The Storytellar (Shadows Of A Massacre)

Truth III

"A-Am I... Am I really adopted...?" Harry spoke for the first time in this story.

"Ah... So you can talk?" the cop commented.

Harry insisted, "Please...! Answer my question. Am I...not my mother's son!?" A tear escaped his deep blue eyes. 'I wasn't there son? And I survived...? Why? They raised me all my life with so much love and yet, I survived? Out of everyone, I survived!? Why me!!?' the boy's thoughts tormented him.

***

Then at the new station, it was sudden but as if on cue to clear the tension in the air at the time as well as provide that 'truth' that Ms. Pathfinder asked for, there was a loud yell from behind the newsroom, "Hey! We've got something!" the cameraman that had accompanied Ms Pathfinder to the first report of the murder story that night, came running to the news desk.

"What's this about, Ted?" Grace questioned as the tall, slim and pale man wearing a headset approached her. He whispered into her ears and her eyes widened, "Really!?" He nodded in confirmation then went back to his post to upload the video. She smiled a victorious smile.

"What is it?" Mr Watson inquired.

Once she gave Ted the go-ahead, she turned to the two oblivious reporters and declared, "Mr Watson, Mr Smith, we've got one!" with a wide smile across her freckled face.

"What?" the two reporters wondered curiously.

She clarified, "We've got a clue on the mysterious murderer of the Burlington estate mass murder."

"What the- Already!?" Mr Smith exclaimed.

Mr Watson's brows raised as he retreated to his seat. "It seems so, alright then, where is it?" he asked and Ms Pathfinder delivered...

"Well... If we'd all look at the screen, I'm sure you'd all like what you'd see." Ms Pathfinder pointed to the large news screen behind them, and a video of her reporting the murder scene came on.

Mr Watson assumed with an unimpressed expression and said, "So... We're looking at you reporting the same story we're discussing, is this a joke?"

Ms Pathfinder stood up from her seat and faced Mr Watson with confidence, as she watched his unconvinced attitude she chuckled before she approached his ear and then whispered, "Oh, Charles, please... All good things come to those who wait. You should know that..." A few seconds after she made that statement, the video was paused for a moment, then zoomed to a certain corner. Everyone's attention was placed on that very corner of the video as it revealed something that stood right beside Ms Pathfinder, something that wasn't there before, something that everyone in that very same video failed to notice for some reason.
What appeared on the screen was a figure covered in darkness, a blurred figure of what looked to be a man standing right next to the oblivious Ms Pathfinder as she was reporting the story in the video.

Surprised and alerted by the sudden appearance of the dark figure next to her, Mr Watson questioned, "Ms Pathfinder...? What the hell is that?"

With her legs trembling, her voice crackling, and her expression terrified, she replied, "I... don't know."

***

Back at the police station, the atmosphere seemed to have dulled even more. The cop paused for a moment as he felt bad for the kid, then he took a breath and answered the boy's sorrows, "...I'm sorry but it's written as clear as day in this folder. Tell me, what's your birthday?"

"...May 12th, 30##"

"Yes, well... According to this, you were adopted on May 12th, 30##"

"Is that not even my birthday...? "Harry questioned. 'Is my birthday just the day they picked me up from an adoption agency?"

And the cop answered, "It could be, it might not." Then a thought emerged from his speculation, 'Is it just me or is it weird that they never registered what adoption agency they got the kid from? All it says here is "Adopted From Null", weird..." The cop sighed a bit, scratching his head as he thought, 'What is this? Some kind of telenovela?' The situation had gotten... Complicated. So to get back on track, he went back to square one, "I get that this... might be a lot for you to handle but I need you to focus for me, boy. Can you do that for me?"

He began the questioning, "Ahem! On the record, your name is Harry Wallace, is that correct!?"

Unexcited, clearly still in shock yet cooperative, the boy answered his questions, "Yes..." His slowly face fell with sadness, his knees rose and his face bundled itself in between his legs.

"Are you eleven years old?" the cop continued.

"Yes..."

"Are your family members four in total?"

There was a bit of hesitation. "...Yes."

"Did you witness the murder of your family members?"

"I did..."

"Did you see the murderer's face?"

"I...didn't."

"W-What?" The cop lost his composure a bit.

"I didn't see his face... It was too dark to see," the boy explained.

"At all, no idea whatsoever?" the cop insisted that the boy try to remember something, anything. "Kid...? Alright, just hear me out, ok? From the records of how badly your family was murdered, this isn't your everyday killer. This guy...? He's a monster so I need you to try...just try to remember something, anything at all! You've got to give me something so that we can catch the guy. Could you at least..."

"...I do remember something about the murderer..." the boy raised his head as he stated.

"W-What!? Come on, tell me! What do you remember about the murderer?" the cop leaned in as he asked.

"I remember... Those..."

***

"Purple eyes...? A-Are t-t-those purple eyes...?" Mr Smith fearfully commented.

With a bit more technical editing from Ted - the cameraman, the video was enhanced and what could be seen more clearly was a man in red boots, black gloves and a long dark robe with a hood that obscured his face in darkness. Everyone watched as the video was enhanced even more and thus time, what they could see come out from that darkness was the feint glow of his purple pupils, the scariest part of it all was that as faint and hard to see as it was, there was a devilish smile under that hood.

A hand grabbed onto Ms Pathfinder's hand followed by a desperate whisper, "But wait... That pupil glow... Isn't that...!?" It was Mr Watson, he seemed to be confirming something private with her. To which she replied with dread in her voice, "Yes... That's a mage..."

He added, "And a purple-eyed one at that..."

"This might be bad..." Ms Pathfinder uttered under her breath.

...