Day 11~Investigation {Steven and Cynthia}

[CYNTHIA]

Who knew Lucarios could cook?

Cynthia certainly didn't until she met Anubis. Anubis cooked much better than Cynthia ever dreamed of and making a nice, herbal tea for Erika to enjoy was no exception. Despite the fact that she didn't really know Erika, Cynthia was confident that the former gym leader would enjoy this very fine tea. "It would soothe the soul," that's what Ani had said at least.

In one hand, she swung her tea kettle (with the lid tightly on) merrily, the steam rising up to envelop her in the sweet smell of foreign goodness. The other hand held grasped Steven's hand tightly. Even a visit to a notorious prison couldn't dampen Cynthia's mood. She was on the top of the world right now. Nothing could bring her down. Or so she thought.

As they neared the gates of the prison, Cynthia saw infamous red and blue lights flashing. That was never a good sign but the former Champion waved this off. Just a routine prison check. Or something. She told herself. She leaned closer to Steven though, wary now that they approached the gates. They rounded the bend.

And the sight ahead of her made Cynthia stop in her tracks and drop her kettle, spilling Erika's tea all over the pavement.

[STEVEN]

[atrb=style,border-top: 8px solid #689ab4; border-bottom: 8px solid #689ab4; border-left: 2px solid #689ab4; border-right: 2px solid #689ab4; -moz-border-radius: 30px;][bg=494949][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,420,true][atrb=width,20%][atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=background, i56.tinypic.com/23mtpnr.jpg] NOT GONNA GET US Starting from here, let's make a promise you and me, let's just be honest we're gonna run, nothing can stop us even the night that falls all around us words: 272 - tagged: cynthia - notes: meemeep THE

[/color][/font] world felt so much different in Steven's heart and mind. Ever since accepting Cynthia into his life, his thoughts felt so much clearer. It was quite lovely, having her around the house to talk to, to vent on, to love all over. Yet, her Pokemon and his own still have a bit of a way to go before they get along, but he wasn't too much worried about progress.
There wasn't much moments where he didn't feel Cynthia's delicate hand holding his.

Today, he planned on visiting Erika again, alongside Cynthia. She had brought tea for the poor girl, as she always promised, and she was quite eager to travel. Then again, traveling with her always was enjoyable, as it made the regions feel all the more romantic, in a way. However, awaiting them at the gates of prison was the aftermath of a dark deed.
Hospital vans? Bodies?...W-what the he-

"Steven, so glad you can get to us!" one of the guards came to the champion duo, not even noticing the fallen kettle before them. "My word, I-I didn't know what happened. Who in the world would-"
"Erika."
"... excused me?"
"It was Erika."the guard came to say with a saddened tone. "We didn't see much evidence, and not many guards survived the ordeal, but we did recover tapes of Erika's acts against them." At those words, Steven would very much wish to faint. He took a step back, looking to Cynthia and holding her hand ever so tightly. He had to do something. "We have to go in...I want to get to the bottom of this.", he came to say with a soft and stern tone.[/div]

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[CYNTHIA]

The guard explained that Erika had done whatever had happened in the prison. Cynthia shuddered at the sight of the body bags coming out of the building, no doubt guards. Erika...? And to think that Cynthia was going to bring her tea! The former-Champion couldn't help but feel a cold fury towards Erika. But how had she caused all this suffering? It just seemed so out of character for one that Steven had described as calm, nice, and passionate about plants. And Erika was Steven's friend. There was something more definitely at work here.

Most of the guards that exited the building looked very much sick and Cynthia could only imagine what was inside. But Steven wanted to go in and Cynthia would follow him. But not without help. She released Anubis from his pokeball and the Lucario stood strong despite the death around him. Cyntthia needed Ani, the Lucario could read the Aura and this skill definitely helped in an investigation. Which is what this whole situation would turn into, Cynthia was sure of that. Despite this, Ani looked at the spilled tea with disdain, eyeing Cynthia with loathing for a moment before getting back to the task at hand. She rubbed her Lucario's head affectionatly but Anubis only pointed to a rather large News Channel 9 camera. Cynthia groaned inwardly. The last thing she wanted to do was be videotaped. Surely it would cause a stir, her grand reappearance. But there were more important issues than her own discomfort at the moment.

