D. Gray-man Fan Fiction ❯ Twilight Generation ❯ Beginning I ( Chapter 4 )

Red lights flashed forebodingly as the sounds of commotion rang through the formerly abandoned alley. It was 6 a.m. in the morning yet people were already crowding around the area as police strung crime scene tape to prevent them from further entry. Ronald Depp, Special Agent of the FBI arrives in his black Fifth Generation Ford Mustang. He quickly gets out of the car and immediately walks towards the scene, moving easily through the crowd before walking under the yellow tape.

“Whaddya got Rob?” he asked a balding man in a suit who was talking to what looked like a raggedly dressed homeless man.

Rob automatically went over and filled him on the details. “Victim was found around 4:30 a.m. The buildings around here are usually abandoned but… that homeless guy over there was looking for a new place to stay. That's when he saw him.”

“Are you sure it's the same killer?” Ronald asked insistently. Rob however simply pointed his thumb behind and said, “See for yourself.”

Ronald took a glance at what was behind Rob and sighed exhaustingly as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, “So he froze him this time huh?” He then looked over again as Crime Scene Photographers began taking pictures of what looked like a mass of glimmering crystal that was giving off a cool, smooth mist. He walked over to it and crouched down next to a woman with ginger hair tied up in a short ponytail. In her hand, she held a thermometer over the crystalline block.

“Just like the others, the ice here is a hundred degrees below zero.” she muttered as Ronald took a small flashlight from his pocket and shone it on the ice. “Have you ID'd him?” he asked while he searched the block for the victim's face.

“Don't have to.” the woman replied as she saw the light land on where the head would be. “It's our rapist.”

Ron's eyes widened as he saw the face encased deep inside the frosty cocoon. The skin was shriveled like a mummified corpse while the mouth was opened widely as if the man screamed right before he was frozen. Although despite this distortion, Ronald was able to recognize him. Not too long ago, they were in pursuit of this same man who was raping and murdering teenage girls in the New York Subway.

Rob crouched down next to him and said, “Five years already and we still don't know who the hell we're dealing with.” Ronald stood up with a flustered look on his face. “I'm beginning to wonder if it even is a `who'.” he replied doubtfully.

“Well all the eye-witness we've had so far still keep saying that it was some - ” Rob began.

“- guy wearing a creepy hood. I know.” Ronald finished tiredly. “But come on, seriously Rob. These people never really got a good look of the guy. They're not much to go on. I mean he's already killed over two-hundred people and all we managed to guess so far is that he's a human being.”

“Or at least…” he then added uneasily as he took something out of his pocket. It was a hazy artist rendition of a mysterious figure wearing a dark eerie hood “…looks like one.”

Meanwhile, in another part of the city…

“VINCE!!” a loud voice rang from one of the city's middle class condos. “Wake up! You'll be late for school!”

A young man opened his eyes sleepily and stirred drowsily on his bed as he muttered, “Five more minutes mom…” He had a pair of orange-brown eyes and his rich dark brown hair hung unevenly down the back of his neck forming four wide spikes.

Suddenly to the door to his bedroom banged open and Vince felt something grab him forcefully out of bed by the collar of his shirt.

“I've been called for fights, pranks, and last thing I want is to get called cuz you're always late.” said a stressed looking middle-aged woman with similar brown hair that was tied in a hairnet. She was wearing a dirty apron over her normal clothes. “Now take a shower and get dressed. Come on, move!” she said demandingly as she dragged her son down the hall and shoved him into the bathroom before heading back into the kitchen.

In this case, the kitchen is also the dining room and seated at the head of a small square dining table was a man with short black hair. He was watching the morning news on the T.V. set that sat upon the kitchen counter on his left.

“It seems New York is off to a very creepy start this morning as the infamous rapist, who had been terrorizing the New York Subway, was found dead in an alleyway. In just two weeks, the Subway Sex Fiend, as he is now called, had raped and murdered six young teenage girls, all within the confines of the underground. What's more disturbing however was that he was murdered by none other than the mysterious serial killer known only as the Magician. We're here at the scene of the crime and as you can see it is most definitely the Magician's handiwork.”

The man watched with interest as the news camera now zoomed in on what appeared to be a large mound-shaped mass of ice. He just barely managed to catch a glimpse of a human body trapped inside.

“For over five years now, the Magician still remains at large. The few eye-witness accounts describe him as a hooded specter who haunts the alleyways and seems to possess frightening magical abilities. Regardless if the `magical' part is true or not, his number of victims has now reached to over two-hundred people while authorities are still puzzling over who, or even what, this Magician is…

“Honey you don't seriously believe that now do you?” his wife asked concernedly as she began cracking a pair of eggs.

The man shrugged offhandedly, “I don't know. Back then he was only on the cover of supermarket tabloid. Now he's got the big networks talking about him and he's on the front page news.” He grabbed a cup of coffee and took a sip as he glanced down on a folded newspaper on the table. The headline screamed, SUPERNATURAL SPECTER STRIKES AGAIN!!

Just then, Vince walked in with a disgruntled look on his face. He was wearing a blue jacket and a plain red shirt along with a pair of loose denims. His mother had just finished cooking the scrambled eggs and had hastily set the dish on the table before sitting down herself. “Better eat fast son, you're running out of time.”

The boy gave his mother a sour look and started digging into the yellow mush that was his breakfast. Despite that he had already taken a freezing cold shower, the young man let out a sleepy yawn and his eyes blinked drowsily. Upon noticing this, his father then asked, “Another all-nighter eh son?”

“Yeah,” he answered casually as munched on his eggs. His mother however, looked at him disapprovingly and said, “Vince, don't you think you and your friends are a little, you know, too old now to be still doing this Nancy Drew stuff?”

Vincent heaved an irritated sighed, “I already told you mom. This is nothing like Nancy Drew. We deal with both criminal and paranormal cases. Besides, even if I did want to do something else, Kelly would kill me.”

“Though from what I see, that's not really what's stopping you now is it?” she then replied suspiciously much to Vincent's discomfort. “Look ma, just because I get in a few fights in these jobs doesn't mean you get to worry yourself sick over me already. You're forgetting who you're talking to here!” the brown-haired boy answered confidently as he boldly slammed his fist into his palm.

Just then, Vincent felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked to see his father smiling amusingly. “And it looks like you're forgetting who you're talking to too. That's your mother remember?” he said teasingly despite the fact that his wife had now pursed her lips, obviously unimpressed. Before she could say anything though, he and Vincent stood up. “Well look at the time! We really gotta get going. C'mon Vince.”

“Bye honey!” he said politely as he pecked his wife in the lips while Vince was already at the end of the hallway.

Later, Vince's dad dropped him off in front of an old 50s-style diner called Jerry's, it is from there that he would walk to school on his own. Before he drove off however, he said, “You know I'm picking something up later at the Metropolitan Art Museum. Why don't you and your friends come along with me?”

Vince scratched his head uneasily and replied, “Gee Dad, I don't know… Kelly's more into urban ghost stories and mystery stuff. I don't think she'll go gaga over a painting or a statue.”

His dad though, gave a little shrug and said, “Well they never really said anything about a painting or a statue. The guy who phoned me about it just said that it was pretty urgent that I pick it up.” He then looked at him sneakily, “What do you think? Doesn't that sound pretty mysterious?”

Vince rolled his eyes and was about to say something when a voice declared loudly from behind him.

“Are you kidding!? We'd love to go! Thanks Mr. Cross!” piped a young girl who suddenly appeared behind Vincent. She had sapphire blue eyes and long, messy, orange-brown hair that was mostly tied into a loose braid while the rest fell down roughly on both sides of her face. She wore a pair of large round glasses and her clothes consisted of a pair of baggy dark green shorts and a plain red t-shirt with a skull on the chest.

“Hello Kelly, Jerry.” he greeted the girl politely as well as the other person who had also come with her. He was taller than the other two teens and wore a wooly, dark blue beanie over his slightly curly jet black hair. He was wearing a plain cerulean t-shirt and a light brown pair of cargo pants that had an unusually high number of small pockets.

“Well I guess that settles it! So I'll see you all after school?” Mr. Cross then said enthusiastically.

“Totally!” Kelly cheered. After Vince saw his dad drive away, he looked down gloomily at Kelly. Despite the fact that she had just gotten the jump on him, she was actually a lot shorter than him. In fact, she was pretty short for someone her age.

“I can't believe you actually fell for it.” he muttered sourly as he turned and began to walk down the sidewalk for the usual route to school. “What are you talking about?” Kelly replied, raising her eyebrow curiously. “Oh c'mon K, you know he only said the `mysterious' part so you he could take you guys along and you won't have to drag me into another one of your midnight schemes.”

“Hmph, you know, it may not look like it, but your dad and I think pretty much alike.” she said haughtily. “So, if he says he's found himself something mysterious then I'll take his word for it.”

Vincent slapped his forehead irritably, “Ugh, you know just because he's an archeologist, doesn't mean he's got the same type of mind as you.”

“Really?” she said sarcastically. “I thought archeology was all about discovering the hidden secrets of the past?”

“Yeah well-“ Vincent was about to argue.

“I rest my case!” she stubbornly declared and the chocolate-haired young man could only sweatdrop and sigh resignedly.

Jerry simply chuckled next to Vince and said, “Forget it dude. When Kelly says she's gonna go for something. She's gonna go for it.” Kelly grinned at his compliment and said, “Finally! A man who actually appreciates my stubbornness. You could learn a lot from Jerry, Vince.”

Vince though, was somehow staring amusingly at Jerry who then replied casually. “Actually, I just think you're a really hardheaded chick.” Vince immediately burst out laughing as a small cartoon-like vein suddenly appeared on Kelly's hair and her grin had instantly curved into a scowl.

Upon arriving at school, Vince then started to rush ahead of his two friends, “Hey you guys, I'm gonna go ahead. I've still got some homework to catch up on.”

“Okay, but meet us later at lunch.” Kelly called back. “There's something I've got something to show ya.” she then added mysteriously.

While he was busy rushing through the aisle of lockers however, Vince accidentally bumped into someone; a boy with short messy green hair and dark blue eyes behind a pair of oval glasses.

“Sorry!” he said quickly yet also as apologetically as possible. The boy however simply stared at his retreating back. His glasses reflected the light rather brightly and concealed whatever emotion that could've been seen in his eyes.

The rest of that morning went like every other morning in Vince's life, a life that he thought to be filled with nothing but monotony. Everyday seemed to be the same thing for Vincent. He would wake up in the morning to his mother's nagging, go to school with his friends, and spend every single subject of the day with the most boring-as-hell teachers. The only thing that he really looked forward to were the nights he spent with his friends as they looked for mysteries and cases for them to solve. Even though it meant having to put up with Kelly's crazy ideas, at least his times with her and Jerry had a lot more excitement and even a bit of action in his life.

During History class that day, the teacher continued to lecture about the recent topic they had been discussing since last week: the historical events at the end of 19th Century Europe. As his teacher continued to drone on and on about the various stats and dates concerning these events, it made the young man wonder. Out of all the things his class had tackled, this seemed to the only one that had passed through one ear yet he did not immediately allow to leak out of the other. Why? Because it was during this time in history that one of the most adventurous of legends took place. The so-called War of the Innocence. Although his teacher told the class that this legendary war was simply a myth, Vincent had heard from his father a long time ago and still now that the war was in fact real. A war between a malevolent being called the Millennium Earl and the heroic Exorcists of the Black Order. Unfortunately, much to his embarrassment, his enthusiasm to talk about the legendary war between these two parties was met with both skepticism and ridicule. Partly because his teacher strictly didn't believe in mechanical monsters called Demons and in a reality bending mineral called Innocence, and partly because of his reputation among his classmates as a close friend of Kelly, who they saw as a crazy geek.

