Angels with Newfound Hope
Act 2 Chapter 12: Assurance
Alex immediately found himself on his way to Tatsu Park. Some hope that he'd find the Administrator there kept his feet moving and his mind focused. Even better would be that she'd be in that maintenance tunnel waiting for him. What shock she'll feel when he puts a bullet in her skull. Checking his clip revealed only three rounds. He'd just have to make the most of it for now...
"There you are. What took you so long?" Maverick commanded the instant he spotted Alex. His ever-glaring blood eyes held no concern for the human's current condition, even after glazing him over.
"I got shot and had to patch myself up... again." The smaller male gestured to his now tattered shirt. Several bits of his torso were littered with visible bullet scars.
"You encountered Reza again? And why weren't you more careful?" The officer chastised, eyes now affixed on the afflicted area.
"A: no, and B: the person who did this had my rifle. I couldn't pursue them without getting perforated." The brunette fired back. "But there is one thing they forgot."
"And that is?" Maverick cocked a brow quizzically.
"I know where they're hiding: Tatsu Park, north side in a maintenance tunnel." Alex cracked a cocky, yet evil grin. His hopes were in favor that the Administrator would've forgotten he'd go down there.
"You'd better be sure about this. I'm not being the one to haul your sorry ass out of there." The larger male turned for their new destination. "Better get going. We won't have much time to lose..."
The newly formed duo hit the pavilion in record time for just two people walking. Glancing at the map, they checked for the quickest path to the north end.
"Looks like this path with all the trees will be shorter. It starts on the west end of the pavilion." Alex observed, tracing it with a finger.
"You don't think everyone else will be using it because of the shade? It's especially hot out today. I say we take the main path at a jog. There'll be less people in our way." Maverick countered. His claw went to the avenue linking the two areas.
"Ugh. Guess you have a point there. Just let me adjust my clothes real quick..." The human immediately unbuttoned his shirt, tying it over a shoulder like some sort of cloak. The garment itself hung down to his wrist with only his hand and watch exposed.
"Alright, Fantasy-Man, are you ready now?" The officer teased with a touch of humor in those gravelly vocals. His companion gave a hint of a smile at the remark.
"I'd say so, Fantasy-Reptile. Lead the way." The smaller male gestured up north toward their destination. The white brick herringbone of the pavement led up to the horizon, where that funny tree lay shedding its violet leaves...
That walk tired Alex out more than he imagined. Though, maybe it was the fact that he was only recently healed from his many more wounds. The bench with that oblivious dragon came into view with Maverick heading over to evict its resident.
"Hey. You need to leave." He stated gruffly as he stepped close. Yet, the statuesque dragon didn't budge an inch. "There's an investigation going on here. Don't make me remove you by force."
"Just forget about them. They're not even paying-"
"Hey! What the heck are you doing?! Let me go!" Turning around, Alex found his angered companion hauling his poor victim up by the arm.
"Maverick, drop them! They weren't even doing anything!" The brunette commanded, a hand on his karambit just in case.
"This is an investigation. All civilians need to evacuate the premeses. Or did Bryce never tell you that?" The silver-scaled dragon addressed with a snarl.
"No, because I never made myself into a problem. Now drop them and get your sorry ass over here. We're losing precious time arguing." Alex ordered once again. Gripping the arm of his target even harder, he released them with searing rage.
"Screw you both, I'm getting the police!" They fired off out of disdain for the situation. The human stopped them with a much softer hand to explain.
"I am the police. Chief Bryce sent me here. But then this one decided to play loose cannon. We're sorry for any harm done, and he will be punished harshly for it." And explain he did. His words were those spoken by Chris whenever he was training a new officer.
"He'd better be. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to find somewhere away from this asshole." With that, the victim stormed off in search of peace and quiet.
"Let's get that maintenance hatch open. The code should be both buttons and a counter-clockwise turn." Alex commanded sans-emotion. That crap was just further proof he wouldn't make it in the force.
"And who'll go down there? Reza hates us both, so we're equally likely to get shot." Maverick asked with many other questions hidden away. That human he was stuck in this alliance with sounded just like Bryce the first time he was reprimanded.
"I can defend myself using my pistol. You stay up here while I go make sure he can't hurt anyone else." Said human brushed past to pull open the hatch, aiming his weapon inside. He finally took his first steps underground once satisfied with the lack of life...
Alex slid down the rest of the ladder the moment he hit its halfway point. There was a sharp tension in the air as he glanced around, sidearm readied. Flipping his nightshades down revealed just what he'd hoped to see inside this desolate tunnel.
The Administrator lay in wait for him. Just in the corner of his vision she sat crouched, rifle affixed on his head. He'd have to pick his next movements with extreme tact if he were to survive. Regen would heal most non-grave wounds. And so the standoff began...
The Ambassador stood in anticipation of her next move. That much was more than evident by his posture. He knew she was here with him, and he wouldn't leave until her blood painted the ground. She thought she'd killed him back in that basement. She guessed wrong.
"I know you're there. Put the gun down before things go sour." Alex tried to reason. Shame he couldn't do the same. He knew this wouldn't work, that much was a given. She'd either try and bolt or lay more fire upon him. She chose the latter. Her finger squeezing the trigger gave him a telltale sign to duck.
And duck, he did. The male snapped down right as a few rounds zipped past him. His own pistol coughed out two rounds. One sailed into the Administrator's hand, whilst the other rammed right into her face. Both the mask and rifle clattered to the floor with a pained grunt. The final one missed by a millimeter as the culprit got up and bolted.
"Fuck!" Alex hissed as she disappeared deeper in. At least he had evidence and his rifle. Now the real question was how he'd get out with them...
