Oof sorry a bit long.
gg.
BTW this is Fake Mary to anyone who's aslking. Real Mary got offed. Life goes on man.
If you don't know what that means, don't worry about it. :)
"Mary, we're all done on this end. You find anything interesting on your side?"
It was about 9:30 in the morning, and Mary was scourging the warehouse for any hints and clues. Yesterday the forensics team tore the place apart looking for evidence of murder - and possibly a murder tied to HCon. The labs had determined there were several people in the warehouse at the time of the shooting, but things still weren't conclusive. All they had so far was an unidentifiable blood splatter and some gunpowder residue. For all Mary knew, two gangbangers went at it, and one shot the other.
Her coworkers seem to be of the same mind. But something in Mary's head, perhaps that innate sense for chasing clues, was telling her that she was on something big - and it started here. She could smell the conspiracy in the air.
"Hey? Officer Mary, if you haven't got anything, can we go? My little girl has got a recital."
"Not yet…and not yet."
She called over her shoulder and rolled her eyes as her colleagues groaned. They weren't taking this seriously as she was - almost as if they were hoping not to find anything. Well, of course they hoped they didn't find anything. SouthTown PD didn't want a war with Geese, and as a result, they did not want any condemning evidence on their hands… because once they had some, they'd be compelled to act upon it.
("She's like Blackwell, that one… what if she finds something?")
("Well, we'll need to tell the boss then, right?")
("Right...")
Her colleagues both knew what it was like to go to war with Geese Howard. Nobody was safe, not themselves, not their families. Mary didn't have a husband or children, but most of SouthTown's police force had families. This kind of conflict was absolutely vicious. No holds barred. It meant putting spouses and children in the line of fire, and if push came to shove, Mary knew many of her colleagues were parents before they were cops.
Still… she couldn't overcome her nature. She was a bloodhound at heart. Over there, a set of discarded ropes which had been hastily swept against a cabinet. The faint imprint of knees pressed against the concrete. Somebody… no, at least two people had been kneeling here, tied up, for an extended period of time, and ... Mary sniffed the air then squatted down to the rough concrete- resting her elbows on her knees.
… there.
It was faint, but that was the scent of urine. Several people had been here, tied up and terrified enough to piss themselves. Now if she could only get a sample for DNA test, she-
("Oh, hi Lori. What's up? You look like shit man. Your boyfriend make you cry?")
("Aw, shut the fuck up man. He'll snap again. You feeling better Lori? Gave us a hell of a scare couple months ago.")
("Fuck you Johnny. And Mike, in 60 seconds I'm melting this place to the floor. Go make sure I don't kill anyone.")
Mary flinched as she recognized the voice muttering from the warehouse entrance. Was that... Iori Yagami? What the hell was the head of Asia's largest organized crime family doing on the scene of a murder investigation tied to America's largest crime ring? The whole thing stunk. Mary stood, picked up her tools, and jogged out toward the entrance. The urine sample could be taken later. Iori was a datamime. He probably knew something, and was also awful at keeping secrets.
She rounded a corner and caught Iori in her sights. He was dressed like a disaster - per usual - and seemed to be particularly annoyed today. He greeted her with a raised hand and a dismissive order.
"Hey Mary. I'm burning this place down. Get out."
"...Huh?"
"Kagura will murder me if you get hurt. Get the fuck out and let me do my job. I'm already half an hour late to work. Any longer and Howard will take the opportunity to get himself kidnapped. I swear that brat thinks he's some kind of princess."
Per usual, Iori Yagami was making no sense.
Normally, a senseless person was hardly a threat. But when a person controlled fire with a mastery Iori Yagami expressed, it didn't matter how braindead he was. Everyone still had to take him seriously. Mary opted to fight the uphill battle of reasoning with him. She took a deep breath and spoke slowly - as if he were a toddler.
"Hey Yagami, listen to me... This is a police investigation. You can't burn it down otherwise you will destroy the evidence. We're trying to catch a killer here, so- Yagami! What the hell!?"
