Aria grabbed Sotir’s arm. He clutched his staff. Together, they watched Scaldigir’s emergency broadcast.

Usually, Aria couldn’t view screens. They held the auras of those who touched them and obscured her vision to the scene beneath. But, this screen happened to be brand new, manufactured in a factory, and untouched by anyone but the installers. It retracted in and out of the ceiling, with little Scaldin contact. Its edges glowed with a haze of aura. Aria knew that aura would creep over the whole surface, but for now, she saw a pristine, untouched object. In this case, Aria wasn’t sure that was a good thing. Then again, would she want someone to describe all of these things to her?

The faces of five children popped onto the screen. Their names and dates followed. Aria caught a couple of names: Celin Bassan, Jacinth, and Zoi. There were more, but the screen changed.

It read: We were reapers. Aria held her breath and waited again.

The words faded, and a new picture followed: Pan’s portrait. Aria’s mouth fell open. She read Pan’s information: Panphila Ithir of Grau.

Aria waited for the message to follow. Her stomach began to ache, and she started to sweat. The conversation around the room buzzed. In her peripheral view, the people blazed with light. Aria wasn’t sure she would see much of their features. What would the next message say? I’m a reaper’s victim?

I am a reaper.

Aria froze. There was no way that was true. She knew Pan. Pan was not a reaper.

Aria looked to Sotir. He looked back. He wore a sad expression, and colors of blue dominated his normal base of green and yellow. He wasn’t surprised.

Sotir nudged Aria and pointed to the screen. The picture changed again. This time, Aria saw Brynn. Brynn Voun of Vele – I am the reaper. I wanted to be the only one.

What did that mean?

Again, Aria looked to Sotir. This time, yellow surprise shot like lightning through his aura.

“Sotir? What is this? Who made it?”

Sotir drew a deep breath. “Pan made it. It’s exactly what it says. Pan is a reaper. Brynn is a reaper, and those children were all reapers. Brynn...killed them.” Sotir’s eyes widened. “That’s what Pan saw. She never saw a deformed child. She met one of those five children in the ward. They told her what Brynn did. She played me like a fiddle.”

“You think Pan is a reaper,” Aria accused. “You weren’t surprised by that part at all.” She saw her own aura reach for his. It moved in waves of deep red frustration.

Sotir faced Aria and looked her in the eyes. “I know Pan is a reaper.”

Aria shook her head and looked away.

She couldn’t look at Sotir anymore. She couldn’t read Pan’s message. She couldn’t believe any of it. No one even considered the possibility that Pan might be framed.

Aria rubbed her temples. She struggled to think of Pan. Pan always did her job, quiet and well. She liked time on her own and time with her friends – though she didn’t have many. Reapers didn’t sit down to lunch with people or miss you when you went away. But, Pan did.

Pink tendrils reached for Aria. A pair of arms followed.

Aria startled. She whirled and faced Gavain.

“You should sit down,” Gavain said.

Aria shook her head and pointed at the screen. “That’s my friend. Pan. There is no way. She’s not the reaper.”

Gavain advanced and tried to grab Aria’s shoulders. He got a hold of her, but Aria didn’t struggle. She avoided Gavain’s eyes and looked only at his aura, a mix of red and pink, and deep down, yellow and purple. No matter what a person felt, the core of their being remained.

“Aria, please try to stay calm,” Gavain said. “Now, let’s have you sit down, and you can drink something.”

Aria shook her head. “Pan is not the reaper. Does anyone know that?”

Sotir returned to Aria’s side. “I’m afraid she is. Pan is the reaper. Aria, think about it. The pictures are drawn. Who drew them?” Sotir gave her a moment. Then, he answered the question himself. “I think it looks like Pan’s work. The Captain says he’ll have confirmation soon.”

Aria put a hand to her cheek. “It’s someone else’s.”

Aria couldn’t be sure. She’d never really seen Pan’s work. On page or screen, someone’s aura always blocked it. Aria looked again at the screen. Was that really Pan’s work? The drawings were shy of realism, simple but accurate. They really struck Aria as Pan’s style. Still, Aria wanted to believe her version of reality. Maybe, Pan had drawn the pictures. Maybe, the reaper made her do it.

Aria turned to Sotir. “Someone framed her. They made her draw the portraits, and then, they...”

