"Oh goodness! It's been almost an hour, and I promised I'd return you," Harmonia exclaimed.
Her skin turned a slight yellow, and then back to its pleasant pink.
"Come on, Ace," she said.
"I can go on my own," Ace grumbled.
He stumbled upwards from the chair, and Harmonia grabbed him by the wrist again.
"Aw, are you sleepy?"
Ace mumbled something incoherently as she took him back to the office, leaving Oz to interrogate Nero again.
"You don't really believe that insane woman, do you," Nero asked.
"I trust her more than you, and I don't trust her that much. But she's never betrayed any of us. A comrade is a comrade," Oz replied.
Nero scoffed and rolled his eyes.
"Can't believe pigs have loyalty."
Without realizing it, Oz reached over the table and pushed him. He fell backwards, with a yelp, still chained to the chair.
"Don't talk like there's honor among thieves. There's no honor in one of your pinkies."
Oz walked over, glaring down at Nero, who was struggling to get back up. His arms were placed through the bars in the chair, and the handcuffs locked him in. The handcuffs were made out of grounders, making it
impossible for him to escape.
Oz knelt to the ground, ignoring his protests, and took a small box of lancets out of his pocket. He took one out, pricked his finger, and slowly pushed the blood out with his free hand.
"What the fuck are you doing. Stop! HELP!"
Oz sat on his chest to keep him still, and smeared a star on the top of his forehead.
"Shoadiai."
Nero's entire body lit up like a Christmas tree. Runes were emblazoned, glowing brightly all over his body. They shone so brightly, making an impression through his clothes. The two of them watched incredulously as
the green runes sparkled for a few seconds, and then faded away.
"What the hell did you do to me," Nero screamed.
"Me? Nothing. I basically inspected you like a car and closed the lid immediately once I saw that it was bound for the junkyard."
"Junkyard!?! I'm not dying, get off me!"
"No, you're not dying. You're definitely cursed."
Nero stopped struggling and went quiet. Oz tasted his silent fear.
It was delicious.
"I don't know why anyone would curse you. These curses are pretty old, too. Sometimes curses can be paired with other curses to amplify the effects, or even make blessings."
"How do I know if these are helping me, then," Nero asked.
"You don't. I don't. I'm not experienced enough. You should get that checked out by a magic doctor or something."
Oz got off Nero's chest, and made his way to the door.
"Wait! Wait, you're not gonna pick me up from the floor," Nero pleaded.
"No."
Oz left.
Immediately, he returned.
Nero smiled in relief, but Oz silently turned the light off and left again.
Wails of anger could be heard as Oz briskly walked down the halls, looking for Ace. He had a hunch, and he wasn't sure if it was a good one, but if it was, then it would prove that Harmonia was probably telling the truth.
He was conflicted.
The bright fluorescent lights made his headache intensify. He finally found Ace in the 4th office door he opened. He lay on the couch, asleep, covered in a puffy pink jacket.
Oz softened inside when he knew it was Harmonia's coat.
Gently, Oz lifted the coat from Ace to use another spell, but was greeted by an unwanted guard.
"Hello there," Unas said.
"Oh, uh, hey. Can you, like, uh, turn around while I do this? Can swords turn around," Oz asked.
"Why are you bothering him?"
"I'm trying to find out if he's cursed."
"Oh, all Born Liars are cursed. Don't waste your time."
Oz shushed the angry sword while he repeated what he did with Nero.
Prick finger, make star, and repeat the magic word.
"Shoadiai."
To reveal.
Oz's green eyes became dull when his guess was proved true. The runes on him glowed green, but all of them were in the same spots as Nero: neck, tongue, hands, arms, legs, stomach, chest.
If there was a way to put the runes on Ace's eyes, whoever did would probably have done it too.
Oz licked the blood off his finger, wiped it off Ace's forehead using the bottom of his tank, and covered him with the pink jacket.
"Sword, what does this mean," Oz asked.
"It means you're now involved," he cackled.
"Damnit."
Oz left in a hurry, as he noticed Ace's eyes fluttered, and he stirred awake.
He groggily sat up in the dark, shivering, and held the sword closer. The closer he held it, the warmer he felt. For a moment he felt peace when he closed his eyes.
That was, until Unas spoke.
"You are cursed," he declared.
"I've missed you too," Ace dryly replied.
"I'm quite serious. Someone just found out."
"Wait? What?"
"You were asleep, and the tall, pale one saw into your mortal flesh."
"Eww. Gross."
Ace inspected his body, worrying that something unbecoming had happened to him in his sleep. Nothing seemed weird, and he felt fine, so he concluded that Unas was being dramatic.
"You need to get your curses removed. You are in grave danger," Unas warned.
"You're just making this up to bother me."
"Monsters could be inside your flesh," Unas cautioned.
"Dude, we all got inner demons."
"I do not. I have eaten mine," Unas declared.
Ace groaned and put Unas on the couch. He didn't like that and threatened to set it on fire.
Ace picked him up again.
"Why are you throwing a tantrum," Ace asked.
"Why do you not heed my WORDS," Unas replied.
"I got enough stuff to worry about. Harmonia thinks she's Prima and-"
The air felt very hot.
Uncomfortably so.
"The Witch Bitch still walks among us?"
"Can you and Nero stop calling her that? She's really nice. She even let me use her jacket as a blanket."
"She is marking you with her scent so no one else takes you," Unas said.
"Dude. Stop."
Ace put Unas back in his scabbard and laid him on the desk, which he much preferred to the couch. While Ace rummaged through an officer's cabinets and desk drawers for a pack of gum or a bag of chips, the heat slowly increased.
Unas had more complaints to make. Ace wasn't trying to continue another argument, but when he feared the police station might catch on fire, he changed his mind.
"Dude. You can't just do this and not say anything," Ace said.
"I do not need words when you already understand my anger."
"Just say what you want!"
"That witch in the flesh of man has stolen the gift of my children."
"She's totally lying! She's stressed out from everything!"
"If she's lying, then she's untrustworthy. If she's telling you the truth, then you need to bury her underneath this building."
"NO!"
Ace immediately ran out of the boiling office and into the cool hallway. He kept running into the lobby to find Harmonia, but instead, someone unexpected had arrived.
It was Kerkylas.
Kerkylas was still wearing his white prison jumpsuit with the words ATLAAN CORRECTIONAL FACILITY printed on the back in big, black, bold print. All the officers in the station formed a circle around him. They weren't sure if they
could shoot. He was unarmed, and a grounder was on him. When Kerkylas noticed his favorite redhead, he perked up a little bit and waved.
"There you are, Butterfly! Come here!"
Everyone turned to look at Ace. The entire room started filling in the blanks, and they were all coming to the wrong conclusion.
"NO! NO, IT'S JUST MY PRISON NAME, I SWEAR," Ace yelled.
"I have come to make good on our deal. You give me translation services. I give you info on those weird objects and let you live."