Blood City Chronicles: The Black Petal
by
James Garvin
SMASHWORDS EDITION
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PUBLISHED BY:
James Garvin on Smashwords
Blood City Chronicles: The Black Petal
Copyright © 2010 by James Garvin & OMC
All rights reserved.
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Blood City Chronicles: The Black Petal
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Any inquiries send to:
bloodcity2147@gmail.com
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1. “You tell me I can't find it...”
John Turley's body went limp as the gunshot tore through his body. With his momentum, he crashed into a few boxes that were piled behind a Chinese restaurant and came to a stop against a nearby wall. Eternal Darkness walked slowly towards the body and kneeled down to inspect the damage. Turley was still alive, but the round tore through his midsection and he was bleeding heavily. This normally arrogant caucasian man with medium length hair, big brown eyes, and large ears, was now clinging to life in a dingy back alley. Eternal contemplated keeping him alive, but when he considered the pain and suffering he had imposed upon the people in Chicago's south side, he figured the bastard didn't really deserve to live.
Eternal left Turley lying in his own blood and doubled back to where he saw the body of a young human woman lying beneath a pile of rubble and trash. This area was generally well kept, especially being on the northern side of Chicago, but with the rain and wind over the last few days, lots of debris was scattered around. The late night chill was setting in and the wind was picking up. Most likely a sign of more rain. It took a few moments for him to find her exact location, but he did manage to locate her. From what he could tell upon his initial inspection of the body, she hadn't been there more than a couple of days. It had rained three days ago, and she showed no signs of sitting under those conditions. It was also obvious that she was naked, though how naked she was he couldn't tell without removing all of the trash surrounding the body.
It took a couple of minutes to clear everything out and work the body out of the hole it was in. Afterwards, Eternal pulled out his flashlight and began to do a closer inspection. The first bit of information he was able to see, now that the body was in full view, was the fact she was missing her hands and feet. Judging from the wounds, it appeared the extremities were burned off. He could see some bruising on the neck, but no other visible damage. As he suspected she was fully naked, but there was nothing visibly out of the ordinary around her breasts or vagina. There could have been some sexual activity, but there was no way to know for sure at the moment. He took some video with his visor, which took a bit more time than he wanted, then propped her body against a nearby wall where she could be prepared to be easily found.
Under his breath he vowed, “Lady, I'll find your killer.” He grinned under his visor, then began preparing the scene for the police.
* * * * *
The call was strange, but reports concerning dead bodies usually are. Joshua Franklin surveyed the area that was described in the call they had received. Franklin was a middle aged human of average height, with graying black hair, blue eyes, and a neatly ordered beard and mustache. There was a certain air of confidence about him, and there was no doubt he had seen a lot of action in his day. People were running back and forth from the scene and Forensics were starting their preliminary investigation. The way the area was arranged, someone obviously had taken a lot of care to make sure the body was easily found. The woman was lying face up on the ground and her arms were crossed on her chest covering her breasts and a clump of papers were thrown over her genitals to cover the rest. The way she was lying there reminded Franklin of a maiden who had just been sacrificed.
“Franklin, what do you make of this?”
He turned to see an orc named Darius Tivlan dressed in the standard Chicago City Police (CCP) uniform. His hair was slicked back and he was carrying his helmet under his arm while documenting information in his datapad. Franklin took another long look at the body, then turned to face Tivlan. “I'm not sure at the moment, but it appears we have our fifth murder by the same killer in the last 5 months.” Franklin knelt down to inspect the area where her hands had been. “Seems like the same effect that took the extremities from the other victims as well. This body wasn't arranged like the others, either. Looks like someone tampered with the scene before we arrived. All of the other bodies were found they were propped up on something and covered totally in blankets and trash. This one is lying here like Snow White.”
Tivlan nodded to Franklin, then took a quick look around the area. “So far we haven't found any ID on or around the body as well as personal belongings. Not much else to tell that you don't already know. Forensics will have more information once we get the body back to the station.”
“Good work, Tivlan. Let me know if you find anything else.”
“Will do, sir.” He nodded then shuffled off to meet with the medical team who had just arrived.
Franklin rubbed his beard. He wasn't sure what was happening, but it needed to be stopped. The fact that someone tampered with the scene is already odd. Maybe there was something there he could use or perhaps the killer was mocking them. Either way, neither idea made him feel any better about the situation.
Suddenly from further up the alley, someone yelled, “Oh, shit! Lieutenant, you need to see this.”
Without even taking much time to avoid people who were standing around, Franklin pushed his way through the crowd to where the officer was standing. All he saw was a head sticking out of the trash, but upon closer inspection, the body was fully intact. Which caused him to release his breath he didn't even realize he was holding. There was blood smeared all over his face and he was covered in sweat. The man's hair was matted due to the blood and he was virtually unrecognizable. He reached down to check the man's pulse. There was a very faint sign of life. Franklin didn't hesitate calling over the medical staff.
It didn't take long for the MAUHS (Medical And Unnatural Healing Specialist) on duty to reach their position. Shooing away everyone who had begun to congregate around the body, the technician started to stablize the victim. Franklin directed everyone to fan out and search for anymore possible bodies in the area.
After a couple of minutes, Tivlan approached Franklin and handed him a piece of paper. “I think you need to see this, sir.”
“What is it?” asked Franklin.
