END GAME

Chapter 16: Dead Man's Clue

Eren rolled over and opened his eyes to stare at the coffee table in front of him, just beneath eye level. The apartment was dark, unlike how it was what seemed like just a few minutes ago. He could remember flipped through the pages, the sleepless night finally catching up to him, and shutting his eyes for a moment, just a moment. There had been something warm too, his face pressed right up against it. Something had been touching his head, the movements soothing. The only problem was that he couldn't quite remember through the haze of sleep that had clouded his mind at those points.

Now he was lying down on his couch beneath a blanket, the apartment dark, quiet, and definitely lacking concerning the presence of a certain raven haired man. I'm amazed Levi didn't kill me... Eren pushed the blanket away from his body and rose from the couch. He glanced around, making sure he was completely alone before he glanced at the clock; 6:15. Ah... Levi really is going to kill me. There was a piece of paper lying in the kitchen next to the coffee pot, waiting to be read.

He picked up the note and skimmed over the short message scrawled by an elegant hand as he started the coffee. Eren: you fell asleep, like an idiot, so I left. I'll be down at the station by 7:30. Eren set the note back down and pulled one of the ceramic mugs out, setting it down on the countertop with a heavy thunk so that he could fill it. Once the coffee was ready, now a light tan in color and steaming lightly, he sat back down on the couch.

He pressed the power button on his laptop and pulled the black and green blanket back over his shoulders. The computer began to hum quietly as it started up. Eren entered the password and waited for the update popups to finish appearing before he closed them and opened one of the folders littering his desktop. It's time I looked into that other document… he thought, sipping at his coffee as the contents of the folder loaded.

Only the sounds of muted clicks and hums filled the apartment as Eren slowly made his way to his desired destination. He opened the last folder and let his mouse hover over the document for a moment before he clicked on it. God knows what kind of shit is going to be in this one… He took another sip of his coffee as he watched Microsoft begin to load. I could have anything from a total bullshit file to something that might actually crack this case. Probably the latter though. In fact, I'm fucking counting on that.

The small Microsoft window disappeared, replaced a few seconds later by the document itself. The document was older than 'Project Eotena' – some of the information would be obsolete or the same most likely. Eren picked up the laptop and pulled it into his lap, propping his feet up on the coffee table. He took a breath and took one last sip of coffee before he lowered his eyes and began to read.

Titans

The Titans are a complex group. One must have a similar mindset as the founders in order to understand what exactly their purpose is. I don't even understand the extents of what their goals are sometimes, yet I somehow manage to get by. My name is Samuel Masters and this is a short entry concerning all of the things I have observed while with the Titans. Admittedly, the information I've gathered is pathetic concerning the amount, but some of it is important.

This is no ordinary group, gang, or cult even. The closest name I can think of would be a cult, and even then, that probably doesn't fit them well enough. More akin to radicals, although they put most radicals to shame, as most of those who fit in that description don't go around murdering everyone and everything that they find useless.

They have a way of marking out the members of the members of their cult. We are marked by cut on the backs of our necks, about three inches long typically and cut horizontally. This is supposed to represent something along the lines of purity as the incision releases the sins that we have pent up, as leaving the sins pent up inside of us could turn us into monsters of some sort. Now that I'm writing this I find myself wishing that I had actually paid attention during the initiation ceremony. I probably should have it memorized considering there were twelve other initiates along with me during the ceremony.

It began with Dr. Gilbert Marlo Meridew's ideal for a new world, a world where some people are superior to others. At this time I have not had all of the details explained to me; only the test subjects and the founders have. There are thirty of us all together, not counting M, J, L, and the four from 1989. G knows more, as does S, but I'm not sure either of them know everything. The details of their plan are sketchy when it comes to underlings like me. We are on a need-to-know basis, and even then we still don't know most of the time.

None of us knew even Meridew; none of us are old enough for that. Although M, J, and L claim to have known Meridew when they were children, although sometimes I find that doubtful. They don't look a day over thirty at most, let alone old enough to have been born around the 1910's and 20's – it's been over one hundred years since 1910, and even if those children were still alive, they would look a hell of a lot older. Either way, only those three know the true extent of Meridew's plans.

I've been fishing around, trying to uncover what I can. Most of the information is inaccessible or it's written in a cypher. I might be good with encryptions and such but cyphers are a whole level to themselves. I've also managed to gleam the fact of that they plan to carry out a massacre of Biblical proportions. They plan to kill off all of the terminally ill, old, and disabled. Anyone that they don't deem useful will be killed. Probably in a concentration camp-esque set up, although I can't guarantee the truth of that last statement. They also plan to create a race of 'super humans,' although I am currently unsure of how exactly they will go about it. As for those that they cannot turn into this new super race… I am unsure about their face. There is a possibility of either mass slavery or mass genocide, or even both. The information I have is not complete but I plan to expand upon this in time.

Hopefully M will not discover what I am doing, as that could prove to be a problem. It's growing hard to conceal what I am doing. Eavesdropping is not easy. It's almost like they can sense me despite the walls between us most of the time. Hopefully I can keep the ruse up for a little longer, long enough to get this data to someone who can stop them, stop their plans. When I joined them I didn't know that things would be like this. I didn't know things would change quite so much. I'm not sure when M became quite so bloodthirsty, when G started becoming so hungry for power, when S started to lose her faith, or when I started to lose mine. I'll try to find out more but there are no guarantees that I will.

I need to find G's son. I need to warn him of their plans. I don't doubt that G infected him with whatever the four subjects, along with what M, J, and L were given. He might be the key to stopping this. I only hope that I can find him in time. The biggest problem will be locating him. The next will be making him believe everything I have to say.

Levi sipped delicately at his piping hot coffee and he scanned the latest document that Eren had brought him. While it contained nothing that would help reveal any new leads in the case, it certainly gave them further insight as to what the Titans' plans were. Levi sighed and set the paper down and picked at the rim of the gray coffee cup with his nail. Genocide and slavery… couple that with anything from invading a country to conquering the world… God knows what this super race of theirs is going to be capable of. With the Redford girl still missing that brings their total up to three, assuming that those children survived instead of their bodies simply not being found.

He glanced up at the board, littered with the maps that they had gone over the night before. They had broken out another stand that morning in order to put a map of all of Eden along with photographs of the missing children, the deceased victims, the weapons, and of the crime scenes. He watched as Eren jabbed at the pictures of the weapons and the letters scrawled out at the top of the page. "We need to figure out why they're leaving these for us! Why would they be leaving these letters unless they were important?" Eren's voice was sharp and irritated, a tone that he had been adopting more often as of late. Levi nodded as Eren jabbed the pictures again and continued speaking. "When should we expect the autopsy reports back from Zoe?"

"About three hours," Levi murmured, checking his watch; 8:30. They had been at the station for over an hour and had come up with nothing new. Eren was quickly getting frustrated. Honestly, Levi was amazed that Eren hadn't punched a hole through the board yet. He stood and approached the map they had been going over the night before. Levi sighed and ran his hand over his jaw as he looked at it. "We need to narrow this down further. Any ideas of how to continue ruling places out? I'm thinking we could rule out any places that aren't within a mile radius of a hospital, morgue, or funeral home."

Eren shifted over to look at the maps, his green eyes darting all across the board. "Yeah… if we rule out all of the places that are not within a mile radius the amount of places to search drops dramatically. We can rule the festival out then since its located about six miles away from the nearest street that both has a name related to either form of night or a place often associated with death. Let me get another map so that we can start again, although this time we'll have a more concrete idea."

Levi watched Eren turn and walk away for a few moments before he turned back to look at the board. The murders occurred Sunday, the twentieth of October… We have no ideas that could pinpoint when the next murders could occur. They could occur today, tomorrow, next week even. Or they could be happening right now. Maybe I could have Ilse analyze the poems… She's good with this kind of shit.

Footsteps dragged his attention back to the matters on hand and he watched as Eren unfurled yet another map and tacked it up over the map of Eden. He plucked a marker from Levi's desk, one of the many that had been seen an increase in usage over the past several weeks. He tossed Levi a ruler, which the raven haired man caught with deft hands and pressed it against the map. "Alright," Eren said as he uncapped the marker, "Tell me what you've got."

Levi began to slowly prattle off the names as he scanned the board, looking for any places that could fit their new search. The going was slow as Levi had to first locate the streets and then search them, making sure that they contained a hospital, morgue, funeral home, or graveyard within at least a mile radius. Levi could only thank God for Google, which helped clarify the names associated with several places in Karanese District, some of which nearly led him to believe that they were related to the newest search. Eren highlighted the streets that Levi called out, outlining the buildings and places that could be associated with the poem. A compass would be needed later in order to create the range of area that would have to be covered. They would make an initial circle a mile wide and add a five-mile wide zone as a precautionary.

Levi called out the final street name and began to list the buildings that ran along it. "First is the Karanese General Hospital, near the intersection of Knight Avenue, with a K, and Spring Boulevard. Mumford's Funeral Parlor would be next, between Park Street and Peony Parkway. The intersection of Knight Avenue and Boulder Drive would be next with the Summerset Crematorium." Each location took several extra minutes to find. By the time they finally finished simply highlighting the streets and outlining the places of interest it was nearly eleven o'clock.

"I don't suppose you have a compass on you," Levi muttered as he dropped his phone onto the desk finally, the battery almost completely depleted. Eren glanced at him, an eyebrow raised, confusion evident in his bright eyes. "I'm going to assume you aren't talking about the ones that point you in the right direction. Either way I still don't have a compass."

"Did you really never use one in math? That's surprising… The things they must have taken out of the curriculum in so few years. Well this is unfortunate, especially considering the fact that you can barely draw a straight line, let alone a halfway decent circle." Levi smirked as he watched Eren's eyes widen in indignation. The brown haired man could have argued, he certainly could have, but there was no point as both of them knew the statement to be the truth.

Eren sighed dropped the marker onto the desk. "I suppose I'll be the one getting this compass. Where's the nearest craft store?" Levi shrugged and Eren sighed. The latter grabbed his jacket and shrugged it on, patting his pockets to ensure that his wallet was in them before he left. "I'll be back in ten," he called over his shoulder on the way out.

The door clicked shut behind him and Levi stared at the door for a while, a vague sense of disappointment welling up. He doesn't have to go alone to get it… He shook his head and turned back to the map. Focus Levi, focus. Silver eyes glared at the board, a plan forming in his head.

There are four zones currently within the Karanese District. Once we can get an approximate range we can draft an appropriate number of officers in order to patrol the zones. The only problem would be securing enough officers for a weeks' worth of patrols at least. The Karanese police force should be able to help us… Maybe Irvin could call in a few favors with some of the other districts. I'd prefer at least three groups of two per zone but that can't be guaranteed of course.

Levi bit the corner of his thumbnail, a disgusting habit that occasionally resurfaced despite the years. It was still better than some that could return, ones from a past best forgotten. If we use the buildings as the central point to the areas we could narrow it down further depending on how many overlap. He sighed and sat down. Hopefully Hanji would be done with the autopsies by the time Eren returned and they drew out the areas.

Zoe tossed a pair of gloves to each man as they walked through the doors to the autopsy room, where the two bodies were already lying on the tables, their flesh pallid and their bodies limp. Their eyes were shut, giving them the illusion of sleep till one realized that their chests lacked the rise and fall of breathing, that their bodies were simply too still. Eren felt his chest tighten uncomfortably as he looked at the two. It wasn't like how it would be when he looked or got close to Levi; that was a pleasant tightening, one he welcomed. This one was completely different, one of sadness and pain. I still can't believe that they're dead…

Their torsos were uncovered, revealing the new scars and stitches on their chests. Mina's limbs were no longer separated from her body. Thick black stitch-like threads wrapped around her arms where they had been cut away. Eren was positive that her hands and legs bore the same threads that were holding her body together. Zoe walked over to the bodies and picked up Mina's chart first.

She glanced up at Eren and Levi, "I've already checked their necks. They don't bear the mark like Masters did. For Mina Carolina, she had all both of her arms and legs hacked away, presumably by a Bowie knife as the marks on her thigh are consistent with that of one. The assailants then proceeded to cut her fingers away from her hands. She lost her little finger, ring finger, and middle finger on the left hand. On the right hand they cut away her thumb and forefinger. That was the extent of damage inflicted upon Mina."