Sotir’s aura waved in red. He shook his head, and his features all but disappeared beneath the new emotion. “No. Pan left my sight because she is the reaper. When the ghost presented her with the information, it also presented her with a choice: do nothing or speak up and let everyone know she was a reaper. At that moment, her future was tumultuous, so I couldn’t see it. Then, she kept me away. She was gleeful that I had a power break and that I had to travel. She tricked me into feeling ashamed of my view into the future. She knew I would find out. Remember?”

Aria shook her head, but she did remember.

Gavain put a hand on Aria’s shoulder. “Why don’t you take a walk with me.” His pink affection wrapped her.

Aria batted his hand aside and instantly regretted it. She still wanted Gavain. She shouldn’t make a mess of her life. She planned to go on living it.

Aria turned back to Sotir and snapped, “What about Brynn? You really think Brynn is a murderer?”

Sotir frowned. “I’m a bit surprised by that, but I think Pan knows what she’s talking about.”

Aria looked at her own aura – so red. “So, your explanation for all of this is that Brynn is a murderer, and Pan is some monstrous reaper.” Aria clasped her hands tight. She wanted to shake Sotir, but she resisted. “I know them both. I’ve read both of their auras for the past twelve years. I think I know what I’m talking about.”

Sotir took a deep breath. His aura pulled very close to his person, and Aria saw his expression well. He tried hard to look calm and neutral.

Sotir exhaled. “I don’t doubt what you saw, Aria. But, consider this – Reapers don’t look any different from anyone else. They don’t start out with auras of the deepest red or treacherous purple or jealous green.”

On occasion, Pan had a red aura, red with rage. Aria looked away.

“You saw Brynn and Pan as they are, and you interpreted them according to what you knew.”

Aria bit her lip. She thought about Pan. Pan had red in her aura. Pan possessed purple mischief, which could easily slip into something more sinister. Pan liked to classify powers as good or bad. Pan wanted to please mentors, and years ago, she paid special attention to Brynn. Pan wanted to be the best. How could Aria be so blind? Pan – a reaper – and all the time right in front of Aria.

“I think...” Aria conceded. “You might be right.”

“Aria, please sit down now.” Gavain’s aura cradled her from behind. He took her shoulders and steered her to a seat, newly vacated by one of the officers.

Aria let him do it. She watched Sotir walk off. He stood nearby and spoke with the Captain. At first, Aria tried to listen, but her own thoughts consumed her headspace.

Pan wasn’t a ghost seer. She was a reaper. The real ghost seer died twelve years ago, when Pan became an arcane. Aria hoped it wasn’t because Pan became an arcane. Did Pan know what she did? Did Pan take anyone else’s?

Aria’s eyes widened. She remembered a telekinetic. During a botched job, a girl named Nella died close to the Arcane’s Complex. Pan arrived at the scene and might have even arrived first. She might have taken telekinesis from Nella, and if Pan did, she got it under control very quickly. Most people levitated things involuntarily for weeks. Aria felt a chill run through her.

Sotir returned. “I just talked to the Captain. They have confirmation that the artwork is definitely Pan’s. Black and white, little color. The handwriting under the portraits is hers. The message originated from a Detective Casimir’s account. He’s the one leading the reaper case, and Pan has been helping him. Somehow Pan got into his account.”

Aria said, “I’m torn between believing she could do that and knowing she can.”

Gavain put a hand on her shoulder.

Aria continued, “Sotir, if she’s the reaper, she can do some scary things. I think she might be telekinetic. She was near Nella’s body four years ago. What if she took the power? She would have had only minutes to get it under control.”

Gavain handed Aria some water. She held it but didn’t drink.

Sotir nodded. “Reapers are good at absorbing powers. That’s what they do.” He knelt before Aria. “But just because she can do it, doesn’t mean it’s scary.”

“What are they going to do to her?” Aria asked. “I don’t want anything bad to happen to her…still.”

Sotir dimmed. “Pan’s room is a mess. Her things are gone. She’s gone. They can’t do anything to her right now.”

Aria put the water down and put her head in her hands. “Oh no.”

Why didn’t you tell me?

All these years Pan called Aria her dearest friend. What did Aria do to be so loved by a reaper, one of the biggest villains of Scaldigir’s history?

