It was bloody red, alright. Police marked the whole park closed, a lot of units as per before, but no progress. A lot of people were around, discussing among each other, some few with what officers wouldn’t mind indulging in the simple fact that…they haven’t found anything yet for 2 hours besides blood, a body, and litter. Kade stops his car by an available spot on the side of the road, shutting the car off as he is exiting it, closing the door behind before checking himself out in the side view mirror, making sure he looks as good as he set himself up to be in his room, and of course, he was always looking as good as he set himself up to be. That’s all the confidence he needed. He took a deep breath before beginning to walk over to the entrance, already pulling out his badge as he got there. A police officer stops him, but he simply shows his badge as they nod, letting him through as he goes over the tape line, entering the park as more whispers go on around him, but he simply ignores them. People must be talking about how good and youthful he looks, for sure!..But no one was.
Kade arrives at a different set of police tapes, blue this time, meaning the scene of the crime. And he sees them already. People in full white contamination suits and white disposable face masks investigate the scene, a headless korpse covered up by a large white cloth as a more menacing looking officer walks up to him by the side. “Now who’s this wonder boy on the scene of the crime but the boy of one Celeste Steel Vuur. Kade Wonder, is it?” he asked. He was a tall man, much taller than Kade, with brown skin and long white dreadlocks. Whether they were dyed or stressed, Kade couldn’t tell, as he does a small bow. “A pleasure to meet you, but who am I meeting before me anyways?” he asks as the man chuckles.
“Chief of Police, Imamu Dempster, your mother has quite the reputation with what she’s done, and I can only hope you’ll be able to do the same. Her suggestions are facts, you’ve been doing only minor and insignificant crimes, correct?”
“Yes sir, but fear not, I have a keen eye for all of these things and will not disappoint my mother’s legacy~” he said with such confidence as Imamu nodded with a smile. "Then here's your first task already, Wonder Boy. The hell happened here?" he asked, a tone more serious as Kade shrugs, looking at what he could see from where he stood. "Besides a park full of officers, a tall menacing man and a headless korpse…not much yet" he said, hands in pockets as he began to wander around the park for anything, Imamu following for the time being. "So. Anything about our korpse?"
"Korpses"
"There were more?"
"From what we heard of what family members, co-workers, and the such we could ask…all of them had said the same thing." Imamu calls over one of the officers as he asks for something, being handed over a bottle of alcohol in a plastic bag. "They went out drinking. Two buddies, knew each other since middle school. Ethan Blackheart, and Mark Whitelace. Ethan was a bartender at Blue Rules in Blue Ring Avenue, and Mark was a nurse in one of the hospitals of Pouring Lead Avenue. No suspects or witnesses though. Not a single lead either. Just 1 korpse and a bunch of drunkenly littered bottles. Even what few cameras that might have seen even glimpses of the park in other buildings have nothing. A few seconds of the men chasing each other as if seeming to play tag, and then nothingness, before it comes back to what we see now. What is strange as well is that people nearby have all been saying the same thing. That it was storming badly last night, but you know better about that, don't you?" he said as Kade nodded, sighing.
"Of course…I was up last night, dinner with my mom at some place, usual activity, but not a droplet of water has ever fallen from the clouds" he said as Imamu chuckled a bit. "Late night dinner as well, huh? Well, then it should mean there was no lightning to shoot down. But all of them have heard or seen the same thing. Lightning, a single bolt."
"Now that…is certainly making it our 2nd Mystery Murder this month, isn't it?"
"Seems like someone snoops around" Imamu comments as he hands the plastic bag back to the officer.
"And who do you think helps herself to indulge in all of them?"
The two continue to talk, exchanging information before Imamu's radio goes off, a serious and stern, yet soft, voice spoke through. "Chief Imamu, we need you at Frostbike Park. We found the korpse of Mark Whitelace, get here now with some of your officers. Over." she said as Imamu immediately responded. "I hear you, bringing some of my best, and a rookie, over and out" he said before putting away the radio, looking over at Kade. "Come on, my car's faster anyway" he said as he signals to some of his officers before he began to run over to the entrance to his police car, Kade followed behind, if not just barely, as both jump over the police tapes with style (for the hell of it) before getting into the vehicle, immediately driving over to the park as others followed.
