Chapter 4: A Chat

Paradox immediately ran away after the fight. Enforcement was closing in and Paradox didn't want to have to answer several uncomfortable questions everyone would likely have, like "why do you have magical powers" and "do you like your burning stake crispy or well-done".
Paradox kept up his pace while dodging around a couple of corners and into a few alleys. He didn't slow down until the chatter of enforcement officers and the rumble of tank engines had faded into oblivion and all Paradox could hear was the footfalls of passing pedestrians.
Paradox took a deep breath. He had done it. The elderly bunny had told him that he was needed to save lives, so Paradox had come here, but now that it was done and enforcement could handle it, Paradox wanted to forget it ever happened and return to his garden shack in the desert. Paradox wasn't a hero; or at least he didn't want to make a habit out of it. Heroism was exhausting and dangerous and best left to those who actually wanted it.
Paradox was eventually able to get his bearings and he walked, a bit nervously, toward the outer wall. He soon found himself near the main gate.
"Hello, sir." said a guard. as he passed. "Um, do you have a permit to leave?"
Paradox stopped. Really? you needed paperwork to enter and leave this place?
"Um, I just wanna go home." Paradox said, hoping to appeal to this guard's better nature.
"That's fine, sir. I'm just making sure nobody leaves without the proper permits." The guard said.
Paradox was a bit confused until he realized that this guard must be assuming that he lived in the city. Were people from the outside really so rare?
"I, um... I don't live here." Paradox said.
"Well no, I don't suppose you would, sir. this is the farming district." the guard said, a little confused.
Paradox decided to try something a little different to get this done quicker. "Um, I snuck over the wall today. That is, I snuck into the wall. Without the proper paperwork. Maybe you could, um, throw me out? Y'know, To make it even?"
This earned a quizzical look from the guard. His partner whispered something into his communication device. judging by his expression, he was calling for backup. Neither of them seemed too keen on throwing Paradox out of the city. Not in a friendly way, at least.
A gleaming silver hover carriage pulled up behind Paradox. At first Paradox thought that backup had arrived already, but when the door opened, the two guards stood rigidly at attention as a rabbit with immaculately groomed white fur stepped out.
"Duchess!" the first guard said in surprise. "We weren't expecting you."
"Yes, I rather doubt you would have been." the duchess said, only the faintest bit of annoyance escaping from her voice. "At ease. I'm not here for you. I just need a short talk with this one." The duchess pointed at Paradox.
"ah, uh, me?" Paradox said, pointing to himself. He wasn't sure why a public-official-looking person would want to have a special talk with him. Had someone finally figured out he was a witch? Was he going to be arrested and burned at the stake now?
The duchess took a few steps toward the back end of her vehicle. The way she turned around and tapped her foot communicated clearly that she expected to be followed. Paradox took a gulp of air and tentatively creeped toward her. The position she had picked was far enough from the guards that they couldn't overhear a casual conversation, but close enough that they could come if she called. Paradox took up a position next to her and waited for the conversation to start, but the duchess simply studied him, as if trying to find some truth hidden behind his eyes.
Paradox soon found the silence too oppressive not to break. "l-Look, y-, um, your highness...ness, I really just want to go home to my garden. I'd appreciate it if you didn't, um, burn me."
The duchess stirred from her internal musings. "So... you live outside the city."
Paradox looked to heaven in gratitude. Finally someone got it! Only after his rejoicings did Paradox realize that she had neither confirmed or denied that she wanted to put him on a stake.
The duchess continued her inspection, perhaps even more intently than before. "You have a garden, then. how does that treat you?"
Paradox was a little unnerved by the duchess's attention. "Not... -ahem- not bad. Wh-why do you ask?"
The duchess paid no heed to Paradox's question as she posed yet another. "Why do you think that I would want to burn you?"
This new question sounded more accusatory than innocent. "Um, no- ahem- no reason... I think. why would you? you think?"
"Now that is an interesting question." the duchess said, picking up volume as she went. "Well, perhaps you might have stolen something from my company." she continued. "Something that I would dearly like back."
