Lavarsus stared at me as I puzzled over the new case he had just brought me. "You're telling me someone broke into the Maji Guard Vault?" I asked him, narrowing my eyes at him as I crossed my arms and legs, while adjusting my skirt.

"Uh huh, that's what I said," he sighed, rolling his eyes, shifting his cigar in his mouth to the other side. I thought I told you no smoking in here. Doesn't asthma mean anything to you? 

I shook my head. "And the suspect in question is, let me see if I've got this straight. . ." I responded, exhaling a long sigh, squinting at him. "Is a Maji Guard officer?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"And who decided there was enough evidence that he did it?"

He shifted his stance uncomfortably. "That's where it gets complicated," he muttered.

"Define 'complicated', Lavarsus," I told him, rubbing my chin as I glanced at Fleur. She glanced back at me with a raised eyebrow. Exactly my reaction. "At this point, I'm not even sure why you're coming to me when you already have a suspect in custody."

We were in the front room of the tower. Fleur was sitting at her desk, as per usual, while I sat in the comfortable red recliner she had brought in. Lavarsus stood before me, fidgeting with his cigar and his cap in his hands simultaneously. He's nervous. Which is different for him.

"Um. . ." he started, his glance going to the floor. "Well, you see. . . He doesn't remember doing it." He muttered finally, averting his gaze from me.

I shot my gaze to Fleur, and her eyes had gone wide. Don't tell me. 

"We think magic may have been involved," he continued, raising his gaze to meet mine. "He also doesn't remember where he put the artefact."

Narrowing my eyes as I stared off into space, I ran over the particulars. Someone broke into the Maji Guard Vault, the most secure building, supposedly, in the world. They then proceeded to steal an artefact. As it would turn out, the person who did it was an officer under a spell, allegedly. Interesting case indeed. 

"Fleur, call the Academy. I don't think I'll be in school today," I announced, looking up at everyone. Turning back to Lavarsus, "What artefact was stolen, exactly?"

". . . The box," he whispered.

I raised an eyebrow. "Lavarsus, speak up, I don't think I heard you."

He gazed up at me. "The box," he answered, biting his lip.

I shot to my feet, wide-eyed. "Lavarsus, I gave that box to you because it was supposed to be safe in the vault! I'm astonished you could lose it in less than two weeks!" I stated, shaking my head as I stared at Fleur. I was bewildered and annoyed at the same time.

You are either the most incompetent sergeant on the Guard, or there is ‌someone else behind all of this. Gazing back at him, I narrowed my eyes. And I have far too much confidence in him to believe the former. As much as I rag on him all the time, I really do hold a lot of respect for the man.

"Fleur," I announced, looking at her. "Fetch your kit. I think your services will be required."

"You don't even have to ask, hun. I wouldn't miss this one for the world!" she responded.

"Excellent," I replied, turning to Lavarsus as he cowered before me. "Oh, perk up. I don't blame this one on you."

My mind drifted back to the problem at hand. A Maji Guard officer is the suspect. He doesn't remember doing it or where the box is. "Lavarsus, question. How do we know the officer in question actually committed the crime?" I asked him.

He gazed up at me over his cigar. "That's where it gets complicated."

"Lavarsus, once again, define ‘complicated,’" I was getting impatient.

He sighed as he chewed on the end of his cigar. "We have his name on the sign in sheet, and multiple witnesses," he responded, glancing at Fleur. "As well as a warrant slip from me that he handed to the guard at the desk."

"Did you sign this warrant slip?" I asked him, squinting.

"It has my signature," he said, shifting his glance between us as he chomped down on his cigar. "But I don't recall ever signing it."

This has gone from bad to worse. "How could he have gotten your signature without your knowledge?"

"That's what I need your help figuring out."

Intriguing. "Take me to the crime scene," I ordered.

He looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "Not the suspect?" he asked.

"No. I'd like to see the vault first, see how everything works, then I'll see your suspect," I responded, averting my gaze as I pondered this. Multiple things may be going on here, but it's impossible to be sure without seeing the scene of the crime.

As Lavarsus turned toward the door, grabbing his jacket from the hook and putting his cap back on his head, Fleur approached me. "What are you thinking?" she whispered.

I shook my head as I stared after the poor man. "I'm not sure yet. You may want to call Professor Greenhorn again," I replied, pursing my lips. "If magic was involved, we may need his services to confirm."

"On it," she said with a nod, already pulling out her comm stone. "I think your instinct to see the crime scene first is the correct one."

"We'll see," I responded, exhaling with a long sigh. "I'm more concerned that we now have a box containing a dangerous entity on the loose."

She gazed after the officer as he waited by the door. "Yes," she said, shaking her head as she crossed her arms. "That is most disturbing. And if it's opened. . ." Her voice trailed off. She clenched her jaw as she turned back to me. "There's no telling how powerful an ancient Necro Spirit like that could potentially be."

