Grudges

"What is going on here?" One of the women asked, looking around her. I raised my hand, and Caris paused from knocking another painting down.

"One of you have to be messing around with us!" A man shouted, pointing to each one of them frantically.

It's annoying that I can't tell them apart except for their body structure and voices. It's like looking through a translucent glass.

"W-we don't have time for this. Let's go and confirm about that girl first then talk about this later, ok?" The man who helped in the attack of my house said.

"Fine."

"Aww, I was hoping that we would be able to see something interesting. Oh, well. Time to attack."

"Wait Kefi. This isn't over just yet."

"Hmm?"

A man ran into the wall, only to smack his head and fall back.

"H-hey, what's going on? I can't go through the walls." He shouted from the floor, rubbing his forehead.

"What are you talking about, you fool? You just have to-" We heard a crack as the woman tried to pass her hand through the wall and then a screeching scream of pain.

"Ohhhh~ that's gotta hurt." Kefi sucked in her breath as the woman clutched her hand bending in an odd angle.

"It sounds like it did. Wait, they can get hurt?"

"Yeah. With the barrier I created, they can now get injured as if they still have their bodies if they hit it hard enough. I always give it my all when I do anything, Meraki. Don't underestimate me."

"Which one of you did this?! Which one of you sealed off the barrier?!" The same woman shouted, her broken hand flailing around.

"Why would any of us do this?! We are all in it. Unless … Doctor Bick," They all turned to a man standing in the far corner.

"Me? Why am I a suspect?!" The man shouted back at them.

Well, his tone of voice does sound suspicious. If they weren't suspicious before they certainly are now.

"I remember seeing you sneaking out once, so I followed you. You were talking with one of them secretly and I even saw them handing something to you. I found out later that it was some leaves from the Oenothera Biennis while going through your things."

He rummaged into his pocket and pulled out something colourful. It's probably the leaves he talked about and showed them to the others.

"Oenothera Biennis? But, it isn't indigenous to this part of the world. We couldn't get them before so why?" Another voice I haven't heard before spoke up after inspecting the leaf.

"Right, so it is extremely expensive. And we all know how ridiculously powerful Doctor Bick is, especially for being a commoner not contacted by the Society. He has no royal blood either. So, Doctor Bick, what did you do to get them? What information did you give?" The man took a step forward every time Doctor Bick took a step back.

"You look pale, Doctor. Could it be because you have been caught red-handed?" I could hear the smile on his face. The feelings coming off of him were that of jealousy, as well as satisfaction.

Though there is no feeling of deception coming off him, so he is either not lying or believes that he isn't lying.

"Damn, he's a man after my own heart." Kefi grinned, watching the scene like she would miss something important if she even blinked.

"You can feel it too?" I asked.

"Feel? Oh, you mean his emotions? Nope. But I can see his expression and let me tell you this, Meraki, that is the face of a man who has gotten all the evidence he needs to take down his opponent. Though the other guy is confusing."

"Why do you think so?" I asked, the 'other guy' has just been protesting and saying that they are wrong, while continuously getting more and more agitated.

"He has the face of a person caught doing something wrong but … it doesn't look like he did it out of any bad intentions to the group."

"Now that you mention it, I can't feel any ill-will to them from him."

"So you have been selling us out?!"

"We trusted you, Doctor!"

They are all ganging up on him now, throwing questions and accusations.

So noisy.

"Listen to me! I didn't betray you, yes I met with a member of the Society but it wasn't to snitch on all of you. I have an informant there." He finally said as they grabbed him and were getting ready to beat him up.

"So you're saying that you planted a mole in the great Society of the Velvet Gate?" The man laughed and the others joined in, "Yeah, right."

"No, it's true. Why do you think I know most of their plans and how to counter-attack them?" The man tried to desperately explain.

"Isn't it just to gain our trust?" A young, overconfident voice scoffed.

"Ok, let's say that you did indeed plant a mole then why couldn't you tell us about this snake? The worst threat we had. Tell us." There are too many voices to keep track of if only I could see as Kefi does.

Wait.

"Kefi."

"Yeah?"

"Let's share your eyes again."