He glared at her, clearly frustrated with all the complicated words she was saying. She wasn't sure if he understood a single syllable she uttered, but it didn't matter either way. Before Mary had time to react, he blinked and the building behind her was consumed by an impossibly bright purple light. The sound was deafening and Mary instinctively shielded herself from the explosion. In a moment, steel beams turned to liquid, and every ounce of evidence was consigned to the flames.
Damn it!
When the light faded and her ears stopped ringing, Mary grabbed Iori by the arm and shook him, demanding an explanation.
"You! Why did you do that! What's wrong with you? Are you working with Geese?!"
"...Geese? No. I work with Rock... Actually, Rock works for me. I thought you knew. He plays guitar… and I'm half an hour late..."
Iori blinked at her, then frowned. He shook off her grip and looked around as if he were lost. Mary glared alternatively at him and the evidence he had melted into a mess of glowing, molten metal. She continued to berate him.
"Do you even know what you burned down?! Why are you here! Who sent you!"
She got a flat deadpan in response. He furrowed his brow and turned to think, appearing troubled. Either he wasn't sure who had given him these instructions, hadn't understood her question, or both. All three options were equally likely. What a nightmare it must be to interrogate this man. What a perfect pawn he was.
"Yagami? Hello? Are you alright? Would you answer me?"
"I… shouldn't be late."
He sounded strange. His tone was off, and he appeared uncomfortable. Iori didn't look like this often. He looked like he wanted to ask her something, then suddenly turned on his heel and fled like a bat out of hell.
"What- hey! Come back here! You!... Ugh. You nutjob!"
Mary shouted as SouthTown's resident kook tore down the sidewalk, hopped into his car, and drove away. Honestly, he was rapidly building a murder case against himself - but everyone in SouthTown's Police department knew how Iori killed people. It wasn't with guns.
("Oh Damn, Lori's acting weird… you think he's gonna snap again?")
("I fucking hope not…he's probably just high. Bet that kid smokes everything under the sun... oh… Sheriff's calling… damn I don't wanna deal with him.")
("Make Mary take it. The higher ups love her." )
("Good idea…) Mary?! Call for you?!"
"What?!"
"Sheriff on the phone for you!"
Ugh. Bureaucracy.
Mary groaned and held out her hand to take the call. She took a deep breath and composed herself. The past five minutes have been a rollercoaster for her. The elation of finding clues… followed by Iori burning it all and fleeing like a maniac… followed by a call from her new, weird boss. It was a lot, but she could handle it.
Phew.
"This is Officer Ryan."
*Ryan? Ah, yeah. Blackwell here. Yah know, I'm getting sent back home tah Texas. Looks like da Mayer had a change of heart about this Goose Haward thing, that jelly-spined caward…*
…
"Sir… you've been ...fired?"
*That's right Missy. You're on Yar own. I've been told tah cancel yer investigation, but we both know who's behind this. If this was a dead lead, n'body would give a damn.*
Mary's heart fell. Blackwell was an odd duck, but was certainly an excellent Sheriff. Clearly he was being cut at Geese's request… but through what channel? The Mayor? The Governor? It stank of conspiracy, and Mary put her nose right on the trail. She lived for the hunt.
"Sir… don't cancel my case. Grant me clearance. You've been fired anyways - what else can they do? I'll take Howard down. You can watch from the sidelines."
A hearty laugh over the phone.
*Attagirl Ryan. Looks like there's a'least someone in this place with some spine. Ah have one more week before I get shipped back home, and you know what that means?*
Mary didn't. She furrowed her brow.
"No sir."
*It means I've got one week to catch the ol' Goose of course!… and I need men I can trust. SouthTown PD is crawling with dirty rats. Meet me in my office when you get back. It's time we did some policing.*
My boi is absolutely losing his head lol.
Actually just Chiz. Poor guy has no idea why he's there.
Such a tool
Blackwell is coolio :)
He's an OC :eyes: :coffin: