A Dangerous Illusion

Chapter 29

     Geno glanced up as he saw his exhausted partner walk into the office on Monday. The previous day, Reaper had woken up before him and left before the other woke up. He then wasn't responding to any texts.

     "You look like crap," Geno noted as Ink approached his desk. Ink glared at him.

     "Shut up," He muttered. It was then that Geno noticed the dark marks under Ink's eyes.

     "What's wrong? You look like you didn't sleep last night."

     "I have a clue on who Glitch and Sythe are." This immediately caught Geno's attention.

     "What? Who? Where did you get the info from?" He rapidly questioned. Ink sighed.

     "I have a friend. He'd been missing for the past while. He suddenly turned up here yesterday while I was doing a bit of extra research. He looked pretty beat up.

     "He told me he had been a sort of double agent. He knew the plans of both Nightmare's gang and our leads. He would tip either side off occasionally, but was mostly content to watch how things unfolded because he knew what both teams would do.

     "At some point, it seems that Nightmare got wind of Blue's betrayal. He had been captured and sometimes even tortured. However, he told me he heard who the identities of Glitch and Scythe were.

     "He also told me that we know them. In fact, they were sent to befriend us then betray us." Ink hesitated for a minute, looking at Geno. "You know the person you met? Reaper?"

     "Yes?" Geno replied, a sinking feeling growing. He had a suspicion what Ink was about to say, but didn't want to believe that about the other skeleton. In fact, Reaper was beginning to grow on him. Of course, Geno would never admit it out loud.

     "And you know how your brother, Error, has been 'missing' for years now?"

     "Yes..."

     "According to Blueberry, they're our criminals." Geno was left in shock. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Though some facts did seem to line up. Suddenly, a memory struck him.

     The cut on Reaper.

     It had appeared right after the fight he had with Scythe. Plus, itt was in the same place. It could just be a coincidence, but his instincts were telling a different story.

     He didn't want to believe it about the person he had grown close to, despite not showing it outwardly.

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     "Dust! How the hell could you let Blue escape?! Not only was he beat up to the point he could barely walk, but now he's going to go blab to the police!" Nightmare was furious. He had returned to the base he had left Dust in charge of only to find one of their captives loose. Dust only shrugged. Nightmare growled and chucked him against a wall.

     "I'll deal with you later. Error? Reaper?" Nightmare yelled.

     "Yeah? What's up Nightlight?" Reaper asked, lazily walking into the room and leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed.

     "What is it?" Error asked, coming in from another door.

     "Don't call me that Reaper. Anyways, I want you two to kill the police on your case." Both Reaper and Error froze. Error crashed, and Reaper's face went emotionless. Nightmare glared at them.

     "What is it? You two have never had any problems with killing in the past," He commented once Error finished rebooting.

     "I-I mean, do we have to kill them?" Reaper asked, his mind flashing to Geno. Despite having seemed like a shameless flirt, he actually held some affection for the other. Error's mind went to the fun loving artist who had taken the other in when he was drunk. He thought about the genuinely fun times he had with the artist. Nightmare watched their faces closely.

     "You two actually like them, don't you?" He asked incredulously. Reaper and Error both shook their heads no, but Nightmare could see through them.

     "Well," He said, his demeanor immediately shifting to become more cold and threatening. "I guess I have a small problem to solve."

*************************************

     Geno glanced up as he heard the anonymous tip hotline ring. He scrambled over from his desk, almost forgetting to grab the paper that had what he was supposed to say on it.

      "Hello. Ebbot city police department. Do you have any information pertaining to crimes around the city?" He asked, reading off the script.

     "Yes I do," An unrecognized voice spoke. "It's about the criminals Glitch and Scythe. Their real names are Error C.Q and Reaper Reinrik."