The crime of the cure (Aaron)

[Varo Ricci (DELETED 9075)]

For around two months now there had been a number of reports. Something quick, it was there, it struck, and it was gone. Piece by piece the reports ended up with a rather unanimous face, the face of a rather unknown individual, but one that was now well in the attention of the cops and soldiers. It had become almost commonplace for them to manage to get a shot off at this individual though never managing to keep up with him or track him down or who he really was.

Varo set himself at the edge of the forest looking in. As long as he could remember, and as far back as his journal had gone, he had known that he desired only to be human again. And, around two months ago, that wish came true. He was finally free, and yet, he was still chained to his vampirism. The shade, his vampirism had seemed to become a being of it's own, attacking people randomly, including himself. He could barely step foot in the city without ending up shot at, and there was more then one occasion where he found out directly with the people the shade had attacked.

But, knowing this didn't exactly help a whole lot. The law didn't exactly consider that a valid reason, for everyone else, it really was him. He thought about opening up publicly about all this, the problem with that was that he was almost certain to end up arrested. And it might not even result in actually helping things. He'd have to explain being a vampire, which no doubt involved crimes, then becoming human which may or may not be believed, and all around far too many ways that this could go wrong for him to try. He groaned with irritation, what a screwed up life this was indeed.

[Aaron]

Alice was a boot, two months out of police college and thrown into the steaming pile of dog **** that was Harper Rock. She had been raised in the capital but married a local, and being female, was giving preference for where she ended up serving her first two years. Alice had proved herself in the office, earning herself the respect of sergeant Mircea, who called on her whenever there was a problem with the photocopier or one of the projectors. Her diploma in digital multimedia had served her well and made her a bit of an office superstar when it came to fixing all things tech. None of this mattered in the field though, not unless their camera or radios quit on them.

The pair had stopped for coffee at the gas station. Alice went in to pay for the gas and grab two coffees while Aaron hung up the nozzle and washed the windscreen. He was used to taking the rookies out and showing them the ropes, but it had been a while, and Alice tended to ask a lot of questions, some of which completely boggled the mind. Honestly, where do they find these recruits, he thought as he watched her return with the drinks, wearing a smile bigger than Bruce the shark in Finding Nemo.

Aaron climbed into the passenger seat, taking his turn to man the radio while Alice drove. He had hoped having to concentrate on the road might make her quieter, but the questions kept coming.

“I should have asked how you like your coffee,” she spoke up, watching the road as she pulled away from the gas station. “One sugar or two?”

“Black, no sugar.” Aaron replied, he had said as much before she went in.

“Ah, ****, that’s right. Hope you don’t mind a good cappuccino.”

Aaron took a sip of the coffee and felt it burn his tongue. He swallowed quickly rather than spit it out, and regretted the choice instantly.

“Hot?” Alice asked.

“Scolding,” he told her.

The radio hissed.

“Dispatch, controller Knowles, three-nine-seven-one on duty. Vehicle nine respond. Car nine are you receiving, over.”

Aaron reached for the radio and raised the piece to his jaw. “Officer Loch three-seven-one-two, vehicle nine. Receiving loud and clear dispatch. Loch and Peters on duty, over.”

“Dispatch to car nine, ten-two, three-seven-one-two, receiving, over.

Alice looked as if her eyes were about to bulge out of their sockets. “Three seven one two, is that your badge number?”

“It is,” Aaron agreed.

Alice bounced in her seat. “Can I have a go?”

“Just watch the road,” he warned.

“Is that officer Knowles? I’ve never seen him man the radio.”

“Yeah, because he’s usually sat where you are right now, driving, with his eyes on the road.” Aaron pointed. Women. Honestly. He hung the radio back up.

“Oh, right!” Alice fell quiet for a spell, took a sip of her coffee and stopped at a set of lights that had just turned amber.

You could have made that, Aaron had wanted to challenge, but remembered he wasn’t with his usual partner in crime. “Take a left at the next one.”

“Dispatch to car nine.”

Aaron went to take the radio, but was beaten to it by Alice. “Receiving you Dispatch.”

There was a pause, Aaron could tell Knowles had been thrown by the female voice, having no doubt expected Aaron’s.

“Roger, car nine. We’ve just received a report about a strange man skulking around the tree line east of Bullwood, just north of the Saint James Cathedral. Subject description matched that of V Ricci, currently wanted by police for possession of a firearm in a public place, violence, breaking and entering, and disturbance of the peace.”

“Ten-nine,” Alice replied, not used to listening to a radio like Aaron was.

“Dispatch to car nine, do you need me to repeat? Over.”

Aaron took the radio from Alice and pointed to a side street up ahead. “Hook a right,” he said, before speaking into the radio. “Car nine to Dispatch. Ten-four, ten-seventeen, ten-twelve. Over.”

“Copy that, car nine.”

Alice just stared, blinking at him..

