Isolde gave Sophie, Fiona, Marcus, Lucy, Melina, and Violet a radio. But what will the Dark Umbrella do?
(Ring!)
Meliodas: "Hello?"
Fiona: "Master… we found a device… it warns about the black hole."
Meliodas: "ugh."
Ms Valentine: "Huh!… what did you say?"
Meliodas: "Is… is this for real?!"
Sophie: "Oh… they're loud."
Fiona: "Yes… it listens to the stars… and their course… it's from Vanitas."
Ms Valentine: "hmmm…"
Meliodas: "But… how are we supposed to convince the others?"
Ms Valentine: "It's okay… we have to take it slowly… apparently, the black hole might indeed be a natural occurrence."
Fiona: "Well, not entirely… according to Isolde, who gave us the device and is Vanitas' wife, something is wrong with the stars… and it's very possible something is causing them to die so often."
Violet: "(cough)… ouch… there's a lot of dust here."
Melina: "(cough)… yeah…"
Marcus: "Oh… how long has this radio been… here?"
Isolde: "A long time… almost 100 years."
Lucy: "ugh… that's a lot of dust."
Meliodas: "(sweat)… uh…"
Ms Valentine: "hmmm… (sweat)… well, could you maybe give it to us? We'll send a seeker to you."
Fiona: "No, too dangerous… for a seeker. We don't want more innocent seekers to die… that wouldn't be very nice."
Marcus: "I'll take care of it… I'll head back to the Dark Umbrella station in Prussia… Sophie and Fiona… Melina and Violet, can you manage without us?"
Sophie: "Yes."
Fiona: "Yes, you go back to Prussia then."
Melina: "Mhm."
Violet: "I'll stay then."
Fiona: "By the way, Master, Violet will join us."
Meliodas: "That's great… we need more people. Mr. Skull quit from dangerous missions; he will now be the waiter."
Sophie: "Huh?"
Fiona: "Well, great…"
Melina: "Hmm… waiter?"
(Meanwhile)
Mr Skull: "Would you like some more tea, Chloe?"
Chloe: "(sweat)… were you made a waiter just because you're scared?"
Mr Skull: "Indeed!"
Chloe: "Man!… that's nothing to be proud of!"
Mr Skull: "(sweat)… uh… oops."
(Meanwhile)
Sophie: "Hey… Fiona…"
Fiona: "Yes?"
Sophie: "Do you really think these radios will help us?"
Fiona: "Hmm."
Sophie: "Even if… we can't save people with them, maybe just a few…"
Fiona: "A few… is better than doing nothing…"
Sophie: "Huh?"
Fiona: "Understand this, Sophie… if this continues… it could be a catastrophe… The number of living beings is enormous… out of 4 billion humans, there are 2.4 billion… and that's within 200 years… we don't even need to talk about elves… there are now only a few left in Wonderland. They were, after humans, the most numerous beings… fairies barely exist anymore… it's not just about humans but all living beings… it's at least a step…"
Sophie: "I don't understand, Fiona. You don't understand others, yet you want to help them… when someone should be jealous of others, it's you… your parents were murdered, your foster parents wanted to kill you, you were years in Howgarts' building…"
Fiona: "Don't get me wrong… I'm a person who… doesn't know how to deal with others… I think maybe… if I try to help them… then I understand them more… I'm not sure… still, recently, I feel that there are people who are important to me… Cossette… Melina… Chloe… Marcus… and you… of course also Naomi."
Sophie: "hmmm…"
Marcus: "Hmm… alright, then I'll go."
Fiona: "Take care, Marcus."
Sophie: "Yes, very likely that Sevasti will attack you."
Marcus: "Hmm… do you really think so?"
Fiona: "We have to live with it… we also need to reach the place where Sevasti has a main point… make your way… if you want to continue helping us, you can come back."
Marcus: "Sure."
Sophie: "hmmm… hey, you there… Lucy, watch over him."
Lucy: "Yes… yes."
Fiona: "Good… we'll go."
Violet: "Mhm… I'll take you to the place."
They said their goodbyes.
Sophie: "Do you think this is a good idea… maybe we should go back with him… what if he gets attacked?"
Fiona: "Marcus is strong… don't worry."
Sophie: "hmmm…"
(A few hours later)
(Swoosh!)
Marcus: "Good… we're almost in Prussia…"
Lucy: "Huh…"
Marcus: "Huh…"
Without knowing it, Sevasti had long had them in his sights.
Circus member: "Hehehe…"
(Bang!)
He shot at the train driver.
(Swoosh!)
(Aaaaaaaaaaarghhhhhhh!!!)
(Crash!) (Crash!)