"Oh yeah, we can do that right? Give me a sec-"

"Of course I couldn't know everything! Even he wouldn't know everything. I don't know why he told me but my son would never lie or hide anything from me!"

"Son?" Kefi and I spoke, our voice melding together again.

"He has a son in the Society?"

"But they always do background checks on everyone before they enrol. There's no way- Meraki?"

"He isn't lying."

The others must have thought the same as Kefi as they started laughing again.

"Right. You're son, the mole, in the Society. If you wanted to lie, you should fabricate a better one." The man bent down to him.

Whatever feeling he released before was nothing compared to the pure hatred now.

"I've always been suspicious of you from the moment we met. You became respected so fast and all your ideas were brilliant. I knew something had to be off about you. Now you show your true colours. I'm so glad I got to witness it."

"He's going to do something. Kefi."

We tried to move but Caris came in front of us and held us down.

"What do you think you're doing?" Kefi shouted, trying to push him off us.

"Don't look." He turned away and closed his eyes, in a flash Doctor Beck's body, or spirit, burnt away, leaving only remnants of the emotions he felt.

"What the hell? What just happened?!" Kefi shouted seeing the others stared in disbelief.

"Doctor Hut, what was that?" The woman that broke her hand shouted, her voice trembling with fear.

"Kefi. Eyes. Now."

I tried to pay attention to what they are doing as the sensation came again but I still couldn't make anything out.

"Meraki, blink."

Blinking my eyes everything became clearer instantly. I focused on the Doctor and Kefi was right, they all looked odd.

The Doctor that turned had some types of crystal embedded in his bald head. He looks like a cow, from his beady eyes to his snou-nose, and I don't mean that to insult him.

Did he fuse with an animal?

His smile is straight out of a horror movie. He has a full-on Cheshire cat grin, with the corners of his face creating folds because of the wide grin.

"Oh, this?" Doctor Hut turned slowly to face them, holding what looks like a dagger in his hands.

Please stop smiling.

"No, what happened to Doctor Bick? What did you do?" I looked to the woman, holding her wrist while her hand hang limp.

One side of her eye is embedded with the same crystal in the old man's head. The roots of her hair had those same crystals sticking out of it like it was growing out of her scalp. She's losing her hair because of those crystals.

Every one of them had crystals embedded somewhere in their bodies, even one had an entire arm of crystals. Well ... almost everyone.

Is it embedded or … is it growing out of their bodies?

"He is gone, body and soul. This is my latest invention, I call it 'destruction'. It can kill souls just like Doctor Beck there."

They all looked at the burnt spot on the ground, worry etched on their faces.

"Soul Crusher!" Caris shouted, annoyance in his voice. "And that isn't yours! It's mine!"

"You made that thing?"

"Yes. It is my pride and joy but, just like fire, it's a good servant but a bad master. Unless you are strong enough to handle it, it will destroy you from the inside just from holding it." He ran his hands through his hair, frowning.

"He seems like he's able to handle it."

"Seems is the right word. The effects aren't instant but they are there. Anyway, shouldn't we be attacking them?"

"I think so too. Let-"

"No."

"Meraki says no."

"Not yet. They haven't fallen enough. They need to fall further."

"Sometimes I wonder who the dangerous one is between the both of us, don't you think so Meraki?' Kefi said nervously.

"Oh well, more entertainment for me." Caris casually sat on the box the ground, watching everything with glee.

"Meraki."

"We don't always have to be actively part of something, Kefi. We can be passive too. Now, shut up and watch."

"We still can't go out." The guy with the crystal arm shouted, trying to push past the wall.

"That's not possible. Beck's dead! He shouldn't have any hold of this place anymore!"

"Unless you are actually the one." He pointed to the woman with the broken hand.

"What?! How do we know it isn't you? You even have a weapon to kill spirits. Honestly, you are the most suspicious one." She pointed back at him.

"They have started bickering. This is where it begins." I said, wishing I had a notebook to write down everything that is about to take place.

"Who are you betting on? For me, it's the guy with my invention."

"I don't care, as long as they don't touch that other man. He's mine." Kefi hissed out, pointing to the most normal looking one. An old man with white hair, cowering in the corner.

"Is he?"

"Yup."

"Alright. Attack if they start attacking him."

"I plan on it."