Paradox was now confused. "I might have stolen... what are you talking about?"
"The device." the duchess said, clearly annoyed. "The psionic stimulation device. you clearly have one, as you couldn't have performed those feats in the street half an hour ago if you didn't."
Paradox went stiff. She had seen him. Of course she had. hundreds of people could have seen him, but she was a duchess. Paradox wasn't quite sure what that meant for him, but most scenarios didn't look good.
"Listen," the duchess said, folding her arms. "I won't turn you in for the theft; you are probably the best user I've ever seen with one of those things, and having you behind bars wouldn't help anyone. However, that only applies if you give me my company's property back; so fork it over."
Paradox was still a bit confused at what this lady thought he had stolen, but he knew enough to refute it before she turned him over to enforcement.
"I don't have it." Paradox said, hoping desperately she would believe him.
"So you stashed it somewhere." She said. "Okay. where is it?"
"No, I mean I never stole anything. I don't have your Psychic simulation gadget... thing."
The duchess gave Paradox as skeptical look. Yeesh. Paradox could almost think he had stolen something.
"No! it's true!" Paradox said. "Here, take a look." Paradox grabbed his satchel and unbuttoned it to show the duchess it's contents; a couple of fruit and no fancy gadgets whatsoever.
The duchess studied the satchel with her paw scratching her chin. Her eyes flitted from the sparse provisions to Paradox's black face and back, studying harder and harder, seemingly getting more confused as she went. Eventually her sharp, blue eyes rested on Paradox's with a look of utter incredulity.
"Stars." she exclaimed, whispering. "You don't have one; do you? You're a- a psion."
And that was it. Now she would call the guards and have Paradox bound to a stake and burned. Paradox hadn't heard the word "psion" before, but he was pretty sure that it meant "witch" in White City speak. Paradox put his paws forward in a defensive stance; maybe he could defend himself long enough to escape, he thought to himself.
But the attack never came. Paradox had his paws forward in the awkward position for a few seconds before the duchess asked "What are you doing?"
Paradox opened his eyes. The duchess hadn't called any guards or enforcement officers. No tanks or mobs of pitchforks and torches were marching around the corner. Paradox lowered his paws. "You.. don't want to burn me at the stake?"
"Not yet." the duchess said. "be much more annoying and I might."
Paradox wasn't sure if she was serious.
The duchess thought a bit before her next sentence. "Listen, we should talk back at KiCorp. I have someone back there who would love to meet you." The duchess reached into her hover carriage and pulled out a small glass panel. She tapped it a few times with her paw and a map of the city glowed on it's surface. the duchess tossed the device to Paradox, who clumsily danced around to catch it as it slipped through his paws. "This will take you to my building." the duchess said. "I have a bit of business to attend to soon, so you can let yourself in. What name should I give security?"
Paradox didn't speak for a bit. "I... just want to go home." he finally said.
The duchess looked stunned. "You want to go home?" she said, incredulous. "For goodness sake, then why did you come?"
Paradox shifted uncomfortably. "I- I came to help. I heard there might be trouble."
The duchess pulled her face out of the carriage to look Paradox in the eye. "And now that you've seen it, you want to turn tail and run?"
Paradox looked at the ground. "I just- I thought that I had- I mean- I thought this was... done."
"Well it's not," The duchess said. "Not by a long shot. Did you think that the problem just goes away now that you annoyed it? You can help and you're going to run now?"
Paradox didn't respond. When you put it like that it was very straightforward, but things were never that simple in paradox's brain. Right now his head hurt and he just wanted the conversation to be over.
"Are you coming or not?" The duchess demanded.
"I-I'll come." he said, trying and failing to reestablish eye contact without aggravating his headache.
"Okay." the duchess said back. "What name do I give security?"
"Paradox. My name is Paradox."
The duchess gave him a quizzical look as if to say "really? that's your name?"
"Um, what's yours?" Paradox managed to stammer out.
"Duchess Kira Sunpaw." She said as she leaned back into her seat. "Much obliged."