It was like walking into a slaughterhouse. Thick stains of blood coated the walls, and torn internal organs lay scattered among the room. A pool of blood had formed on the kitchen floor, and in the centre, a young boy laying on his side covered in a splatter of crimson.
I turned to the side, looking to the girl for some answers, but she was gone. There was no trace of the walking galaxy of mana that had most certainly scarred me for life. I expected to feel relief, perhaps a great weight lifting from my shoulders, but there was nothing except a growing list of questions that I desperately wanted answers to.
Priorities, Henry, you're an investigator of Eros. Tend to the victim first, and then...
No, I couldn't be sure that this boy in front of me wasn't the prime suspect. Nothing about this case was normal, so normal logic fails to apply here. Despite the scattered state of my mind, I focused on refining mana within my body.
First, expunge the air nature mana particles I had refined before leaving the city - I won't be needing those, and I'm not a mage that can store more than one type of mana at a time... Then, gather raw mana from my primary core, purify into earth-natured mana, and store in my now-empty secondary core... Provide a clear path from the secondary core to my fingertips...
I closed my eyes, inscribing runes for creation magic in my head, and then pictured exactly what I wanted to create and where... You've done this a thousand times Henry, come on, focus.
A moment later, I pried one eye open and silently prayed I hadn't lacerated the boy with an earth spike...
Phew, the spell was a success. An earth magic spell to morph a collection of earth mana particles into any shape I desire; in this case, a set of handcuffs so dense even underground Eros brawlers would struggle to break.
If this was a 'normal' investigation... well, as normal as a crime committed by mages could be, then my current theory would be that the boy is a druid unable to control his shape-shifting powers. He likely shapeshifted into an animal with large claws, something like a bear, and then... cleaved his family in half. Two adults, judging by the state of the crime scene - likely his parents. The boy would then be handed over to the druid faction in Eros, where he would stand trial in their courts and put to work as a slave or executed on the spot.
Unfortunately, that theory has a few holes. Well, one great big black miasma death sphere-shaped hole - floating right above our heads...
Given the state of the viscera, and coagulation of blood... this crime scene is around two - maybe three hours old. This fact raises a few alarming questions, such as: how did the city find out about this so quickly? In fact, the journey here alone took almost two hours... The response from Eros had been quick, too quick - almost suspiciously so.
Additionally, for mana to become so corrupted, so putrid and vile, and continue gathering in a single spot hours after the crime was committed...? A mage of considerable power must have been involved, but black magic corrupting the very essence of mana... If such a thing exists, I'd never heard of it before.
My thoughts returned to the girl from earlier, and the ominous visions I had witnessed in her presence... but something told me, against all reason, that somehow she hadn't been involved in this - at least not directly. In fact, she reminded me of someone... have I heard of her before... maybe even seen her somewhere?
"Urghhh..."
I immediately let go of whatever I was thinking of, my attention snapping towards the boy groaning on the ground.
"Mom... Dad..."
I took a cautious step forward, and kneeled closer to the boy.
"Yes, what happened to your mom and dad - can you tell me?"
The boy tilted his head towards me. Half of his face had been stained with blood, and his eyes were a worrying shade of red from crying for hours on end. He had no visible injuries, and he was in all likelihood swimming in a puddle of his parents remains right now...
"My name is Henry, can you tell me yours?"
The boy did in fact seem to process my question, but instead of responding, he looked around at the state of his kitchen and winced.
"Is... the creature gone?"
His voice was raspy, hoarse, and filled with fear.