And it didn't take too long, it was always a bit more quiet when these Mystery Murders happen, so they got to the park as the two hop out, approaching the park, seeing some few other officers from a different branch taping off the whole park as the two approach one, showing off their badges before hopping into the park, another officer lead them through the significantly lusher park before they found themselves dumb struck by the sight. It was a korpse by the lake, it was Mark's korpse, and everything was attached to him.
Well. Everything but the very top of his head, his brain completely missing as Kade looks away, a little squamish. "God…ew…ugh! Why the brain! That's my worst fear yet"
"Then don't lose it like him…by the gods, this is…this is the worst one yet"
"And not the one with the missing heart? Or eyes? Or…fucking…anything?"
"Never said any were better"
The usual began. More police arrive at the scene, specialists come in to examine and lockdown the area as Kade was handed a pair of gloves. “Look around, kid. Something must be around here, footprints, items, anything” he said as Kade did a small salute, putting on those clean disposable blue gloves as he began his search with the others. Minutes passed by, and then almost an hour later, the whole park almost turned upside down, especially with how much nature there already was. Kade was tired quickly already as he sat down on the grass, the other officers kept going without stopping as Kade was left to his own devices, looking up past the trees to the sun as it shone from the east. It’s only been an hour or so, but this was tiring work already for him as he got back up. “Come on, Kade. What would mom say if she caught me slacking? Actually, not a good question, she’d slack with me, what am I saying” he chuckles to himself before a bright light catches his eye. Getting up, he quickly got to it, a shadow passed by quickly as he walked to the light, quickly getting his pistol out. “Hey! Police! Stop right there!” he shouted as professionally as he could. The shadow kept zipping by, impossibly fast too, as Kade tried to keep his eyes on it, but soon he would get dizzy as he trips onto his ass. “Sheiße…” he got back up but the shadow was gone. Though the light was there as he walked over, keeping his pistol ready as he finally spotted what was shining it.
“What…is this doing here?”
It was a security camera, and a strange looking one at that. Looks like it was ripped off a wall forcefully, blood wets the lens as he picks it up, putting his pistol away into his pocket. “I should really get those holsters. But…the hell?” He examines it at first. Gears protruded from slits on it as the lens blinked slowly, a bright light coming from a small hole on the front.
“Imamu!”
He shouted out before now just spotting something else that was occupied with the security camera. An old looking cassette tape, similarly coated, but with oil.
He can hear the large officer approaching as he picks it up, looking back to try and spot the chief of police, only to find something else…where was he now? Old, rotting trees, barely standing sticks of bushes, and a black, starless night sky above him, with broken buildings and a large tower not so far.
“What the…” he couldn’t even give out a quip to keep himself composed as scraping metal and gears scream in the air. He turns around again, no camera or tape in hand, just a weird ‘gun’ and a red letter as he instinctively aims it towards…something. It was a hulking mass of metal and flesh, a machine that should not exist, a creature that should not live. Yet it does. It lives. It breathes. It is speaking his name, his life, but he could not for the life of him understand the wailing noise of tears and metal, the noise ringing in his ear like a Triangle put to his ear and BASHED by a hammer. It makes noise but it should not be making it in the first place. And god. The eyes. So many eyes, each and every one of them of a different color and size, and they are staring at Kade with a longing he would never comprehend as he drops the letter and gun, backing away, his composure getting shorter and shorter as it slowly approaches him. The tower rings. Ding. Ding. Ding. DING. It keeps calling for him, his name, why does it know his name!
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And then it went dark.
-
Her office bedroom was quiet. It was the same as her son, but there were more themes of space travel and steampunk, a personal choice of hers. A much bigger bed, and a much cleaner room. 3 cats slept on her bed as she worked away at her desk, the sound of a digital clock making an artificial ticking noise. She couldn’t bother getting a real one, it’d be too hard to clean, and a chore in general, and she has enough chores as is. She sighs as she places her pen down, putting the written paper away into a document before putting it away into a filing cabinet and getting up, looking over at a lone mirror, a long cloth sat beside it on a chair as she walked over to it, looking at herself. She was the same as Kade, or more like, Kade was the same as her. A red undershirt covered by a white fancy dress jacket. White dress pants to fit along with it, a red bowtie, and the same curly hair as his, but red as she sighed. Before then, she got a phone call as she looked at herself again. A melancholic face, no smile, or frown, just nothing as she takes a deep breath, like she was preparing herself, before a large, maniacal smile comes across her face. And then she answers.
