This took more time than I am willing to admit and I apologize for that
Chaotix belong to Sega Sonic Team (c)
Everyone else is my own possesion- Haze the Chameleon (c)
The detective trio stood across the street to a two storey beachside home, a red sports car parked in the driveway. Vector recalled the document mentioning a red sports car, and instantly knew that this was the right place. The home was currently occupied by a large number of humans and mobians alike, along with loud music heard clearly from a distance outside the home. As if there were a party being held. The crocodile made a few obscure hand gestures to his companions, leading Charmy the Bee to put on a serious face and nod, but forced Espio the Chameleon to speak up.
"What are you doing?" The chameleon asked his crocodilian boss, doing his best to mimic those very hand movements. "Why all this? What's all this about?"
"Is it a crime to try to add some secrecy and excitement to our little outing?" Vector responded with another question.
Espio gave his rebuttal by simplty crossing his arms and giving his boss a disaproving face, one that unwillingly made Vector apologize and try again to elaborate his plan on catching the thief and the armor.
"I'll go in through the door, I'm about the same age as these rambuctious whippersnappers so I should blend in pretty easily. Espio, you and Charmy will break in through seperate windows upstairs and search the house for the suit of armor. We'll meet up out here in a half hour, if you find the suit of armor, leave it, and tell me where it is. It might be too heavy for you to carry out without making a noise." he explained, pointing to his allies.
"What if we get caught? What's out alibi?" the bee interjected, his voice taking a nervous tone.
"It's a house full of partying people, I doubt anyone will even care about you flying around." Vector answered, lifting the nervousness from the bee's face. "But in the case that you do get caught, just act like you're a realy short grown up, they won't care. And As for you Espio, same story."
Charmy liked this plan, it would allow him to show off his inner 'sassy grown up', without being reprimanded or punished. He pulled his flight goggles over his eyes and crossed his arms, a frown spread over his face. As for Espio, he kept his arms crossed, as the two walked around the house, searching for a window to use as a nentrance. As for Vector, he checked his headphones and his gold chain, before swaggering into the home's large living room, filled with various creatures of various size and colors, blasting loud dance music form a set of speak, sure to be the cause of many police calls in the near future. The croc picked up a red cup by the door, filled with a dark yellow liquid and quickly established his sense of belonging by high fiving a human holding a similar cup.
Outside, a reptilian cycler arrived at the end of the home's driveway, straightening his tie and hopping off his bike. Reaching into his white jacket, he withdrew a large envelope, carefully examining them. The address on one of the documents matched the one on the house a few yards before the chameleon. He folded the papers and placed them in a pocket inside his white jacket, before walking towards the house, his bike carelessly dropped on the front lawn. Once at the front door, Haze too a deep breath, before walking in and immediatly being met with laughs and insults.
"Discotech is down the street, dweeb." shouted one of the party goers.
"The 80's called, they don't want their outfit back." spouted another, both outbursts leading to a parade of laughter.
Haze ignored these insults and made his way through the party-goers, turning down a red cup of liquids, and remaining focused on who he was looking for. Venturing away from the speakers, he approached an evergreen gecko conversating with a white mouse, both sporting black t-shirts and shorts with the word 'League' written in white as if it were spray painted on. Haze tried asking if they knew a hedgehog by the name of Mando Coleridge, but the loud music lead his words to fall on deaf ears. Haze repeated the question, only louder this time, and this attempt would lead him to some answers.
"Upstairs, behind the last door on the left. He wanted to show some floosy something he picked up the other day." The mouse answered, pointing to a staircase previously overlooked by the chameleon.
"It must be pretty great if he chooses to show some skirt thus thing over partying like a rock star." The gecko added, raising a hand with the pinkie and index finger extended.
He thanked the two, and under his breath mocked their manner of speaking, then made for the staircase, gripping the handrail and slowly ascending, unaware of whatever Mando was showing his guest. It may have been a gun or a machete, although it was just as possible that he had a collection of fancy hats and neckties. Either way, Haze did not want to take a chance, he slowly ascended the staircase, trying his best to drown out the absurdly loud music below.
Atop the stairs, the two younger detectives were prepared to search the rooms on the second floor's narrow corridor, hoping to find a clue of some kind to where the large prop could be found. Their search needn't take long, for the short number of rooms lead Charmy and Espio to find precisely what they were looking for. Behind the door at the end of the hall, Charmy and Espio found a bathroom that seemed to be too large to fit in the house they currently occupied. With a single window spreading from wall to wall, mere inches above three seperate sinks, each surrounded by an ensemble of toiletries, ranging from hair products to shaving cream. At the center of the large bathroom was an ordinary looking bathtub, seeming well out of place. More out of place however, was a suit of armor, standing before the mirror, strumming a guitar. Espio concluded that this was the thief Mando Coleridge, the thief the Chaotix was set after in search of the armor. However that may have been innacurate, as the being wearing the golden suit of armor had their face covered by the painted helmet. The armored one stopped his strumming when he spotted two unfamiliar images in his mirror, reflections of strangers standing at the door. Lifting the helmet's visor, white fur and emerald eyes peeked out.
"Who are you? Get the hell out of my house!" Mando Coleridge shouted, his voice sounding strange as it left echos in the helmet.
"We're detectives, and you stole that suit of armor. We're here to take it back, and take you to the proper authorities. Now you can hand it over, bit by bit, or we can take you away ourselves." Espio started, approaching the hedgehog as Charmy entered the room, shutting the door behind him. "Any other questions?"
Haze reached the top of the stairs, and looked down the hall. According to the directions he had recieved, the target should be behind the last door on the left. Approaching the door slowly, with one hand on his sword, his heartbeat increasing and his mind imagining the the worst possible case scenario. With one final gulp, theoddly dressed chameleon kicked the door open, to find, not a hedgehog in a business suit, but a female cyan weasel of some sort, sitting on the large bed in the middle of the room, sporting the same ensemble as the gecko and mouse downstairs. She seemed afraid when Haze kicked the door open, but her fear soon turned to laughter.
"What is so funny? Nevermind, I don't care, where's Mando Coleridge? Is he here?" Haze asked, hardly giving the weasel time to respond.
"Yeah, he left the room for a moment. He wanted to show me this cool set of armor he picked up from a friend." She started between her fits of laughter. "Maybe he could give you some fashion tips. Honestly, where did you dig up that ridiculous get-up? A museum?"
"Oh, like you're so original. I've seen quite a number of animals downstairs wearing the exact same thing you are." Haze said, fiddling with his tie. "You could use a touch of class in your wardrobe madam."
"Uh, first of all, this outfit is the latest from the 'League' clothing line. One of Mando's 'rents runs it, whole the other is a musician. He's mad rich, and I'm hoping to have him as my sugar-daddy." The weasel went on, interlacing her fingers and placing them under her chin.
Haze placed a hand to his forehead, the way kids these days spoke was a real train wreck, their plans weren't such winners either. Nevertheless, he knew that his target was in the house, and that only meant that he was getting close to completing his job and getting paid. Looking around the room, he noticed quite a few guitars, all with the word 'league' written in one way or another. One had he word etched in the wood, while another had it drawn with a marker. The chameleon shook his head, looking out to a spot wherein one guitar was missing and left the room, shutting the door as to not hear the weasel speak anymore.
Okay, I promise the next chapter will be out far sooner than last time.
Until then, I bid thee adieu