Chapter 3 – Tangles and Knots
by konkonocturneTracklist
Ennea sprung out of bed before her eyes had even managed to open. She tossed the blankets and pillows that had followed her back to where they belonged and rushed through her home—her real home—to get herself prepared and ready to go as soon as possible. There was no time to waste.
She skipped breakfast. That could wait. Instead, she got herself downstairs and out the door, taking to the streets.
The sun hadn’t even finished rising, leaving the sky pale with the occasional golden streak through it. As expected for the time, hardly a soul was out and about, making the race to The Stem a straight shot. Or at least as straight as Epiphany’s roads tended to be.
After a near 15-minute sprint (a personal best), Ennea slid to a stop in front of the Guard’s Hall. After just a moment gazing up at its imposing form, the Eevee scampered up the stairs and forced a door open, finding the inside nearly as empty as the roads she took.
Fine. She could handle this. Even though her footsteps seemed to boom down the Hall and alert the few guards inside to her presence, Ennea made her way back to the dungeon. This place was designed far more practically than Merx Manor. Easy to remember.
Right as she was about to open the door to the first storage room, it opened for her, causing both Ennea and the Zweilous on the other side to jump.
“Ack!” Salute cried. “What are you doing here?!”
Ennea shook off the nerves. “I’m here for Autumnal. You can unlock his cell, right?”
“No, Thyreos is the one—” One of Salute’s heads nipped the talking one on the neck, then took over speaking. “Hold it! Where in the world did you go yesterday?! I was finally cleared by those stupid manor guards, and then the Vulpix—I mean Autumnal—just suddenly showed up in front of me all alone! I thought he did something to you!”
“What? He didn’t—” Ennea winced in shame. “No, I was the one who did something. We got some bad news, and I left without him. We need to get back out there to find the truth.”
“You’ll have to wait. Thyreos is in charge of the cells. And he doesn’t show up before call.” Salute leaned on a nearby crate with his wing. “I’m surprised you’re the type get here early.”
Great, there was nothing worse than having to delay fixing your own mistakes. “Darn it… actually, wait.”
“That’s what I said.”
“No! I mean, this is a good opportunity. You fine answering some questions?”
Salute scowled. “No, I have to get ready. I’m not finished resupplying.”
“For justice?”
Salute sighed. “…Ask away.”
Ha! Got him! Unfortunately, Ennea had no one to share her look of victory with.
“Okay,” she began. “You got the rundown on the Merx Guards and their system, right? How was it?”
Salute gave a low grumble. “Yeah, I saw it. It’s totally stupid, and not righteous at all.”
His other head continued. “…But it’s insanely good. I couldn’t find a single flaw in it.”
“So, it’s perfect?”
“I didn’t say that.” You could feel the spite emanating from Salute. “An underhanded system like theirs could never be perfect. But it’s hard to find the flaws, even from the inside. Everyone’s hidden, and who guards where is changed depending on a secret, 18-day plan. There’s usually at least 2 guards to a given area—but never the same 2. There might be blind spots, but they’d be hard to find, and rarely useful. Basically, it’s made so that even if half the guards fail, the system still succeeds.”
Ennea placed a paw over her mouth. “So, it probably can’t be broken unless you know a lot about it.”
“Yeah.”
“What about the guards? Just who exactly is on the list? Any quadrupeds?”
“No, actually. Most are fliers, or ones that kinda look like it, like that Golduck. Beaks and stuff.”
Did he not know the term for—? Not important. Point was, it probably wasn’t a Merx Guard that did it.
“Maybe they leaked the plan to someone they know?” Ennea offered. “How dedicated did the guards seem?”
“Insanely.” Salute turned a head and scoffed. “Dedicated to their backwards idea of justice. But dedicated. And most of them don’t know the whole plan. The thief had to figure it out on his own. Makes me wonder how long he planned it.”
…Ennea had a feeling Salute spent most of his time with the Merx Guards arguing. “Autumnal didn’t do it. His first day in town was after you arrested him.”
“Yeah, but he told you that, didn’t he?” Salute stood up straight. “I can’t accept his claims without proof.”
“Alright then. Then let’s talk the facts.” Ennea straightened herself as well, starting something of a stand-off with the dragon. “What exactly happened when you arrested him? What were the circumstances?”
“An old couple living outside the town walls reported a commotion in the night. I was in the Hall extra early, and Thyreos had been there working late, so we both decided to check it out. We found him lying unconscious in the forest.”
“The one near the lake?”
“Yes. He was hurt bad, and wouldn’t wake up, so I patched him up enough to get him stable and we brought him back to the Chief to figure out what to do. That was when we learned he was the thief, so we arrested him.”
“Wait.” Ennea leaned in. “You didn’t think he was the criminal until you brought him back?”
Salute tilted his heads. “How would we? We hadn’t heard of the theft yet.”
Ennea’s tail began to lash. “How exactly were you and Thyreos told? Were you both together?”
“Huh? Yeah, of course.”
