ROLEPLAY HQ - power-a’la-cart

Thomas Maxwell 30-Aug-21 08:13 PM

The day started like any other. The station was full of; tough guys, petty dealers, add a dash of some ladies of the night, and you had the making of a headache for the ever stoic detective Edmund Reid. He had started his day by trying to calm down a young "distraught widow". Apparently, she was annoyed and began demanding someone of importance to talk to her because she was now a widow. He had calmed her down enough to finally get a name and enough of a statement to finish the necessary paperwork. He was professional, and apparently, despite losing her 90-year-old husband only a day before, handsome as the widow's hands kept wandering. Finally, making it relatively clear that she was now single and available after she stuck a card in his breast pocket and left. He rolled his eyes as the cloud of perfume finally stopped attacking his senses and, with a gloved hand, removed the card from his pocket. The field officer soon appeared with an evidence envelope, chuckled a bit as Edmund started the evidence log. "Well, she is kinda cute at least?" The field officer added as he tried to make for some small talk, Edmund chuckled as he pats the man on the back, "get this to the crime lab, and I couldn't tell the perfume made it hard to breathe." The field officer gave the detective a nod as he was off to hand the card to the house crime lab. Hopefully, they could get prints off it. Edmund returned to his office and started the kettle for tea, trying to get rid of the smell. The new perfumes out now apparently could increase their scent to cover up their owners' scent when they were sweating. What they didn't explain is that it could be used as a chemical weapon in certain circumstances. A call finally came in with something interesting, and as he was free, he got the case. Apparently, they had a scene in a warehouse near the port, and there was a body inside, completely frozen stiff.

Gray BOT 30-Aug-21 08:40 PM

Gray had worked with Edmund for several years now. They trusted each other. And she knew exactly how Edmund took his tea. If her calculations were correct, it was that time of the day when he’d be making a cup just for himself. She pushed her way into the building where they worked. Flashing her badge at one of the security officers as she passed through a metal detector. Same routine, different day. “How goes the morning, Officer Gray?” said a girl at a desk. She was new and made sure to greet everyone who walked in. On occasion, the receptionist would bring a box of glazed donuts into the office, and Gray could never resist those delicious desserts. “No candy for me today, Claire, keep your sweets to yourself. I’ve got three cavities thanks to you.” This was a joke, but the truth was Gray had an upset stomach. She’d heard through the grapevine there was a new drug on the market. Very secretive with several homicides linking back to this elusive new addiction. She gave a couple of knocks on Edmund’s door before entering, spotting his tea steaming just like she suspected, walked in, and closed the door behind her. “Edmund, you look like Christmas came early, what’s got you smiling?” She grabbed one of the chairs in the corner and dragged it towards his desk, taking a seat, and leaned back to relax. Gray wasn't one for the traditional ‘how was your weekend’. She liked getting her job done and leaving work where it belonged, at work. In all the years she’d been partnered to Edmund, they’d never spent time together outside of the job, and that was okay by her. He was a great detective, and she was honored to work cases with him. People around the office called them the dream team and she wondered what kind of trouble they were about to get into now.

Thomas Maxwell 31-Aug-21 10:22 AM

“Ah, Gray,” He chuckled a bit as he got up to make his morning tea, “I guess you can say that we have a case. A body was found frozen in a Portside warehouse.” He pulled the file from his desk, sliding it in front of the Gray as he continued. “Apparently, the call came in this morning. The caretaker thought it was a statue and went to touch it when its arm fell off and shattered. The poor sod saw a bone and called.” He took a sip, adding that they were waiting on their bots to return from the homicide yesterday with the 90-year-old. And the widow who was way too happy to lawyer up when the rest of his family wanted an investigation. Edmund had a few security bots he liked and would always insist on having them on any scene they worked. He thought they did a relatively good job better than some of the newer ones. And despite just beeping and whirring, Edmund thought they understood him at least a little bit. Edmund returned to his desk, taking a seat as he continued to sip his tea and pulled out his laptop to take a peek at the initial crime scene photos. The drone photos did help as they just made a loop of the scene, enough to get an idea of the initial placement of everything before it being swarmed with officers and droids. An unexpected bonus was it also made sure that the suspect was actually gone. Pressing a few buttons, the scene projected onto his desk. For lack of better words, the building looked like a big box with a back corner office. Boxes lining the walls and created maze-like aisles to the body. It was a female by its look, the scan showing no signs of life as the drone continued to circle. It looked like she was surprised, though, with no signs of struggle, and the fact it hadn’t melted yet all pointed to something different.

Gray BOT 31-Aug-21 01:16 PM

“A frozen body, you say?” Well now Edmund had her full attention! She laughed a little bit, not to be rude, but because she always wondered how shit like this happened. “Do I even want to know?” she asked, but it wasn’t meant to be answered. She was more muttering to herself with the knowledge they were the ones who would need to solve the case. Gray moved from her seat as Edmund fiddled with his laptop, bringing the crime scene up on display for them both to review. She wandered over to the tea kettle. Good, there was still some hot water left. She wasn’t sure if that was on purpose or not but the fact was Edmund usually didn’t go out of his way to do nice things like that so she took it as a coincidence. She made herself a cup of chai and returned to Edmund’s side, standing close enough to review the footage but not so close that he’d get annoyed by her hovering. “Lord, can you believe that….” she was in disbelief by what they were reviewing. She thought after years of doing this job she’d be in a place where the gruesome footage wouldn’t bother her, but it still did. “I take it they’ll want us to go there and see this in person?” She sipped on her tea. The steam spiraled upward and vanished once reaching a certain height. The smell was absolutely wonderful, yet she knew to never wear perfume around Edmund because at a holiday party one year she recalled him having a strong opinion on particular scents. It was in her best interest to avoid making the mistake of offending him, so she stuck with the scent of clean soap. Plain Gray. Yep. That’s what they called her, and she liked things that way.

“Edmund,” she started and pulled her brows together as if she were concerned, “have you heard about this new drug on the market? I’m curious if it has something to do with the frozen body? I don’t know anything besides what’s been said on in the streets. Which is little to nothing. Whispers and rumors about a new pill. Very secretive. If there’s a connection between the two we need to be prepared for gang wars. You know the different factions will have their hands on the drug, and if they’ve started murdering each other for it, we’re going to have our hands full.”

Thomas Maxwell 01-Sep-21 04:58 PM

Edmund gave a slight nod. He wanted to go and see it himself, actually regardless of the higher-ups, as he leaned over the area near the body, raising an eyebrow as Gray mentioned a “new drug.” He, of course, was curious how Gray even knew about it. Still, more often than not, the drug is often a cocktail mixing known ones together, hoping for an exciting effect. He shook his head, “You do know Drugs are not part of our job description.” He joked a bit. The violence was, of course, because it often wound up with people dead or dying and a busy medical examiner. She did have a point, though, about the body count. He let out a small sigh, “Once the bots come back, let’s go.” The clanking of metal soon filled the air. Edmund recognised the clatter as one of his favourite droids. He downed the rest of his mug as his senses were once again assaulted by an overwhelming level of perfume. “Oh Jesus”, he coughed as he stepped out of his office. The officer in charge of the two stepped forward. “ I know you wanted them back as soon as possible.“ Using his handkerchief to dull the smell somewhat, “What the hell happened?” According to the widow, the officer informed him that the cleaner had mistaken her perfume bottle for the cleaning solution. “ Get them to decontamination, please.” The tech shuffled the droids along as he assured Edmund that they would be back quickly. Edmund ducked into his office once more, trying to clear his sinuses and brain of that god awful floral scent. “Grey? What about the overabundance of all the flowers and musk is attractive to a woman?” He went for his water bottle, taking a rather long swig, as he had been trying to ease up on drinking. Edmund always enjoyed a puzzle, and this one was one of those “locked room” ones, “and can we get someone in tech to look into a gas mask?”

