The Special Place

[Danü Rèalta]

Pershing Square Building, 16th floor rooftop bar.

"Man. What a view. This has been a great night. Enjoy your dinner? Having a good time?"

The man in the expensive looking suit stood there with his drink in hand near the edge of the rooftop bar, overlooking the restaurant on the floor below them and to the night skyline of LA before them. He'd reach out with a charming grin to the brunette standing to his left and wrap his arm around her shoulder, pulling her in close.

The woman would offer a tight smile, wanting to flinch away from his touch but instead stiffly lean into him.

"So beautiful. You're beautiful. The best thing that ever happened to me."

He'd squeeze her shoulder a little more tightly, leaning in as if for a kiss. She'd turn her head away, setting her drink down on the table near them and try to peel herself away.

"I'm sorry, Jimmy. I need to go to the bathroom."

She'd start to pull away and his brows would furrow together, gently pulling her back in.

"Hey hey. Manda. Sweetie. You okay?"

She'd nod, trying to avoid actually looking at him.

"Yeah. Yeah I'm sorry but I really do just have to go pee."

He wouldn't let go of her shoulder.

"You've been really quiet all night. Is everything okay?"

She'd half chuckle, turning so that his grip broke from around her shoulder.

"You're being silly. I'm just going to the bathroom."

"Babe. Babe. Hey.... look just talk to me. I don't understand."

He'd reach out this time and grab hold of her wrist, an action that would cause her to wince as he gripped the bruises that her long sleeves hid.

"Jimmy please." Her voice would lower, trying not to make a scene. "You're hurting me."

An offended and hurt look crossed over his features. His voice not lowering. "Stop being dramatic. You think I don't know? How could you hurt me like this? After brining you here. Treating you to a nice dinner."

The girl seemed to look around desperately but most people would rather turn a blind eye, not knowing the full story. It didn't seem that serious at the moment.

She'd twist her wrist, trying to break his grip but all he did was squeeze tighter. It would cause her to whimper and when she did he'd jerk and pull her to him, causing her to stumble against him. His hand would reach up and cup her cheek gently, lifting her face to him.

"I'm sorry babe. You cause me to do such crazy things."

The sudden pull would cause someone to pay attention and one of the bar managers came over with a smile.

"Is everything okay?"

Manda would shake her head no and Jimmy would look up to the guy with a cool smile.

"Everything's fine. I'm just about to pay my tab and we'll be on our way."

The manager would nod to the guy and look back to the girl.

"Mam do you need me to call you an Uber?"

Jimmy's grip on her wrist would grow tighter and this time she would do more than whimper, it felt as if the bones in her wrist were cracking.

"No need. I'll get her home safe."

The manager now looked distress, motioning to get one of his staff's attention who quickly went to dial 911.

"Sir. Please let her go."

Jimmy would just laugh, and the manager would swear he saw the guy's eyes change reptilian for a moment but maybe it was just his imagination.

"Never." He'd laugh, leaning in to Manda to coldly whisper. "Did you know I'm invincible?"

"What?" She'd ask in a panic, feeling as he dropped his glass and wrapped his arm around her waist. He'd begin to lean back. "No. No, No, No, NO!"

The manager didn't catch what the guy was doing in time. He leaned backwards and threw both himself and Amanda over the ledge, dropping himself and her down to the restaurant floor below. While their was no ceiling the couple would first fall on a beam that ran across the area, and then again on a serving cart that carried glassware and bottles. Screams would echo from both upstairs and down. Manda would die as soon as she hit the ground. Jimmy would try to crawl away but eventually would pass from his injuries right as the police and paramedics arrived. Not as invincible as he thought.

[Murray O'Malley]

It'd been a hot min since Murr and Frank had fit the field. But it was longer over due for fuzz nuts and old grey bush to make their return debut. Murr was finally off of desk duty and Frank had behaved enough to be returned to duty. And this was their first real call in god only knew how long. Rolling up to the scene at the same time as the paramedic's he'd exit the shot gun side of the car. Frank driving miss daisy like always. Murr still had a slight limp that was going away with the aide of physical therapy and just plain old stubborness. He'd pause long enough to take some booties and gloves from one of the ambulences that had been called to the scene, as the victims had both beend Labled DOA. Murr knew how intense the CSI team could get, so he through caution to the wind as he moved inside lifting his feet up as he crunched on broken glass that had spread further out than the bodies had. 

'Jesus Frank. Why we always gotta get the weird ones ey?' Murr would grunt as he made his way over to the first body of jimmy that had left a bloody trail behind himself trying to crawl away from the scene before he finally died. Murr kneeled down briefly before he would stand up and move over to the female victim. It was clear from the damage and the cherry pie all over the floor she'd died on impact. So how the fuck did the other smuck make it that far away from the inital scene of impact?

He would look back at where the Coroner vehichles would pull up not long after they had. They'd been called when the bodies had been declared DOA., the EMT's pulling away their serveices no longer needed. The woman that would exit the main van was not at all what he had expected to see. First of all she was quite petite. He'd glance at Frank a slow amused smirk tugging at his face. Was this the dame he'd been telling him about? That liz had also met. It seemed everyone but him it would appear. She seemed to great Frank in a professional almost cold like manner. She must've felt him staring at her, because she'd look up at over at him with cold eyes. Damn even from here he could tell she was frosty. 

She was definitely a crypt keeper. That was for sure. Murr would slowly make his way back towards Frank and Mora. She'd look up at him when he joined them. 'Evening' he'd say and extend his hand out to her to shake. 'I'm Murr, Franks partner...you must be the famous Dr K, that Frank can't seem to shut up about..' A slight smirk as his eyes slide over to Frank, before moving back to Mora's face. Surprise sparking his as how cold her skin felt to him when she slipped her smaller hand into his, and gripped it tightly in a professional but dominate fashion. This spook was definitely spooky. That was for certain he'd pull his hand back and step aside so she could do her work. Looking behind her he saw a couple more spooks in tow.

[Mora Kaiyroan]

The call had come in shortly before she and Zaid were to clock out. Having taken him under her wing that night and showing him some new things that she or landyn hadn’t taught him yet. It’d been a good night. She was even ‘friendly’ tonight. Which in its self was just odd. But she’d made it a point to schedule some more time with him. He was a fabulous intern and she didn’t want to loose him because she was a stone cold bitch.



She’d take the call from the on-call cellphone nodding, moving over to her desk she’d grab a pen and her sticky pad jotting down a few notes say ‘a huh’ a few times before saying ‘we’ll be there shortly.’ She’d hang up the phone putting it down on the desk and removing her lab coat staying in her scrubs. She’d glance over at Zaid. ‘Congradulations, you’re finally going to see some action tonight.’ She gave him a genuinely warm smile. She was actually excited to take him out with her, and see what those sharp eyes of his spotted that seemed to allude her or landyn.



She’d check the van, to make sure they had a couple of gurneys as they were going to take the bigger van, that held two. If they needed more they’d have to call Landyn in early to bring the other van. She also made sure they had extra bodie bags, as well as extra gloves, booties and anti contamination suits, that they’d be wearing when examining the bodies at the scene. Satisfied they had everything they needed. She’d signal Zaid to load up in the van with her. And they’d exit the bay and pull out, following the gps to the location of the scene.



Mora was mostly quiet on the drive over to the scene. Making awkward small talk with Zaid here and there. Because small talk was a difficult talent that Mora hadn’t mastered.



She was round the corner of the crime scene taking over a spot recently vacated by the EMT’s, when the bad feeling hit her. Something wasn’t right. She could feel it clear down to her bones. Even the death magic that flowed through her veins seemed to have a reaction. There would be nothing normal about this crime scene. They hadn’t even left the van yet and she was already certain. The feeling made Mora become more with drawn. Quiet and observant. What friendliness she’d displayed before gone for the time being as she stiffly walked towards the two detectives as one of the other officers who’d been interviewing witness was approaching from behind.



Mora got to them first. Assuming Zaid was behind her. The feeling was growing inside of her and she didn’t like it. It felt gross. Like she’d gone out of her way to bathe her body in the nasty sewers of downtown LA. It felt filthy and clingy. Like no matter how much she showered after this, it would linger and never leave. But her face reveled none of this as she greeted frank first. Him being the only one she recogized. The younger detective approached them.



‘Frank.’ She’d say before glancing at Murr when he stopped in front of her introducing himself and offering her his hand. His hand was quite large in comparison to hers, but she still gave him a stiff professional handshake. A brow would raise in a semi amused fashion as she put the face to the name. A slow uncontrollable smirk would touch her lips, as she couldn’t refrain herself.



‘I see you lived to see the dawn of a new day. Quite surprising, considering how mad your wife was the last time I saw her.’ Murr had the good grace to blush rubbing the back of his neck in a guilty fashion, he shrugged his shoulders a little before meeting mora’s eyes. ‘Hey, being my wife doesn’t excuse her from not obeying the law…did she tell you that part? I doubt it.’ He’ shake his head, dropping it for now as long as Mora did. She’d said all she was going to before glancing at the beat cop patiently waiting for his turn to speak to them.



Murr would turn on him and speak to him directly, clearly knowing the guy. ‘Alright Mac, what you got for us?’



The cop would look over his notes a brow raised as if they didn’t make sense. He’d clear his throat before he’d start talking.



‘So witnesses say these two were having some kind of argument up top there, and things got heated. Apparently the manager asked them to leave, and the man refused, instead grabbed the woman, I mean the victim, screamed something like ‘I’m invinceable’ before he toppled over the edge taking her with him. Some of the witnesses said, that the male vic, seemed to be barely harmed from the impact of the fall because he managed to crawl his way as far as he did before he assumedly bled out..’ he said gesturing to the blood trail behind jimmy.