Maverick caught sight of his companion emerging back into the afternoon sun via a new weapon he hadn't seen before. It clattered against the pavement as his head stuck out. The human carried a wooden mask of some sort on the waistband of his pants: A spoil from whoever he fought down there.
"Who was that down there? That definitely didn't sound like Reza to any degree." The dragon pressed immediately. His company waved him off, getting up before speaking again.
"It wasn't. At least we've got evidence toward that. The bitch can't show herself without her precious mask." Alex waved it about like a trophy. A victorious smile grazed his features, giving him a sinister look.
"That... doesn't answer my question. But at least whoever that was is down a weapon." Maverick pointed out the rifle his partner propped himself up with. Said male pulled it to his chest in order to show it off.
"And it only cost me my pistol. Used the last of my ammo to get everything. Hopefully, Bryce will be happier with this..." Alex trailed off. His gaze went down to what he'd gathered as his mind ran away. It seemed this time around, he couldn't make his dragon happy no matter what he did. It was just never enough even if he begged. What was he doing wrong...?
"He should be. This brings us closer to the truth. I think what he wants right now is for this to be over with. And regarding you; for you to stop mourning." The officer reassured him with shockingly great empathy. It actually made the ambassador do a double-take.
"Who are you and what have you done with Maverick?" Was all he could manage out.
"Nothing at all. You know, I was in your position before." The silver male uttered, a wistful expression painting itself across his face.
"You lost someone dear to you before?" To say Alex was stunned was an understatement. He couldn't even maintain a look of disbelief due to what plagued him in the moment.
"Two, actually. Don't think I'll be telling either of those stories, though, so go find someone who will." Now it was Maverick's turn to delve into the dark recesses of his own consciousness. In that abyss lie feelings he wished never to let escape again.
"Right. I only wish I hadn't run out of ammo before that. In any case, we have what we need. I'll let you tell me about this person whenever you feel ready. Let's split up so we maintain our cover. Meet me back where you were waiting before. The rest shouldn't take long. The ambassador hoisted his weapon back in his arms and skipped off, leaving his former comrade to think about just what all happened down there...
Convenience Store - Day 4, 2:39PM
The blistering chill of air conditioning felt fantastic to Alex as he stepped inside. That girl from before clipped his leg on her way out, sending him to his knees with a grunt. Getting up slowly revealed none other than Zhong.
"Ambassador Alex? Well color me surprised you're here, especially with such ragged clothing. You wrestle with Maverick or something?" The anthro joked with only a deadpan look from his company.
"Ha ha. There's some things I need to ask you." The larger male stated bluntly, not wanting to ruin any mood that hadn't already been killed. Zhong eyed him up and down before smiling.
"Straight to business, eh? Fair enough. Come with me to the counter. We'll talk there over some fresh clothes." The clerk led him up to where he'd been folding some kind of vest. A neat stack of them lay next to the one in progress. What a thing to bring him back to his old retail job. All those crappy tee shirts did leave the human with impeccable folding skills, even if he often didn't want to think about that.
"I'm afraid all I'll need is a sewing kit for that. I don't know the limits of what I can buy with my card. But back to business. I need to know Reza's purchase history. Any chance you could print me off a list of that or something?" Alex requested. In the very least, he'll be able to get the list and be out before Bryce could be brought up. He knew good and well that he left a horrible impression anyway...
"Like his whole purchase history? I guess. Just give me a second..." Zhong started punching whatever into the till and seconds later, Reza's entire history was there on paper.
"Good. Thank you. I should probably be going now. Bryce is waiting on me." Alex tried to excuse himself to no avail. Zhong caught him before he could even turn around. Now he was subject to whatever was in store. There was no easy way out of this anymore.
"Hold on a second. There's something I need to talk to you about regarding him. He talked to me about you last night." That was it. And here it came...
"He's worried about you. I think we know just how your mood was when you first visited the bar. It concerned me as well. You're not okay, and he wants to help. But we need to know just what's going on fir-"
"I know. We discussed it over our hangovers the day after. Come tonight, we should be able to talk about it more." Alex interjected. His depression poked its way through his facade in the moment before he turned around and finally left...
"Shouldn't take long, huh?" Maverick teased in his own brand of humor. The target, however, did not share the sentiment.
"It's only been forty minutes. Didn't help that the clerk stuck his nose in my business." Alex grumbled angrily. In his clenched fist lay strangled, a small slip of paper, easily recognizable as a receipt.
"And I take it you bought something while you were there?" The officer eyed it carefully. What could he have possibly needed from a convenience store of all places?
"Yeah: Reza's purchase history. I'm willing to bet that you knew he bought lemons every time. It's strange though. We haven't heard anything after he left with the others. Even the portal he went through was dismantled after a week." The ambassador pondered aloud, piquing the interest of his current ally.
"Then how'd you get through? If there was no longer a way here, you shouldn't even exist right now." Maverick's blood eyes filled with suspicion and irritation. How could he be expected to trust this human if he can't even speak the truth about how he's in his world?
"A friend and I built one of our own. We even held it open for a full day to ensure stability before I first went through." The brunette revealed with expected bluntness. If his statements were weapons, they'd most likely be baseball bats.
"What else have you been keeping secret?" Was all the dragon asked.
"Not a lot. We can discuss this further later, though. I need to get back to the station. Sebastian's likely been waiting a while." Alex tried to leave it at that until a strong paw took his arm.
"Answer me this and I'll let you leave. When you said you wouldn't kill me, did you mean it?" There was that worry in those blood eyes again. It seemed he still had doubts about the human. Doubt that needed to be squashed post-haste.
"I'll tell you this. There were multiple opportunities where I could've, but didn't. Not even when you were about to rip my throat out did I try to fight back. When I give you my word; you can bet your life that I'll stay true to it." Alex left after that without another syllable. And Maverick? He pondered this information all the way back to his house...
