Tears of Themis Episode 3 – The Weight of a Soul

There are 16 scenes in Episode 3 made up of 7 story scenes, 6 debate battles (recommended power level 4906 – 10911) and the balance are crime scene investigations and trial. The jump in debate battles power recommended is quite steep so you will need to be consistently levelling up your cards to proceed forward. Spoilers ahead!

Having agreed to be Artem’s partner, he shares with you a X-NOTE case file. You recalled seeing the file on his desk when you entered his office and it had piqued your curiosity. Artem explains that these cases were thrown up by the Big Data Lab as there has been an anomalous rise in number of missing persons and mental illness cases in the last three years. These cases were being investigated by an unofficial investigation squad, NXX, which is funded by the Pax Group. Artem tells you that he is a member of the group and adds that he while you are his partner working on legal cases, he is still apprehensive about you joining NXX as it will have its dangers. You told him you will just observe first before making a decision.

Artem then proceeds to share the details of the current case file NXX-011 which looks into the disappearance of Simon, the head of Heirson Health Products material division. Simon had gone missing three months ago and the police had found a suicide note in his apartment. They believed that he had committed suicide by jumping into the ocean after his thefts had been exposed though no body was found. He had been reselling controlled substances to Gordon Grant, the owner of a chain of pharmacy in Stellis City. However, the circumstances around the case is suspicious and Artem believes there is more than meets the eye. As Artem talks about the case with you, you observed that he is a lot more animated and personable than before. You willed in your heart to do your best and live up to his expectations as his partner.

As Gordon Grant was Simon’s client, you suggested starting your investigation with him. At this moment, Artem receives a call. Gordon Grant had just passed away due to a heart attack caused by an adverse drug reaction. His son Harry Grant has been detained as the main suspect as all evidence points to him committing the premediated murder including an eyewitness account. Artem had worked with the Grant family earlier when Harry’s mother passed away and left behind her assets to Harry so they were his personal clients. You figured this was probably why he was keen to investigate the disappearance of Simon. This is your first case partnering Artem as Harry’s attorney.

In between interrogation of the other suspects, your thoughts kept going back to the connection between Gordon Grant’s death and the NXX case. Not wanting to alert the stationed policemen about your conversation, you leaned towards Artem and posed some questions. Realising that you were in such close proximity caused him to stiffen visibly and he quickly shushes you up. After that you noticed Artem staring at you when you were not looking. When you turned towards him, his ears reddened. The awkwardness in the air was finally broken when it was time to interview another suspect.

As you progress in unveiling the truth behind Gordon’s death, you were horrified at the acts committed and became conflicted over bringing the perpetrator to court. Artem shared his point of view that no legal system in the world is perfect and it may often seem like justice eludes some people. This may cause them to seek their own brand of justice. However if everyone were to start believing that, it would lead to the eventual collapse of law and order. Artem then encouraged you that as a lawyer, you would need to balance between rationality and emotions to be able to use the law to help the oppressed find their justice.

You acknowledged Artem’s guidance and went on to win the trial while admonishing the perpetrator that no matter what the circumstances, no one has the right to determine the fate of others by taking their lives. In the end, the court dismissed all evidence as unreliable and thus did not pursue the case further until new evidence can be presented – innocent until proven guilty. At the conclusion of the case, Artem compliments you for having sound judgement during the trial.

Meanwhile, we finally learn that Luke is also Raven, the unidentified person who was investigating the industrial warehouse at the beginning of the game. He had requested that his partner Aaron do an analysis of the Heirson effervescent to see if there was any similarities with what he had been infected with. We also learn from Aaron that the organisation that Luke is currently working for is also keeping tabs on you.

In this episode, you get to work directly with Artem and it is immediately obvious to you that he is very awkward around women. Based on the clues provided in the story, I think he has never been in any relationship all these 29 years of his life, hence it is very easy for him to turn red whenever he comes into close contact with you. Outside of that however, he is a very rational individual who rarely lets emotions get the better of him.

Two key themes explored in this episode is about taking justice into your own hands; and the legality of human clinical experiments. I have to admit that the crimes committed in this episode were too heinous to stomach to the point that I felt that the victim deserved to die. Yet Artem’s rhetoric reminded me that we all have to play our role in law and order. As a Christian, we believe that judgement belongs to God alone and I am heartened that the final verdict proved that it is possible for a fair outcome.

The second point about human testing is very controversial especially in an age where billions of dollars flood into the pharmaceutical industry from men’s relentless pursuit for profit and search for immortality. Where do we draw the line between when it is necessary? In the recent COVID-19 situation, can we truly say that we should absolutely disallow human testing if it can speed up the time to market for the vaccinations and save potentially millions of lives? Perhaps the choice to accept human testing should be thrusted only upon people who agree to it wholeheartedly, rather than preying on the weak and vulnerable.