Chapter 9

STATION SQUARE
MAY 26th, 3250
8:00 AM

Shadow was assigned a case as soon as he arrived. As for Alexis… he rented a car in Station Square so that he could go around the city without any problem. Shadow was kind enough to hand him the friend room. Alexis was really trying his best not to help Shadow. Besides, Alexis was there now, so Shadow no more needed the help of Janet to take care of the house. And there was someone home when Matt was back from school.

Shadow arrived on the crime scene. On the radio, the host was ranting again about the poor condition of Four-Lakes hulo teams. The body of the victim was hidden under a cloth. A Station Square cop saw Shadow arriving, and waved his hand to tell him to come here.

Shadow arrived near the cop. The police officer removed the cloth from the victim`s head. "Oh no…" Shadow said.

"You recognize her?" the cop asked.

"No… but I recognize the lunatic who would have done that."

The victim had an ice skate through the head. Shadow knew it could only be the hulo killer, because sometimes hulo is played on ice, which adds a new dimension to the game.

"Shadow!" Someone yelled far away. The hedgehog recognized the voice right away.

"Hey, where do you think you`re going?" An anthro cop near Alexis stopped the French cop.

"Don`t ya dare touching me," Alexis warned the cap-wearing English cop.

Shadow saw Alexis coming. "I hope I`m dreaming…"

"I`m a cop!" Alexis told the English cop, showing his badge.

"You can`t pass unless you have a warrant then."

"I know the detective there… It`s my pal! Hey, Shad! Hey! Tell the cap guy!"

"Let him pass," Shadow said. "If there`s a third victim, I`ll need his help once again…" he thought. "But I still hate having to work with him."

"Okay, you can go," the cap cop said.

"It`s okay, Shad works for me," Alex said before walking toward Shadow and the victim. He greeted some cops. "Hello, hi! How`s it doing?" Alexis saw a woman cop about his age, a bunny, who was fiddling with a car ornament, and Alexis could not help but say "Hello…" in a seductive manner.

Shadow turned to the cop who showed him the victim. "He`s a Four-Laker."

The other cop understood everything and just replied "ah, okay."

"Missed me?" Alexis said, as soon as he reached Shadow. The Ultimate Life Form just pointed the hidden corpse so that the lower police officer removes the cloth. Alexis saw the ice skate having harmed the woman, and could not keep a "Tabarnak…" from escaping. "Well, he`s got a good skate shot, eh?"

Shadow didn`t understand what it meant. "French expression. It usually means he`s fast on his skates, but here it`s another way of saying it." Then, taking another look at the corpse: "You know who it is, right?"

"Patina Glaceina," Shadow answered.

"Yep. First woman to be agent of the league. Her best client was the first choice for the Lakers, seven years ago. He didn`t want to sign for his team to be sold to Sol Kingdom, everybody thought it was him, but his parents refused. She wanted him to go, and it went in Court, where she won. He ended up in Sol, the place Blaze the Cat leads since what, nine years?"

"Yes… Why, of course! Patina deserved to die! Not only she sold one of the best players ever, but to another universe too. I guess some people still haven`t come over the great Language War…"

In the history of Mobius, maybe a hundred years before the Great War, a civil war occurred between Station Square (which back then was a village, not a city) and Four-Lakes (which was also a village), and that war was all about language. In the end, Station Square won it, but the governments decided that in the end, Four-Lakes still could have its freedom of language. Yet again, some Four-Lakers hate Station Square for what happened over a hundred years ago.

"By the way, shouldn`t you be speaking English here?" Shadow pointed out.

"Where`s the tattoo this time?" Alexis asked with irony in the voice. Shadow lifted the skirt. The tattoo was placed on the victim`s butt. That killer was gone a bit too far in placing the tattoo there.

The tattoo showed a glowing Sol Emerald with something written below it. "I 3 _OL K_NG_OM".

"Who`s next? The client?" Alexis asked.

"No, he`s safe. He`s still in Sol Kingdom, in a hospital. When he learned of what happened with Patina, he fell and suffered a concussion."

"What, again?" Alexis asked.

"Hold up her skirt," Shadow said, taking out his camera.

"Huh?" Alexis said.

"Hold up her skirt, gotta take a picture of the tattoo," Shadow explained. "You should be good at that."

"What, holding her skirt?" Alexis asked. Shadow nodded, as Alexis held up the skirt. Shadow took a single picture of the tattoo. Alexis looked away. Maybe she just wasn`t his type of girl. Maybe she was too old. Or maybe she was too dead right now.

STATION SQUARE POLICE DEPARTMENT
MAY 26th, 3250
9:00 AM

"So, let`s see what we got," Shadow said. "Mac Edward screwed Luck for illegal drug use, so he is killed and is tattooed the Four-Lakes symbol with two scales on either side. Goaler sold a team to Soleanna, so he gets a tattoo of Soleanna`s symbol with the name written on it. But the 58 instead of SO is probably a player number."

"Yes, the number of Glaceina`s star player. So the tattoos, since the beginning, are not just a signature; it also explains who the next victim will be," Alexis deducted.

"And her tattoo shows "I 3 Sol Kingdom", but with letters missing. The S, the I, and the D. Also, why has he written the heart as a smiley?"

"The best player in the world. Sid Great-Sky."

"You mean… the "Master of 500?"" Shadow asked. When Alexis and Shadow explained the rules of hulo to Hood, they said the highest number a player could reach in a period was a hundred points. Sid Great-Sky is the only player to date who`s ever reached 500 points. That`s what lead his team to victory, scoring the highest score ever reached, 1400 points. Usually, it is very difficult to even reach 50 points in a period, so imagine reaching a hundred, five times in a row! This, thanks to changing players after some were touched by balls of course.

"Sid… or the one who sold him," Alex ended.

The one who sold Sid to one of the minor Acorn teams was no one else than a guest at that evening`s talk-show all about hulo, Smash the Dash. "Damn," the two said in unison.

STATION SQUARE – HCN CENTER
MAY 26th, 3250
8:00 PM

The host, Lanney Waitlong, was doing his show.

"This situation is impossible to live with. It`s not bad enough that Four-Lakes` Critters are leading on one game over our team for these series, but also, my guest for tonight, Mr. Halder, isn't there. Why? Because someone crazy has spent this week`s free time killing people of the hulo community. And why…"

Shadow and Alexis were watching the show. "I saw Halder`s limousine in the parking; that means he isn't far."

"Did you tell the security?" Alexis asked.

"If they see anything suspect, they`ll call on my cell phone."

But they were stopped from talking by a woman, the director. "Hush," was all she said. The cops stopped talking and listened to Lanney.

"…and don`t let me go and talk about all those people who want fight to become regular in hulo, because I`ll go on a monolog why it`s so entertaining and required! I say we go after the ones who want hulo to look like golf! And while we`re at it, why not suggest girl-only teams, eh? Maybe one of them will have a wardrobe accident for the fun of us males who just love to see feminine parts! Sure that will end in a scandal, but who cares? It would change nothing, girl-only teams, after all the Critters only make the playoffs once every three years!"

Alexis began feeling like that host was too loud-mouthed and insulting toward his city.

"What?" Lanney said. The director was showing him a carton with something written on it. "Unbelievable. The producer is now asking me to stretch time, because our special guest, Mr. Halder, who`s now as much here as there is talent in Four-Lakes, which means he`s not there yet or at all, and which I wanted to interview since over seven years as of why he sold Mister 500, Sid Great-Sky, to a cheap Acorn team!"

Now that guy wasn`t stretching time, but he sure was stretching his sentences. Has he ever head of a break at the end of a sentence? He was not like Hood; he was taking his time. But he just never stopped talking.

"Apparently, that guy Halder is in danger. Oh, it`s too bad. And there are two cops there, who just don`t want me or anyone else to talk here about that lunatic. Cameras, let the audience have a look at them. Hey guys, how ya doin`?" Waitlong didn't even take time for an answer and continued his monolog, while Alexis hid his face for as long as the cameras were on him.

"So if any of you, in front of your screen, have any comment on the whole thing, and wanna spill it out for everyone to hear, just call here, and tell me whatever you want to know on the… tattoo killer."

"What?" was all Shadow could say. Just then, the show went on a commercial break.

"And cut!" the producer said. "90 seconds. Makeup! Makeup!"

Shadow approached Lanney Waitlong as an army of designers were around him, erasing any details that might hint at the host`s real age or physical defects. "Mister Waitlong, I`m sure you know how to do your job…"

"So don`t tell me how to do it, that`s all," the host answered.

"…but you can`t talk about the killer on air. If we provoke him, maybe he`ll kill Halder. And if we nickname him the tattoo killer, it`s giving him a name and some publicity. It's exactly what he wants."

"Okay, you`ve never been a host, do you?" Waitlong asked. "I can talk about anything I want on the air, because I have a hell of a lot of time to fill. Anyone can get that emo out of the cameras?"

Shadow understood Lanney was talking about him, so he stepped away. "Why everyone keeps calling me an emo?" Shadow thought. "Haven`t I changed since thirteen years?" The hedgehog, offended, came back to Alexis.

"Where`s my guest?" Lanney asked the director.

"Find him a guest!" the director yelled, until she had an idea.

***

For one of their first time in front of the cameras, Shadow and Alexis were…. stressed. Wait, that`s not the word. They were forty thousand times more stressed than just stressed.

"Welcome back, everyone. Tonight we have two very special guests who might inform us better on the now famed tattoo killer. From Station Square, detective Shadow, and from Four-Lakes, detective Alexiss Depa… deplar… parde… Dicaprio… uh… anyway, one of those French names I always mess up like I just did. So, are you getting any close of finding that asshole?"

"Well, Lanney, we can`t really say as of now that he`s an asshole. For what we know, he works very fast, and we don`t want to ring the alarm to anyone related to hulo, but we think it would be better if they were… careful," Shadow explained.

"Careful, huh? What do you mean exactly?"

"Well, to respond to your question, Lanney…" Alexis began. "The best way to be prudent would be to change your habitub…"

"Habitube?" Lanney asked, not understanding. Or maybe he was just fooling around with Alexis` good-but-not-perfect English.

"Habits, Lanney. Habits," Shadow corrected. "Good point, Alex. The killer seems to know the habits of his victims, and uses this knowledge to get them and kill them. That`s why it would be better to change your routine, if you…"

"Yeah, right," Lanney Waitlong cut him off. "The real question is: what is a French cop doing here? Isn`t the case difficult enough for you?"

"Keep up with your stupid comments and your ugly purple tie`s gonna end up down your throat," Alexis said in French to make sure Lanney wouldn`t understand.

"Come again?" Lanney asked.

"He said you were well-dressed," Shadow said.

"Thanks, but if you`re trying to flirt, I`m not that kind," the host answered.

"That`s not what I said. I said that if you keep doing offensive comment about my city, you`ll regret those ties."

"He wants a piece of me?" Lanney asked.

"You trying to flirt with me?" Alexis asked.

Their argument got interrupted by the director, who yelled there was someone on the line.

"Okay, so we finally have a call, and that person has a comment or some information." He opens the line, for the whole studio to hear. "What's your name?"

"...tattoo killer."

"Haw haw haw… very funny," Lanney said. "But we don`t have time for preschooler jokes."

"You have a problem with my quest, Lan? You really think you could do better? Think I`m an asshole?"

"I not only think you`re an asshole but I also think you`re a faker."

"Shut that mouth up! Halder`s being tattooed as we`re talking."

"Let us talk to him!" Shadow said.

"Sorry, but he`s unable to talk as of now. He was moving too much and it was impossible to make a nice tattoo…" The tattoo killer took a break. "By the way… sorry for your CheRookie, Alexis." He had said that part in French. Luckily Lanney didn't understand that one.

"Sir, we`re gonna hang up now, but we can give you a number from which you can reach us…"

"Don`t you fucking hang up on me! I know your names and your faces.So don`t worry. If I want to talk to you… I`ll find a way. I`ll find you."

"Hang up the phone," Alexis ordered.

"It`s not my intention," Waitlong replied.

"Either you are with me…"

Alexis approached his hands to the phone, but Lanney slapped them. "Don`t touch that, drownie!" (That`s how Station Square nicknames the Four-Lakers. Weird, isn`t it?) Alexis slapped Lanney`s hand, who slapped Alexis` and it escalated to a fury with them coming to fists and feet. Shadow tried to separate them. Lanney, as a human, didn`t care. He was taller than Alexis anyway.

"Don`t you dare trying to interrupt my heroic attempt at saving our national sport!" the tattoo killer said. Now on screen, the director woman was also entering the brawl, and if it had been a cartoon, there would have been a cloud of dirt around with body parts popping there and there. Alexis was on the floor and Lanney was punching him down, while Shadow was trying to get rid of the director who had jumped on his back. It was more ridiculous than funny to watch. "All those tie guys who sell our sport to foreign cities and worlds shall pay for turning our sport into what it has become! They don't give a fuck about it." Shadow had gotten rid of the director and was now slamming his fist on Lanney for the host to release his partner. But as soon as Alexis could move, he attacked Lanney in a vicious manner. The killer was watching all that on his TV screen. "I`ll kill all these motherfuckers, you two if you try stopping me, and anyone who will get in my way." Alexis had grabbed Lanney`s tie and was tugging it, dragging Lanney`s head, which was smashing the desk. The director was attacking Shadow again, and if it was a man, he would have attacked ferociously. "If you think I`ll let my sport become less important than bowling, only because of a couple of rich…" the killer stopped there because Shadow pulled off the phone line. Shadow finaly immobilized the director, and Alex had taken full control over Lanney, so Alex talked directly to the camera.

"Listen to me, the sicko. You wanna talk, you call me. 49555-554-15." Lanney was about to get back, so Alexis punched him hard on the head.

To be continued…

Author`s notes: I took out some of my best French and English puns for the names. Lanney Waitlong, when said very fast, resembles in French to "the year`s gonna be long".