November 17, 2012
7:30 AM, Baümer's Mansion. Danelburg, Azurea
Noralie was awakened by the peaceful chirping of the birds outside as she lay on a soft, fragrant bed that smelled of sweet lavender. The bedroom was flooded by the morning rays of sunlight streaming through the nearby bay window, its touch providing a soothing comfort of warmth to her skin. She rose from the bed as she yawn, her hands stretched up into the air. Lying at her bedside was the sleeping Ilse, and upon seeing this, Noralie's hand gently reached out to caress her friend's wavy hair.
Her gaze eventually wandered upon the slumbering Leon and Owen at the corner, their heads were leaning against each other whilst emitting asynchronous snores. With a smile, Noralie quietly made her way, gently stepping past by the resting Luna as she tiptoe towards the window where she gazed out at the refreshing view of the surroundings of the manor.
Under the company of the tranquil atmosphere, her thoughts shifted to the last night's unexpected fiasco. Following the encounter and under Leon's particularly strict guidance, they decided to lock the corpses of the lurkers in the cellar below the mansion, courtesy of Owen, to prevent Eidessa's tampering or 'scrapping' attempts around the necrotic carcasses.
They also decided to take necessary precautions which includes sleeping together in this guest room of the second floor while taking shifts for watch duty to make sure nothing tries to pry its way inside. Luckily for them though, the night went exceptionally as smooth as the cold, soothing breeze of the evening wind.
After a few moments of quiet contemplation, Ilse stirred next who let out a deep, audible yawn which caught Noralie's attention.
"Up already, huh?" Ilse remarked in a nasal tone. "How was your sleep?"
"Fine," Noralie replied. "You?"
"Oh well, you know. Bed's begging for me not to rise and shine."
They both shared a chuckle and remained there, motionless and lost in thought for a moment. Soon after, Leon and Owen joined the waking world, their faces disheveled.
"Mornin'," Leon rasped.
"Morning, sleeping handome," Ilse snickered.
"Heh," Leon smiled.
Luna, on the other hand, cracked an eye open, giving Leon a look as if urging him to be mindful of his noise. She then rose up, giving her fur a quick tousle before trotting towards the nearby nightstand where she struck a sphinx-like pose as she set herself comfortably on the floor.
Everyone exchanged their morning greetings and a few brief words to each other before making their way out of the guest room, along with their growling stomachs as they anticipate the breakfast's dine. The dining room was still in a cluttered state, littered by shards of glass and pieces of wood from the previous night's debacle. Ignoring the mess around the room, they found themselves savoring the remnants of last night's dinner— cold leftovers.
Owen, with the help of Ilse, served and spread out plates of sausages, bowls of egg casserole and mushroom soup, along with the slices of ham across the surface of the table. Luna joined them shortly after, looking everyone expectantly with her drooling mouth. Owen spared her a glance before tossing a whole sausage towards her direction which Luna devoured greedily.
"What's our-mmfp next-mmfp move?" Noralie asked, her mouth still full.
"Tracking, that's all," Leon replied, clearly annoyed by the munching sound emanating from Noralie's lips.
Ilse cleared her throat, "And where are we going start, huh?"
"We're going to sweep the woods nearby. I have a feeling that there's something fishy going on back there." Leon looked at Owen, "Do you want to come with us? It's okay if you want to stay here, though. No big deal."
Owen took a spoonful of his egg casserole before staring at Leon intently, his eyes filled with brim determination. "I'll join you, Herr Flores."
"Well then, I admire your courage," Leon respectfully nodded at him.
After breakfast, they began to clean and tidy the dining room off of used platters from the table along with the disorganized mess that was strewed around. Ilse proceeded to broom the scattered pieces of shattered glass from the floor with a dustpan, while Owen and Leon headed straight towards the kitchen as they carry the dirty dishes with them.
Noralie, meanwhile, collected the remaining cups and plates left on the table, stacking them in her hands. She rounded the table towards the door that led to the kitchen but as she reached the spot near the shattered window, she was caught off guard by the sudden motion as she slip on the floor.
"WAA!" Noralie landed on her back, feeling her heart leave her chest by the abrupt motion.
The dishes and glasses were flung through the air which prompted Ilse to rush in. Her keen senses managed to catch some of them midair but the rest hit the floor flat that resulted to some of them to break in a wrenching crash.
"Ugh," Noralie groaned.
"Nora!" Ilse carefully placed the plates to the table and gave her friend a helping hand. "Are you okay?"
"Crap. Yeah, I'm fine."
"I think you need to work on your joint movements," Ilse jokes. "What happened?"
"Can't you see I slipped?" Noralie hissed, earning her a chuckle from Ilse, who was helping her to brush away the dust from her attire.
