"Sir we have the man behind the filmed photography in custody." A man reported, his tone short to which Toren stood up. "Great, I want to know the piece of shit that hired him." His figure marched through the halls, his steps deliberate and filled with purpose as he finally came to the power levels of the base.
Flashing a card for entrance, the nearby guards rose to their feet saluting at his passing figure. "It would seem that he's a man who has been doing this for quite some time. It's a shame that there are so much more innocent vulnerable people that fell prey to this sick bastard!"
His assistant snarled, the venom in his tone palpable as they came to a cell. Behind the sleek iron bars was a man, next to him in the adjacent cell were the five men.
*Ting-Ting-Ting*
A soldier tapped the bars, his face that of annoyance. "Hey wake up scum!" The man looked around, his face full of shock before his eyes landed on Toren. With his outstanding uniform, it was easy for him to know who was the man in charge. "Hey! Do you know who I am?! I'm a renowned photographer and film maker in Reuthar! What business do you have with my arrest?!"
Toren sighed the man off as he ordered for the cell to be opened. His assistant complied to which he entered. He cracked his knuckles, his gaze turning cold as he spoke. "Renowned film maker?! Oh please do tell me what kind of film you make and the people behind such work as well." Sensing that something was wrong, the man backed away from the door.
*Bam*
A punch landed squarely on his face, the man scowled in pain as he backed away from Toren. "Argh!" His cries nothing more than noise to Toren as he landed a kick to the man's torso. "Hah!" The man wheezed, air escaping his lungs as his eyes widened with shock at the intensity. "Ah! Fuck you?! Are you trying to kill me?!"
Toren held the man up by his hair before crouching, his face that of disgust. "If I wanted to kill scum like you I would bother keeping you alive for this long. Just tell me who hired you for the scene you filmed two days ago!" The man's face showed bewilderment before a click of realization dawned on him.
"I- I'm sure that you know my client. His name is Jarren Velros! Now since you know who hired me can you let me go?!" His tone filled with hostility, his face portraying his hatred as his eyes bore into Toren's face as if wishing to burn him to death with a mere glance.
"But why would we let a man like you leave so easily? Seeing your work, it would be quite problematic to let you go so easily." Toren posed as he glanced at the man's hands. "And besides, do you think that you can just walk after what you did? Filming rape isn't something that we can ignore so casually."
'And with the recent events of Diana as of late, Atherion has grown rather hostile to such activities as well. If I were to kill you, no one would care but first...'
*Bam*
"Who are your other clients. I'm sure you have their contacts nearby." His men had already checked his phone and found a lost of clientele however they were all encrypted, something that would take a day to get past through. 'It would seem that the people he's working with aren't so simple.'
He mused in his head as his assistant made his way to him. "We know that the people you interact with are in the elite section. We've already uncovered your base of operations and people as wicked like you will meet the light of justice." They had come to know that they did more than just film rape.
The use of under aged, beasts and other odd fetishes as well. A group that had no purpose to live. 'With a war on the horizon, it's shocking to think that there are people out here thinking about nothing other than sex and other immoral activities.' He spat on the filmer letting go of his hair making his head crash hard onto the ground.
The man let out a low grunt before scampering to his feet. "It would be best for you to come clean, after all it's only a matter of time before we uncover every dirty little secret of yours! Toren's assistant mused, his tone wary and as cold as ice. The man however didn't cave in so soon as he broke into a frenzy of laughter.
"I'm sure that you'll find your... endeavors to be more complicated than you think. But I do admire your efforts." His tone filled with ridicule as he went back to his crazed laughs.
*Bam*
Toren landed a punch making the man stop glaring daggers at Toren. "We'll see who will have the last laugh after this." And with that he took his leave, opting not to waste another second with such a scum. His assistant caught up behind him. "Sir, what should we do with him?" Toren aware of what he was worried about.
"It would be best to have him here for now, after all killing him would make it too easy for the bastard and his men. Let them rot for their crimes." His face illuminated by the lights above showed his face of contemplation. 'As for those bastards behind him, they'll get their punishment as well.'
...
"Huh?" Seris hearing the news was sweating buckets. "But how?!" Upon a further breakdown of the matter, he let out a long winded sigh. "So those two are in the kingdom and are already causing problems for me." With the matters of the illicit affairs done in the world of film with him being a sponsor of the matter, he knew that he would have a lot to explain.
"But with their presence, they should be able to halt the progress of Toren's investigations but not completely." He clutched his head with frustration as he began to picture Toren's figure launching a barrage of questions at him. 'He was always so uptight with his job as well. It won't be easy for him to let it go so easy.'