Aria raised her head and put shaking hands in her lap. “I need to talk to Pan.”

“It’s going to be very hard to have a conversation with a reaper on the run,” Gavain warned.

Sotir said, “Not necessarily. Aria and I could track Pan. There are other arcanes that could as well, but the initial trail is cold. If I can get close to the planet, I can pick it back up. Pan will probably be in my sights now.” Sotir nodded at Aria. “And, if Aria can find where Pan left off, she could follow Pan’s aura, wherever it leaves tracks.”

“That’s exactly right.” Aria perked up. “We’re the perfect people to track a reaper.”

“The perfect people to track this reaper,” Sotir corrected. “I think we have a chance to talk to her. We might be able to change her mind. I already talked to the Captain. He’s trying to get approval for it. We’ll be in Scaldigir’s orbit within the hour.”

“I want to try,” Aria said. “I hope the board will approve.” Aria glanced at the Captain.

Rivers of gold ran through his aura. They reminded Aria of Pan and Pan’s threads of gold. There was something good there.

“Aria.” Gavain knelt before her. “You should let someone else find Pan. Someone less attached.”

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“No.” Aria narrowed her eyes. “Everything I know about Pan doesn’t fit with her being a reaper. Well, except certain parts.” Aria lost a bit of her steam and paused. She averted her eyes and thought about the good things in Pan’s nature; golden threads were just one. “What I mean to say is that Pan is not the kind of reaper in scary stories. She’s not the kind of reaper we hear about in history books. Pan is different, and I know Pan.”

Gavain regarded Aria. His aura turned a deeper shade of pink and a new shade of purple. He admired her. “Do you have any idea where Pan might go?”

Aria considered. “She’ll try to hide from us. Or, maybe…”

Aria bet Pan had only two powers: telekinesis and ghost seeing. Reaping would count as her third, of course. Maybe, Pan would want more.

“Where has Pan been recently?” Sotir asked.

Aria’s eyes widened. “The mine. She’s going to the mine. The one that you saw, and we mistook for some cave or cliffside. It’s perfect. She already performed some reconnaissance, and she’s had some practice dealing with its ghosts. We can sneak up on her.” Aria tried to get up.

Gavain pushed her down. “Hold on here for bit. You can’t run off to Perikop while we’re still in space.”

Sotir nodded. “The mine. She’ll go to the mine because she’s neither murderer nor scavenger. She’s a grave robber.”

Aria froze. “When you put it that way…”

“It’s better than the alternative.” Sotir turned and approached the Captain.

In the quiet that followed, Gavain offered Aria the drink. She finally took it and gulped some down.

Gavain sighed. “I want you to be careful.” His aura reached for her in pink and grey but never got quite close enough.

Aria regarded him. “I will.” She would run off and have no idea where she might find Gavain again. She liked him and wanted to sow the seed of future time together. She had no other option. She had to say it outright – though it felt so wrong. “We don’t really know each other well, but you may inquire after me. You can do so formally if you like. I’ll…stay in touch.”

Gavain’s aura flushed pink, yellow, and a touch purple. “I wondered if you noticed…”

Aria smiled. Her face felt warm.

Again, Sotir returned from his brief conversation with the Captain. “The board approved our request. We get the first chance to catch Pan. It sounds like the detective will join us at some point. Oh, and the Captain is sending one of his officers along, Alban Hohl. He’s interested in the job, and since he’s helped us...” Sotir shrugged. “He already went ahead to prepare the shuttle. Come on.”

Aria got up, and this time Gavain couldn’t stop her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gavain’s aura turn chaotic. His features disappeared behind the color, and he approached the Captain. Aria put a hand on Sotir’s arm and paused. She heard Gavain’s words, albeit softly.

“I’d like to go along,” Gavain said, interrupting a transmission. “I can help negotiate with the reaper.”

The Captain said, “I’m not your superior. You need to ask for the assignment.”

“You’re already on the line. Just inform them I’m going.” Gavain took tentative steps away from the Captain. His aura lost some of its purple confidence. Gavain gestured to Aria and Sotir. “They can provide me with the best information about their friend. I can get the best briefing of any potential negotiator.”

The Captain’s yellow-gold aura buzzed. “Alright, go. I’ll let them know.”

Gavain trotted to their sides and caught up. Sotir exited the bridge and set off at a quick pace. Aria found him hard to keep up with. She had to trot. Gavain fared a little better with his longer legs. Aria was surprised to see Sotir move so fast.

“Pan is mad,” Sotir said, sounding a bit short of breath. “She’ll reap from the mine. She’ll prepare herself to deal with Brynn. Whether she’ll find Brynn, or Brynn will find her, remains to be seen. But, we know Pan wants to face Brynn.”

“That’s a bit of a leap,” Aria said.

“No, it’s not. What does Pan do when she’s mad?”

Aria huffed. “Well…she gets mad. Very mad.”

Sotir gave a short nod. “Right. So, she’ll do something about the one person who killed everyone like her. That’s Brynn. Pan won’t let Brynn get away.”

Aria felt her eyes widen. Pan might become a murderer yet.

“Is Brynn missing?” Aria asked.

“Yes,” Sotir answered. “She’s been missing since before the broadcast.” Sotir got into an elevator and hit the buttons before Gavain got in.

Gavain just made it, and the elevator started to travel sideways.

Sotir caught his breath and then continued, “Part of the reason you and I get to track Pan is that other arcanes are after Brynn. They’re putting most of our trackers on her. Brynn was spotted once already. She had to flee, and Aria, she’s powerful. If Pan is going to attack her, Pan needs a lot more abilities, or a good combination.”

Aria almost didn’t want to ask. “What did Brynn do?”

“She took a village university to ruin. And, not with telekinesis alone.” Sotir bowed his head. “There’s actually some footage of it. We can watch it on the ship – though it won’t do you much good.” Sotir held a heavy-duty tablet, military issue.

He probably got it from one of the officers. It was old and had an aura of its own.

The elevator sprang open, and Aria looked ahead to the docking bay. Older ships lined one wall, ablaze with their pilots’ personalities. Newer ships held only grey auras, having lost their builders’ aura and not yet obtained a new one.

The team of three exited the elevator. Ahead, they saw Officer Alban Hohl. Aria barely recognized his face as it hid behind his aura. She did recognize his base colors of red and blue. Slight gold sparkled among them. Aria was surprised to see no colors of emotion. Apparently, Alban had already processed the whole ordeal. Now, his aura just swirled with the blue of thought.

“Come aboard. Get settled. I’ve already pre-tripped, and we’re leaving in two minutes.” Alban preceded them onto the gangway. He gave them just enough time to get inside. Then, he closed the ramp.

“We can leave already?” Gavain asked.

“Yes, we need to leave the main ship. It’s been diverted to a space dock, and if we don’t want to add a few minutes to our travel, we need to leave now. Otherwise, we’ll find ourselves closer to Stradaliata Station – not Scaldigir.” Alban trotted to the small cockpit. “We’ve got a bit of flying to do first, but were should I land?”

Aria followed the men. Sotir and Gavain blocked her view of the cockpit. Their auras were wild and active. With no way to see ahead, Aria could only examine the ship walls directly around her. Of those, she saw a hint of Alban’s blue and red. He used this ship often enough.

“Land by the Perikop Mine. We think Pan went inside,” Sotir said.

They reached the cockpit, and Sotir sat. He buckled himself in and held tight to his staff. Aria located another seat and took it. Gavain sat by her side.

“All in?” Alban asked. He didn’t glance back or wait for an answer. “Good. Let’s go.”

With a jolt, the ship lifted off. Aria looked towards the windshield and could see nothing. Of course, it held the auras of everyone who worked and cleaned the ship. It was a smeared mess of color. Aria, instead, relied on her ears. She heard the hangar bay open.

From the pilot seat, Alban complained, “Come on. Come on. You’d think they could design a faster hangar mechanism by now.”

“Indeed.” Gavain crossed his arms.

Alban glanced back and held a tablet out to Gavain. “Can you start the record for this little endeavor. We need to enter our full names as well as our intended plan into a report. I like to keep up with these things. Otherwise, there’s so much paperwork, and I’d rather…I don’t know…enjoy the aftermath of a reaper fight? If that’s even possible.”

Gavain took the tablet. “Alright. I’ll get it started.” He sighed as he looked at the device. “Ambassador Gavain Alpian of Farbe. That’s me.” Gavain tapped with his fingers.

The ship zipped forward. Aria felt the motion.