Gray BOT 05-Sep-21 06:57 PM

The way Edmund coughed was comical to Gray. People didn’t really get him the way she did. She thought he was funny, and dare she say it, even charming. He had that dry sense of humor she liked, reminding her of someone from her past she lost long ago. She’d never ever tell Edmund any of this, mainly because she knew he wouldn’t be interested, but when they were alone there was an energy between them, at least on her end, that she was secretly enamored with. Dang him for being unavailable! Unsure of why that was she just remembered overhearing him mention this detail to one of the other employees. They'd asked him out on a date and had been immediately rejected. Bloody cold to witness. Gray admired Edmund’s blunt honesty, it’s one of the reasons they got along so well. “You know,” she laughed to buy herself some time, now embarrassed. She specifically didn’t wear perfume to avoid this kind of conversation with him. “I wish I knew! I think some people are drawn to different scents, just like personalities. You, my friend, are clearly not one for anything that resembles anything from a garden. Although…. whatever that is, it smells like dead roses!” She covered her face in an attempt to stop the smell. Goodness gracious the aroma was terrible. “Should I go grab the car keys, Edmund?” she asked politely. Gray finished the last of her tea and stood, preparing to start the next steps in this case with him. What were they going to discover at the scene of the crime? A shudder wandered down her body, she had an odd feeling about this case, a gut intuition telling her there was something off about the whole thing, she just didn’t know what.

Thomas Maxwell 07-Sep-21 09:27 PM

Edmund would have rolled his eyes if they weren’t burning from the God awful smell, “Dead roses smell different?” He looked a little confused but nodded as Gray mentioned fetching the car keys. He pulled out his notebook and plugged in the directions to the scene on his tablet. Edmund wanted to have the security droids meet them there when they came back from decontamination. The widow popped another pill. She had to cover up that awful dead smell that happened when she needed to up her dose. She was so excited that they made her smell wonderful and her scent even changed with her moods. Her little pills made her feel hot. The chemical compound in the pills themselves worked on her sweat glands, causing her to sweat more. She was more thirsty, that was for sure, as she turned up the cool air. She didn’t know why she was so hot all of a sudden, but it was like she was melting. Her vision going blurry as she rang for another glass of ice water, the help arriving just in time to see their employer melt into a puddle on her chair.

Gray឵ BOT 10-Sep-21 11:31 AM

The car keys were hanging right where she’d left them. After heading to the garage she jumped into the company car and waited for Edmund to join her. Just as she put the keys into the ignition she let out a scream. Startled by the figure standing at her window banging on the glass. “Jesus, Ming! What’re you thinking scaring me like that?” Gray put a hand to her heart and turned the car on, rolling down the window so she could speak with her co-worker, Ming, looking rather panicked. “What’s wrong? Why aren’t you upstairs in the briefing room?” Gray asked. “There’s been an influx of murders over the last hour, and you weren’t answering your phone. Something strange is going on and the chief wants you and Edmund to come back as soon as possible.” Ming was short, with green eyes and red hair that barely touched her shoulders. A pair of black, thick-rimmed glasses hung off the end of her nose. “Turn your phone on, for God’s sake!” And just like that, Ming was gone. Gray patted herself down until figuring out which pocket her phone was in. There were several missed calls and messages that went unanswered. A habit she’d fallen into when collaborating with Edmund: she’d turn her phone on silent so they wouldn’t be disturbed going over their cases. She flicked the switch on her phone allowing messages once more, then sat with an uneasy feeling resting in the pit of her stomach as she waited for Edmund to join her.

Thomas Maxwell 13-Sep-21 05:12 PM

“Edmund, the chief needs you in briefing office 2,” he had to chuckle as he was being dragged there. “Why don’t you answer your phone?” She half chuckled as he tried to plead that Gray usually got all the calls and just told him when he was needed for things. She rolled her eyes, “Which is why I went to go find her first.” The door from briefing room two soon popped into existence, with Ming leaving him at the door and knocking before Edmund had a chance to get away. Edmund looking at her, rather annoyed as one would a younger sibling. She stuck out her tongue at him and left to go and answer more phone calls. He almost cursing under his breath as the door opened. The room was covered in crime scene photos, with boxes stacked relatively high on the central conference table. “Ah Edmund, this is a first, you here before Grey; good thing I sent Ming to get you both then, she must be off getting her now.” the chief added as he motioned for Edmund to sit in one of the two cleared chairs. Edmund gave a slight nod as he took a seat and started to send Grey a couple of quick texts stating a couple of different things. The first being he was kidnapped by Ming and is in briefing room two, And the other apologies for being kidnapped in the first place. After he clicked the little button, the chief soon informed him that this was a multi-jurisdiction case. He pointed at the boxes on the table, “Those came from drug enforcement guys today.”

Edmund looked at the stack that was about his height, “Alright, they got confused or something like that?” “Well, kind of, there were some rather confusing murders lately during their busts; one of their own got torched.” He pointed at one photo of the charred remains of a body. “That, according to the medical examiner, was hot enough to cremate the body. The problem was, it happened in the open air with no accelerant. Now the chief had Edmund’s attention sitting forward in the chair now. “First off, I want to show up the chief from the drug enforcement department, so I’m putting my best on it.” Causing Edmund to chuckle.

Gray BOT 13-Sep-21 08:12 PM

The text from Edmund came in and she immediately turned off the car. In a matter of moments, she was back in the building and opening the door to Briefing Room Two where Edmund and the Chief were waiting. They were surrounded by crime scene photos of sudden death. She cringed internally at the gruesome sight of a charred body and worked to find her composure. Her eyes went from the photos to Edmund, shoving her phone in her pocket now that she was with him. “What the hell…” she said as she came to get a closer look at the pictures and the stack of paperwork waiting for them. She took a seat next to her partner, resting her elbows on her knees as she caught the tail-end of their conversation. “...hot enough to cremate the body, how does that even work?” Gray picked up one of the photos to examine the details, dropping the picture as a loud knock echoed in the room. Ming poked her head in looking perplexed. “There’s more!” she exclaimed, and pushed the door wide open. Carting in several boxes of files for Gray and Edmund to sort through. “Tons of new cases from the Drug Enforcement Department, I’ve never seen anything like it!” After Ming pushed the files into the room she backed out hoping to hear some of the conversation as to why there were so many mysterious deaths, but the Chief waited until the door closed behind her to continue. Gray rose from her chair and glanced between Edmund and the Chief, “Do either of you find this suspicious? Why the sudden increase of cases when they have their own detectives to figure it out...” she paused, picking up one of the new files Ming brought in. “...this one claims the victim was attacked by someone who could...fly.” A few blinks of disbelief later she finally scoffed, “Is this a joke? This has to be in correlation to the new drug on the market our scouts have been talking about. They’re referring to it as Grave.” (edited)