"I-I'll come with you. But there's something wrong here, something more... Well, something deeper than just Erika," Cynthia told him, squeezing his hand and looking quite a bit more tired than she actually felt. Still, her eyes were bright as she looked at Steven, her normal mix of emotions surfacing. But this wasn't exactly a normal situation and the whole aspect of playing NCIS was making Cynthia very weary. Though she paled slightly at the thought of what they would find inside, she knew it wasn't the blood or the gore that would bother her. No, what would bother her would be finding out if Erika actually did it. Or if not, what kind of monster was capable of such carnage.

[STEVEN]

[atrb=style,border-top: 8px solid #689ab4; border-bottom: 8px solid #689ab4; border-left: 2px solid #689ab4; border-right: 2px solid #689ab4; -moz-border-radius: 30px;][bg=494949][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,420,true][atrb=width,20%][atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=background, i56.tinypic.com/23mtpnr.jpg] NOT GONNA GET US Starting from here, let's make a promise you and me, let's just be honest we're gonna run, nothing can stop us even the night that falls all around us words: 251 - tagged: cynthia - notes: meemeep WATCHING

[/color][/font] Anubis being called out gave Steven a bit of reassurance.The Lucario would surely come to help in this investigation, and especially with it's own aura abilities. Taking out a Pokeball, the Hoenn champion called out his Armaldo, Vogesite. With a flutter, the Pokemon began to lead the way for the two adults to follow through, deeper within the prison.

It was just as Steven imagined, almost even worse. Dried bloodstains covered the floor and walls of the corridors, and some bodies were still laid about, like untouched relics of a war long forgotten, the kind of thing that anyone would wish to forget. Vogesite landed onto the floor and started to scout out the cells as his trainer came to turn to Anubis. "Try and see if you can sense any traces of Pokemon aura...or anyone else out of place..." he softy said to the Lucario before going over to look into one of the fallen guards.

He came to turn him over to face him, a look of despair as Steven shielded his nose and mouth in certain disgust. Slowly, his emotions towards Erika were distorted and burning. Why would she do any of this? Would she even be capable? Judging by the wounds, it would seem that she had some kind of help from something...he wouldn't think that a Bellossom would be capable of broadsword-like slashes.

"Erika...Cyn, I'm so sorry that you have to see all of this..." he came to say, on his knees with madness all around the walls.[/div]

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[CYNTHIA]

"It's okay," Cynthia knelt down beside Steven and placed a hand on his shouleder, trying to comfort him as much as possible. Erika was his good friend, someone that he obviously felt very bad for. Thoughts of every crime show she had ever watched (not surpisingly, she hadn't watched all that many) flashed through her mind, and she was thinking about things they would need. "Gloves," Cynthia said aloud. "We need gloves, there might be DNA evidence or something. Hold on, I'll be right back." She ran off to talk to some of the medical people who were there to collect the bodies.

A minute or two later, the former-Champion was back with two pairs of latex gloves and two steaming coffee mugs. Anubis was inspecting some of the bloodstains on the wall, running his paw over them with his eyes closed, feeling the aura around them. Cynthia patted his shoulder as she passed but if the Lucario noticed, he showed no sign.

Cynthia approached Steven again and put the coffee down, handing him gloves to pull on as she snapped her own into place. After this, she picked up the mugs and handed the disposable styrofoam mug to Steven with understanding eyes. She knelt down beside him again and looked at the body in confusion. "She had a Kabutops? Or a Scyther? The markings, they look like that of a blade or something..."

Anubis approached the two with a grim expression on his face. "What is it Ani?" Cynthia asked and the Lucario touched her shoulder with his paw. Instantly, images, mainly just of color and sound without distinct shapes, filled the woman's mind. She saw flashes of color that she knew were the auras of living creatures, dark browns, whites, icy blues, reds, and the most disturbing aura of all, a dark swirl of black and gray that moved in an eratic fashion throughout the scene, most certainly a person. Though the images may not have made sense to most, Cynthia understood after years of this kind of communication that these were the distinct auras of people. And none of the pokemon were grass types, she knew that. And she was guessing that the person was not Erika.

