Bubble Gum HYTE (Fan-fic)
Source: Bubble Gum Crisis/Crash
Author: LV426
Chapter 7: Leads
He watched from his hiding place as the scene unfolded in front of him. He had figured the end results of the night's activities would probably end like this as soon as he saw the K-suit jet itself against the odds to his target's apartment, but still, he had to be sure. It would be vital to completing his tasks if he saw what became of everyone involved.
It was with nothing more than cold calculation that he watched the ambulance role up to the complex, followed by a team from the ADP. They were bound to arrive after the K-suite, and, since he knew this, he had simply gotten out of there. It had also been just as expected which would be escorted out in cuffs. The target was also ADP, leaving him only one possibility there. What was unexpected was the condition the man was in. He had seen the K-suite fire into the room, but generally, ADP don't do that much damage to humans. To see the blast had taken his arm off was never expected. Obviously, this pilot was not the average one, and would have to be observed to figure out.
He didn't think abut these things, he just knew them. It was innate. He didn't need to think on them. However, whatever attention might have been on reviewing the results went directly to his target as he was wheeled out on a stretcher. A quick scan via inferred showed the target was still alive, however wounded he was. The mission was still incomplete, and would have to be completed one way or another. However, there was a complication now.
Of the nine intruders, who had interfered, three still lived, not including the now one armed ring-leader. These humans were now four loose ends he would have to tie up. As things stood, the three who were not seriously wounded were already gone. Probably to be incarcerated on attempted murder. He would find out soon enough, but first there was the ring-leader and the target himself. The target would no doubt be brought to a hospital and under top security. The ring-leader would probably also wind up in a place to get medical treatment, but the guards would most likely bring him elsewhere, where they could keep him in easier.
From here, he drew his conclusion. He knew the area and the most likely places to find each and every person he would still have to destroy, except the ring leader. And even he could be a source of names for his troopers, giving this path of action that much more emphasis. He waited for his chance to approach the armored vehicle.
Total time to make his decision: 0.05 seconds.
* * *
With a screeching skid, Priss' bike fishtailed into a stop. The kickstand was down and she was running toward the ambulance and ADP squad cars before the motor had stopped. Had it not been for habit, she wouldn't have even hit the kickstand. She simply did not care right now.
She stopped running when she was about ten feet from the closest car and finally allowed herself to look around. The scene was covered with flashing blue and red lights, adding a surreal effect to the whole scene, and leaving her for perhaps the first time in her life, with no real choice of actions, and only panic within herself.
An officer approached her with a calm professionalism that she normally found annoying as hell, but tonight just wasn't in a position to judge. "Can I help you, Ma'am?" When the young lady didn't respond or even look at him after a moment, he repeated the question. "Ma'am? Are you ok? Can I help you?"
She still didn't look at him, staring into the scene. "Leon... where is he?" Her tone was flat; almost scary.
"Leon, Ma'am?"
Only now did she look at him, her panic taking form into anger as her eyes burned with her natural rage towards the ADP. "He IS one of you, after all... where is Leon McNichol?"
The officer stopped short... the pure rage in her eyes was astounding, and he felt like she might jump him any second, with or without a reason. This stop, however only fueled her. She grabbed him by the cuffs of his jacket and rammed him against the cruiser, shaking it in the process and proving his assessment of her right. "WHERE IS HE?!?!?"
Priss didn't need to wait for an answer. From the corner of her eye, she watched as a stretcher was brought out of the apartment complex by two medics. The face of the man on it was hidden by an oxygen mask, but she already knew. She through the officer down and made a run for them. Her run came to a dead stop when she was finally close enough to confirm her inner fears. The medics didn't even halt, but she could see it was bad without anyone telling her so... without moving, she asked the medic to the back of the stretcher a few questions. "What... happened to him." If she could hear herself, she would be stunned at just how much fear was in her voice at this moment.
The medic looked up at her and only shook his head. "Are you a relation to him?"
Priss shook her head and looked up... her voice had calmed down, but this was too much and it was obvious to anyone listening she could break any moment. "Please..."
"He took a gunshot to the chest. The man responsible has already been taken into custody, along with the team he brought with him."
