Chapter 76: Wearing human skin – To tail a shadow

The packed train began its slow descent to the platform as the doors slid open.

The flurry of salarymen, commuters and rankers transferred between train carriages; a river of movement, a tide of tired and already weary souls.

Yet amongst the chaos two suits remained intently focused on their objectives. Tailing the trio.

"Who are they?" Thanatos asked watching the movement of people, catching a glimpse of a blonde-haired women, and a slightly older man.

"RCU... They're probably onto me because of the Reaper stuff." Eren said quietly as to not attract suspicion from anyone listening in.

"Will it be a problem?"

"Nah." The reaper said nonchalantly, "They've got nothing on us. But they are persistent little shits."

'Please stand clear of the doors'

The train rattled and hummed as it continued its route through the city and to the next station.

"Shit..." Eren noticed something. His crows were observing all that entered and exited the train.

"What now?"

"Someone else is tailing us, the man in the suit; deep black shades and slicked back hair. His been spotted around the guild, tailing us, he always looks like he sleeps but..."

"Sleeping while following? I think I know what that is." Thanatos said, recognizing what Eren was describing.

"I'll confirm it for you but I believe he is astral projecting."

Eren looked to Thanatos, confused.

"It's a form of remote viewing where you can separate your consciousness from the physical body. It's an extremely high-level technique. One that requires your normal form to be still and quiet."

"You worked all that out just from the fact that someone is sleeping while following us?" Asked Jun. Who leaned into the conversation.

"Yes. If you like I'll confirm it for you when he floats by." Spoken like a true reaper. Keen eyes like Eren's, sharp, attentive, observant to things beyond human eyes. A shame that Eren found himself on the other side of this man.

'He hasn't mentioned the other thing watching us...' To the far back of the train car, amongst the shadows. Something lurked. Tangible but still not quite there. It was strange, Eren could feel its eyes but couldn't see them.

Thanatos in all his wisdom and insight; hadn't mentioned it yet. Either by purpose or ignorance. Likely the former.

'Something to deal with later.'

---

'Now approaching ward 4.'

An announcement played over the PA system.

"Hmph, thought so. Wait for me at the gate." Thanatos took one glance into the empty space by his side and confirmed the suspicion of an astral projection.

"Where are you going?" Jun asked,

Without a word the bull of a man walked down the carriage as the train pulled in.

A quick glance towards the detective's; who were pondering to follow Isamu, but choose to keep their eyes on the main prize.

Now Jun and Eren joined the tide of commuters leaving for the platform. Ward 4 began to attract some more rankers looking to clear out Silvermane gates.

Apparently, it was the main way many middling guilds made their revenue. Aside from of course selling loot of course. Loaning out their gates that they owned for large sums. Of course, forfeiting any loot, they otherwise would have gained.

The Silvermane were big enough and with the prince of prosperity at its head. They need not partake in such activities. Unless of course Baelor wanted something beyond standard transactions.

But through the multitudes of outgoing rankers the two detectives kept close behind, blending in to the crowd with practiced ease. However, few could escape the eyes of The Reaper.

"What's he doing?" Jun tried to stay close to Eren as they squeezed their way through the platform.

"Dealing with one problem. You probably don't want to know what he did..." Sometimes having sight beyond one's was a double-edged sword.

"What about the police? What are you going to do with them?" He asked.

"They haven't followed us in yet so I think they're waiting to see what we do. We'll discuss it in the next gate."

A short walk down the block; arriving at a dilapidated but slowly being rebuilt ward 4 shopping arcade. Inside, a portal glowed.

"Your problem won't be following you anymore." Isamu said, behind the two who waited by the gate.

"Did he have white eyes?"

"Yes."

"Hmmmm. Come on we need to finish this." White eyes, going from spending months without even noticing any kind of white eyed agent to being stalked by one in the space of a week. Things were beginning to shift into motion.

***

The desert of Saryn. A bitch of a realm. The 4th time the trio had stepped foot into the accursed place for the day. The sun was blisteringly hot and brutal; and the sand got everywhere.

The crows of Virtue and Vice took flight a handy addition to finding these elusive Pyramids.

It only took a second but in that the distance just beyond the dunes of golden sand.

"Finally. Our lucks turning." Eren said. The dryness of the air seemed to sap the words of their usual tone. Eren was officially done with the desert; done with gate clearing in general really.

Trudging through the sand. Up and over the dunes. Down and then up again. Until finally the pyramids came into view. Two towering structures of stone; one smaller than the other; made by hands unknown.

"Oh no..." Eren spoke looking back towards the direction of the gate.

"What now?" Thanatos shared Eren's weariness for these desert gates.

"They followed us in..." Vice, the white crow whose plumage provided a good contrast against the golden sands of the Desert of Saryn. Circled above the pair.

"Did you want me to kill them?" Thanatos asked with ill-concealed malice.

"No, I'll deal with them myself. You go and kill the queen of this nest. I have a good feeling about this run." With that Jun and Thanatos ventured within the sandstone structure. Guren and a few shadow knights for both accompaniment and to keep an eye on Thanatos.

A meddlesome pair of detectives; who continued their pursuit of the reaper. Even after seeing what the man can do, they still were willing to pursue. Idiocy, madness or bravery, or a mix of all three.

---

"It's too hot." Complained Mori, in this sweltering desert. Not suited for the black suits and ties of an investigator.