Thomas Maxwell 14-Sep-21 05:49 PM

The Chief went quiet as he pointed at the photo of the charred remains, "they did." He gave a short sigh as he picked up another file. "This was Detective Sebastian Costello." Edmund paused a moment; he knew a guy that went by the same name, so it hit him a bit hard when the file opened, and it turns out it was, "We went to academy together." Edmund mumbled as the Chief returned a slight nod. "I knew that you would want this case. You and Costello were close." The Chief was quiet, allowing Edmund to take a bit to morn as he read the file. Of course, the Chief didn't want to tell Edmund about it as suddenly as he did, but Grey was as blunt as ever, so he took advantage of the situation. The Chief looked at Grey, his eyebrow raised as he looked to the piles of documents, "No, I don't think this is unusual for a drug enforcement case. You only worked murders so far with Edmund. This is actually normal for the drug enforcement department." The big dealers had ways to make Juries and Evidence "vanish", so they needed copies and to make sure every t was crossed and every I was dotted so they couldn't refute the evidence in court. "This is the amount of evidence you need to make evidence stick to these guys so this could be only a few cases," Edmund added as he looked up from the file. The Chief nodded, as Edmund had worked in the Drug department before he had moved to homicide. Ming, of course, not surprising the lot of them as she carted in new boxes of case files. The Chief chuckled, "She has also never seen the files for a drug enforcement case."

"I heard that," Ming replied, giving herself away from behind the door, chuckling a bit as she then went off to make sure all the filing was done appropriately. "The new murders are nothing to these guys. They use these," he pointed to the photos on the wall, "as human guinea pigs, making adjustments here and there when people didn't react well." Edmund, now straight-faced taking in a deep breath as he looked around the room. "So they think it's all the work of one of the larger cartels?" The Chief nodded as he pointed to the stack of files that were about as tall as Edmund. "That's a maybe; Costello was working with one of the smaller groups when this happened. So either word is going around very quickly, since Grey brought it up, Or its …." "New?" Edmund finished. He took in a deep breath, "Got it, Chief, we won't let you down. Can we keep the briefing room?"

The Chief agreed as the evidence alone wouldn't fit in one of the smaller conference rooms. "I'll leave you both to it." He smiled a bit, giving Edmund a pat on the shoulder, before getting up and leaving, the chief informing Ming to keep conference room two as it was for Edmund and Grey. Edmund soon turned to Grey, "No assumptions yet, especially since one of the new trends on social media seemed to be committing hazardous activities while videotaping them. For example, the kid pretending to be a superhero and jumping off the 15th floor of a building which was a viral video for a time, or the popular one from yesterday's news of a group of teens deciding they were going to try and outrun a train and got run over. And there were no drugs in those cases, just some teens seeking attention." Edmund removed his coat, draping the item over the back of the chair he had been sitting in. "We need to get to that other scene first." He spoke as he got up from the chair, "then reading all of this." He pointed his finger, indicating the room in general. He moved his way to the door, making sure to slip his phone in his pocket, this time on vibration.

Gray BOT 15-Sep-21 10:40 AM

“A damn shame about the kid who jumped off the building,” she said to Edmund while staring at one of the crime scene photos on the wall. “I couldn’t believe what I was watching on my phone. Tragic. Absolutely tragic. They were young. People are losing their minds acting as if they’re invincible these days - it’s all about the likes and validation, they’d do anything to get a follow. Even risk their own life...” Over time, the gruesome picture she was examining lost it’s appeal and turned to face Edmund with a serious expression. “I’m sorry, Edmund,” the words were gentle on the air, yet determined to remain professional. She knew Edmund didn’t like sappy moments of any kind, but if she didn’t acknowledge his friend dying that would have made her a cold hearted tin can. “I didn’t know Detective Sebastian Costello, but I want you to know I will do whatever it takes to solve this case with you.” Gray didn’t linger on the sympathy for too long, mostly for Edmund’s sake. She moved toward the side table in the conference room where a tea kettle was sitting and snapped the button to turn it on. Once the water boiled she poured herself a to-go cup of tea and moved to the door where Edmund stood. Gray dug the keys out from her pocket and placed them in Edmund’s hand. “You should drive. I could use the time in the car to go over the files and get better acquainted with this case.”

At a certain point she numbed out the feelings of loss. Loss for the children and teens making bad mistakes that cost them their life. Loss for the families that would never get to see their loved ones again. More than once Gray asked herself why she got into this line of work. Remembering at one point she wanted to make a difference. Bring balance to the streets to stop crime and drugs from spreading into the wrong hands. Knowing the real reason for being in this line of work was due to her sister. Seven years ago, Gray lost her sibling to a drug deal gone wrong. They never caught the culprit for murdering her - and that was Gray’s true motivation for joining the force. To one day find the person responsible for changing her family’s life forever. Her free time during the evenings were spent at home going over the case files. Over and over. One day, she knew she’d make progress. Until then she’d continue changing the world with Edmund one day at a time. The sense of loss soon faded as she shut away the thoughts of her sister, the kid jumping off the building, the teen hit by a train, and Detective Costello. Before leaving the room Gray grabbed a stack of paperwork with photos that would offer clarity to the crime scene they were headed to. She tucked them under her arm as she turned to Edmund with her tea, ready for him to lead the way.

Thomas Maxwell 16-Sep-21 02:45 PM

Edmund felt the keys in his hands, fidgeting with them a bit as he tossed them up in the air, catching the one for the car between two of his fingers. He gave a slight nod as they began to walk to the parking garage. Edmund decided to go through the facts in his head once more; there was a warehouse with no thermal regulation with a frozen body inside it that wasn’t melting. And he almost forgot about the whole missing arm bit. The car started without too much issue as he plugged into the computer giving the car directions to their new scene. The car was off, with Edmund behind the wheel, quiet as they went to the latest scene as he had to get into the old mindset. “Dot the “i’s” and cross the “t’s,” he thought to himself, fighting back a small chuckle. Sebastian’s voice reminding him about the importance of paperwork and how it gets the thugs behind bars.

‘You have to be smart, smarter than any legal team out there,” he heard him say as they had tea or a burger out. He was actually there when Edmund got hit pretty hard during a bust, which gave him hyperosmia before he met Grey. At first, it drove him absolutely up the wall. He could even detect the slightest hint of a dead body or some more prolific drugs around the area from meters away. This heightened sense of smell gave him almost daily migraines soon accompanied by nausea. Edmund was out sick often till Sebastian had some ideas; a lot of trial and error later, they found some things that worked enough so he could live normally. The warehouse district soon saw his two favourite droids sitting outside and starting the border patrol while he found a place to park. The car parked, Edmund plugged some things into his computer as he got out, the scanning for the vehicle and his badge starting as he typed the initial points on the scene with his laptop on the trunk of the car . “Remember, make everything airtight,” Edmund mumbled as the droid beeped and finished his scan and the vehicle. “You know I should give you a name,” he chuckled softly as he spoke to the patrol droid. “I think Sebastian called you Cujo; you don’t look like a Cujo, though. I’ll think of something.” He paused a bit as he waited on Grey. “You know you kind of look like a Walker’s biscuit tin, maybe Walker? Especially since you have a bit of red on your casing.” Whether or not he looked crazy depended on your point of view. But, of course, Edmund was friendly overall, even a gentleman to others; he had enough rude people in his life to deal with without having to add to the fire himself. So there were days where he would be genuinely sympathetic to the family of a victim and others where he would gladly roll up his sleeves and beat a man’s head in with his bare fists. He popped a mint to cover most of the smells in the area.

