Doctor Poshell pressed down on a screen, and a low vibrating hum echoed in the dimly lit space as a long tube rose from a wall. Its head and bottom were black, while the rest of its body was transparent and covered in what looked like frost.
"It's the latest biotech device," Doctor Poshell explained. "It's used to keep bodies as fresh as possible for as long as possible. It is very efficient but consumes a lot of electricity. We only use it for bodies from unusual scenes or under investigation."
Heinrich nodded as he approached the body, his brows furrowing. "I need to examine some things, but it might be a waste of time to remove the body from this state."
Gilbert furrowed his brows as he approached Doctor Poshell, his eyes on the screen. "Since it's the latest biotech, it surely does more than freeze a body, right?"
"Yes. It also gives a primary assessment of the state of the body when it was brought in. Actually, this particular set of bodies is unusual," Doctor Poshell said with a proud smile, showing off the machine's capabilities.
"How so?" Heinrich asked, turning around, his ears perked.
"When a body is placed in the cryo tube, the tube scans the body and prints out a copy of its analysis," Poshell began. "The analysis is very detailed and stored in both hard and soft copy forms. This increases our forensic units' data storage efficiency while reducing stress. In the whole of Falnora, only Serenity has this device, and I hear that only two other hospitals in the whole Northern Empire do."
"Just get straight to the point, doctor," Gilbert sighed.
Doctor Poshell cleared his throat in embarrassment. "As I said earlier, the analysis is very detailed. It includes things like blood circulation patterns, post-mortem reactions, and the effect of death on the nerves."
Heinrich immediately walked over to the screen, his gaze focused. "You found oddities in the brain activity after death, didn't you?"
Doctor Poshell's eyes went wide with shock. "How did you know?"
Heinrich didn't reply, instead tapping a few things on the screen. A new window popped up, showing the nerve signals from the brain of the deceased. Heinrich's eyes narrowed. "It's like this for all of them?"
"Yes."
Doctor Poshell looked at Rhashan and Gilbert, seeing the curiosity in their eyes. "Normally, when a human dies, there is still brain activity for about seven to ten minutes. If the body is brought in quickly enough, we can find traces of the final patterns of their nerves, which allows us to find out things like emotion and chemicals released by the brain just before death. But this set of bodies is different."
"No brain activity? Did the body come in too late?" Rhashan asked. His team had been the first to get to the crime scene and he had immediately requested the bodies be transported.
"No. The brain was still warm, and there were traces of minute functions in the organs. Instead, it was like... the brain was formatted," Doctor Poshell said, trembling subtly, a hint of horror in his eyes.
"Nothing is wrong with their brain," Heinrich sighed. He dipped his hands into his pockets and gazed at the ceiling, lost in thought.
The room fell silent, a melancholic aura filling the atmosphere.
"Sergeant Rhashan," Heinrich suddenly called out.
"Sir!"
"I want you to request backup. Call all nearby patrols here; we have to seal off the hospital." Heinrich looked at Doctor Poshell. "Doctor, I want you to place the hospital on lockdown. No one comes in, and no one goes out without my say so. Also, take me to your power grid."
"Gilbert, send a message to HQ. Tell them we have a code red."
Gilbert and Rhashan looked lost, confused at Heinrich's sudden commands. Heinrich didn't notice, turning to leave the room.
"Slow down, Heinrich!" Gilbert called out, his voice firm. "What's wrong?"
Heinrich paused, lips pursed. He wanted to speak but decided against it. "I can't tell you without permission. Those bodies, or at least that one in particular, might be a clue to an unsolved case, one that claimed the lives of members of the special squad."
Rhashan's eyes widened, a chill running down his spine as he realized the gravity of the major's words.
"It can't be..." Gilbert muttered, fear evident in his eyes. Doctor Poshell looked even more afraid, knowing that for the military to show such fear, he should be deeply concerned.
"Gilbert, the enemy, the true culprit, will most likely come back to get rid of the evidence! We have to protect those bodies until the special squad gets here!" Heinrich yelled.
He looked at Rhashan. "You were right, Sergeant. The culprits were trying to hide evidence. By now, they would have realized they made a mistake by leaving bodies behind. They are most likely on their way here."
Rhashan opened his mouth to speak but couldn't find the words.
"Catch!" Heinrich suddenly threw an object toward Rhashan. He caught it, shocked at the badge in his hand.
"That's my badge. It should give you all the access you need," Gilbert said. "Go and contact the higher-ups and come back with your team. I'll call for backup."
"Gilbert..." Heinrich began, but Gilbert interrupted.
"If you are right, then the enemy will send someone who can complete the job. You need someone powerful to stay here with you. Rhashan will be able to send the report to HQ."
Heinrich looked at Gilbert for a moment before nodding. "Come back as soon as possible. We need as much reinforcement as we can get. The enemy is most likely working with tech on the level of the blue legion. Be careful."
Rhashan nodded and hurried out of the room, heading straight for the hospital exit.
He knew a countdown had begun, one that would determine the life and death of everyone in that hospital.
***
On the top of a building a few blocks away from the hospital, a dark human figure stood, their form obscured by shadows. The only discernible feature was their glowing purple eyes, which narrowed as they watched the hospital from afar, a crazy grin spreading across their face.
"Well, they got here rather quickly… I wonder how those people will react…"
The dark figure raised their hand and touched their lips in thought, then sighed.
"Well then, let the show begin!"