Tivlan shrugged. “Not sure exactly, sir. It looks like a note of some kind, but perhaps you can make out what it means.”
The old cop looked at the note, then Tivlan. “Where did you find this?”
“The victim was holding it in his left hand.”
Franklin took the note and carefully unfolded it. The writing was in blood and hard to read, but it appeared to be a usenet address with the words: “Turley has been a bad boy. Connection = 0”
“Sir, what's wrong? You've been staring at that piece of paper for at least a minute.”
“Uh, nothing. One piece of the mystery has been solved it seems.”
Tivlan scratched his head. “What do you mean?”
Putting the note in his pocket, Franklin finally looked at Tivlan directly. “Eternal Darkness was here, and most likely was the one who tampered with the scene. I also believe that the body we just found has nothing to do with the girl.” He added in a pause for dramatic effect. “You know, one day I'm gonna nail that bastard.”
“You got all that from that note?”
“When you've been dealing with Darkness as long as I have, you tend to know the signs.”
* * * * *
Eternal watched from afar while the police finished up their work. He chuckled under his breath, then made his way back home. Franklin was probably mad as hell at the moment, and Max Freeman couldn't help but enjoy the festivities. The Lieutenant had been trying to catch him for years now without much luck. Max made a point to mock him whenever he had the chance. It was moments like this that made life truly worth living.
Max was a tall, dark skinned, human with a strong, well defined physique, and short curly black hair. He wasn't the largest man anyone had ever seen, but there would be no mistake he was well built. Despite his height and build he moved with the natural grace of a predator. He rubbed his beard and retired from the scene.
It took an hour or so to make it back to his underground estate. Max owned a flat in the central part of the city, but he didn't go there as often as he should. Usually, there was work to be done, and relaxing at home was only good for keeping appearances, but since no one really cared about what he did, it wasn't even worth doing that. At the moment, he was rotating days from one place to another. However, since this issue with the body in the alley was on his mind, he figured he'd break his routine and head to his alternate living quarters. Perhaps his assistant, Kim, could analyze the video he took and maybe figure out if there was anything he missed on the body.
The security scan finished and Max entered his office and flopped down in his chair.
A soft female voice greeted him from the office loudspeaker. “Welcome back, Max. I trust everything went well?”
Max leaned back in his chair and propped his feet upon his desk. “As well as could be expected. Did you get the video I sent you?”
“I did. Why do you always send me such gruesome images to look at?”
“It's because I care about you so much, Kim. Can you throw that video up on my screen?”
With a huff Kim said, “You're feeling spunky today, aren't you? The vid is already there. I figured you'd be ready for it when you arrived.”
“Thanks. Did you get the information from the CCP about the previous murders?”
“I did. There's not much to tell on that front, it seems. They have the suspicion that this is a serial killing. From all the data, it does appear that way.”
Max rose to pour himself a cup of orange juice. “Serial killer doesn't sound too far fetched. Let's analyze the data we have so I can get up to speed.”
It took some time to review all of the data Kim recovered from the CCP database. There had been four murders in the last four months. The body found today would make the fifth, and all of them had their hands and feet removed.
The first body was found on February 10th, 2145. His name was Corey Samuelson, a 48 year old standard (human) and an engineer at a telecommunications firm. He was found in an alley right off of W. Pearson Street. The body was naked and covered in blankets as well as trash, much like the way he found the last body. There wasn't any bruising on the body, either. The Forensics report stated that he actually died on the 8th between midnight and 3:15am. DNA testing discovered who the victim was and his family was notified. They said he hadn't been doing anything out of the ordinary, and as far as they knew he was a normal citizen. Police never found any of his belongings, and they couldn't connect him to anything shady. The actual cause of death appeared to be asphyxiation.
On March 10th the police was notified about a second body. This one was found tucked behind a dumpster near Soldier Field. Her name was Shelly Robinson a secretary at a local law firm downtown. She was a standard, 31 years old, and single. It was another case of asphyxiation. She wasn't the best looking woman in the world, but it appeared that she was a heavy gambler. According to her boss, she was going to meet with a friend the night of March 9th, but her friend said she called later to say she wasn't going to be able to make it. No one heard from her again. The detective assigned to the case, an elf named Valerie Harmon, reported that Shelly owed money to a local loan shark named Terrance Stackwell. Max knew him, but also knew he wasn't capable of murder. Especially since he had warned him that if anyone he knew ever turned up dead, Eternal Darkness would be paying him a visit. Terrance had made a statement that her debts had been paid so there was no reason to do business with her anymore. It was also noted that Terrance had no connection with Corey Samuelson. The report stated that she was actually killed the night of the 9th, and the body was found the next day. Since it was in more of a public place, it seems as if someone wanted the body found quickly. There were also bruises found on her stomach and the coroner believes that she was strapped down so hard the straps left whelps on the body. The police have questioned many people, and are no closer to finding her killer than they were when they started. Max also noted how none of her belongings were found, not even her car.
