bag with the one I got from Shinobu. I also shifted forward to hide my smaller movement with a bigger one.

My heart pounded, sending hellish heat through the rest of my system. I slipped my prize into my pocket just as he set the necklace back on the table. He didn’t immediately grab another piece of evidence, instead staring me in the eye-

At least, my reflection's dead gaze met my own with a wicked sneer. He reached out his hand as if to strangle me, and twisted it into a pointed claw. “Hmm… would you grab that paper for me, Shquire?”

I glanced back, toward where he pointed, only to see nothing. There was no paper, no notes, or even a desk which they would’ve sat on-

“Aw, I musht’ve been mishtaken… shay, you don’t look so good, Shquire.” He finally pointed out the guilt twisting my face, and I was sure this time it was over as I looked back toward him.

The silver of his mask seemed to twist and turn into malicious fangs as if he were a monster lurking for the right moment to strike. My hand twitched toward my belt-

I looked away from the infernal silver surface of his mask and looked over the displayed evidence in a last-ditch effort to change the subject. I just needed to play along a bit more. Your escape plan was slowly coming together, just stall a bit longer, Shiro! “W-where’s the necklace?”

“What necklace?” He asked, tilting his head as if I was the insane one. “You’re really not looking sho hot… Why don’t you take the resht of the day off? Relax and cool down.”

What was he saying? Was he trying to gaslight me? Of course, there was a necklace- unless this was all an attempt to frame me for stealing evidence. As if I would ever do something so foolish- wait…

But wasn’t this also a good chance for me? I could get out right now, and leave this place behind me once and for all. Ah! But this had to be just a chance to get me to lead them to my associates like the dirty traitor I was. I’ll just go home. Hole up there and keep my rifle close at hand. “I-I think that’s an uh- a good idea.”

I stood up to go, feeling the sweltering heat of the room as sweat slid underneath my clothes. I slipped a hand into my pocket and fingered the ring, reassuring myself that the gig was almost done. I just needed to get out. To wait for things to calm back down.

I stepped toward the door, pausing as my hand touched the frigid metal of the door handle. What if this was all a trap? What if there was a squad waiting just on the other side of the door as if the entire thing had been a trick to try and get me to confess my guilts? Surely they were done with me now.

The shadow cast by my body twisted in front of me, promising sweet darkness if I just gave in. I stood resolute, ignoring it as best I could as the seductive shadows twisted into malformations of chaos and bloodshed. Faces, eternal marked in my memory far better than even Eidetic Schematic could do, crawled up out of the shadows-

“Shomething wrong?” I could practically hear the sneer in his voice.

I froze, the heat building throughout my body turning cool in an instant as the ice in my stomach churned. “J-just wondering if you really forgot me?”

“Well…” He coughed lightly. “You’re in my memory now.” His taunt burned at my ears, reminding me that there was no escape. He was just letting me back out into his sick little maze to run around-

I twisted the handle, forcing my wooden legs to step one after the other. The heat returned with a frenzy, scorching at my insides as shadows twisted and pulled. I squeezed my eyes shut-

Even the darkness of my closed eyes wasn’t a respite. The shadows of light peeking through toyed with the dark, coming together in an attempt to bring about my demise. Should I even resist? Or just give into-

My head pounded as I ran a hand over my flushed face. Something wasn’t right.

I could barely see through my swimming vision and the constantly stretching shadows as I half stumbled through the building's hallway. I tried not to look too deeply at my surroundings, scared as to what lurked in them. For once, ignorance was bliss here, and I was all too down to not pay attention.

I stepped out into the street, cool rain curling under my hat. It caressed my cheeks as if trying to help fight off the feverish heat burning at me.

Yes. That’s right. I needed to fight-

Was I even in the right state of mind to fight? I cast a look backward, but my memory came up in a red fog. Maybe I should just find a place to run away to and lay low for a while. Go to ground and bunker down-

Then what? That wouldn't help. Not truly. Shadows were everywhere, it was only a matter of time till they got to me. Till they ripped and tore, sundered my flesh bit by bloody bit-

T-they were just hallucinations.... nothing was there. I don't think anything was really there. Were they real? The ghosts of the past coming back to haunt me? M-maybe I should just run away-

No, t-they weren't real. I glanced around the dark streets, the neon casting insidious glows of demonic figures grasping for me-

I need help.