Priss said nothing after that... she just walked with the stretcher. Also without a word, she jumped into the back of the ambulance with it.
"What the... Ma'am... you cant go with him. This is going to be very delicate, and we cant have anyone else get in the way."
A look of anger and defiance met the medic. "You can't stop me." Her tone softened a little as she looked at the form on the stretcher. She would never admit such things, but none the less. The medic noticed, however, so the argument ended there. He also knew better then to question this time. He wasn't blind to who was riding with Leon, or her temper when really pushed. This was definitely one of those times.
* * *
The ride to the prison was a long and dull one. Clax had no windows through which to even enjoy the scenery. Not that the city allowed for much landscape anyway. It would have been just one building after another, but it wasn't like he would have been trying to enjoy himself. It was actually smart to not put in a view for him... otherwise, he might try to get away and have an idea where the hell he was going. He smiled slightly, mentally congratulating the designers of the vehicle.
Still, the trip was over and he was coming out of the medical room. His arm was a lost cause. However, they had patched him up and, thanks to a few dozen drugs, was in relative comfort, and his mind was able to consider his next move. He already understood his part would be over soon, no matter how it ended up. He had been careless, and now would pay for it. But he also still had a mission, and would see to it that it was complete.
Currently, Clax was seated on an iron bench. He wasn't chained down in any way, but he was encased in a steel cage, along with a few others. None of them seemed interested in him, which was a good thing. It gave him time to consider what he now had to do. Not that he didn't already know. He knew full well what he had to do. What he needed time for was to get used to it. Since he could not finish the task ahead himself, he would have to call on another... and the only other qualified for this task was not a man that Clax wanted to EVER have to call on. He didn't know how the other felt, but Clax saw him as his bitter rival, and would personally rather swallow broken glass than call on him for help.
However, duty calls, and that has to come before all personal issues. He looked up slowly as his name was called... "Clax! Frenton Clax! Get your ass over here!" Without a word, he got up and made his way to the door. On the other side, the officer looked at him with contempt. "Time for your one call."
* * *
Boots didn't have to wait too long before he found the trouble he was in. In fact, the chief himself was waiting in the parking lot for the K-suits when he got in. Not that Jake cared to terrifically. He was always in trouble before he was here, so why should it make a difference coming from a different face? With a grumble, he slammed the off switch and opened the hatch to step out.
He didn't even get his feet on the ground before the chief was on him. "What the HELL did you think you were doing? You were under STRICT orders to NOT get in that thing! Why the hell did you disobey me?"
Jake calmly placed his hands up palms toward the chief. "Don't think that's a good idea, to start like that, chief. Your ORDERS would have cost you an officer's life."
"What the HELL are you babbling about?" The chief was only now yelling and not just adding force to his voice.
"You can watch it in the news," Jake added arrogantly as he began to walk away. "Oh, and by the way," he turned with a smirk, "your welcome."
The chief turned three shades of red in anger as Jake continued on his way. For Jake's part, he had the biggest grin on his face he has had since he moved to Japan.
* * *
Just like most of the office besides a skeleton crew of desk workers, the main computer room of the AD Police was emptying out. There were never many in there anyway, but all the odds of finding someone there was now practically zero. That was all the better in the eyes of the young lady who now reached across a keyboard, running search after search through every file she could get into, starting with low-level security files, and ready to break through to the higher ones as she needed.
The determined look on Nene's face was illuminated mainly by the monitor in front of her. In her mind, Priss had had every right to yell at her, but now she could make it right. Maybe between what was here in the AD Police files and what she could find on the networks connected to it, she just might be able to clear Leon's name.
So far, she had come up with nothing. At first she had just looked for familiar names in the system. Row after row of closed case showed on the screen, and she filtered out what looked like good names. However, this quickly proved futile and she decided to put some kind of order to the task. However, her curiosity drove her to look into the file of a Dr. Miriam Yoshida before proceeding. Looking on the face on the screen brought the memories to the front again. His hyper-boomers had nearly cost her and the other Knight Sabers their lives and their reputations. Though this was mentioned (however briefly) in the file, it was something else that grabbed her and nearly made her fall out of her chair. "What the hell?" She blinked in disbelief at what she saw on the screen. After shaking her head, she printed a copy of the file. The others will want to know about this, but for now, she had to worry about Leon.
