With muddled thoughts, Dmitri returned to the group of teenagers.
"So, how many more are there left of you?"
"Just the drummer, and he's easy to find, " Sandra answered while looking up from a pink journal.
"Solve the mystery, and the mystery drummer shall appear," Juniper added.
"He sounds fishy," Lead-foot said from inside her head.
"He's the mystery drummer, being enigmatic is kind of his thing."
the John, recognizing the handwriting in the journal, interrupted her from her thoughts.
"What's that?"
"I found it on the guard back there," Juniper said.
"Why would she bring her diary down here?"
"Ah, so this is the owner of the barrette Sandra told me about."
Together, they inspected the entries leading up to the riot.
4/09
Dear diary,
I found out from mom today that I will be spending spring break at dad's place. I wish she had asked my opinion; you know, in between the late nights of her yelling into a phone. Why make me go if even you hate the guy? Then again, Cindy says her dad gives way more presents after his divorce. Maybe, by next month, i'll be storing you in the glove box of my first car!
...
4/11
Dear diary,
Did dad's house always look like a convent? I don't remember it feeling this sweltering when we were still together. Did they break up over the thermostat? Since there's nothing else to do here, Detective Jenna is on the case!
...
4/15
Dear diary,
I have found nothing out of the ordinary, aside from him leaving mom's room untouched. There was that weird noise I heard while doing laundry the other day, but he insists it is a leaky pipe. Did they breakup because he was too cheap to repair the plumbing?
...
4/24
Dear diary,
The nightmares have gotten worse. I find myself counting the days until I can return to mom's place. I think I understand why they broke up now: dad lives a boring life. We've barely talked this whole time, he didn't get me a car, and he's locked up in his office every other day. Maybe I should sneak some bottles out of the wine cellar before I leave, tomorrow. Master thief Jenna is on the job!
"It sounds like she accidentally stumbled in here, but the fact it coincided with the riot begs a connection... Was there a man on the inside? What was his aim? Why the high death count?"
It was, surprisingly, Lead-foot who gave a response to the John's musings.
"Nah, you're off the mark; these bodies were the work of the Block 6 Butcher!"
"My source never mentioned such a person; is this just another prison rumor?"
"Fine, don't believe me? I'll have Juniper tell it, then!"
Juniper's voice turned back to normal and, with all action cameras on her, she began the story.
"He entered Block 2 on a Tuesday and, before the week was out, they had thrown him in Tartarus."
"You're telling me someone who's sub-threat level 30 got put in Block 6? And that quick? How many guards did he kill?"
"None, but he massacred half a block's worth of patients. You see those 'ghost' bodies out there?"
She pointed to a dead Block 3 patient outside the bus window. It was nearly bisected, with a gash running from the shoulder to sternum.
"He'd do that with his bare hands! It's like they were meat cleavers, or something; one chop, and you were butchered."
Dmitri suddenly remembered a piece of training footage he had studied extensively on the way here. He grabbed Juniper by the collar, turning aggressive in his interrogation.
"What did he look like!?!"
Lead-foot took over, as if getting shaken down was natural to him.
"How am I supposed to know? Was I even here when he got transferred?"
"Surely, you saw him during the riot!"
"Nope! I died trying to get past a laser barricade; never even seen the inside of central tower until just a few minutes ago."
"Excuse me, can you stop shaking our bassist?"
Seeing the growling guinea pig draped over Sandra's shoulders, the John released his grip.
"Let's head straight down to block 6," he said, "I have a feeling your Drummer will be there."
Starting at Block 4, the living standards of patients changed dramatically. Gone were the libraries and rec yard, replaced by row after row of single occupant glass cells. They appeared to be mounted on a complex rail system, allowing them to be remotely moved without opening the cell.
There were many more patients trapped dead in their cells from starvation here than on previous floors. Despite that, though, many enclosures were broken open. Finally arriving at the entrance to Block 6, they discovered it still intact.
"Aren't there supposed to be threat level 60 people behind this door? How come it didn't get broken down."
the John and Juniper both laughed at Dusty's question, albeit for different reasons.
"There isn't a prison on earth that can house a threat level 60."
"Yeah, we called this place Tartarus because it was a dark hole the guards threw you in to forget about you."
"Exactly," the two praised each other in unison.
"Well that's great and all," Dusty replied, "but I can't just ram through this door. I'll need to cut through the lock, or something."
"How long will that take," Sandra asked.
"Well, since I don't know the materials... 6 hours?"