A month later, on April 11th, the body of a 39 year old orc named Donald Morhaim was found partially buried a few meters off of Marshall Boulevard close to South California Avenue. Cause of death was again asphyxiation, though his body was covered in bruises and his leg was broken. He was a security guard at a bank, married with two children, and no prior criminal convictions. His wife had filed a Missing Person Report on April 8th after he didn't come home the night before and he wasn't answering his phone. Max remembered the police combing the city looking for any trace of Donald, even the local holovision stations were helping. Unfortunately, there was a tragic conclusion to the case when his body was found. No one could understand why he was killed and, as with Corey, his life was squeeky clean, and he served in the United States Army with a clean service record. Last reports from his place of employment put Donald leaving around 9:32pm. No one saw him alive after that. Like the other victims he was found naked and his personal belongings haven't been found, not even his car. Judging from the condition of his body, his estimated time of death was a little after 11:30pm the night he disappeared. Unlike the other victims, the bruises on the body and the broken leg look to be from some type of struggle. There were actual burn marks, though minor, in a six inch streak on the arms and legs. Forensics are unsure what caused the burns, but believe it was some kind of torch. Detective Harmon at this point believes there is a serial killer on the loose who is claiming victims at random places. She notes that at this point there is no discernible connection between the three victims.
Marcus Green, an elf, was found one month later a few feet from N. Belmont Harbor Drive. His brother had reported him missing on May 7th and his body was found in the afternoon on May 9th when the groundskeeper for Lincoln Park spotted birds around a pile of mulch near the road in the trees. The cause of death was the same as the other victims and he was missing his hands and feet as well. At 216 years old, he had seen a lot of action. He served in the VNEG wars as a soldier, but after the end of the 2nd VNEG war, he took that as a sign to help protect the environment. For the last 20 years he's been working for the city as a groundskeeper and gardener. He was last seen leaving a bar on W. Fletcher Street at approximately 10:28pm on May 6th. The time of death is estimated to be around 1am on the 7th. The toxicology report shows his blood alcohol level to be way higher than normal as well. Patrons at the bar say that for the last month he had been extremely depressed. He didn't have any family as they were killed in the 1st VNEG war when Chicago was sacked in 2062 and he never remarried. Currently, he lived with his brother, and as with all elves in recent history was living a quiet life trying to keep a low profile. His brother, Simian Green, told Detective Harmon that Marcus was worried someone was coming to get him, but he wouldn't give any information as to who that was or even why this was going to happen. Simian was pretty shaken by his brother's death and he was feeling that he was responsible for his brother's fate in some way. Marcus didn't appear to know any of the other victims. One odd note about the body was the lack of any bruises. Detective Harmon speculated that there may not have been a struggle which would explain why they were not present.
Max rubbed his eyes, leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. There was a lot of information to review and he'd just spent the last two hours sifting through many reports about the victims and autopsy records. On the surface, everything seemed like a standard serial killer situation. There were no links between the victim and the selection of each person seemed to be random. He kept thinking that there was something they were all missing, some angle they hadn't considered yet.
Reviewing the vid of the woman found tonight, he could see signs of the the same bruising on the neck. She appeared to be the youngest of the victims with long black hair, smooth skin, and a nice figure. He said, “She was beautiful, don't you think?”
Kim's voice was unusually solemn. “Yes, she was. It's a shame that she had to suffer this fate.”
“This whole situation seems like something out of a holovid,” Max mused.
“You could always leave this in the hands of the police. You're not getting anything out of this, and it surely isn't worth the stress.”
Max sighed. “You're right, but we owe it to the people who have died and those who will potentially die in the future. I'll admit, I thought this was simply a mob hit gone bad, but there seems to be something more sinister involved. That's all the more reason to find the killer. We can't turn a blind eye to what's happening in any case.”
There was a short moment of silence before Kim said, “You know it's just a matter of time before they call in the FBI to pick up the investigation. Who knows, maybe even Universal Intelligence will be called in on the case.”
He chuckled. “I doubt Sheraton would allow me to work the case even if that happened, though with the recent static between the departments, I doubt the FBI will be willing to share jurisdiction. Something of this magnitude would just allow them to be more intent on being the group to bring the killer to justice.”
“You're probably right. What are you gonna do now?”
Max stood up and stretched. “I think I'm going to bed. It's 2am and I need to sleep on the information we have now. Not only that, I don't think I can go any further without more information on the woman I found tonight. I figure CCP will have some information about her identity sometime tomorrow and maybe that will give me some ideas.”
“You get some sleep then, Max. I'll monitor the police com channels for any new information, and if something of note happens, I'll let you know.”
Trying to suppress a yawn, Max said, “Sounds good. You know, I have a feeling we're not gonna like how this case turns out.”
2. “...tell me it's there and I'll look.”
Whether he wanted to or not, Max started the day fairly early. The weight of the case was heavy on his mind, and even though his normal routine for this sort of thing was to sleep, drink some juice, and read news, he was having a hard time concentrating. He was certain the answer to this mystery is there, but they're not thinking about how the clues connect. Perhaps the connection between the five victims isn't about who knew each other personally, but rather they were somewhere together and are only connected by coincidence. He didn't want to speculate too much since the information regarding last nights victim hasn't been updated yet.
The news of the day centered around the capture of John Turley who was found to be linked to the deaths of 35 children in a secret underground sweatshop. The bodies of the children had been sold to cannibals in South America who were trading drugs and other raw materials for Turley's other business ventures in Chicago, Detroit, and Milwaukee. Turley was currently in critical condition at St. Elizabeth's Hospital, and it was estimated he wouldn't survive more than a couple of days. Didn't seem like the police were all that keen on him pulling through and the way Max figured it one of his business partners would probably make sure he didn't make it, either. Eternal Darkness was credited with his capture, but there was a lot of debate about whether Turley's rights were violated, and how that would affect his trial if he lived that long. Some argued that Eternal Darkness was doing the community a favor and with the overwhelming amount of evidence against Turley he was going to be living in prison for a long time. Max didn't care what happened. If Turley tried to escape his fate, Eternal Darkness was going to pay him a visit and this time there wouldn't be a chance for him to come back.