Gavain continued to tap. He didn’t miss a beat. “Lieutenant Alban Hohl of Zograf. You are from Zograf, right?”

“That’s right.” Alban looked ahead.

“That leaves…Fortune Teller Sotir Strand of Tochgraf and Aura Reader Aria Adesso of Sched.”

Alban’s aura swirled with deep blue. “You know…I’m starting to think these locators on our names aren’t all that helpful. Here we are, and this reaper doesn’t even have the proper locators to be branded a reaper. Neither of them do.”

Aria felt the ship speed up. She presumed they traveled along the highways of space. She’d never seen much of the process because she couldn’t look into space with her naked eyes. As a result, she didn’t understand space travel. She imagined that space highways looked like little rainbows in a black sky, filled with sparkling stars. She wondered just how hard it was to stay on these rainbow roads. At some point, she should ask.

“Sotir,” Aria whispered.

“Yes.” Sotir turned to Aria. He held his staff between his legs.

Ambassador Gavain also turned.

“Do you think we’ll catch her?” Aria asked.

Sotir sighed. “I need to do time trees. I’d get started on it, but I need to save my abilities for the pursuit. We’ll need to make our decisions in the moment based on what information we can obtain then.”

Aria nodded. “I hope we catch her. She’s a good person. I don’t want to see her go off.”

“I’m almost sure she won’t. The things we know about Pan are true. She’s really the person she seems to be. Good – but with a bad temper.” Sotir leaned over his staff and bowed his head.

“Right.” Aria knew Pan as a good friend.

Pan was honest – mostly – with a strong potential to be altruistic. Aria thought reaperhood didn’t suit Pan’s nature. Aria wondered how much the secrecy wore on Pan. She could have told me. I wish she had.

“A bad temper?” Gavain typed. He didn’t look up.

“Yes, Pan has a bad temper,” Sotir said.

“Tell me about her.” Gavain glanced at Sotir.

“I second that,” Alban agreed from his place at the helm.

Aria looked at Sotir and found his aura reaching back. He waited, and she realized, he wanted her to have the first words.

Aria took a deep breath. “Pan is...really, well...she’s not kind, but she’s noble. She’s blunt and can be a bit rude, but she defends what she thinks is right.”

Sotir’s aura waved in quiet agreement.

Aria went on. “She’s determined. She likes to do her best. In some ways, I think she wants to be the best – a great artist, the best ghost seer, one of the best arcanes. She just has…”

“Drive,” Sotir supplied. “A good deal of it. I would also add that she likes to be liked by persons in authority.”

Aria nodded. “Yes. But, she doesn’t sacrifice principles to get there.” Aria looked at her lap; her blue aura was restored. “Pan always wanted Brynn to like her. Do you think that’s because she knew or felt…somehow…that Brynn was a reaper all along?”

Sotir shook his head. “I don’t think she knew at all. I think Pan is just as surprised as we are about Brynn.” Sotir shifted in his seat. “Think about it. Pan found out that other reapers died. Then, she had to find out who did it. Remember, Pan wrote all those messages. She was trying to find out who killed the other reapers. If she knew Brynn was a reaper all along, she would have acted differently.”

Gavain’s aura reached for Aria. Its pink sympathy tickled her blue.

From the helm, Alban spoke, “So, our reaper is looking for justice for the other reapers. She wants us to know who and why.”

Sotir raised his head. “Yes.”

“We have to find her first. Before this Brynn does.” Gavain drew breath to say more.

Alban interrupted, “You two think she’s altruistic, but this looks more like revenge.”

Sotir objected, “No…”

Aria raised her voice to be heard. “When I was young, just thirteen years old, the other arcanes used to tease me.” Aria had their attention. She lowered her voice. “I was an easy target, trying to make sense of the things I saw. They showed me how cruel auras look.” Aria remembered back to her peers’ auras, covered over by vicious red and jealous green. “One girl used to tease me about not having my hair done for the day. I found it hard when I couldn’t see myself properly in the mirror. I was always a mess, but that gave those girls no right. Every day I asked myself why the mentors would let that happen to me. I wondered if they even noticed. Then, one day, that girl asked me if I felt pretty. It wasn’t a nice thing to say.” Aria could still conjure up Uda’s face and the snotty tone of voice. “Pan was new, sitting in a corner of the garden, drawing a ghost probably. I didn’t know her, but she spoke up and said…she said that Uda smelled like hairspray and that an arcane shouldn’t be most afraid of a few stray hairs.” Aria smiled. “I remember her aura, a little purple, a little blue, a little red, and a lot of gold.” Aria paused and blinked hard. “That was the first time I saw gold. Gold is the color I see in heroes: military officers, like the Captain, a fireman, some of the older arcanes.” Aria gestured to Alban. “There’s a little bit in you Officer Alban. That day, Pan really looked like a hero to me. She was the only person who saw me suffering, and she was the only person who wanted to do anything about it.”