Gray BOT 19-Sep-21 07:05 PM

Thankfully, Edmund was a decent driver. There were days when Gray wanted to strangle her coworkers for driving recklessly, giving small scares in traffic, which inevitably led to nausea down the road. During the car ride, she studied the graphic photos and observations given to them from the files Ming carted into the briefing room. A damn tragedy, the entire case, is all Gray could conclude. As they parked flashes of red and blue highlighted her stoic features. The final forensics team was finishing up, gathering any last-minute information that could be used, packing up their equipment, and making remarks as to what they thought happened. It was clear several top-of-the-line droids had been dispatched. Some of them Gray had never seen before, this being her first time interacting with them. The soles of her black boots hit the pavement. Gray walked toward the warehouse and positioned herself next to the entrance waiting until it was a good time to go inside. She offered her ID to one of the droids, twisting the plastic to make the barcode easy to scan. Robotic beeps sounded before a confirmation checked out. A yellow light blinked on the droid, and Gray was free to go.

She entered the warehouse and the stench of death immediately caught her attention. Foul. A green handkerchief was snatched from her pocket and used to cover her mouth. Gray walked into the depths of the foreign building - under her arm were some of the case files, and a tablet she used to jot notes into. Occasionally she’d check on Edmund to see if he found details worth adding to their documentation. “Poor Costello,” Gray muttered under the fabric being held against her pale face. She shook her head offering a moment of silence for their fallen comrade then put the hanky away. The dead laying on the ground looked like Halloween props. Her eyes scanned for anything unusual: stains, smudges, fingerprints. She knelt next to one of the burnt bodies and used a flashlight to shine into their gaping mouth. “What’re your thoughts, Edmund?”

Thomas Maxwell 20-Sep-21 08:54 PM

Edmund was quiet as he passed the members of the forensics unit, reading their faces as he walked by. He prepared himself for a bloodbath. Some of them gave Edmund a solemn look, almost as if to say they didn't believe it either. As he signed the scene ledger and got directions to the bodies. He popped another mint or three as he held a kerchief to his face. The blackened bones looked a bit like cheap Halloween decorations, instead of his six-foot-five friend he had shared many moments with. But, of course, he didn't want to believe it. He wanted everything to be wrong; he wanted Sebastian to step out from behind a corner saying something along the lines of getting him back for a prank. But, the shine of a small silver coin caught the corner of his eye, taking in a deep breath as he made his way closer. "Seb knew he wasn't going to make it back.." He quietly mumbled to himself as he wrote some notes on his old fashioned notepad. The gasp was barely louder than the beeping of the nearby bots. As he picked up the coin, turning it over in his gloved hand. He felt himself shake, the familiar tarnish of the old good luck charm, the scuffs; Sebastian wouldn't have let this out of his sight. A small smile tugged at the sides of his face as he remembered the story Sebastian used to always tell when he fidgeted with the coin at scenes. It was lucky, according to him, it apparently had stopped a bullet, and another time a knife. Biting the inside of his cheek to stop himself from tearing up, he fought back a sniffle. He made a couple of other notes pocketing the coin in his left breast pocket as Sebastian had always done. He tapped the momento in its new home in memory of his fallen friend.

"We both knew this job was rough", he cleared his throat "any luck you can give me, Seb would be much appreciated." He spoke aloud, this time enough to be heard over the mechanical noises that surrounded them. "We made a silly promise to each other the day we graduated from the academy." He paused a bit as he turned to look at what Gray was shining her flashlight on. "We told each other that we would be each other's guardian angels if one of us went before the other one. So now I have a pair of wings in the sky looking out for me. If Sebastian remembers to get off his lazy ass, clouds have to be comfortable." He chuckled a bit as he now went back into the analytical, logical side of his head. At an initial glance, Edmund saw what looked like 4 pelvises, maybe more, but those were the ones he could make out. "Don't you think it's a bit weird that there was a fire in here, just right here?" He made a hand motion indicating the small alcove they were in among the entire stacks of wooden crates. "Have forensics take samples from the crates and check if they have a flame retardant treatment or something like that on them." He looked in the direction of Gray's flashlight, "No one ran." He added as he squatted down to get a closer look at the body lit by Gray's flashlight.

Gray BOT 22-Sep-21 12:45 PM

It was sad. The whole thing. When Edmund picked up the silver coin, a token of his friendship with Costello, Gray lowered her head to keep from intruding on the moment. She clicked her flashlight off and rose to a full height. The tablet in her hand dimmed and eventually turned off. She waited until the time was right to return her attention to her partner, Edmund, who seemed different. This was the first time she saw visible emotions on his face. It was rare. And an honor. Something Gray wouldn’t make a big deal out of or else she knew Edmund would never allow her this close again. She walked around one of the corpses and bent to her knees once more. From within one of her pockets, she pulled out a pair of gloves. Sliding them on. Wiping an index finger through the soot on the ground. Smudging her digits together before a narrowed gaze, and then brought it to her nose and inhaled. “Jesus…” The stench was unreal. And unlike anything she’d come in contact with before. To her, there were traces of whipped cream, smoke, and whiskey. These specific aromas were overshadowed by the presence of death surrounding them. Only when brought close to her nose could she detect these strange odors. Her eyes turned to Edmund as her brows drew together, equally perplexed - there was more going on here than what met the eye. “...very weird,” she agreed, “...combusting while standing in place - I have never, and I do mean never, seen or smelled anything like this before in my life.”

A droid positioned itself next to her. It beeped once. Soon after a compartment extended out from its belly and offered Gray a disposable bag. She ushered some of the soot into the ziploc, sealed it, and placed it into the droid’s inner shelf. The droid closed its compartment to keep the evidence safe and rolled toward one of the vans parked out front. “Edmund…” she started, knowing he would not enjoy taking a whiff of the soot. One, it was the ash from the dead. And two, his keen restrictions to smell is something she kept at the forefront of her mind. “...there is an unusual scent to these bodies.” She wanted to say more, but they were interrupted by one of the officers stationed at the crime scene. “Detectives, there is a kid here who says he saw the whole thing go down.” The officer jut his thumb over his shoulder to a teen standing there. They seemed scared. Wide-eyed. Cracked out even. Glancing back and forth between Gray and Edmund. Gray once again rose to her feet and stripped the gloves off her hands. She turned her tablet on and gave Edmund a look, one that suggested he should lead, and she would follow - together they would take the next step in getting the answers they required to solving Costello’s death.

Thomas Maxwell 22-Sep-21 05:43 PM

"Let's hope you don't smell burning flesh too often," Edmund's wit was back now at least. He had his moment, and he couldn't let the sarcasm meter go too far down; after all, he had to have some standards. The taste of mint soon gave way to the cacophony of scents that surrounded them. The mints helped him brace himself and concentrate his sense of smell if there were too many smells to deal with all at once or it smelled like a locker room that had a garbage truck run through it. He closed his eyes as he took a few sniffs, getting acclimated to the area they were in. The wood still smelled like it only had just been cut. He smelled the burning. He had been an officer long enough to see a charred remain or two; there was something that didn't smell right here. His eyebrows furrowed together as he headed to what seemed like one of the more potent concentrations of this unusual scent. "It smells like a boys club," he commented, "One of them likes whiskey, and there was something that involved a sweet cream." Whether or not sex was involved in that last statement, he wasn't going to try and sort that out now. He didn't need that kind of picture in his head close to lunch. So instead, he pointed to a small corner, motioning one of the bots. He had now dubbed Walker over to the area, "Get swabs of this area here especially. There is a bit of blood, not sure whose, but it started here and went that way." He pointed towards the alcove he and Gray had been in earlier, the bot understanding as it beeped and went about its business with its tech not too far off.