You don't need to remind me of that. There is a reason Vianola went to the lengths she did to protect it. Now it's out there, somewhere. I am beginning to wonder if perhaps I should have left it precisely where it was.

As Lavarsus brought us up to the front doors to the vault, I was already growing concerned. The building itself was enormous, about the size of the museum, with heavy steel front doors. It was heavily fortified, with multiple checkpoints to get in. It sat adjacent to the Palace District walls, looking like it was part of the walls themselves.

But to make matters even worse, as we passed through the second checkpoint, we were directed to walk through a small archway with glowing cerulean glyphs arranged across the stone finish. As soon as we walked through it, Fleur was immediately struck with a violet glowing field. 

She glanced at it then back at me. Then she flicked her fingers. "Kairine, my Mystia Casting won't work," she told me, staring into my eyes with a raised eyebrow. "Presumably the field only triggered as I stepped through because I have magic, and you don't, as a psion. Rather fascinating."

Narrowing my eyes, I glanced at Lavarsus. "Shouldn't that device also wash away enchantments or curses?" I questioned him, to which he nodded. How very peculiar. My head was spinning from the implications.

Turning back to her, I whispered, "Do you have any idea how such a device could have been fooled?"

She rubbed her chin, staring off into space deep in thought. "Not that I can think of. Presumably this should be a fool proof way to prevent the scenario we're investigating," she whispered back, before glancing at the guard standing next to it. "Unless. . ." She looked back at me. "Unless officers get preferential treatment and pass right through it."

"Lavarsus," I called out, turning to face him. "Those badges of yours. Do they perhaps act as some sort of way to pass right through the security?"

He nodded. I snapped my head back toward Fleur as she shook her head with a frown. "Lavarsus, I think we've found your problem."

He grunted, biting down on his cigar. "Tell me something I don't know. I argued this exact thing to the higher-ups a month ago. And now this case drops right into my lap, proving the point," he groaned, averting his gaze from me. "And believe me, the irony is not lost on me."

So you already argued with the people in charge about this security flaw a month ago. And suddenly this happens as though to prove the point almost magically. I squinted at him as he turned away and started down the hallway. The floors caught my eye next. Not only were they paved with marble tiles, but each tile had a distinct strange glyph on it. Could it be another anti-Mystia measure?

As I looked up along the walls, they were stark, plain stone painted in a light blue, giving the hall an almost clinical feel. I hate hospitals. I frowned as I felt a pit in the bottom of my stomach.

Glancing to Fleur. "Want to lead the way?" I asked her. I hadn't expected to be using her as a test subject, and it was never my intention. But of the three of us, she was the only one with magic.

She bowed her head with a smile as she stepped past me onto the tiles. As soon as she did, suddenly a blazing red field erected itself all around her, trapping her. Lavarsus, now on the other side, pulled out his badge and placed it against a crevice in the wall. As soon as he did, the field dissipated, leaving a stunned Fleur. "That. . ." she said, glancing back at me. "Was rather unsettling."

"The effects should wear off in a few minutes," Lavarsus said, turning away and continuing on his way.

I narrowed my eyes, beginning my passage across the tiles. Unsurprisingly, they didn't reactivate. Of course. They were only designed with Mystia Casters in mind, not a psion. And once again, presumably, the badge allows free passage. Very interesting.

Shaking my head, I looked at Fleur, who was shaking off the effects of the stun. "I think we're less investigating how the box was stolen, and more so testing the Maji Guard's security systems. At this point, I can see one glaring flaw."

She nodded. "Indeed. One that was obviously taken advantage of."

"If I were to suggest improvements, I would inform them that the badges giving a free pass through the security is a problem."

"Indeed. I also question the use of the tiles right after the archway, but that's a different matter," she replied.

I stared in the direction Lavarsus had gone. "No, Fleur. I think that's another flaw," I said.

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Looking back at her, as I glanced at the tiles. "They front-loaded all of their best security measures, rather than spacing them out," I told her. "If they had spread them out more, and perhaps placed the tiles closer to the actual vault area, it would have made it more difficult for someone on the outside to study the systems and then deal with them."

"Ah," she replied, her voice trailing off as she examined the systems closer. "I see your point. So someone must have been casing this place for a while?"

"Yes. In fact, I think they'd been observing this place for quite some time," I replied. "Perhaps months."

Next, he brought us into a long room, wider than the hallway we'd been traversing up until now by at least a few meters. The floor was paved with one one slab of granite, its glossy finish glistening in the soft white lights that lit the room. Squinting, I spied several small holes along the walls in different configurations. Lavarsus stopped at the end of the room, and motioned for us to stay where we were standing.

"You can't see them, but there are several laser beams scattered through this room. One wrong move could set off the alarms and bring Kakuras in here," he announced as he placed his badge in the crevice. "You may proceed now."

My gaze went to all of the holes. Interesting. Invisible lasers. What did I learn about them in school? I'm sure there's a way around that as well. "Lavarsus, what problems would you say there are with this particular trap?" I questioned him as I made my way through the room, followed by Fleur.

He stared at me with scrunched up eyebrows, a look that told me he took offence to my question. "Problems? This is the best trap in this place!" he defended it. "In my opinion we should do away with the magical inhibitors and do more of this!"

I stood my ground, staring right back at him with a smile. "Would you also say there needs to be more Kakuras patrolling then?" I prodded him, crossing my arms, glancing at Fleur.

"O. . . Of course!" he stammered back at me.

With a shake of my head and a long exhale, I said, "Lavarsus, Kakuras are great Mystimon for security, don't get me wrong. Their spotlight eyes and shrill alarm sound makes them perfectly suited to this job. But there's one problem with them."

"And what's that, Kamuya?"

"They're living creatures," I replied with a slight chuckle. "Isn't it obvious? They could be killed or incapacitated just like any other living creature. Basing your entire security off of them would be foolish. Likewise would be basing all of your security on just these lasers. It is actually good to vary the traps. These lasers can be fooled, for instance."

He glared at me. "Alright, enlighten me. What weakness do they have?"

"Plenty. For starters, the fact they're invisible doesn't really mean anything to someone with an item designed to see such things," I responded, ticking things off on my hand. "There's also a See the Unseen spell. Guess what? The first two traps theoretically eliminate that problem."

"But not entirely," added Fleur. "There are some with that as an innate ability. That can't be dispelled."

"Wonderful point, Fleur," I said. Looking back at him. "Also, these lasers, I'm sure, are emitted by crystals. Fleur, what would happen if we were to bring a crystal in here and hold it up to the lasers?"

She pondered that for a moment. "It's possible they could be refracted. Would you like to conduct some experiments, hun?" she asked me.

"Excellent suggestion," I grinned at her. "I assume you brought everything?"

She motioned to the purse hanging from her shoulder. "Of course. Never leave home without it."

She began by opening the flap of the purse and pulling out a white crystal. It was large, about the size of her hand. As she did, I looked up at him. "Lavarsus, do you mind re-activating the lasers?"

He narrowed his eyes at us. "How do you plan on seeing them?"

As if in response to his question, Fleur pulled a pair of spectacles from her purse. The lenses were greyish-white. As she put them on, her ocean-blue eyes disappeared. Suddenly, however, she yanked them off with a gasp.

I raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong, Fleur?"

Slowly, she raised a finger toward just past my head. Looking, I couldn't see anything there. "You can't see it?" she asked me with a shaky voice, the spectacles trembling in her hand. I shook my head. "There. . . There's some kind of shadow hovering there, just behind you, Kairine."

Narrowing my eyes I glanced around the room more closely. They've been able to hide from me before. But so have spirits. "If there's anyone there, you can come out. I may be able to help you," I called out, keeping my tone calm, gritting my teeth.

No answer came. "It's alright. I am a psion," I added. "If you're stuck here, I would like to help if I can."

Slowly, Fleur slipped the spectacles back on. "I don't see it now," she said with a shake of her head. "It's gone. That was. . . unnerving. Are you sure it could have just been a spirit?"

"Hard to say. Necro Spirits have been known to hide from me, but so have spirits," I responded, glancing back at her. "Without actually seeing what you saw, it's impossible for me to say for sure." I turned toward Lavarsus. "Have there ever been any reports of this place being haunted?"

He grunted as he pondered the question, scratching his stubbled chin as he puffed on his cigar, which was half gone by this point. "Not that I recall," he replied, gazing back at me with a shrug. "Of course, before you, I never put much stock into those stories anyway."

Smirking, I gazed around the room. "Fleur, may I have that crystal, please?" I asked, motioning for Lavarsus to reactivate the lasers. As he did so, we both stepped back. Then, holding up the crystal near to one of the holes, I glanced at Fleur.

"Just as we suspected, the beam is being refracted, causing it to dissipate into several smaller beams," she nodded, looking at Lavarsus. "And there is a magical item that would allow the wearer to produce a crystalline shield around themselves. Will your anti-magic measures account for that?"

He clenched his jaw, looking away as he exhaled sharply. "Possibly," he muttered, before adding under his breath, "Damn it."

My lips curled upward in a smile. "And we haven't even gotten to the fun part," I said.

He looked at me. "What's that?"

"Next we meet your suspect," I replied with a grin. The case is coming together. What began as a fun experiment to see if their laser trap could be fooled has actually produced some interesting data for me. My eyes glanced around the room once more as the smile faded from my face.

But whatever it was Fleur saw has now raised new questions for me. . .

To Be Continued.