Chapter 6

Original characters and material set in universe by Square Enix. The author claims no for-profit ownership over them.

"Smells like the Lucavi were here," the detective muttered to himself underneath his vinyl mask, glaring a little as the police tape sealing off the 5th basement floor of the library came into view. He spent the first few seconds on this floor looking out at the meeting pit in the center of the room before turning to the crime scene.

The majority of the crime scene had been relegated to the shelves and study area overlooking the space. Evidence markers and chalk outlines were placed around the bodies, but in deference to the literature around them, the forensic spotlights had already been turned off, leaving only the standard fluorescent beams that normally illuminated the area.

Despite only being in his early 30s, and having only made Detective a short time ago, Lennard Alarcon no longer seemed surprised at the things that humes could do to each other. This crime scene was no exception.

He gingerly made his way over to the bodies, trying not to shiver in his trenchcoat and trying not to cringe from the odor made by the corpses under his vinyl facemask.

Another detective arrived at the bottom of the stairs as Alarcon analyzed the corpses, carrying a folder under an arm clad by a jacket bearing the official markings of the Ivalician Royal Constabulary. He was taller than the black-haired detective by a quarter-dohm, with paler skin and almost reddish hair.

"At least the forensics team treated the corpses better than the books, eh?" Detective Arnold Valenti was the first to speak, his initial words louder than the last ones before he reflexively began to regulate his tone.

"Better than whoever made them into corpses," Alarcon grumbled, before turning his head to look at the books around him. The forensics team undoubtedly had to exercise caution when working around items more fragile than corpses. "I pray they weren't burned too far beyond recognition."

"Well, going by their driver's license pictures, it's most likely them," Valenti was able to tame the enthusiasm in his voice as he opened the folder and carefully made his way over to the corpse by the entrance door. "Everyone authorized to come down here had to check in at the front door...and these were the last two names on the list. Staff, janitors, all accounted for."

"Not bad," Alarcon replied with a satisfied smirk. "Amazing what you can find out by pickpocketing. Go on."

"Charles Doucet. First year engineer at Goug Technica," Valenti sighed. "The way what's left of him is contorted, whatever killed him was the last thing he saw and thought about."

Alarcon raised both eyebrows and crossed his arms. "There are probably worse ways to go out than this. Tell me more about corpse #2 then," Alarcon added, knowing the answer.

"Doucet was the our second corpse's TA. Arazlam Durai," Valenti continued, although a revelation that crossed his mind seemed to baffle him. "New professor at Goug Technica...wait, the same Durai that got kicked out of the Royal?"

"The one and only," Alarcon said, his eyes narrowing into a glare not forced by the odor, as if the second corpse was somehow personally disrespecting him. "The AUI didn't revoke his permit to come down here though...or the receptionist didn't notice or care."

"Someone cared enough to kill them," Jacquard replied, closing the folder in his hand with an audible whap. "And do it this gruesomely."

Alarcon traced a latex-gloved finger up the larger corpse's torso before stopping at what appeared to be closed puncture wounds on the corpses' upper bodies. They weren't messy enough to be bullet entry wounds - and if they were, the kind of incendiary munition needed to incinerate a body like this would have ended up setting the rest of the library on fire, let alone their clothing.

He turned his head to look out over the lowered meeting space. "Whatever killed them then must have been captured on security cameras."

"Yes, but the footage seemed to have been completely erased from the system."

"Did you notice that it was only restricted to the cameras on the bottom two floors?"

Valenti remained silent. Alarcon had finally foiled him.

"Unless someone discovered some secret tunnel while they were renovating this place," Alarcon continued morosely. "Whoever had it in for Durai teleported in, did the deed and left."

Valenti gulped at the thought. "And didn't show up on any of the other cameras at all?"

"You were special forces, Detective, you would know," Alarcon half-glared.

"Special forces teleportation isn't advanced enough to go five stories down through old stone in both directions. And invisibility magicks still leave visible contours on movement."

"I highly doubt this place saw enough bloodshed to be haunted," the older detective scoffed as he stood up and gestured stiffly at the laptop on the nearest table. "Which means that until forensics gets done tinkering with their tissue samples, our only lead is whatever the old ogler was working on when he died."

"Right then. I'll get a bag." Valenti was about to turn and leave when he noticed Alarcon getting up and walking directly toward the laptop. "What are you doing?" the younger detective suddenly asked.

"Wouldn't hurt to see what they were doing on it," he replied curiously. "At least before Tech strips it for parts."

"It's probably a lock screen," Valenti replied, trying in vain to half-heartedly dissuade his colleague.

"If it is, then it'll be in an evidence bag in a minute, okay?" Alarcon insisted. "Though I'd be disappointed if he didn't keep something sacrilegious on it."

Valenti sighed and crossed his arms. "Len, just because Durai wasn't exactly a big fan of Saint Ajora Glabados doesn't make us the Inquisition."

Alarcon cricked his knuckles before he pressed his thumb against the laptop's screen latch. There was the faintest of clicks as he gingerly raised the screen, the laptop's LED standby LED fading almost simultaneously with the screen itself flickering back to life. He withdrew as soon as the screen stood at a right angle to the rest of the computer, and the two detectives squinted at the room's new source of luminescence.

"He locked his computer," Valenti commented, perplexed at what was now on the screen. "What in the gods' name..."

Alarcon slid a finger across the laptop's touchpad and tapped it. He then smirked almost devilishly as he took a step back. "At least we know who can unlock it."

Chapter 6 End