Posts: 27
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
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Character Name: Caith Alwood
Main Account: Isaac
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Post by Caith on Aug 28, 2015 7:48:32 GMT -5
When the head EMT arrived, tapping her foot and crossing her arms over her chest, a clear look of annoyance plastered across her face, Caith could only say, "… Really? Seriously?" Okay, yes, an EMT's time was precious, but this was an investigation, dammit. Caith and Elgen would take as long as they needed.
Caith stayed composed, though, and she asked, "We're looking into a series of drug trafficking incidents and a possible connection to a particular drug manufacturer. There's been an increase in drug-related deaths and hospitalizations, and we need to see your records to determine where to search for drug deals. Also, have you yourself noticed any areas where you pick up drug victims most frequently?"
The woman shook her head, looking annoyed and disgusted like she had a bad taste in her mouth. "No. I've picked up a few druggies, but most of my patients have the usual emergencies—sickness, broken bones, maiming. You're not going to get slum trash in an ambulance. They can't afford it." She said that last part with condescending arrogance, to which Caith narrowed her eyes. This woman thought Caith was an idiot, didn't she?
"I see. Well, then that means the drug trading happens almost exclusively in the Slums. So thank you. I still want to see your records, though." Caith was firm with her demand, but the EMT simply rolled her eyes before walking away.
While the two waited for the EMT to return, Caith looked to Elgen and said, "Well, despite that little frustration, we actually got something useful. If Lower Class citizens aren't being exposed to the drugs as much, then that narrows our field considerably. The manufacturing might be happening all over the city, but finding the dealers and making them talk will be much easier. Hopefully autopsy results will narrow things down even further."
It took about ten minutes before the busy EMT came back with a big folder of paperwork. She didn't even explain what was in it, just handed it off and walked away. Clearly, the papers were from the last month of emergency responses. "While I look at these," said Caith, flipping through the papers. "why don't we head down to talk to the pathologists? Maybe they can describe any peculiar autopsies that might have been caused by the new drug."
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I SWEAR ON ME MUM
Posts: 31
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Character Name: Elgen Galbraith
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Post by Elgen on Aug 28, 2015 14:59:14 GMT -5
Elgen laughed out loud at Caith’s response. Exactly what he was thinking as soon as the EMT’s ugly frowning reared its way into the hospital lobby. ”You are talking to law enforcement. I’d suggest being a good girl and telling us what you know,” he added. More condescending than he’d meant it to be, but since when did he care about stepping on a few toes to get what he wanted?
”You know, maybe we should’ve seen that coming but there was always the small chance Lower Class and above was in on the trading too. I guess even MCCs don’t sell to their own class.” The Slums could barely afford running water half the time, let alone an expensive ambulance ride. And yet there was a sizable group of people out there who were spending what little money they had on paraphernalia anyway. Of course they were trash. Only trash would keep themselves firmly buried in the dumpster that was the Novian Slums.
Elgen almost asked to have a different doctor deliver their papers, as the EMT’s sass was getting to be too much, but to their luck, she left the entire folder with them. Sensitive material to just hand off without taking them to a private room, but it was apparent this woman was not cooperative in any sense. ”What kind of hospital doesn’t have these on digital files?” he said before glancing at the stack. Easily hundreds of records to be had. Maybe he could get away with a portion of them so his recorder didn’t die on him during what would be an annoying scanning process. It really was a backwater hospital.
Bugging the secretary again for her magical ways in paging personnel, she ended up having to escort the two of them inside the building. ”The head pathologist is rather busy today so I’d ask you not to linger too long,” she explained, seeming very nervous about it.
This time, they were greeted by an older man in the pathology lab, starting to gray in the hair and his face having seen much in its time. A chiseled but soft smile welcomed them inside. ”Police, I take it?” he asked. ”You caught me at a great time. What can I help with?”
”Big Blue. Have you heard of it?”
The pathologist nodded, though he tilted his head in thought. ”Is that what they call it? There have maybe been a handful of cases here so far but more than a few have shown up lately. It makes one wonder. It doesn’t seem to be a disease.”
”It's not, but it might as well be. We need to know what you’ve seen with those cases.”
”Perhaps I can do you one better. I happen to have a patient on the second floor you might be able to interview, or at least observe. I will warn you that they’re… not doing so well.”