Turley had been avoiding the authorities for years, and Universal Intelligence could never get enough evidence to convict him. He had been daring the government to take him on, even going so far as to openly mock UI. The head of UI, Jason Sheraton, made it clear to the press that whatever crimes Turley had committed would be exposed in due time. The truth was that UI didn't have anything solid to work with. Every angle they tried either lead to a dead end, or a witness or government agent found themselves dead. Max lost a few friends who had tried to infiltrate his establishment undercover or tried to arrest him. This song and dance had gone on for about three years.
About six months ago, as Eternal Darkness, Max stumbled upon some documents that implicated a local mob boss in a smuggling ring. Upon further investigation, Max realized that this particular boss was selling people to Turley under the table. There was a lot of blood spilled in order to unravel the web that was Turley's organization. At least now all those people under the streets in those sweatshops were free, and their master was one step closer to hell. It wasn't pretty, but he'll take it.
A voice over the loudspeaker interrupted his train of thought, “Admiring your handiwork?”
“Not really, but I am glad the bastard is going to be removed from the gene pool.”
“I'm more surprised you let him live. Doesn't seem like you.”
Max nodded in agreement. “Yeah, I know. At that moment, I just wanted him to be around long enough to take some of the heat for what he'd done. If he lived, then he'd have to deal with the trial, the pressure from his organization, and possibly even death, because you can be sure the judge is going to give him the death penalty. Or he can die in a hospital bed somewhere alone and with a fair bit of suffering. Either outcome isn't particularly good. Besides, it gave Franklin something else to think about, and giving me credit for something as big as the arrest of John Turley is worth the trouble.”
Kim laughed. “You're going to cause that old man to go insane.”
“I doubt that. It'll take more than me getting under his skin to get him to buckle.”
“You're probably right. Still, it can't be good for his nerves.”
* * * * *
Dean Waserman was the medical examiner assigned to the case. He was an older human, who had been in service for almost 25 years. Detective Valerie Harmon had come to Dr. Waserman's office for an analysis on the state of the body brought into his lab, and as she stood in front of him now, she hoped the information would provide a clue that could help crack open this case. For months Homicide has been digging into just about every hole they could find and what they had was basically nothing. At least nothing concrete.
The one striking feature that was present in all of the victims was the fact their hands and feet were missing. The Coroner's Report stated that the hands and feet had been burned off by something resembling a blowtorch. She originally thought that magic was involved, but the MOD (mage on duty) assured her that there was no magic residue found anywhere on the body. A magical signature on the body would give them something they would work with since all magics could be read and this would narrow down the suspects quite a bit. Unfortunately, with no magic involved, this became a standard homicide and that meant more work on their end.
Other than the missing hands and feet the only other visible markings on the bodies were bruises and even then Marcus Green wasn't bruised at all. She believed that the bruises were from the victim struggling with their killer. Marcus had accepted that something was going to happen to him and it's easy to conclude that he gave in without too much of a fight. While Donald Morhaim had a broken leg and bruises on various parts of his body. Perhaps Donald tried to fight off the killer, but in the end was incapacitated.
Valerie was in the process of making smalltalk when Franklin walked in and greeted both of them with a nod. They had been waiting in the medical examiner's lab and the body of last nights victim was lying peacefully on the examining table. Dr. Waserman had told her he wasn't going to provide any information until Franklin had arrived and true to his word he didn't waste any time as Franklin finished his hurried greetings.
“Thank you for coming, Lieutenant.” He looked over to Valerie. “And you, Detective.”
They both nodded politely.
“Let me get right to the point. Based on DNA testing of the victim, we were able to determine some information. Her name is Natasha Cantebury. She's a production manager at the Lichburgh Microsystems office downtown. She's 27 years old, married, and has one child. The cause of death is asphyxiation and her approximate time of death was around 11:30pm on June 5th. As with the other victims, her hands and feet have been burned away. There's bruising on the neck as well, but no other injuries on any other part of her body. There's no sign of forced entry into the vagina, but we did find sperm as recent as two days ago. Appears to be her husbands.”
Franklin put his hands in his coat pocket. “Are you sure it was her husband's semen?”
Dr. Waserman said with a huff, “Of course I'm sure. We called in her husband early this morning to get a sample and I just got the results of the testing a few minutes ago.”
Valerie shook her head. “Seems to be the same as the other victims. I guess we're back to square one. I'll notify her family about her death. I was hoping for something we could actually use this time.”
“Well, there is one thing that I do find interesting,” said the doctor.
“What's that?” asked Franklin.
“Take a look at the hands.” He motioned both of the officers to the right arm where the skin was burned at the base where the hand had been. Pointing at a small soft spot around the bottom of the burned edge, the doctor made a circular motion around the area with his finger. “You may not notice anything out of the ordinary about this wound. As I said before something extremely hot practically melted off the hand. However, if you look closely at the wound, you can see a point where something sharp broke the skin. It's hard to see since the skin is so burned in that area, but this is something I hadn't noticed earlier. What's even stranger is this...” He loaded up an image on his datapad and increased the magnification to where they could see the image more closely.
“What are we looking at, Dean?” asked Franklin.
“This is the area I just showed you.”
The image showed the area around the base of the arm that was still partially red, but wasn't burned. It was a small portion of the arm at the wrist and was difficult to see. If the doctor hadn't pointed it out she would have missed it completely.
“What do you make of it?” she asked.
“I'm not sure,” the doctor replied. “I've examined and compared the image to the body a few times and all I can think about is that the body was still burning when we brought her in. That makes no sense, because the thermal scan showed no signs of heat on the body at all.”
Franklin rubbed his beard. “So you're saying that the body somehow burned even though it wasn't burning?”
“Basically.” The doctor flopped into his chair and reclined a bit.
There was a cold silence in the room and Valerie knew what that meant. Whenever magic was possibly involved, the hair on the back of her neck would stand on end. Being an elf her family was involved in the use of magic many years ago, but her generation grew up without really knowing much about it and the fear it generated affected her like it did everyone else. Magic was unpredictable, deadly, and scary in the wrong hands. There were things about it very few people actually knew about and though people knew magic existed in this day and age, that didn't change the feeling people got when they saw it in action. Luckily, it was something they didn't see very often since less than .3% of the population even knew how to use magic. For the average person, The Art may as well not exist. Unfortunately for her, she sometimes had to deal with supernatural cases. She's had her fair share of strange happenings, but even with that said, she was still terrified of it.
“Did you have the MOD check for magical residue?” Valerie could tell that Franklin was trying to keep his composure.
“I did. It gets stranger.”
“How so?” asked the detective.
“The MOD claimed that there was no magical residue on the body. It was completely clean of any magical interference.”
Franklin said with a laugh, “You and I both know that doesn't make any sense, Dean.”
Dr. Waserman lowered his head in thought. “I've come to understand that science can't explain everything, but if we're talking about something mundane involved, then I don't know of anything that could burn cold like this.”
“What about the iceflame picks they use on the moon?”
“Burns from a device like that only burns as long as there is contact with the device. Not only that, but areas around such a burn would show up colder than the rest of the body since the tissue would have crystalized. Here is the thermal scan image,” he produced the image on his datapad. “You'll notice no abnormal temperature differences on any portion of the body. Maybe we're dealing with some different type of technology.”
Rubbing his eyes, Franklin walked towards the door. “I'll check the possibility of there being some sort of military device that we don't know about. Someone fucking has to know something. Detective, contact the victim's family, and see what you can dig up on her last days alive. We're not gonna let this bastard kill again.”
“Yes, sir. I'll let you know if I find anything.”
As Franklin walked through the door, he paused and look at them with the most serious look on his face. “Oh, I don't want any of this mystical shit leaked to the press. There's no point in spreading panic. At least until we know for sure.”
Valerie watched Franklin leave, then turned to the doc and nodded. Whatever was going on at this point didn't lead to anything good. Either they were dealing with a new piece of weaponry, or some magic using maniac. She supposed it didn't really matter. Whoever they were dealing with was good. Maybe too good.
* * * * *
Max hadn't realized he had dozed off until Kim was ringing his alarm. He slowly opened his eyes and let loose the biggest yawn he could muster. It was about 1pm and he could still faintly here his music playing in the background. Kim had cut the alarm when she saw that he was moving, but she hadn't bothered to turn his music back to the correct volume. He figured he'd have to bring that to her attention, but after he grabbed a glass of tea.
“Good to see you up and about. Looks like that report you were looking for has been posted.”
The tea was warm going down and he was feeling a bit more relaxed. This was what he had been waiting for all morning, and since it's taken this long, he figured there must have been something out of the ordinary about the body. Franklin was never one to pass up a good press conference unless there was something he didn't want the people to know. With all the past victims CCP had been prompt making statements, but they found the body many hours ago and still hadn't made a statement and there wasn't even a slight mention in the early morning newsfeed.
Leaning back in his chair and propping his feet on the desk, Max scanned the information in the file for anything out of the ordinary. Kim had been able to access Detective Harmon's personal log and he could tell from the writing she was rushed. The report was brief and to the point. He had a name now and he couldn't help but feel sympathy for her son who was to go through the rest of his life without his mother. No child should have to suffer through such turmoil. Max could understand losing a parent since his own mother was taken from him by a group of street cultists many years ago. The world is a cruel place for any child growing up without having to also deal with the loss of a loved one as well.
It's tragedies such as this that drove him and compelled him to take justice into his own hands. It wasn't perfect, but he could accept the fact that he was going to Hell when he finally makes his journey to the afterlife. He had no regrets about the decisions he's made throughout his life. The people he's killed is well more than he could ever count, and sometimes their cries haunt him from the Nether. All he could do is be comforted by the fact that he never killed civilians and everyone he's killed, be it man, woman, or child deserved it in some way. For every life he has taken, he's saved three or four times as many. He will still be known as the most notorious killer the world has known. It was a high price to pay, but it was his cross to bare. Max smiled to himself at the thought. It was a burden he would gladly pay again.
The report itself wasn't very interesting, but one point caught his attention. She briefly describes a persistent burning of the body even though there was no heat or extreme cold. Like a good detective, she doesn't make any assumptions about what it could be, but the effect is curious. Even more curious is that there wasn't any magical signature on the body.
“Kim, what do you think about this burning effect she mentions in her report?”
“Sounds like a magical effect.”
“But there wasn't any magical residue on the body.”
There was a brief silence before she responded. “Remember about three years ago when you found the body of that technomancer in Brisbane?”
“Yeah. What was his name? Thermaglain, I believe. He was experimenting with various properties of different types of spells and their effects on the body over time. Fascinating stuff.”
“Yes. Very fascinating. There was one particular property I recall from his notes. When someone performs a divination spell, the effect on the body or item is only temporary. His research was inconclusive and he was only able to witness this effect once, but there was something about how divination spells tap into The Stream itself and how it doesn't effect the body directly. Over time the magical connection to the body would evaporate completely or something to that effect. Up until now, most divination spells require a lot of the person's stamina so the lingering effect on the body generally lasts weeks at a time. On top of that, divination spells also are some of the hardest spells to cast and require a strong connection to what is being divined as well as a tight reign on The Stream. Outside of his messy experiments he could never prove how such a phenomenon could happen, and so the magistrates simply dismissed his arguments. They argued that once an item has been touched with the energy from a divination spell even after the initial signature faded, there would always be residual energy attached to the item or person.”
Max took a sip of his tea. “I believe you're on to something. If Thermaglain's theory was right, then it would be possible for a divination spell to simply 'fade away' under the right conditions. He was never able to figure out what caused the effect. He describes how he was able to produce it once, but all of his experiments afterwards produced the well documented effect the magistrates describe in their counter arguments to his position. The problem is that casting these kinds of spells takes a huge toll on the body. That was one of the reasons he died. Well, besides the knife in his back.”
“This is a long shot, Max. But based on odds, this angle is the best we have.”
“Definitely a long shot, but it also makes a lot of sense. Looks like we're not dealing with a serial killer. Whoever killed these people was looking for something.”
Max was no expert in the ways of magic, and as far as he knew he had no latent talent for it. In his line of work, it was important to know the inner workings of many things and magic was no exception. He would spend a lot of time reading papers, journals, spellbooks, and even talking to mages to gain a better understanding of the arcane world. He knew a good many spells, but couldn't cast them himself, but by knowing how spells worked he could counter them when he needed to.
In order for a person to cast a divination spell, he needs a focus or something connected to what they wanted to know, a cold place, a personal connection to what they wanted, and a decent amount of space. Depending on what a person wanted to know the space required varied. Due to the strain on the body, generally divination spells were done by groups of people with one person as an anchor. Even with the requirements being so high, these types of spells could be done in a short amount of time. The actual incantation was fairly short. It was the flow of power itself that caused the damage. Other types of spells could be cast easily enough since they didn't delve into the Nether to get information.
A divination spell taps into the essence of an item by contacting the Nether, Limbo, or the plane of high spirits to ask them for information. Normal spells, such as conjurations, weave the ley energy from The Stream to make something...be it matter or a force. Divinations call upon the dead to give information, though when a spell is cast the caster has no control over who answers the call. The beings from the Nether must make the journey to the physical plane and this requires payment. Usually in the form of a person's spirit energy. That energy can be replaced over time, but it takes years which is why people tend to share the burden with others. A cold place is required to understand the whispers of the traveler. What people don't generally know is that when there is a whisper, there is a ripple in the fabric of the physical plane and those who monitor such phenomenon can catch a glimpse of the ripple. Max figured he could use this information to maybe get a lead on the general area the ripple took place. It wasn't an exact science, but this kind of thing was usually the work of cultists and he knew just the person who might know something.
“Kim, I think we need to talk to Lester.”
She grunted. “Why him? It's so hard to ever get a straight answer from that guy and he's always dressed in strange clothes.”
Max nodded in agreement. “I know, but when it comes to things like this he's the best at providing some details.”
“Do we have to pay him?”
“You think he's gonna give us the information for free?” Max chuckled.
“I suppose you're right, but I wish there was a better way.”
“I do, too. This is where we're at, though. See if you can get him on the vid.”
They had created a number of personas to deal with situations when they had to talk to people outside their circle. Kim felt that for talking to someone like Lester, an asian looking woman with short black hair was the best choice. Her name was Nicole Chen, a dabbler in the arcane arts and collector of antiquities. She was known in the business as beautiful, intelligent, spunky, yet reasonable woman who was fairly new to the scene. Currently residing in Hong Kong, she was known to make trips to various parts of the world to research strange phenomenon. Keeping up appearances and credibility was a daunting task, but it was something Kim did in her spare time. She seemed to enjoy it, so Max never really interfered with her need for some connection to the outside world. With Lester, Kim handled all of the talking since she believed that since she was a woman, at least in theory, she was better equipped to play the part. Max couldn't disagree with her logic and she proved to be a great negotiator.
It took her a few moments, but she was able to patch through to his personal integrated phone (PIP). His avatar was a little girl, maybe 10 or 11 years old, dressed in a bikini and wearing a large brimmed straw hat. She was lying on a straw couch with birds fluttering about.
In probably the deepest voice Max had ever heard, he said, “Oh. 'Tis you. The winds of fate are strong indeed, for I knew you would be callin'. The winds speak to me in the night, telling grizzly tales of mayhem and murder. They run. Run they do. But don't wait or you will miss them. What is it you need my princess?”
