The following day, Trevor was at the precinct, writing up his report of the attack on the school. Normally, across his career, his paperwork was beyond reproach. Even in his days back in Afghanistan, his field logs were always meticulous in their detail and contained tremendous amounts of information. It wasn't unknown for him to be able to descriptively map virtually his entire patrol, describe in detail everyone he met, give complicated schematics and even materials used of any weapons and devices he found. Looking at this report, it was almost impossible to recognise the paperwork of a man who once wrote a fifteen-page workup on a home-made claymore he had once discovered in a sandstorm.
He was well aware of the fact that his colleagues often left out details in reports. Things were missed or forgotten, and sometimes, just omitted as unimportant. Of course, sometimes they were also left out because those details showed things that they weren't meant to be doing and incriminated people in disciplinary infractions. He had never been one to write reports like that, he had seen enough cross-examinations go side-ways in court based on details that were missing from reports that he always made a point of putting in everything. Of course, over the last few months, with all the reports he'd seen being redacted, go missing, or even just shredded when it came to the Rangers, he didn't really see much point in putting in details that he knew were likely to go missing altogether anyway.
He was well aware of the unofficial no-touch policy on the Rangers. It wasn't just public relations, officers were instructed to go onto crowd control and after the battles clean-up after the battles. It was galling to him to watch men that had served on the force for decades with brooms and trash bags, cleaning up debris from the Rangers' battles like some kind of B-Squad that was only sitting on the bench while the first team took all the glory and got all the credit. It wasn't like he ever saw the Rangers giving CPR to the bystanders or organising alternate accommodation for those who had been left without homes in the wake of their battles. They never had to call a family to tell them one of their loved ones was in hospital or worse, would not be coming home. No, they just posed on television while things blew up all around them. He had, however, figured that when all was said and done, he had a job to do, and it wasn't as though his superiors could instruct him to not do his job. If he watched a crime being committed, it was his duty to intervene.
He looked at his 'report', something of an embarrassment for him. Only three pages that left out so much he saw there being no need for anyone else to know, least of all the suits that no doubt would soon turn up to put it through the shredder and hand him the 'real' version of the report. There was no point to tell them about the shotgun, which he had already retrieved and put back in the strong box in the trunk of his car. There was no point in telling them about the fact he had opened fire on a Ranger. There was no need to say much of anything. As he finished, he signed the statement and headed towards Ellie's desk to hand it to her for filing.
"This one's a little light for you Trevor." She commented.
"Yeah, there really wasn't much to tell." He told her. "You know, the Rangers did most of the work…as usual."
Ellie didn't say anything in response. She, like many, was well aware of Trevor's frustrations with the Rangers. They were frustrations that were shared by more than a few people in the department, but with Ellie having lived in three Ranger cities in her life, she had a different view. While she spent a significant amount of time in hospital afterwards, she had survived a monster attack in Amber Beach as a direct result of the Rangers, and her husband was still around thanks to the Ninja Rangers' actions in the battle at the Ribbon Tree. To her, the Rangers did more good than harm, and she was grateful for their presence, but she didn't feel the need to get into a fight with her friend over their disagreement on this matter.
"You're a little quiet." He commented.
"Oh, I'm just missing Sarah, that's all." She sighed. "I know, I know, it's silly, she's only staying at a friends' place to work on a project, but I'm just not used to her not being around, tinkering on one of her devices or telling me what she's working on."
"Yeah, I'm a little sore about the fact Hayley's away as well." Trevor admitted. "I know she's got her own life, and in a couple of years we're probably going to barely see her when she's off to college, but we only get her a month about, losing a week is a big thing. It makes me really regret missing that dinner we were supposed to have."
"I'm sure Hayley understands." Ellie told him. Before he could answer though, a woman in a suit appeared. He recognised her from earlier, but had to do a double-take when he did.
"Sterling?" He asked as she appeared. "Where the hell did you come from?"
"My office." Grace answered. "The department was kind enough to accommodate me with a room, the one just down the hall on the right."
"You mean the shredding room?" He asked her. "That seems appropriate."
"Yes, it may not have the creature comforts of my usual office, but I've been in less pleasant surroundings." She told him. "This report is a little light for you."
"I didn't have much to tell." He said with a shrug. Grace took a cursory glance at the document, before smiling.
"I'm sure there's nothing you left out that we need to know." She replied. "I'll take this for now, but I may have to get back to you on it."
"You know how to reach me." He stated. With that, Grace left, taking the report with her. Trevor kicked the desk in frustration.
"Hey, mind the furniture!" Ellie stated. "I know it's not exactly top-of-the-line, but the department doesn't have a great track record with ordering supplies! I know I stamp the approvals! I'd rather not work on the floor for three months!"