Noralie leaned against the wall right beside the shattered window while gulping for air and all of a sudden, her fingers brushed against a wet, sticky patch. Her hands recoiled instantly with a mixture of surprise and disgust crossing her face. She examined her hand, and then the wall and to her surprise, there was no visible cause for the dampness. With furrowed brows, she rubbed her fingers together, sensing an undeniable wet and sticky residue.
"Everything alright?" Ilse asked.
"Can you hold it for a moment?" Noralie reached out her hand towards her friend.
Ilse hesitated but extended her own hand, her face curled with disgust as their fingers came into contact. "Eww, what's that?"
Leon and Owen joined returned shortly after, a curious look etched across their faces.
"What happened? We heard a crash," Leon raised a quizzical brow.
Noralie approached him with her palm held open, "Touch my hand."
Leon cautiously eyed her from head to toe before complying. As their hands connected, a flicker of surprise danced in his eyes. "Err, seriously? You didn't decide to jam your palm with glue, did you?"
"No, it's not glue," Noralie sighed.
"Leon, that's not glue. There's some kind of substance here on the walls and even at the edges of the window," Ilse chimed in, her hands cupping the wall as she peered closely between the gaps of her fingers before glancing at Owen and the others with a serious look. "Close the windows, everyone."
Using the curtains, they blocked the windows around the dining area that dimmed the outside light to a bare minimum, plunging the room with an ambient atmosphere. Returning to the wall near Ilse, everyone's eyes widened in surprise with a mix confusion. There was a smear on the wall that seemed to distort, warping into a paint-like color of black before blending back into the yellow hue of the wall.
Exchanging puzzled glances, Noralie inspected her hand and found similar distortions on her fingers, as if they were morphing into a darker shade before blending back to normal in a strange visual transition. A droplet viscously fell from her fingertips, putting her into a realization that it was something of a liquid.
Leon also noticed this and looked at Owen, "Do you have any small container we can use here? A tiny bottle would do."
"Yes, Herr Flores. Why?"
"We need one."
"Sure, I'll get it," Owen nodded before heading off with Luna trailing behind him.
Noralie observed the smear on the wall up-close and noticed that it had a trail leading from the curtained and shattered window of the dining room, down to the floor at the side of the table
"Got any thoughts, genius?" Leon approached her.
"Uh-huh," Noralie nodded. "This residue could possibly be from Eidessa, as Lurkers doesn't produce anything like this. Black liquid yes but something that distorts the object it touches? Seems unlikely."
"But we saw Eidessa. There was nothing unusual about her appearance, except her lizard form of course."
"Perhaps but we just literally saw her appear out of thin air last night. I think whatever this liquid is, it's holding the answer."
Owen returned shortly but Luna is nowhere to be seen as he enter. His hands were holding a brown glass vial and a dropper which she handed to Ilse, who took it with a courteous nod.
She knelt and stuck the dropper's end to the damp patch below the window. Ilse squeezed in a small amount of the liquid that oozes from the windowsill and carefully transferred it into the vial with a few drops before Noralie sealed the cap.
"Here we go." Noralie's fingers tightened around the vial before asking, "Now what?"
"Now we'll see," Leon's eyes drifted towards the door.
The next time they knew, they are standing and gathered at the driveway of the front lawn of the mansion. Owen was preoccupied under the gaping hood of the REISS van, his hand clutching a wrench as he meticulously dabble through the greasy engine of the vehicle. Beside him was Ilse, who was squatting beside the toolbox on the ground while assisting the butler to get the tools he requires.
Leon approached Noralie with the vial and handed it to her, "Pass that to Dr. Christina for molecular testing. Hopefully we'll get the answers that we need to end this mess."
"Will do," Noralie reached out and cradled the tiny bottle with her nimble hands, her lips curved into a smile as she head towards the front passenger seat.
"Stay safe."
After a series of readjustments, Owen closed the hood of the vehicle before give Ilse a thumbs up, which prompted her to saunter and hop into the driver's seat. Noralie followed soon after, carefully climbing into the front passenger seat before strapping herself with the seatbelt.
The butler placed the wrench back to his toolbox before carrying the toolkit with him and hurriedly walked out of the way as the REISS van roared to life, its engine humming as it skidded through the gate.
Noralie stole a glance from the side mirror, seeing the image of Leon and the waving Owen standing there before refocusing her attention to the road ahead.
"Finally, a sense of relief." Ilse chuckled as her hand reached out to shift gears.
After a distant journey, they found themselves traversing the highway in the middle of the familiar pastures of grasslands where the REISS headquarters slowly came into view. With moderate speed, Noralie and Ilse's vehicle cruised through the driveway that headed towards the HQ's garage. They eventually arrived and halted by the overhead gates, the chain of metallic sounds filling the air as it open.
When cleared, Ilse revved the van forward, parking it into an empty space marked by a painted parallel lines on the ground. She and Noralie exchanged nods as they exit the van, and hurriedly sauntered out of the Preparation Hub while still clad in their combat attire as they maneuver through the corridors until they reach the Research Labs Wing.