Circus member: "We got it… hehehe… let's go quickly to them…"
They hurried… bodies on the ground… even innocent people…
Circus member: "hmmm…"
Suddenly a hand appeared from the door…
Marcus: "hghhh."
Circus member: "I got… ugh!"
Suddenly he felt fear… and as if something was behind him… Marcus looked at him with his eyes…
Marcus: "Hehehehehehe… you really thought… I was unable to defend myself… dark hands…"
Several hands appeared from his back and grabbed him.
Circus member: "Aaaaaaarghhhhh…"
(Splash!)
Marcus: "Hmmm…"
He looked around… a lot of people were dead.
Marcus: "Damn… bastards, you killed innocents…"
Lucy: "Ahhh… you're still alive… hehehe… hey… can I kill them?"
Marcus: "Sure… preferably so they feel the pain."
Lucy: "Hehehehehehe… at your command!"
(Aaaaaaarghhh!)
(Splash!)
(Aaaaaaaaarghhh!)
(Splash!)
One tried to run, but Marcus stabbed him in the heart.
(Splash)
Circus member: "Urk… (Bleargh!)"
Marcus: "Hmph."
He fell dead to the ground.
Marcus: "…Tssss… Lucy… move their bodies from here. Throw them there… their bodies don't have the right to lie here where the innocents' bodies are… I'll search for survivors…"
(Meanwhile)
Sophie: "Hmm."
Fiona: "Not to forget, Marcus was taken specifically because of his strong, dangerous curse, the Smoke of the Damned…"
Sophie: "Isn't that curse deadly?"
Fiona: "Indeed… but somehow he survived it… Normally, people with this curse don't survive long… at best, they live five more years… But Marcus… even though his body is small… is strong and has a lot of mana… that's why he's nicknamed the Dark Detective."
Violet: "We're here… this is the place where I once saw Sevasti's people…"
Fiona: "Understood…"
Melina: "Huh…"
(Meanwhile)
Lucy: "Marcus…"
Marcus: "Yes?"
Lucy: "Almost half of the inmates are dead…"
Marcus: "What?… Damn… we probably should have found another way back to Prussia… and the survivors…"
Lucy: "I've treated them… I have no idea how long they'll hold on…"
Marcus: "Okay…"
Child: "Mom… mom… please get up…"
Marcus: "And the child there?"
Lucy: "Forget it, the mother is torn apart…"
Marcus: "Damn, I told the Dark Umbrella I wanted a private vehicle… why do they never listen to me…"
Lucy: "Did you call Ms Valentine… or Mr Frank?"
Marcus: "Mr Frank?"
Lucy: "That was your mistake… the guy doesn't care about other people… someone even willing to sacrifice his own daughter for the claim about the well-being of living beings…"
Marcus: "Hahhh… right, I should have called Ms Valentine… but I work for him… well… what's done is done… take the child and find a family member… and if you can't find anyone… bring her to the Dark Umbrella… we'll take care of her."
Lucy: "Okay."
She continued… Marcus looked around… he carried the radio.
Marcus: "Hahhhh… maybe I should kill this Mr Frank… just like Fiona killed Lady Natasha… damn asshole."
(A few hours earlier)
Marcus: "Hello Mr Frank… I have something important to bring, it's a radio that reads and listens to the stars… so at least we can be warned about the black hole."
Mr Frank: "Good… take the train and come here."
Marcus: "What?… regular train, but innocents could get hurt…"
Mr Frank: "That was an order… bring it to me… not Ms Valentine."
Marcus: "Mmm…"
(Meanwhile)
Sophie: "hmmm…"
Fiona: "Huh…"
Violet: "Shh… right there… do you see the people…"
Fiona: "What are they doing… who the hell are the people with the devices…"
Sophie: "Oh no, Fiona… I think I've heard of this… it's an experiment…"
Fiona: "Huh?"
Sophie: "In Titia there are many people wearing these devices… these devices are connected to the brain… I think what they're doing is destroying brain cells through hacking…"
Fiona: "What?… pull them out immediately."
They did so…
Sophie: "I've heard of this… in a movie… it looked similar…"
Fiona: "Couldn't you have said this earlier, what if it's not like that… stop watching movies… you only watch them for the romance scenes anyway…"
Sophie: "How do you know that?"
Fiona: "(sweat) I know you… we were in the same class…"
Sophie: "Ugh… shut up…"
Melina: "Uh…"
Violet: "Hahh."
Sophie: "You can be really annoying, you know that?"
Fiona: "Oh, okay?… you'll probably have to put up with me longer."
Sophie: "Well, whatever… let's move carefully and take a look around…"
They continued carefully.
Sophie: "Why is no one here…"
Fiona: "I don't know… strange…"
Violet: "Lunch break?"
