Gale slammed the door open with a wide smile on his face, and the mind numbing scent of a whole duck he was carrying in a large brown bag with a plastic that showcased what was in it.

This was the same classroom they were in during their hard boiled interrogation of the blue anomaly. Viktor and Henry remained at their corner. Their tired eyes showed they woke up the moment he returned with a bang.

Walking up to the desk, Gale set down the duck on the desk carefully, as if it was an offering to appease her. Technically, it was. Then, he stepped back to where the light switch was again, the place where the dark hunter should be.

Rachel came through the door next, followed by Kyle and Clyde. All three of them looked dishevelled.

As they should. During the quest for the duck, the dark hunter had protected the treasure from an opportunistic dog that had a signature of an Awakened. A rare thing, but too bad for it. The duck was required to appease the anomaly.

“Are you guys ok?” Viktor whimpered.

“Huh??” Rachel grunted, then patted down her hair with both hands, grumbling about the Path not keeping an Awakened dog in control.

“Gale, seriously? Growling at a growling dog?” Clyde asked.

“The dog was asking for a challenge,” Gale said, nodding as if that explained anything.

Clyde just let out a long breath through his nose and said nothing.

After a couple more hand strokes on her hair, she walked up to the desk and slammed the desk. “Here’s your bird. Now talk!”

Gale moved over to where he was before, then let his hand hovered over the light switch. “Rachel?”

“Leave them on,” Rachel said without looking back at him. “It’s useless against her anyway.”

Unfortunate. The darkness really did make the interrogation feel more immersive. But alas! The light of the city said it was useless against the alien, and she was right. Erin really did not care for any of this interrogation. She wasn’t playing along…

Erin’s gaze dropped to the brown paper on the desk. A blue outline enveloped it as it floated towards her, unwrapping itself while hovering. The duck then rose further closer to her, hovering mouth level.

“The procurement of this bird has reset our debt to zero,” Erin said. The duck then closed in on her mouth until it entered her mouth. Her teeth clamped down. Skin, meat, then bone crunched, echoing throughout the room. Viktor and Henry flinched at the menacing sight.

Erin chewed, swallowed, and spoke again. “This bird is superior to the fare at the establishment called ‘Fran’s’. You may proceed with your questions. In the name of research, I shall provide answers.”

Rachel leaned forward. “Why did your initials show up on the Night Patcher’s screens? E_W appeared on every monitor in their lab the moment you connected to that wire.”

“That is none of my concern.” Erin took another bite of the duck and more bones crunched. “The inlay I interfaced with appears to have connected directly to their laboratory equipment. If you want an explanation for their system’s behaviour, direct your questions to those you call ‘Night Patchers’ rather than myself.”

Rachel let out random noises of frustration. None were words. Just pure frustration.

“What was the point of connecting your bracer to that wire anyway?” Kyle stepped in this time.

“Research,” Erin said as she chewed. “My control module interfaced with the underlying systems constructed by the one you refer to as the ‘Caffeine Transcendent’. Direct connection allows for more efficient data extraction than passive observation.”

“Does her work interest you that much?” Kyle asked, grinning, with a tone dripping with sarcasm. “Didn’t think anything on Earth could hold your attention.”

“Her work does not interest me. It is primitive.” Erin paused to swallow. “However, there is an anomaly hidden within the runic inlays of the lobby pillars. That anomaly requires investigation regardless of how elementary the surrounding framework may be.”

Kyle and Clyde exchanged glances. Both of them grinned at the same time.

Clyde, this time, stepped forward. “What if that anomaly is just beyond your comprehension? Maybe the Transcendent designed it that way on purpose, and you simply can’t grasp the reasoning. Could be she’s got you outmatched on this one.”

“A low possibility. However low it may be, it warrants further deep dive, which is precisely why I must continue researching,” Erin said. “The anomaly occurs nightly at 2AM and lasts for five minutes. During this window, the barrier containing the institute’s inhabitants weakens.”

She continued eating while speaking, somehow managing both without difficulty.

“The runic framework establishes clear logical parameters. The barrier prevents those inside from exiting. Those approaching from outside with signatures may enter by accident. Those without signatures are redirected away from the array’s centre and end up back where they started without ever locating the school. This logic is consistent. The five minute weakness at 2AM contradicts this logic entirely. It serves no identifiable purpose within the framework, yet it exists. I was tracing its source when your interruption occurred. Additionally, the array maintains campus-wide camouflage at a consumption rate of 69 ether units per hour.”

“Nice,” Kyle and Clyde said together.

Gale clapped his hands a couple of times. Viktor and Henry both flinched against the wall at the sudden noise. But he didn’t quite understand it. It sounded impressive though. As expected of the Grand Researcher Immortal Dominatus.

“Your awe is unnecessary but noted,” Erin said. The duck was nearly gone now, literally, even the bones were gone. “It is a given that a Grand Researcher of my calibre would deduce the workings of the Caffeine Transcendent’s primitive array given adequate access and time.”

Rachel planted both hands on the desk. “Do you think that’s how someone could leave the institute undetected? Someone like Lucian? Maybe he had a different lover outside the prison walls? YOU THINK THAT’S POSSIBLE?”

“Woman of fire, I do not dabble in such frivolity that spikes one’s dopamine receptors. Do not waste your gossip on me. Lucian and this whole case are none of my concern,” Erin finished the last bite of the duck. “However, the possibility of exploiting the five minute weakness exists for anyone with knowledge of the array’s timing.”

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“Then why did your initials appear on their systems at all? If you were just researching the array, why did it detect you?” Kyle asked.

“I eliminated signals that were interfering with my data extraction. Nothing more,” Erin said. “The laboratory systems you refer to are irrelevant to my research. Their equipment was likely interfering with my work. Their methods crude, bordering on barbaric I must say. Thus, the need for their elimination.”

Rachel’s head turned slowly toward the corner where Viktor sat. Her eyes locked onto him. “After this whole thing, we’re talking. Don’t you run away to Yawen.”

Viktor tried to press himself further into the wall, avoiding her gaze and even hiding behind Henry. But Henry had other plans. He hid behind Gale.

Unfortunately for them, even Gale was scared of the look Rachel was giving right now. Something primal woke up in her that gave him an utter primal fear.

Note to self. The anger of the woman of fire is as fear inducing as mom and dad’s.

Rachel, Kyle, and Clyde went back into the huddle away from the desk. Gale joined in beside Rachel, leaving Erin to float by herself. The duck was already gone too. He didn’t even get a bite, but after this scavenger hunt, he’ll get a duck too.

“So what now?” Rachel whispered. “The 2AM window probably was the way he got out of this building. Did you two know that?”

“Hell no. That’s nerd shit,” Kyle said, then looked at Clyde. “Do we still question those two idiots over there?”

“If we interrogate Viktor, Yawen’s going to get mad at me,” Rachel said.

Kyle and Clyde both said, “Who?”

“It doesn’t matter. Just do Henry instead if we’re going to interrogate one of them.”

“Nevermind about the two idiots. We’re already past that point,” Clyde said, side eyeing Gale. “Best to just track down the idiot outside. He’s not in school anymore. Wasting any more time here is gonna delay our fat payday.”

“Clyde’s right,” Kyle said. “Now’s the time to pursue the suspect.”

“Lucian isn’t the suspect. He’s the victim,” Rachel said scoldingly.

“He’s technically both,” Clyde said.

“What?”

“Pfft, come on,” Kyle said. “Idiot sneaks out of school, mommy worries about him, files a missing case, the Path sends numero uno number one duo to the case, makes us rough up a NETS, makes the feral knock out his friend, and now we gotta chase chase him down god knows where in Toronto. He’s clearly the suspect.”

Gale nodded. That’s right. It was Lucian’s fault Mikael got knocked out. If he hadn’t run away, none of everything that happened today would’ve happened.

“The floating bluey doesn’t count,” Clyde said. “She’s just… whatever that is.”

“That was you guys causing all of that!” Rachel suppressed her shout.

“Princess of the Fire Nation, it doesn’t matter! We trackin’ that idiot down,” Kyle pronounced.

“The hunt is on?!” Gale asked.

“Gale, these idiots are really bad influences on you…” Rachel sighed, shaking her head.

“We need to go to Mikael first, then track him outside,” Kyle said.

“Why him?” Rachel asked.

Kyle and Clyde grinned at each other, then glanced at Gale, who then puffed up his chest with a confident smile.

It was Gale’s time to shine now.

“Didn’t we tell you we got a K9?” Clyde asked.

Rachel’s mouth gaped. Her eyes widened. Mouth opened and closed. Then all sorts of emotions appeared on her face. Confusion, disbelief and then lastly, anger. “Are you serious? I thought that was a joke!”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Fire cheeks still hasn’t learned her lesson,” Kyle said, wagging his finger. “Hey, blue floaty. You can go back to your research. We’re going to catch Lucian.”

“A given outcome,” Erin said flatly, then slowly floated towards the door, exiting. “I shall resume my investigation of the nonsensical blip. Do not attempt to cause further interruptions.”

Kyle also headed down towards the door, followed by Clyde. Rachel grabbed Gale by the arm and pulled him along as they left the classroom. They left Viktor and Henry alone, not bothering to tell them what to do.