She moved over to Nac's body and pulled the chart out of the bin on the table. The wound on his forehead had been stitched up, along with the gaping wound that had formerly dragged across his throat. His left eye was hidden behind an eyelid but there was no eyelid to hide the empty socket of the right. Eren doubted that either would get an open casket visitation once their bodies were released to be buried. No family would want such the bodies of their children and relatives to be shown in such a condition.

"Nac Tius had his throat slashed. The wound was deep enough to go straight through, nearly to his spinal cord. I'm almost positive that the knife in his forehead was the one used to murder him, whereas another was used on Mina. Meanwhile, his right eye was also gouged out. To be honest… it almost looks like it was clawed out but if so the person managed to do so without leaving any DNA on his skin, which is quite the feat. On top of that, his skull was fractured in three different places – the back of his skull, the front, where the knife was, and on the top of his skull. The marks appear to be consistent with that of the rooftop, which leads me to presume that the attacker slammed his head into the ground twice, presumably before slashing his throat and embedding the knife into his skull."

Levi nodded and wandered around the bodies, first Nac's and then Mina's. Eren stayed firmly rooted into place at least ten feet away from the tables. His stomach was uneasy and he knew his face was far paler than normal. He clutched his elbows, hugging his arms to his chest and kept his eyes focused on the white tiles beneath his feet. Dead strangers, he could handle perfectly fine, without a problem in fact once he stopped remembering the images of their bloody corpses and focus on the matters at hand. Dead friends or acquaintances… That was a completely different story.

Eren glanced up at Levi, keeping his eyes focused on the raven haired man as he jerked his head towards the door, the message hopefully clear enough. Can I leave? Levi caught Eren's stare and nodded after a moment. Eren whirled around and left the room on legs that moved like they were made out of wood, his knees stiff and uncooperative, like ungreased hinges and joints on a machine. He leaned up against the wall outside of the autopsy room and took a breath. His brow furrowed as he thought of something, anything, in order to take his mind away from the bodies.

I never signed up for this… I was just supposed to be a hacker for fucks sake! When did that turn into this?! He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, pulling at the long brown strands harder than what was truly necessary. Can't I just go back to being a worker at a bookstore? Damn it… no, I can't. I've got to see this through, even if it kills me. Or nearly kills me… again.

The doors swung open, the sound bringing Eren's head up as Levi left the autopsy room. He glanced the wrong way at first and then towards the side that Eren was standing. A sympathetic grimace crossed Levi's face and he put a tentative hand on Eren's shoulder, patting it gently, albeit awkwardly. Despite the shorter man's somewhat awkward movements it still brought a warm feeling to Eren, one he was quite familiar with by now. "Go home. We've got the perimeters graphed out so that part is done. I'll get in contact if anything else occurs. So just… go and do Eren things"

Eren hesitated but nodded. "Thanks Levi." Levi simply shrugged and pushed Eren out the door, leaving the emerald eyed boy to make his way slowly down the streets to his apartment. A vague sense of disappointment wormed its way into existence since Levi wasn't coming along, but Eren understood. He probably has things to do. There's no way he'd want anything to do with an idiot like me. I'm pretty positive he can't even see me as being any more than a friend, if I'm even that to him. Eren's hands clenched into fists and he rammed them into the pockets of his jacket, the tempo of his steps increasing till he was practically racing back to his apartment.

Levi tapped the arm of the navy-colored armchair he was seated in as he stared at the papers in his hand. It's Tuesday night. I doubt that the Titans will do anything tonight, so soon after the latest homicide. That gives us time to organize patrols by tomorrow morning. We'll be able to field ten officers from our district, and that's being hopeful. Luckily Karanese has always been able to obtain more recruits and officers due to the higher amount of citizens living within that district.

He sighed and stopped tapping the arm of the chair, instead opting to bite gently on the corner of his thumbnail. We still have to find those three kids too… Son of a bitch, this is one fucked up case. He dropped the papers on the end table by the chair and stood, stretching his legs, which had stiffened up from the lack of movement in the last three hours. His phone chimed faintly the kitchen, where he had set it down on the counter four hours earlier before making coffee and sitting down to review information pertaining to the case. Levi grabbed his coffee cup and strode into the kitchen. Once the coffee cup was in the dishwasher he leaned up against the marble counter and picked up his phone so he could examine the text.