“And what exactly were you told of the thief’s characteristics?”
“That they would’ve been severely injured, mostly blunt injuries likely to the legs or a single side, lining up with a bad fall. They would be quadrupedal.”
“And that’s it?”
“Yeah. What’s the problem?”
Oh, this was big. “No problem. You said the Chief told you, right? Any chance I can talk to them?”
“You shouldn’t,” Salute grumbled. “She’s already busy enough as it is.”
“But this is important! It has to do with the truth and justice!”
Salute gave a low exhale. “Fine… but only if she agrees to it.” The Zweilous pushed past Ennea. “Now I need to go finish daily prep. I’ll leave Thyreos a note about the cells and ask the Chief about a talk.”
It almost felt like a weight had lifted from Ennea’s shoulders. “Alright, that helps a ton! Thanks, Salute!”
The dragon straightened his back as he turned a head back towards Ennea. “Just trying to be civil. It’s my job. Now stay there, and don’t do anything stupid.”
Ennea decided to at least wait for Salute to leave the storage room before completely disobeying that request. She was not the kind of person to resist doing stupid stuff. Besides, even if she’d have to wait before Autumnal was allowed to go, she could still take this time to talk to him.
Sneaking into the dreary dungeon, Ennea found that one of the torches had gone out, making it even dimmer than before.
“Hey, Autumnal,” Ennea called. “You in here?”
The Eevee immediately bit her lip in frustration. She just remembered it was, like, 5 AM. She probably just woke him up.
“…Mhm,” came a familiar hum.
Oh, never mind! Ennea hopped up to the bars, and—
Had her heart drop. She awkwardly fidgeted mid step, no longer having the drive to complete the simple action.
Autumnal looked horrible, even worse than yesterday. His hair hung in a tattered mess over his eyes, like he’d completely given up on trying to see. Which was just as well, because the lines under those eyes were deeper than ever, underscoring the dull, dark look they had. It was like looking at spent charcoal.
“Um…” Ennea painfully began. “Did you… sleep well?”
The Vulpix shrugged, but it didn’t take an Ace Investigator to tell that the answer was no.
…I did this. He was counting on me to prove him innocent, and the moment something went wrong, I gave up. I abandoned him to his awful cell without even a parting word….
Autumnal waved his paw for a moment to get Ennea’s attention. He took a deep breath, before starting a complicated series of gestures.
He pointed at Ennea, then pointed to the door and nodded. He used his tails to create an imitation of a thumbs up, pointed to himself, then tapped a paw to his head a few times. Then he pointed to himself again, shook his head, and made an exaggerated scowl.
With a determined frown, Ennea set out to solve the riddle. Given which one he pointed to, the door might’ve been “exit,” the thumbs up could’ve been “good” or “fine,” the head tapping was definitely either “know” or “think,” and because of the head shake, the expression was something he probably wasn’t feeling….
Oh… Ennea realized what he was trying to say….
“You can leave me. It’s okay, I understand. I don’t blame you.”
“I—” Ennea stuttered for a moment, before shaking her head and forcing her determination to return. “What are you talking about? I can’t leave you here. How am I gonna solve this without the guy who found the secret garden?”
Autumnal shook his head, looking concerned as he grabbed a lock of his tangled hair for emphasis.
“Yeah, yeah, the thief looked like you. But yesterday, you said you didn’t do it.” Ennea gave a light smile as she leaned close to the bars. “You still sticking to that?”
After a hard look down to the stone bricks of the floor, Autumnal brought his head back up and nodded.
“Exactly! You didn’t do it, and I’m the only one with enough sense to realize that, apparently.” Ennea glanced at the door as it creaked open, Thyreos finally having arrived. “So, we’ll just have to keep going until we can convince everyone else. You can count on me, alright?”
…I promise, Ennea finished in her head. I won’t give up on you again. No matter what happens.
Thyreos stomped on up to the bars and crossed his arms.
“…Miss Ennea,” he greeted with disappointment.
Ennea purposely matched his expression. “Mister Thyreos.”
The Excadrill’s glare deepened for a tense moment before he gave up with a sigh. “You’re not supposed to be down here. Especially not without supervision.”
“To be fair…” Ennea pointed at Autumnal. “Neither is he. I thought we agreed that both of us would be solving this.”
“I had hoped that him coming back alone last night meant you had given up on that charade.”
Ennea nearly cringed, but hid it behind a smile. “Nope! We’re seeing this through. By the way, what exactly was the profile of the culprit again? I’m just so bad at this, I totally forgot.”
“Quadrupedal. Falling injury.”
He doesn’t know, either. “And that’s it?”
Thyreos shooed Ennea away from the cell. “Just get out of here already. I don’t have time to waste with your games.” He gave a bitter look past the bars. “But apparently, the Chief does.”
“She agreed to see me?”
“Inexplicably. Do not treat this lightly. She’s been so busy lately that she doesn’t even have time for us guards.”
That why you’re so touchy today? “Great. Can Autumnal see her, too?”
