The interrogation of Lariote Zozan. Part 3. Moaning

"So, you are telling me that your full name is Lariote Zozan."

"Yes."

"And why are you telling me your surname only now."

"Is it not obvious? I thought we have become friends and besides, you are my legend."

"So, now you remember that you used to call me young legend?"

Lariote kept quiet. They had been going back and forth for a while at that point with Sheyken almost giving up. He was at the verge of concluding that Lariote was a master deceptive or he had lost his mind.

"So, you are Lariote Zozan, a first circle mage in the liquid stage who uses summons, you thought that Alati was sleeping in your bed for almost two whole days while she was really dead, you are also saying that a woman shot an arrow into your eye, well two arrows and..... that you miss your mother?"

"Yes."

Sheyken was already at his limit.

"Lariote, are you crazy?"

"No, why would I be when I am perfectly sane."

"Lariote, if someone had shot two arrows into your eye, we would not be having this conversation."

"Why?"

"Because you would be dead."

"But I am alive,"

'Man, is this really Lariote, the man I now. He never talked like this.'

Sheyken thought.

"Why would you miss your mother at a time when we just found Alati in your house dead Lariote?"

Lariote started sobbing.

"Because, Sisilana,s cooking is just too great. I want to test my mother's cooking before I cannot remember it anymore."

Lariote started crying. Sheyken did not know whether to laugh or cry with him because talking to him was making him crazy as time passed.

"Lariote.... ok, let us focus on the person who you say shot you with two arrows, did you get to look at her?"

"Yes."

'At least now we getting somewhere

"Can you describe here?"

"I do not have to."

Sheyken almost screamed at him but calmed down.

"Why would you not have to?"

"Because it was Alati.?

This was what Sheyken was waiting for. What he just said right now was nothing either than a point-blank confession.

"So, Alati shot you in the eye and thereafter she went to sleep?"

"Yes."

"And what did you do in all that time she was sleeping?"

"I practiced my meditation."

"For almost two days?"

"Yes.... awe! my head hurts."

Sheyken at the moment only heard the 'yes' Lariote had said first. He thought he had gotten all he wanted to get from him but the story somehow did not make sense.

'Falgur said that they did not find anything out of place in the house. So, there was no sign of a struggle. Did they ague and Lariote had lost his temper? He said they were no signs of blood too. So, she must have been killed in the bedroom. She is a normal human and I do not see her inflicting any damage on him if they fought, but I am sure Algazuma, who seemed to be protective of her from what Zali told me, am sure he would give her something to protect herself with.'

Sheyken thought as he looked at Lariote holding his head like he was in pain.

'Did he assault her when she was in bed and she managed to use a magic item on him? That would explain the black eye he has. At the same time if he took that magic item from her and used it on her that would describe why she too had black substances in her head. Since Lariote is a summoner, it would explain things perfectly if he used her own magic item on her. It is a pity I did not get to see the crime scene. If he is clever enough, he might have destroyed the magic item by now....'

Sheyken had a feeling he was getting somewhere.

'But, why would they fight?'

He finished his thoughts and looked at Lariote again who seemed to be in more pain.

"Lariote, why did you and Alati, fight?"

"What? Who said we ever fought? I would never fight with a woman. Especially since her father is one scary guy. I only started asking her out because no one else wanted to. they were afraid of her father and Salina, and well, I fell in love with her from the first time I saw her."

'What? That is the first time he had answered one of my questions at length. Then, did he truly love her? If so... and why the hell is he acting crazy when I know him to be a well-spoken man. Only Zali did not like him because he was in love with Alati too.'

Sheyken thought as he brushed all his previous thoughts about his conclusion aside.

"At which part of your house did Alati shoot you in the eye, do you remember?"

"Yes, she was outside the door that led outside the house. I opened the door for her and she shot me."

"What?"

Sheyken's mind was at sixes and sevens now.

'Why would she do that?..... wait…..'

He came to a realization.

'Why, would Salduralto be so steadfast in protecting him. Come to think of it, Salina might be brutal but I have always had the feeling that Salduralto was the more prone to extreme violence between the two. Her eyes tell me that. It is only her position that she doesn't and I am sure it is what had made her grow, not act on impulse, be a good judge and leader.'

As Sheyken was thinking that, Lariote was growing even more in pain.

'She must have had wanted to question him. So, why is she not here yet, it has almost been two hours now? Mmmmm... She might be still busy with the old man. Let me try and do the job for her before she comes back so I can give a good report.'

Sheyken tried to compose himself.

"Lariote, wasn't Alati already inside your house when you opened the door?"