Fiona: "Even if… at least one or two should be watching… unless they are too confident…"
Sophie: "Shall we take a look?"
They approached the devices… inside were brains.
Violet: "Hmmm…"
Sophie: "A brain… okay, but… this wasn't like that in the movie."
Melina: "Huh?"
Violet: "But why a brain here…?"
Fiona: "Hmmm… look, these are the devices that stab at certain spots."
Sophie: "Huh?…"
Fiona: "This… is the limbic system…"
Sophie: "Hmm?"
Fiona: "It stabs where emotions are… amygdala regions like the amygdala, pallidum, and nucleus accumbens are responsible for processing emotions… the amygdala is where you feel desire… hunger… fear… and so on… but what exactly do they do…"
Sophie: "Do you see it… it stabs as if it wants to… but not to hurt people… the device!"
Violet: "Huh?"
Sophie: "The device is the reason…"
Fiona: "Give it here."
She took the device that the Titia residents had on their ear or head.
Sophie: "What are you going to do with it…"
Fiona: "I think you should watch more movies… you're a really cool lady."
Sophie: "Oh… I already knew that… but thanks anyway."
Fiona: "But now, because of that sentence… no more."
Sophie: "That was just a dumb joke."
Fiona: "Okay… but how does it make people feel that way…"
Sophie: "Ugh."
Fiona: "Ugh!"
Sophie and Fiona: "While sleeping!!"
Both shouted simultaneously.
Sophie: "Yes… especially…"
Fiona: "While dreaming…"
Violet: "Does he kill people in their dreams?"
Sophie: "Not exactly… I think he makes people have scary dreams through the pain…"
Fiona: "I remember something similar in Howgarts' experiments… the beings experiment or system… the body often reacts to pain with a dream. For example, you have arm pain, you dream your arm is broken… it's rare but happens often."
Sophie: "Mhm."
Fiona: "Howgarts wanted… people trapped in their dreams… and only if they overcame their fear would they wake… that's why it was important, but few woke up, and the experiments failed. But this Sevasti… he wants to kill people."
Sophie: "But why? And what does he do in their brain?"
Fiona: "Good question… hmm… Sophie… contact the Dark Umbrella and have them examine people who died in their sleep, a list would be good, preferably also photos or at least their home addresses… it's time I use the ability of the mysterious map."
Sophie: "Okay…"
(A few minutes later)
Dark Umbrella member: "Addresses for Titia?… for people who died in their sleep?"
Dark Umbrella member (female): "Sophie apparently needs it… okay, we'll examine them quickly."
Dark Umbrella member: "Okay… in the last three months, about 40 people died in their sleep… please connect me to the Lilly Mond members, either Sophie or Fiona…"
(Meanwhile)
Sophie, Fiona, Violet, and Melina had long left the place.
(Ring!)
Sophie: "Huh… hello?"
Dark Umbrella member: "We have your request… we have a death list, but most are elderly…"
Fiona: "Give it to me."
Sophie: "Okay."
She handed the phone to Fiona.
Fiona: "Thanks… hello? Detective Fiona Philomela Household speaking… please give me the death list of young people who died in their sleep."
Dark Umbrella member: "Sure… the boy Rudolf… 13 years old… nobody, not even the doctors, knows how he just died, he had no illnesses… Nana Mana… died in her sleep, only 19 years old, no illnesses… Viktor Michil… 24 years old, no illness that could cause someone to die in sleep, he only had a cold, which doctors said wasn't serious… and finally a girl named Emili… only 8 years old… the strange thing is she held her doll very tightly… as if she were scared of something…"
Fiona: "Hahhh… give me her address, Nana Mana's, please. I don't want to examine a child's corpse."
Sophie: "Look at that… so much for you being strict…"
Dark Umbrella member: "Nana Mana's address is Titia Hauer Street."
Fiona: "Huh… sure, we've been near that street before."
Dark Umbrella member: "The death list is only in Titia, only in Titia, between Hauer Street, Riesin, and Tetri Chidi. That's the strange part."
Fiona: "Violet, are these streets near where we were?"
Violet: "Yes… you can even walk, they are near the river where we met that killer machine… Hauer about 10 minutes and Tetri Chidi about 12 minutes."
Fiona: "Understood…"
Dark Umbrella member: "Is there anything else you want from me?"
Fiona: "Just give me the whole list of these young people who died… thank you very much for your help."
Dark Umbrella member: "You're welcome."
He hung up.
Dark Umbrella member: "Hahhh… she's creepy."
Dark Umbrella member: "Amazing… her voice isn't deep, yet it's intimidating how serious she sounds… still, I like her a lot hehe…"
Dark Umbrella member: "At least she tries very hard, but I like Sophie more."