Dronin’s Travels, Chapter 4—The Interrogation

Written by Dronin Gammerson

“We have reason to believe the assassin is Vordic” the King said, “Guards seize him!”
The guards rushed him pinning him to the ground ignoring his complaints and constant denial that he did it. We all came to see him put in prison for killing the tenth commander junior surface strategist, and the attempted murder of the ninth commander senior surface strategist. Which begs the question, why did he target the surface strategists? We would be able to question him further soon. In the meantime the guards went into his house and searched it finding the missing Bungle berry leaves and many poisons made from it. Of course they were hidden behind a false panel, but the guards were trained to search for things like this and they located it easily.
Vordic was brought into the dungeon and questioned. I asked to be part of the questioning because I was one of the targets.
“Why did you do it Vordic?” Said Jominac battle commander number three senior intelligence officer, “What do you gain from killing both of the surface commanders?”
Vordic spat at the floor in front of Jominac.
“You know the order of operation Vordic, I'm playing the nice guy now.” Jominac paused, “But if we don't get answers I will be forced to use... other means” He paused again, “Now you know those other means, and you also know that I don't want to use them on you, but I will if I have to.”
Jominac scooted his chair forward and leaned in, “So tell me, why did you do it.”
“If you are not helping the Magistrate then you shouldn't help anyone, and without your surface commanders you would have a hard time going up there” Vordic blurted out.
“Why would you want to help the Magistrate?” Jominac started slowly sticking magnets on the table without Vordic's knowledge. These magnets made the table slightly magnetic and because of this Vordic's handcuffs started feeling heavy as they were drawn to the table. These magnets were not very big and because of this Vordic did not feel the cuffs getting heavier and unconsciously he pulled up on his cuffs more and more because of the magnets.
“The Magistrate is a good and powerful leader. He will create a nation where all of the Kingdoms are united in peace.”
By this time the magnets made the table very magnetic and Vordic stopped trying to resist it and just rested his hands on the table. Jominac had been waiting for when he did this and then started using much bigger magnets to stick on the table.
“Are there more of you here?” asked Jominac.
“No” said Vordic a little to quickly.
Jominac noticed this and asked “Are you sure?”
“Yes I am the only one on this mission” Vordic said.
“Mission? What mission?” Jominac asked slightly surprised.
“Oh uh We brought this mission myself” Vordic said not quite making since.
“We? Did you say we?” Jominac turned to me, “Dronin did you hear him say we?”
“Yes I did” I said smiling.
“That's what I thought”
“Your hearing things” said Vordic desperately, “I said me.”
“No I am pretty sure you said we” Jominac responded, “So tell me who this we is.”
“There is no we!” Vordic shouted and tried to rise, then noticed for the first time that he couldn't move his hands. So he sat down again, “What have you done to my hands!”
“Oh nothing.” Jominac said calmly, “Now tell me who this we is” He said more forcefully.
“No!” Vordic shouted, “I will not!”
“Dronin” Jominac said turning to me, and I passed him a vial, “This is acid. It takes a very long time to melt through metal but it does not take long to melt through flesh.”
He poured the substance on the table near Vordic's hands. The liquid slowly expanded towards Vordic. “Who is this we?”
Vordic was panicking now, “An undercover group here to make sure that Draldon helps the Magistrate” He blurted out, “Now stop this acid!” I leaped over and put a long flat piece of metal between the liquid and Vordic's hands. Then I put a bowl next to the table and used the metal piece to scoop the liquid into it.
Jominac and I walked out of the room taking the magnets with us.
“I dearly hope that wasn't actually acid that was on the table in there” Jominac said.
“Of course not, it was merely a mixture of sulfur and coal berries. I found that if you mix the two you get a very acidic smelling substance that moves very slowly” I responded pleased to show off my expertise, “That was very good, I would have never thought to put magnets on the table so that he couldn't take his hands away.”
“It's a simple trick that I like to use” He said with the slightest trace of a smile, “Now all we have to do is find these other assassins.”
Just at that moment a guard came running at us “Vordic has been poisoned.”