For your information, I would wish you to know that I have discovered the location of Jack Vincent, the missing restoration painter whose disappearance caused all the kerfuffle. In fact, Poirot and I have taken possession of him, and he is under our complete supervision. This was why I went to Denver, and from Denver to Austin and teamed up with Poirot in the after all.
So what, you might ask, is the problem?
Perhaps you might wish to know that in our investigation of the location of Don Juan we were being followed by some figure who was apparently amateurish in his method of disguise. When we had the opportunity we managed to isolate him and take him into our custody in order to interrogate him about who he was and what he wished from us. Only who was our follower?
None other – Jack Vincent!
And if you thought perhaps this was some misunderstanding, that perhaps this was a different Mr. Vincent or that he simply wished to speak with us, I’ll have you know that in the interrogation he confirmed himself to be the Jack Vincent we were looking for, and that despite this he had no intention of cooperating with us so that we could send him back home to his wife and family. He confirmed this with a good description of some detail that led us to identify him as the man in question. And furthermore, when we asked why he was following us, he said he was doing it for the protection of Mr. Don Juan!
I ponder how this must have happened; could it have been that Mr. Vincent was a confidante the entire time? That he had conspired in this for the entirety? Surely that could be the only logical answer!
Except it was very clear that Mr. Vincent had in the process of his disappearance had developed some psychoses. By his account, he was apprehended and kidnapped by Don Juan, as Poirot and I were to expect. However, in being held captive by Don Juan, and being shown considerable kindness and impressed by his ‘wit and charm’ (his words) that he became quickly sympathetic to the man. Then, when hearing that Don Juan was keen to marry his love interest in Melissa, Mr. Vincent was keen to help, initiating a relationship best described as ‘willing subordination’.
It’s hard to fathom the psychoanalysis of a man who is mad if capably so, but that is another matter. What is most pressing to me is the crossroads that I face ahead.
You see, I have managed to obtain the location of Don Juan, if I wished to proceed against him. But by one conception my motivation to do so is to find what is already found, Jack Vincent (again, under surveillance). On the other hand, I could proceed against Don Juan, if I decide that although Vincent’s detention from his wife was largely willing, I still must seek some justice against him. This could either be jail, or re-fictionalization, if I were provided the right materials to do so within a week.
There is, however, a third consideration; for I may meet with Don Juan and as it were, earn his cooperation. That is, a life lived tranquilly in this world, where he may live out his days with his new wife Melissa (assuming they may overcome their marital problems). Yet for this prize I will demand from him nothing less than his full cooperation. I see the demands as so:
1) Command that the servantile Jack Vincent to return to his family, with compensation to them for the troubles he has laid on them.
2) Return of the true “Portrait of the Magnificent Don Juan” to the Denver Art Museum, anonymously if need be.
3) Most importantly, give us the location of the Cabal members.
I stand at a crossroads because I must decide between closing the case before me with integrity, or perhaps even conspiring with the unsavory that I may achieve a greater prize. I will leave your world soon, but in doing so I will leave a legacy, and I must consider what that legacy shall be. For this, I ask for your swift input.
Sherlock Holmes
P.S. I hear that my old friend – the other Don – Don Quixote is healing from yet… another tragic incident on his life. But I hear it will be last, for which I am glad.
I wish him well, whatever his next adventure is.
I think choice “two” is the way to go, in this instance. You should see this case through to the end, and Don should be punished for breaking the law like he did. I agree with you on integrity, if you’re going to leave this world, you should do so continuing to follow your moralities and own deductive abilities as you have since you’ve arrived. Both of which are telling you that cooperation, and letting a man who willingly broke the law go free…well, it shouldn’t be done.
The psychosis this Vincent has developed is termed as “Stockholm Syndrome,” I believe, Here’s a link that explains it (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Syndrome) It sounds very close to the way you described Vincent’s recent actions.
Don’s actions were simply put wrong, and if he wants to remain in this world so badly he needs to realize that his actions here will have these kinds of consequences. If he wants to live with his wife, he’ll need to take responsibility for the laws he has broken and people he has hurt (directly or otherwise). I think we can both agree on that front.
Whatever advantage we might gain by working with him, it isn’t worth the price of allowing him to get away scott free for his actions. And cooperating with him and going back on our word is just as bad, and in a way makes us no better than him. Neither of those scenarios sound like something you, Holmes, would want to take part in. You’ve come this far, see things through before we send you back.
And yes, as for the other Don, I can promise you he’ll be in good hands.
Dear Mr. Holmes,
It’s a relief, though not a surprise, to hear that this disappearance, at least, has been solved.
You ask for our advice on the matter of Don Juan; very well, I will oblige. Let me first say that I am, as a rule, a woman of my word. I believe that a man’s word is binding, and should not be treated lightly.
However, there are some crimes the committing of which revoke a man’s rights, which make one’s word meaningless to the criminal. Murder is one such crime; another is abduction.
Therefore, what I recommend is this: follow your third suggestion; allow Don Juan to lead you to the whereabouts of his accomplices. But once that is done, you owe him nothing, not even your word; once that is done, I agree with the above comment that he should be sent back to where he came from– he, and the rest of the Cabal with him.
Forgive me if I sound extreme; I wish only to see justice done, and I fervently believe that you desire the same.
Best wishes,
Qara-Xuan
I cannot tell you which path to take, but I can say that in this, I stand with Adell. I do not care what world a man comes from. If they commit crimes, there will come a time for consequences. Those who are willing to kill must also be prepared to be killed themselves. Those who are willing to steal and abduct the innocent should be prepared to have their freedom stripped from them as they are themselves locked away in jail. The Cabal says that they wish to live in this world, and they claim that in their previous lives they had no control over what happened to them. I disagree with their attempt to place blame for their actions on other heads than their own, but I am very tempted to let them see the consequences this world holds for those who would commit crimes.