“Watch the bloody road, boot!”

She looked ahead a swerved around a parked car.”

“Jesus,” Aaron hissed, and shook his head. “Affirmative, en route, standby,” he deciphered the quickly spoken codes to her.

Eight minutes later they pulled up outside the Cathedral. Aaron got out of the car and went to the trunk. He pulled his vest on and opened the lockbox to get his gun. Alice turned off the car and got out. “What should I do?”

“Go inside and ask to talk to the person who called it in, get some details and make sure your radio is on.” He told her.

Aaron connected his shoulder radio via a strap on the vest and walked towards the tree line.

“You’re going alone, don’t you want back up?”

“Do you want to back me up?” He asked.

She hesitated.

Thought so. “Go,” he pointed to the church and skirted the building to head into the woods.

Old foliage folded beneath the soles of his heavy leather boots with a dull crunch. The air was heavy and damp, the winter cold threatening to undo the promised warmth of spring everyone was so looking forward to. Aaron had to admit, he too was sick of the snow. He looked for footprints and paused to listen. If someone was nearby, he would find them.

[Varo Ricci (DELETED 9075)]

Time passed, and Varo's eyes slowly began to droop. He realized he'd hardly really gotten the sleep he'd wanted, always worried that at some point someone was going to try and kill him. He hadn't even slept within the city for who knows how long, rather hiding in the forest when he could, which was not the most comfortable resting place, especially as if he had tried so previously it meant almost certain attacks from the fae, or getting serious burns when the sun rose.

His head shot up and he wiped his face trying to wake himself up somewhat, it wasn't quite time to sleep yet, the day wasn't over, and he really didn't want to take his nap here, it was probably the most conspicuous place he could come up with. What he needed to do was skim across the edge of the town, right by the forest, see if anyone here was worth picking the pocket of, maybe go after a zombie or two to trade in the ears for, and then get on with his life that had turned into avoiding cops, rather then avoiding the day.

He stopped, seeing something he really did not want to see in his peripheral vision. Movement, astonishingly close but not so close that it was a certainty whatever it was had seen him. It was human that much he was familiar with, wolves and bears he often ran into didn't have that silhouette along the trees. He doubted it was a zombie, wasn't lumbering or noisy enough, they tended to much to ignore lifeless things.

He staid still and leaned against the tree behind him, pulling his coat up his sides and flipping up its collar in an attempt to hide his face. If he ran, it'd be a sign, if he used a massive leap they'd definitely see him, if he just walked away and they hadn't noticed him they would now, if he just stood still they'd be upon him eventually.

Crap, what am I supposed to do, all I can do is hope they haven't seen me, and if they do, I need to run, I'll leap over the river, there's no way they can follow me after that move, yeah it'll reveal me as either a sorcerer or vampire but I'd rather that then get shot again. He thought worried

[Aaron]

Aaron didn’t want to be the kind of cop who carried a gun on him during a search through the woods, but this was Harper Rock and there were more than rumoured bears and mountain lions out here. It was strange, he thought, to dread an interaction with a human over that of a wild animal. Animals were predictable, he supposed, fight or flight, they didn’t hunt for entertainment like people did, only for food.

He raised his weapon and swung his upper body in a sweeping movement from left to right, the point of his gun following his line of sight. He had a brief description on the man he was looking for, the one believed to be behind all the attacks, but he wasn’t sure he would recognise him, not unless he ran for it. That kind of thing always pointed to guilt.

A hesitant step forward saw dry foliage crunch beneath his boot, and he paused, listening to see if any other sounds followed, perhaps that of fleeing footfalls. Only silence. The small radio on his shoulder hissed, a familiar voice following. The unexpected call saw the small, invisible hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. “Cathedral is clear, witness believes the man is camped north of the area.”

Aaron followed the lead, making sure he was headed the right way via a dial on his watch. “Copy,” he said, moving right past the tree Varo was hidden behind.

[Varo Ricci (DELETED 9075)]

He seemed to have remained unnoticed, even right as he practically felt just as much as heard Aaron pass by him. He could just stay there, and nobody would be the wiser. But fear was not the easiest thing to control. His breathing slowly began to quicken and before he knew it he found himself walking away from where he was, not heading straight out into the city but along the forest still, quicker then he really should have been. If he'd have kept his cool, his footsteps might have been a whole lot quieter, but in a rush, in a forest, that sort of thing just was not the easiest accomplishment.

And with each footfall and realization that he was too loud, fear got worse. Careful, careful, stop walking so fast he'll see you! Pay attention, crap, no, don't slow down actually, if you do maybe he'll notice even more. Gah! But if he hasn't noticed yet maybe if I continue I won't be, but if he has, I should run right? I can get away can't I? Gah! I don't know what to do!

[Storyteller]

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For one brief moment, Varo Ricci could swear that everything appeared to be a shadowy and ruined version of itself.