Max took a deep breath. This was going to be a long conversation.
3. “I don't understand what I see...”
The night was unusually warm, with a slight breeze coming from the north. The sun was setting and the city traffic was slowing down ready for the night activities to start. Max rarely went out during the day as Eternal Darkness since it would be easier for the authorities to track his movement, though there were times when day missions were necessary. Luckily, this mission wasn't one of them.
He surveyed the area around the N. Wells St. bridge that crossed the Chicago river. This area used to be a bit more active, but after the war, the section of river where it splits had been turned into a memorial for all of the men and women who died trying to push back the VNEG Peacekeepers who had heavily fortified the area. The Sun Times building which had stood there over a hundred years was destroyed, and eventually rebuilt in another section of the city. Most of the area was overgrown with trees and vegetation, which made it easy for Max to hide.
Lester's information pointed him to this area. According to him, there was a disturbance in the planar fabric two days ago in an area not too far from the memorial markers, but supposedly underground. The anomaly was faint, but it lasted for more than 10 minutes which is why he found it strange. He had also noted that he'd seen the same activity before about a month ago. The effect didn't last as long as the incident from two nights ago, but the signature was the same. Lester figured it was something crossing over into the physical plane, but was too afraid to find out for sure what it was.
Over an hour had passed and Eternal had covered much of the area surrounding the memorial park as well as the riverbank, but hadn't found anything out of the ordinary. There were security guards roaming around now that the park itself had closed, which meant he had to be extra careful. His original thought was the entrance to the cultist lair was near the river itself, but the drainage pipes he'd seen so far weren't tampered with. Not only that, but it would be extremely difficult for people to go in and out without getting wet. Maybe this wouldn't be a problem in the summer, but during the winter in Chicago playing around in freezing water wouldn't be recommended. He'd have to make his way to Kinzie Street and that would put him in a more dangerous situation since there would be more civilians around.
Eternal made his way to higher ground opposite the memorial shrine and surveyed the area closely. There weren't many people standing about and traffic was light. Aerial surveillance showed the streets fairly empty. Upon closer inspection of the building across from his current position, he could see what seemed like armed mercs on the west side of the building. Thirty minutes of monitoring their activities was all Eternal needed in order to decide this was the place he was looking for. The tipoff came when a man dressed in a suit approached the armed men around the area and after some discussion, made some sort of sign and one of the bigger men allowed him to enter the building.
It didn't take Eternal long to get into position. He figured the men surrounding the building were armed, but at this point he didn't know exactly how violent this situation would become. There was only one way to find out.
The first merc went down without much of a fight. Eternal had caught him off guard as he was moving along the back side of the building. A quick jab to the throat and a little pressure to the arm would make sure he would be out of this fight. Searching the incapacitated merc didn't turn up anything interesting, except this man was wired. Not much of a problem since most mercs these days were wired in some way. Being wired basically meant a person would trade flesh for mechanical parts. In the world of high tech wars, being fleshy is a liability. Max never agreed with trading meat for metal, but it was almost guaranteed that any serious combatant in the world today was wired in some way. The advantages far outweighed the negatives...most of the time.
Without making a sound, Eternal subdued two more guards and descended up on the largest of the mercs. At this point, the last merc was spooked. The signal sent to the others in his troupe returned silence. The big merc had made his way back to the door the man wearing the suit entered earlier, his weapon was drawn and at the ready.
“Dammit, you guys better get some backup out here now. I lost contact with Jenkins, Hinkle, and Salor.” There was a pause. “There's someone here. Hold on just a second...”
The merc moved with almost blinding speed to a pillar not far from his location. Eternal had moved into an area above him and before the merc even knew what hit him, he was overcome. The struggle was brief, the damage was great, and the merc went down in a ball. The sound of the big man hitting the ground and his gasping at the shock of the impact was communicated over his com channel.
“Lake! Lake! What's going on there? We have backup on the way, hang on!”
Eternal Darkness grabbed the unconscious man's com device and said plainly, “I'm coming.”
Inside the building Eternal could hear lots of movement. The entry room itself was dark and Eternal could make out a number of pillars positioned throughout the room with an entryway on the opposite side. The door closed behind him as he ducked behind one of the pillars on his right.
Not only was this room fairly large, it was also extremely cold. Eternal adjusted his visor to IR, as the heat signatures would make tracking much easier. Making his way across the room, he could see figures waiting behind a pillar near the far door. Eternal tossed a decoy drone onto a nearby wall and waited.
The drone scuttled up the wall and back down moving towards the back door. It didn't take long for the command to kill to be given by the merc leader. A hail of bullets screamed towards the drone with deadly efficiency. The room lit up as sparks and muzzle fire erupted from their assault rifles. Many rounds pounded into the stone walls and no doubt anyone close to the building would be aware of a firefight in progress. As the drone was struck, blood splattered all over the walls and floor. One of the mercs came over to check out his handiwork.
“I think we got him, sir,” he said.
“He bleeds. I guess he's a person after all,” said another voice from behind another pillar.
“Who bleeds?” asked another.
As the merc reached the blood, Eternal sprang into action. With lightning speed Eternal grabbed the merc from behind and slammed him into the pillar he was hiding behind so hard that the merc lost his breath. A punch to the chest was enough to break a few ribs. The merc slumped to the floor unconscious as gunfire bit into the silence.
Eternal readied his Avlis 13mm pistol and without breaking his stride, moved left towards the opposite side of the room catching one of the mercs in the side. The merc went down with a yelp as Eternal continued the surgical dismantling of their defense. One of the mercs moved to drag his partner from the fight, but as he reached for his comrade Eternal was already on top of him. The merc realized too late that he was in an unfavorable position and the heavy round hit his right shoulder. He fell back against a nearby pillar, dropping his rifle. Something that felt like a concrete block hit him on the head and that was the last thing he remembered.
Another merc saw his friend take a punch to the head and slump down like a rag doll to the floor. Whoever they were up against was fast and virtually invisible to their IR sensors. He moved back to another pillar further away from where he saw his friends go down and reloaded. There were only three mercs left and even three against one didn't seem to be to be working in their favor. The signal had been given to coordinate fire into a specific area of the room and he readied his weapon for the attack.
The rounds screamed across the room, but they found this assault to be ineffective as another merc was grabbed from behind his pillar with such force his trigger finger was instantly smashed by the trigger guard. A swift jab to the midsection was all that was needed to cause the merc to vomit, spilling his dinner onto the floor. His head crashing into the stone pillar was enough to officially remove him from the fight.
Someone yelled, “Holy shit! IR isn't working! Turn your lights on. Do it now!”
Two weapon lights flicked on almost instantly.
Eternal didn't give them time to regroup. A flurry of gunshots sprayed into an area near the inner door and the other merc pointed his light in his partner's direction to offer him some cover. Eternal slid underneath the merc who was providing support, surprising him. The merc instinctively turned his gun towards the floor and pulled the trigger. Bullets ricocheted off the base of the pillar and caught him in the face sending him reeling. His partner turned around to see him get his head thrown hard into the floor. He let loose a barrage of gunfire in Eternal's general direction, catching his unconscious squadmate in the arm.
At that moment, the final merc made a break for the door. He ran with all the speed he could muster, but he wasn't fast enough. Eternal was on him before he could even get within 10 meters of freedom. Eternal grabbed him by the collar and drug him hard to the floor. Blood was flowing from the merc's mouth and it looked as if he was suffering from internal bleeding and maybe a couple broken bones. All targets had been eliminated.
The inner door slid open revealing the grand view of the entry area as well as a lot of blood covering the floor. There was a pause as the mercs on the other side of the room assessed the situation. Everyone could feel the tension and fear in the room and the unearthly silence that followed.
One of the mercs asked out loud, “What the hell are we up against?”
An older sounding man replied, “Believe me, you don't want to know. Just stay focused.”
Suddenly object streaked across the room drawing the attention of the mercs. One of them let loose a barrage of gunfire, followed by the four others. A separate blast caught one of the guards in the thigh, and another pierced another merc's right shoulder. Another merc scrambled for cover behind a fallen table, but took a round in the back sending him to the floor. There was confusion as the two remaining mercenaries ran for cover. The dark figure was on them before they could reach the safety of the exit on the far side of the room. He grabbed one of the mercs by the collar of his vest and slung him into the merc who was trying to hide behind a nearby desk. Both men went tumbling over the desk and crashed into the wall behind it. Eternal slammed one of the merc's head into the wall, and tossed the other into a stack of chairs on the other side of the room. Everything fell silent.
Eternal began to inspect the room and he could see that this inner room was the real entrance into their stronghold. The furniture was lavish, the paintings on the wall accented the gothic style of the interior design, and outside of the basic necessities of modern day living, there was a certain 16th century feel to the room.
A symbol of an evil looking red boar covered the back wall leading further into the building. Eternal recognized that symbol as the Apostles of Torgus...the boar demon. They have a history of blood sacrifice, though they've never been convicted of actually killing anyone in America. The New York District Attorney in a case three years ago tried unsuccessfully to convict Alex Pindalton of the murder of Ira Olfers, but they failed to prove how the evidence was anything but circumstantial. After that incident, the Apostles of Torgus had gone underground and while their overseas projects had revolved around human sacrifice rituals, there was no case against them in the States. Rumor was that some government officials in Argentina and Brazil were involved in these rituals, but neither country could prove it.
Eternal continued down the hall and deeper into the complex. Movement could be heard echoing through the halls along with voices speaking in hushed tones. Resistance was minimal, and it was obvious that the main force was covering the front door.
Eventually, a set of stairs down emptied into a large well-lit room. A group of people were huddled in a corner near the rear. There was a set of double doors near the back room, but they were currently closed. A man was standing near the center of the room with a gun pointed to the head of a woman. He was dressed in a black combat vest with black and gray camouflage pants and gloves much like the other mercs at the entrance to the building.
“I knew you'd make it this way, Darkness. If you come any closer, I'll kill this woman,” he said smugly.
Eternal stopped briefly, then in a flash put one round in the shoulder of the merc who screamed as he hit the floor. The woman fell to the ground whimpering and the other members in the room huddled closer together.
A tall man stepped from the group and approached Eternal. He was obviously shaking, but he was trying to keep his composure the best he could. “I know why you're here....”
Eternal lowered his weapon and waited.
“I'll tell you anything you want to know, just let us go. We didn't do anything.”
Looking at the roughly twenty individuals huddled in the corner, Eternal said, “Okay.”
“Let's go somewhere private. No need to involve those who had nothing to do with this.”
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