Rainy Day.

There was once a man who said that the only thing all humans were equal in was death. He was wrong. The singular thing all beings born from humanity's collective consciousness were equal it was fate. Is the destiny of mankind alterable by the same individuals who walk onward day by day without faltering? Or are they resigned to whatever destiny some transcendental entity wrote out for them? Perhaps the answer to both questions is 'yes'. Perhaps it's 'no'.

Only those blessed enough to hold the title of Wearer of Fate's Crown were able to tell.

Right now, the Crown's current wielder and also the present King of the Destined Empire was challenged, despite his godlike ability to see through the fates of all humans. Rising from his slouched posture nestled into the throne, his knightly subordinates watched their superior shed his cloak and walk down the steps where the Syndicate of Dictation's deadly assassins patiently waited.

"So, it's come to this. Are you sure you want to do this with only three people, traitors?" asked the King.

The main assassin stepped forward. "Give us the Crown and no one gets hurt, King Barron."

The King chortled.

"Well, there's the answer to my question, huh?"

With that, there was no time to waste. The assassin shed the gloves covering his hands, revealing ankhs engraved into the backs of his palms. The other two assassins positioned behind the main one shot two beams into their leader; the right beam colored blue, the left beam colored red. Channeling the conjoined powers of Fate, the assassin slammed his palms into the ground, summoning an interdimensional portal that unleashed a three-headed fire-breathing serpent.

The multi-faced snake slithered toward the King--attempting to crush his figure between its blazing fangs. The Wearer of Fate's Crown moved instantaneously, leaping right over the sluggish creature and smashing his foot into the summoner assassin's open face. Kicking him away and then flipping over his head, King Barron landed behind his fallen enemy. Turning his head, he now watched the other two Syndicate assassins conjure Fate-powered weapons and charge at their superior ruler. Slicking his long hair back, the King smirked.

"It's been a while since I got to stretch my legs. How fun!" said the old Emperor.

One of them slashed at his head with a blue-colored Fate sword; the King easily ducked, grabbing his assaulter's face from below and then slamming it into the ground. Barron's eye darted to its peripheral, to which he immediately stood tall, spotting the red energy arrows fly his way. Swaying from side to side, he easily dodged the imminent projectiles, excitedly giggling as more arrows came soaring toward him.

"Is that all you have? That's just sad!"

The assassin archer widened her eyes. She couldn't mistake that otherworldly presence! Without a shadow of a doubt, the blessed Wearer of Fate's Crown had materialized directly behind her. He chopped her neck, catching her unconscious body by the collar before she could thud against the throne room floor.

"Sire!" One of his knights called out.

"Don't worry about me. We have a lot to ask these guys." The King pointed at the knight who called for him. "Take her away for questioning," he said.

"Yes, sir!"

The knight obeyed and took her body from the King's hand. Cracking his neck, Barron groaned, extending his hand toward the steps leading up to his precious throne. Almost like magic--his cape came flying toward him and without a care in the world for anything besides himself, he threw the cloak right over him.

"Are you hurt, Your Majesty?" the second knight asked.

"Do you even have to ask?" He yawned, pulling the cloak inward for it to cover his kingly attire. "Unfortunately, though I've wished to ignore it, it's undeniable. There are traitors amid our ranks and they've lamentably infiltrated the elite guard of the Syndicate of Dictation. Tell the informant to open an investigation into all members. Active. Inactive. It doesn't matter."

"Inactive? Are you sure, Your Majesty? Some inactive members are quite old at this point, I feel as though invading upon their retirement is quite cruel, don't you?" asked the knight.

"I'm glad you're so compassionate but when I say inactive, I'm only referring to one individual. You see, there's but one person in this world capable of mustering up such a dastardly plot. I want him here. Find Talen Amit or die trying."

…

May 10th, 2022.

In June 2016, three young women were found mutilated in their sorority. The jurisdiction of this murder went beyond that of Barronia and to its neighboring kingdom: Arronsburg. It took a while but luckily, Mr. Amit was able to pull enough strings to gain control of this case for the firm. The prosecutor's office found a likely suspect in one of the girl's ex-boyfriends and also a student of the college they attended: Jon Wayne.

They arrested him on suspicion of serial murder. Wayne was rather compliant with the investigation. However, upon searching his home, they found the alleged murder weapon. A dagger imbued with Fate signature to Barronia. They caught him red-handed. Despite this, he insisted on his innocence.

"I don't know how it got there. She told me not to talk to her so… I stood home," the suspect tearfully pleaded from behind the bordering glass.

After the interview, within the firm Talen worked from, he relayed the facts to his woman partner.

Bandaged fingers interlocked on the desk he sat behind, his lips parted. "Initially, he didn't flee from the idea of pursuing an investigation. While it's true the authorities found the alleged murder weapon within the suspect's home, someone else could've framed him," he said.

"Didn't they find his fingerprints on the dagger handle?" the silver-haired woman with magenta pupils and a black suit asked.

"Indeed they did. But I'm not focused on that. Since the suspect was initially compliant with the investigation, the law wouldn't have any reason to search his home. So, why did they?" He asked.

"Uh… is that a rhetorical question?"

"Yes. Before the victims were found murdered, Jon Wayne was living with his older brother who was an avid drug abuser and former member of the Syndicate of Dictation. In addition to that, the authorities that investigated the suspect's home weren't the ordinary police force. They were members of the King's guard," Talen said.

"I see, I see." She rubbed her chin as if stroking a beard and covered her lips. Slowly removing the hand hiding her mouth, she asked, "What makes you think they framed him?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." He opened a file with one finger, scanning the words inked onto the paper. In the upper right corner, there stood the mugshot of the tan-skinned suspect. "He's lived a reasonably good life. His fellow employees and the other classmates he's surrounded by at school say he's not the type to do this despite their disappointment at the girls' murder. Plus, when I looked into his eyes, I could tell… he was despairing."

"Oh, c'mon. You're back on that again? You can't just look into someone's eyes and make a judgment! You're not in the Syndicate anymore, this is the real world."

He rolled his eyes and pushed himself up. "Don't you think I know that? Getting back on track, I think it's best to look into the victims' backgrounds. Narrowing our suspects down to one individual who may or may not be guilty isn't justice—it's discrimination. Cait, you handle the rest."

Now standing up straight behind the desk, Talen rubbed his nape, removing the jacket spread over his seat.

"Aye, aye, cap'n," Cait responded.

By the time she'd started typing, he'd already fled the office, leaving her to drop her face down onto the desk. Moaning while scratching at her skin, she shook her head with closed eyes.

'This sucks. In murder cases like this that involve lovers' quarrels, whether or not we find the suspect innocent or guilty is irrelevant. The court of public opinion decides all, so if the masses think Wayne's guilty, he's guilty. There's no avoiding that. I'm sure Tal realizes that.'

She vented one long sigh, stretching her arms into the air behind her all the while moaning as her bones cracked. "God," she looked toward the door, "my self-righteous boss is gonna be the death of me."

Hours after meeting during the day with Cait, Talen threw the folders from his bag onto the coffee table before his couch.

A joint neatly pushed between his chapped pink lips, Amit repeatedly flicked the lighter's top. Occasionally, the young man watched as the flame flickers until the inevitable heat finally remained completely motionless. With just one motion, the stick in his mouth was lit at the butt while he was left to look over the folders.

Releasing an O-shaped smoke cloud from his mouth, Talen took it from his mouth and held it between his fingers. He rubbed away the sweat from his temples and sighed.

'I've looked into each of the girls' backgrounds and aside from Jon Wayne, none of them have any solid leads. One of them was single, the other dating someone. But their relationship was fine. After interviewing her girlfriend, it was clear she held no ill will toward her. She was devastated when I told her that poor lover was dead.'

Talen clicked his tongue. Once again, he pushed the spliff between his lips while his hands lifted the folders. His shivering green eyes briefly absorbed the phrases engraved onto the pages until the binders released from his slipping grip. Sinking into the sofa's cushions, Amit leaned his head back and removed the joint from his mouth, allowing more smoke to fill the air.

'What a pain. From the way things are looking, we'll have no other choice but to proceed with Wayne as our prime suspect. And while it's true his fingerprints were on the dagger, with the advanced technology the King has hidden away in the castle, anything's possible. Especially considering Wayne's older brother was only older by a few minutes. The most important factor to me that spells out Wayne's innocence is the case of his sibling. He was a former member of the Syndicate of Dictation and those who searched the brothers' house were the King's elite guard. Could it be they were trying to find Wayne's brother, but he'd already fled so they resorted to framing his brother to draw him out? Or maybe…'

His pupils shrunk. Though he was oblivious to it in reality, he was relapsing. The sounds of agony including loved ones' screams resounded endlessly within the prism of his mind. Then, he was thrust back to the real world; remembering where he was with just a glance. Noticing the spliff between his fingers had been extinguished, Talen sighed.

'No. I left for a reason. The King understood. There's no way he'd drag me back into that, right?'

Just as he was relighting the joint, someone knocked on his door. Alerted by the abruptness of the appearance, Talen wasted no time placing the stick in the ashtray and walking toward his apartment's entrance. But, he wasn't stupid. Though part of him was sure nothing would go wrong when he'd opened the door, there was another part of him resurfacing from the past that said otherwise. Despite his reluctance to do so, he trusted the latter part and decided to peek through the hole before opening it. On the other side of his home's door, there stood none other than the armored masses of King Barron's elite guard.

"Looks like you were right," said a grizzly old voice from behind the lawyer.

Just like that, Talen turned. In the corridor bordering his living room and bedroom, mysteriously cloaked like a specter was none other than the infamous King of Barronia. The Wearer of Fate's Crown.

"Nice to see you again. It's been a while, doncha think?" queried the King.

Tal shrugged. "Guess so. I wish I could say it's nice to see you again, considering you're the King and all, but to what do I owe the pleasure? I specifically remember tendering in my resignation ten years ago," he said.

The King smiled. "Yes, well, things have changed. Can we sit?" he asked.

"No law against it."

Fate's Crown plastered over Barron's head briefly shone. Without wasting a second of their time, the two were instantly transported to Talen's living room. The coffee table formerly dirtied by folders was replaced with a feast fit for a king. Raising their teacups to the sky after sliding them from the table, Talen and Barron intently stared into one another's eyes.

"Praise be to the Crown of Fate. Let us enjoy this meal in its honor. May Fate continue to bless us."

After vocalizing their prayer, the two men picked apart the multiple foods scattered about the table. While lifting a piece of fried chicken from the table, the King opened his mouth.

"So, I hear you've taken another lovers quarrel murder case?" he asked.

Without skipping a beat, Tal nodded. "Yeah. And while you're here, I wanted to ask if you framed Jon Wayne for the murder of three girls at KBU?"

"If I'm being honest with you, that case is years old. It was never solved and the facts are old. I remember seeing something about the elite guard framing this 'Jon Wayne's older brother for the murder. Since then, I've eliminated the corruption from my forces and tried to solve the case myself. Unfortunately, even with the power of Fate's Crown at my side, I am unable to ascertain the truth. The only person capable of surpassing me in anything is you, Talen. So, I came to you. I know you'll be able to solve this case, one way or another—"

"With all due respect, Your Majesty, I don't appreciate you lying to my face in my home. Please, tell me what you're here for. All cards on the table," Amit politely requested.

This man's respectful tone differed from that of those the King was surrounded by within his castle. A bunch of old fools babbling around, hoping to reestablish ancient traditions and prevent the new from advancing in any way whatsoever. Every time he thought about it, it made his skin crawl.

"Alright then. Last night, I was attacked by three members of the Syndicate. They were trying to steal the Crown," spoke the King.

"I see. Usurpers within Barronia. Let the word get out and all the other kingdoms would start piling it on. Your dilemma is understandable but it's been ten years. If you're asking me to do what I think you're asking me to do, I can't," Amit replied, taking another sip from his teacup.

"I don't think you understand. Talen Amit—" The King stood up from his seat, revealing his hand from the cloak and allowing the Crown to shine. "By the laws instituted by that of the Supreme King of Barronia, I hereby order you to obey my request."

Removing the necklace around his neck, Talen sighed. Rolling up his sleeves, he glared into the King's barren eyes, surprised to see even a glimpse of regret within those orbs. Despite that, his answer was the same regardless.

"I refuse."

Trivia: Talen Amit was born on November 2nd, 1994. He's 5'10 or 1.78 meters. He has caramel-tanned skin and circular glasses that cover his dark green eyes. His hair is black and spiky, allowing the spiked bangs to shield his forehead. The man's usual attire is a black turtleneck under a black suit jacket. He's the protagonist in the story of Fate.