BXBX NOVEL Chapter 171: The Final Card
The fluorescent lights cast a cold, sterile glow on the room, emphasizing the bleakness of the surroundings.
The hum of the ventilation system was the only sound, punctuated occasionally by the distant clinking of chains and the muffled voices of guards.
Helena\'s office was as usual, bare. However, it was orderly and meticulously organized, every document and file in its proper place.
Her reputation for efficiency was well-earned, and it was reflected in the precise arrangement of her workspace.
As she signed off on another report, the door to her office creaked open.
Officer Target, her most corrupt officer, stepped inside and saluted. Helena looked up, her piercing eyes meeting his.
"Officer Target." She acknowledged, her voice crisp and commanding. "Report."
Target lowered his hand and approached the desk, his face set in a grim expression.
"Captain, I\'ve interrogated the prisoners down in the cells, as you ordered. We\'ve used every method at our disposal, but they don\'t have the information we\'re searching for."
Helena\'s eyes narrowed, a flicker of annoyance crossing her features. "Are you certain?"
"Yes, Captain." Target replied, his voice steady. "They\'ve been thoroughly questioned, and their responses have been consistent. They genuinely don\'t know anything about it."
Helena leaned back in her chair, tapping her fingers thoughtfully on the polished wood of her desk.
The prisoners had been her only lead, and now they were proving to be useless.
She considered her next steps. After a moment of contemplation, she made her decision.
"If they don\'t have the information we need, then they\'re of no further use to us." She said coldly. "Dispose of them."
Target didn\'t flinch at the order. He had served under Helena long enough to know that she didn\'t tolerate inefficiency or wasted resources.
"Understood, Captain. I\'ll see to it immediately."
Helena nodded, her expression hardening. "Good. Make it clean and quiet. We can\'t afford any loose ends."
Target saluted again, his face impassive. "Yes, Captain."
As he turned to leave, Helena called out. "Target?"
The man turned to face her, ready for whatever she commanded.
"Prepare the last prisoner."
"Yes, Captain."
As Target left, Helena returned to her paperwork. She still had a final card to play.
**********
Down in the cells, Officer Target moved with the same cold efficiency that defined Helena\'s command.
The prisoners, unaware of their impending fate, would soon meet their end, another step in Helena\'s relentless pursuit of power and control.
As the heavy door to the cells closed behind him, the air in the peacekeepers HQ seemed to grow even colder, seeming to reflect the ruthless nature of the woman who ruled over it.
**********
Helena finished the last of her paperwork, her eyes scanning the final report before signing it with a flourish.
She stacked the completed files neatly on her desk, taking a moment to savor the satisfaction of a job well done. But paperwork was only one part of her duties, and the time had come to deal with more pressing matters.
She stood up, straightening her uniform with smooth movements. The cold efficiency that defined her extended to every aspect of her being.
It was time to visit the cells and extract the information she needed from the last prisoner. By any means necessary.
The journey to the deepest levels of the cells was marked by a noticeable shift in atmosphere.
The air grew colder, the walls narrower, and the lighting dimmer. The sounds of the upper floors faded away, replaced by the distant echoes of chains and the usual silence of the deep.
Helena reached the heavily guarded entrance to the lowest level. The guards snapped to attention as she approached, unlocking the reinforced door and allowing her entry.
She stepped inside, the smell of fear and despair hitting her like a physical force.
She tilted her head as she smiled at the prisoner.
"Veran." She nodded in acknowledgement.
Veran was shackled to the wall at the far end of the dimly lit corridor. His once proud and defiant demeanor had been worn down by the efforts of her best peacekeepers.
She approached him, her eyes cold and calculating. "Veran." she began, her voice echoing slightly in the confined space. "I hope you\'ve had time to reconsider your position."
Veran looked up, his eyes filled with a mixture of defiance and desperation. "I\'ve told you everything I know," he rasped, his voice hoarse from hours of non-stop shouting.
The cells were designed to suck away the vitality of all who entered except those who wore a special button which was present on her uniform. With no vitality to heal himself, Veran might as well be a normal human.
Helena\'s lips curled into a cruel smile. "I don\'t think you have. You see, I need the location of the Ascension Well. And I will have it, one way or another."
She signaled to a nearby guard, who brought forward a table covered with various instruments.
Helena picked up a small, sharp blade, letting the light glint off its edge. "Shall we begin?"
Veran tensed, his eyes flickering with fear. "You can do whatever you want to me. I won\'t tell you."
Helena leaned in closer, her voice a dangerous whisper. "It\'s not just you I\'m concerned with. Your wives are very... vulnerable right now. Imagine what could happen to them if you continue to be uncooperative."
It had been trivial to learn that Veran\'s love for his wives was genuine. It was time to take advantage of that love.
Her threat hung heavy in the air. Veran\'s resolve began to crack, the thought of his wives suffering unbearable.
Helena saw the hesitation in his eyes and pressed on, her blade tracing a shallow cut along his arm, just deep enough to draw blood.
"Imagine me doing all this to your wives. Peeling their skin off bit by bit." She whispered. "And when I\'m done, I crush their hearts to paste, sending them to wait for yu in the afterlife."
Veran shut his eyes, shaking his head.
"We can avoid all that, Veran. Just answer a simple question for me. Where is the Ascension Well?" She demanded, her tone ice-cold. "Tell me, and I promise their suffering will end."
Veran\'s breathing grew ragged, his mind racing. The thought of his wives enduring unimaginable pain was more than he could bear.
He slumped forward, the last of his resistance crumbling. "Alright," he whispered, broken. "I\'ll tell you."
Helena\'s eyes gleamed with triumph. "Good. Now, where is it?"
Veran took a shuddering breath, the words coming out in a defeated whisper. "It\'s hidden beneath the old cathedral on the outskirts of Southside. There\'s a concealed entrance in the crypt. Just go there and you\'ll find it."
Helena\'s smile widened. "Thank you, Veran. You\'ve been most helpful."
"What about my wives?" Veran asked.
Without warning, Helena plunged a blade into his heart. "I already killed them." She whispered, watching the despair in his eyes as his life came to an end.
Helena stood up, wiping the blood from her hands with a clinical detachment. She walked out and turned to the guards standing outside. "Dispose of the body."
As she walked away from the cell, her mind was already focused on the next steps.
The location of the Ascension Well was finally within her grasp. And with it, the power to reshape the balance of First City.