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Posts: 27
Preferred Name: Varmun
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Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Caith Alwood
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Caith on Aug 29, 2015 14:36:58 GMT -5
“Oh, good,” said Caith, gesturing to the elderly man. “Someone who actually knows how to do their job.” With how the day had been going, Caith had wondered if she would ever see one of that rare breed. And despite her snarky comment, Caith gave an honest smile to the man and said, “But yes, please let us see him. That would be very helpful.”
The man nodded and led Caith and Elgen back to the elevator. As they rose back up to the first floor to see the patient, Caith flipped through the files that the EMT had given her. Many people would think she wasn’t even reading or even skimming the pages. She truly flipped through them, one after another, barely looking at them for more than two seconds. All she did was read the symptoms of the people that the EMTs had picked up during the past month. By the time the slow, creaky elevator reached the first floor, Caith could safely say, “The woman was right. There isn’t anyone listed here who had any unusual symptoms. If anyone who took these new drugs came here, they didn’t come in an ambulance. We’re going to have to rely on autopsy reports and this interview.”
Hearing this, the man looked down to Caith and said, “If you’d like, I could get you the reports while you’re talking to the patient.”
Again, Caith smiled. “Thank you. I’d appreciate that.” With the useless folder in her lap, Caith followed Elgen and the old man down the hall, heading for this mysterious patient’s room.
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I SWEAR ON ME MUM
Posts: 31
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Character Name: Elgen Galbraith
Main Account: Levenin
Status: Active
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Post by Elgen on Sept 1, 2015 0:37:26 GMT -5
Caith’s sarcasm tickled the pathologist’s funny bone, sending him into a brief throe of raspy laughter. ”You two are an interesting pair. I’m sure if anyone can solve this problem, you can. Hopefully, you’ll save us a few beds and autopsy reports to file.”
This one had a unique sense of humor, at least in Elgen’s eyes. More worried about room than people dying right and left. Not that Elgen would act any differently if he was in the same situation. Once they were shown the room with the patient in question, the sight of the man lying motionless in bed only confirmed his hypothetical outlook. His lips curled upward in a grimace at what they’d become: a husk of a human, gaunt and looking like they hadn’t been held in sleep’s sweet embrace for quite some time. They turned to face the two of them, taking a moment to stare before processing that there were actual guests by their bedside.
”Alright, let’s cut to the chase,” began Elgen as the doctor left them all to their own devices. ”You look like a guy who has a… fondness for something we’re looking for. Big Blue-- where’d ya get it?”
A panic filled the man’s deadened eyes. ”N-No! You can’t prove anything!”
”Chill out, we’re not here to arrest you. I don’t give a shit if you used it. I just wanna know where the hell you found it.”
”So you are with the police! You can’t touch me here! I’m in a medical facility! I’m protected!”
Elgen could feel his temper rising fast. One of these types, an idiot with drug-induced paranoia who thought he knew the law. He glanced at Caith, reluctantly begging for some intervention on her part. Even if she wasn’t good with druggies, there was no way she’d be worse at it than he was. ”Could you talk some sense into him? Maybe he’ll tell you if you ask nicely and exercise some patience.”
Patience and politeness— two qualities Elgen lacked.
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Posts: 27
Preferred Name: Varmun
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Character Name: Caith Alwood
Main Account: Isaac
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Post by Caith on Sept 2, 2015 9:34:32 GMT -5
Caith sat on the sidelines, observing the withered man. Her sharp eyes darted across his body. His state of being was of little concern to her. What mattered were the details, and she spotted quite a few: a series of scars along his wrists; a line of clean skin on his ring finger; a burn scar near his left temple obscured by a fringe of hair; and a tendency to rub his right hand as Elgen attempted to make him talk. It was hard to call it an attempt, though. Elgen gave up quickly, his face getting red from only a little bit of resistance. But his interrogation of the man, despite being so short, proved useful.
When she took over, Caith rolled up to the side of the man's bed and said, "You're right." The man looked over to her, his brow tight, his dry lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but Caith's calm expression seemed to hold him back. "In here, you're perfectly safe. Your wife, on the other hand, will have some domestic abuse charges to answer for."
The man's sunken, wrinkled eyes snapped wide open. Dead skin flew from his cheeks as he said, "What? What are you talking about?"