"Sorry Ellie." He snorted. "I can't help it; the woman just rubs me the wrong way."
"She does have a gift for that, you should see the way she clears a room when she comes." Ellie told him. "It's amazing to think she was almost the first woman on the moon."
"I'm sorry what?" He asked.
"She was, she was in NASADA!" Ellie informed him. "She did a few missions, but then she went and formed her own science and engineering firm Promethea."
"I thought she was a fed!" He answered.
"She wears a lot of hats." Ellie told him. "I've heard she does so much work for the Government she holds a few positions there."
"How do you know so much about her?" Trevor asked.
"How else? Sarah's been looking at internships and grants with Promethea for a couple of years now." Ellie explained. "Grace is kind of a hero of hers. As far as role models go, who better than a woman who only missed out on the moon mission to Armstrong."
"Armstrong? NEIL Armstrong?" He asked. "That was in 1969!"
"Kind of badass huh?" She asked. "I know I'd love to be half as active as her in my mid-seventies!"
"Yeah…that's something alright." He agreed. "Anyway, I want to go check with the lab on Victor's case. I'll catch you later."
With that, he left the building, perfectly confident that his report would never see the light of day. In the meantime, he had more work to do.
Over in the school, things were quiet. The school had been shut down for the rest of the week due to the damage after Abrakadanger's attack, which meant that Preston now had some space to work uninterrupted on his spell book.
He was sprawled out over the book, snoring loudly, having finally fallen asleep. He had been reading through the whole book, spending the entire day with very little time for rest. He now knew that it was his attempt to take shortcuts that had led to all of this. He had failed to build up his skills as he should and, in the end, it had resulted in him failing when it counted. He was gently shaken awake, coming to with a start.
"Oh man, I must have dozed off." Preston commented. "How long was I out?"
"About four hours." Mick told him. "We figured you deserved it after being up all night."
"You should have…"
"Preston, you need some rest as well." Hayley told him. "I know I wanted to train all day when I wanted to take on Victor, but if you don't get some rest, you're just going to burn out."
"So, it looks like you're making some progress." Mick commented. "Just to give you a break from the books, want to try out some of those spells?"
"I don't know, maybe I should…"
"Come on Preston, practice makes perfect!" Hayley told him, picking up an apple which appeared to float in the air and taking a bite. "I've read so many books on tennis, but at some point, you just have to try it!"
"Alright, well…Spell one, levitate. I'm already pretty good at that." Preston stated, picking up his wand. He looked around for something to use as a target. Eventually he picked a simple screw.
"Etativel!" He called out, pointing his wand at it. They all watched as it lifted off the bench, floating in the air. Mick and Hayley both applauded the effort.
"Alright, how about we try something a little harder, something a little heavier just to make sure you have it." Mick suggested. "How about…that anvil!"
"Alright, just…no one get under it." He replied. "Etativel!"
They watched as it started to shift, before lifting up off the ground. Hayley and Mick both went over to congratulate Preston as he guided it to a safe place and started to bring it down.
"That's amazing…I didn't know if I could…I was barely able to move that by hand!" He stated.
"OK, one down, how about you try the next one?" Mick asked him. "Changing an object's colour!"
"OK, I'll give it a try." Preston said, looking around. "Hold still Redbot."
"What?" Redbot asked.
"Egnahc Ruoloc!" Preston called out. They all watched as the beam shot from his wand, hitting Redbot. Before their eyes, he started to shift in colour, before becoming completely blue. The others all laughed as Redbot went to the mirror and checked himself out. "I'm sorry Redbot, maybe I can…"
"There's no rush." Redbot said as he inspected himself. "I've been Red so long…it might be nice to have a change for a little while."
"Alright, so I'm halfway through this chapter." Preston stated. "Give me a little while, and we'll see if I can turn things into food."
"Viera and I will find some stuff we can use." Hayley told him. "Um…guys, where's Viera?"
"Oh, Viera went out." Mick told them. "She said something about doing some reading in the library."
"Well, I guess since she has time it's as good a time as any to learn a bit more about our world." Hayley replied. "We can fetch her for lunch in a little bit."
"Alright, so back to the books." Preston said, starting to read. "Come on, two down, just eight more to go."
Meanwhile, back at the precinct, Trevor headed to the lab to get the results from the test on the bag found in Victor's bag. Although the circumstantial evidence against him was pretty strong, Trevor owed his dad a lot, and had promised to do everything he could to help.
He went to the lab tech, who was in the middle of some other work when he saw him.
"Marx, I was just about to e-mail you." He told him.
"That's good to hear." Trevor answered. "I take it that means you've found something."
"Please, who do you think you're talking to? Of course, I've found something!" He replied, looking around for the report, handing him a folder. "Here's what you asked for."
"OK, how about we pretend I don't have a degree in chemistry?" Trevor asked him. "Maybe then you can tell me what I'm looking at."
"Well, I'm sure you recognise this one at least, this compound right here that constitutes the majority of the contents of the vial." He told him. Trevor looked to it.
"Water?" He asked. "With trace amounts of…OK, I recognise water…you're saying the vial was full of water?"
"With a TINY amount of HGH, miniscule." The lab tech told him.
"So, the dealer's cutting more than a little too lean." Trevor asked.
"You could say that, but given how little is in it, I think a more likely explanation is it was re-filled after its original contents were used." He replied. "The seal's also been tampered with. I think someone used a used vial and re-filled it. Why do you think that anyone would do that?"
"Because they were too cheap to use real product to frame him." Trevor surmised. "It's a little thin but…"
"Well, there's also what's not there." He told him. "I checked the syringe, the bag, the vial, all of it. Victor's fingerprints aren't anywhere on it."
"They're not?" Trevor asked him.
"How many people do you know bother wearing gloves when they buy drugs?" He asked him. "In fact, the only fingerprints on it are Principal Hastings' from when she found it, and one other unidentified partial."
"Unidentified." Trevor said with a smile. "I can work with that. If someone else handled it, that just means that we need to find someone that has a grudge against Victor."
"That would be your department." The lab tech answered. "I just deal with what I can put under a microscope."
"Thanks for this." Trevor told him. The lab tech stopped him as he was about to leave.
"So, Marx, tell me…is it true what people are saying?" He asked. "Are you really trying to go after the Rangers?"
"What if I am?" He asked. The lab tech looked around, before looking back to him.
"Sterling's been asking around about you." He warned him. Trevor just sighed and shook his head.
"Thanks for the heads' up." He replied, before he left.
Back at the Ranger Base, Preston was still working hard on his spells, determined to get through at least two more before the end of the day. He had managed to turn some hockey pucks into burgers for lunch, which was a welcome break for them all, and the next spell was something of an odd one but after a few hiccups, he finally managed it.
"Oh, come on Hayley, it's not that big a deal." Preston said as he scratched Kody behind the ears.
"I just…I just think it's not fair." She muttered. "I mean, language is my thing!"
"To be fair, it still is." Preston answered. "I need to use a spell and even then, it only lasts about a minute."
Kody just barked in response.
"See what I mean? I have no idea what he just said." Preston assured her.
"Well…alright." She replied. "I suppose it's all in the name of getting you the experience you need."
"Exactly! It's like grinding in a videogame!" Preston assured her. "The odds are I'll never even use this spell again, not when we have the human translator here."
"Alright Preston, you've made amazing progress, we were always hoping for four spells in a day." Mick told him. "So, do you want a rest for a while?"
"I think I can go on." Preston told them. "I mean, I'm tired, and given everything that's happened already I wouldn't push for more if I didn't feel like I could go, but…I think I can manage one more today."
"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure?" Mick asked him. "We can start up again tomorrow…"
"It's fine Mick, I promise. Just one more today, I swear it." Preston assured him. He started reading the chapter. "Alright, it's a short one, that's good. It's also…OK, this one I have no idea why you'd want to do this one but…it's a good one alright."
"What is it?" Hayley asked him.
"Alright, just here." Preston said, satisfying himself with what he needed to do. "Worg Riah!"
He pointed his wand at Redbot, who was still getting used to being blue, and somewhat admiring himself in the mirror. It had never occurred to the team that Redbot had been red literally his whole existence. Changing clothes was something most people took for granted, and so many people changed how they looked pretty much every day. It was also a little unusual to think that it was something that would even bother a robot, but ever since Hayley's mishap with the dance, they had learned that there was a lot more to Redbot's programming than just a mindless devotion to function.
As the beam struck him, bright, green curly hair sprung from his head, forming all over. Hayley and Mick both stared at him for a moment.
"That…that's…yeah, I have no idea why anyone would want to do that."
"I guess with more concentration I could affect the colour and style, we already know I can chance colours with a spell." Preston replied. "I suppose if you were bald and upset about it that spell might be useful."
"Who knew a powerful wizard would care about hair loss?" Mick answered. "Alright Preston, you've done an amazing job, but right now…you are getting some rest, and no arguments!"
"Absolutely none here!" Preston answered with a loud yawn. "I am definitely bushed!"
"You know, I think we can wait a little longer." Hayley assured him. "Seeing how hard you're working, you've definitely earned it!"