Her search was focused on what she knew about the killing, and perhaps if it was an MO to a serial killer out there. "If I can find something like that, there is no way the chief could ignore the possibility," Nene muttered under her breath. Having found nothing with this try on every network she could think of, she began to include criminals where the case has been closed and solved. Again, the same result; no MOs to match either the style of execution, or the pattern of where the bullets had been placed.
"Why do I feel like I'm going in circles?" Nene added with a sigh. "Ok, lets think about this. So there are no known killers as of yet that strike like this. Perhaps a new one then? But why would Vision be the target?" Suddenly, her eyes brightened. "Wait a sec... what if it was a personal enemy of Vision's?"
Without a second thought, she brought the Big Egg II's security systems up. What she found shocked her. The first layer of security was expected, and she quickly dispatched it. She then proceeded to look through records and camera scenes. Apparently, because enough people pointed at Leon, no one had checked the cameras at all! It didn't take Nene long to find what she was looking for... a picture of the real killer, gun still smoking in his hand. The only problem was that it was from the back, basically giving a view of his trenchcoat and pistol. Color would have helped too, but at least now Nene had something.
Quickly, she scanned the camera systems for any more shots of the man she had found, but none gave a good view of his face. He simply didn't look more than straight ahead, giving every shot that had any promise at all an angle that didn't reveal his eyes. Aggravated by this fact, she copied the pictures to the ADP network and printed them. She would show them to the others, but first, one more scan... this time using the pictures to get an identity.
In the final scan, she found a list of well over 200 people... way too many to begin searching one by one. She groaned at the prospect of going through them all for motive to see who it could most likely be. Instead, she printed the list for future reference, as well as sent a copy of it and the pictures to the chief. Leon's name had to be cleared now. There was just no way he could keep Leon from active duty after seeing this.
Quite happy with herself, Nene took her paper copies, put them in a folder and turned off the computer terminal. She skipped out of the room, and down the hall, and only stopped for the cold air at the main doorway. She still had a "pleased with myself" smile on her face as she got in her car and drove off, heading straight for Linna and Priss' apartment.
* * *
The roar of the engine from the bike was now much more even than it was when he first started it up. He knew how to drive it, but not the specifics of this peticular bike yet, and had spent the first few minutes of his pursuit playing with exactly what it could do. It may be useful to know, or it may not. But he knew it wouldn't hurt. He wasn't having too much difficulty tracking his target, despite his late start.
Had he had the normal level of patients, he would have been going insane. In order to make sure he wasn't detected, he had to wait and see exactly where every individual in the parking lot was. As things stood, between cops, reporters who the cops could not keep away, and medical people, that was a lot of people to zero in on, one by one. Still, being as he is, the man took his time and began. However, he systematically began with the reporters. They would be the ones most likely to be around the longest, so they were the ones he would have to deal with.
The cops were next, not so much because they would hang around as the medics would be off as soon as they could be. This left them as the next step. They became the only step as soon as the ambulance's sirens blared and it sped off.
Upon completion of this step, he had to find a way to move at a speed to make his chase even possible. The young lady known as Priss Asigiri had unwittingly supplied him with that when she left with his original target. She had left her bike.
Without a word and in fluid motion, he got up from the bushes and walked to the bike. He didn't even hesitate to kick out the kick stand and walked it away. He had made sure no one could see him, but the sound of the engine on the other hand, could clue them in. He couldn't afford to start it yet.
A good 15 minutes later, he had walked it roughly out of earshot and started it up. The hum of this bike was loud for the model, probably customized. Had he the ability to enjoy such things, he would have smiled, but this was beyond him. He revved it once more and took off, pushing the engine at top speed in the direction the armored vehicle had gone.
As he looked ahead on the road, he swerved through traffic with relative ease. It had taken a little adjustment to how the humans on the road drove, but it didn't take too long, and the heat-trail of the tires to the target was getting stronger. He would be there soon.