From Hanji:
Hey, Levi, whenever you get this, give me a call, alright? I found something on one of the bodies
Received: 9:26 October 22th, 2013

Levi stared at the message for a moment before he exited out of the message and punched in Hanji's number, something he had memorized long ago. She picked up on the second ring, her voice excited. "Levi, I was looking at the bodies earlier and I noticed that they had reddish-brown smears on them. I wasn't sure if it was blood or not, so I scraped some off of both of them and sent it off to be examined. Apparently it was dirt, or silt to be more precise. This silt also carries special enzymes and minerals that are only found in one place in Eden. Well, actually, it's found along the entirety of Adam's River, but even so, it gives you a clue, no?"

Levi straightened up, his thoughts picking back up and whirling around in his head, resembling a tornado in their chaos. "Adam's River... you mean that both of the victims were murdered there? If that's the case, then either that was a coincidence that both of them just happened to be there or that was where they were taken before the murders took place. Is there any way to narrow it down any further?"

"No, I'm sorry but that would be almost impossible. The minerals and enzymes in it are consisted from one end of the river to the other. However, that might give you a hint as to where these Titans have holed themselves up at. I'll see if it can be narrowed down any further but that is highly unlikely."

He nodded absently at Hanji's words, a plan already half-formed in his head. "I'll need another map," he murmured to himself. "Assuming that the attacks are concentrated towards one particular direction of the river, which could help pinpoint the general direction or area they are located in." Hanji hummed in response. "If we can do that, then finding them will be the next step, which, while it won't be easy, will be easier than blindly searching the city."

Hanji chuckled on the other side of the voice. "I'll take a 'thank you' now, if you please."

Levi felt his eye twitch ever so slightly but he sighed and complied with Hanji's demands. "… Thank you Hanji."

"See, that wasn't so bad! Now, if you will excuse me, I have some errands to run. I seem to have run out of magnesium iodide and I require it for a new experiment I'm working on. It involves-"

"Yes Hanji, that's wonderful, goodbye." Her stream of words was cut off when Levi stabbed at the End Call button and set the phone down on the countertop with a clatter. He leaned forwards once again, one hand beneath his chin, the other arm flat on the countertop as he stared at the tall wall in front of him. Some aspects of this case were focusing while others seemed to only be getting blurrier and blurrier. I almost wish the feds had jurisdiction to take over cases that were exclusive to our city and not just international cases. I suppose that's the price to pay for having an independent city-like-country where they rely only on the police divisions to handle cases within the borders.

He let out a slow breath and dropped his head onto the cool countertop. Contacting Emil and the rest of those bastards is tempting right now… they probably know more about the Titans than we do. No! I said I'd never go back, never make contact again. I'm thinking irrationally. They wouldn't know any more than we do. I'll just have to double my efforts.

A twist of the keys locked the doors behind him and the man turned to walk down the street, back towards his home. White clouds of vapor escaped his lips as his warm breath met the frigid air. A heavy wind whipped through the city, biting at his skin despite the thick jacket and other articles of clothing. I should have gotten a taxi. The thought would have been more convenient to have when he was still back in the shop, surrounded by warmth and the familiar musty scent of paper. Ah, oh well, it makes no difference. The apartment is only three blocks away anyways. At least he had remembered his gloves and hat this time instead of leaving them back at the apartment again.

He rubbed his gloved hands together, trying to create a bit of friction before he gave up, shoved his hands into his pockets, pulled his head further down past the upturned collar of his jacket, and carried on. Light gray clouds scudded across the sky overhead, leaving the full moon completely visible, adding a bit of extra light on top of the streetlights and lights coming from the windows in various states of exposing the interior.

Silence coated the streets like a thick blanket. Only a few cars traversed the streets despite the fact that it was only nine o'clock. Perhaps everyone is already inside for the night. I can understand why. It's got to be what, twenty-five degrees out right now? Temperature accuracy aside, his fingers and toes were starting to get numb at the tips and he couldn't feel the tip of his nose. He sniffed delicately and hunched his shoulders against the harsh wind that whipped around him.

He stopped at a street light, waiting patiently for the pedestrian light to change as cars occasionally rolled through the intersection. He wasn't in such a rush that he felt the need to sprint through the intersections. Plus one could never know when a car could rush through without their headlights one. The light changed and he moved on. He could hear the sound of footsteps echoing behind him now, an audible addition in the muted silence. He glanced over his shoulder.

A bulky figure walked about thirty feet behind him, his shoulders hunched, a black hat pulled low over his hair. The man turned back to face the front and crossed the street, his footsteps a little quicker than before, but not much more. There's no need to worry… The thought rang of hollow hope in his head, especially when the memories of the recent killings resurfaced to remind him that no, the streets had ceased to be safe. Just two more blocks. Two more blocks and I'll be home.

The footsteps seemed closer now but the man merely increased his pace a little more, now moving at a brisk pace. He kept his eyes glued ahead, at the next intersection. He saw a person step out from an alleyway and stop directly in his path. His steps faltered and came to a stop. The figure was familiar somehow… feminine in build and relatively short in stature. He couldn't be certain though as a black cap was pulled low over her face and the lights were brighter behind her rather than in front. The man glanced over his shoulder; the bulky figure that had been following a fair distance behind him was now closer, far too close for comfort.

Prickles of alarm were starting to worm their way into him now, becoming evident in an uncomfortable way. The man grimaced and picked up his steps again, making to move around the girl. A hand gripped his wrist as he tried to brush by, locking him into place with an iron grip. He jerked against her grasp, panic sending his heart pounding as he tried to break free. "L-let go of me!" The girl's grip on him only tightened. The man's brown eyes flared in panic and he pulled his free arm back, hand clenching into a fist.

A new hand, this one larger and rougher than the girls, clamped down around his wrist, locking it into place. Sheer terror tore through him and he opened his mouth to scream but another hand slammed over his mouth. One of them rammed a knee into his stomach and he doubled over, coughing and choking, straining to drag air into his suddenly voided lungs through his nose. The two assailants held him in place as a car rumbled up nearby and they began to drag him towards it. Icy dread pumped through his veins alongside heated waves of adrenaline. He kicked and jerked against their hands, straining to pull away, to break free. Their grips were iron shackles around his wrists, refusing to free him.

He did the last thing he could; he opened his mouth and bit down on the man's hand as hard as he could, smashing them into the hot flesh against his mouth. Skin broke beneath his teeth and blood, hot and thick, washed over his tongue, the sickening taste twisting his stomach uncomfortably. The attacker jerked his hand away, a hissed curse tearing from his lips. The brown eyed man jerked away from his and raised his head to sky. Blood dripped down his chin but he paid no mind, his mind too blank to care anymore.

A scream tore through him, calling out a single word. He could only pray that someone heard it, heard him. After all, that had used what little oxygen he had managed to suck into his aching lungs. Something flashed into his peripheral and a fist connected with the side of his head, snapping it to one side. His head spun and his vision wavered as they stuffed his limp and unresponsive body into the care. He had one last thought before he crashed into oblivion; Jean!

Chapter 16: End

Yes, that kidnapped guy at the end is important. His identity shall be revealed next chapter. Ah, finally finished~ Sorry it took so long; I've been busy, plus my internet/charger have been futzy. But now that softball is over for the year I'll have loads more time~ Alright, I'm done with that so to those lovelies that reviewed:

calleyrose: Heh heh, thank you~ I'm hoping the next poem will be a bit clearer... no guarantees though. Haha, of course I would!
Cupcake Snowflake: It's actually my dream to become an author so this is kind of my testing ground to better my skills since my high school doesn't offer creative writing courses -_- Haha, I'm glad that it was~
iciruzuka: Yeah... I'm not sure if I intended for it to be quite so confusing when I rewrote it from the original...
TheOtaku2: Haha, you'll have to thank calleyrose in part for that; she let me bounce the scene off of her till we got that.
layder14: Thank you~ I'm glad it is worth the wait!
Anon (Anime32124): Haha yeah, sorry that I don't write fluff too often. Ah, thank you~ But I don't want you to be thinking so much that you get distracted from class! Yes, I see and I'm smirking at the outcome!