Perhaps, however, should we get the required material to re-fictionalize him, I will consider mercy.
However, I find your third option tempting as well. To gain such a perfect compensation, both for the Vincents and the art gallery without the bother and possible injustice of law courts is a desirable thing, and the knowledge of the Cabal’s location would be very good indeed. But despite the large cost to him, I think this would be rather merciful, plus I am not yet prepared or able to guarantee a safe life in this world for him, and you cannot really do so either. If there is just one person able and willing to create a refic, he could be sent back regardless of what measures we take to make such a guarantee. A promise would indeed carry a lot of weight with many of us, assuming he does nothing to take any actions that once again ignite our anger, but I cannot be totally sure of the safety of his existence here. However, should this be the most popular path, I will do everything I can to back up such a promise. After all, it would be pointless to plot to break it now that the Cabal have inevitably read about the plan here.
In the end, though, this legacy belongs to you and to no one else. Whatever choice you make, we, at least, will be here to remember and appreciate it. I have absolutely no doubt that you will make a good one.
~Sicon112
I feel you should choose choice two, earning his help. I might be able to assist you in that quest…
Dear Mr. Holmes:
I think that you should choose the third consideration- the Cabal seem to be softening up a bit, and refuse to be sent back, so I think it is best for them to stay, as long as they do no harm.
Also, my best wishes to Don Quixote, aka Lance Chevalier, the Knight of the Lions, and formerly Knight of the Long Face.
Sincerly,
The Wild West Pyro
I’m just going to throw my voice into the mix, Mr. Holmes. I do not think you should make such a deal with the man. Although it’s tempting to gain that knowledge from him, it is much more important that justice be done. You are right Holmes. This man must be punished for his crimes. But most importantly, he must be refictionalized, a fate that must befall all the fictionals if we hope to keep this universe intact.
However, Mr. Holmes, if you were to make a promise to Don Juan that he will not be refictionalized, I am afraid that I will be forced to abide by it, for I do not wish to make a liar out of you. Honor is such an important thing, and it is one thing that I don’t want to lose, and I feel you might think the same way. I never make promises that I do not intend to keep, and I really hope you agree.
It is for this reason that I ask you not to attempt to reach out to Don Juan in this way. Seek him out as a criminal and have him answer for what he has done, but do not make promises that you do not attempt to keep or promises that may keep us from doing what we all know is the right thing to do.
Ultimately, the choice is yours. I just hope that these words may be able to sway you. But whatever choice you make, I will back you up, as long as it doesn’t require me to betray my sense of honor, or yours.
I’ll be brief as usual, Mr. Holmes.
I consider the second option to be the correct one. I don’t think you should worry about revealing the Cabal’s location – it won’t be so hard for them to lay low or move, as we’ve seen.
However, the fourth option, voiced by Qara, would potentially benefit us the most. Now that I think about it, that’s exactly the path that law enforcement would take, because those pesky morals shouldn’t get it the way of justice (sarcasm).
However, if Don Juan stays, I can’t promise for myself or my comrades that WE shall keep your word. I’m still operating under the assumption that leaving the characters here will have grave consequences. I hope you understand that.
Hello Mr. Holmes, this is Bradley Foreman, a good friend of Don Quixote. I just wanted to say thank you for your acknowledgement of him in this post. If it is okay with you, I will let him know and he will also post a response when he wakes from his nap. He is still quite sick.
Thank you.
Hello Sherlock my good friend! Thank you for the acknowledgement in this post!
My chest continues to ache and I do have some weakness, but I think I’ll be getting better soon. I wish you the best of luck in your current cases.
And of course, thank you. If it weren’t for you, we never would’ve caught Hope and Tripky, and never would’ve found out Deanna’s true nature. I can’t thank you enough, good sir. No matter what, I’ll never forget you.
~Don Quixote
Mr. Holmes,
I would recommend using an interrobang (‽) instead of your (?!). Also, good luck on your quest.
Holmes,
Hello, Holmes. I’ve got a question to ask of you. Seeing as we now have evidence that Juan is guilty of this crime, perhaps we should look into whether it was indeed Moriarty who framed you in England. We can suspect, but we really should have evidence. Seeing as you are the professional detective here, and not me, I figured that it would probably best to consult you as to how to go about the matter.
Do you have any suggestions for me?
~Sicon112
Mr. Holmes and M. Poirot,
My colleagues and I now have all the materials we need to return you to your home worlds. Much as we will feel your loss, I am sure that you, like me, are eager for you to be back where you belong in a more familiar setting.
Please notify us at your earliest convenience of: a) whether you have any business you still need to finish here before you will be ready to leave, and what it is; b) any specific time in your world to which you would like to be returned; c) any other requests for your method and circumstances of return.
Thank you,
votre amie loyale,
Qara-Xuan
Hello again, Mr. Holmes.
There have been no news from you lately. We, on the other hand, have good news.
First: we’ve found the only Don Juan’s echo. That means we can send him back anytime, and the Cabal is probably aware of it. It’s up to you to find uses for that knowledge.
Second: Don Quixote is going to be OK. We have obtained his second echo (I won’t hide it – Morgana sent it to us, whatever her intentions were), and we are about to refictionalize him around 11th December. On the other side of the wall, he may not worry about his injury – he’ll be as healthy as he can be.
And I think I should remind you that both you and Mr. Poirot may go anytime. So if any of you have any special requests on where (and when) to go, don’t hesitate to tell us.