After tens of minutes, the 3 finally came out from the room. Albur is struggling with walking normally, Mysty helped him a few times to prevent him from falling. Rhea stood by the entrance, monitoring the trolley. Covie is in her room, doing something.
Rhea looked at Albur sitting on the sofa, he stared at his rifle, but he retracted his arms shortly after he reaches out to it. Rhea remembered how she once felt that as well before her cyborg transformation, it took her weeks to recover, she doesn't expect Albur to be able to this easily.
She slowly walked towards Albur, Albur knew what she will say, so he just turned his body away. Rhea sighed, she couldn't do anything to help him. The hard part isn't letting him heal from the damage and fight normally, its letting him adapt to fight with only one arm.
"How am I gonna fight with one arm now?" Albur suddenly spoke.
Rhea stared at him, not knowing how to respond. Mysty felt even worse, she stood up and walked away. Rhea raised her hands, wanting to say something but nothing came out of her mouth.
"I will try to think a way to help with that problem."
"Heh, I don't think anything will help. These type of injuries takes months to recover fully. Me? I'm not an experienced fighter, it will probably take...years to overcome this. And we don't have much time."
Rhea sighed.
"Not as head aching than interrogating that blasted janitor."
Albur rose his head, and looked at Rhea.
"What?"
Rhea sighed, and signaled Albur to follow her. She told Havoc to keep monitoring the trolley while she is gone. Rhea then took Albur to one of the rooms in the moon hut. Albur looked at Rhea in confusion, Rhea opened the door slowly.
Inside the room, it was dark, in the middle of the room sits a chair, there is someone on the chair, tied up by chains, head covered with a sack. His clothing looks identical to Shy Mask, the Deadly Circus janitor.
Albur stared at him for a while, and nearly lost balance because he forgot he lost an arm.
"Why are you like kidnapping him? Where did he even come from?"
"Well, just now when I was programming the trolley, I don't know how but, this man is near our hut. He is a criminal after all so I had him under arrest. I don't have any hand cuffs so I used chains. As for that sack...he kept preventing me from taking it off, he's like refusing to show his face."
"I....see."
Rhea stepped towards Shy and pulled off the sack off his head, he tried to fight back but Rhea directly teared the sack apart. Under the mask, Shy is a pretty handsome young man with blonde hair and brown eyes. Shy kept turning his head away but Rhea forced him to look at her in the eyes.
"So, can you speak now?"
Shy didn't speak, he just stared at Rhea.
"There ain't no script on my face! Speak!"
Rhea choked Shy with her hand, he still refused to talk.
"Tight lipped huh, well then...you think this is funny?"
Rhea activated her battle bot suit, but only its left hand acquired onto her hand. She pointed the rockets at Shy's face.
"....let's see how you talk with a few holes on you..."
Albur balanced his body to Rhea and tapped her lightly.
"Hey, I heard agents could interrogate criminals, but not directly giving them death penalties...."
"Well, this guy works for the Deadly Circus, and I heard from Rale, any member of them will be given death penalty once they are caught."
Shy broke a sweat as he struggled to breathe.
"What info you want from him?"
"His identity, the reason he ended up like this, things about Cluster, yada yada. Though he is tight lipped, if he doesn't speak I will have to punch some holes on him."
Albur looked at Shy who is looking very very stressed when Rhea threaten him.
"You want him to speak, that's it right?"
"Duh."
Albur thought for a second.
"I really can't do anything right now, I can try get him to talk. You....could go continue super vising the trolley, I can try handling this guy."
Rhea glared at Shy.
"You sure?"
"As long as his dagger isn't with him I guess its fine."
Rhea scanned Shy's body, finding no dangerous weapon on him. She sighed, and threw him on the chair.
"I heard from the rest of the crew that you are pretty persuasive. Go try then."
Rhea fully turned his battle bot back to normal and took out a camera from it and sat it on the table. She then shrunk it back to keychain-size and walked out of the room.
Albur closed the door, and switched on the lights. He took a chair in the room and placed it at the opposite side of Shy before sitting down. Albur then stared at Shy, who avoided eye contact with Albur and covered his face.
The door opened again, Rhea peeked into the room, she then tossed Havoc to Albur. Albur couldn't catch him, he just fell on the ground. He bended down to pick him up and signaled Rhea to leave.
"Yo." Havoc glowed a dim light.
Albur placed Havoc at his leg and continued to look at Shy, Shy kept covering his face. Albur looked around the room, he spotted a metal board next a table. He limped towards it, nearly falling down countless times. He picked up the board and sit back onto the chair, he then tapped Havoc a few times. Havoc then created a few rainbow virus substances which Albur used to carve the metal board. He placed the board on his legs and used his left arm to carve it.
"It would be so much easier with both of my hands...."
Albur carved for a couple of minutes. He made a mask like thing with two holes for eyes. He handed it to Shy, Shy flinched slightly. But then, he stare at the mask for a few minutes and took it. He looked at Albur a couple more times before putting the mask on.
"You have social anxiety huh, you don't like people staring at your face."
Shy gripped onto the mask.
"Look, I'm not here to do anything like a police, I'm just here for answers."
Shy backed away a little. Though he shown hesitation of taking off the mask.
