POV: Gzeph

I arrived in my secret lab a few days sooner than I thought. If this sector was actually regulated, I would get my license revoked for speeding that hard.

Everywhere is dust, guess the cleaning robots are defective. Well, I can fix them later, the Todo business is more important. I need to find out what really is going on there. Nothing I've heard about it makes any sense.

Damn dust, the computer won't start because of it. Hope there's no permanent damage from it.

...

...

Depressed Computer Noises

Ah, there goes the old machine finally doing its job.

Now to connect to the main system...

Ah, they changed some things, can't access the camera storage that easily anymore.

...

Huh? What is that file? 'Trial_Evidence_Todo_16(edit).mpg'? Who even uses that old format anymore? It was already obsolete millennia ago.

Now I'm curious... Download that thing.

...done.

Damn, I need a different codec for this prehistoric format.

...

There, installed. Now play the damn thing.

A black and white recording of Todo's room, in this day and age? Guys, color videos are a thing. No one would believe you if you told them that are security cameras can't record in color yet. That would just be sad.

Wait, if this is supposed to be a security recording where is the timestamp? All security cameras print it in the corner. Regulations even require that.

...

The video shows that Eva enters Todo's room, what is she doing there? Surely she doesn't have the authorization to visit the big boss's big boss himself.

Todo looks very much still alive there.

She does... something, it is impossible to see from this angle, I only see her back. And then Todo collapses!?

Something looked off there, let me replay this.

...there is a minor break in her movement as if a few frames are missing.

So that means the evidence has obviously been tampered with. As if the filename wasn't a dead giveaway for that.

Yeah, back to checking the real recording, this is worthless.

...

Curious, the recordings on the security cameras of the last couple of months have been deleted.

But were the sectors on the hard disk overwritten? Maybe I can still restore something.

...

Ha, success!

Let's see...

Nothing there, this one is also the wrong day...

There's the original recording of Todo's murder!

The whole screen is wider, in color, and a timestamp is included, yeah this is more believable.

Now, what did really happen...

Alex enters together with Eva, since when do they get along? She wouldn't even use his name, they are like fire and oil.

Eva approaches Todo as in the faked recording.

But in the section that is missing Alex takes out a gun and shoots Todo. Why doesn't he fight back? It should only affect him if he allows it... He just sits there and allows it to happen...

Let me go back a bit.

Hmmm... the recording isn't that detailed but even before Eva enters, the look in Todo's eyes is as if he was already internally dead.

...why would he be...

Given the circumstances, it isn't out of the question that his soul refuses to reincarnate as one of us again. If whatever those two have done to him didn't destroy the soul outright... shit...

...

I let the rest of the video play. Not much else happens.

Eva does something which I can't identify from this angle, then Alex takes out a strange gun, shoots and Todo collapses. Afterwards, the two murderers leave the room.

I don't understand what they would get out of this...

...wait, go back again, what was that?

...

Before this 'Eva' leaves the room her hair becomes longer and turns black. Is that a shapechanger impersonating her?

Most likely, yes.

Shit.

Now what?

...

Any attorney I can send this video to anonymously? Ah, heck, send it to all of them.

Choose the appropriate mailing list... or three...

There, done. Just any one of them will do.

Now I want to see Alex pin this murder on Eva.

...

Wait, no, if someone can impersonate Eva what stops them from also impersonating Alex?

Well, that's not something I can check from here...

Alex may be an incompetent asshole

At least now I know that Todo really is dead. Considering his final expression, his soul is probably lost as well...

I can't imagine the consequences...

He was basically the literal heart of the universe. No Todo, no new worlds.

If what W-Nwu told me is true it also means no more transmigrations outside the cycle of rebirth. That might just make the guy I sent to Deteoh the last one to ever use that option... Maybe guilt-tripping that soul was the right call after all.

But what does anyone gain from Todo's death? There are only downsides to it...

But...

Our enemy would gain a lot from it. If we can no longer send souls into story bubbles, many worlds are just helplessly drifting towards their doom. Some may make it through it, but most will not...

My money is on the Creed of Whispers being behind this. No, there's no doubt about this. No one understands what these terrorists are up to but creating chaos like that is right up their alley.

Goddamn Graham, why did you have to stop me from blowing up their headquarters? If you didn't, Todo would still be alive today. Your reluctance to let me finish a job killed the highest god, collaterals be damned. And since time travel is impossible that fact won't change.

But as much as I want to rub that into his face I've got more important things to do. Just being right doesn't bring back the dead.

Table Slam

...

Fizzle

Ah, the computer has finally died. The tech for hyper-lightspeed transmissions is just too fragile.

You did great, my little war machine, you made me proud.

...

Now what?

...I need time to think...