"Your scar," said Caith. "You have no shame in showing the cuts along your wrists, but you purposefully comb your hair to hide the burn on your left temple. Why? You take drugs and you clearly have no interest in self-preservation. It could be your hair naturally falls that way, but your hair swirls to the right. You don't want anyone noticing the scar, but you can't afford makeup to hide it, reason being your wife gave it to you in a fight. She didn't do it out of self-defense because—again—you have no shame in the scars on your wrists, so why would you hide something you rightfully deserve? Because you didn't. Your wife started the fight and burned your head with a hot crack pipe, judging by the concentrated shape of the burn. You don't want anyone to know because you still love her. The rest of your body is dirty and greasy, but you have a line of clean skin on your ring finger. Five minutes in the Slums would erase something like that, but you had your ring on yesterday. You took it off last night when you go out to get drugs. You didn't want anyone taking it from you to pay for their own addictions. And this entire time you've been rubbing your hand. Drug addicts scratch themselves when they're having withdrawal. You, however, feel uncomfortable without your ring, which you don't have because you were brought here shortly after taking a dose of a drug—a drug you're not used to because normally you can take a hit before going home to put your ring back on. You tried something different this time, hoping it would give you the confidence to kill yourself or just do it on its own. It didn't matter how it happened, so long as it ended your suffering. But instead, it overwhelmed you, and you were brought here by a friend against your will."
The man was stunned, his mouth open, lips quivering. Most of Caith's display was meant to blow his mind, to put some fear in him and set up her real intention.
"I have the evidence to put your wife away. She has no protection from the law, and I will bring her down. But I'm willing to pardon her if you just tell me where you got Big Blue." The last part was a bluff, a lie to make the already paranoid man spill everything. And it worked.
"No! Please, no! I got it from a dealer on Jenova Street, in an alley behind the Pawnsby's."
"What did the dealer look like?"
"I don't know. He looks different every time. Sometimes his hair is white, sometimes red or something crazy. His skin is black, white, brown. But I know it's always him because he smells like this weird fruity smoke."
"And does this man deal behind the Pawnsby's often?"
"Every night on the weekends. I never tried to buy Big Blue from him until last night. He sells all sorts of stuff, but the blue one was always so expensive."
"I see. Well, thank you for your help." Caith then turned around, waving for Elgen as she rolled toward the door.
"H-hey!" called the man. "What about Moira?"
"If what you said is true, she won't be harmed." Without another word, Caith left with Elgen, heading back out into the hallway. |
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I SWEAR ON ME MUM
Posts: 31
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Character Name: Elgen Galbraith
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Post by Elgen on Sept 4, 2015 2:52:02 GMT -5
Absolutely astounding. For once in his young life, Elgen could honestly say he was speechless. Or at least speechless for a reason that wouldn’t be immediately followed by a good beating. He could safely say he’d never been this thorough or so on top of a case like Caith seemed to be. Of course, drug busts weren’t exciting to him so effort was slim to begin with, but even then, he’d never mingled with a detective quite like this. They tended to be better at reading scenes than people in his experience. Accurately guessing a wife and specific habits from a drug she’d previously had little knowledge of? The MCPD was spoiling him by making the man partner up with her.
Elgen clapped his hands a few times once the two of them left the druggie alone to stew in his bed. What an enjoyable little show he’d just had a front seat to. ”Impressive. You not only got him to talk but you did it without threatening bodily harm. A fun option but usually not the most successful,” he said, a devious smile rearing its ugly head. ”But nice touch with the blackmailing. A cunning side, hmm? Not something I expected, to be honest. Here you are playing up the professionalism and yet you just pulled a dirty move.”
Elgen had no idea why this amused him so much. Maybe because Caith had been his only pleasant surprise today. However, he figured it was time to stop pegging her before he reached the limit of her patience. Better to not annoy a person he actually got along with. ”I do wonder about our “patient” and his testimony, though. The perp looking different every time could just be part of the hallucinations. Either that or we’re about to bust a costume shop.”
Wait, that made something click.
”Are you thinking what I’m thinking? Too early for Halloween but…” Elgen could hear footsteps echoing down the hall. Probably their doctor returning with their requested reports. "It doesn't really narrow down the smell he mentioned, though. Fruity smoke... Only thing I can think of is if our dealer has a taste for shisha."I dunno if Halloween still exists but HAHA I’M GONNA SAY IT ANYWAY
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Posts: 27
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Caith Alwood
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Caith on Sept 4, 2015 12:57:40 GMT -5
Caith's face started to hurt as she did everything in her power to hide the huge grin that wanted to spread across her cheeks. She couldn't stop her lips from curling up a little, though, and she could just barely hold back the joy in her voice as she looked up to Elgen and said, "Thank you. I'll admit, I have a lot of fun with those deductions. They don't always work like that, but they're exhilarating when they do." In her head, however, Caith screamed like a high school girl. Oh my god, I can't believe that worked! That was such a wild string of clues. I thought for sure I would get that wrong. That was amazing!
On the outside, Caith managed to relax her face, quickly refocusing on the task at hand. Crossing her arms, she thought over Elgen's words and said, "I doubt it's the hallucinations. At least, not entirely. He made it sound as if the dealer was different every night. If it was the drugs that made him think that, wouldn't it be more likely that he would say the dealer changes color all the time rather than every night?" Caith closed her eyes for a moment, ignoring the doctor for just a moment before she said, "We might have the same idea, but I think there's more to it. Wigs would allow our dealer to change his hair. As for his skin… I think it might be a chameleon or squid gene mod. That doesn't help us, of course. There are too many people with mods like that, and we don't even know for sure if he has it. Shisha cigarettes probably won't help, either, at least not until we need to sniff him out from a crowd."
Finally paying some attention to the pathologist, Caith took another folder of papers from him. And unlike the rude, incompetent EMT, the pathologist stuck around to make sure Caith returned the reports once she was done.
Although, she hardly needed them now. She flipped through a few, checking to see other people who died from symptoms their 'friend' was suffering from. There wasn't too much to go on, though, at least nothing that would be useful at this point, so Caith handed the folder back to the pathologist.
Once the two were alone again, Caith said to Elgen, "We know where this takes place, and we have an idea of who to look for. How do you feel about staging a drug bust tonight? We can get some of the MC officers to join in. We'll need at least four to catch everyone at the deal to make sure we get our man."
If Elgen is okay with the drug bust idea, feel free to jump to the setup if you want, or I can do it if you'd prefer o 3o/ If he's not okay with it, then of course have him say so.
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I SWEAR ON ME MUM
Posts: 31
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♠♠♠
Character Name: Elgen Galbraith
Main Account: Levenin
Status: Active
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Post by Elgen on Sept 6, 2015 1:54:23 GMT -5
”I suppose. Hallucinations tend to make one think there are bugs crawling around under the skin and the like, not so much boogeymen who can shape shift. It astounds me people know about these things and still dive right into this drug shit anyway,” said Elgen. Wigs, clothing, even the skin color could easily be make up. Any seasoned Vigilante would prioritize their face being unrecognizable. Their information source might’ve been strung out to the last thread, but a figment of his imagination? Probably not. ”I honestly think there’s some sort of costume shop involved here, though not sure what Slum rats would need one of those for. They’re a bit too busy scrounging for food or their next fix to worry about dress up. There’s also always a chance they’re getting their outfits from more… explicit places.”
Genes were always the first possibility. Elgen had come across many a Slum or Lower Class citizen who somehow had at least one mod. They were common enough in Novus at all levels, though to varying degrees of cheapness. Someone making bank off of drug deals would probably not have issues with getting one of their own. ”So we have the potential for gene mods and we also have the potential that the perp is just really good at changing his clothes,” he continued. The doctor had made his return by now, watching them both with a certain discomfort to his weathered face. Not like overhearing their conjectures was going to hurt the case. Better to get it all out while ideas were fresh. ”I’d say we haven’t really narrowed down a damn thing about this asshole.”
Why couldn’t it be obvious, like with the Witch? Sure, no one knew his face but there was a definite gender and body frame there. Hell, there was even a weapon of choice and the glowing eyes. Elgen couldn’t get angry over the endless headscratchers, not after listening to the last of Caith’s words. ”I do wonder where he’d get “shisha cigarettes,” though. Tell me, have you ever smoked at a hookah lounge?” Smart as she was, Elgen had a feeling Caith didn’t get out enough if she thought shisha was something that came in a pack of 20. Maybe he’d treat her to a visit once this mess was done.
Once alone again, papers flipped through and given back, he nodded his head. ”Normally I’d say no to a bust with little to go on, but we should while we have the chance. With his Big Blue source dead, I wouldn’t be surprised if our target changes his dealing location as a precaution once the news gets around. But of course, staging such a thing means someone needs to be up and personal with our man. I dunno about you, but who do you think would make a more convincing buyer out of the two of us, hmm? Just saying that he might be spooked off if a healthy-looking MC officer or an imposing guy like myself just waltzes up behind the Pawnsby’s looking for an ounce.”
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Posts: 27
Preferred Name: Varmun
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Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Caith Alwood
Main Account: Isaac
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Post by Caith on Sept 6, 2015 9:20:57 GMT -5
“Trust me, I agree,” said Caith, leaning back in her chair as the two made their way outside, someplace where they wouldn’t be so easily overheard by patients or staff. She kept her eyes peeled for any pedestrians, though, and she kept her voice down as she continued, “We haven’t narrowed anything down, and we have no idea what this dealer looks like, but at this point it doesn’t matter that much. If we find the deal tonight and bust it, then we’ll catch everyone there: dealer and customers included. Then, it’ll be easy to identify the dealer because he’ll be the one with all of the merchandise. We’ll only need to figure out more if the deal gets moved.
“And I wouldn’t be surprised if our dealer was at least from the Lower Class. While he could be from the Slums, it’s a little unlikely. Remember, he has to go in and out of the Middle Class to get the drugs without raising any suspicion—unless, of course, there is both a distributor and a dealer. Regardless, I have a feeling our dealer isn’t a slum dog.”
Really, Caith wasn’t too happy with this plan. Of course it was flawed, but they needed to jump on this before it was too late. There might be a chance that the dealer would hold a deal tonight without knowing about Mr. Potter’s death. If he was from the Slums like Elgen thought, then the chance was high that he wouldn’t know his supplier was dead. And if Caith was right and the dealer was from the Lower Class, it still sounded like the dealer sold from multiple suppliers. Mr. Potter only seemed to create one special drug, but the patient from earlier had bought other drugs from the dealer—most likely cocaine. The dealer might still meet there even with a single dead supplier so long as he had stock from other suppliers. And, of course, there was the possibility that multiple people produced Mr. Potter’s drug, so business might proceed regardless. It was all a shot in the dark, really, but one that wouldn’t cost the investigation anything but a handful of man hours.
“As for who’ll go in personally,” she said, crossing her arms again. “It has to be you or another MCPD officer. I can’t do it. A woman in a wheelchair is going to look suspicious no matter how much I dirty myself up. And if we have to chase someone down, well…”
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I SWEAR ON ME MUM
Posts: 31
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♠♠♠
Character Name: Elgen Galbraith
Main Account: Levenin
Status: Active
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Post by Elgen on Sept 11, 2015 2:51:53 GMT -5
This sounded simple. A little too simple. Stupid dealers were plentiful in all walks of Novus, but Elgen had a feeling this wasn’t one of them. What they had to work with and what they planned to do were both too easy to exploit. Where was the back up plan that would definitely be needed for each step of the way? ”Lower Class, Slum dog, as if it makes a difference in the end,” he scoffed, the disdain in his voice practically spilling out of his lips. ”There’s too many holes but if we want this done tonight, then so be it. If it fails, then maybe we can convince the police to learn some damn patience and do some actual tracking on these kinds of cases. I swear, they expected us to work a miracle with our hunting today. Like a few hours in a bloody house was gonna magically tell us everything…”
One thing was for certain: Elgen’s buddies at the Secret Police would never let a case like this go without a thorough investigation. They were all about stalking, watching, for as long as it took to gather every last piece of evidence. Of course, not like they could lose a lead so long as they had the suspect’s position. NUIP chips were useful like that. One was never truly alone in this city. The rest of the MCPD, barring Caith, couldn’t know about his association with the SP, though. The higher ups would probably frown upon that little fact getting leaked for more than her. That unfortunately meant they couldn’t do the bust his way, the smart way.
”I suppose we’d better start setting this up for tonight. We need a time, an idea of where the hell this place even is…” Pulling out a different device from the recorder, a standard cell phone, Elgen began punching buttons. ”Here, the Pawnsby’s. On the cusp of where the Lower Class and the Slums meet at 85th Avenue. One of your guys will be tagged to go in undercover and start our bust, with the rest of us armed and ready to go once we have our cue. I think a team of four or five, including us, will be enough since this isn't his personal property we're invading... Well, five only if we have enough competent officers to make that much. One person should be on standby a few streets over with a cruiser just in case we have a runner. Though I do wonder, Alwood…”
Elgen peered down at her through rose-colored glasses as he began sending coordinates and instructions to HQ. In case this bust went south (which he fully expected it to), he could get someone on his team to find their perp’s NUIP. Even a seasoned criminal couldn’t run with their true identity known and tracked at every turn. It was a wonder the regular police could get anything done without that kind of access. ”No offense, but what will you be doing? Unless you’re a perfect shot or something. Just saying I don’t need anyone slowing me down, even if it’s you.”If you wanna jump to the night/bust start, feel free to!
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