He had only half-listened to what the scene officer said, then the look Gray gave him said," They needed to go talk and be nice." He rolled his eyes with a heavy sigh and headed towards the teen, his own inner monologue going to involve a why couldn't the scene officer just take the statement as he was in no mood for a moody adolescent. "Hello?" He cleared his throat as he stopped a good metre away from the lad. "I'm Detective Reid, and this is Detective Gray; Officer Parker here said you saw what happened?" The kid was nervous. Edmund could see that. The fact he smelled like a fast food joint and weed kind of gave him an idea of where he saw these things from. The teen gave the nod, "Yeah, man. I was out here just taking a walk, and then there was this huge boom, and then some guys ran out of there looking like they had a Good Time. If you know what I mean." Edmund chuckled softly, ah the joys of adolescent hormones, "So what's your name, kid?" "Taylor Schwep", the teen replied, trying to gain some bravado as he stole glances at Detective Gray, trying to act like he was no longer phased. "Alright, Taylor, your right pocket. What's in it?" Taylor looked a bit shocked but reluctantly produced a pack of cigarettes and several other items. One that looked like a key to the place he worked, and the other a small matchbook. "Tell me honestly what you were doing out here, kid…." His tone grew a bit more serious, Taylor shook a bit but, trying to act cool in front of Detective Gray, cleared his throat and said he had a friend who was supposed to meet him and they would go to hang out and smoke. "Kid, you smell like weed."

Taylor, now a bit more concerned as he had sprayed himself with deodorant and did all the things he could to hide it from his folks, took a sniff of his own clothing, calling Edmund out, Saying that he had nothing on him, and he was just trying to get him on something. "Your cigs friend, they don't smell right; they're packed with a mix of weed and tobacco. The packaging is crooked, and your friend didn't spell the company's name right. Philips co only has one "L Now that we got that out of the way, this friend of yours has another friend I may want to speak to? Care to introduce us?" His smile looked dangerous, almost like when he near murdered a suspect for domestic abuse by holding him out a 10th story window. "Also, keep it in your shorts, kid," he chuckled as he motioned to the officer to get the complete statement. "Hey man, you didn't see the shit I saw. There were literal dudes on fire! "He yelled, "It was the mob man…."

Edmund, having dumped his gloves in the biohazard bot, soon popped another mint to try and calm down, turning his back towards the teen and Officer Parker spoke to Gray in a somewhat hushed voice, "Gray, that kid, he works over at the chicken joint not too far away from here. He smelled like the back counter, so I'm assuming low-level cook?" He had a soft chuckle, "He seems a bit young, but he took a liking to you, see what you can find out? The hormones coming off that kid makes me think he'd like to talk to a pretty lady rather than me. "After a bit of a pause as the familiar mint smell took over, "The matchbook was from a local strip club, He tried to talk it up to make himself seem like the big hero." Which Edmund had shut down rather immediately, "There is no way on that salary he could afford designer shoes. He was here and perhaps had some fun, maybe involving sweet cream and a sugar daddy," touching his nose to further explain that the kid smelled like the sweat of multiple individuals. "then ran with his tail between his legs. Once the blood started spilling." (edited)

Gray BOT 27-Sep-21 08:06 AM

“Sure thing, I’ll meet you at the precinct,” Gray left Edmund’s side with her tablet tucked under her arm. She stood next to Officer Parker waiting for Taylor to finish giving a recount of their experience. There wasn’t any additional information offered from what had already been said, so once Taylor finished giving their statement the officer flipped their notepad and sauntered off to their vehicle. “Taylor,” Gray started, her voice was intentionally less threatening than Officer Parkers, “...listen, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see you’re holding back. What I want to know is why...” Taylor shifted on his feet. His hand gravitated toward his pocket where he kept his unconvincing pack of cigarettes, then stopped after catching himself falling into the bad habit. “Look, Officer Gray, I’ve told you all I can. People get murdered out on these streets for saying too much. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I didn’t see anything other than what I already said. It was a deal gone wrong-” “A deal?” Taylor closed his mouth. His hands shoved into his pockets as a rush of blood hit his face. He didn’t want to say anything else, that much was clear. “You were on a break for work, is that right?” “Yeah. I was taking a walk to clear my mind. Shifts at Mc Clucks can wear you down, if you know what I mean.”

“I hear you. Come on, I’ll walk you back.” Five minutes later they were standing outside of Taylor’s work. They’d made it to the entrance of the fast food joint when Gray turned to Taylor and narrowed her gaze. “They work you pretty hard here?” “All the time. I close most nights, which means I get up late and often have to wake up early for college. Need some way to pay for tuition and they pay me shit here-” Taylor paused as a customer exited the building. “...been here for over two years without a raise.” “Sounds like you need some extra cash to pay for those classes,” Gray didn’t linger on the subject for too long. She took a seat at one of the plastic tables with built-in chairs made for customers to eat at, placed outside the venue. Setting her tablet on the table so her hands were free, she motioned Taylor to sit with her. “A smart kid like you would know better than to wander into an abandoned warehouse looking for relaxation during a work break. You got any family, Taylor?” An ambulance drove by blaring their siren. Once they passed Taylor decided to settle into the seat across from Gray, uneasy as ever. “I take care of my Pop, he’s got cancer,” Taylor ignored the looks from his coworkers staring beyond the window inside Mc Clucks.

“You’ve got a lot resting on your shoulders it sounds like.” “I do,” Taylor formed a fist and immediately unclenched it. “You know what I think,” Gray said, her eyes were steady and waiting for Taylor to meet her gaze. “That I’m an idiot who was in the wrong place at the wrong time?” “No,” she said with a brief smile, “I think you knew exactly what you were doing. I think you were looking for a way to make some extra cash, by joining whatever went down in that warehouse - and when things went south, you bounced.” Gray pulled out her tablet and brought up a video of the warehouse showing Taylor running from inside the building with the glow of fire at his backside. Once she’d shown Taylor this footage she set the tablet on the table, folded her hands, and waited for him to give a statement. Her brows pulled together as if she were concerned for him. “There’s cameras all around...” she started. “You can’t prove nothin’,” he said within a tremble. “And if we do, your Pop will need to find someone else to take care of them.” Taylor froze, weighing out the pros and cons of what he should say next. “They said I could make some extra cash by pushing this new pill,” he swallowed hard. “I didn’t do nothin’ wrong. I ain’t even seen the pill, you gotta believe me. When I walked in they was in the middle of a deal and all of a sudden five of them burst into flames. If I ain’t seen it with my own eyes I would have never believed it.”

“Grave?” she asked with quiet curiosity. “Yeah, that’s the stuff. It’s supposed to make you feel like a super hero. On top of the world. Everyone’s talking about it, trying to get their hands on it just to try it out. People are paying big dollars for the stuff.” “Who recruited you?” Gray asked. Taylor’s gaze shifted into Mc Clucks, focusing in on one of the employees who seemed stressed, watching the discussion between Taylor and Detective Gray go down. “I ain’t no snitch, I told you all I know. If you take me away from my Pop he could die.” Gray nodded, folding and unfolding her hands between her knees. She lowered her head, then brought her attention back to the troubled teen. “You know, Taylor...good people died in that building. I appreciate your willingness to give insight as to what happened from your perspective - we have your information, if we need you, we know where to find you.”

Taylor got to his feet and went inside Mc Clucks, disappearing somewhere into the back. Gray got out her phone and sent a message to Edmund, “Kid attempted to push the new pill to make extra cash - coworkers involved in recruiting.” She put her phone away, grabbed her tablet, which had recorded her conversation with Taylor, and headed inside Mc Clucks to continue her investigation...

Thomas Maxwell 29-Sep-21 09:08 PM

Edmund was quiet, usually never a good sign when interviewing a possible suspect or going into a bust. Still, right now, he needed to punch something. Something preferably with a face just to knock the smirk off of. He took in a deep breath, trying to calm himself down and just go through all those stages. He’d seen them so many times before, he never thought that he could be on this end of it, though. He plugged in the name of the strip club he had seen on the boy’s matchbook into the car’s computer and was off. “The Rainbow Road” was one of the better-known clubs in town. It catered to both sexes, with a choice of males and females available that could be rented for a few hours and for a price, they could even recreate most fantasies. Edmund took a deep breath as he parked the car; popping a couple of mints, he made his way to the front. A cover charge later, and he was allowed in. Now Edmund wasn’t unattractive by any means. Though he didn’t make too much of a fuss, he decided to see who was available and see what he could find out. Making his way to the bar, he took an empty seat and took a look around before he noted the bartender. “Figured out what you’d like?” “Tall and blonde,” he joked as he turned to the bartender, who returned a slight chuckle. “A gin and tonic, though if you don’t mind.” He gave a slight nod and expertly concocted his drink, “Your new here.” He added as he slid the glass to Edmund’s waiting hand. “Didn’t have a reason til now.” “Girlfriend left?” “Died.” Edmund clarified

The bartender soon regretted asking as Edmund took a sip of the drink, “Condolences.” Edmund returned a tight smile, “Yeah, I just want to forget for a while, you know?” The bartender understood, “Hey, that’s what the road is for. You seem like a nice enough guy. What are you interested in? Maybe I can make a recommendation?” Edmund felt his phone buzz, quieting the device as he took a peek at the phone, noting it was a message from Gray. He slipped the phone back into his pocket. “Coworker making sure I don’t do anything too stupid.” The bartender returned a quiet chuckle, “Right now, I think you just want someone to listen, right?” Edmund paused a bit and returned a slight nod, “Yeah, you available?” The alcohol making things a bit easier to relax in the background. He shook his head, giving him a bit of a smile, “I’m not, though I may be persuaded to part with my number for the right guy. I have an idea, though, whom you need to talk to,” He gave him a name and a 4 digit code, writing his number on the back of the slip of paper. Edmund smiled as he read the first word he could make out from the scribble, “Henry?” The bartender looked up with a grin, “it suits you,” Edmund smirked as he paid for the drink and left a bit of a tip, making his best attempt at acting sexy or cute. He could never tell. With a slight salute, he headed off to the “fantasy suites” and met a concierge. Edmund held up the bit of paper, and the concierge motioned for him to follow with a knowing wink. The room was nice. It smelled clean, which Edmund was thankful for when he noted the Concierge punch in the 4 digit code. The room changed. The floors and walls soon sparkled with what looked like bookshelves and a fireplace. He chuckled a bit, “Henry didn’t do too bad,” he mumbled as he immensely enjoyed the decor. “Thank you.” He turned to the concierge, who dramatically bowed and replied that he was most welcome.

Thomas Maxwell 29-Sep-21 09:15 PM

With a flourish, the doors closed, and a couple of armchairs came into view. Edmund chuckled a bit as they reminded him of the ones his gran used to have. However, the sound of a throat clearing soon knocked him out of his reverie. He looked up to what amounted to a staircase and a second floor. The male on the second floor didn’t know what to make of Edmund at first, except that he would owe Henry for sending him a cute one. “Good evening, my child please have a seat.” The accent surprised Edmund a bit; he returned the glance with a smirk, “Tis a good evening, Count.” Then, setting his coat down on the arms of one of the chairs.

Gray BOT 02-Oct-21 08:35 AM

The interior of Mc Clucks was exactly what anyone would expect. Fluorescent lighting. Yellow, plastic booths lining the walls. Napkin dispensers near a garbage station. And a cashier that looked like they worked too hard for the amount they were being paid. The doors swung shut behind Detective Gray. She was visually out of place in a colorful joint like this by wearing an outfit made of black, grey, and white. “What can I get you?” asked the teen behind the counter. Their red, curly hair was tucked under a yellow hat with a chicken giving a thumbs up on the front. “I’m not interested in the food,” she said. “Okay, then?” “You heard of this new pill going around town, called Grave?” The cashier’s cheeks burned a bright red. They shook their head and nervously looked away. “Nope. Never heard of the stuff.” “Oh, what a shame. We’re offering a reward for anyone that comes forward with information.” “What kind of reward?” “Money…” she teased, “...a lot of it, too. Enough to send you on a nice vacation for over two weeks, or jump-start you into a new beginning at a different job.” The teen met Detective Gray’s eyes evenly. Their body went rigid. After a moment they took a look over their shoulder and turned back to her, whispering, “I can’t talk here.”

Detective Gray pulled a card from her pocket and slid it across the counter. “My number, you can call me anytime - Ken.” She’d grabbed his name from the tag on his shirt hanging off-balance from the way he’d pinned it there. “Or you can come down to that address and we can have a nice chat.” Ken tucked the detective’s card into his pocket quickly, as if he didn’t want anyone to see. He continued to avoid her gaze and stood there uneasy. That was all Gray needed. She nodded and backed off, her attention scanning the environment behind the counter. Finding nothing of interest she turned around and headed to the exit. She was almost at the door when something clattered behind her. A second employee was at Ken’s side breathing down his neck. Whatever was being said was quiet enough she couldn’t hear. This teen had dark hair, tanned skin, and anger in their unusually blue eyes. They shot Detective Gray an unwelcoming glance then headed into the back of the store. Getting Ken to cooperate would be difficult, Gray knew that. Bribing them was the only way if they wanted to find out who had murdered Costello and so many others. Nothing was adding up.

She left Mc Clucks and headed to the streets. The sun was nearly gone and the nightlife had just started its routine. Every corner in this area was lined with women and men dressed in very little clothing, looking their best for new customers. Gray was not one to judge. She was one of the few members of the force that would not bust them for how they decided to make money. She was the type that went after the pieces of shit that abused or murdered them - which is why when she approached two women standing under a street lamp, they greeted her with a smile. “Detective Gray,” said one of the girls. Her long blue hair went to her bottom, curling around the pink dress fitted to her body. “We haven’t seen you around these parts in a long time.” Her name was Darcy, and she was a confident broad that could knock you out with one punch. “Not since, Amelia,” added the other woman, named Paulia. She was shorter than Darcy. Her hair was cut just above the shoulders and dyed black. Wearing denim booty shorts and a white crop top. There was momentary sadness when the name Amelia was brought up. A victim in a case Gray had solved two years prior. “Hello ladies, how is the evening treating you so far?” They offered Gray a cigarette to which she turned them down.

