Athena cringed at the sight of blood. There was yellow "Do not Cross" tape all over the scene. A dumpster was turned over, garbage and nasty sludge sprawled onto the ground. The bricks on the building walls were cracked and had enormous claw marks scattered down the one way alley. Police were holding back a small crowd of people that were looking at the bloody mess.
"Okay! Okay! Back up everyone. Nothing to see here!" A police officer was waving his hands back with two more patrolmen holding back the people who were eager, taking out smart phones and flashing photos. One of the pedestrians took a quick picture of the crimson explosion and ran out of the crowd. Phone in hand, arched forward and his hands practically prickling at the screen, he mumbled words to himself, "hashtag! #timeofthemonth #Grossbergshemmroidserupted"
Phoenix looked at the eager blogger on his phone with extreme disgusted, 'Freaking disgusting and so disrespectful.'
The police finally pushed away all the spectators and closed off the street with orange cones and obstacles. The other two patrolmen were trying struggling to stop a petite hispanic woman, around her early 40's, screaming and flailing with her face completely drowned in tears.
"Mi HIJO! MI HIJO! NNNOOO. AY DIOS MIOS!" (MY SON! MY SON! NNNOOO! OH MY GOD!) she was on the floor trying to crawl to the scene, but was carried back to the patrol car. Athena covered her face and slammed against Apollo. Apollo held her tightly, head down, he felt his vest become drenched by her tears. 'Aw man, it just dried up from my run!'
She was whimpering and balling out on the poor attorney's chest. She heard the cries of the woman who just lost her son in the most gruesome way possible. Knowing that there was nothing left from the scene to remember him by. Phoenix looked at Athena, somber in his face, as he felt the cries of the woman.
"He!" every word was stopped by a hiccup of her uncontrollable sadness. "He. Was. A. Good. Boy! Quién iba a hacer esto a mi hijo!?" (Who would do this to my son?) The woman finally had a nervous breakdown. The policemen called for an ambulance while trying to restrain the woman from hurting herself or them.
The attorneys could only watch in horror as the vulnerable woman was finally taken in a stretcher into the red and white ambulance and it sounded its annoyingly loud siren down the street.
Apollo pulled Athena away from his chest, still holding onto her shoulders and looked at her face. Swollen from crying. "Athena… it's over…"
Her eyes pink and puffy, she wiped her tears away from her face and looked down. "She is in so much pain. So much pain…"
"I know, Athena… I know…" Apollo's voice was low but stern.
The street was silent. The day was bright and sunny, but the mood was gloomy and petrifying. Apollo released Athena, patting her on the shoulder, "C'mon."
They approached the narrow alley, they all gasped by the scene with closer inspection. There was blood in the most abnormal of places. On the wall, on street posts, against the brick was and escalated almost to the second floor. The dumpster looked like it got rammed into by two cars and the tarmac had been broken and cracked reaching all the way to the end at the dead end.
Phoenix stepped forward, he cringed at the smell of the decimated dumpster. "It looks like a bomb blew up here," holding his nose. Apollo wrenched at the smell from spoiled food and the decomposing blood. "Ugh… many of our cases don't stink this bad!"
"HEY! Careful where you're going!" a familiar voice yelled. "Wait, I know you guys!"
Phoenix, Apollo, and Athena looked at the female figure running to them.
"Phoenix Wright, come back from the dead, huh?! Apollo, you've barely changed!"
"Hi Ema." Phoenix smiled. "Long time no see!"
"It sure has been, Mr. Wright! I heard you got your badge back from Edgeworth. He seemed rather excited himself. And I was surprised to. That guy is normally more stern than a statue."
Ema stood in front of them. Same old getup of her white lab coat, pinky lensed glasses, and her pouch, strapped over arm, filled with forensic chemicals. "Hey Apollo, haven't seen you in the longest either!" Ema directed her view to Mr. Justice.
"Yeah…," he rubbed his front horns down sheepishly, "It's been a while."
Ema finally looked at Athena. "You must be new to the team, huh?"
Athena mustered up a quick smile and looked at the detective. "Yeah, kinda. I've been working for Mr. Wright for about a year now!"
"Any friend of the famous Phoenix Wright is a friend of mine! Except that fop!" She gave a minor annoyed face knowing she remembered that former boyband prosecutor, Klavier Gavin who always bothered her. But her face changed back to beaming with excitement at Athena.
"Name's Ema! Ema Skye."
Ema shook Athena's hand quite violently. Athena had to pick up speed to make sure the eager detective wouldn't pull her arm from her socket. "Athena! Athena Cykes!" Smiling widely at her newfound friend.
"Why hasn't Apollo mentioned me to you, Ema?" Athena looked at her red colleague with a disappointed face.
"H-Hey! I haven't got around to it!" Apollo chastised.
"Ugh. That Justice!" Ema squeaked.
"I know right! Boys!" Athena giggled.
Apollo arched forward with a frown, sweating. 'Boys?!'
He wanted to turn around and have Phoenix have his back in rebuking, but he was too busy attending the scene. 'I give up!'
"So what's happened," Apollo continued, breaking up the giddy girl's banter.
"Ugh… it's nasty. To be honest. We only have so much." Ema sighed. She peered back at the scene with a stumped face.
"What do you mean?!" Apollo exclaimed.
"I mean, well. There's blood everywhere. But there's no body. It's missing."
"Missing?" Athena squirmed. Her fists slowly clenched and arms pressed against her in defense.
"Yea... " she dug her fingers into her snackoos. "There's blood everywhere and it seems that the victim was dragged. But strangely upward." She raised her treat in her mouth and chewed. "Ironically, the scene is clean, besides the blood everywhere."
"Upward…?" Phoenix questioned, brows furrowed.
"Yea…" she continued stuffing herself before continuing. "Strange. Like up the building. We quarantined the rooftop, but the trail stops there. The only thing left is the victim's clothing." She pointed towards the left brick wall where a trail of dried blood painted all the way to the edge of the roof.
"Sorry, I haven't had breakfast yet." Her mouth was still full of the snackoos. "The chief homicide detective called me super early in the morning to come here and inspect the place."
She showed a clear forensics bag. "But here's what's left of the guy." The baggage contained what would seem to be bloody rags, completely shredded and clawed into pieces.
"The poor guy… I hope he didn't suffer too much. But…" she stopped. "There aren't any animals in the local area to do such a mauling."
Athena cringed again at the sight. Phoenix looked at the young attorney. "Athena…? You're turning ten shades of pale again. Soon it's going to surpass 50." Phoenix huffed.
"May we look around, Ema?" Apollo asked.
"Sure. Just don't touch anything. Oh and make sure you don't touch the aluminum powder! It's all over the walls. We don't want your prints to make you a suspect!" She winked.
Apollo peered at the wall. The trail of blood escalated all the way to the roof, which was about five stories high.
"Mr. Wright, isn't this weird? How something carried up the victim?" Apollo awaited an answer. Still silence. He turned to look at his boss. "Mr. Wright?"
Apollo looked at Phoenix. By his face, he can tell that his boss was out of it. He was admiring the trail of blood, walking with it, traveling along in a ceremonious way. He followed the line until he reached the dead end wall. His eyes twitched and his lip slightly quivered. Phoenix bit his tongue. His eyes fixated at the gory scene in front of him. His head jerked by a… memory?
Slightly..., vaguely..., flashes… flashes of someone, running. Screaming!
He shook his head. He leaned against the wall as if in pain. A weird feeling of… satisfaction overcame him. 'What is this?'
His breathing became heavy, slightly scared. His head was down, staring at the drying life that once flowed through a person's veins. His eyes closed tightly. He held his throat, a tingling sensation overpowering him and started coughing. He covered his coughs in his sleeves, looking away from the scene. His fit stopped and lifted his head up breathing in a gust of air trembling down his throat. He lowered his head in an exhale and finally cleared his throat.
Wright faced the corner of the dead end. He smiled lightly. But it soon faded with Apollo nudging him on the shoulder. "Boss? You okay?"
"Yes" He calmly announced without looking at Apollo. "Is there something wrong?" His voice had a weird authority sound to the tone.
"N-Nothing." Apollo retreated. He backed up slowly and turned back towards the street where Athena was still trying to find clues without releasing her breakfast all over the wall. 'Why is he acting like that?'
A sudden ring came from Phoenix. It was his cellphone ringing the same Steel Samurai theme. He rifled through his pocket and answered. "Hello?"
"Mr. Nick?"
"Pearls?!"
"Mr. Nick! I'm back. I have a lot to tell you! Come to the office!" she hung up.
Phoenix shoved his phone back into his pocket. And called over Athena, Apollo and Trucy. "Pearls is back from her trip."
"Oh yes! What she say?!" she jumped with glee finally getting rid of her focus from the gory mess.
"She said to head back to the office."
"Okay let's go!"
