Kingfisher

The city of lost souls wasn't a city at all. Rather, it was an institute for the destitute children just outside of the city limits. And it had always been mired in controversy. The latest was to do with a news report that claimed that White Angel was a resident of the city of lost souls.

White Angel was a hacker who first struck three years ago, crippling the systems of the city branches of the State Bank. The attack was detected at midnight, with White Angel sending the main branch an email informing of the attack. By morning, all the media channels of the state were reporting it as the main story, and the national news was catching on too. To the average news consumer who wasn't particularly learned of computers and networks, it didn't seem such a big deal. After all, only the branches of Freshly were attacked. The rest of State Bank was safe, wasn't it? The news channels were quick to point out that such a targeted attack was several folds more complex than a blanket attack on the bank��s network, and therefore White Angel was several folds more dangerous than a typical black hacker. Especially since no one was able to decipher White Angel's true aim. By the end of day, everyone in the country had heard of White Angel. A few weeks later, White Angel was in the news again. This time having crippled an IT security firm, and thereby gaining global notoriety. What was curious was that White Angel's attacks were all very targeted, as if White Angel was trying to get across some message. Only, nobody was able to decipher it.

A week ago, White Angel had released on the open web, the undoctored donor list of the city's Orphan program. The program was the government's plan to help institutions for orphans and destitute in the city. The donors were all attendees of a grand gala that was widely covered by all forms of the media. The organisers released to the media the very next morning the donor list. The biggest recipient of the donations was the city of lost souls. The list released by White Angel was very different from the list released by the organisers of the gala. The names were the same, and the numbers were comparable too. It was the recipients that were different. The biggest recipients according to White Angel's list were the charity organisations controlled by the very same donors. And the actual orphanages and institutions received little of the donations. The city of lost souls was in fact the recipient of the least amount. It was a number so small, being entirely absent from the list would have been a lot less shameful. That prompted the news reports that White Angel was a resident of the city of lost souls.

At that moment, White Angel was actually slurping instant noodles from the comfort of her luxurious flat, watching the news with an expressionless face.

"You're sure White Angel cannot be traced back to you?" Miki asked.

Aya smiled at him, nodding vigorously. "I added a few more layers of separation, just because you were worried. Don't worry, it's impossible to find us. I've left too many clues that'll lead them elsewhere. But I think your social engineering is our greatest protection."

"Still, add a couple more layers of separation, please." His worry pleased her. And her smile was the affirmation he needed. "We'll begin then. Project Kingfisher."

Ten year old Aya obtained the academic transcripts and personal records of both Keegan Shores and Kieron Yonas. Ten year old Miki made sense of them.

Keegan was the second son of the Shores family. It wasn't a prominent family but it was comfortable enough in the then rapidly growing city mired in darkness. Keegan had always been on odds with rules and expected good behaviour. That put him on odds with his parents who had great aspirations. It wasn't long before his parents gave up on him, putting all of their expectations on their elder son and the little daughter. Keegan was sent to a boarding school with a reputation for being extremely strict. The hope being that little Keegan would change for the better. It proved to be futile. For Keegan became quieter but even more brazen in acting on his will. If anything, he learned how not to leave behind evidence. At Firehurst college, Keegan met Kieron, and it was the start of a beautiful friendship.

Kieron Yonas was more of a mystery. He was an orphan, but was sponsored by a rich man who kept his identity secret. Kieron studied at a reputed high school, before earning a scholarship to Firehurst college. There were no records before high school. It was as if Kieron Yonas came to exist only after joining high school. It was a time when orphanages were fighting for their own survival, so many children came in and went out without being registered. The biggest of these was the city of lost souls. Which was why Miki suspected Kieron had probably been a resident.

The city of lost souls was a quagmire. Despite the popularity and the endless controversies, all requests for information went in without ever coming back out. It was impossible to confirm if Kieron had been a resident at the city of lost souls.

Neither were ones to give up though. They kept looking. And at fifteen, Miki found an unlikely clue. The clue was actually an inference drawn from two separate observations. First, Kingfisher. It was a name that began to be heard around the city's backstreets a couple of years before Kieron and Keegan started college, seemed to disappear around the time of the start of college, and was once again heard of a year after college. Second, the high schools Kieron and Keegan were at had great rivalry, that even erupted into full blown fights between the students. There was nothing to connect these two, and no one could have except for Miki.

"Hear me out," fifteen year old Miki told fifteen year old Aya. "Kieron and Keegan met on the opposite sides of a rivalry that neither was particularly interested in. Keegan wasn't one to adhere to rules that weren't his own. And Kieron is, well, a mystery. We'd be safe assuming anything. Let's assume, he was the same as Keegan. The two saw each other as reflections. That triggered a friendship. Now, consider the timing. The two met in high school, a few years before college. Around that time, the name Kingfisher started to be heard. The two get into college. They're finally together. So, they can plan better. Kingfisher seems to disappear. Only seems to though. After college, the two disappear. And not long after, everyone is speaking of Kingfisher. What if, Kingfisher didn't disappear at all in the years in between. Rather, Kingfisher grew. So much that he was being feared. And people were only speaking of him after something happened, after Kingfisher disappeared. That coincides with the disappearance of our fathers. Now, just imagine. What if Kingfisher wasn't one person, but two. Keegan and Kieron. Put it all together. Fine, even if they're not Kingfisher themselves, it wouldn't be a stretch saying that there's some sort of connection. Kieron was certainly powerful enough. He's practically a ghost. Someone capable of that, is capable of a lot many other things. That could be our first clue."

Aya wasn't fond of understanding people, because it was far too difficult. And so, she was happy completely believing in Miki. They began searching for Kingfisher. But it wasn't easy. The only mention of Kingfisher was in the whispers of the shadows. Despite the widespread fame, he was never in the news or even in the attention of the police. The only members of the police interested in Kingfisher were those undercover and those patrolling the streets, and they too were only interested because the name was on so many lips. At best, it amounted to curiosity. Aya only found the name mentioned in the informal notes of police officers and detectives that were copied into the server because of being connected to other investigations. It was Miki who found the only concrete mention of the name. And that was the spark birthing Project Kingfisher.

That night, White Angel posted simultaneously on all popular social media platforms and online forums. A single line. A single question. To many it was the first bite of an extravagant meal to satisfy their appetite for participating in a criminal investigation. To a small few, it was an omen of the nightmare to come. To everyone, it was just the kind of thing to grab their attention. To Miki and Aya, it was just the first step.

"Who is Rubard Cinch?"