[Back At The Hospital Morgue]
"Looks like he was searching for something in my office," said Damian, scanning the room. "I saw an envelope, so it must have been a file." He started looking around, trying to identify anything out of place. Opening the wall cabinet, he pulled out all the files stored there. "These are a lot," he muttered. "There's no way of knowing which one he took without checking each file against the history log."
"Damn it, it's tedious, but I have no choice," Damian muttered, pulling his chair and sitting down. "I need to do this if I want to get to the bottom of this." He retrieved the document containing the history log of all the patients who had been in his operating room. Methodically, he began cross-referencing each file against the history log, making a checkbox to keep track of the files he confirmed were present.
After a few hours of manual work, Damian finally identified the missing file. "It seems the file that's missing is that of a patient by the name Peter Clarke," he said, leaning back against his chair. "But what's his connection to this dead man?" he wondered aloud, trying to piece together the puzzle.
"Maybe I'm looking at this the wrong way," Damian muttered to himself. "I don't know for certain, but for now, let me go find out at the reception which officer brought Peter Clarke's body here."
He paused, considering the possibilities. "If I'm lucky, the officer who met the man who ressurected might be the same one responsible for Peter Clarke's case. But still, that's a big if. There's a chance the officer was given a random file, but then again, it's protocol for an officer to check the autopsy report before leaving with it."
"Fingers crossed," Damian said, standing up and closing the operating room door behind him. "Nope, I'm locking it this time. I don't want any dead bodies waking up and leaving." He locked the door and headed to the reception area.
Damian walked a while until he arrived at the reception, where he found a young man behind the desk. "Hey Andy," said Damian, reaching out to dap him. Andy met his hand and replied, "My man, what's up?"
"Nothing much, buddy, and you?" said Damian.
"Oh, you know how it is - just processing the dead all day long," Andy said with a chuckle.
"Yeah, tell me about it," Damian responded, adding, "Look, bro, I need some help. I'm missing a file, and I gotta find out which cop I gave it to."
"Don't worry, I gotchu," Andy said, starting to click on his computer. "Name?"
"Peter Clarke," replied Damian.
"Alright, hold on a minute," Andy said as he continued clicking and searching on the monitor. "Okay, I found him. Here's your cop," Andy said, turning the monitor to face Damian.
"Thanks, bro. I owe you one," said Damian, noting the contact details of the police officer.
"Yeah, one beer this Saturday," added Andy.
"You gotta cut down on the drinking, bro," said Damian as he started dialing on his phone.
"If you have a better way of dealing with this job, then I'm all ears," Andy replied, repositioning his monitor.
"Look, I'll catch you later man. I gotta get this," said Damian, putting his phone to his ear as it rang.
"Hello," said the voice on the other side of the phone.
"Hello, officer. I apologize for calling without notice," said Damian.
"No problem. Who am I speaking to?" asked the officer.
"This is Doctor Damian, the coroner assigned to the Peter Clarke case," Damian replied.
"Oh, Dr. Damian. I'm glad you called - I've actually been meaning to call. Have you finished the autopsy? I'd like to get it as soon as possible," said the officer.
Damian thought, "Damn it, I hoped this wouldn't be the case - it appears that this officer is not the same one who came here earlier."
"Yes, I was actually calling to inform you that there's been a delay with the processing of the body. I'll fax you the document tomorrow at the earliest," said Damian.
"Oh, I understand. Thanks for letting me know," said the officer.
"Yes, that'll be all," said Damian, ending the call.
He thought, "Just my luck - what kind of officer just takes an autopsy report without verifying if it's theirs? Damn it, it's a dead end. Looks like my last option is actually getting the cops involved."
As Damian walked back to his office, he considered his next steps." Looks like I'll have to find a digital copy of the autopsy report for Peter Clarke. I can't exactly tell the cop that a dead man woke up, stole his report, gave it to another cop, and then disappeared," he thought.
He arrived at his office, and just as he was about to sit down, someone knocked at the door. He walked back to the entrance of the operating room and found the guard from the security room outside.
"Hey, doc, I have your footage here. I tried my best to edit out all the unnecessary stuff to make it easier for the cops to see. But I have the original here too, just in case," said the guard, handing Damian the USB stick containing the footage.
"Thanks a lot for this. I'll go to the nearest police station after my shift," said Damian.
"Alright, doc, I gotta get back to work," said the guard.
"I'll see you around," said Damian, as he pocketed the USB stick and closed the door behind him.
[Meanwhile Somewhere In The City]
The man glanced around at the busy city, alive with honking cars and shops. Pedestrians hurried about, going about their daily routines.
"Perhaps having the ability to teleport has made me directionally challenged," he thought to himself.
"I swear I've passed that shop five times already." He sighed, feeling fortunate that it was still daytime. "I still have some time to find Aurora and get my powers back. Then, I can leave this precarious human existence behind, where I could get shot and die."
Aurora's mother gave me the address, but I'm struggling to find my way downtown," the man muttered to himself.
"How could I be so gullible? If I'm lost, I could just ask someone for directions. I guess being alone for so long has made me forget how to interact with people," he continued, still in the hospital attire he had taken from Damian's workplace.
"Maybe I should try asking that gentleman over there... He might help," the man thought to himself as he approached the individual standing by an alley down the road.
"Hello there, kind sir," said the man as he waved.
"What do you need? I've got every powder that's selling in the city - you name it, I got it. So, what do you want, pal?" replied the individual as he reached inside his jacket.
"Oh, no, sorry for the confusion, brother. I'm not buying," the man clarified.
With a tongue click, the individual said, "Then get out of here, damn brokie," as he assumed a defensive posture and leaned against the wall.
"Calm down, sir, I mean you no harm. I just wanted to ask for directions," the man reassured.
"Oh, really? Why didn't you say so?" the individual softened his tone. "Where do you want to go, buddy? I know the whole city like the back of my palm," he added, putting his arm around the man's shoulder.
"Oh, that's great to hear. I'm looking for Marlin Street - can you point me in the right direction?" the man asked.
"Point you? For you, my friend, I'll do you one better. I'll take you there," the individual offered as he led the man down the alley.
"Why are we going this way?" the man inquired as they headed deeper into the alley.
"Don't worry, my friend. This is a shortcut," the individual assured him.
They walked for a bit, and then the man had a sudden realization. "The entire point of my existence was death. I've seen more death than any creature alive on Earth. That's why in this moment... right now... right here, I can tell. I can sense it emanating from this man beside me. I let him get too close. I'm practically his hostage. I think I'm about to die," the man thought to himself.