J.J.’s squad found him napping in a slightly comfy chair. It was mid afternoon and J.J. had been waiting in the BPN hall for most of the day. For once he was not waiting to be called for a BPN, but for the rest of his squad to come and pick him up. He hated getting up early, much less having to get up early and then put up with Slayer’s Crib for a good portion of the day.
Snow, the squad’s ebon, gave him a friendly shake, “wake up man.”
J.J.’s eyes half opened, “bugger off and let me rest.” His voice was tired and hollow, but after a minute or two he pushed himself out of the chair and took a look around to make sure everyone had made it.
Snow and Timmy stood in front of him, but Sherry was nowhere in sight. Timmy could already read the look coming across his face, “Sherry’s out parking the car.”
Snow spoke again, “so, you got us a good one, right?” Snow was always much to happy to be where he was.
J.J. was already walking out of the BPN hall, “Fuckin’ shut up Snow,” into the rain.
But Snow was on his heels, “Hey man, it’s not my fault you got the short straw.”
Before Snow had a chance to react J.J.’s FEN 603™ was pushing its cold metal barrel between his light blue eyes. The rain pitter pattered on both men.
“Snow,” J.J. growled through clenched teeth, “did I not just tell you to fucking shut the hell up?!”
“Dude, calm down.” Snow pleaded.
“Shut the fuck up!” J.J. raged, his spit mixing into the rain.
Both men stood transfixed, each waiting for the other’s move to tell them what they should do. The rain continued to seep into them, matting down hair and making damp clothes drenched. Timmy still stood in the doorway, fearfully watching one of his new squad mates attempt to kill the other. The rain picked up intensity.
Timmy had joined Lite Snow Fall right out of Meny and after the first few incidents like this he had begun to question if his plan of joining an already established squad was such a good idea. These two scared the shit out of him, Snow always pushing at J.J. until J.J. lashed out. Timmy figured it was only due to Sherry that neither was dead.
At that moment the torrent of rain seemed to almost part, like a curtain, as a tall figure moved towards the three ops. It was well over two meters tall and most of its well muscled body was covered by a black greatcoat. Not that it needed clothing, but some part of it just loved greatcoats. Its large head seemed a mix of wide mouth, full of sharp teeth, and a multitude of eyes. With long measured strides it quickly closed the distance between it and the rest of Lite Snow Fall. When it got within speaking range, it did.
“My comrades, this is not the way company employees should be acting.” It then reached out a large hand, placing it palm down on J.J.’s FEN 603™, and calmly pushed the gun down. Its toothy grin turned from human to ebon and back, “that, my compatriots, is what the enemy is for.”
A dark look in his eyes J.J. turned from his squad and sulked off into the rain. Snow glared after him for a few moments as Timmy ran up to the xeno.
“You had me worried for a minute there Sherry.” Timmy’s smile was quickly replaced by a worried look, “but what do we do now?”
The xeno looked after its comrade, “What else can we do?” It asked matter of factly, “but follow him and find out what our assignment is.”
This was the first time Timmy had seen the inside of J.J.’s flat, or “squatter hole” as Snow often commented. Timmy felt that for once Snow really was not to far off from the truth. The living room had old porn magazines and take out food boxes scattered everywhere. J.J.’s kitchen looked as if it had not been cleaned in months. Timmy wondered if he had more dishes, or if the moldy mountain filling the sink was it. J.J. was in the living room pacing like a caged animal, he had brooded the entire ride back to his place in uptown, waiting for everyone to make themselves comfortable. Snow sat on one of the couch’s arms while Sherry stood, with its hands in its coat’s pockets, on the cleanest part of the carpet. Timmy did not want to sit or stand much of anyplace in this dive.
J.J. got fed up with waiting.
“Well here it is.” He pulled the BPN card out of his pants pocket, “and you’re gonna love this one Sherry...” His voice trailed off into the rain pelting the wall sized window behind him.
Timmy was surprised at the speed with which the normally unhurried xeno snatched the BPN card out of J.J.’s hand. Timmy was almost as surprised at J.J.’s lack of reaction to this. The xeno was shuddering, with delight Timmy hoped, as its lips peeled back showing a mouth full of sharp, pointy teeth which formed what Timmy hoped, and J.J. and Snow knew, was a smile.
“Our first serial killer...” It’s voice quavered and Timmy wondered if Karma gave stormers the ability to cry. The xeno just stood transfixed, reading the BPN over and over again.
J.J. once again decided against waiting.
“What the card that has so engorged our illustrious coleage says is, as you might have guessed, that our new BPN is a white dealing with an up and coming serial killer who’s started himself out in uptown killing children.” J.J. paused to examine his squad mates. Snow looked his usual, ‘really, I give a shit,’ but J.J. knew he cared more about his image than any damn kids. Sherry was still captivated by the BPN card, though J.J. had a feeling it was paying close attention to what was being said. “His fifth victim was just found this morning.” Timmy, on the other hand, looked like he was about to lose his brunch. J.J. subconsciously began to wonder if the kid was anywhere near as heartless as the rest of those Kick Murder bastards.
“Now you’re all probably wondering why we came back here before getting this BPN started. Well, it already has.” This drew genuine puzzled glances from the entire squad. Even Sherry pulled itself away from the BPN card. J.J. continued, “The last murder also happened to have happened in this building, a couple of floors up. So I’ll fill you in on the rest of things while we once over the scene.”
The whole of Lite Snow Fall entered a roomy elevator and as the doors closed to take them up, “Hey dude, how come you pay so much, live in such a nice place, and still manage to keep your own home looking like a dumpster?” Snow had seemingly forgotten his earlier brush and was again tugging on J.J.’s fuse.
J.J. was ready this time though, “’Cause I spend all my time waiting in the crib for you, bitch.” He adjusted his shirt a bit and spoke in his ‘Do what I say or I’ll blow your kneecaps off’ voice, “Okay people, it’s time to put on our ‘we’ve got this whole thing together and we even like each other’ faces,” Snow grinned, “Snow, the woman who found the child was its mother. She’s pretty shaken up, but I want you to get her story anyway. Timmy, stick with Snow. If the woman seems to be unresponsive to our emotionally challenged friend I want you to try and pick up where he leaves off.” The ebon pulled a Dark Lament™ pencil and a spiral bound pad of paper out of his coat. “Sherry, you’re with me. We’re going to check out the victim. Now as I said, we want to look like a real team, so no shit from anyone, to anyone. Got it?” A general murmur from the bodies around him told J.J. they were ready.
The doors of the elevator opened to a mass of Shivers milling about the hallway. As they stepped out J.J. asked one of the Shivers where his sergeant was. The man pointed to the half open door just to their right. Upon walking through the door the smell of blood wafed up their noses. They found the sergeant walking towards them, in the room behind him was a middle aged woman with dark hair. She appeared to be sitting with her head in her hands. They flashed their SCL badges.
“Are you all Lite Snow Falling?” He glowered at them as he blocked the entryway.
J.J. got impatient, “Who the fuck else’d we be? Is that the woman back there?” Not waiting for an answer he motioned Snow and Timmy to the living room. “And where is the body?” The sergeant pointed down the hallway to J.J.’s right.
The sergeant piped up as they walked down the hall, “last door on the right. Anything else you professionals need?”
J.J. spun back on him, “nobodies touched the body, right?”
“Forensic’s been wanting to look it over, but we got your message.”
J.J. muttered under his breath as he turned back towards the room, “they’ll suffer.”
As he walked into the room the xeno was already taking in the sights. The whole of the room was colored a brownish red, dried blood. The small bed to their left was soaked in crusting gore, for some reason it made J.J. think of his clothes earlier that day.
“Magnificent...” Sherry’s eyes were fixed on the wall opposite the bed.
J.J. turned around to look at what Sherry was admiring and the light meal he had had almost came back up on him. “Fuck, the report said he was brutal, but I had no idea...”
On the wall was a child. Large stakes pierced through its right wrist and ankle holding it up about a meter and a half off the floor. It was naked, though gender would have been nigh impossible to determine on the spot due to massive cuts and bruises.
“I’d say the lashes were caused by some sort of large knife, maybe a MAC.” Sherry was methodical as it looked over the body. “The bruises I can tell you right now, they’re fists. He beat the hell out of this kid while he was killing it.”
“So what would you say on cause of death?” J.J. had a feeling he knew, but at this moment he was not feeling to sure about much.
“That would, quite obviously, be the large hole punched through the child’s skull.”
“Punched?! So he slams his fist through the kid’s head, then nails it up there and mutilates it.”
“No. The child was alive when it was staked to the wall. Also while it was being cut up.” Sherry took a closer look at its right arm. “The bruises are probably the killer trying to keep the kid from moving around to much while he does his business. Only after he had finished redecorating this room did he deal the killing stroke.”
Timmy ran into the room, “Hey, we’ve got everyth...” but before he could get it all out he turned and got all the brunch he’d wanted to lose earlier out.
“You okay kid?” J.J. led him out of the room back into the entryway.
“I think so.” Timmy’s face was pale, but he seemed to be getting strength back. “We didn’t get all that much off the mother. Just her son had been he alone while she was working late and when she got home she found well...that” He nudged his head in the direction of the child’s room. “Snow’s still in there consoling her.”
J.J. looked cruelly over his shoulder, “that jack ass.”
Timmy became suddenly defensive, “hey! You know what, Snow’s really not all that bad man! At least he cares!”
J.J. grabbed Timmy by the collar and pushed him up against a wall.
“The only thing that little fuck cares about is himself,” the words come out as an almost growl, “Snow just happens to know it looks better to act like he cares. The sooner you figure that out the better. Now go hold us an elevator.”
With that J.J. stormed back into the child’s room, “Sherry, you got everything you need?” The xeno seemed to be going over some problem in its head. “Sherry!”
Broken out of its trance the xeno turned and started for the front door.
J.J. went from there to the living room when he found Snow working his seductive skills on the bereaved mother.
“Snow, do you have the information you need?” He was starting to feel snappy.
“Just a minute man and I’ll be all done.” Snow barely seemed to care.
J.J. moved back out to the hallway with Timmy and Sherry. There were less Shivers there now than there were when they arrived. As he walked by a couple of them he overheard, “fuckin’ damn Slops!”
He spun, grabbing the Shiver by his arm and slamming him up against the wall.
“What the fuck did you say?!” J.J. had his right hand on the man’s throat, waiting for the wrong answer to give him the excuse to kill.
“I said, ‘fuckin’ damn wops’ man.” Sweat beaded on the Shiver’s forehead.
“Bullshit!”
“Truth man, some Orientan sold me some crap stereo equipment the other day.”
Snow walked out the doorway at that moment and placed a hand on J.J.’s shoulder.
“Calm down dude. We’re all friends here. Anyway, I’ve got more info than I gave the boy, so lets get back and have a look.”
J.J. let the Shiver go and turned to the waiting elevator. He stepped in with Snow following right behind.
“It’s time to start diggin’ up some dirt.” J.J. pushed the ground level button.
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