“Absolutely not. I have to examine him before he’s cleared to go.”
“Alright…” Ennea leaned around the Excadrill to address Autumnal. “I’ll be back in a bit. And remember, if he tries to touch you in a place or in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable….”
Autumnal raised an eyebrow. “Rglr’a bi fiis?”
“Stop.” Thyreos dropped the pretenses and actually pushed Ennea out of the room. “Upstairs. Chief’s office. Before I lose my temper.” And before she could even get a final word in, he slammed the door in her face.
Okay, to be fair, I was kinda asking for that one.
Unlike the stairs down, the stairs spiraling further up the Guard’s Hall were right out in the open, though it seemed the other guards stuck to the ground floor. Maybe all of them don’t want to bother the Chief? She must be really well liked….
Coming to a door in line with the entrance’s, Ennea hesitated for a moment. After steeling herself against the seemingly mile-high barrier standing over her, she gave the thing a good knocking.
“You can come in,” came a voice from the other side. An emphatic one, with good projection.
Ennea finally stopped holding her breath and took a moment of shoving to get the door open.
Chief Hiketeria’s office was designed in the same gothic manner as the rest of the hall, but couldn’t feel more different. The whole thing was utterly pristine. Every bit of masonry, the warm rug laid over the tiles, the potted bay laurels accenting the walls, the huge, well carved wooden desk… all were spotless, and without a single fault.
And at that desk, suffering behind a mountain of papers, was a strangely familiar Sawsbuck whose antlers were just beginning to flower. Oh, I guess that means it’s spring already….
Ennea entered, stepping into the multicolored light filtering in from the lone, stained-glass window behind the desk. As she did, Chief Hiketeria looked up from her work. Neither spoke as the two’s eyes met, though Ennea couldn’t shake the feeling that Chief Hiketeria wasn’t really looking at her.
At last, the Chief broke the silence with a gentle smile. “I certainly wasn’t expecting this. Am I under evaluation?”
Ennea practically snorted. “Yeah, right. Hilarious.” Like I would have the authority. “C’mon, I’m here to ask about the theft I’m investigating.”
“Yes, that was something of a shock to learn about.”
“Yeah… Salute said you chewed him out for the call. What gives?”
Chief Hiketeria used a cloth to wipe the ink off a pointed laurel branch growing from her hoof. “It’s just the kind of decision that really should have been run by me first. If the public hears that we’re outsourcing our investigations to untrained volunteers, it could harm their confidence in us.”
“Oh.” Ennea fidgeted for a moment. “I, um, didn’t think of that. Sorry.”
“Don’t worry, I understand. And I’m sure you’re doing a fine job, as well.” The Sawsbuck gave a look to the stacks of papers as her smile became pained. “I just can’t have the Town Council imposing even more bureaucracy upon us.”
Ennea couldn’t shake that familiar feeling. “The Council… they’re making things hard for you, huh? You seem really busy.”
“Immensely. Some of that’s my own fault, however. I tend to bite off more than I can chew. The Council hasn’t helped in that regard.”
Ennea tapped a paw to the ground as she thought. “Do you go up in front of them?” She decided to just come out an ask it. “It’s just… I feel like I’ve seen you before.”
“Yes, I go in front of them all the time. Especially recently, with the sewer renovation.”
No! Ennea’s mortal enemy: the sewers. “That’s right! You’re totally involved with that, aren’t you?!”
Chief Hiketeria raised a hoof to her chest as she blinked a few times. “I am. Is there something I should know?”
“I—” Ennea cut herself off. Personal vendettas would need to wait. “Never mind. I’m getting distracted. We need to talk about the crime.”
The Sawsbuck gave a strange smile, tilting her head. “Don’t you have anything better to do?”
“Um, not really?” Have you ever met me? My life is a cesspool. “Besides, this is important.”
“Fair enough. Ask away.”
“So then, what exactly is your relation to the case?”
Chief Hiketeria took a moment before chuckling. “Oh goodness, I’m a suspect to you, aren’t I?”
“Um, I-I mean—” Ennea stammered. Oh no, she figured me out!
“Don’t worry, I’m not upset. You’re just being thorough; examining every possibility. That’s certainly a virtue. Well….”
Chief Hiketeria pushed her seat back, standing up with a bit of effort before slowly turning, showing her full form to Ennea. Jeez, and I thought Calvera was in shape… she practically radiates strength!
“I’ve heard of the culprit’s characteristics from the Merxes,” Chief Hiketeria explained. “As you can see, I’m completely uninjured, and while quadrupedal, I don’t have anything that could resemble long hair—at least, not this time of year.”
She’s right… we’re two seasons off from when the look would be believable. “So you know about the hair thing.”
“I do.” The Chief shook her head. “But in my haste, I relayed the information to the other guards before I had all of it.”
“What do you mean?”
“I knew this would be a case The Council would want solved as quickly as possible, what with how integral the Merx family is to the town. Luckily, I actually heard about the theft before Lady Calvera had come to report it. I happened to pass a few of their guards as I was on my way to the Hall and overheard them talking. At the time, they skipped that detail about the hair. When Salute and Thyreos brought in the Vulpix, I noticed the uncanny similarities and informed them. Despite the odds, he lined up with the completed description, so I suppose all’s well that ends well.”
Shoot, that’s a blow to my theory. “So that’s really it? You don’t have anything else to do with the case?”
“No, I don’t. As it happens, I’m one of the few people to have an alibi at the time it occurred.”
“Really? That’s—” Ennea paused. “…Couldn’t you have just led with that?”
Chief Hiketeria gave a knowing smile. “I could have. But this way was more thorough. The crime happened… around 1 AM, right? I was with a friend of mine at the time.”
“You went out past curfew?”
She stifled a laugh. “Don’t tell Salute. To be fair to myself, we were both in her home, though I did leave after. She’s a combat instructor I’ve known for ages. We spar from time to time to keep our skills honed.”
Ennea supposed that would explain why Chief Hiketeria seemed to be in such excellent shape. “Any chance I could talk to this friend of yours?”
“Certainly. She’s a Mudsdale by the name of Kyniska. She lives in the Temporal Center of town. Salute should know the address.”
A Mudsdale, huh? “Alright. I… guess I’ll do that.”
Chief Hiketeria sat back down at her desk, giving a subtle grimace as she did. Guess she doesn’t like going back to paperwork.
“Anything else you’d like my testimony on?” the Sawsbuck asked.
“I don’t think so, no.” Ennea began to walk away, when the vendetta returned to the forefront of her mind. “Actually, yeah!” She spun around, pointing an accusatory paw at the Chief. “The sewers! They’re getting so much of the town’s budget, even though they’ve been off limits since the start of winter! No one can even work on them! What the heck!?”
“Oh, that?” Chief Hiketeria gave a pleasant sigh as she leaned forward on her desk. “Well, you’re right that no one can work on them, but there are still many costs. Material acquisition, and personnel, especially. Previously, we only had one man working on the renovations, and while he’s quite good, he needs a team. It’s better covering the costs of training and hiring now, so that the moment the weather permits it, work can immediately begin.”
“That—!” Ennea’s paw dropped back down to the ground. “…makes a lot of sense, actually.”
“Well, I would hope so!”
Ennea brought that paw to her forehead. “I just wish The Council had told me that! I fought them on that call so many times, and they never did anything but shoot me down without an explanation. I never would’ve wasted so much breath on it if I’d known the reasoning.”
“Yes, The Council can be that way. Don’t tell anyone, but I’m not much of a fan of theirs, either, even if I do have to work with them a lot. So many unnecessary forms and systems. It makes it difficult to do any real good for people these days. Besides…”
Chief Hiketeria looked directly at Ennea with a smile. “Clearly, they don’t recognize greatness when they see it.”
Ennea’s heart skipped a beat. Does— does she mean what I think she means, with that?
“Well, you’d best be going,” Chief Hiketeria continued. “I’m certain that Salute’s waiting for you by now.”
“U-um, right. Thanks for the help… and the nice words.”
“Think nothing of it. Let me know if you all need anything else.”
After leaving the Chief’s office, Ennea had to sit down and think.
I guess that my whole theory about the intentional description change was wrong. Does that mean I should suspect Autumnal again?
…No, I’m not going to. He said he didn’t do it when I asked both times, and I’m going to believe him. Especially since he seems most worried about how the case will impact me…. Not to mention, there’s still something weird going on with this whole thing.
When Ennea thought through the events she’d been told about, one word came up uncomfortably often: after.
Chief Hiketeria didn’t know about Autumnal until after he was brought in by Salute and Thyreos, who didn’t know the criminal’s characteristics until after they’d supposedly found said culprit. And the Merxes didn’t even realize they’d been robbed until after they’d already seen the thief escape. That one in particular bothered Ennea to no end. She just couldn’t buy that this was an open and shut case.
And besides, she had promised that she wouldn’t give up on Autumnal. Sure, it was just in her head… but the things in her head were important to Ennea.
No giving up. That also meant no more sitting around. Ennea made her way back down the stairs to the now much busier ground floor, where Autumnal and Salute were waiting. It seemed like Autumnal was being told some sort of story, but Ennea couldn’t hear for the life of her in the boominess of the morning rush. Whatever it was, it had his total attention, and was just wrapping up.
With how much her ears were starting to hurt, Ennea waited to say anything until they were outside on the front steps.
“Alright!” she announced, a bit quieter than usual. “Back to business. I got some info from Chief Hiketeria. Salute, you all finished with daily prep?”
“Of course!” Salute puffed his chest out. “Wasting others’ valuable time wouldn’t be charitable!”
“Nice!” Ennea didn’t know what kind of stuff he needed resupplied, but it was probably important. “Autumnal, you feeling any better? Thyreos didn’t mess you up, did he?”
Autumnal shook his head. The shackles and collar were back on. Well, actually, they were never off. It didn’t seem like Thyreos had ever bothered to remove them. It was sort of why Ennea had asked.
“Oh,” Ennea murmured as she saw a chain hanging from his collar. “It looks like Bezel’s knot came undone. Here.”
Ennea sat down behind Autumnal and began to refasten his chain. She still wasn’t totally sure why having it hidden was so important, but Bezel acted like it was, so it probably did improve his image.
Autumnal’s discomfort was palpable. The whole time, his body stayed tense, and his tails were twisting in on themselves. At one point, Ennea accidentally brushed a paw against his neck and he visibly jolted. It complicated the process, but Ennea managed to pull through, even if it wasn’t as good as Bezel could have done.
“Um… Autumnal?” Ennea asked afterwards, circling back around to face him. Despite everything, his face was still static. “Do you not like being touched?”
It would explain a few things. He had also avoided Bezel’s touch, and while he remained steady when Calvera had threatened him, she never actually laid a talon on him.
As expected, Autumnal gave a slow nod.
“What, are you a germophobe or something?”
He shook his head, and stuck both paws out, before swapping their positions.
“Does that mean… reverse? The opposite? The opposite of a germophobe?”
“Mm. Mm.” Autumnal nodded.
“So you’re a… germophile?”
“Gross,” Salute chimed in.
Autumnal quickly shook his head and a paw. Clearly not. He pursed his lips and thought for a long moment as his tails repeatedly curled and uncurled behind him. Huh, didn’t notice that before….
Waving a paw to draw Ennea’s attention back to him (well, technically she was still focused on him, just the wrong part), Autumnal began a series of gestures.
He crossed his paws to make the “opposite” signal again, then made a show of un-swapping them. A germophobe…
He mimed getting touched, then shook his head. …Doesn’t like being touched…
He pointed to an invisible Pokémon, then made a “bleh” face. …Because other people are filthy.
He shifted his shoulders, then pointed to himself. But I…
He mimed getting touched, then shook his head. …Don’t like being touched…
He slapped a paw to his chest, then made the “bleh” face. …Because I’m filthy.
“Oh!” Ennea gasped as she figured it out. “You just feel like you’re too dirty to be touched? I mean, we can make a stop at the baths.”
Autumnal shrugged while looking away. “Ur’a l vur niew dybslnwbrlk rglb rglr… vyr ayew.”
“Is that really a good use of your time?” Salute asked.
“Yeah!” One of Ennea’s ears dropped, while the other stuck further up. “I mean, I think so. It’s kinda demeaning to be unable to bathe, right?”
Salute’s heads gave Autumnal a look over. “He doesn’t look much worse than when I found him.”
“By the sound of it, he was half-dead when you did, so that’s really not a good thing…. Plus, I honestly just need some time to figure out where to investigate. It’s not as easy as it was yesterday.”
“Fine. But…” Salute took a deep breath, then stomped a foot down in a dramatic show. “I’m not taking a bath!”
Ennea and Autumnal shared a look.
“Okay?” No one ever said you had to….
“…I already took one today,” Salute continued.
Maybe he just wanted to feel included. “Alright then, team! Let’s go!”
The bathhouse was a relatively new addition to Epiphany, meant to discourage using the nearby lake and upsetting its denizen. Despite that, it was built to try and look far older. It could never replicate the storied look of a place like the Guard’s Hall, but its design did give it an appearance almost like a temple. A temple of cleanliness.
Salute finished a quick lap around the establishment.
“I found all the possible exits,” he announced on return. “So I’ll guard out here.” He pointed a claw at Autumnal. “No escape attempts.”
“Alright, fair enough. We’ll be back soon.” Ennea gave Salute a nod. “Make sure to keep the peace and justice!”
“…Good to see we’re on the same page.”
Luckily, because the building was on the newer side, the inside was incredibly nice. Multicolored tiles created vague images on the floor and walls, helping make the wait before they could get a pair of stalls much more bearable.
After running out of shapes to trace, Ennea’s eyes wandered back to Autumnal, whose tails were curling again. One of them was ajar from the rest, making their motion almost look like a hand repeatedly trying to grasp something out of reach.
“What’re you thinking so hard about?” she asked.
Autumnal’s ears shot straight up, and he gave Ennea a confused look. How did you know?
With a growing smile, Ennea pointed them out. “I was right, wasn’t I? Your tails fidget in a pretty specific way. Like you’re literally trying to grab the truth.”
The Vulpix looked back at his tails with a strange awe. “U… susb’r ewlkumw U arukk gls rglr. U rgiyfgr ur qla fibw….”
“You didn’t realize?”
He nodded. Visibly putting the issue aside, Autumnal pantomimed scrubbing himself with something.
“Hm?” He was thinking about cleaning himself? Why would that be such a— “Oh! You’re wondering what you’re gonna do about soap?”
He nodded again, his tails betraying that he was still trying to figure it out.
“I mean, you can just borrow mine.”
Autumnal gasped and recoiled.
“Wha—c’mon, it’s soap!” Ennea pulled out a bar from the bag she’d brought today for emphasis. “Don’t be weird about it! I used to mooch off my siblings’ all the time back in the day.” To be fair, that was when she was a lot younger, and they were related, so maybe she could see where he was coming from.
Autumnal shook his head and brushed a paw through his hair. It got caught on the tangles.
“See, you totally need this!” Ennea stowed her bag and bangle in a locker, but kept the soap. “You’ve got mine, take it or leave it.”
With a slight sigh, Autumnal gave up. A total, logic-based victory. That was the kind of argumentative skill Ennea would need in court, soon.
Public baths could never hold a candle to private ones, but at the very least, these ones were nice. Ennea managed to get them two stalls right next to each other, so they could still talk. Or, at least, Ennea could talk to Autumnal.
“Actually,” Ennea thought aloud. “I’ve been meaning to ask. Your garbled language is consistent, right?”
“U rgubj.”
“Can you say ‘yes?’”
“Twa.” Water could be heard flowing down from the other side. Autumnal must have activated the shower. Probably helped with the hair.
“Can you say ‘yes’ again?”
“Twa lflub.”
“That was different than—” Ennea paused. “…Did you literally say ‘yes again?’”
“Twa.”
“Pfft. Alright. What about ‘no?’”
“Bi.”
“Wait, I’ve heard that one a few times.”
“Twa.”
“Well, I guess we can play 20 Questions now. Heads up, soap incoming.” Ennea tossed the thing over the divider. She waited for a splash, but it never came. Oh wow, he actually caught it.
“Anyway,” Ennea continued. “Do you have any ideas for where to investigate today? The only thing I was told about was Chief Hiketeria’s alibi.”
Autumnal made a few clicking sounds with his mouth. It almost sounded like he was trying to replicate… a lock?
“Oh! That’s right, the safe maker! Ward, I think? We should totally check that out.”
“Mm. Mm.”
“But then what after….” Ward was probably going to tell them that his work was impeccable. It wouldn’t be good business to readily admit to your product’s faults. “I just… feel a bit more lost than I think I should. Solving a mystery is a lot harder than it seems when you’re just reading about it.”
The water on Autumnal’s side stopped. Good timing, since Ennea was already out and trying to dry enough not to drip everywhere.
He emerged after a bit of a delay. Both of them were soaked through and through, which was a pretty humbling look for their species. Autumnal handed Ennea back the soap. It was spotless, without a hair clinging to it. …Did he seriously go through the effort of cleaning it off after he was done?
“Right, come this way!” Ennea led Autumnal to a grate on the floor. “I love the way they do drying here.”
Pulling a rope nearby caused a bell to ring far below them. Somewhere beneath the grate, a bit of shuffling could be heard, which was all the warning they got before a hurricane of warm air blasted up from below, nearly knocking both Ennea and Autumnal off their feet. When it ended, they were both completely dry and very poofy.
“Most people never think about how useful Flying-Types can be when they’re down low,” Ennea laughed, while smoothing herself back down. “Bet you’ve never done it like that, huh?”
Autumnal shook his head and used his paws to mime fire all around him.
“Wait, you just incinerate yourself to dry?! That’s kinda hardcore!”
Autumnal shrugged while brushing his fur, hair draped over his face. He was immune to fire. After getting his coat in order, he threw his hair back. Still unkempt, but now much neater. Flowy, even. Somehow, he’d managed to reapply his eyeliner, too.
“Yeah, there you go! Not bad.”
“Rglbja…” Autumnal mumbled while looking away. “U sib’r rgubj U xlb nwlayew yo ri tiy, rgiyfg.”
“Now we’ve just gotta figure out the approach to today’s investigation….”
Autumnal waved a paw to get Ennea’s attention. He started the next series of gestures by swiping his paw, nabbing something.
“The theft?”
He nodded, then pointed back to his tails, all bunched together until he split them into four groups.
“…Can be divided in four?”
“Mhm.” He pointed to the first group, then made a barrier with one paw, while the other snaked in below.
“The… entrance? The break-in?”
“Twa.” He went to the next group, then pretended to operate a dial and open something.
“The safe. When they broke it open.”
He nodded again, then moved on to the next group. For this one, he made a wide gesture to himself.
“You? Cleaned up? Wait! The appearance? The quadruped, injured, and long hair thing?”
Autumnal gave several quick nods. Seemed like he was glad that one came across. He got to the final group, and gave a short hop away.
“And the exit.”
There are four parts of this case, Ennea mentally summarized. How the thief entered, how they cracked the safe, why they looked the way they did, and how they got out…. Yeah, he’s right. Thinking about it as four separate puzzles makes it a lot easier.
They essentially had four avenues of attack; any one of them could potentially prove Autumnal innocent. It was just about figuring out which was the most likely one and starting there.
In that case, the safe is probably our best bet. It had so many extra protections… which means there’s a very limited amount of ways it could be broken. If how they did requires a specific move or ability, that would automatically acquit him!
“Hey, that’s actually really helpful!” Ennea ran back to the lockers to get her stuff as quickly as possible. Autumnal followed close behind. “In that case, we definitely should stop by Ward’s as soon as possible!”
Bursting back out to the streets greeted them with Salute, dutifully watching over the town. Ennea rushed up to meet him.
“C’mon, we’re all ready, so it’s time to go!”
“What?!” he cried. “Why are you in such a rush now?!”
“An Ace Investigator has no time to waste!” Ennea went down a winding road while calling back. “We figured out where to look!”
Salute grumbled, but joined in on the run. Honestly, Ennea was glad that everyone here could keep up with her.
They eventually had to slow down to check the individual address of Ward’s place. When they did find it, it made the search feel a little pointless, due to the large sign literally reading “Ward’s Locksmithing” on the front. It was a decently large building for a resident, with several different sections making it look like a bit of a mishmash of shapes. At the very back, a large chimney was billowing out smoke.
The trio filtered into the shop, only to find it unpopulated. Where was Ward? Still energetic, Ennea hopped up to a desk at the front, standing on her hind legs while laying her front on the counter. She peered over, finding only an empty seat and some drawers. Not here…. Feeling a few sets of eyes on her, Ennea looked back to find Autumnal staring at her skeptically, and both of Salute’s heads shaking in disappointment.
“I was— look,” she defended. “He could have been under there! Who knows, maybe he pulled some sorta all-nighter and fell asleep!”
Autumnal, incredibly, paused and seemed to actually consider this possibility before pointing to a hall past Enena, offering that Ward was just further inside.
Right. I guess the chimney was smoking. He’s probably working back there. Ennea scanned the desk for a moment before finding a bell, which she wasn’t about to resist. Ding-ding-ding!
“I’ll be there in a moment!” an older voice called from the back.
Ennea got down from the counter and gave a small sigh. That was a bit of a disappointment… she wasn’t in much of a mood to wait.
With nothing else to do, she scanned the store. On every side were shelves and shelves of locks. Large ones, small ones, practical ones, ornate ones, and everything in between. A few looked less like functional locks and more like puzzles. Lots of safes were around on the floor as well, just as varied. There were so many that the walls had to be incredibly high to fit them all.
“Gwt kiij, l klsswe.” Autumnal got Ennea’s attention. He was pointing to a ladder at the far end, likely used to reach the high shelves. Why was he making such a big deal of it?
Wait. There was no way. Was he…?
“Actually,” Ennea helpfully corrected. “That’s a stepladder. A ladder would have rungs. You’d be surprised how many people don’t know that difference.”
Autumnal made a big show of rolling his eyes. “Swrluka, swrluka….” He held it for a moment before finally breaking into an expectant look.
Ennea held her own purposely condescending expression for as long as she possibly could before breaking into a small fit of giggles. “No way… you read those, too?” There was a series of courtroom dramas Ennea was a fan of. Ladders, stepladders, and the eternal debate between the two was a running gag in them.
Autumnal gave a nod and used his tails for a thumbs up.
“Oh, thank goodness! I was worried nobody got what I was going for and thought I was just crazy overconfident with the whole ‘Ace Investigator’ thing.”
Autumnal shook his head and pointed to himself. I got it.
The grin on Ennea’s face grew as she began to talk faster. “See, this is how I know you’re innocent! It’s never actually the defendant! Nine— I mean, four and a half times out of five, it’s someone introduced on the second day, so we’re gonna find our culprit soon.” Maybe they should stay on their toes with Ward. “Although I’ve gotta say, I’m a bit disappointed. The witnesses are supposed to all be total weirdos, but nobody’s felt like that so far.”
Ennea looked back at Salute, who was standing at a perfect attention… except for one of his two heads chomping down on a nearby potted fern.
“…Well, almost nobody.”
“What?!” Salute shouted, far too loud for indoors. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”
“Oh, calm down. I think it’s a good thing.”
Both of Salute’s heads spoke at the same time.
“Well, I’m not!” said the attentive one.
“Well, if it’s a good thing….” said the fern eater.
“Huh! So you can disagree!” Maybe Ennea needed to stop referring to Salute with just a singular “he.” She looked back to Autumnal for support, but stopped at the sight before her.
Hey… hey, he finally smiled. It was hard to notice because it was so slight, just a subtle curve upwards at the edges of his mouth, but Ennea could tell. Autumnal was smiling. She gave him one of her own in return. I’m glad I could at least make things better for you in that way.
What with how she almost gave up, and just who she was in general, Ennea wasn’t truly sure she could prove Autumnal innocent. But if not, she could do this at the very least, right? She could keep him out of his cell, and try to make these days before the trial a bit better for him. If nothing else, he wouldn’t have to suffer alone.
…No. Ennea dismissed those thoughts. Just in time, as Ward’s hoofbeats could be heard approaching.