They headed straight for Dr. Christina's laboratory at the ninth room and upon entering, they were greeted by the sight of other lab personnel preoccupied in their work at their various tables. Looking around the busy scenery, Noralie noticed Dr. Christina, busily examining a shelf at a corner with a clipboard at hand.
"Look, there!" Noralie pointed out
"Where? Oh." Ilse's voice called out, "Doc!"
The doctor's gaze darted towards them as they approach, a welcoming smile etched across her lips. "Oh hey. How's the Baümer's case going?"
"We're handling it, I guess," Ilse shrugged.
"Great! So, what brought you here?"
"Actually, we've got something we need you to test," Ilse gestured towards the vial in Noralie's grasp.
"What's this? A vial?"
"It's not just a vial, ma'am." Noralie stated, "We discovered a residue that seemed to conceal under bright light that makes it nearly invisible."
"And?"
"We're hoping you can help us identify it through further testing."
"Of course!" Dr. Christina nodded, "I'll take care of it."
Taking the tiny bottle from Noralie's outstretched hand, the doctor examined it for a moment, her eyes dazzles with excitement, "You two can wait in your common room. It might take about few hours to analyze this, unless you want to keep on staying and waiting here."
"Thank you, ma'am." Ilse let out a sigh, "Shall we, Noralie?"
With that, they headed out of the Research Lab, leaving the doctor in her task, and made their way back to the common room of their squad. It took a few moments of navigating through the lengthy and crowded corridors of the headquarters until they arrived at the Squads Divisions Wing. As the sliding doors of the Orion-13 Common Room parted with a hiss, a line of surprised and familiar faces popped up behind the computer desk monitors.
"Oh hey, you guys are back," Gunther greeted with a smile.
Noralie returned the smile as she and Ilse head to their desks, allowing themselves to sink into their cushy seats to rest their cramped legs and feet. Noralie closed her eyes while sighing a breath of relief until another voice interrupts her out of her reverie.
"Hey."
Startled, Noralie glanced to the desk at her side. Only to see Carl seated there, his arm can be seen still wrapped with bandage under his long-sleeve shirt.
"Carl!" Noralie's exclaimed, her voice carrying a mix of surprise and joy.
"Heyaa, so how did your mission go?"
"Dayum Carl, you're still alive?" Ilse's jested.
"Ain't talking to you," Carl rolled his eyes.
With crisp footsteps, Walter strode over them, his hands casually tucked into the pockets of his pants with a smile crossing his face."How are you two doing?"
"W-We're okay, sir," Noralie nervously answered while adjusting herself from her seat.
"And the progress on the investigation?" he queried.
"I have a feeling we're getting close. We're just waiting for the results from Dr. Christina regarding the liquid we found," Ilse proudly explained.
"And there had been misconceptions about the PRU's files," Noralie sighed. "As it turned out, Paula Baümer is Eidessa all along and not the first victim, contrary to the response unit's initial statement."
"Things like that happen, Noralie. That's why we, operatives, are here and tasked to do what the PRU is limited to."
"I guess..." Noralie's gaze trailed off.
"But hey, well done, both of you." Walter commends.
"Awweee," Ilse chuckled. "It's actually Noralie's wit bridging the gaps in the investigation, unlike a certain person I know."
"Tsss, just got dogged by my bad luck." Carl muttered under his breath.
"What's that, Carl? Did you say something?" Walter asked, his eyebrows curled in puzzlement.
"Uh! Nothing!"
The squad leader's gaze shifted back and forth as if looking around for someone, "Where's Leon?"
Noralie spared Ilse a glance, who let out shrug in return for a moment, before stating, "He's still at the Baümer's Mansion with Owen."
"I see," Walter nodded. "Alright then, I won't keep you any longer. Have a nice rest."
And with that, he left and headed back to his cubicle.
From his desk drawer, meanwhile, Carl retrieved two packs of cream cookies, their crinkly plastic creating a soft rustles as he hand them to Noralie. "Here, you two have some."
"Thanks." Noralie's fingers brushed against his as she take the cookies before passing the other one to Ilse.
While the wrappers crackled with each movement, Noralie booted up her computer, the screen casting a bluish glow on face. She logged in, the few quick taps on the keyboard blended in with the mixing idle sound in the room as she settled into scrolling the newsfeed of her FactBook page. After a few minutes of delving into the depths of social media, Noralie caught a glimpse of Gunther, who was making his way towards her table with that iconic smile of his.
"Hey."
"Hello," Noralie smiled while taking a bite of the cookie. The sweet, creamy taste mingled with the fluttery feeling in her chest.
"How are you feeling?" Gunther leaned casually against her desk.
