Chapter 2: D.E.A.D Rising
Port Hephaestus, Atlas.
7:00 am
A young Faunus boy was running from a group of thugs dressed in White Fang uniforms in the middle of the warehouse district of the city of Port Hephaestus, the largest trading hub in all of Atlas. But it was also known to be a massive hideout for a White Fang training center, in which the young kid fled after finding out what is required if you want to complete your training. Since it was early in the morning, nobody was going to be out and about, allowing the chase to go unnoticed. But it wasn't unnoticed as the light-armored figure was following them from the sidelines...
" COME BACK HERE, KID!" The White Fang Lieutenant said.
" No, I will never be one of you!" The kid screamed.
The kid poorly chose to run into an alleyway, where he was cornered by the White Fang soldiers, and they approached them in hopes of dragging him back to the training center, until someone whistling was heard behind them...
" Oh, am I interrupting something?" The boy said.
" Yeah, you kind of are." One soldier said.
" Really, doesn't look like much is going on." The boy remarked.
" We're trying to be nice and take this kid home to his mommy and daddy." The Lieutenant said.
" Really, why aren't you using your manners?" The boy asked.
" What?" The soldiers asked amongst themselves.
" This reminds of an old phrase..." The boy said as he picked up a rock.
" Oh, really now?" The lieutenant said as he rested his hand on his gun.
" Yes, it was "manners maketh man." Do you know what that means?" The boy said, tossing the rock up and down.
" Huh?" The soldiers said.
" You don't know what that means?" The boy said. " Then let us give you a lesson." He added, whipping the rock at the Lieutenant, knocking him out.
Three other kids sprang from the shadows, brandishing weapons and knocking out the soldiers in a violent manner. The whistling boy, 18-yr-old Donnic, approached the young Faunus and picked him after the soldiers had knocked him down.
" Class dismissed." He said, as he picked up the kid.
" You're lucky your parents hired us to find you." Another boy said.
" Really?" The Boy said.
" Yeah, they're really worried for you." The girl, Andrea, said.
" What would the White Fang want with a kid like you?" The muscular kid, Desmond said.
" They forced me into training in order to become one of them." The boy explained.
" They've become that desperate ever since that Domino kid in Vale crippled their numbers." The other boy, Evan, said.
" Okay, let's get you home kid." Donnic said.
They took the boy back to his parents, in which they received their pay and a free breakfast as a reward by Eli's (the boy) parents. While the rest of his team enjoyed the meal, Donnic was pulled to the side by Eli's father, Jacob, who had to talk to him about something...
" What did you want to talk to me about sir?" Donnic asked.
" I might have a personal job that I could use your help on." Jacob said.
" What is it?" Donnic asked.
" I've got this friend, I haven't heard from in days because of that assignment he took." Jacob explained.
" Assignment?" Donnic asked.
" He's an investigative journalist, and the assignment he took was to learn anything he could about that terrorist, Inquisitor." Jacob said.
" Learning the backstory of a maniac cannot usually end well." Donnic said.
" Anyway, He called me three days ago in a panic, saying that he found something big." Jacob said.
" Why was he panicking when he told you about that?" Donnic inquired.
" Because he said that somebody was coming to kill him after what he learned." Jacob said.
" So you want us to check up on him?" Donnic figured.
" Yes, he lives in Norris apartments, Room 139." Jacob explained.
" After breakfast, we'll head right over." Donnic responded.
" His name's Harold Roth, just so you know." Jacob said.
" Thank you." Donnic said before returning to the table.
After they polished off their meal, they headed to the Norris apartment complex which was located just on the edge of the city's Financial district. It was a large, 200 stories high building with granite columns at the front entrance. The four kids entered the building, and asked about Harold Roth's room and were given a key and went up there to see why he went dark. They hopped aboard the elevator and Donnic explained the situation to them...
" Listen, we've got to find out what happened to this Roth guy for Eli's dad." Donnic said.
" So we're just checking up on some dude?" Andrea said.
" Boring." Evan remarked.
" Cut the Chatter." Desmond said.
" Anyway, he's an investigative reporter who was looking into Inquisitor, and may have gotten a little too close to the case." Donnic said.
" Why was he looking into a terrorist's tragic backstory?" Evan asked.
" Apparently, he was working alongside the police into trying to find out anything they could about the guy." Donnic explained.
" But you said he that he got too close..." Andrea pointed out.
" Yeah, thought somebody was coming to kill him." Donnic said.
" Looking into a terrorist's past usually ends up with someone dead." Desmond said.
" That's exactly the same thing I said to Eli's dad." Donnic said as the elevator stopped.
They got off the elevator and proceeded to Room 139, only to come across a sign that wasn't good...
" What the hell?" Andrea said.
" The freaking door's been smashed in?" Evan said.
" Must have forgot their key?" Donnic said sarcastically.
" Dude, shut up." Evan responded.
" Hey!" Donnic said.
They carefully entered the apartment, only to find out that it has been ransacked as items, tables, and chairs were wrecked or tossed around the room...
" Man, we missed some party." Donnic said.
" Got some blood over here." Evan said, pointing to the blood trail leading towards the bedroom.
" Why don't you and Desmond check the rooms down there for anything, your sis and I will look around out here." Donnic said.
" Okay." Evan said.
The duo that searched the living room and the kitchen didn't search for less than two minutes before the two boys had found something down the hall...
" Hey guys!" Desmond shouted.
" What's up?" They all said.
" The guy's computer in here has been trashed." Desmond said.
The trio entered the room to see the monitor smashed to a thousand pieces, and the CPU torn apart with it's hard drive stolen from it. Andrea looked down the hall, only to find something that scared her...
"GUYS!" Andrea screamed.
The boys immediately rushed into the bedroom to find Harold Roth's dead body, taped and tied to a chair, drenched in blood and covered in injuries...
" I'm really getting tired of being right." Donnic said.
" Sadly, we all agree." Andrea said.
Desmond walked around his body, surveying the damage done to the 50-yr-old investigative reporter. He eventually turned to his teammates after he was done...
" He was interrogated." Desmond said.
" What?" Donnic asked.
" Look at the way he's restrained and beat, the majority of his injuries came from a struggle with his attacker, but the bruises on his upper torso mean he was beat violently, and the form used is always used in interrogation practices." Desmond explained.
" How do you know all this stuff?" Evan asked.
" My dad was once a prison guard at Port Odysseus, before he retired to open a dust shop." Desmond explained.
" Okay then." Donnic said.
Andrea took a step back, bumping into the dresser behind her and hearing something metallic behind it. With Donnic's help, they immediately found a wall safe hidden behind the dresser. After moving it Evan hacked it open, smirking over how easy the encryption on the electronic lock was to solve. The contents inside was a large manila envelope, with a hastily scrawled note attached to it, so Donnic opened it up and it said.
If you have found this, I am dead. Look to Whitehall to find Inquisitor
H.R
" Look to Whitehall to find Inquisitor?" Evan asked.
" He means the Whitehall Institute." Andrea said as she looked over the contents of the envelope.
" How do you know that?" Donnic asked.
" These documents are financial records for the place, looks like they were receiving vast sums of money from an unmarked source." Andrea said.
" So the institute's been doing shady deals with somebody?" Desmond said.
" Or, they were being paid to hold onto something." Evan said.
" Wow, you two are just full of bright ideas aren't ya." Donnic said.
" Shut up, the other documents are shipping logs, and they've sent out 13 different shipments of unknown cargo to an island just west of the mainland." Evan said.
" Think we should check it out?" Andrea asked.
" Sure, we could all benefit from some medical science learning." Donnic said.
They exited the apartment, taking the documents with them, without knowing Scythe was camouflaged in the room and heard everything they said. She immediately pulled out her communicator and contacted her superiors...
" What is it?" The voice on the other end said.
" Operations at the institute have been compromised." Scythe said.
" Shit, find the problem and deal with it, I'll send a detachment with Korvac to support." Inquisitor said.
" Yes sir." Scythe said before camouflaging again.
This chapter ends with Team D.E.A.D finding someone actually dead, and discovering a research institute possibly being in league with Inquisitor. But their discovery has also been learned by Scythe, who begins to tail the kids to the location. Team D.E.A.D is the OC team created by Bluespartan107, and they are about to learn the dangerous secrets that Inquisitor has been trying to prevent falling to unknowing hands. The Next chapter surround their time at the institute, and they meet the devil himself when one of them investigates a place called "The Nursery"...
WAIT AND SEE.