“Yes, hello, this is Celestial Steel Vuur of Steel Rooks’ Agency, who do I have the pleasure of speaking to~?” she asks, a sweet and gentle voice, mixed with doses of pure eccentricness and joy as someone spoke back. “Yes, hello, I’m sure you already know who I am but I know you have a tendency to forget names, my friend. Imamu here, your…uh…son fell unconscious suddenly. He is completely fine, though, do not worry, but…are you sure he is fit for this kind of thing?” he said as Celeste sighs.
“Just take a look at him and TELL me he doesn’t fit the part best? Besides, he has been waiting for this opportunity forever now! All he’s done were missing person cases and petty crimes, and he has solved every one of them, dear. He…does have those unconscious moments a lot though, but never too dangerous. Just don’t put him on the frontline and he’ll be fine, just give him an hour to wake up…so, did he find anything? Especially about…anything strange?” she asks, a serious tone leaks through her voice.
“He did, ma’am. A camera and tape, both of dated technology, give my lab boys a bit and they’ll decipher them and hand them over to your agency once we get ourselves a copy of both”
“Oh, excellent! My boy is already finding evidence, so good of him~” she said excitedly as she can hear a chuckle on the other end. “You’ve always been proud of him, you know? You tell me everytime we work together about how amazing your son is, you doting mother" he said jokingly as Celeste let out a laugh. “Oh shush. If you could drive my son here, that would be appreciated, hope your boys are fast, time is of the essence~” she said.
“Hah, but of course, ma’am. Alright, I’ll be on the way then, I’ll carry him to his room, if you don’t mind. See you later” he said. “See you later as well~” Celeste answers back as Imamu hangs up. Her smile goes away as she sits back down. “Won’t this be exciting for him…hm…he needed it anyways. Solving cases with those whispers is just plain cheating, where’s the fun in that? Even if subconsciously…” she said to herself as she looked out an open window, seeing the cafe across the street. “I should get a cup, I’m tired already…hah, and it’s only the morning, shame, maybe I’ll just pretend to order for the whole office and keep it to myself” she giggles softly at the idea as she looks at her phone, dialing a number before calling the cafe next door, hearing a car park nearby, and then a minute later, heavy footsteps come from the hallway with the sound of a door opening.
-
A sudden jolt of energy as Kade sits up from his bed, heavy breathing as he immediately looks around. He was back in his office again, the digital clock next to him on the nightstand reading 10:34 as his bag on his desk, and with it his pistol and phone, as he sighs. Back in his office, huh? And from another dream…so many dreams, but this was the worst one yet as he clutches his head as he moves a bit to sit on the side of the bed, before hearing a soft giggle. He looked around, but only found his fluffy white cat, Hiss, who slept on his desk besides all the stuff, who meowed gently at him.
“But of course, for who else would be in my room…come here, kitty~!” he said as Hiss stood up, jumping right onto the bed as she sat down beside him. Kade would pet the white cat as he pulled out his phone, seeing a couple messages, all from a number he didn’t recognize as he read them to himself gently.
“Hello, this is Imamu, your mother gave me your phone number so I’ll tell you what you missed while in dreamland, wonder boy. Our lab boys are working as fast as they can to get whatever they can out of that ripped camera and tape, and you’ll be the first to get it once we get ourselves a copy. And please, keep yourself safe, nearly gave me a heart attack. I’d much rather not see how your mother reacts if…anything were to happen to you…” he nods slightly, sending a short text back.
“Ty, and ofc, sir” he whispered before putting his phone away, sighing as he kept patting Hiss before getting up. “Nothing to do but wait, I suppose” he said to himself, and then…like the devil knew, a knock on the door was heard as Kade turned around towards it, checking himself out first in the mirror. “A moment, please~!” he shouted as he nodded. “My little fall did not dirty me, at least” he said to himself before walking to the door, opening it up to see what would be the first of many miracles of this case yet:
A witness.
