"What have I done now?" said Ari, fighting to keep her heart rate under control and her voice steady. She scanned the Peacekeepers' faces. They weren't Shon's usual team. She knew the lot from her various run-ins with Shon. No, these were new faces, severe faces, with cold eyes and an even colder demeanour.

"I shall not repeat myself again, Transformer Ari."

Ari wondered if their frosty persona had frozen their brains also. They were certainly not Peacekeepers with Area Seven jurisdiction, but when they put their hands threateningly on their electric batons, she wasn't going to challenge them.

She could probably take them on, she mused, but it wouldn't gain her anything. The trouble wasn't worth it.

And besides, she hadn't done anything wrong.

Much.

Although they had no right to subdue her, they watched her every move as they marched her to the Peacekeeper pod cars parked nearby. Every turn of her head or brief glance would make them tense, their hands still hovering over their batons.

It was then she realised: they were scared of her. She grinned to herself, watching them suck in a breath at the sight.

The Peacekeeper at the front extracted his hand from between his green cloak when he got to the pod car, which hovered about half a foot off the ground, and swiped across the slightly curved glass door. It bleeped and slid open, revealing the cushy interiors. The boy marching Ari gave her a push. She stumbled, glaring at them, and slipped in with a sigh. Two Peacekeepers sat in the front. Although it was so clean it was barely visible, ability-proof glass separated Ari and the others.

With a few bleeps, the boy in front filled in his instructions. The pod car shifted into gear and eased into the lanes, and soon Area Seven rushed by. They passed the skyscrapers with coloured windows and flashing noticeboards advertising the latest electronic products and entertainment, high-class restaurants with student waiters, express food caterers with ready-to-go meals prepared by robots, gyms, and cinemas. Area Seven really was a blend of peaceful lavish accommodation and a quieter, more polished version of Area Five, particularly at the junction where Area Seven actually becomes Area Five.

Ari caught a brief glimpse of the entertainment area of March City before the pod car took them into Area Ten. Roads criss-crossed above and below with students going to work and attending meetings outside of school. From a distance, the intricate honeycomb of offices and administrative heart of March City came into sight. Storeys and storeys of machines and flashing lights filtered and analysed all the informatics going through the city, running background checks on offenses, fines, rent payments, school records, calendars – the list was endless.

She sighed. If she was brought to Area Ten, then it seemed pretty severe. She was so sure she'd disabled all the CCTV cameras when she went snooping. Perhaps she'd missed one. Perhaps someone had seen her, after all.

The pod cars entered the parking lot of one of the buildings. The boy in the front let the green light scan his face. His name, according to the screen, was Quel, a Rank B user from Class 4C. They parked. Quel swiped at the door and barked for her to come out. Ari slid out. Quel immediately clamped a hand over her elbow and tugged, almost sending her tumbling to the floor, at the nearby lift. Shon and the other Peacekeepers exited their pod cars and followed behind. Nobody said a word.

The journey in the lift was just as quiet. A few seconds into ascension, the glass windows behind opened into Area Ten. It was the same view as yesterday when she was returning from Rale's, after the attack and learning Kena and Noan's histories. It seemed so long ago. If the Ari yesterday was told she would be arrested and detained for questioning the next day, she would have laughed it off.

Judging by the stern expressions on the Peacekeepers' faces around her, this was no laughing matter. Ari watched the various offices speed by on her ascent. Most were empty. Light ran up and down the sides of the glass surfaces, transporting billions of bytes of information. She wondered if any of them contained information about Mina's whereabouts. She hoped this would be over with soon – Rale was waiting.

The lift stopped. The door slid open without a sound. Quel pulled her forward, staring ahead. A spacious welcoming area dazzled Ari. The floor and walls were so white she was blinded. Squinting, she could make out a series of plaques with arrows on the doorway to the left. Head Justice's Office. Criminal Investigation Headquarters. Head Investigators' Offices. Testimony and Criminal Archives.

The Peacekeepers took her along a long corridor. All the doors had face scanners beside them. The bright light overhead continued all the way to the end. One of the boys scanned his face and the door slid open without a sound. Ari followed in. Only two Peacekeepers entered after her, Quel being one of them. Shon didn't join.

The door slid shut.

The far side consisted of a wide window exhibiting the glory of the headquarters of Area Ten. Busy cars, infinite information, and an endless stretch of offices and machinery, all vital for keeping the city in top shape and all its residents safe. Hidden cameras were at every corner. In the distant sky, the projection of the newscaster reported the latest information. From the looks of the video playing behind her, she seemed to be announcing the results of the first years' grand exam. Her mouth went dry. Mina's results would have been amongst them.

"Sit down, Transformer."

Ari's eyes closed in on the smooth table – white, like the rest of the interior – in the middle. Two pod chairs were on one side, closest to the door, and one was on the other. The placement was obviously there to stop people under interrogation from escaping. The singular chair also faced a one-way mirror on the wall that separated this room and the next. No doubt the rest of the Peacekeepers were watching from the other side, listening to whatever she had to say on this.

She trudged over and flopped on the chair, crossing one leg over the other with her ankle resting sideways on her other knee. She folded her arms, staring expectantly at Quel and the other boy. One girl Peacekeeper stood near the door, silent.

"Confirm your name, rank, and class," said Quel. He stared at her under bushy eyebrows.

"Ari the Transformer," said Ari, wincing at the title. "Rank three, Class 5A."

"Where were you on the evening of Wednesday, 8th August?" said the other Peacekeeper, who had freckles and almost no lips.

"Why are you asking?"

"We're the ones asking questions, Transformer," snapped Quel.

She looked at him. His fists were clenched, as were his teeth.

"I was... strolling the streets. Nothing much."

"Strolling where?"

"Just... around. You know. I was bored."

"Would you say you were near Area Nine, by any chance?"

Her blood ran cold. They knew.

"No." She kept her voice steady, attempting her best to sound her usual bored tone. "That's a bit far for my taste."

"That's what we thought, too." No-lips tapped the table. A panel slid back, revealing a built-in tablet. He tapped it a few times and brought up a record. "You reside in Area Seven, correct?"

"Yes."

"So you are saying you never set foot in Area Nine on the evening of Wednesday 8th?"

"Or ever. I have nothing to do in the poor residencies."

"I see." Quel didn't buy her story; that much was obvious from his face.

"Is that it? Can I go?"

"The funny thing is, Transformer," No-lips said, leaning forward with a stony expression, "your DNA was detected at a sealed-off basement level in one of the residencies in Area Nine on the Wednesday. It's a bit peculiar, wouldn't you say, considering you said you were nowhere near it?"

"Very peculiar, indeed," replied Ari, her heart pounding. They swept the area with a DNA sensor? That seemed a bit extreme. She was surprised the Peacekeepers there even had the leisure to do that, considering what lay below ground.

"What happened in that basement, Transformer?"

"How am I supposed to know? I wasn't there."

"So if I tell you a group of Peacekeepers were killed in that basement, you claim ignorance?"

"They were?" said Ari, in genuine surprise this time. The Peacekeepers who went in search of the ruckus didn't survive the monsters below ground?

"Yes." Quel's eyes narrowed. "And the thing is, before we lost all contact with them, they collected some samples. One of the samples was that of your blood."

Ari's heart stopped.

The injury from fighting the creatures. She had sustained a big gash to the arm. So that was what the Peacekeepers found.

She sucked in a breath, her eyes widening as the realisation hit her.

Five Peacekeepers were dead – and with her blood at the crime scene, she was the prime suspect.

"So does any of that sound familiar to you, now?" said No-lips, his voice frosty.

"I assure you, I have nothing to do with the Peacekeepers' unfortunate deaths," Ari said. She wasn't lying. She met his gaze without a flinch, her lips pressed together. "I don't know what my blood was doing there, but I never laid a hand on them."

"Really."

"We know your sister, Mina of Class 1B, is currently missing after the first year grand exams. We also appreciate you may be curious as to her whereabouts, but the Investigators are working on the case and, as a citizen of March City, it is your duty not to impede justice, or there will be repercussions."

"I've done a good job of not impeding justice for the past sixteen years. I see the Investigators have made great progress in the terrorist case," said Ari, not without a hint of sarcasm.

Quel's lips almost disappeared, like his companion's.

"It will be to your benefit if you were to not antagonise those whose hands hold your fate, Transformer. Your status does not exempt you from punishment."

"I've been perfectly obliging." Kind of. "I've not broken the laws. Is that all you want to ask me?"

"Just one thing more." Quel stood up and placed his hands flat on the table, leaning over to her. Ari stared steadily back at him, not in the least bit intimidated. That seemed to irritate him. "Does the name Kena mean anything to you?"

Ari blinked back, one eyebrow raised.

"Never heard of this person."

Quel gave her a glare, standing up straight. No-lips stood up as well, adjusting his green cloak around him.

"So I can go?"

"Yes," said Quel in a tight voice. His eyes narrowed. "Lira will be heading this and she is aware of our conversation. But heed this, Transformer: there are many things in the city that you, as a citizen – whatever your rank – do not and never will know. It is best it remains that way and you let the professionals take care of it. March City does not treat vigilantism lightly."

"I hear you."

"We have our eyes on you. Stay away from places where you should not be – that include abandoned areas of March City. We may not have all the evidence yet, but you are heavily under suspicion. One more misstep and Lira will be the next one to interrogate you."

"Yes, yes." Ari tried to sound off-hand, but her heart leapt to her throat at that name. Lira. Ranked second in the city, Lira, "The Dancer", was head of the Investigators. Her intuition was second-to-none. Ari would have a tough time bluffing out of that.

The girl at the door swiped it open and let her through. Ari walked off with her head held high, her heart beating faster than it ever had, and her mind racing quicker than the sky train. Quel and his comrades might not know it, but this meeting gave her a lot of information, information that she otherwise could not have procured.

It was time to see Rale.

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