Orrevile Station, Downtown Liverpool
Sheriff's office
"Cut the bullshit, Jack. Tell me. What the hell happened to those guards?" Sheriff Daniels barked, taking a long puff from his pre-rolled cigarettes. The aged man sat at a large oak desk, his tie undone and his brow sweating, His flowing slicked gray hair shined in the gaslight above. He had been up the previous night making sure the apartment fire was secured and the area was blocked off to the public. Now back in his office, the man yearned for a much needed rest.
"Incapacitated, sir. Blunt wounds to the head, I'm afraid. They're expected to make a recovery." A secretary replied, setting Daniels's fourth cup of coffee down.
"Damn it. Doctors give any windows for when they may return?"
"Not yet, sir. We're still keeping in touch with Gerald Memorial."
Daniels swore under his breath, taking one last huff from his smoke before stuffing the butt of it in an ash tray.
"Get me the case report on the Riley boy. I'm gonna run some checks and see if he is involved in any groups of question." Daniels spat.
Jack swerved out of the office in a hurry. Quickly the station began to fill with officers who had finally returned from the scene of the fire, the situation now stable and fully under control.
Just as quick as he had left, the secretary popped back into the office, a distressed look on his face.
"Sir! The files have been burned! All that's left in the cabinets are ash and scraps!"
Daniels furiously slammed his fist against the desk, gritting his teeth as a grunt escaped his mouth.
"Get detective Marshall in here. NOW!" The man shouted, retrieving a rolling paper from his desk.
Taking a sprig of tobacco, the man dashed it across the paper as he carefully rolled it, stuffing it into his mouth and lighting it in less than a minute. From the doorway emerged a tall, dark man wearing a fedora and a slick tweed suit. He was rather proper in his movements and poise, setting his hat on the coat rack as he entered, revealing his short, Well combed brown hair. He had the face of a baby, soft and clean.
"You called, Daniels?" Marshall spoke, taking a seat at the sheriff's desk.
"I know you're well aware of the situation. Our files on Maxwell Riley, the arrest we made last night at the apartment fire, have been burnt to a crisp. On top of that, we have a broken wall, five incapacitated guards, and ruined cell. To make matters worse, Riley is on the loose. We suspect he was broken out by a gang of organized criminals, clearly of high threat. This point any fingers to you?" Daniels explained.
"Yes, yes it does. Your suspicions are right, I can tell you that right now. No petty thieves could pull this off. The entire scene reeks of one clear observation—this break out was composed by professionals. I might have an idea of who might be behind this…"
"Well...go on with it!"
"They're an elusive bunch…only those heavily involved in the criminal underworld know them. They go by the name of Spectre. They are composed of ruthless, daring, savage members of society that steal from the rich. Their mission is unknown. All we know is that they are large in numbers and incredibly dangerous. But if there's one piece of incriminating evidence against them here, is the burnt files. Spectre is known for wiping away any evidence they could possibly leave behind. Only ex members of the group we now have in custody admit this. They leave no trace whatsoever. But that's their trick and their downfall. It has to be them." Marshall deducted.
"And how do you suppose we go about chasing these fools?"
"Simple, really. We need to find their source and strike directly. I have a few contacts involved in undercover thieving guild operations. I can get ahold of them today and see if I can wire any information."
"Don't bother, you'll put a target on your head. I'm going to write to the magistrate and see if we can get some special forces stationed here."
"The magistrate? Do we even have clearance to contact them?"
"On my terms, yes. We are in hot pursuit of a suspect who has fled with a group of deadly terrorists. This will become a national emergency once they find out about this."
"No need to blow things out of proportion now, Daniels. These men are elusive and much more dangerous than we think. If we provoke them too much, who knows what'll happen. Just let me do my job."
"No, Marshall. I'm not going to lose another detective to those goddamn thieves. I know exactly what I'm going to ask for. You are dismissed." Daniels hissed, Marshall quietly leaving the room as the sheriff reached for his pad of paper on the edge of his desk. With a pencil, the man got to work quickly, etching down a letter to the Magistrate in London.
"To whom it may concern amongst the higher power of United Japan's Magistrate,
I am Sherriff Horton Daniels of the Orrevile branch police in downtown Liverpool. As of last night, November 25, 1899, an incident involving a group of criminals occurred upon our station that resulted in the break out of a convicted suspect and the injuries of five badged officers, as well as property damage. We are reaching out to you now to ask for your assistance in pursuing this matter, as our top detective has traced this occurrence back to a low profile group of thieves by the name of Spectre. We appreciate your time and hope we can receive further correspondence.
Sincerely, Sheriff Daniels
Liverpool Police
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Dear Sheriff Daniels,
The magistrate officially recognizes your request for assistance as a top priority at the moment. The group of criminals you have brought into question are registered and seen in the eyes of our higher government as terrorists—which must be dealt with immediately. We write back to you with the news that we plan to further investigate this matter with some of our top forces at the helm. We ask you reply to this message with as much information on the group in question as possible. In return, we will be sending some of our men down to your offices within the coming weeks to begin further action. We look forward to collaborating and finally putting a rest to one of United Japan's worst menaces.
Sincerely, Bartholomew
Head of Magistrate