Eloise felt a dull, throbbing sensation in her forehead as she slowly woke up from what felt like a slumber that had gone on forever.
The more she left the land of dreams, the more this throbbing became apparent. By the time she was ready to open her eyes and look around, it had turned into pain that was so intense that it made her feel like screaming, but before she did, the words that she had heard before she had been made to faint replayed in her head.
"-they will have to follow all the orders given to them. Thus ends the decree."
Before, she had lost consciousness before she could truly comprehend what they meant, but now, as their meaning was revealed to her, she opened her eyes with a start.
A strong light source that seemed to be directly shining into her face welcomed her return to the waking world, by making her squint and try to cover her eyes with her hands.
However…this was when the rest of the sensations from her body flooded into her mind, allowing her to find out that she was bound tightly to a chair.
Eloise looked down, but because the bright light had blinded her, she could only catch flashes of her body.
She hadn't been hurt: she seemed to be exactly how she had been in the Kingdom, and it looked as if she was in some kind of small room where she was alone.
She could only glean these details from the corner of her vision, as the majority was still strongly obstructed by the damn light which was starting to make her eyes water.
"Hello! Can you turn this damn thing off?", she shouted finally, after finding out just how unpleasant it was to sit like this.
It had become clear that a globe of light had been conjured, on purpose, right in front of her face, and whether she closed her eyes or opened them, it was as if that light was boring into her skull, not allowing her even a moment of clear thought.
One would say that it was just a source of light that had been placed in front of her, but if that person was forcibly tied in front of the sun which they could see through their eyelids even if they tried to close their eyes, then they would understand that this was basically…torture.
She hadn't known what she was expecting, but a voice replied right away.
"I'm afraid we can't do that. That's called the 'Light of Justice', an ancient trinket meant to butter up convicts and criminals to make them speak the truth when they are interrogated. It's not to say that it always works, but it's a simple tool that allows us to bypass a lot of effort. Now that you're up, it'll do its job. We shall speak again in a half-hour."
The 'Light of Justice'?
Eloise was perplexed. True, it was unpleasant and even bordering on painful, but how would it make one want to speak and spill the secrets they might be holding deep within their heart, if that was what it was meant to do?
A few seconds after that voice faded away, she got her answer.
The light slowly began to grow in intensity, making her face start to sweat.
She had already closed her eyes, but it was all in vain. It seemed to face no obstruction, whatsoever, and no matter where she looked, there was only its burning brilliance which seemed to want to immolate her to death.
At the same time that she had gotten back control of her body, she had also found that her Mageroot had been so firmly locked up by a spell that she almost couldn't feel it. Hence, magic was not an answer, and quickly, it started to become apparent just why people might be more…'open' to answering after spending half an hour with this trinket.
Ten minutes after the voice had faded, her face…had started to feel as if it was being burned off.
At first, Eloise had started to become convinced that it was really happening. Oddly, she had been fine with it: somewhere, something deep inside her had been changed after the truth regarding the King had been revealed to her, and that change had resulted in a strong woman who was ready to face any punishment for choosing to do the right thing- saving all those elderly individuals and children using her plan, even though they had known that it was risky.
Only, after a little bit of time, she had understood that it was all an illusion. Her eyes had been blinded, thoroughly, and her mind had begun to play tricks on her.
However…the pain was certainly real, but no matter how much it tried to make Eloise scream and beg for someone to stop it, she did not give in.
In front of what she had endured all these days…this was nothing.
With every minute, the pain grew, and towards the end of the half-hour, Eloise's teeth were so firmly held together that her gums had even begun to bleed.
Right when the 30-minute mark passed, though, the light instantly winked out of existence, and there was only darkness.
The sound of clapping was heard, but it felt as if it was coming from far, far away.
Suddenly, Eloise felt as if her head had been dunked in cold, freezing water. She sputtered awake in an instant, only to find that it was true: a cube of water had materialized around her face, and as it disappeared in a few moments, she saw that a man was sitting in front of her.
There was no table between them, and he had a complicated expression on his face as he surveyed her with folded hands.
He had a mustache and a fairly common face with drooping, bored eyelids and thick lips, and as he spoke again, she saw that he was the one who had spoken earlier.
"Good job. Most break at the 20-minute mark. I must say that I am impressed. Well, let's get down to business. This is your sentencing meeting, and I am the person allotted to you to listen to your case and decide whether you might have been falsely detained. The charges against you are that you-"
"That we stopped a crucial operation of the Order. We did no such thing!"
Seeing her interrupt him, the man raised his eyebrows.
A second later, a display trinket popped into existence, showing a couple of people sitting around and celebrating.
Eloise and the rest of them had already prepared explanations for everything. Unless their minds were forcefully broken into and searched again, which was apparently a very difficult thing to do due to the sanctity of their consciousnesses even though they were relatively weak, they would make it seem as if they had no hand in the matter.
Only, as she waited for the man in front of her to continue…he suddenly froze where he sat, before his eyes rolled into the back of his head.
It was eerie to look at: he seemed as if he was possessed by something, and the way he just sat there, stiffly, made Eloise wish that she wasn't tied up so that she could move as far away from him as possible.
She didn't speak, as she didn't know what to say. Was this another tactic to scare her? Or could something coincidentally wrong with him?
Before she could form any more opinions, the situation changed.
The man suddenly moved and straightened his back, before his body assumed a sitting position that was much more disciplined.
However, his eyes…stayed the way that the were, showing only their whites.
And when he spoke…Eloise felt her skin crawl.
"I am the Overseer. I have invoked the 43rd bylaw that is applicable when an impending war is on the horizon to fast-track the detention of those who have opposed the Order. These are the proofs against you."
The voice had no tone, and it was as if someone dead and long gone was speaking to her. This also felt vaguely familiar, as if she had heard someone speak exactly like this before, but she could swear that it was her first time listening to something so unique.
The display trinket changed along with the words of that voice, and it showed various scenes as it continued to echo in the room.
"You plotted against the plan of the Order to unify the Central Continent under a false leader, which would have resulted in the formation of an effective vanguard that is indispensable in the coming war. These are the proofs that have been collected of you finding the information about the explosions from an undiscovered source, before contracting an individual to create the hoax that called away the targets at the crucial moment. You have caused many resources of the Order to be wasted, along with causing a situation that was not conducive to the peace of the continent. For this crime, you will be detained and become part of the 'Oathsworn' battalion of the Order, which consists of individuals with talent who are more useful trained, bound and forced to fight, instead of being killed for their crimes. This is your sentencing, and the Overseer is your adjudicator. You-"
"LIAR! Those are all made-up! None of that is real!"
Eloise had been staring, agape, at the images that had been shown to her on the display trinket.
Sure enough, there had been them, finding out about the explosions and then contacting a person who carried out their orders and prevented so many people from dying.
The only problem…was that they were all false.
The images showed them receiving intelligence from a person whose face was hidden, whereas in reality, they had gotten it from Percy via trinket.
After that, it showed them paying money to some random person who began the hoax, but again, the truth was that they had simply given an order to a corrupt minister to carry this out if he wanted to have a chance at living.
Hence…the outcome was right, but all these proofs were wrong.
After she shouted those words, they seemed to echo in the room for a long time, but after that, it became clear that their fate was only to vanish into the abyss.
"These proofs have been investigated and found to be authentic. The sentencing is complete. If you do not swear the Oath to enter the battalion, you will be killed. Hence, the choice is yours."
After receiving this reply, it finally clicked in Eloise's mind. She…finally understood just what the f*ck was going on.
In a voice filled with the shocked disbelief of one who had squarely fallen into a well-laid trap, she said, "You-you planned all this! To act on us! There must have been something stopping you before, but our actions gave you…permission! You…want to use us as bargaining chips! DAMN YOU!"
As the last scream erupted from her lips even though she tried to control it, the Overseer just continued to stare at her using those eyes which were only a white expanse.
And that stare…was all the answer she needed.
She was right. They had fallen headlong into the trap, and now…they were at the Overseer's mercy.
"You shall be collected soon. Rest assured that you will not be commanded to die. However, you will have to follow all other orders. Farewell."
For the briefest of moments, Eloise wondered whether she had heard…gloating, in the usually deadpan voice of the Overseer.
In the next second, the man that had been 'inhabited' until now collapsed onto the floor, and she found herself alone.
In her mind, only one image was firmly being recalled: that of strong, broad shoulders, a confident smile and almost playful eyes.
That image…made her feel brave, even in this moment when all seemed lost.
He would come. He would come for them, and now, the most important thing they could do…was stay alive to wait.
She would do so. No matter what it took, she would wait, and when the moment finally came for his return…it would be glorious.
As a smile spread across her lips, a message was heard in the room that she would be knocked out again for transport, and this time, she actually welcomed the darkness.