Chapter 18: Detective Juno

There was a strange scent, the cold breeze was artificial…coming from a hole above, and an incessant humming irritated his cone-shaped ears. All these new sensations sent Fink the Fox into a state of confusion, panic and despair.

He was in a room filled with stark white walls with nothing else to look at. It was so bright in the room that the vulpine had to squint his eyes most of the time. In front of him is what appeared to be a door…but made of pure energy. The intense heat it gave off was enough warning for the feral animal not to go near it.

The fox couldn't sit still…he kept pacing the room…his mind thinking of a million things: where was he, where was I, what happened to the others, what will happen to him and me.

Speaking of me, I was in another room on the ship…

I was in a similar situation as Fink, but I was given much more accommodation: my own room with a bed and desk…and a view of the outside through the porthole. I had been there for several hours…in limbo.

I wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen. I suppose that much like Fink I couldn't stay in one place…oftentimes I begged somebody to let me out, but it would go unanswered. Despite its lavish appeal, this room, like Fink's, was a prison.

Sure enough, however, a person would finally enter the room. The woman in glasses wore a sleek, clean, uniform…a stark contrast to my dirty, leafy, outfit.

"Terry, I am Detective Juno Rourke. Allow me to be the first to extend my condolences to you. You should know that we are investigating the crash and you and your family will be compensated. Nothing can be said or done to undo the pain you experienced or any other person on that vessel and we understand that."

I sat on my chair in silence…a thought crossed me…I stuttered…trying to force words out. It would be the first time I would speak in my native language to another human being since ending up on the island, "are they alive?" That was the first question I asked.

The lady held onto her clipboard…looking down in regret before shaking her head, "I'm terribly sorry…" She readjusted her suit before looking back at me.

A short silence had happened…my mouth trembled…my entire face winced, "Mark is-is dead?" So…it's true then…he was killed in the crash…of course he was…everyone was but me, Mark saved me…

"What happened out there, Terry" she got another chair from the desk and moved a bit closer to me as I cringed. Should I even tell them about all the crazy stuff that happened in the weeks leading up to today? Or, should I fabricate a lie…an alibi for this detective?

"Maybe you people at Universal Dynamics know what happened" I lied.

Juno simply stared, and once I calmed down, she shook her head to me, "please understand, I don't represent Universal Dynamics. I work for the criminal justice system, Terry." She moved a bit closer to me, folding her hands as she got to my eye level, "they saw a hole in the hull of the airship…forensics believe it was a deliberate attack. Is there anything you saw that can help us understand what happened…why someone would do this?"

I hesitated. Should I tell her? What if it puts Brightbill and Roz in jeopardy? What if I tell this woman and it only gets Universal Dynamics more cause to go after us? I wanted to plead ignorance…I just wanted to get out of this room…I told a half-truth.

"I don't know…it all happened so fast…I ended up on an island…I found an abandoned Rozzum unit and tried to get it working to send help."

"I see. And what about the Fox?"

"F-Fox…you mean Fink?" I looked at them, suddenly I was scared for him.

"How do you know them?" Juno asked, moving back against her chair.

"I…found him. I gave him a name and he stuck with me through the entire ordeal" I explained through half-truths and half-lies, "he helped me survive…helped me find water and food."

"A…fox did?" She raised an eyebrow at that, and I nodded, "he's very smart" I proudly exclaimed, "please…don't hurt him…I would like to adopt him if possible." I begged to save Fink.

She scratched her chin at the thought, "well…it would have to be reviewed by the board. It is a wild animal, Terry…we can't just let wild animals easily in our cities."

"B-but he listens to me, I promise he won't cause any trouble!" I begged further, "let them stay with me, I'll make sure they won't do anything!"

Rourke was silent, the Asian detective pondered.

"I can show you how good they are, please!" I beckoned.

After a few more seconds she nodded, and soon she stood up, "so you have no idea what might have caused all of this?"

I shake my head.

"Is there anything else you like to tell me?"

"My parents…"

She nodded, "we contacted your parents. They'll meet us at port."

My face lit up, "you deserve the rest, hun" said Juno, sure enough, she opened the door and gestured me to follow, "come on, I'll take you to your friend." I nodded and followed her out.

…

We made our way through the ship…interacting with the various human/robotic crewmen and passengers who were milling about. We went below deck and after some time we ended up in a facility where animals are kept. Detective Rourke stopped by one particular cell and I looked inside it. Sure enough, Fink came into view. His face came to life upon catching my scent and seeing me, "kid!" He spoke in animal language while giving a big toothy smile. For the adult next to us she only heard a bark from the red fox. Sure enough, the plasma beams holding him prisoner flicker and die. Shortly after, he ran up to me and we embraced tightly, "I'm so glad you're okay, Fink" I whispered in his cone-shaped ear.

Unbeknownst to us, Juno had slipped away…still keeping an eye on us. She pulled out a small communication device and spoke into it, "Terry Bennett is hiding something, but I am not sure what. They seem to be acquainted with the wildlife on the island. They're highly intelligent."

"The fox?" The voice at the other end asked.

"The kid" Juno replied.

"Keep him under close observation, Universal Dynamics or Techlab might make a move."

The detective scoffed softly, "you think they'll really go after this kid?"

"Whatever might have been on that island, I would certainly think so…" the gruff voice at the other end stated.

"Maybe Universal Dynamics isn't as straightforward as we thought they were."

Meanwhile, Fink was licking me all over the face like a dog as I giggled…and we both soon break away.

"Terry…where are we?"

I stopped him, putting a finger to his mouth…subtly shaking my head. The fox understood immediately, leaving it at that. He would need to find out later.

After some clearance, the fox is allowed to follow us back to the stateroom. The detective stood by the doorway, giving a faint smile to us both, "we will keep in touch Terry. I want to help bring closure to all this, my department and I want to help you, please understand that. We'll be docking soon, I'll return soon."

Juno closed the door to leave us alone for now. Soon enough, the fox's eyes wandered as he trotted into the living space…looking around, "everything looks so…shiny…why is that?" He looked toward me as I chuckled, "there's a lot you'll come to learn about my world" I said softly. I kneeled to be eye level with him as Fink sat on his haunches. His ear twitched as I prepared my case for him.

"Listen Fink…we got eyes and ears on us both…and we might have a lot more soon after we get out of here. We need to keep a low profile from this point on…try not to talk to me directly when I'm with other humans."

He raised an eyebrow, "why, kid?"

I chuckled, "well, for one people will think I'm crazy if they see me talking to you. They don't understand you, Fink. Second, the people watching us might figure out I downloaded Roz's data!"

"Yeah, that would be bad…" he looked away and nodded. I stood up and paced the room as he eyed me, "so…what are we going to do?"

I shake my head, "let's just…get out of here first…my parents are on the way apparently" I muttered.

"Your…parents?" Fink seemed interested in the topic…having seen them in the holovids, but now he would actually get to meet them in person. It'll certainly be interesting.

He didn't have to wait long, for the door soon opened, and we turned to see two silhouettes. The light began to shine on them as they walked into the room to greet us. My heart began to swell…Fink didn't have to dwell for long on who these new people were…

They're family.

…

Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed this latest segment!

If you noticed, Detective Juno is a stark contrast to Detective Mosley: she's the opposite of him (caring, understanding, protective.)

These next few chapters ought to be interesting, interesting for sure! Either way, take care and I'll see you next time, peace!