"Yes, she was, we had been sleeping in my bed when I heard someone knocking. I went to the door and found her outside. I remember her shooting the arrows at me then and I remember seeing her sleeping in the bed again. So, I did not try to wake her and since my head was hurting, I thought to meditate.... awe! my head really hurts now..."

'Why is he not answering me in short sentences anymore? Did something change?'

Sheyken looked at him and he seemed to be in even more pain, but what he had said did not make sense to him.

'Ok, Sheyken, take things slow. Let me think rationally like a police officer and put my anger aside.'

He took a large breath.

'What do I know about him. Zali said he was a womanizer but I think that was his jealousy speaking. So, let's go to the first time I met him. He was helping the women from the tent settlement and he has been checking in on them ever since. Mmmm... was he seeing a woman from there and that is why he had been going there to check up on them and the woman came to take revenge on him for cheating by trying to kill them. Nah... I really do not think he is a womanizer.'

Sheyken looked at him and he was now holding his head and facing down on the table.

'Did someone try to assassinate him who was a woman, but because of his head injury he thinks it was Alati? If so, why would anyone want to assassinate him... wait, the tent settlement had a problem with Initiates and in turn, Saduralto was still investigating them. Lariote is one of her go-to guys so he must be one of those who are investigating. I haven't seen him go into the Trial Forest either.'

Now he thought he was getting somewhere.

'Did he find something there and one of the Initiates tried to assassinate him and Alati was a casualty? Come to think of it, I do know one of the abilities an Initiate can train in....? Body transformation!'

He thought as he remembered Agna.

'That would make a lot of sense than a vengeful woman.'

That thought put chills down his spine as he thought about Tenebris and what Falgur had said when they were in the Trial Forest.

'Why does Lariote keep talking about arrows though. Did he really get hit by one and he took it out? I had not asked Falgur to describe what the black thing in Alati's skull looked like yet. Well.... but if all that is true... Damn it, I have been so fixated on finding him guilty that I have not even stopped and looked at Lariote's facial injuries.'

"Lariote, can I see your face."

He said standing up and when Lariote lifted his head, he held him in place with his hands and looked at his wounds.

Lariote had a hole on both sides of his nose that had swollen up and you could not see them if you were not looking at him closely. The trajectory of what had coursed the holes seemed to start from the right side of his nose and continue into the left side of his eye socket that you could not see because it had also swollen up. He had another hole in the place center of between his eyebrow and eyelash that had also swollen up and you could not see it if you did not look closely. A black substance could be seen in the wounds but was not prominent.

Sheyken was surprised his hunch was right.

'Is this why Salduralto was protecting him? Fuck.... this is why he had been acting like a mental case this whole time. Whatever that person shot him with must have gone into his brain.'

"Damn it! Where is Salduralto! She needs to get here fast!"

He shouted out and looked at Falgur. At that point, the sand on Salina that was holding her in place fell to the ground. She let out a wild scream and a small tornado formed around her hand spinning and creating a vortex. She jumped and landed by Sheyken's side and then when she was about to unleash a hellish punch on Lariote of which by that point little lighting had begun to form in the tornado around her hand, a small light so innocent you would think it would vanish by just a small touch of your finger went into her forehead and she instantly turned back to normal with the tornado around her hand vanishing.

She stopped and was shocked at what was happening. She turned to look by her side and met Sheyken's eyes. As soon as they met, tears came falling down her eyes.

"She.... she.... she is dead, isn't she?"

She cried like she had no care in the world as she dropped onto the floor. At that point, Sheyken knew what to do. He hugged her as she cried and said nothing. At that moment he did not care about how big his body was. He just knew that a girl her would say he now cared for was in worlds of pain, for he knew how it felt to lose someone.

The man who was they called Guild master and who had still not introduced himself to the boys appeared out of nowhere and with a light in his open hand, he touched Lariote's injured eye. When the light went into the wounds, he instantly fell asleep. He then looked at Sheyken.

"Good job my boy. I am sure you managed to come to some conclusion about this incident. After she has calmed down, please come upstairs and share with me what your thoughts are, after your interrogation. We would love to have the view about this from our Honorary guild members."

When he had finished talking, Sheyken saw Saduralto coming down the steps and dragging Algazuma on the floor like a sack of potatoes. He looked to be out cold and Saduralto was still looking like she was just back from a stroll in the park.

'Were they waiting for me to finish my interrogation of him?'

He thought.

Falgur just looked at the old man who looked to still be grieving as he was still out cold and the realization of it all started to hit him. A tear came down his cheek without him realizing it. Sazi started to cry too after seeing Salina cry her heart out.

At the moment the guild was in moaning.