Interlude: Code Six-O-Six
Hell's Kitchen, New York.
Volume 1: Origin
It was 7 AM. A few rookie cops moved the police barricade that separated the news stations and the crime scene. The cameras and recorders were pushed forward, pestering the officers for additional pieces of information on the gruesome discovery. The silent strobe light flashed red and blue atop, the black undercover police charger as the lead Detective pulled inside the blocked-off area.
Carlton Northsrider gripped the steering column in agitation, and roared from the rolled down window. "Get them back ten feet." Not taking chances to anger the Captain, the beat cops quickly went to work.
He was transferred to the N.Y.P.D. from the Chicago Police Department, a highly decorated detective, and he was once on the fast track to Chief before the event occurred that derailed his career and ended his marriage. He felt his ring finger, still not used to it missing.
Two individuals stepped from the car, patrol officers saluted. A Sargent walked over, cigarette hanging from his mouth. He shook his head as Northsrider eyes locked on his.
Detectives Clark and Jones stood parallel to the covered body. Northsrider was headed back after canvassing the scene, dropping folder cards as he went. He gestured to a C.S.I. member.
"Evidence. Make sure you get some pictures from here on up toward the entrance to the meat market. Get a guy to run down the owners of the cameras."
The thin white sheet soaked with the victim's blood, a pink and brown designer bag laid to the side. Jones shook her head as Northsrider approached. She squatted down, and the patrol officers ogled her rear before his hard stare locked on them.
"Another one," said Detective Jones. "female again, another student from Midtown High,"
"Books are scattered around the alley. She was dragged," she gestured with her hand, "before she crawled here." She stood, and pointed toward a boot print. "He followed her as she crawled. He watched as she struggled.
"He killed her here, but it wasn't slow." Clark added, his eyes scanning the ground before he raised his head.
He unbuttoned the cheap snap-on tie. "Clark and Jones, I want you two to lead this. You have the mayor and my full support. The task force is already being formed at headquarters. Now tell me the similarities between the evidence and the other sites."
Clark looked around, motioning for Northsrider and the Sergeant to come near, and said discreetly. "This is another Code Six-Oh-Six," said Detective Kelvin Clark. They all grunted, stared at the body, and nodded before splitting up to work the scene and organize the retrieval efforts.
"I can barely believe this, we can't even catch him on cctv. He's capable of bypassing security systems and cameras." She pulled out a small clear bag and put the ash inside before grabbing a woman with a C.S.I. coat on that was passing. Jones moved around the body and pulled out her pen, taking a smidgen of the ash between her toes.
"Volcanic ash, no geographic marker either." She grumbled.
"The lab results will point toward the same mutation again." Said Clark.
Jones eyed her partner. "We won't be able to keep this under wraps for long. You think I should ask him to help?"
His eyes hardened. "He as in Luke? The fugitive. Big. Bulletproof. Another one that's causing the city money in overtime and property damage."
"He's not a mutant, you know this."
"I don't know, Jones. This is beyond us. Even if we knew who he was, what would be the plan on capturing him? He's some kind of volcano man?" He threw his hands up, exasperated.
"I wish these bastards would expose themselves, and the feds can have the cases.
"Alphabets are hands-on already. The problems we're facing are happening nationwide. The sent liaison is supposed to know what we're dealing with and methods in handling them. I even heard chatter about Europe, Russia and Greece having the same issues."
"Feds better come with the big guns. The mayor wants the case closed expeditiously. Now we have this sick puppy mocking us. Your boy toy thinks he's untouchable. These mutate, enhanced, or whatever politically appropriate terms they're called need to be stopped!" He thundered, causing the officers to turn and regard the seemingly bickering detectives.
"Quiet! This is still on the hush-hush; need to know only, the Chief and Northsrider have our back."
Detective Clark took a deep breath. "Fine. Your way. Leave the boyfriend out of it, and I'll keep running interference with my old unit on his reconstruction of lower Harlem."
Jones didn't respond nor correct the man on her relationship status. "Until then Lets head to midtown-high. It's past time we do some interviews with her friends and classmates."
Cole Stephens|
Four days have passed since his arrival. He managed to turn in most of the missing work and completed all of these makeup tests.
His new updated iPhone thrummed in his pocket, and he quickly retrieved it. He glanced at the time, 9 PM. He taps at the screen smartly before the live video feed is shown. He watched a van with a local flower delivery decal pull into the driveway of the medium two-story house. Six men exited the van and made their way to the door. The leader signaled for two to go to the back, and the other two skillfully ascended the house to the second story.
He jumped from his cot and opened the attic window. He took two steps back before running and diving from the window, his body clearing opening quickly.
He landed in a roll and gracefully came out of the roll on the balls of his feet. He darted behind the abandoned cars dotting the decrepit old orphanage lot as the Carmichael's exit the house, arguing about money problems
He slunk away under the poor light and dark moonless sky. His honeytrap plan wouldn't sit right with most, but it showed results, and his earlier fears of using the family to lure their tormentors out weren't warranted.
He darted into the dark alley as his costume appeared on his body. He wondered what it would look like to others seeing the impossible feat happening.
He jumped and caught the fire escape before jettisoning himself upward with sheer strength as he cleared the five-story climb in under thirty seconds.
He ran atop the roofs and followed the van trajectory with the tracker on the girl. He didn't watch the abduction as it was counterproductive to the plan, and if he was honest, he knew it would have been brutal.
Bad guys and their obsession with abandoned buildings seem to translate into the actual world. He chuckled under the cloak of darkness as the van pulled inside a seemly abandoned warehouses district. He pulled his phone out and queried a search of the owner. It might lead to someone or some company, any information was an increase in operation success.
The family was thrown from the van before being dragged. The Father, a doctor, and an illegal immigrant were carried over a massive wall of a man's shoulder. The girl was crying and pleading once again. He shook his head. Some people are just meek and want to be ruled over.
He fell from the building and landed without Noise or disruption. He did a field check of his equipment and crouched low on approach, stopping by each vehicle and placing plastic explosives on the gas tank.
He checked the door before slowly opening it before sliding inside and closing it behind him. He looked around the room, looking got routes and accessing the layout. He could hear talking and arguing up ahead.
The outside was deliberately allowed to remain dilapidated because inside was a spanning operation of what he could only assume was artifact smuggling. He will have to reconsider after getting to their leader who wants the family and take as much as he can off their hands.