His options were few and waiting for the two to make a move wasn't something he could do. 'I need something more immediate.' He paused for a minute before it clicked. 'As much as I don't want do this, Toren, you're forcing my hand by doing this.' He relayed his plans, the faces of his subordinates those of shock as expected.
"Don't ask too much about it, just makes sure it's done!" His tone final excusing them. 'As for those two, it's hard to say what they'll do.' He wasn't sure whether they would directly go for Atherion or James or someone else entirely. The next bit of information however intrigued him.
"However why would the two make move on Lirale? Or are they simply eradicating any potential student threats who figured out the death of Rhydian? If so then Vhorren should be the next suspect, if not him then that kid called Brose.' He sent his men to check on the two. 'A spell that can affect the entire kingdom, even my machines couldn't shield me from the stray illusions.'
He grit his teeth lamenting his weakness. 'If I was a bit stronger then I'm sure that Reuthar would have developed way further than it has now.' With the intentional neglect of technology as of late thanks to Guinevere's skill to breach them he was left with no active role to play in the ongoing war.
Acting as nothing more than a spectator in someone else's game. "These fools! Don't they see that technology is the future? Without it we'll fall short and meet our demise." His view of the risk of Guinevere breaching their system was to invest more onto technology however they didn't have the resources to do so.
With the war holding them by the choke hold in terms of food and water, the luxury of research was something they couldn't afford at the time. "How has it gone with the sterilization?" His face grim as he made his way through a sleek silicon hall. "I'm sorry minister but we've managed to make no form of progress whatsoever."
His brows furrowed, clearly not amused with the response he got. "But we have managed to make enough masks for the army and the civilians. Though a bit crude due the high demand but should suffice for three months." He was handed the task of making masks and researching the contamination of the plague.
Of which he viewed as less than in comparison to what Toren was doing. The former considered done and the latter still unable to crack. A tablet came this hands as he saw the vial of water contaminated with the plague. At a mere glance nothing wrong seemed wrong with it, glimmering like regular water but his reports spoke of contamination.
With a few flicks of his finger, he finally saw what he wanted. 'It would seem that this plague is impossible to kill. Resistant to both high and low temperatures on the extreme ends and can survive in a vacuum as well. Not to mention it can be transmitted through touch, air if concentrated and other means of sustenance such as food and water.'
The more he thought about it, the more unlikely it seemed to counter the plague. 'With no known flaws or problems, the synthesis of a cure will be even harder.' He gave a heavy sigh as he placed the tables to the side, his gaze fixated on the screen showing plague.
'Just what did she use to make this anomaly of a plague.' At first he thought that it would be the work of a modification of the abominations given their bizarre structures but they had limited while these didn't. 'It's almost as if it's not of this world. It doesn't follow any conditional rules of biology or reason at that.'
He made his way out of the laboratory and back onto his room. He sunk into his chair, the photo of two new toys of his coming into view. His frown vanished now replaced with a predatory grin. 'Before I meet my end might as well enjoy the last moments of it.' And with that he turned his computer off as his doors slid open.
***
"What should we do? I wanted to kill James but it'll get boring way too quickly. And with the death of Lirale, Brose and Vhorren are under constant supervision." Callista posed, her tone flat as she rested on his lap. His fingers combing through her silver strands of hair. "What's the rush? Are you already bored so soon?"
She looked into his eyes, met with a warm starry gaze. "What? As a cat I need something to keep me busy or I'll start ripping the couches and knock things over. To which I can't promise that things won't break." Her tone mischievous eliciting a chuckle out of Jarren. "You'll have to be more patient than that darling." His fingers rested on the collar around her neck.
His gaze sharpened as he jiggled them lightly. The room they were in an inn to stay, their faces masked with illusions. "I was thinking about something." His tone turning serious drawing in her attention. "What is it?" Her tone wary and hesitant. "It's about your collar, I forgot to tell you before that you don't always have to wear it in public anymore."
Her lips shot a laugh, pleased that it wasn't anything too grim. "Why would I take off my collar? You gave this to me as a gift and I'll naturally cherish it. Even though at the time I didn't appreciate it, now I'm more appreciative than ever to have it." Her tone warm and calm beaming an innocent smile.
"It's just that I was wondering whether it wasn't too tight around your neck is all? After all I could see a mark on your neck from here. Best to take it off for now." She snapped his approaching hand away. "Get away from my collar, it's mine. And Jarren, it doesn't bother me that much. Sure the sweat can get a bit problematic but it's okay."
The expression on his face incredulous. 'This woman!'