Chapter 21.3

After dropping Melanie off on a rooftop several blocks away from the docks, Jason flew back to the Loft but he didn't go to sleep right away. He entered the shower room and took a long bath, his mind wandering back to the children at the port.

They'll probably be sent to an orphanage or a welfare center, He thought as the hot water cascaded down his chiselled body. Damnitall.

Exiting the showers, Jason went back to the first floor where Ava was. The latter was standing next to the supercomputer which was, once more, out in the open.

"And?" Jason asked Ava quietly.

"Police are already on the scene," Ava answered perfunctorily. "AEM has been notified, I estimate they will arrive on the scene in forty-five minutes."

"Hmm, and the bait?" Jason asked after giving a noncommittal groan.

"Still in the docks," Ava replied. "They'll move her to an AEM precinct once they've finished gathering evidence."

Jason nodded and sat down in front of the computer, his finger tapping the armrest of the chair. The reason why he prevented Melanie from killing the woman, Debra, was because of two reasons.

First, her survival would ensure word of him spread, from the police to AEM, to the gangs and syndicates running the underworld. Fear was an effective weapon, and he wanted to use his alter ego to intimidate the underworld.

Second, he was planning on using her as bait. He knew that the smuggling syndicate would try to silence her before she could give a statement and he was hoping that they would send someone who had more in-depth knowledge of the syndicate. That way, he could swoop in and interrogate the assassin.

Getting up, Jason used a hologram to hide the computer again and then turned to Ava. "Compile the information in your head and stay hidden upstairs. I don't want you coming into contact with any of the girls."

"Complying with your orders," Ava said as she turned to walk away.

"Will you be heading out again?" A.V.A asked Jason through his comm device.

"Yes, but this time I won't be using the Fenrir armour," Jason answered. "Pull out my Phantom armour instead."

A hidden display lifted itself from the ground, revealing Jason's Phantom Armor. Unlike his Fenrir armour, this one was less intimidating. It was an under-armour covered with separated plates that protected his vitals with a suede jacket on top. The jacket looked like any normal biker jacket, but it was bullet and fireproof while being completely insulated from electrical attacks. He also had a pair of pants that were composed of the same material as his jacket, giving him the same amount of defence as the latter provided to his lower body.

Dressing quickly, Jason pressed a button on the under-armour that covered his neck. Immediately, a helmet formed around his head. The mask was completely black but the visor shone red as it lit up a holographic HUD while, at the same time, the Council insignia appeared on his chest right in between his unzipped jacket. Jason took his weapons from the display: two advanced pistols and two single-edged military knives.

[1]

Once he was done, he left the Loft quickly as the display slowly sank back into the ground. Unlike last time, Jason hopped into his flying bike without activating the built-in scrambler. He also flew at a lower altitude, intentionally allowing both cameras and satellites to pick up his locations.

Now then, Jason thought. Time to see if any fish took the bait.

***

Junco rubbed her eyes as she replayed a video clip again. Her desk was cluttered with opened files, scattered papers, a mug of cold coffee, and the wrappings of a half-finished tuna sandwich but she ignored it all and continued pressing the rewind button, her eyes locked on the screen.

The video was a short video clip taken in low quality by a bystander. It was showing the one and only fight that Fenrir had with the Reaper. The choppy quality of the video would occasionally fizz with static as sonic booms filled the area. Her ears had already been deafened by the repeated booms, so Junco had silenced the video and instead tried looking for visual clues. She paused near the ending and started filtering the screen, slowing the video down and watching it frame by frame.

A minute before the shockwave hit, the camera angle tilted but Junco could still see the two fighting from the corner of the video. At first, she watched it carefully, not understanding why she had this unnerved feeling but suddenly it hit her with a shock: the Reaper used a move that Fenrir also once used.

That's …

Junco opened another window and searched for the video where Jason was fighting the headless ghost. She quickly skimmed through it and paused it to watch carefully once she found what she was looking for. Her breathing stopped as she confirmed her analysis: Fenrir and Reaper both used the same moves. The timing was also off; Jason fought the headless ghost years before meeting the Reaper.

What does this mean? They're not the same person, there's evidence of them being in two different locations, but could it be that they were trained by the same person? No, that's not it. Rumours and sightings of the Reaper were reported since before the war. Then … could the Reaper have been Jason's teacher?

A chill past through Junco's back as this thought crossed her mind. She felt like she discovered something dangerous and wasn't sure what to do. Should she tell her C.O, Raphael, her suspicions?