"Not great not terrible, I guess," she shrugged nonchalantly. "We had a couple of dicey encounters but there's been progress, at least."
"That's good to hear, then," he let out a sigh of relief. "I'm just glad that you're okay."
"Geez, monkey, you're giving me chills," Carl piped up, making Ilse burst into a cascade of laughter.
Gunther's eyes flicked towards Carl, and rolled them in annoyance before returning to his desk with a faint hiss escaping his lips, "Idiot."
"Psst, Noralie." Ilse whispered. "I think rep's into you."
"H-Huh, why would you think of that?" Noralie let out a nervous chuckle.
"Well, duh, can't you pick up signs?"
"Why, nerd?" Carl cackled. "Feeling envy 'cause you'll stay single forever?"
"Says the guy who can't get any girl." Ilse glared, "Bozo."
Their exchange of words ended up into a whirlwind of childish bickering, punctuated by goofy faces and made-up names that had them in a series of snorts and laughter. Noralie watched them for a while while sporting a smile that slowly crept across her face. The laughter ceased after a while as the banter gradually subsided, replaced only now by the lingering tears of joy in their eyes. They then spent the next few moments on their desk, losing track of the time that passed by.
After a while, their ears perked upon hearing a faint sliding followed by soft whoosh. The common room doors slid open, revealing Dr. Christina striding in. At one hand, she carried a sleek briefcase, and in the other, a sheet of paper with a crisp printed report paper. Noralie shifted her attention towards Dr. Christina, as the doctor made her way to the central table.
She headed towards the table and placed her things on its surface before calling for Walter, who emerged from his cubicle. They engaged in an inaudible exchange of words and shortly after, Dr. Christina turned her gaze towards the people in the room before calling, "Thirteen, to the table now!"
Just like the briefing a few days past, everyone sauntered and settled on each respective seat towards the table. Noralie took a seat beside Ilse, her eyes fixated on the briefcase near Gunther.
Dr. Christina cleared her throat, getting everyone's attention before continuing, "Good afternoon, thirteen. I bring news about the sample obtained by Operative Schumacher and Operative Braun, which can potentially shed light to your progress in the Baümer's Case..."
"...based on the results of my molecular testing on this 'unusual' substance. We found out that it's a liquid possessing light-refracting properties. These properties render it invisible to the naked eye, particularly under bright illumination..."
"...additionally, we've identified striking similarities in its structure to the residue left by the phantoms in both the Case Nova and Case Bio, the culprits being hunter-types possessing invisibility abilities..."
"Does this mean Eidessa can also turn invisible?" Noralie asked.
"You're correct, Operative," Dr. Christina nodded. "However, unlike Nova and Bio, Eidessa's ability is contingent only on exposure to high-intensity light based on the liquid that you provided me."
"Could this liquid be the reason our trackers failed to locate her?" asked Walter.
"That's a question without a definitive answer, Mr. Zimmerman." The doctor's hands moved to open the sleek briefcase, revealing two devices that somewhat resembles a touchscreen tablet.
"In response to that, we've developed customized trackers, fitted with experimental components. Instead of detecting the exact location of Eidessa's presence, they will instead try to track the traces of the liquid substance which can hopefully lead you where the phantom might reside."
Dr. Christina activated one of the devices, showing everyone at the table its screen illuminating the outline of the interior of the headquarter. As the digital layout of their surroundings appeared on its screen, an arrow blinked, indicating a path that led to the Research Lab Wing which Noralie deduced to have detecting the sample of the 'cloaking' liquid she gave to the doctor.
"So, can we now move forward with the execution phase?" Gunther voiced out.
Dr. Christina retracted the tracker tablet, securing it back within the briefcase before closing it with a soft click. "The decision lies within each of you. If you're confident on the findings of the investigation phase, then might as well proceed."
Carl's hand rose in a sheepish way, "Uh, will you let us borrow those, doc?"
"What do you think, Operative Schmidt?" Dr. Christina responded with a subtle blend of sacrasm, a wry smile tugging her lips.
Juliane let out an audible sigh and scoffed, "Dumbass."
Dr. Christina proceeded to hand the case containing the trackers to Gunther before excusing herself and headed out of the room.
Before Walter could issue further orders, an abrupt, urgent beeping erupted from his cubicle. He rushed to his workspace, leaving the the whole squad in a state of confusion. From his cubicle, Walter can be heard exchanging words with someone in a surprised and frustrated tone.
"Hello? Yes, it's me, what happened?..."
"...What?! How did it— yeah yeah, we have it now. Alright, just hold out and we'll be on our way, okay?"
After a few minutes of tense silence, the squad leader emerged and headed back to the table, his face now paled with beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
"What's that about, sir?" Noralie asked.
He looked everyone in the room for a while before taking a deep breath. "Get ready. Leon was attacked, and Eidessa took Owen. We're heading to the mansion now, all of us."