"Just think about doing this with heavy plate armour for days on end. Then you will know what it's like to truly suffer in a desert." Akiko added. Her days as a ranker an overall blur of good ol fashioned drunken fun for young adults and battles with monsters. A few scars from memoires best left to her younger self.

"What are we hoping to find?" Mori asked.

In truth she had no one answer. With the departments greater funding and resources going into finding the Reaper and those who helped him. They were given free rein to chase whatever leads they liked. Yet, still nothing... Not a shred of evidence to say that Eren was the man under the mask.

"There... In the shade of that pyramid."

Under the cover of shadows Eren stood. Throwing knives into the sand; in a practice of some sort. Each one thrown at an unnatural speed, deadly precision.

Aki approached with confidence but her partner nearly fell down the dunes. God help them if the Gate was further away from the objective.

"Mr. Heart." Akiko spoke, as she made it to the base of the pyramid. Eren kept the duo away from the shade. Knife throws stopped at the edge of the shade.

"..."

*Thud* *Thud*

He didn't answer. Just throwing knife after knife into the ground.

"You're going to have to talk to me eventually." Akiko was a little annoyed, this was a murder suspect.

"You didn't come all the way out into the middle of this gate. Just to talk, did you?" He replied, stopping to face her.

"Maybe we did... We thought we try and patch things up. Over how our precinct has been 'Talking' with your students from the guild." Aki offered. Trying to keep the peace.

"You've just trekked through the desert, under the blazing sun, just to fix a bridge between those in my guild and your precinct." He balked at the false words.

"Well, when you put it like that it seems a little silly." She tried to keep a friendly tone. Mori on the other hand looked as if he was about to pass out.

*Clack* *Slice* *Crunch*

Sounds of battle from within the deeper chambers of the pyramid.

"Did we interrupt...Something?" Mori, through gritted teeth spoke.

"Guild business. Can't disclose too much." A half lie.

"Can we cut the bullshit?" Aki spoke. She was tired of the lies, the fake smiles, and faux pleasantries. This man was an enigma that she had to crack. Being pleasant wasn't getting her anywhere.

"All the hiding behind guild secrets, and bravado behind your view on justice; I just want a straight answer from you." Her eyes were serious, like those that stared down into Eren's own.

"Are you accusing me of something detective bimbo?"

His words were mean spirited. Fake punches that he knew the detective wouldn't be affected by. But so was she by throwing a thinly veiled accusation towards Eren.

"No... I'm here asking for the truth. Please, help us get justice for what the Reaper has done, is doing and will do if we don't catch him now."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm only a teacher to some troubled boys... The way I see it; you're just another cog in a machine that grinds humans into nothing."

"Are you saying that I work to protect a system that doesn't care about the innocent; that I am a monster for wanting to bring the Reaper to justice?!" Her voice grew heated and more frustrated.

"It takes one to know one."

Now Aki was letting the heat get to her; ready to kill the man where he stood. Her hot-headed nature was beginning to boil over once more.

*Clasp*

The soft hand of her partner; many times, has it been Mori's grounding hand that has prevented her from getting into trouble.

"Then you do admit you're a monster." He added.

She wanted nothing more than to beat the smug, sarcastic little shit. But... Mori's hand reminded her of who she was.

"We will bring The Reaper to justice. Mark my words."

A fierce gaze took the pair by surprise. Eren took a knife aiming at pair.

To slow to reach for their guns, the knife was flung.

However, instead of hitting Mori it hit Mori's shadow.

Bending down he picked it up. Through the blade; a black worm wriggled, trying to escape. The same shade as Eren's soldiers, a giant maw with rows of protruding teeth. More like mutant worm than any earthworm.

"You've got worms, Detective Mori." The freaky looking worm, had the detectives face frozen in shock and revulsion.

"Let's go, Mori." Aki didn't show it. But she hated the sight of bugs.

She had just witnessed two of the same in front of her. More than enough for one day.

'That's one mystery solved...' This little thing must have been what was in the shadow earlier. A shadow worm. The question now is who sent it.

'An answer for another time.' Back to throwing knives into the sand. Like the detectives were never there to begin with.

*Step* *Step* *Step*

Running feet along the sand behind Eren. Jun and Isamu arrived; both were covered head to toe in sweat that was covered with sand, looking as if they had rolled around on the ground.

"We got it." Said Thanatos holding up a small vial of... Sand. Jun holding another three. It was no different than what could be found anywhere in these gates.

"Good... One down, only 4 left."

With that the hot desert of Saryn was behind them. For now; until another quest with arbitrary demands came along.

---

"Jun, I want you to go home and try and find a starting point for the next ingredients for this potion."

Eren spoke as the glow of blue faded. Afternoon had fallen into evening and the bright lights of the city shone brightly in the distance.

"Yes, Sir." Jun toddled away into the city streets. That boy would do this quest all by himself if ordered. A great pitfall and blessing to have such a devoted apprentice.

"Why?" Thanatos asked quietly as they watched the young man go.

"Why what?"

"You're helping me even though I tried to kill you; you threatened to kill me in front of my family and now we have just collected the first of the needed ingredients needed to free me of my burden."

Eren thought about it for a moment.

"I don't like being told what to do. My choices were help you or do what Gabriel says. And Gabriel is a prick who needs a good slap to that magnificent face of his." He answered.

Which brought a little comfort to the man forced to work with his executioner.

It was part the reason; part the motivation.

He was a pawn in someone's game. Every day he felt it more and more. Something to at least have control over. Something to stick it to those above.