The setting sun cast a warm glow across the entire city. People scurried about, making their commute back home before dark. Shops closed up early, with some angry patrons shouting that they need to get items for dinner that night but are rebuffed. A man silently walked by a couple arguing with a shop owner, staring down at the cracked sidewalk. His hair was greasy and unkempt. His skin caked with dirt and mud. As he approached another business, he peeked inside, watching as customers rushed about, trying to grab necessities before the store closed its doors.
“This’ll do…”
He whispered to himself as he leaned against the building, looking around to see if anyone was watching. A lone, elderly man stood nearby, eyeing up the man initially before slowly trudging away, mumbling his discontent that the homeless had started appearing more and more in the area.
The man almost imperceptibly shook his head. “I wasn’t always homeless…I had a wife to come home to…” Closing his eyes, memories of their happiest moments flooded through. How they met at a concert. Their first date, which was hijacked by her taking him dirt biking after he had spent hours planning what he thought was a perfect date. Proposing to her just a year into their relationship. Their wedding that was crashed by her ex trying one last desperate attempt to win her back. His heart began aching terribly as tears misted his eyes before being blinked away. “Miranda…I’m not going to lose you…I’ll make sure you and everybody else remembers me…”
Moving away from his perch, he paced the front of the entrance. “But first…I need to talk to them. They need to know what they’re up against.” Abruptly stopping, he snuck one last glance into the building. “I’m sorry…I hope you all can forgive me for this one day…but I understand if you can’t.” With that, his body began to glow before he opened his mouth and screamed.
Shockwaves could be seen entering the building, throwing people and metal alike around like ragdolls. The light fixtures from the ceiling collapsed onto the ground, with one landing on top of a young woman who was trying to shield her young child from the debris. Before he could see the extent of the damage done, the man immediately turned and sprinted away, leaving the chaos and screams behind.
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“Thank you for your time, sir.” Nia nodded towards a man she had just interviewed and turned around, walking back towards the patrol vehicle with Amara lurking behind her. “Still nothing that can be of use…” Nia muttered as she looked over her notes. “It’s always the same thing: the man comes up to them, knows secrets about their life that not many others know, a headache occurs, and the people drive him away.”
Amara sighed. “And Darius’s last check in with the chief had no other details that we should be aware of. Though it is only day one of the investigation. We should get to the hotel Evra has booked for us and–”
Lucien rushed up to the two of them, slightly out of breath. “We’ve gotta go you two! Now! He’s struck again!”
Nia’s and Amara’s eyes widened before they began sprinting back. “What happened?! Where did he–”
“Still in the north of town! Stuck a grocery store that was remaining open while others were closing early! Severe injuries have already been reported, some life-threatening!”
Nia clenched her fists as they quickly approached the vehicle, which was already idling, doors open. The three jumped into their respective seats as Darius peeled away before they could shut their doors, sirens blaring. “It’s only a three-minute drive from here!” Darius calmly stated as he weaved through traffic. “The attack occurred five minutes ago, and others in the force have already responded and arrived at the scene. If we’re lucky, he should still be in the area. Officers are already monitoring the area.”
“Joren and I will focus on apprehending him once we arrive. Lucien, Amara, you stay at the scene and provide whatever support you can to emergency personnel.” Nia spat out orders, with the group nodding in response. Just a minute before they arrived at the scene, Darius’s radio crackled before a female voice spoke. “Paramedics have declared a woman dead at the scene.”
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“Oh, I’m quite aware of what’s going on in the city, Elias. I’ve been keeping up on everything.” The blonde-haired woman spoke into the phone as she spun around her chair. “Though to think that the piece could have been in a shop that was destroyed by Nathan. Sorry bout that.”
Elias sighed. “You aren’t sorry in the slightest.”
“Oh, but I am! I truly am! After all, if I had known that his actions would have made collecting a fragment harder, I would never…well…actually…nah, I wouldn’t have done anything differently. It was waaay too much fun keeping track of him desperately trying and failing to reconnect with everyone. You should have seen that man’s face when–”
“Sam.” Elias sternly spoke into the phone.
“Ah come now! You could have at least let me reminisce a little bit! Such a party pooper.”
“Yes yes, I’m a party pooper. Do you have eyes though on the site?”
“Sure do. There’s still a few officers there as is protocol, though lucky for you, he struck again just now, so there won’t be as many officers as there would have been. Should give you plenty of time to check the rubble.”
“If only. Well, keep me updated with anything that you learn. And don’t cause too much trouble while I’m not there.”
“Too late on that front. I already have my next toy running a little errand for me. Speaking of, I should probably see how he’s doing. But before that…” Her eyes glistened with mischief as she smirked. “I finally got a lead as to where HE is. Good luck! You’re gonna need it! Buh-bye now.”
“W-Wait–what–” Abruptly ending the call, Sam stood up from her chair and put on a mismatched pair of shoes before stepping out into the cool evening air.
After grabbing her phone, she watched as a red dot was moving across a city map on screen. “Ooo you’re one busy working bee. You might already be getting close to completing it. Well then, no time like the present.” Closing the door behind her, she stepped into a plain white car and drove off, snickering to herself in excitement.
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and then Add to home screen.