Angels with Newfound Hope
Act 1 Chapter 23: Busywork
Chief's Office - Day 10, 11:15AM
"I'm surprised you called me back so quickly. Just had some lunch made. So how's the investigation going?" Alex greeted as soon as he saw Sebastian's 'sun-shiny' face.
"Oh it's going swimmingly. But as you probably expect: we're still short-handed. With how this thing's been going, we're going to have to employ external help." The runner addressed the problem pretty much instantly. Just as the brunette expected: not enough hands on deck.
"I get it. This has been a real clusterfuck, if I say so myself." Alex related, thinking back to everything.
"Yeah, we were so close today. If we had just been a few minutes earlier... And then the generator bomb thing. Who's to say he won't start using them elsewhere?" Sebastian muddled, completely worried over the situation.
"At least he shouldn't have any now, right? You said everything stolen was accounted for." The human queried. That asshole could go get more, but he wasn't about to say it aloud.
"True, but this whole 'clusterfuck' is getting to be too much for our small town department." The officer groaned. He leaned back in Bryce's chair with claw marks in the bridge of his nose.
"Then I hope we get the help we need. And even then, I'll still work tirelessly til we catch him." Alex raised his fist to his chest with a determined smoulder.
"Thanks Alex. Hopefully it won't come to that, but I'm glad we can count on you even then." At least it got the runner smiling again, if slightly.
"Any time. So what have you got for me for now?" The human asked, eyes glossing over a short list. It was clearly not written in Bryce's atrocious handwriting, as indicated by another paper with the real deal.
"We found some more things Reza stole when we searched the building, along with this bloody bandage." Sebastian pushed a sealed baggie with the aforementioned item toward him.
"You think it's his?" The brunette checked, clearly focused on the dressing.
"Given everything we know, it's most likely." The officer replied with a hint of a deadpan.
"So he's either wounded again, or he still hasn't healed from the first one." Alex tried zoning in on the blood patterns to no avail. The bite marks all looked too similar.
"Can't say I'm sure myself. But in any case, it'd be a huge help if you could bring that to the lab for us." Sebastian offered simply.
"Sure thing." Was all the brunette said.
"Next, we have a witness who reported hearing loud bangs during the night. We're suspicious it came from Reza's gun. You'll just need to make a follow-up visit, confirm the witness' statement, and see if he has anything new." The runner added without giving Alex a chance to respond.
"Then there's the PDAs we reclaimed. The archives have actual experience with human artifacts, so we sent them over there. Better than any of our departments trying anything. And lastly: the eggs. What a relief we found them unharmed. They're perfectly safe and ready to be sent back to the hatchery." It seemed Sebastian was done rattling off everything.
"Understood. And with some due respect, shouldn't we get those taken care of first?" The human finally took the opportunity to speak again.
"It's nowhere near as urgent as you may think. Our eggs are rather resilient. Putting them in the hatchery's care is more of an insurance than a requirement. Heck, some people just keep them in their own homes instead. Regardless, the hatchery's been notified. Only problem is that they won't be able to send someone for another few hours. I've heard they're really understaffed. You'd certainly speed it up by bringing everything over, but it's not urgent." Yet another long-winded explanation by his favorite runner.
"Got it. Guess I'll hop to it, then." Alex dismissed, turning to the laundry list.
"Thanks, Alex. I know it's laughable that we don't even have a free hand for simple errands. By the way, are you thinking about attending the summer festival?" The officer queried, prompting the brunette to face him again.
"Are you even sure I should? I'd probably be so caught up with this that I wouldn't even watch where I'm walking." The human was skeptical, that was beyond certain.
"It's always important to take a break so that doesn't happen. Plus, there's so much to see there. For one example: the big fireworks on the last day." Sebastian grinned at the implication.
"I guess I'll try not to miss it, but what about you?" Alex was quick to fire back.
"I'll be on guard duty at the portal. It kind of pisses me off too, since I probably won't be able to see anything." The officer groused, annoyance painting his features.
"Oof. I've been there. I wish I could help, but I don't know where they're being set off at." The brunette accompanied him in his mild despair. It was never fun when you ended up left out.
"Just your willingness is already making me feel a little better. But I need to get back on the investigation now. Take care of what you can, and I'll get the rest once I'm back." The two bid farewell and good luck to each other before leaving for their own devices...
Production Facility - Day 10, 1:34PM
Alex had a hard time finding that runner's former office. He had to ask around for a bit before being pointed in the right direction.
'I hope this is the right place...' He thought as his knuckle struck the solid wooden door once, and twice. His typical knock echoed through the empty hallways.
"Can I help you?" The dragon from Viper's interrogation, Damion, answered. He certainly looked like hell, considering how much he was put through.
"You're Damion, right? I need to drop this bandage off courtesy of the police." The human had a hard time taking his eyes off the eye patch the lab tech wore.
"Yeah I am. This is from the Reza case, right? I already read the memo." Damion affirmed, taking the dressing gently.
"Indeed. Hey, hate to pry, but what happened to your...?" Alex gestured to his own eye for emphasis.
"Why do you need to know?" The tech grumbled, crossing his arms.
"A possible connection to the case, perhaps?" The brunette shot back in his most convincing tone.
"Fucking inquisitors." The dragon sighed. "I don't remember. I think I passed out the night I got injured and woke up the next morning. That's it." He finished with one hell of a look.
"Weird. Well thanks for sparing a man a thought." The human gratefully bid his farewell.
"Yeah, yeah." Damion waved him off. He definitely wasn't the friendliest, that was for sure. No wonder Viper put him through the wringer...
City Library, 2:40PM
Alex strolled past aisles of bookshelves, PDA in hand. His target was a very absent Remy.
"Pardon me, but do you know where the audio section is? I'm looking for some sheet music." A stone beige dragon with a spotted dorsal frill came up to him.
"Ah, sorry. I don't even work here if I'm being honest." The human respectfully declined. Pity he couldn't help.
"Ah don't worry about it then. I'm sure the staff are all hiding somewhere. Anyway, you take it easy now." With that, the assumed musician waved him off and disappeared behind some aisle. Alex shrugged and continued on his own mission.
The inside of Remy's supposed office reminded the brunette of his own bedroom back home. Bed in one corner, desk in the other. There was surprisingly even a wardrobe.
"How nostalgic." He quietly mused until some claws clicking forced him around.
"You know, this section is usually for staff only." Emera sat chiding in the doorway.
"And who's to say I'm not looking for that staff, namely to drop off this PDA?" The human flashed the wrist-mounted device he 'borrowed' from Reza originally.
"Well your staff isn't working today. Apparently, he has other engagements. He's likely at his home if you need him that badly." The minister dismissed.
"Don't be rude about it, then." Alex groused, catching her attention.
"Pardon?" She gained a snarl he only thought possible with Maverick.
"Nothing. I take it you won't accept this?" He tried handing over the PDA again, completely unfazed.
"No. I'm not taking responsibility if it gets lost. Go find Remy if you want to drop it off." The feminine beast answered so rudely, it made the human's blood boil.
"Fine. What's the address?" He nearly growled.
"710 Zirconia Court. It'll be the contemporary apartment building." Did he hear that right, or was his mind playing tricks on him? He swore he heard his own damn address.
"Okay then. I'll see you whenever." The brunette brushed past, making sure the cold steel of his weapon made contact.
"And Alex?" He glared back. "I hope you don't take it personally that I tried to send you away. Being honest, I'm glad you're still here. We'd probably be-"
"Don't start with that." He cut the jewelled dragon off.
"Excuse me?" She took on a look of shock.
"You heard me. Don't start. You didn't give me a damn chance when we were discussing this. Hell, I was almost sent to my death without thousands of Centura's worth of gear. You have no right to half-assedly apologize like that!" The human let a lot out in that moment. And in the next, he was gone, storming out of the archives...
710 Zirconia Ct., 3:03PM
Two knocks at Remy's door made him snap his head over. It wasn't common that he got visitors on any occasion.
"Oh, Ambassador Alex. To what do I owe the pleasure?" He greeted formally after getting the damn thing open. The human, however...
"Come on, let's drop the formalities already. I'm just a regular guy, Remy." Alex sheepishly addressed. He never was a fan of all that anyway.
"I uh... I don't know." The pearlescent dragon awkwardly kicked at the floor.
"Please?" The brunette begged in his most innocent voice. It seemed to do something at least.
"Alright. But I won't be very comfortable with it. Please, come in." Remy stepped aside to let him through. "So what are you doing here anyway?"
"Ah, right. I swung by to hand this off." The human flashed Reza's PDA. "Your boss wouldn't let me leave it at the library for you."
"Oh, it's one of the PDAs! I had a feeling today would turn out well." The dragon chirped, grabbing the device and striding over to his sofa.
"Oh yeah. All the knowledge at your very claw... tips? I don't know the euphemism." Alex laughed the sentence out.
"You have no idea how much I've been looking forward to this. I'm checking this out as soon as possible, work be damned." The archivist was beaming. Seems the human did well with the gesture.
"Well shit. Guess I'll leave you two to get to know each other. Enjoy~" He jokingly winked on his way out, leaving a surprised and possibly blushing Remy behind...
Chief's Office - 4:01PM
Alex swung the door to Bryce's office open once more, being greeted by a very comfortable Sebastian. He was practically being cradled by the arms of his boss' chair.
"Comfy?" He spoke in a mockery of the chief's voice, startling the runner for a moment.
"Very funny." He sarcastically replied to a laughing Alex.
"Oh, that was good. Okay, so I got the bandage and PDA to their respective parties. Anything else I can do?" The brunette queried with a rather quick attitude change.
"Doesn't look like it. Thanks for the help. Maybe we'll have something new from the analysis later. But for now, I'll get the remaining tasks taken care of. I'm sure you have other things to do besides help our asses all the time." The officer put himself down again.
"Forget about it. This trip was never a vacation to begin with. I'm always happy to help, dummy." The human lightly punched his shoulder. And it looked like Sebastian took the friendly gesture pretty well.
"Alright, alright. I'm glad you're here regardless. We'd be genuinely lost without everything you've done. Now I need to get going. I'll see you around, Alex." The officer bid his farewell.
"Later." Alex gave an informal salute as his companion left...