0.0001 seconds before the untimely death of Pueris.
As Pueris's face became a distraught grey, the falling figure of Justice 7 was interfered with by an odd silver glimmer.
An ethereal ray of silver light. It turned the golden world behind it, obsolete.
This particular ray of light had been sent from Pueris' own two eyes which had gone from two black voids to two miraculous worlds of angelic metal.
Through the light, the reason that Pueris started his entire mishap-filled journey scorned itself into his mind.
In that deathly period, Pueris took in a small gulp.
As his eyes scanned the image formed in the shallow and fatigued silver light, he met eyes with a boy who looked identical to him.
He truly had not aged a day or changed in a singular physical feature since the old days.
And at that moment, something in Pueris' soul scraped from within, and Pueris' eyes shut out of his control.
Pueris felt unsettled as a tingly seething stuck to his eyes.
As Pueris opened his eyes gradually, a whole new scene emerged before him.
He looked down but realized that there was nothing there.
Just a glossy beige floor.
There was no longer a golden haze, no longer a faint London chill, and no longer any demeanor of Justice.
Rather one could observe numerous meager rows of polished oak wood, presenting themselves altogether as a court.
In the court, the mood was dull.
A chandelier of glimmering white crystals swung from side to side, presenting the room with an eery blue shade that highlighted the wrinkles of the distressed criminals.
There were too devastated law-breakers in the court on that day.
One was a once-cheery middle-aged man with fuzzy ginger hair that encompassed his ears. His smile had turned to a solemn grimace and the top-half face was blurred... He had long lost hope but held onto his betrothed's hand to comfort her.
By his side was his wife, a woman of undebatable beauty.
Silver hair rocketed down to her waistline. Her skin was so smooth that it couldn't have been real, yet it was glamorous in the cold light descending from the swinging crystal chandelier.
She wore a business-like attire of thick-dark-green trousers and a light white jacket.
She was probably in her 20s.
The two were criminals, soon to receive 15 years in Obsukar Jail.
But to the young Pueris of December 23:53 2021, they were Father and Mother.
Soon to be sent off for a while.
A few distant relatives and close-family friends sat with ungainly fowls in the court rows.
Their hands grasped the polished wood before them nervously.
Although there were a few more minutes in the court, the result was seemingly clear as day.
The judge, possessing unfashionable curly white hair accredited to a bad wig looked down condescendingly. His numerous wrinkled writhed as his expression became that of disgust.
The young Pueris weighed down by funeral-like garments flinched with every word that left the judge from his weasley position in the front row.
"Sanders Mettlerocker, Raspha Mettlerocker, the two of you have been charged with treason in accordance to your hefty crime of attempted assault on a key unit of the Hero Association Truce."
The judge let out a few snarky tuts that seemed to be absorbed into the atmosphere of the room.
"Your punishment is as follows, 15 years in Obsukar Jail and a personal apology to -A- Rank Hero Fateless."
"Right here, right now in this very courtroom."
The judge looked to his left, and a man with a sly smile plastered on a disturbingly thin face walked out without warning.
He was dressed in a smooth and luxurious leather coat and his attire was that of night black.
He looked Japanese and his eyes were like devious slits as they darted across the room, sliding around cunningly in their sockets.
"You may now apologize before Fateless."
Fateless strolled before the ginger-haired man with a mood of arrogance and relaxation.
Quite odd behavior as he was standing before his past assaulters.
Young Pueris peeked over the court rows that were just at the level of his small figure before tipping onto his tip-toes.
Although the ginger-haired man's face had been mostly blurred for a good minute, the blurred veil was instantly lifted.
Or rather, burned through.
Two entirely red eyes.
Not like blood or like a color, but like pure emotion.
Resentment.
Rage.
Righteousness.
They scalded the surface of the two snake-like slits that had formed on the malnutrition face of Fateless.
The nose of the ginger-haired man sniffed and retched at the man before him like a hound dogs.
His mouth was hardly holding itself back from spitting all over Fateless.
Fateless sucked in his cheeks as he waited for his apology. Giving a sneaky wink to the fair lady, he was unbothered by her solemn shudders.
And so a minute passed.
And then two.
And then three-.
The judge cleared his throat in impatience. Twirling his comically small wooden hammer around his finger, he let out an unbothered quip.
"Mr. Mettlerocker and Mrs. Mettlerocker, are you perhaps unsure of the instructions."
The ginger-haired man gazed resentfully toward the judge in a wild beastly manner.
The judge let out another tired and sleepy remark.
"Why can't you lot just let me watch the football, why can't you buffoons just make do with your apologies then get out of my court."
The ginger-haired man let out a hoarse speech. His emotions were driving him insane.
"Tell me."
"Tell me why I should apologize to the man who, to my very own wife mind you, attempted blatant ray-." (Cut off rape.)
A strong right hook swing knocked the ginger-haired man into the ground.
His rageful eyes paled over with blinding whites.
His powerful and explosive atmosphere was brought down with him.
Fateless began shaking his right hand moodily.
"That sounds like a lot of things. But it sure don't sound like no goddamn apology."
His voice was like that of an American cowboy.
The lady by the ginger-haired man's side attempted to kneel down to help, but as she went down her chin was grasped by a greasy, oily Japanese hand.
