Weirdos II: The Legion of Death

Chapter 61: The Four-Way Trap

Evening came in Emerald whose atmosphere is still heavy with tension and fear. The streets and parks inside the school are now completely desolate following the incident that happened last night. It seems that no one wants to stay outside their dormitories right after dusk. The Emerald Guards, non-teaching staff, and professors are the only people brave enough to walk in the school grounds at this time.

I just stared silently at the dimming horizon from my room's balcony. Kasama ko rin dito 'yung tatlo. Hindi na muna umuwi sina Jack at Faye sa kanila dahil gusto rin nilang malaman ang totoong nangyari kay Jared. Nasabihan na rin namin sina Cataleya at Jared kanina kaya hinihintay na lang namin sila rito.

"Bro, eat your dinner already. Nandito na rin 'yung pizza at mga burger na pinadeliver ni Faye. Stress eating na kami rito kaya sumali ka naman," tawag sa 'kin ni Jack mula sa loob ng kwarto ko.

"I'm not hungry. Don't worry about me," I said as I stared at RB's emerald butterfly which is currently flying all around me.

Jack took a deep breath before stepping out into the balcony. "RB's Crystal Weirdness is really awesome, isn't it? I would willingly exchange my Water Weirdness for his weirdness," Jack said as he also stared at the crystal butterfly.

"Yeah. But I really admire his weirdness when he gets emotional. He's so powerful but his emotions can still influence his ability to control his weirdness," I replied. The emerald butterfly stopped flying around me and rested gently at the tip of my nose, folding it's wings as if to momentarily rest.

"Bro, alam ko naman na handa mong gawin ang lahat para linisin ang pangalan ni RB. Ilang beses ko na rin 'tong nasabi sa 'yo pero alam ko ring sinusubukan din ni RB na magbago. Pero..."

"Pero ano?" tanong ko naman.

Jack gave me a disconcerted look. "Please don't be mad at me but considering what happened last evening, isn't it time for us to accept that RB is the real culprit in all of the attacks here in Emerald?"

I automatically frowned before facing Jack. "What are you trying to say, then?" I said in a dangerous voice.

"B-Bro, listen to me. RB was at the scene of the crime last evening. He was also there when you were attacked. The victims were injured with crystals, just like the previous victims. Remember RB's newfound power? Remember what happened before in our practice battle in Combat Ed? RB wasn't able to remember what happened to him in that incident. And he also wasn't able to remember what happened to him last evening. What if... What if RB is actually the attacker and he just can't remember his crimes? What if he can't control his newfound powers and he goes berserk whenever he loses control of it?" Jack said in a slow, careful voice.

"How would you explain the incident when we almost captured the attacker? RB was there with us and we clearly saw that the attacker was a different person," I said.

"Well, RB can create Crystal Golems and we weren't actually able to confirm whether the thing the we faced that evening was a human or not. It was able to produce crystals, remember? What if RB subconsciously summoned that Crystal Golem without him actually knowing it? Come on bro, we still don't know the extent of RB's new power," Jack explained.

Natigilan na lang din ako. Jack has a point. And above all, his speculations aren't baseless or just plain wild guesses. They're actually plausible.

"When I was attacked before, I remember RB suddenly collapsing and his black markings also appeared on his body... At nung iniwan ko siya para humingi ng tulong, doon na may sumaksak sa 'kin mula sa likod," I said as my stomach squirmed uncomfortably.

Jack's eyes widened. "See? Ayoko ring makulong si RB pero masyado nang halata ang mga ebidensya para hindi ako maniwala na hindi siya ang attacker. Gusto kong maniwala na inosente siya pero... pero hindi ko na 'yun magagawa ngayon. It could've been just RB all along."