“Right! Back to the case! Ennea: Ace Investigator and her team are gonna crack this thing wide open!” She nodded to Autumnal, and was only bolstered further when he nodded back. She was going to solve this. No “ifs.”
Taking his place at the front counter was a Wyrdeer with tiny glasses, clearly getting up there in age. From his antlers hung several smithing tools. Somehow, they never seemed to fall off, despite how precarious they were.
“Hello,” he greeted. “In the need for anything to be locked down?” He gave a glance to Autumnal’s shackles. “I don’t do people, but I can help with just about anything else!”
“Um, no, not today. You’re Ward, right? Are you cool answering a few questions for us?”
“That I am! What information do you need uncovered?”
Nice, not a hassle! “You might’ve heard, but the Merx family was recently robbed. Did you know about it?”
Ward nodded. “I heard. It’s impossible not to have.”
“Alright, alright.” Now that Ennea thought about it… a beard was kinda like long hair, right? “How’re you feeling? I mean, it was one of your safes, right?”
“It was!” Ward beamed. “One of my finest works!”
Ennea blinked. “You seem… weirdly happy about it. Are you feeling alright?”
“Oh, of course! It’s just fascinating to me whenever something like this happens.”
I should’ve paid more attention to how he sounded when walking. “What about physically? Everything in good shape there?”
“Well, my legs have been cramping up for the past while, nothing major. My last checkup seemed quite good otherwise. I’m touched you’re so considerate! Might I ask who you are, in fact?”
“Ah, well. I’m Ennea. I’m investigating the crime on my own terms.” She gestured to Autumnal. “I’m trying to prove him innocent.”
“Very good! Quite considerate, indeed!”
Yeah, not as much as you’d think. I’m still doing this for selfish reasons. “Anyway, the safe. You made it, right? How long ago was that?”
Ward gave a wistful look to some of his nearby locks. “Oh, it would have been over a decade ago. The Merxes asked for the greatest safe I could make, and I delivered. Of all the ones I’ve crafted, that one is still my favorite.”
“But it did get cracked. Doesn’t that mean there’s a flaw in it?”
“Of course!”
“…Huh?”
Ward levitated over several locks in a ring, all of them breaking open as they drew near. “Locks are meant to be opened! Something hidden has no value until it’s found! I wouldn’t dare to try and craft an unbreakable lock!”
…Okay, make that two weirdos. Then again, Ennea kinda got it. “So… did you make it with an intentional flaw, then?”
“Oh, never. I simply trust that a skilled, enterprising individual will find a way. It’s like a game, you see? I create challenges for people to overcome. There’s nothing else like it.”
“So, would you have any ideas for how the thief did break your safe?”
“Hmm.” Ward’s locks clattered down onto his desk. “Why, yes! I believe I can think of one or two, depending on the safe’s current condition.”
“Great! What are they?”
Ward gave a tricky grin. “Well, I can’t just tell you! What kind of gamemaster allows his players to win for free?”
Never mind. This was a hassle. A very big one.
“So,” Ennea sighed. “You’re not going to help us at all.”
“Oh, no, please don’t be mistaken! I have just the thing.” Ward retreated into the back. After a moment, he returned, with a small, black-purple safe sitting on a levitating platter. He slid it off, landing onto the counter with a thud.
“Here you are! The model replica of the Merx safe. A 1:9 scale of the real thing. You can use this to puzzle out the solution.”
“Wait, really? We can have this?”
Ward chuckled. “I already sold the real deal, so why not? I’ll be interested to see what answers you find.”
“Alright, cool! Can you levitate it over?” Even small, it looked pretty heavy.
“Afraid I can’t! It’s made with the exact same materials, so it breaks both Psychic and Ghost techniques.”
“Oh.” Ennea had no idea how she was going to lift it, let alone carry it around.
Salute sighed. “Let me.” He chomped onto it with both heads, seemingly ignoring the fact he was biting down on solid metal, and placed the safe on his back. “There. I’ve managed worse.”
“There you are!” Ward tapped a hoof to the ground. “Now you have everything you need to solve the case!”
“I feel like that’s my line…” Ennea murmured. “But yeah, I guess so. I guess there’s not much more to ask, too. Thanks for… well, posing even more questions, I guess.”
“It’s my favorite thing to do!”
The trio left the shop, one of them with a much heavier weight on him. Ennea looked between Autumnal and Salute, then to the sun overhead. It was getting close to noon.
So far, things had only gotten extra complicated. More people, and fewer answers. Four possible trails to follow, and infinite possibilities on how they’d go about it.
She glanced back to Autumnal, now looking much better than he did at the start of the day, in more ways than one. At the very least, she was staying the course, and had done some good on the way. They had a tool that could give answers, and enough testimony that if anyone tried to lie, there would be contradictions.
Yeah, Ennea was certain. By the end of the day, she’d have answers. It was time to untangle that corkboard in her dream.
1. Salute ~ Due Process (ND Arrangement) END POINT
2. Chief Hiketeria ~ Remember What You Fight For END POINT
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