The group made their way back through the east wing corridor, past the empty classrooms and silent hallways, until they reached the stairwell that led up to the third floor. Walking through the hallway filled with a single patrolling roomba with a silence sigil glowing on top, they reached the door where the captive was held.

Floor 3, Unit 2E4. The infirmary.

Kyle pushed the door open without knocking. Mikael still lay on the bed, though he’d propped himself up against the pillows and was scrolling through his phone, laughing. He looked up when the group entered.

“What you laughing at there?” Kyle asked.

“Nothing.” Mikael put his phone away.

“Better be nothing,” Clyde said. “Now talk. You have anything that belongs to Lucian? Anything on your person right now, and you better tell the truth or justice will stomp you to the ground like a screaming ant.”

“Ants can’t scream…” Rachel muttered.

“You can imagine them screaming,” Gale said, giving Mikael a glare.

“Talk, punk!” Kyle shouted.

“Ok! Ok! Just tell the feral to stop staring at me,” Mikael shrank into the bed.

“Gale,” Rachel said.

Now that Gale knew intimidation tactics worked best when dealing with people who used violence, he smiled.

Pulling out something from his pocket, Mikael handed them a pen. A standard BIC ballpoint pen. Nothing special about it, and it was always in the dollar stores that Gale frequented.

“He lent this to me last week during a combat review session,” Mikael said. “Forgot to give it back before he disappeared.”

Kyle snatched the pen from his hand before he could say anything else. He turned and held it out toward Gale with a clear grin on his face. “Alright, K9 Gale. Come here. Smell it, lick it, do whatever you gotta do to find Lucian somewhere in Toronto. Outside of school.”

Gale took the pen from Kyle’s hand. He brought it up to his nose and inhaled deeply.

Sweat. A distinct kind of sweat. Not just one person’s sweat either. Two different scents layered on top of each other. One was probably from the one on the bed, and the other was from Lucian. One was more acidic than the other.

Leaning his head forward, Gale took a whiff of Mikael. His matched the more acidic one. His nose was now locked in.

“Are you going to lick it?” Rachel asked. Her voice carried equal parts curiosity and disgust.

“No,” Gale said. “The stink is already strong enough.”

He closed his eyes and let Presence Between’s tendrils extend outward. They pushed through the walls of the infirmary, through the corridors of Sterling Institute, through the barrier that surrounded the school grounds. The skill had grown since the Tomb. Evolved when he had inputted a skill point into it.

The tendrils kept spreading. Past the forest, into the city, through the streets of Toronto and even to Lake Ontario. Willing the sense of scent to turn on, all the smells of the city went into his brain, giving him a slight headache.

Guide, Gale mouthed silently. Find the unique scent from the pen, the less acidic one.

[Query received. Analyzing olfactory signature. Cross-referencing with Presence Between’s data.]

A map formed in Gale’s head. Not a visual map, but something deeper, a tapestry that created a silhouette of Toronto’s streets. The scent from the pen became a thread, and that thread wound through the city like a river finding its way to the sea.

[Signature located. Trail terminus: pier structure east of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. Confidence level: 98%.]

Gale opened his eyes. “Found him. There’s a pier east of some airport called Billy Bishop. The trail ends there.”

Kyle and Clyde exchanged a glance. Both of their smirks disappeared. Rachel noticed it, tilting her head in confusion.

“Oh shit,” Kyle said.

“They might’ve fed him to the fishes,” Clyde finished.

“For pete’s sake, this better not turn into another chain of clues.”

“What do you mean?” Rachel asked.

“It means there’s a 50/50 chance he’s dead,” Kyle replied.

“Oh dear… I feel bad for Ariana,” Rachel said softly.

“But he’s not dead. He’s breathing and still alive,” Gale saw the blond haired boy through his tendrils, sobbing uncontrollably. A pathetic display for a CAA member.

“Why couldn’t you just have given Gale something to sniff in the first place rather than go through all of this?” Rachel asked.

“But you were also invested in the gossip…” Gale muttered.

Rachel narrowed her eyes at him.

“You really think mommy’s going to pay bigger if we don’t make a mess?” Kyle said.

“Get real, princess. We ain’t risking our fat paycheque for a clean investigation,” Clyde said.

“Besides, this is already messier than finding a dead body.”

“True that. Kid’s still alive even after making out of Sterling?”

“That’s Aurian Times headline worthy. Which means—”

“—A bigger and fatter pay day, YEEE BUD.”

“YEEE.”

“You guys are idiots,” Rachel muttered, shaking her head while facepalming.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep