Chapter 34 - Difference In Persuasions

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By nothing but the light of the stars, Banshee leapt across the rooftops and into the temple grounds.

She slipped through a window and into the second floor corridors around where she knew Andrew and Melissa's rooms were and paused, listening for the sounds of trouble. A pair of people in civilian clothes that'd been passing by stopped to look at her, but she barely saw them.

Several adults talking. Many footsteps. A kid crying.

Banshee followed them, her boots making no noise on the plush carpet as she ran, her feet carrying her into a larger room.

The first one to notice her was a Speaker, who broke into relief when they saw her.

"Oh, thank Skypillar, Banshee!" they said, drawing the gazes of everyone in the room. "We have a situation. Andrew's missing, and we believe Hydra, or Ella as you may know her, is responsible."

"What happened?" asked Banshee.

"Ah, yes, of course," said the Speaker, running a hand through their hair. "From what we can gather, Ella sent Andrew a message, saying she'd taken this child's family hostage and that if he didn't come to a certain location, she'd kill them and repeat the process until he did. By the time we found out, Andrew was already gone."

"How long?"

"We aren't sure," said the Speaker. "The guards outside Andrew's rooms said that the child appeared just as the auroras began. They thought something was strange about it, but Andrew came out and assured them it was fine. He asked the guards to stay with the child while he went to find Melissa, who wasn't at her rooms, but towards the end of the auroras she came back to the rooms without having heard from him. When we started questioning the child, he became hysterical."

As the Speaker explained, Banshee noticed the kid, sitting on a bench in the corner surrounded by Speakers and two temple guards. He couldn't have been more than eight years old.

"I see," said Banshee. "Excuse me a moment."

She walked over and crouched beside him, placing a gentle hand on his knee. He jumped and flinched from her touch before recognition sparked and he reached forward, grabbing her hand.

"Please!" he said between sobs. "Please, she's gonna hurt my family! She--she had my sister, and she said that if they moved or did anything or if I told a Luminary what she was doing or I didn't give the message to her friend then--then she was--she was gonna--oh, oh what if she thinks that I'm telling you then she'd gonna--"

Banshee wiped her thumb across the kid's face, holding his face in her hands.

"Look at me," she said quietly. "I promise you that I won't let anything happen to your family, okay? I won't let her hurt them, just as I won't let her hurt you. But I need you to be brave for me. Can you do that?"

The kid shook his head. Banshee smoothed back his hair. "I can't--can't tell you--if she's actually Hydra, then what if you're just gonna help her? What if you're gonna tell her what I say and then--"

"Does the Other lie?" asked Banshee.

The kid nodded.

"The Other doesn't want you to trust me," said Banshee, taking his hand. "Because the Other knows that I can help you. That I can stop one of the people it's corrupted. But to do that, I need your help. I need you to trust me. Can you do that?"

The kid hesitated this time, but a few seconds later, gave her a sharp nod.

"Good," said Banshee. "Now, what's your name?"

"Aaron."

"Hey, Aaron," said Banshee with a small smile. "I'm Banshee. Where abouts do you live?"

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