"Hey, its alright if you keep that on, I won't blast your head. Just, can you speak?"
Shy remained silent.
"Honestly you are very different from the other Deadly Circus members. I see that you are somewhat.... kind. Not cruel like Cluster, not intimidating like Juggler, and not scary like.....I don't know, that scarecrow."
Shy loosen his grip, he stopped leaning back to the chair.
"So, may I kindly ask for you to answer my questions?"
Shy looked at the floor, and gently nodded.
"S-S-s-s-s-....sure...."
"Nice job kid." Havoc glowed.
Albur sighed, he thought of what Rhea would want to ask.
"Can you tell me.....what is your name?"
Shy kept avoiding eye contact.
"S-s-shy....Shy Mask...."
"No, no, not your circus name....your true name. Given by your parents."
Shy looked at Albur for a second, and looked away immediately. Albur noticed he doesn't want to talk about that, so he stopped asking further.
"Can you tell me about your past?"
Shy blinked, and gripped onto his mask, before gently shaking his head. Albur sighed, Shy suddenly flinched, Albur stared at him.
"What?"
Shy slowly backed away.
"I think your sigh scared him." murmured Havoc.
Albur gave Shy a few seconds to recover from being scared, afraid that if he speaks it might scare him too. This guy have a lot of mental issues.
"You good?"
Shy gently nodded.
"Alright.....then.....what else? What is actually the goal of the Deadly Circus?"
Shy did not answer, he just sat there. Though he looked much more comfortable than previously. Albur thought that maybe these questions are too sensitive. He decided to reach for another topic.
"Can you at least tell me about what are the personalities of the circus members?"
Shy backed away a little. And slowly placed his hands together.
Albur sighed, thinking this would be a rough day.
"Well then...what is...."
"Juggler....."
Shy suddenly spoke, Albur paused, but so as Shy. The two of them stared at each other.
"Sorry...."
"No no, its alright, please continue."
Shy touched the mask, and sighed.
"Juggler.....the greatest swordsman I have ever seen in my life.....He is always cool, calm and strategic. He.....had been boss's right hand man for over a century. Though lately....he changed a little.....not sure if its because of boss's influence...."
Albur's attention was caught by the word 'influence'. Indeed, Cluster seems like a very manipulative person, though Juggler's acts look pretty different from Cluster's.
"And then.....Scar Cruel...."
Albur raised his head.
"Sorry?"
"Scar Cruel.....the scarecrow. I'm, not sure what he likes, or how he normally acts...but....he is a very sweet guy...he's my best friend in the circus...."
Albur could not understand what did Shy just said. He seems very nervous, and he stammer when he speaks.
"And....boss, my ringmaster. I don't think I need to say much about him, do I."
Albur felt like he just heard nothing. Though he is glad Shy could speak now.
"Ok, but before we move on, why are you so nervous?"
Shy tilted his head.
"You're.....a member of the...Gl-Glitch Wipeout Crew....duh....."
"Ah, right. Look, don't see me as someone that might kill you any second, I'm not, and I can't. Just, talk to me like talking to a casual friend, alright?"
Shy didn't respond, he just continued to move his fingers.
"I am starting to lose my mind...and get CUCKOO crazy. " Havoc exclaimed.
Albur signaled him to shut it. He stared at Shy, using the same emotion when he first heard Johnson's backstory.
"Uh, Shy, I am really curious. Someone like you, doesn't look like they should be in a criminal group. You look so innocent, and the way you treat those mini nukes are so sweet. How do you really end up in the circus?"
Shy opened his mouth, but then, he shut it quickly. He lowered his head, then, he looked at the camera, and pointed at it.
"Can you, get rid of it, when I tell you?"
Albur looked at the camera sitting on the table. He limped towards it, he muted the voice receiver and blocked the screen. He walked back to the chair and sat down.
"Alright, now it can't hear or see us, please, tell me."
Shy sighed heavily, he adjusted his top hat and took a deep breath.
"I uh, I wasn't always in the circus, I'm just in there for....7 years I guess...."
Shy pulled the collar of his shirt.
"If I'm not mistaken.....I am 23 years old this year..."
Albur gently nodded.
"I.....can't remember what my name is already. I know I am born in a pretty wealthy family. But I don't like my face. I forgot what is the reason, I kept it under a mask my whole life. Everyone call me a weirdo, and said I bring bad luck because I always wear a tragedy mask. I am the cleaning crew of my class, which, you know, I clean."
"Huh, I don't see any weird things on your face, in fact, you look pretty handsome."
"Huh? I....am?"
"Wait, wait, let's not stretch that far away, please continue."
"Oh, right...Anyways, I am someone that isn't very social, I kept hiding my face from everyone. I...don't have any very good friends, no one actually accepts me. There really is so many times I wanna kill everyone near me...."
"Oh...can you tell me about your parents? And, your knowledge to the Deadly Circus before you join them?"
"My.....my mother, I forgot what job is she, I-I know my father is a spaceship pilot, I always look up to him. The Deadly Circus...to be honest I never heard of them until I join them."
"Huh, ok. This still doesn't explains why you join the Deadly Circus."
"Well...the time I join is when I was 16."
Albur listened carefully.