"Anubis says... that there was someone else here. The pokemon that did this... They weren't grass types." Cynthia reported to Steven, rubbing her hand along his shoulder to make him feel better. She took a sip of her coffee. She was going to need all the caffine she could get.

[STEVEN]

[atrb=style,border-top: 8px solid #689ab4; border-bottom: 8px solid #689ab4; border-left: 2px solid #689ab4; border-right: 2px solid #689ab4; -moz-border-radius: 30px;][bg=494949][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,420,true][atrb=width,20%][atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=background, i56.tinypic.com/23mtpnr.jpg] NOT GONNA GET US Starting from here, let's make a promise you and me, let's just be honest we're gonna run, nothing can stop us even the night that falls all around us words: 285 - tagged: cynthia - notes: o3o A

[/color][/font] hand came to comfort the poor man, like cold droplets of water. This was all coming as a shock to Steven, and having Cynthia for comfort was helping with things. As she left for the moment, he turned to see her drift off, leaving him to sit up and lean onto an empty wall, trying to calm himself.

None of this makes any sense., Steven said to himself.
There had to be something at work, there was just no way. He wanted to believe otherwise. Erika was Erika, and whoever kind of inhuman monster that would slaughter a whole prison was not the Erika he ever knew. There had to be something...

Cynthia eventually returned, with some coffee and gloves. If he was going to investigate properly, he may as well go through the whole shebang, whether he wanted to or not. He took a sip of the fragile cup, leaning closer to his dearest as he recollected his thoughts. Alright, the first we should do is check- "What is it Ani?"
Steven was caught off-guard by Anubis's apparent results, blinking as the Lucario came to communicate with Cynthia. It was quite the first time that the Hoenn champion came to see such a phenomena, and what an interesting sight it was. She came back to him to tell of the visions. Colors and chaos all around, with a prominent image of a woman in black and white. So, she did had help. "I see. There's someone else at the mix of this." Steven came to ponder, while holding onto Cynthia ever so closely. "With this, would anyone else come to believe us? They seemed quite content with scapegoating Erika, if this is to be true."
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[CYNTHIA]

Would anyone want to believe that Erika wasn't a psychopathic murderer? Probably not. They were perfectly content with blaming her as Steven pointed out. But it wasn't like a person can walk without a trace and go about murdering dozens. The person who comitted this crime would have to leave something behind. You can't just disappear.

"Well, we could always turn that around. This isn't Erika's work. I don't believe that she did this, not for one minute. Now, I'm not saying that she is completely innocent, but for all we know, she could be this maniac's prisoner. If we have hard evidence of some kind, we can completely prove that Erika is not to blame. We just need some DNA evidence, a fingerprint, something that we can prove." The woman pressed closer to Steven, shuddering a bit. The death all around was really getting to her.

Cynthia suddenly looked a bit more guilty, more depressed, She realized that the logic needed to prove Erika's innocence at this crime would make things more difficult for her. "What is the motive here Steven? If she already confessed to being a traitor, why would anyone take her back? Unless Erika had more information. If she was a liability. We prove that she was broken out by someone else, we'll screw her over if she gets caught. If she just let herself out, I mean even that's understandable. But the fact that someone broke her out with all this trouble, it makes you wonder... I'm so confused. But even I know that this is not going to end well, not for anyone." Cynthia stood up fast and held out her hand to help Steven up. "We might as well go check out her cell. You wouldn't happen to know where that was, would you?"

[STEVEN]

[atrb=style,border-top: 8px solid #689ab4; border-bottom: 8px solid #689ab4; border-left: 2px solid #689ab4; border-right: 2px solid #689ab4; -moz-border-radius: 30px;][bg=494949][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,420,true][atrb=width,20%][atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=background, i56.tinypic.com/23mtpnr.jpg] NOT GONNA GET US Starting from here, let's make a promise you and me, let's just be honest we're gonna run, nothing can stop us even the night that falls all around us words: 352 - tagged: cynthia - notes: meemeep MADNESS.

[/color][/font] Such a fitting word for a situation like this. It's enough to drive one mad. It would be such a sweet release from the pain of thoughts. Yet, Cynthia came to hold on to Steven. He still had to live, to fight, and if not for the regions and the League, than at least he'd do it for her sake. Listening closely for her observation, he came to notice how possible, yet difficult it would be to find any DNA of Erika, or of her apparent kidnapper. How would you find such a needle in a haystack of gore?

When Cynthia came to press on him closer, he came to turn and
softly kiss her on the lips in comfort s she finished her say. Of course, a place like this wasn't quite ideal for a couple, but he needed something to help himself in times like these. "Team Ultimatum...bastards...", he came to softly say in such a rare and angered tone.

He looked up to Cynthia and let himself up with her as she mentioned Erika's own cell. Granted, he didn't see her cell all of that much, but Vogesite would've picked up her scent by now. Steven called out to the Pokemon and whispered in his ear. "Erika's cell..." was the only thing that one would make out before the Armaldo nodded and made his way ever closer to Erika's cell. The champion turned to Cynthia and gave a reassuring nod. "Let's go."

When they came to arrive at the cell, most of the bodies that would've been there have long since been cleared out. Steven first looked into the cell itself, empty and cleaned. The only thing that the cell came to leave behind was the prison uniform that Erika was supposed to wear. She came to really long for her old life with nature, sad as it is to imagine. As he picked it up and stepped back, however, another oddity came to catch his eye. Puddles of dried blood, covered under shreds of clothing.

Black and white...

"Cyn, you may want to come over." Steven said to his other.[/div]

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[CYNTHIA]

Never had Cynthia seen such anger out of Steven. His normally calm and collected demeanor was gone, replaced by one of anger for Team Ultimatum. And Cynthia understood it, she had felt the same way after the incident with Giovanni. All she wanted to do was wrap her arms around him, comfort him, shield him from the pain of this world. But he didn't give her a chance when he walked to Erika's cell. All Cynthia could do was follow, Anubis close behind her.

Steven entered the cell himself and Cynthia wanted to give him some time. She and Anubis inspected the wall outside of the small room. There was a lot of splattered gore here, obviously many had died here. She closed her eyes, letting out a silent plea for help.

Steven called for her to come in and Cynthia walked into the nearly empty space, heels clicking on the echoing floor. "What is-" Cynthia cut off as she brushed up against him and looked down at the tattered and torn clothing, the blood in pools on the floor. She glanced at Steven, knowing that his heart must be as torn as the clothing on the floor. Cynthia wrapped her arms around him, holding him close, whispering apologies in his ear. "I'm sorry, so sorry..."

Blood. The answer was written in blood. Out of the corner of her eye, Cynthia saw Anubis inspect the door. he nodded and looked at Cynthia. The silent communication between the girl and her pokemon told Cynthia one thing; That Anubis knew who the culprit was. And that Cynthia was going to make them pay for what they'd done.

[STEVEN]

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[/color][/font] under control. Those words echoed in Steven's mind as he came to look upon the drying pools of blood before him. He wished he could throw up right then and there, but he had to keep in control. Feeling Cynthia's embrace mended his hearts but made himself even more guilty. Her whispers would haunt him for a while.

Steven came to worry more of Cynthia of anything. Looking at
her. It seemed that she was just as torn at seeing her lover, torn and darkened by Team Ultimatum. Understandable, considering what the former champion had been through. Caressing her hair and her cheeks, he came to hug her as tightly as he could, not
even noticing the tears running down his soft face.

"Cyn...I appreciate the comfort." Steven said to her, softly. "Don't think for a moment that I would ever reject your emotion. In times like these, one could really use the support." he continued on as he kept onto Erika's uniform. A memento to hold onto, to uphold the oddness of recent times. The next thing he came to see was a nod from Anubis, investigating the blood and shredded clothing, as if he came to pinpoint the one and true suspect. "Alright Anu...just...gives us the verdict..."
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[CYNTHIA]

It's not often that you come across such a disturbed mind as the one Anubis now recalled. How could he forget that terribly messed up aura? He had told his trainer to follow her, make sure that she didn't do anything crazy. They had been in Johto at the time when they had seen her. Cynthia hadn't wanted to pursue her, she claimed that Ani was just overreacting. He was sure that she now regretted that decision.

Cynthia didn't notice her approaching Lucario, she was too caught up in the swell of her own emotions and Steven's eyes. So much pain... She couldn't do anything. Even she could not raise the dead, though she wanted to. Even if Erika had been wrong, had done something horrible, if it helped to ease Steven's pain, she would welcome it. It took her a second to realize that he had shed a couple of tears. She quickly wiped them away and kissed him on the cheek. So much pain... This has to stop. And it will. Cynthia promised herself. Anubis had reached them and she finally recognized his presence. "Tell him, Anubis..."

Anubis sighed and looked at Steven with red eyes that seemed to pierce his very soul. The Lucario grasped both of the man's shoulders and closed his eyes, glowing with a blue light. First, he showed Steven all of the traces of the disturbed aura, trying to convey the sheer craziness of it. Then, he showed the Hoenn Champion a glimpse of the girl he had in Johto, matching the aura of this person to the aura he discovered in the crime scene. He had no name, but he had a face. Finally, Ani addressed an issue that he himself was worried about. He showed Steven a picture of Cynthia in his mind, then said in words as clearly as he could: Don't let her out of your sight. Anubis hoped that Steven had heard him, he was quite worried about his trainer. He didn't want her to do anything rash. He broke contact with the man and turned to his trainer, touching her arm briefly with an image of the girl he knew was the culprit. She had crazy eyes. Ani shuddered and pulled away.

Closing her eyes, Cynthia pulled Steven close again, promising herself that she would stop this once and for all. The pain was going to stop. And it would all start with the hunting down of Erika's murderer.

[STEVEN]

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[/color][/font] Cynthia came to wipe away his tears, another one came to drizzle down while Steven held onto her, kissing along her cheek as she did to him. He lets his breaths flow, in and out, calming himself for the time being. He came to think of what to do next, now. With Anubis, he could try and hunt down the one responsible, and with Cynthia's own assistance, it wouldn't be such a lonely task. Yet, with what's he's witnessed today, would he wish to fall deeper within the abyss?

Anubis came to approach him, and offered to show what he had seen. Guess he answered that last question for the champion. Steven closed his eyes as the Lucario embraced his mind, lurking into the madness that happened days ago. What he saw was a girl with white hair and feral, yellow eyes, dressing in an odd black cloak as she came to slaughter all who came in her way. Steven couldn't help but shiver.

The next thing he knew, he came to appear in a blank, white plane of reality. Images of Cynthia came before him, yet he couldn't speak. Don't let her out of your sight. The words echoed over and over as the reality slowly drifted away. Somehow, Steven came to an understanding, odd as it was. He staggered over, but recollected himself as he saw himself in the prison again, feeling himself be pulled back into Cynthia's arms. He could help but turn to her and kiss her passionately, hugging her back as well. "Let's be on our way, Cynthia." Steven came to say. "We're just too shaken to try and solve this now, but at least, we know who we're truly looking for..."
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[CYNTHIA]

It had been a long, eventful day. Cynthia was tired. Exhausted actually. She kissed Steven back, happy for his presence, that she wasn't all alone in this ordeal. "We'll find her later." Cynthia assured. She knew that she was much too shaken to be able to think clearly and rationally. And so Cynthia just let herself be comforted by his loving embrace his smooth and calm words. He was like a water to her fire, the calmer, more rational one. She was passionate like a thousand suns, longing for relief from his cool and refreshing affection.

She walked arm and arm out of the prison with Steven, both Vogesite and Anubis following. They had ignored each other mainly but at least they were getting along. Steven and Cynthia, however, walked out into a barrage of flashes. Cameras? How in the he- Cynthia shielded her eyes from the bright lights, mad that people had invaded their private moments. The investigative authorities were holding back the mob of photographers and Cynthia pulled Steven behind one of the large, black SUV's of the detectives. Cynthia returned her Lucario to his capsule and sent out Geronomo the Braviary. Gerry squawked loudly and looked at the two of them with piercing eyes. "I'm ready if you are."