"Not so fast, you're not off the hook either."
Fateless brought his face closer to Raspher Mettlerocker amusingly.
"I still need my apology."
Raspher half-opened her mouth before a young and childish buzz emerged from the stands.
"You can't do that."
A young Pueris yanked his ethereal white silver-glinted hair as he stared dead-straight at Fateless.
"You can't attack civilians in front of witnesses."
Fateless merely laughed off this audacious claim.
"Civilians? I only see two treacherous criminals."
"Know your place boy."
The man let go of the naive Pueris' mother's chin and yanked at the metallic white hair on young Pueris' head.
"There is no justice here."
And with that two frail apologies slipped from Raspha's mouth before the foolish Pueris could even retort.
One for herself and one for her unconscious husband.
"Apologies for assaulting you, Fateless."
"Apologies from my Husband for assaulting you. Fateless."
Fateless held in a deep chortle.
"How would you like to spend the night with me? I enjoy the obedient."
Raspha's eyes almost imploded into a bloody mess at that very moment.
Fateless slapped his knee violently.
"Relaa-aax. I'm joking. We don't all assault people after all..."
A shallow silence settled.
Ignoring the harsh crowd, Fateless slapped his hands amongst each other.
"Well, I suppose this is done for. Another day another crime solved."
The Judge whose knuckle had driven into his right cheek from boredom nodded lamely.
"Take the traitors away, guards."
The Young Pueris attempted to jump the refined wooden fence before him in that very moment, but a huge mass of shadow soon engulfed him.
And a deafening hand shoved him down.
"Not today kiddo."
Two ridiculing white slits met with Pueris' figure from Fateless' lanky figure.
The young Pueris could only watch in confusion. Still not entirely sure of what was going on.
Only aware of the enthralling feeling within him to jump out and do something.
Because if he didn't, then he felt that he would lose something dear.
But his righteous leap was blocked and nulled by Fateless.
An -A- Rank representative of Justice.
There were no Juries in Justice Court #341.
Only a bribed judge. As was the same for most other courts in the Justice Society.
The bribing had gotten so bad that Judge Darwell's salary had been cut down to 25K per year to no complaint of Judge Darwell himself.
Judge Darwell would be unfairly wealthy even if he got paid cents and pennies.
As men covered in padded blue vests, fancy black hats, and light-blue attire entered the room swiftly before escorting the now half-conscious ginger-haired man and the terrified wife out of the court, most of the guests left their seats. A few grumbles resonated but nothing more.
"Court adjourned."
The men in the flashiest suits then all swiftly fled the scene.
Fateless vanished flashily. One-click of his fingers and a golden glimmer filled the room, when it disappeared he had vanished.
None were really bothered by his antics.
As said previously, the result was essentially long decided. Most of the people had missed their new year's parties to be here.
The Young Pueris entered with parents but left alone.
The family friends who desired to adopt him had left as soon as the mention of treachery was brought up.
To adopt a son of traitors was aligning yourself against Justice.
Most knew how well that could go.
Feeling lost, the Young Pueris turned and left the Court suddenly.
Reaching the outskirts of the lone Court, the Young Pueris' ears perked as the clock tower's bell rang.
Fireworks rose and imploded, a scene of art filling the skies of New Jersey.
The Young Pueris felt his breath upon the winter winds as his void eyes were blessed by a harrowing sight.
It was then that the Young Pueris heard some rambles and shouts from an alley to his left.
The alley of the court.
As the Young Pueris trailed in from curiosity, he saw an odd clash.
The police officials who seemed professional and stoic were shouting and spraying vile remarks to the ginger-haired man and silver-haired woman known to Young Pueris as his parents.
"Hands on the ground, traitors."
"On your knees, if you know where you ought to be."
"Don't avoid eye contact you human mush."
The ginger-haired man, now conscious and aware spoke out in a wild frenzy.
"What is this? 15 Years in Jail, that's what we got, not this nonsense."
"Listen here, I'm not buying this shit."
"You can send us to jail."
"Or piss off."
The group of police's faces soured.
And within moments, the clicks of safety triggers being unlocked filled the empty space of the alleyway.
An armada of guns aimed at the couple.
"For justice."
7 voices spoke in sync, like robots on the same script.
Before the ginger-haired man or the silver-haired woman could even react, rusty bullets swept through their flesh and blood.
Bang. Ban-Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
The blank shots continued until the alleyway was tainted in a low-crimson red.
Blood was often the color of Justice these days.
There was no wild yellow hue that rose with each shot, just a dark red wave that blossomed before falling into the ground.
The Young Pueris watched as two corpses fell to the floor slowly. His breaths became hard and stale.
The rowdy police soon left, leaving several traces that were never investigated upon.
As the Young Pueris watched with hands trembling, he turned around in a stupor.
Meeting eyes with the memory-gazed Pueris.
"H-hey."
Emotions were crashing down on the Young Pueris.
His eyes which had truly become void of life, only possessed a small white will now.
Tears streamed down his face in silence, his face which had now become a sore red was blazing with sorrow.
But he still kept a childish smile wacked on his face.
"Don't you have somewhere to be right now?"
And he let out the shakiest double thumbs-up one had ever seen.