“It goes, it goes. You know how it is. Business doesn’t pick up for another few hours. Now tell us why you’re really here, Mama.” Gray smiled. Her features were soft yet foreboding within the strange street light. “Listen, there’s a rumor of a new drug on the market called Grave. We’re looking for any information-” “Ohhhh, honey,” said Darcy, “you’re gonna have your hands full. All my customers have been asking if we have connections to get some of it.” “Mine, too,” said Paulia, blowing out a puff of cigarette smoke into the night air. “They’re using the kids over at Mc Clucks to push it out. People go through the drive-thru to get their orders - but you didn’t hear that from me. Now we’re even for Amelia.” Gray shoved her hands into her pocket and fetched her phone, shooting Edmund another text: “Pills delivered via drive-thru.” “Listen, Detective, you need to be careful. The groups involved in this aren’t messing around. They be makin’ big bucks off all of this. Ain’t nothin’ like we’ve seen before, I promise you that.” Paulia looked nervous, and so did Darcy.

Gray gave them a thankful nod and felt her phone buzz. Expecting to hear from Edmund, only to see a message from Ken: “Need to talk.” She shot him a reply: “Meet at the precinct in 30 minutes.” “No. Must be off the record.” “Warehouse 387.” “Going now.” Gray turned on her location settings on then sent a second message to Edmund with a link to track her location. She bid farewell to Darcy and Paulia and headed into the streets, venturing toward Warehouse 387 where she would claim a second testimony, this time from Ken - or so she hoped...

Thomas Maxwell 04-Oct-21 05:15 PM

The victorian era was in full bloom, with the last of the pixels sparking to life as the sparkle went the way of the dinosaurs. Edmund would have to chuckle to himself, though he was joking when he said ‘tall and blonde,’ the mystery count in front of him was both of those with rather stunning lavender eyes. “You have much on your shoulders, child..” He added with a pause as he motioned Edmund to take a seat at the adjoining chair. “I guess you can say that.” He sighed softly as he sat down and made himself comfortable. “Well, I can provide a small variety of services. However, you don’t seem like the type who would just ‘love them and leave them.” Edmund gave a slight nod in return, “I am the type to at least wait till the third date,” he tried to joke as the count stepped closer. (edited)

The tension in the room was palpable, as Edmund sat up a bit straighter when the count offered him an ear and a drink. The spiced bourbon did taste quite interesting. Of course, the added cinnamon might have been used to cover the taste of cheap bourbon, but it was tasty nonetheless. They spoke a while longer Edmund couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the sides of his lips as he learned the man’s name. Leonardo Sebastian Di Bella. Hell, he couldn’t help when the man asked why he was chuckling every now and then though he had made no jokes. “I knew a Sebastian,” he replied as he pulled out the silver coin, starting to fidget with the metal as he took another sip. As time went on, Leonardo’s voice started to sound a bit unusual, as Edmund’s head began to feel foggy. He wasn’t going to make like he knew what was going on. It might be part of the act. He really couldn’t place it as the count stood to grab a box from one of the nearby shelves. There was something in his hand. Edmund’s head tilting to one side like a confused puppy as he felt the pain shoot up his arm. It felt like fire, worse than the burn from strong liquor.

Edmund pulled himself upright. He wasn’t going to let this happen quickly though the count did seem to be getting away with quite a bit. He was lifted to his feet with the count taking his dear sweet time saying anything and everything but sounded as though he was 6 feet underwater. “You bitch,” Edmund managed to make his mouth work somewhat as he felt himself fall onto something soft. Leo chuckled, “Oh, the things I want to do to you, let’s have a little fun before they move you.” He quickly slipped his jacket off, placing it on a chair nearby as he reached for something on the nightstand. Edmund coughed a bit, trying to stay awake as long as he could as he felt cold hands run along his bare chest. “Don’t fight it, love. You’ll feel incredible. Not that you already don’t.” The shark purred as he tied Edmund’s hands in place. Leonardo’s hands slipped to Edmund’s belt, his somewhat toned physique trying to avoid any further touch. The last thing Edmund felt was something falling under his belt to feel around a bit as he blacked out.

The pain was something else; despite the “analgesic” effects of whatever he was dosed with, he couldn’t quite place the fact that his mind and his body weren’t in the same place. He could see his now naked body being used as a bit of a plaything for the count. He would have punched the man if he could; he didn’t have control of anything quite yet as Leonardo finished the both of them off before some guys in very dark outfits came in. “For Fuck sake, put some clothes on,” one side rolled his eyes as he tried to not make much eye contact. “You dosed him with the new stuff?” Leonardo pouted, a bit annoyed at the interruption of his playtime. “of course I did, I just wanted a little fun, and he looked so good, I waited a bit to call you. Tell your boss that I want to see this one again.” At least the guy on the left was nice enough to let him have clothing again despite being the rag doll that he was. He was actually ready to

apologise, a bit embarrassed as there wasn’t much he could do. Though he felt something pull him towards his body once again as he blinked and basically was back in his body again. He sucked in a breath as the ropes and the gag pretty much limited his movements to maybe lifting his head if he tried. “Well, I wasn’t going to carry around some naked guy”, motioning to he assumed the door the came from, “Pretty boy, prancing around like that makes me uncomfortable enough.” So they were off for a drive, apparently, and he would be quite the guest.

Gray BOT 15-Oct-21 10:04 AM

Warehouse 837 - it was a dreary place. And not just because the sun had set and a sea of clouds hovered in the sky. The walls of this particular building were lined with grunge from years of rain that had never been wiped away. Dirt and grime clung to every inch of the desolate environment and even though Gray was equipped with a weapon, she still felt uneasy about her whereabouts. “Where is he…” she muttered under her breath. Ken was late, and that was a red flag. A stack of wooden crates called out to Gray. She used them as a shield to observe her surroundings, so when Ken finally did show up she would have the advantage in case he was not alone - typically, someone like Ken would have been forced to come down to the precinct, but since this case was high profile, she didn’t want to blow Ken’s cover or his motivation to give out any information. Ten minutes passed and Ken eventually shuffled around the corner looking lost. No. Not lost. Afraid. He searched for Detective Gray and pulled out his phone hoping to message her, the glow of the screen highlighted his greasy features. She was watching him, though. Waiting. Patiently taking her time before she could confirm he was by himself. Her fingers held onto one of the crate’s wooden slabs, and just as she was about to emerge, a voice called out… “What’re you doing here?”

Ken halted in place. His yellow hat folding around his curly red hair was soon stripped off his head, bound in the clutches of his trembling hands. “I-I, just needed to refill my stash!” Detective Gray put a hand on her gun. She couldn’t make out who Ken was speaking to. Their back was facing her and the night provided enough shadows to steal away a good look at their face - but she could hear them. Loud and clear. “You are not supposed to be here. Where is your code?” “I don’t have a new one.” “You ran out already?” “Yes!” Ken replied frantically, “Yes, that’s it, I ran out and now I need more. Business has been soaring and-and...we need more!” “This is not procedure, and you sound like a liar.” “N-No. I’m telling the truth, I swear it!” Ken was visibly afraid and glancing around as if he were looking for Detective Gray to come rescue him.