The lunch bell then rang, much to everyone's relief, and Vincent was one of those who were the quickest to dash towards the door, stopping only to hear if the teacher had any homework (or worse, was planning a surprise quiz).

Upon arriving at the cafeteria, he quickly spotted Kelly and Jerry sitting somewhere in the farthest corner, also known as the Social Outcasts' Corner. Though, he never really did so much to be popular so he didn't really care.

“Soo…” he said as he set his tray down, “What did ya wanna show us?”

Kelly reached down to her small brown back pack and pulled out a roughly folded newspaper. She then hastily smoothed down the table for the other two to see.

“Supernatural Specter Strikes Again.” Vincent read aloud. “Yeah, I already read this one. It's about that Magician guy again.”

“Oh?” Kelly said, looking mildly surprised. “Well then, I guess you know who his victim was.” At this however, Vincent sweatdropped embarrassingly and replied, “Actually, I only read the first two lines.”

Kelly narrowed her eyes gloomily, “Really?” said sarcastically, “I'm surprised you managed to get past the first two letters.”

“Hey!” Vince retorted angrily while Jerry nearly choked on his pudding as he tried to laugh. Kelly though rolled her eyes and continued, “Anyway, according to this article, the Magician's latest victim was none other than the lecherous rapist known as the Subway Sex Fiend.”

“What?” Vince said incredulously, “You mean the guy we were trying to lure out last night?”

“Yup.” Jerry said after he finally managed to swallow his pudding.

“Don't you think that's weird?” Kelly then said suspiciously. “The creep who's been going about killing and violating girls winds up getting killed by an even bigger creep? There could be a connection!” she said excitedly

“C'mon K, don't give me another one of your pseudo-conspiracy theories.” Vince moaned. Kelly crossed her arms and huffed, “Hmph! Puhleeze, you're just playing skeptic since you didn't get to beat anybody up last night.”

“Hey I'm not that kinda guy!” he said defensively, “I'm no bully! I only beat up punks. We just happen to run into a few every now and then, that's all.”

“Suuuure…” she said sarcastically, “and the fact that you're always jumping into a fight without thinking doesn't change that.” Vincent pouted at her, feeling contemptuous yet at the same time guilty.

“Fine.” Kelly then said, raising her head high. “I know when my ideas are not wanted. I'll just ask your Dad later then. At least he's wise enough not to easily dismiss things.”

“I don't know Kelly, Vinni's got a point.” Jerry said thoughtfully, “I mean we've been keeping an eye on this Magician dude ever since he showed up on that tabloid five years ago. So far, we haven't been able to figure anything common about his victims. Unless you count the way he kills `em. Maybe it just wasn't the Sex Fiend's lucky day.”

“Well I still think we should check it out and that's that!” she said in a final tone as she crossed her arms stubbornly. “In fact, ever since I read this article I was even more disappointed that we didn't catch that creep. If we had, we would've solved one mystery and opened up another!”

Kelly suddenly pounded her fists wildly and furiously on the table. “Oooohhhh!! Why didn't our plan work!? I personally risked my life and dignity by being the bait! Why didn't he come for me? Wasn't I the perfect victim!?” she whined, trying to gaze at the two with teary eyes.

Both boys though, returned her puppy-eyes look with a glum and indifferent stare. “W-wasn't I?” she repeated albeit nervously this time. Both boys just sighed as the bell that signaled the end of lunch period rang.

Later, after surviving another long-drawn afternoon of dull lectures, Vincent met with his friends once again at the school gates after which Mr. Cross came and picked them up. As they were now driving down the winding city streets on their way to the musuem, Kelly told Vincent's father about all she had hypothesized concerning the Magician's latest murder. Much to Vincent's disbelief, his dad found it interesting.