Aria bowed her head. Her first two years as an arcane had been hard.

“I didn’t know that,” Sotir said. “When I see Pan, it’s like how others see her. A skin tone of soft grey. Silky black hair. Auburn eyes. She always looks grim.”

Aria felt her gaze narrow. Sotir liked to write poetry – apparently about Pan. Aria did not approve of Sotir’s crush, not one bit.

Alban sighed. “So, we’re taking you two into danger. No offense, but you guys aren’t exactly the pinnacle of combat ready arcanes. We’re counting on the presumption that this reaper is nice?”

“We know she’s not like the historical figures,” Sotir said. “But, to be honest, we’re counting on the fact that Pan doesn’t want our powers. She’s told me many times just how much it must suck to have my eyesight hijacked by visions.”

Aria agreed, “Pan told me that she’d never want to see auras. She thinks I deserve bonus pay to make up for it.” Aria smiled but felt her mouth fall into a frown. “Sometimes, she hates to see ghosts too. I wonder if she wished she found a different power to start.”

“Well, get ready. We’ve got about thirty minutes, and then we land. If you have to use the bathroom, do it now. And, for Scaldigir’s sake, get a negotiation plan.” Alban kept his back to them. He focused on the controls.

Aria took his suggestion about the bathroom and got up. She could use a little time alone, to remember Pan and really think about what she saw in those memories.

Aria rose from her seat and stood near Sotir. The ship had gone quiet. Perikop waited outside. So did Pan.

Gavain came close and took Aria’s arm. She let him. Anything she could do to encourage his pursuit should be done. With his other hand, he pointed at the windshield Aria couldn’t see through. Then, Gavain drew breath to speak.

Sotir beat him to it. “Whose car is that?”

“Don’t know.” Alban strode out the cockpit. As he walked, his red-blue aura left imprints on the halls.

The others followed.

Outside, Aria saw a bleak landscape. White stretched in all directions, the non-sentience of grass. The mine sat at the center, looking blue, grey, and red, shot through with streaks of black. None of the shades appealed to Aria.

Aria located two trails. A trail of purple and red led around the mine just out of sight. Aria didn’t recognize it, but she did know the blue-grey trail of Pan. A little purple and a lot of red accented that path.

Aria shook Sotir’s arm and pointed ahead.

“Yes, I know. I’m getting some information myself of where Pan’s been and where she’s going. I’m running some scenarios. She has a strong lead, but if we move quickly, we have a chance to catch her.” Sotir started for the mine.

Alban stood by the strange car. “Police vehicle. Detective most likely. Maybe, Casimir.”

“This lock is still in place.” Gavain fingered a giant padlock. “How’d she get in?

“Picked it probably.” A newcomer walked around the outskirts of the mine. He retraced the path of red and purple. His aura was purple and red. It matched. He held up a square object. “Detective Casimir Baum of Tela. I’m on the trail of Pan the reaper.” He folded up his badge and put it away.

“Pan can pick locks,” Sotir whispered to Aria, with a little surprise.

“She can also relock them from inside,” Aria whispered back.

Detective Casimir’s aura flared and reached for Aria. “That’s right. She’s not just a ghost seer, she’s a telekinetic. Soon to be a portal opener and healer. I doubt she’s going to grab that power sharer.”

“Indeed,” Sotir agreed.

Suddenly, Aria realized; they would be able to share a fraction of Pan’s power in the mine. They would be able to tell all that she had and used. They could make use of powers Pan hadn’t taken yet.

“I’m guessing you’re the group sent to track her?” Casimir asked.

“Yes,” Sotir said.

“Let’s get to it.” Casimir strode to the mine and, with an official looking key, opened the lock.