* * *
As the bus pulled into it's next stop, Kou looked up from his seat, his glasses slightly lit by the fluorescent glow above him. Without a word, he got up and walked down the isle. A few people gave him a glance, but not many. A young woman would have thought of trying to get his attention, but could see the no-nonsense look about him and thought better of it. This man was here for a purpose, and one that anything that wanted to live best keep out of the way of.
As he stepped off the bus, Kou felt the chilled night air against him as his jacket moved slightly in the breeze. It was a bit lighter than would be useful in this weather, but he didn't care. Just an hour or so ago, he had gotten the call that changed everything for him. Until then, he was a man in mourning, both for the Chang family, and on his own. But he was also useless in his own eyes, having been turned down to handle opperation for revenge. Now, however, fate had smiled on him, as the man for the job was now out of the picture, and he had all he needed to begin to hunt the killer down. With a grim smile, he made his way down the street.
For the most part, the streets seemed empty, but Kou was far from oblivious to the fact that the night around here had a life all it's own, or that those who took it up were watching him, if not from the shadows and the alleys. However, the trip remained uneventful. He glanced down at the piece of paper in his hand, reading the number on it by moonlight. It was odd. Had he expected to have to call a favor from the man he was now going to see, he would have committed it to memory. However, at the time, it was simply a formality.
"And now the piper has to be paid," he added to himself, a bitterness in his voice. He had already paid the ultimate price, and would extract it from the killer by any means necessary. He stepped up to the door and produced a key from his pocket. With a few twists, the door was open and he walked inside.
The building was an old one, and showed it's age. That isn't to say it was in bad shape, but the style was from another decade, and no matter how well the landlord took care of the place, they were going to have to repaint sometime. Once up the stairway, Kou had to grin. Apparently, the landlord was ahead of him, as he could smell the ammonia of a fresh coat of pain, as well as see the equipment at the far end of the wall.
However amusing though, Kou had business to attend to, and moved along, looking at the number of each door. After a short while, he found the one he was looking for and knocked.
After a moment, a serious but calm voice answered, "Who is it?"
"An old friend," Kou replied. He never gave the resident inside his name, so it would be pointless now. However, the man would recognize his voice. Boomers can always keep that kind of information on hand. He wasn't disappointed. The door opened after a moment.
"What brings you here?" the voice continued as the man closed the door, his long white hair catching the light from the hallway. He sounded surprised, but also had a tinge of dread in his voice. He knew this day would come, but he was hoping for a few years before he would have to pay for his get-a-way.
"Were you at work two nights ago?" Kou's voice was calm and controlled.
"Yes... it's a terrible thing, what happened to that young girl."
"That is why I'm here now."
"I'm not sure I understand."
Kou sighed, taking the moment to figure out how to tell this man what was going on. He looked at him. "Astis, could you please turn the lights on? I know you don't need them, but I'm human."
"Alright..." the light flickered on and Astis was visible completely for the first time. He was a large and well muscled man, but not overly so. His white hair looked pre-mature, since he couldn't be any older than in his 30's. However, Kou knew that was all a fiscade. Behind those dark piecing eyes was an organically grown CPU, perhaps the most advanced one to date, and definitely years beyond anything the private sector has dreamed of yet.
"Much better..." Kou continued, "Now, as I was saying, we are out to find the man responsible for killing Vision that night."
"Alright, I understand that, but what exactly do you want me to do?"
"The killer, we believe was a boomer. We want you to contribute to the search. If you find anything, you will report directly to me. Understand?" Kou handed Astis a card with a number on it.
Astis nodded in response before putting the card in his pocket.
"Very good... thank you, Astis... from me and the entire Hou Bang organization," Kou finished before turning to the door. He opened the door and stepped out before stopping suddenly. "Oh, and one more thing... Don't touch him yet when you find him. I want to be there to extract vengeance personally." On that last note, Kou's voice took a very savage twist and it made Astis jump to hear it.
Still, he replied the best way he knew. "You know I would rather not get into a fight anyway... but alright."
"Thank you... personally." And with that Kou was gone, leaving Astis to figure out what he would do. Already had a lead, but he had to find where she lived... the young lady who had played along side Vision had seen the killer. He would have to seek Priss Asigiri.
Source: Bubble Gum Crisis/Crash
Author: LV426
Chapter 7: Leads
He watched from his hiding place as the scene unfolded in front of him. He had figured the end results of the night's activities would probably end like this as soon as he saw the K-suit jet itself against the odds to his target's apartment, but still, he had to be sure. It would be vital to completing his tasks if he saw what became of everyone involved.
It was with nothing more than cold calculation that he watched the ambulance role up to the complex, followed by a team from the ADP. They were bound to arrive after the K-suite, and, since he knew this, he had simply gotten out of there. It had also been just as expected which would be escorted out in cuffs. The target was also ADP, leaving him only one possibility there. What was unexpected was the condition the man was in. He had seen the K-suite fire into the room, but generally, ADP don't do that much damage to humans. To see the blast had taken his arm off was never expected. Obviously, this pilot was not the average one, and would have to be observed to figure out.
He didn't think abut these things, he just knew them. It was innate. He didn't need to think on them. However, whatever attention might have been on reviewing the results went directly to his target as he was wheeled out on a stretcher. A quick scan via inferred showed the target was still alive, however wounded he was. The mission was still incomplete, and would have to be completed one way or another. However, there was a complication now.
Of the nine intruders, who had interfered, three still lived, not including the now one armed ring-leader. These humans were now four loose ends he would have to tie up. As things stood, the three who were not seriously wounded were already gone. Probably to be incarcerated on attempted murder. He would find out soon enough, but first there was the ring-leader and the target himself. The target would no doubt be brought to a hospital and under top security. The ring-leader would probably also wind up in a place to get medical treatment, but the guards would most likely bring him elsewhere, where they could keep him in easier.
From here, he drew his conclusion. He knew the area and the most likely places to find each and every person he would still have to destroy, except the ring leader. And even he could be a source of names for his troopers, giving this path of action that much more emphasis. He waited for his chance to approach the armored vehicle.
Total time to make his decision: 0.05 seconds.
* * *
With a screeching skid, Priss' bike fishtailed into a stop. The kickstand was down and she was running toward the ambulance and ADP squad cars before the motor had stopped. Had it not been for habit, she wouldn't have even hit the kickstand. She simply did not care right now.
She stopped running when she was about ten feet from the closest car and finally allowed herself to look around. The scene was covered with flashing blue and red lights, adding a surreal effect to the whole scene, and leaving her for perhaps the first time in her life, with no real choice of actions, and only panic within herself.
An officer approached her with a calm professionalism that she normally found annoying as hell, but tonight just wasn't in a position to judge. "Can I help you, Ma'am?" When the young lady didn't respond or even look at him after a moment, he repeated the question. "Ma'am? Are you ok? Can I help you?"
She still didn't look at him, staring into the scene. "Leon... where is he?" Her tone was flat; almost scary.
"Leon, Ma'am?"
Only now did she look at him, her panic taking form into anger as her eyes burned with her natural rage towards the ADP. "He IS one of you, after all... where is Leon McNichol?"
The officer stopped short... the pure rage in her eyes was astounding, and he felt like she might jump him any second, with or without a reason. This stop, however only fueled her. She grabbed him by the cuffs of his jacket and rammed him against the cruiser, shaking it in the process and proving his assessment of her right. "WHERE IS HE?!?!?"
Priss didn't need to wait for an answer. From the corner of her eye, she watched as a stretcher was brought out of the apartment complex by two medics. The face of the man on it was hidden by an oxygen mask, but she already knew. She through the officer down and made a run for them. Her run came to a dead stop when she was finally close enough to confirm her inner fears. The medics didn't even halt, but she could see it was bad without anyone telling her so... without moving, she asked the medic to the back of the stretcher a few questions. "What... happened to him." If she could hear herself, she would be stunned at just how much fear was in her voice at this moment.
The medic looked up at her and only shook his head. "Are you a relation to him?"
Priss shook her head and looked up... her voice had calmed down, but this was too much and it was obvious to anyone listening she could break any moment. "Please..."
"He took a gunshot to the chest. The man responsible has already been taken into custody, along with the team he brought with him."
Priss said nothing after that... she just walked with the stretcher. Also without a word, she jumped into the back of the ambulance with it.
"What the... Ma'am... you cant go with him. This is going to be very delicate, and we cant have anyone else get in the way."
A look of anger and defiance met the medic. "You can't stop me." Her tone softened a little as she looked at the form on the stretcher. She would never admit such things, but none the less. The medic noticed, however, so the argument ended there. He also knew better then to question this time. He wasn't blind to who was riding with Leon, or her temper when really pushed. This was definitely one of those times.
* * *
The ride to the prison was a long and dull one. Clax had no windows through which to even enjoy the scenery. Not that the city allowed for much landscape anyway. It would have been just one building after another, but it wasn't like he would have been trying to enjoy himself. It was actually smart to not put in a view for him... otherwise, he might try to get away and have an idea where the hell he was going. He smiled slightly, mentally congratulating the designers of the vehicle.
Still, the trip was over and he was coming out of the medical room. His arm was a lost cause. However, they had patched him up and, thanks to a few dozen drugs, was in relative comfort, and his mind was able to consider his next move. He already understood his part would be over soon, no matter how it ended up. He had been careless, and now would pay for it. But he also still had a mission, and would see to it that it was complete.
Currently, Clax was seated on an iron bench. He wasn't chained down in any way, but he was encased in a steel cage, along with a few others. None of them seemed interested in him, which was a good thing. It gave him time to consider what he now had to do. Not that he didn't already know. He knew full well what he had to do. What he needed time for was to get used to it. Since he could not finish the task ahead himself, he would have to call on another... and the only other qualified for this task was not a man that Clax wanted to EVER have to call on. He didn't know how the other felt, but Clax saw him as his bitter rival, and would personally rather swallow broken glass than call on him for help.
However, duty calls, and that has to come before all personal issues. He looked up slowly as his name was called... "Clax! Frenton Clax! Get your ass over here!" Without a word, he got up and made his way to the door. On the other side, the officer looked at him with contempt. "Time for your one call."
* * *
Boots didn't have to wait too long before he found the trouble he was in. In fact, the chief himself was waiting in the parking lot for the K-suits when he got in. Not that Jake cared to terrifically. He was always in trouble before he was here, so why should it make a difference coming from a different face? With a grumble, he slammed the off switch and opened the hatch to step out.
He didn't even get his feet on the ground before the chief was on him. "What the HELL did you think you were doing? You were under STRICT orders to NOT get in that thing! Why the hell did you disobey me?"
Jake calmly placed his hands up palms toward the chief. "Don't think that's a good idea, to start like that, chief. Your ORDERS would have cost you an officer's life."
"What the HELL are you babbling about?" The chief was only now yelling and not just adding force to his voice.
"You can watch it in the news," Jake added arrogantly as he began to walk away. "Oh, and by the way," he turned with a smirk, "your welcome."
The chief turned three shades of red in anger as Jake continued on his way. For Jake's part, he had the biggest grin on his face he has had since he moved to Japan.
* * *
Just like most of the office besides a skeleton crew of desk workers, the main computer room of the AD Police was emptying out. There were never many in there anyway, but all the odds of finding someone there was now practically zero. That was all the better in the eyes of the young lady who now reached across a keyboard, running search after search through every file she could get into, starting with low-level security files, and ready to break through to the higher ones as she needed.
The determined look on Nene's face was illuminated mainly by the monitor in front of her. In her mind, Priss had had every right to yell at her, but now she could make it right. Maybe between what was here in the AD Police files and what she could find on the networks connected to it, she just might be able to clear Leon's name.
So far, she had come up with nothing. At first she had just looked for familiar names in the system. Row after row of closed case showed on the screen, and she filtered out what looked like good names. However, this quickly proved futile and she decided to put some kind of order to the task. However, her curiosity drove her to look into the file of a Dr. Miriam Yoshida before proceeding. Looking on the face on the screen brought the memories to the front again. His hyper-boomers had nearly cost her and the other Knight Sabers their lives and their reputations. Though this was mentioned (however briefly) in the file, it was something else that grabbed her and nearly made her fall out of her chair. "What the hell?" She blinked in disbelief at what she saw on the screen. After shaking her head, she printed a copy of the file. The others will want to know about this, but for now, she had to worry about Leon.
Her search was focused on what she knew about the killing, and perhaps if it was an MO to a serial killer out there. "If I can find something like that, there is no way the chief could ignore the possibility," Nene muttered under her breath. Having found nothing with this try on every network she could think of, she began to include criminals where the case has been closed and solved. Again, the same result; no MOs to match either the style of execution, or the pattern of where the bullets had been placed.
"Why do I feel like I'm going in circles?" Nene added with a sigh. "Ok, lets think about this. So there are no known killers as of yet that strike like this. Perhaps a new one then? But why would Vision be the target?" Suddenly, her eyes brightened. "Wait a sec... what if it was a personal enemy of Vision's?"
Without a second thought, she brought the Big Egg II's security systems up. What she found shocked her. The first layer of security was expected, and she quickly dispatched it. She then proceeded to look through records and camera scenes. Apparently, because enough people pointed at Leon, no one had checked the cameras at all! It didn't take Nene long to find what she was looking for... a picture of the real killer, gun still smoking in his hand. The only problem was that it was from the back, basically giving a view of his trenchcoat and pistol. Color would have helped too, but at least now Nene had something.
Quickly, she scanned the camera systems for any more shots of the man she had found, but none gave a good view of his face. He simply didn't look more than straight ahead, giving every shot that had any promise at all an angle that didn't reveal his eyes. Aggravated by this fact, she copied the pictures to the ADP network and printed them. She would show them to the others, but first, one more scan... this time using the pictures to get an identity.
In the final scan, she found a list of well over 200 people... way too many to begin searching one by one. She groaned at the prospect of going through them all for motive to see who it could most likely be. Instead, she printed the list for future reference, as well as sent a copy of it and the pictures to the chief. Leon's name had to be cleared now. There was just no way he could keep Leon from active duty after seeing this.
Quite happy with herself, Nene took her paper copies, put them in a folder and turned off the computer terminal. She skipped out of the room, and down the hall, and only stopped for the cold air at the main doorway. She still had a "pleased with myself" smile on her face as she got in her car and drove off, heading straight for Linna and Priss' apartment.
* * *
The roar of the engine from the bike was now much more even than it was when he first started it up. He knew how to drive it, but not the specifics of this peticular bike yet, and had spent the first few minutes of his pursuit playing with exactly what it could do. It may be useful to know, or it may not. But he knew it wouldn't hurt. He wasn't having too much difficulty tracking his target, despite his late start.
Had he had the normal level of patients, he would have been going insane. In order to make sure he wasn't detected, he had to wait and see exactly where every individual in the parking lot was. As things stood, between cops, reporters who the cops could not keep away, and medical people, that was a lot of people to zero in on, one by one. Still, being as he is, the man took his time and began. However, he systematically began with the reporters. They would be the ones most likely to be around the longest, so they were the ones he would have to deal with.
The cops were next, not so much because they would hang around as the medics would be off as soon as they could be. This left them as the next step. They became the only step as soon as the ambulance's sirens blared and it sped off.
Upon completion of this step, he had to find a way to move at a speed to make his chase even possible. The young lady known as Priss Asigiri had unwittingly supplied him with that when she left with his original target. She had left her bike.
Without a word and in fluid motion, he got up from the bushes and walked to the bike. He didn't even hesitate to kick out the kick stand and walked it away. He had made sure no one could see him, but the sound of the engine on the other hand, could clue them in. He couldn't afford to start it yet.
A good 15 minutes later, he had walked it roughly out of earshot and started it up. The hum of this bike was loud for the model, probably customized. Had he the ability to enjoy such things, he would have smiled, but this was beyond him. He revved it once more and took off, pushing the engine at top speed in the direction the armored vehicle had gone.
As he looked ahead on the road, he swerved through traffic with relative ease. It had taken a little adjustment to how the humans on the road drove, but it didn't take too long, and the heat-trail of the tires to the target was getting stronger. He would be there soon.
* * *
As the bus pulled into it's next stop, Kou looked up from his seat, his glasses slightly lit by the fluorescent glow above him. Without a word, he got up and walked down the isle. A few people gave him a glance, but not many. A young woman would have thought of trying to get his attention, but could see the no-nonsense look about him and thought better of it. This man was here for a purpose, and one that anything that wanted to live best keep out of the way of.
As he stepped off the bus, Kou felt the chilled night air against him as his jacket moved slightly in the breeze. It was a bit lighter than would be useful in this weather, but he didn't care. Just an hour or so ago, he had gotten the call that changed everything for him. Until then, he was a man in mourning, both for the Chang family, and on his own. But he was also useless in his own eyes, having been turned down to handle opperation for revenge. Now, however, fate had smiled on him, as the man for the job was now out of the picture, and he had all he needed to begin to hunt the killer down. With a grim smile, he made his way down the street.
For the most part, the streets seemed empty, but Kou was far from oblivious to the fact that the night around here had a life all it's own, or that those who took it up were watching him, if not from the shadows and the alleys. However, the trip remained uneventful. He glanced down at the piece of paper in his hand, reading the number on it by moonlight. It was odd. Had he expected to have to call a favor from the man he was now going to see, he would have committed it to memory. However, at the time, it was simply a formality.
"And now the piper has to be paid," he added to himself, a bitterness in his voice. He had already paid the ultimate price, and would extract it from the killer by any means necessary. He stepped up to the door and produced a key from his pocket. With a few twists, the door was open and he walked inside.
The building was an old one, and showed it's age. That isn't to say it was in bad shape, but the style was from another decade, and no matter how well the landlord took care of the place, they were going to have to repaint sometime. Once up the stairway, Kou had to grin. Apparently, the landlord was ahead of him, as he could smell the ammonia of a fresh coat of pain, as well as see the equipment at the far end of the wall.
However amusing though, Kou had business to attend to, and moved along, looking at the number of each door. After a short while, he found the one he was looking for and knocked.
After a moment, a serious but calm voice answered, "Who is it?"
"An old friend," Kou replied. He never gave the resident inside his name, so it would be pointless now. However, the man would recognize his voice. Boomers can always keep that kind of information on hand. He wasn't disappointed. The door opened after a moment.
"What brings you here?" the voice continued as the man closed the door, his long white hair catching the light from the hallway. He sounded surprised, but also had a tinge of dread in his voice. He knew this day would come, but he was hoping for a few years before he would have to pay for his get-a-way.
"Were you at work two nights ago?" Kou's voice was calm and controlled.
"Yes... it's a terrible thing, what happened to that young girl."
"That is why I'm here now."
"I'm not sure I understand."
Kou sighed, taking the moment to figure out how to tell this man what was going on. He looked at him. "Astis, could you please turn the lights on? I know you don't need them, but I'm human."
"Alright..." the light flickered on and Astis was visible completely for the first time. He was a large and well muscled man, but not overly so. His white hair looked pre-mature, since he couldn't be any older than in his 30's. However, Kou knew that was all a fiscade. Behind those dark piecing eyes was an organically grown CPU, perhaps the most advanced one to date, and definitely years beyond anything the private sector has dreamed of yet.
"Much better..." Kou continued, "Now, as I was saying, we are out to find the man responsible for killing Vision that night."
"Alright, I understand that, but what exactly do you want me to do?"
"The killer, we believe was a boomer. We want you to contribute to the search. If you find anything, you will report directly to me. Understand?" Kou handed Astis a card with a number on it.
Astis nodded in response before putting the card in his pocket.
"Very good... thank you, Astis... from me and the entire Hou Bang organization," Kou finished before turning to the door. He opened the door and stepped out before stopping suddenly. "Oh, and one more thing... Don't touch him yet when you find him. I want to be there to extract vengeance personally." On that last note, Kou's voice took a very savage twist and it made Astis jump to hear it.
Still, he replied the best way he knew. "You know I would rather not get into a fight anyway... but alright."
"Thank you... personally." And with that Kou was gone, leaving Astis to figure out what he would do. Already had a lead, but he had to find where she lived... the young lady who had played along side Vision had seen the killer. He would have to seek Priss Asigiri.