Chapter 95: Oni, 911
I ended our conversation and cut the call.
’Time to keep moving.’
I sank back into the shadows and traveled toward the third generator room.
Guards were posted there now.
Their faces were tense.
Losing two generators in such a short time had clearly rattled them.
They didn’t see the small, nail-sized EMP I slipped out from the shadows beneath the generator.
There was a faint pulse of light, a sharp explosion, and the machine powered down instantly.
Darkness swept the room for several seconds.
I didn’t wait.
I moved through the black corridors toward the fourth and final generator.
The lights flickered back to life just as I arrived.
The guards here were murmuring to each other, distracted by the sudden outage.
Perfect.
I slid the last EMP into place, letting it emerge from the shadow under the generator.
No one noticed until the pulse detonated.
The generator whined once before dying completely.
The lights went out, and this time, they didn’t come back.
The guards reacted instantly, shouting to each other, trying to get their bearings.
They could not see anything in the darkness.
That wasn’t a problem for me.
Shadow Assimilation kept my vision clear even in pitch darkness.
I moved through the black corridors, using the shadows I reached the area where the children were kept.
’Four guards.’
They were stumbling around, and trying to adjust to the darkness.
I knew they would be organized again within moments.
This was my best window to move.
I slipped out from the shadows and landed silently on the ground.
The Unseen perk from my Assassin class kept my already faint presence suppressed to the point of near invisibility.
I moved quickly, closing the distance to one of the guards, and in a single motion, I lifted the communicator from his belt.
He didn’t notice anything.
But...
The fifteen-year-old boy who had been feeding the older kids earlier. His eyes locked on me.
He could see me.
’He might be Oni, or something similar. Their race has natural night vision.’
I remained calm.
I had already accounted for the possibility that one or two children might notice me.
Even if the child said he saw me, the Exorcist Police would not believe him since there was no evidence of my presence.
They would think he had hallucinated due to trauma.
In a blink, I sank back into the nearest patch of shadow and vanished from view.
The guards began to use flashlights throughout the underground base.
Some lit the area with small conjured flames or glowing stones.
"Hey, what’s going on!?"
"Turn the lights back on!"
"Get the head of security on comms! Something’s wrong!"
The shouting spread fast.
With everyone bunched together, the confusion multiplied.
Normally the House Head or the head of security would step in to restore order, but I had taken care of them already.
I left the scrambling guards behind and made my way to the loading bay where the trucks sat.
Their cargo—gold—was still inside.
I worked fast, moving crate after crate into the Inventory Rune on my palm. The space filled quickly, but I wasn’t leaving any of it behind.
Once the last of it was stored, I took out the communicator I had just stolen.
’I have the gold.’
’Time to save the children.’
The emergency number for the Exorcist Police wasn’t public knowledge.
It was their equivalent of 911, but only for incidents involving Exorcist beings or events.
Only registered Exorcists and law enforcement knew it.
I entered the number.
...
Lucy’s POV
Lucy sat at her desk.
She was wearing a headset, and her eyes remained glued to the wall of monitors showing incoming call queues and dispatch statuses.
Her shift had been rather uneventful today.
There had been a disturbance at a private event, which was resolved before they even got there.
Another emergency report told them about a suspicious vehicle parked outside a Exorcist registry office, but it turned out to be a delivery van.
"It’s good nothing serious happened today," she thought happily.
She had just finished noting the end time on the last logged call when the console in front of her lit up with an urgent incoming signal.
She answered immediately.
"Exorcist Police Emergency Response, this is Operator Fourteen. What’s your situation?"
For a moment there was only the faint sound of breathing. Then a small, shaking voice came through.
"Hic... hello... hic..."
Her posture straightened. It was a child’s voice.
"Hi there," she said, keeping her tone steady. "You’re safe talking to me. Can you tell me what’s wrong?"
"P-please... save us..."
Lucy’s eyes flicked to the monitor, but no location data had come through yet.
She pressed a key to start the trace manually.
"We’ll help you," she said gently. "Can you tell me where you are right now?"
"I... I don’t know... hic... It’s dark... and I’m scared..."
"That’s okay. You did well calling us. Can you tell me if you’re alone?"
"N-no... there are more... in the same situation.... hic.... as me..."
Her expression tightened, but her voice stayed calm.
"How many are with you?"
"Fourteen...."
"Can you tell me anything about your surroundings?"
"We... We are in cages... next my cage... there’s twins... w-with white wings..." His voice cracked, and there was a muffled sob.
Lucy covered her headset mic and spoke to the technician at the next desk. "Call the Chief. If this isn’t a prank call, we have a serious situation at hand."
The tech immediately nodded, and moved.
She unmuted her mic. "You’re helping us a lot. Who else is with you?"
"There’s... an eight-year-old boy... h-he’s got ash-colored hair... and long ears..."
"You’re doing great. We’re coming to help you. Just stay with me."
"I... I scared... hic... hic..."
Her heart trembled hearing the child’s fear-struck stone, but she knew she had to act composed.
"I know. But you’re being very brave. You’ve done good to call us, and we’ll get you out. Can you tell me anything about where you are? Even a small detail?"
There was a short silence, before the answer came with a shaky breath, "I... I heard the guards say... Dusk—"
The call was cut out.