But she stayed quiet. Her brows were furrowed. Eyes narrowing in on the two and this strange encounter. Code...what code? She went to type a message to Edmund, only to see her last message had not gone through. No signal. When she looked up she stopped herself from gasping. If she hadn’t seen it herself, she wouldn’t have believed it - Ken was frozen in place. As if he were a statue. His eyes were colorless and hollow as the stranger in a dark hood stalked around him, holding a hand up as if controlling his lack of movement. Gray blinked, but the scene didn’t change through the slits of wood keeping her from their view. Without warning, a fire erupted around Ken. Orange flames burst to life enveloping the poor Mc Cluck’s employee. His red curly hair singed under the heat and in a matter of seconds, his pale skin melted off his body. The inferno was so intense, so strong that by the time the fire’s rage had ended, there was nothing but a pile of ashes on the ground where Ken once stood. Fearful, Gray took three steps back until her spine was pressed against the brick wall behind her. Waiting in the shadows until the hooded man disappeared into the night. She would not move for quite some time, as the imagery of Ken burning alive played over and over again in her mind…

Pieces of a puzzle were falling into place. What had happened to Costello and the others were no longer a mystery - the only questions remaining: how was any of this possible, and who would believe her? Edmund. She fumbled to reach her phone, forgetting she had no signal - it was a bleak reminder that Gray was on her own, and she wasn’t going to leave without getting a look at what was left of Ken. When the coast was clear she approached the pile of ashes, picking up the familiar scent of whipped cream. It was unusual, just as before - and this was a dead-end, literally. She needed to get her hands on the new drug if she was going to find the answers they needed. Quickly, Gray snapped a photo of Ken’s ashes and left the scene - aware of one simple fact: someone was following her...

Thomas Maxwell 20-Oct-21 09:54 AM

Edmund was awake, well, mostly. He did notice the change of scenery as the back of his head hit something thankfully soft. The fabric felt stiff as his vision started to adjust to the now relatively bright surroundings. His hands automatically tried to clear the sleep from his eyes. He was sore, no doubt, but breathing, and his bindings were gone, so that was a bonus to his relatively clean surroundings. It wasn't a typical basement. It looked kind of medical. The faint beep in the background made short work of the doubt that remained in his head. The little kid laughing, though, was weird. The large welt forming on the side of his neck started to throb as he tried to sit up, his muscles screaming at him as he finally made his way upright and saw if he could stand at all. The facts started to trickle in as he began to try and get his blood circulating again. His throat was dry as he tried to straighten out his clothes, coughing a bit to try and get some moisture in his lungs once again. He could smell something now; it was medical definitely, as he gingerly felt around his body to check if there were any other injuries. When he noticed the beep was getting a bit louder. He closed his eyes to take in what he could. Maybe a new scent could help him figure out something about his current situation. Next, he could smell the odd mix of chemicals that made up the flavouring components of children's medications, soon joined by something that smelled like smoke. "Daddy, look!" He could hear through the door. "Wow, love, what are you doing up?" it was definitely a male this time; was he in a hospital? The affectionate family time soon moved into something a bit more threatening. The childlike squeak moved further away as his door opened. (edited)

"You're awake?" The father figure smirked as two rather heavily armed guards surrounded him. Edmund stayed quiet; he needed to keep his head, though it throbbed as the man kept talking when he noticed a flick of the man's fingers could produce a small flame at his fingertips. "I should apologise for Leonardo's actions earlier," apparently, one of the goons that brought him here mentioned his little encounter. "Surviving the first few hours is a good sign. You could have something great happen very soon." "Punching Leo?" He cleared his throat as another man came in, bringing something for him to eat and drink. "If you survive the next week, I may be able to arrange that," the man chuckled softly. "If you survive this week, you'll be a god." This finally caused a smirk to fall across Edmund's lips. "What?" "You ever heard 'Diacetylmorphine c08- the c-strain"? "Heroin?" "Almost," the man chuckled, "Your intelligent I like that; it's a new compound I developed. Of course, it is still undergoing testing, but it can help you unlock all that little brain has for you. Make you a God of your domain." Edmund remained quiet as he took in this new information, just looking at the man as though he was insane. Still, curiosity seemed to get the better of him as he thought of his chances in tumbling with the guard on the man's left. The 'doc' smile turned even wider as he heard the sound of one of his henchmen struggling to hold onto his own against a force no one else could see. "You,"

the man finally broke the silence as he ordered the guard to bring more food and water, "Our guest may want a shower and a change of clothing." The man struggled but finally managed to pull the weapon towards himself to go fetch the desired items. A drip of sweat fell from Edmund's forehead as he sucked in a deep breath and held his now somewhat aching head. The pain was intense as the other guard brought forward a change of clothing and some extra bottles of water, "I shall make a note to check on you after you have a chance to settle in." Before Edmund's mind allowed him a chance to retort, the man left. In the hallway, the Doctor was rather excited, as he couldn't believe he may have found another one. Still, he wasn't going to let his emotions take over. He had a promising start with the last one as well, till the man tried to play hero, then he couldn't help but fry him along with that one boy. He sighed a bit as he went to the attached lab, "I want extra security on that one. Bring him meals and water. The schedule will be written for you." He excused the guards before he went into the decontamination room. (edited)

The thoughts of his late wife came to mind as he remembered just a few moments before he saw his little one walking over to him. He closed his eyes as he allowed the mist to do its job, promising his wife that Henry would be cared for, and he would find something, even if it took thousands. Edmund's headache finally stopped for a moment as he soon felt nausea start to build up in his system. He tried to think a little bit on anything but vomiting as he went for the thermos of what he assumed would be water. Edmund carefully picked up the heavy thermos and cautiously opened the container to take a sniff. He only touched the liquid to his lips before he paused, "I'll wait a bit." He mumbled to himself. No use giving the man an easy bit of prey. He had to see if the water was poisonous first and decided to take the offer of a way to clean himself up. There was a bit of a gym style washroom and shower attached to his new home away from home. He carefully made his way over to the change of clothing, shaking things out and carefully checking them over. He needed a way to cause the headaches and the pain to stop. Evidence was evidence. As ever the detective he was, a shower wouldn't be too horrible to start with; hot water might help. ~~~

Away from the lab, the little boy was soon greeted by his worried nurse, "Oh Henry, there you are." She smiled softly as she helped the boy to his bed, making sure he didn't cross any tubes and wires. She let out a soft sigh as Henry started coughing, "I'm glad you're feeling better now, but remember to take it easy." She gently reminded him as she looked at his charts to record the new coughing and excursion as she made his afternoon dose of medication. He did as any 7 year old would, rolling his eyes as his head hit the pillow, "Just not that god awful grape, please?" He begged to try his best puppy eyes as the nurse turned to him. "Well, that's good then because I told your father how much you hated the taste of that one, and he made a brand new flavour for you. He called it mulberry; want to try it?" The little one looked overjoyed, as it wasn't the awful grape flavour he had started to dread, and gave the thumbs-up, "Yes, please." The nurse gave a slight nod and prepared his new medications as she got him settled in and the machines all in proper order once more. "Alright then, tell me if you like this one, and maybe I can ask your dad about making that cherry go away next."

She chuckled as she handed him the small paper cup containing 4 bright red tablets. The boy tossed the pills back like a trained pro and took a swig from his ever-present water bottle. "Alright, done?" She wanted to confirm with him as she motioned for him to open his mouth so she could check the tablets were actually all gone. Henry chuckled, sticking out his tongue and tried making a silly face which she joined him in as she checked his mouth and under his tongue. "Alright, good job Henry." Henry smiled as he watched the nurse write down some more things. "Can I watch Disney for a bit?" She gave in and popped in a DVD containing some cartoons, "Okay but only for a bit." She smiled as she soon removed her gloves, went to her terminal, and entered the data for the round. She was glad he could be happy, at least. He used to be rather miserable and much more tired. The Doctor would be delighted to hear the news.