“Well if what you said is true Kelly, then I guess that it would've made it even more important for you guys to have caught that man. You could've learned more about the Magician.”

“I know,” Kelly said disappointedly.

“Dad, I can't believe you're agreeing with her.” Vince muttered grumpily. “Well I'm not really agreeing son, I'm just saying that anything's possible now.” Mr. Cross said brightly.

“I still can't figure out though why our perfect plan to lure him out didn't work!” she moaned. “I mean I may be a geek but I can't possibly be that… unattractive. Am I Mr. Cross?” she then asked nervously.

“Of course not dear. In fact, Vince's mom says you're a real beauty.” Mr. Cross said politely and causing Kelly to giggle bashfully. “Dad, I think you're forgetting the other thing she said.” Vincent said as he rolled his eyes disbelievingly.

“'If only she got rid of those glasses.'” Jerry quoted. “Yup, I hear her say that too. All the time.” A vein once more appeared on Kelly's head but she tried her best to keep smiling.

“Umm… anyway,” Mr. Cross said hastily in order to cover the awkwardness of the moment, “We're almost there guys so I hope you're-WHOA!”

Mr. Cross instantly stomped on the brakes as an old blue car streaked past in front of them, missing the bumper by mere inches as it ran violently past the red light.

“You guys okay?” Mr. Cross said urgently, looking to the back at the three of them.

“Y-yeah, we're fine. That was close though.” Kelly said though she sounded pretty shaken.

“Hey guys did you take a closer look at that car?” Vincent said anxiously.

“I think it was a blue Mercedes, an old model too.” Jerry answered.

“Actually,” Mr. Cross finally said, his voice becoming serious as he looked to the right where the car came from, “it's where it's just been that worries me now.” He quickly shifted the gears and immediately turned right. To the three teen's surprise, they saw the looming walls of the Metropolitan Museum of Art right around the corner. Upon their arrival they discovered to their horror more than a dozen police vehicles around the entrance as well as fire trucks and a few ambulances. What's worse, there was a faint hint of smoke coming from the entrance as firemen and police officers walked in and out frantically. Mr. Cross quickly got out of the car as he stopped at the barricade of yellow police tape and immediately went to the nearest cop who was standing nearby.

“What happened here?” he asked the man in the blue uniform urgently.

“There's been a robbery.” the man said.

“What?!” Vince cried incredulously but his dad raised his hand to quiet him. “Who were they and what did they steal?” he then asked.

“Witnesses say there were around four guys but they had some pretty tough hardware. As to what they took, I ain't sure. I think it was some sort of box. They said it had a weird symbol on it and they even called an archeologist to pick it up so they could identify it.”

At this, Mr. Cross' eyes widened with terror. “Oh no…” he quickly turned around and dashed back to the car. Vince, Kelly, and Jerry quickly at his heels.

“Dad what's going on?” Vince demanded.

“Sorry I can't explain now.” he said hurriedly as he got in. “Listen, go home and tell your mom what happened. I'll be back, don't worry.”

“Mr. Cross wai-“ Kelly was about say but he had already backed up and had now speedily driven away.

In another part of town, a blue 1959 Mercedes was driving wildly at full speed across the streets. Inside were four burly men who were looking irritably at the police cars that were now chasing them.

“C'mon boss, let's just take out a few like we did in the museum.” one of them said to the driver, a particularly large man with a ham-sized forearms and a flat, round, tubby face.

“No! If we do that, the Duke'll kill us! Besides, we gotta get this box to him ASAP.” the man answered as he indicated to something one of the thugs was holding on his lap. It was an old metal box that a bore an intricate, crystal-shaped symbol on the top.

The other man growled and cursed violently as the sound of the police sirens grew louder. “Well can ya just hurry up and lose `em!?” he shouted angrily.

“Relax.” the large man said sternly, “as long as we don't have one of those stupid Exorcists tailing us, things'll go smooth.”

What they didn't know though, was that right inside the trunk of the car, a girl with crimson hair and deep indigo eyes was lying in waiting.