"Have a fun chat, Mr. Law?" Jackie asked, teasing him.
"You'll be staying put when things commence," declared Fortier, despite the chief's words.
Unresponsive to the commander, Jackie's focus sharpened as she adjusted the binoculars. Her attention was drawn to an unexpected sight.
A tourist boat? she thought to herself.
Having already confirmed the identification of the Dread Hunters, she zoomed in, taken aback as she spotted Noir crouched on the third story of the boat. Her gaze fixed on him as he straightened up, reaching beneath the lower part of his shirt and pulling something from his pants. Curiosity gnawed at Jackie's mind as she attempted to anticipate his next move.
"Did you hear me, Ms. O'Hara?" Fortier asked, unable to cut through her concentration.
Gripping his axe in hand, Noir descended to the second story of the boat.
Without hesitation, Jackie pushed the binoculars back to Fortier.
"We have to get in there now, before we have casualties on our hands," she commanded, her demeanor becoming increasingly worried.
"What? What are you talking about?" Fortier asked, taking a look through the binoculars. Looking further than before, he saw the boat, and he saw Noir. "A child?"
Jackie hastily approached the officer in charge of driving their patrol boat, her voice brimming with anxiousness. "You need to get this thing moving, now!"
"My apologies, Ms. O'Hara, but I only take orders from Commander Fortier."
"There is a boy on that boat! Would you let a child die because your commander didn't issue an order to save them?"
"I'm sorry, Ms. O'Hara. I can't move without the commander's order."
Jackie grabbed the officer by his bulletproof vest. "How about we see how quickly he can order someone to save you?" she said, as she began reaching for the firearm beneath her jacket.
"Never mind that, Officer Daniels; this time, do as she says."
Fortier's order was a smug one. He felt pride knowing his men saw his command as something so vital.
"On it, Commander!" Daniels replied nervously, sweat beading on his forehead as Jackie locked eyes with him.
Flipping on the patrol boat's searchlights, the darkness divided. Throttling the boat, Officer Daniels slammed the motor shift forward, sending the boat zooming off. The vessel sliced through the water, leaving ripples in its wake as it closed in on its destination along the river. The loud engine and lights gained both the Dread Hunters and Noir's attention, bringing both parties to a halt.
Focusing the searchlights on both parties, Commander Fortier took hold of the microphone connected to the boat's Public Announcement System and addressed all three individuals.
"The three of you, freeze! This is the Crescent Parish Police Department. Lower your weapons and raise your hands above your head."
Neil's eyes widened in panic as he realized they were being pursued by the police. "Oh no, it's the cops!"
Theo, on the other hand, remained composed and quickly assessed the situation, taking in the voice from the patrol boat. "Three?" he repeated to himself in a low tone, questioning the words he had heard.
Looking up to where the second light was shining, he saw Noir standing on the railing of the second story with his axe in hand.
A kid? What's a kid doing here? Did we come to the wrong location? Unless…
"Aaah, I get it," Theo remarked.
A realization dawned on him based on what the Marketeer had said before he left. Without a second thought, Theo dropped his lantern in the mud and swung the shotgun on his back into his hands, firing a slug round that just barely grazed Noir's hair.
Noir had never seen anything attack so fast in his life, especially from that far away and without so much as a tell. Even the beasts he fought had some sort of muscle contraction before propelling parts of themselves forward. But this? This was instant.
What was that? How did he attack me from that far without even moving? Noir thought to himself, keeping his eyes locked on Theo.
"Well, would you look at that, Neil? He didn't even flinch. Boy, you've got more grit than most men I know. Either that or you're just too slow in the head to know any better."
Taking the boat's microphone in hand once again, Commander Fortier began barking orders. "I repeat, this is the Crescent Parish Police Department. Cease fire and lower your weapons, or we will be forced to take lethal action."
Unyielding to his command, Neil turned towards the patrol boat. Pulling a revolver from his holster, he aimed it at those aboard and began firing off rounds.
"Good job, Neil. You hold them off while I grab our mark," Theo instructed, loading another shell into his shotgun as he separated from Neil and ascended a ladder that led to the lowest deck of the boat.
"Officer Braun, lay down suppressive fire," ordered Fortier.
"Yes, sir!"
Unzipping a duffel bag, Officer Braun pulled out a long-range bolt-action rifle. Propping his gun on the front end of the boat, he steadied his aim.
"Want me to put him down, Commander?"
"No. I'd hate to waste a good body bag on one of these so-called Dread Hunters. Just get him to take cover and stop firing."
"Got it," Braun replied as he loaded a stripper clip into the top of his gun and began releasing rounds at an astonishing rate.
Each round fired either zipped by Neil's head or landed near his feet. A total of seven shots were fired before Officer Braun had to load in another clip. During that ceasefire, Neil took the chance to take cover behind a tree.
The boat dug up ground as it made landfall, and the squad sprang forth, surrounding Neil as they all aimed their guns at his hiding spot.
"We have you surrounded. Come out," ordered Commander Fortier.
After a few seconds had passed, Commander Fortier slowly approached the tree, the flashlight clipped to his chest and the searchlights lighting his way. Making his way around the tree, he remained calm and ready to act, but as he got to the other side, to his surprise, no one was there.