A woman stood before him. Long, possibly dyed red hair tied into a ponytail, tan skin, long sleeved gray shirt with a fire bird design on it, black sweatpants, black construction boots, and bright red eyes to match. Could be contact lenses as far as he could tell, but the world was full of oddities so maybe she does simply have red eyes, but the fact of the matter is clear. This woman holds answers, answers no one else could ever find but herself…and him. And it all started with a simple sentence.
“I saw what happened.” she said, in a neutral voice, he couldn’t tell her emotions so easily by face or voice, it was a bit bizarre but everyone has their secrets, he supposes as he nods.
“Come right in then, madam” he said with a smile, getting out the way as he lets her in before closing the door, walking to his desk and cleaning the table a tiny bit as he pulls out a chair from a corner of the room, putting it in front of the desk before sitting behind it. The woman would sit at the chair as she seemed to observe Kade a bit before continuing to speak.
“My name is not important but if you insist on pointless titles, you may refer to me as…Sugar. I saw exactly everything that happened that night, every detail, every person” she said, Kade contains his excitement as he nods, pulling out a notepad and a cute pink cat-based pen as he began to write.
“Then tell me! Time is of the essence!” he said, the excitement could not, in fact, be as contained as he hoped as she sighed, looking away coldly.
“Only under 1 condition”
“Condition? And what is that?”
Sugar looks right back at him, her stare shot through his head that he swore could feel a small migraine as she continued.
“You stop investigating this case. And move on”
“E-Excuse me?” that confused Kade greatly, what is the point of coming out here as a witness but not allow him to investigate? That’s kinda his whole job, his wish of his life, to solve something very big, something life changing…and she wants him to stop?
“I want you to stop this investigation. The police will eventually give up, and this will be another of many other mysteries. Unsolved. Dire dangers are ahead and I will not see it that a human from here be involved. That is my condition. Satiated curiosity for giving up the case.”
“And if I lie about stopping?”
“I’ll know” she immediately answered as he shrugged. “Then no thank you, dear~” he said as she sighs. A few details are already curious. The mention of the word ‘human’ is not one you hear someone say on a regular basis, if at all, in normal conversations.
“What if I tell the police if I follow true to the deal and you told me?” Kade continues as Sugar shakes her head.
“They won’t believe you. No one would. Only you and I would know and believe, Kade” she said seriously, her stare still giving him a small migraine-like feeling as he sighs.
She was really hard for him to read, but one thing was clear: She wasn’t lying at all. A small skill he’s picked up from his mother, discerning truths and lies, but since she has arrived, everything she had said was as pure as light. What did she know that he didn’t? What did she see that is unbelievable to anyone? And…who is she? And how did she know his name? I mean, sure, being the son of Celeste Vuur is damning enough, but everyone always calls him Wonder Boy. He talks a lot, but never introduces himself to many. He is as much of a stranger as a stranger could get. But he ignores it, the possibilities are always there, not until he makes it big.
“Will these murders ever stop?” he asks as she sighs.
“Pointless questions but no, not until the threat is eliminated, now answer my deal one more time, will you give up the case if I satiate your curiosity?” she asks one more time as Kade stands up. “Not until it’s solved, I will track this case to its very core. Now if you don’t have something useful to say to me, I appreciate you leaving" Kade said, a bit of seriousness like his mother, but he never liked to be serious, it always reminded him of his…
Before he could finish that thought, Sugar gets up, an annoyed sigh as she turns around. “Destined lives will always go forward, doesn’t it…The Wrong Man…at the right time…but not yet the right place…I’ve changed my mind. What I am about to tell you is the truth. I will not lie. It is only if you want to believe. But I want to ask one more time, for the sake of the rule of 3…are you willing to risk your life over and over again for this case? It’s bigger than you had thought of it to be…” she said, looking over her shoulder as Kade immediately nods.
“I became a detective like my mother and her mother before her. It’s dangerous for a kind soul like me to wander around, helping everybody. But I've accepted that possibility way before I even earned the title. I am as ready as the gods would want me to be, whoever they are if there are any” he said as she nodded, turning back around.
“Then so be it…I’ll tell you what I saw last night…”