Darkness filled the surroundings of Aiden; there was no sound or light, simply falling into the abyss. There was peace, there was silence, there was…no evil that was bothering his fragile mind. Like an innocent child embraced by his mother, soothing after a nightmare. The peace he sought was here, here in oblivion,was the rest of the living.
Cold water was thrown on Aiden's face, waking him up immediately. As it wasn't seen as a threat, the barrier hadn't activated. The one who threw the water was a young-looking kid. Even though he looked young, he saw the badge that the kid wore; he wore the badge of a station sergeant. "Your name?" A more than usual annoyed voice came out of him.
"Station Sergeant Lupner Monet would be my name, Chief Inspector Fate." He gave him an uplifting smile and stretched his hand out to help him stand up. Aiden refused the offer and pushed himself up using the seats beside him. He had a quiet, ringing sound in his head, but ignored it at the moment. "What did I miss? The subject had knocked me out with a cigarette package. He looked around for his coat, not finding it. Lupner coughed, getting Aiden's attention.
"The package was taken as we have found a high dosage of fentanyl in the cigarette; it is a miracle that we found not much damage in your body after inhaling such large amounts of it." Lupner laughed, seemingly finding it funny. The officers who were waiting outside the room didn't even look at their superior, whose faces showed how embarrassed they felt having such a superior over them.
"THOSE DAMN BASTARDS," he then shouted suddenly. He let out a breath, looking up to the ceiling before turning back to Aiden. "Let me inform you, then, while we leave the train, you can see what you have missed," He smiled at him. Aiden was slowly fully awake, and his nose was picking up the smell of blood. Outside the room, it became already clear what had happened while he was unconscious.
They walked through the carriers, blood all around, with a few pieces having not been cleaned up yet. "As you can see, they made quite the mess before escaping us; we couldn't catch them. They were quite nimble, but also were some talented, dirty-blooded kids. His ears perked up hearing that.
"They were half-bloods?" The boy seemed like a normal human, and the girl resembled too much of a kitsune to have been a half-blood. "I didn't see that even…" He mumbled to himself as he clenched his hand; his pride was hurt that he couldn't tell that apart.
He sees how he clenched his hand. "Don't be so mad about it. They were more of the purer side, as the cult here is causing us quite the trouble." Lupner's mentioning of the cult made Aiden feel less down. "The abandoned blood one?" he asked to clarify.
Lupner nodded. "It seems you came prepared beforehand, chief inspector? If it isn't confidential, are you perhaps on a mission at the moment regarding the cult?" It showed that he was curious and that he wasn't told the reason why he came.
>>Really, they are doing nothing anymore, do they?<< He sighed and gave a nod to Lupner as they walked out of the train. The reporters were already there, but not as many as there are in Vienna. Even though they were reporters, they seemed less greedy for a headline; they were ambitious, but there was also admiration for the officers. Lupner waved to the reporters, giving a celebrity smile to them. Flawless skin that had no scars or even the tiniest fault. >>Nice to reporters or his face shows at least, it is weird how there are so few reporters too<< Aiden found the situation strange to say the least.
"Don't make it obvious," Another officer said, whispering in Aiden's ear. He had his police cap down, hiding his face, but his voice was slightly high, still masculine. "To please the lower class, we have to act like figures that they can trust. Holding rational people is easier than those who act on a more logical basis. If they saw how the system is broken, wouldn't they try to fight against it?"
It made sense even if the situation was odd, nonetheless. "Why are you even so close to me?" He turned to try to look underneath the mask of the officer, but he couldn't see beneath the hat, as if it was being pulled down the more he tried to see beneath it. "Just a slave of the government, nothing more." Even if he couldn't see the face, he could see the mouth of the man and the way he grinned with shark-like teeth. "It is quite rude to peek underneath someone's mask, don't you know? Ah, right, I'm sure that isn't a thing in the capital, right?" he cheekily said.
They walked through the reporters, Lupner keeping his smile and assuring the reporters that they already have a profile of the suspects. "We will try solving it as fast as possible to the best of our capabilities," he tells the reporters as he turns his back to face Aiden. "We even have the chief inspector Aiden Fate from the capital himself, having been sent to assist us with the rampant increase of crime," he proudly announced. All attention was on him, their eyes wanting to grab the information out of Aiden, but none dared to.
They were more anxious and scared. The fear in their eyes at hearing an officer from the capital came. >>How pathetic<< His eyes reflected his thoughts as the reporters started to cover in fear, the instinctive human nature to sense the danger of a predator was activated. "Chief inspector," Lupner said in a rather harsh tone, calling out his superior and getting his attention.
"I can understand if you dislike reporters, but it is important not to scare them, as they are the ones who educate the public and show how we put effort into society." A simple advice from the outside, but a warning from a lackey to their senior. "Sure," A simple agreement and a nod. They walked past the reporters and out of the München station. Police cars stood out there, all of them being older models from a couple of years ago.
They stepped into the car, which was small and crammed. The seats were uncomfortable and worn out. The color started to fade with scratches all around the interior. >>What a crappy car.<< He didn't hide his expression and how he disliked it; Lupner and his eyes met. "Not to your liking?" He asked in ignorance.
"Could be better." A short answer to cut the conversation down. "Let us get to the main point. Tell me what you all know about the cult, as I was ordered to find the culprit in a specific murder case." He looked outside the city, which looked better than the police cars. "Don't leave a single thing out," in an authoritarian manner, he ordered Lupner. He stared at the mirror of the car as he waited for an answer.
Lupner started to drive the car, and he was silent as he stared ahead on the road. The radio of the car was on, with commands and information being constantly said aloud to update all officers. He closed the radio; the noises were too loud, and who knows who might try to listen to their conversation.
"If you say so, chief, I follow your command." The tone shifts to a more serious and neutral voice. Driving around, his eyes were on the street, and he gave the information, "Currently, we have our eyes on that group as they are located on the Kaufingerstrasse in the slum part of it. It being in the slums does make us not able to accurately know what they do, as we cannot send any of our officers into there, we stand out too much no matter what but for the past weeks they stayed there with there having been no unusual activities" a turn to the corner was made, going into the darker area of the city.
"How long have they been here in München then? My information that I gained is limited, and having gotten a fraction a week ago, only. As Takimi Rimerd has personally commissioned me to deal with them," he mentioned in the end. Telling the name of the client was easier to make fellow officers comply. As much as he was the superior of Lupner, München, like other states of Austria, had a certain degree of autonomy, while being tied to the Austrian government; each state had its mayor who reported back to the leaders of Austria.
"Don't even think about lying to me." His eyes seemed different as his body tensed. "I want to deal with it quickly, and I won't tolerate any lies told to me, and I will know when you tell a lie." Pressure was always needed; superiority isn't taught by kindness; instead, it is taught by domination. "It has been 4 months already, chief." Lupner felt the pressure; he had taken the chief officer on the light shoulder, and he was taken out so fast, even if he survived it, he seemed incompetent, but that pressure was something else.
"In those 4 months, we didn't see anything suspicious on them, even if you threaten me this way, chief." his hand grip on the wheel became tighter; he was being evaluated, or that's how it felt at least. He didn't dare to look at the car window to see the expression that Aiden made as the way his eyes gazed upon his back; he could tell it would be a stern and cold expression that would cut his throat when the opportunity was given.
"Pah, incompetent, if that was true, then how is it possible that they are at the capital!" he slammed his hand on the seat, strong enough that it still made a loud sound inside the car. Lupner flinched at the sound of the punch, with surprise coming afterwards. That was some worrying news to get. How was that possible? "We did watch over them, Chief, please believe me! We never saw anything suspicious happen, so we do not know how they came to get to the capital." Lupner tried to cover it quickly; nothing good would come out if a complaint had been made to the headquarters.
"Oh, really? That kitsune girl seemed to have gotten onto the train quite easily, as I had seen her at the train station when I boarded it." Aiden showed impatience and anger in his voice as Lupner tried to find more and more excuses. "Sergeant Monet, if you keep showing incompetence, I believe I will have to call forth disciplinary action, as we do not hand over money to states like yours to simply fool around or to help the civilians."
There would then be a hard silence between the two. They would finally arrive at the police station. "You stay here, I will gather the needed information myself," he commanded the sergeant as he left the car. When Aiden left the car, the expression on Lupner's face changed, showing no more fear but a cold, emotionless state.
Aiden entered the station and looked around. No one had a single emotion on their face as they were focused on their work and not even talking with one another. He walked to an officer, grabbing him by his arm. "Lead me to the record room of yours," he commanded the officer, whose expression showed nothing till he saw the rank of Aiden. From no expression to shock, as he quickly nodded to lead Aiden to the record room, a mandatory place all police stations have to hold.
The one who brought him seemed quite new, with black hair that was disproportionally cut as the front was long enough to cover the eyes of the young officer. Eyes glanced towards Aiden before tucking their heads down when the rank was seen. "Nothing to see but a superior that came." That was likely the thought they all had. Like ants that were all tasked with something specific, they performed it to the best of their capability so the hive continues to function.
When he was brought to the record room of the station, dust had filled it with the webs of spiders at every corner and box where files were stored. >>Not even keeping basic protocol<< Aiden thought, but decided not to be angry as the fellow was at least fast when he brought him here. "Which section covers the cult that had been here for the past 4 months? Show them to me," he ordered the young officer, who acted swiftly. Practically running through he dust and coughing as it entered his lungs, he fidgeted around to find and see where they should be. He jumped to grab the box but fell, with the box hitting his head and the papers getting scattered around because of it.
Was it embarrassment that Aiden felt seeing the incompetence of a fellow officer, or was it anger with how foolish one would have to be to fall from such a thing?
"Stand up." Either way, it wouldn't matter. "Pick the papers up and follow behind me as you seem useful, even if sloppy." his eyes wouldn't lie to him. As sloppy and inexperienced as the kid seemed to be, the muscles he had showed that he had a good foundation. He looked like a human, as he didn't have any features that revealed half-bloodness about him.
"Understood, chief!" he would shout aloud as he picked the papers up quickly and put them in the box that he carried after Aiden. The young officer was in panic as he ran after Aiden. They went past other officers, even district officers, but Aiden pushed them off, not caring to even acknowledge their greetings towards him. He stood at the lunch counter of the station and grabbed the box from the young officer and put it on the counter. He grabbed a few files and handed them over to the young officer. "Read them through and immediately tell me if there is anything noteworthy in them."
Overwhelmed, but nodded to the command of his superior. He grabbed them, shakingly, and read them through. It was a weird sight, to say the least. A chief inspector and a fresh cadet are working together at the moment, just because of the whimsical will of the superior. It stood out; others would whisper as they looked at the duo. It was obvious how Aiden had forced the young officer to work with him, as he was constantly making an uncomfortable face.
>>Such useless things, they took all forms of information of the group that only cluttered the paper up. They didn't even seem to have bothered to do an in-depth research on the individual that they assumed was a part of that cult<< He clicked his tongue in annoyance, making the officers nearby all flinch. He noticed their flinch. "If all of you are wasting energy to see my reaction, then why don't you all come and help me?" It seemed like a normal offer, but was more of a threat that they should either keep working while ignoring him, or just come and help him if they are on guard so much.
Aiden was reading the files fast through, skimming and only looking at words that were important, but after the 4th file, he simply let out a sigh. He took a look at the time. It was only 4 pm, but the sky was bright as ever. The sun was out but covered by the reddish orange sky, making it hard to distinguish what was the sky and what was the actual sun. It was like the sky was bleeding, and any moment it would fall to crush humanity.
Or that's at least a small fantasy of Aiden as he has the slight hope that he can die at least without leaving anything from his body, so it cannot be used by a crazy researcher that the higher-ups got just to try and clone him or whatever they might do.
"How admirable that you immediately go to work just after arriving, even when you were out so cold." A large officer would come, from the voice, Aiden could tell it was the same one on the train who had whispered in his ear.
"How about I help you instead, chief?" Most of his face is covered by the cap his but his mouth is visible, especially his smile that exposes his shark-like teeth.