No, not yet. I can't tell anyone about it. Junco shook her head and turned back to her computer. She copied everything she needed into a hard drive and pocketed it and reformatted her laptop, erasing all evidence.

"You seem busy Lieutenant Junco," a voice, approaching her table, said to her.

Turning her head, Junco saw Colonel Watson approaching and immediately stood up and saluted her. "Colonel!"

"At ease, Junco. And please, call me Sam," Watson said. "It's alright to call me by my name when off duty. You're technically not in the military and, frankly, it's so stiff being called Colonel by everyone. All the time."

"Thank you, ma'am," Junco replied as Watson looked at her cluttered desk with curiosity.

"Busy night?" Watson asked.

"No, ma'am. I mean, Sam. Ma'am," Junco answered with her hands held behind her straightened back. "Just reading up on some reports."

"Fenrir and … the Reaper?" Watson frowned before looking at Junco. "You didn't get the memo?"

"Ma'am?" Junco asked, confused at Watson's words. The latter pulled a communication memo into a holographic form and passed it to Junco.

"As of seventeen hundred, Fireteam Salvation is to cease all investigations into the latest Reaper case … effective immediately … I … I don't understand. Why?" Junco asked Watson after reading a part of the memo out loud.

"The higher-ups don't want our best Fireteam to be investigating these ... rumours," Watson answered. "To them, the notion of an investigation is tantamount to acknowledging the sightings of Reaper as being legit. Besides, they're … reluctant to admit that such a being could exist. Didn't you feel the same way?"

"I did," admitted Junco. "But that doesn't mean I don't believe there's no killer out there."

"Officially, we're declaring it as an attack done by another gang," Watson said. "Personally, I think it's better this way. There would be mass panic if the public knew of these … unknowns."

"But …"

"It's out of our hands, Junco," Watson said, cutting Junco off. "Take the day off tomorrow and relax. Hang out with Raphael, if you want."

"I-" Junco, with flushed cheeks, wanted to retort to Watson's tease when the latter received a call.

"Excuse me," Watson said and answered the call through her headpiece. "Watson here."

Watson listened carefully as her face changed, a frown forming on her face.

"I see," Watson said finally. "Would you object if I sent my best to aid in your investigation? Alright, they'll be there in fifteen."

Watson grimaced as she cut the line and turned to look at Junco. "Lieutenant, contact Raphael for a debriefing. I need Fireteam Salvation to be ready in eight minutes."

"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" Junco saluted and used a comm to contact Raphael.

Five minutes later, Fireteam Salvation was gathered in a secure conference room along with Colonel Watson. Raphael and Suni were still out and were attending this meeting through a secure holo-vid while Junco and Dhole attended in person.

"There was … an incident at the western piers just twenty minutes ago," Watson said. "A company was loading cargo when they were attacked. Only one survived; a freelance accountant who is in the police's custody. Unfortunately, she's delirious and in panic, so the police were unable to get anything coherent from her.

"What we do know, however, is that this company was a cover for a smuggling op. The container was full of children who had Esper aptitudes of varying levels. Not to mention, these were guardianless children," Watson said while opening a holographic report in front of each member. Suni swore under his breath while Dhole grimaced as they read the report in the children. "Currently, we don't know what to do, so the police are keeping the children at a makeshift shelter in the port while trying to sort through them.

"Fireteam Salvation, I need you to go and help with the investigation. Find out what the children saw and gather evidence of whether this is an attack perpetrated by Practitioners, ASAP. You are dismissed." Watson waved her arm and stood up while Suni and Raphael's holo-vid ended.

Watson rubbed her eyes as Junco and Dhole left the room when she received a notification. Satellites had picked up movement from an active Phantom that was moving quickly and Watson raised her eyebrows in surprise.

They caught on quick, didn't they? Watson thought after triangulating his destination.

She quickly realized that the Phantom agent was moving to the vehicle in which the only survivor of the attack was being transported. She understood the reasoning behind the Phantom's movements and contacted the transport, telling them to be cautious.

Soon after, another notification came, informing Watson that another Phantom appeared, and this one was requesting AEM to transfer the children that were rescued into her custody. The notification also gave Watson this Phantom's designation and she grimaced when she realized that it was Viperess.

No choice but to acquiesce, Watson thought. Still, it's a little too coincidental that two Phantoms would move so quickly, is it not?

Despite her misgivings, Watson agreed to transfer the children's well-being to Viperess before sending a command to have an escort take her to the first Phantom. She had a feeling that the one moving to escort the transport was Jason, and she wanted to have a private conversation with him.

[1] Think Lockdown's helmet HUD from Transformers 4