Mora would nod at the other officer. Glancing over at the crime scene a grim look on her face, she’d turn back to the van to get suited and booted. She’d have Zaid do the same, each carrying their own kits to collect evidence from the scene during their initial examination on the scene. She’d also have Zaid carry the camera to take pictures.



Moving away from the crime scene she had felt better the further she got. But now returning fully suited up, the feeling was returning. She wanted to focus on the victim first, seeing how he was the fresher corpse. She’d pass the detectives as they wisely got out of her and Zaids way. She’d stand in front of the dead man, her eyes following the length of his body to the bloody trail he’d left behind starting at the female victim. Had he used her to brace his fall? His weight plus impact would explain for the shattered skull. But without getting her on a slab there was no way to tell for sure, just by looking at them.



Being this close to the mans corpse though the feeling intensified to a point that she almost felt nauseated. Being who and what she was, if she threw up over such a mild scene she’d never live it down. She’d cover her mouth with the back of a gloved hand. Trying not to retch outloud.



Swallowing hard a few times, she got it under control, until the smell hit her. It was like a roadkill skunk in the middle of the desert highway in over 100 degree weather. It also made her nauseated. She’d glance over at Zaid and see if he was reacting or having a similar reaction to the corpse as she was.



‘Do you smell that?’ She’d ask outloud, to Zaid, moving her hand from her mouth to her nose trying to block out the smell without pinching her nose and making it super obvious. It was clear to her, that the detectives weren’t smelling it or they’d have complained about it. Which made her think that the smell might be something on a supernatural level. Hadn’t she caught a similar wift of this on Stephens body? She couldn’t remember. She wasn’t a lycan so her nose was not as sensitive as others. So it was likely she was just trying to link the two bodies for no apparent reason beyond, there was something clearly up with this one, that the mortals were not noticing.

[jsmith506]

"Dunno Murr, the shit just seems to be getting weirder and weirder these days...."

Frank followed behind Murr, he seemed to be happy to be taking point on this one, and that was fine by him.  He was happy to sit back and observe, take everything in.  It was a crying shame though, she was a pretty girl, another light snuffed out too soon by this beast of a city.  He knealt down next to the victim, seemingly unmoved by her current condition.  He didn't touch or interfere with the body in any way, he did notice the bruising on her wrists though.  They didn't just happen, she was wearing clothing to hide the abuse.  He was willing to bet that when Mora got her on the slab she would find more injuries.  This seemed like a cut and dry case of domestic abuse to him, the abuser felt like he was losing control and took the selfish way out that sometimes happens in these cases and if he couldn't control her and keep her, nobody would.  

Then Mora said his name, he looked up and smiled.  "Hey, what's up Doc?"

[darkheart]

Zaid would get his gear and the camera, following Mora dutifully. It had been a slow few weeks, and while his sensitive nature made him wonder if she'd been avoiding him, he supposed he was glad for the lack of deaths in the city to investigate. Now that they were on the road again, he almost bounced happily behind her, excited to be on a live crime scene. He did his best to contain his excitement, given it would not be appropriate to be happy about a murder-suicide, particularly in public. The officers noted his restrained exuberance with a half smile at the cheer of an excited rookie. They'd all been there before the darkness of humanity seeped into their years of experience, dulling their joy and weighing their souls. To see the next generation's excitement kindled nostalgic feelings and memories thought long lost of their own FTO days and they couldn't hold it against him. In truth, secretly they hoped it lasted longer for him than it had for them, and much like parents wanting to shield their children from the truth of adulthood, whispered secret prayers that the weight of it would not crush his spirit too soon.

He would circle the scene and snap pictures, laying out numbers and length markers, indicating scene position and the length of the crawl distance of the corpse. Slipping up beside Mora, he noted her discomfort. Kneeling down so the others couldn't see, he produced a small tin and offered it to her.

"I try not to smell a thing, boss. Old trick from my Biology 301 dissection days. 3 Altoids and all you smell is mint. Got me through the cadaver labs focused and clean. Though in truth, it doesn't block it all, but the mint keeps your stomach calm. No need to give the testosterone party a reason to leave vomit bags in your mailbox for a month, yeah?"

He would produce a swab deftly, rolling it through the young man's blood on the pavement and pull a flap up to reveal a port for the machine he was designing. Slipping the swab into it, it beeped and whirred for a few moments as it processed and analyzed. After a few moments, a small ticket would spit out. Pulling it off, he'd read the data curiously.

"Boss...my machine errored out. We need to do our own labs while the body is fresh. He's not human, but he's not creepo. He's like...some sort of hybrid? Never seen a result like this..."

He'd stand casually and walk over to the young woman, testing her blood as well. She came back as human, type B+. Moving back to Mora, he'd whisper to her again.

"Woman is clean. Nothing strange...just our swan diver here. I'm going to bet once we get him back to the slab, a good combover is going to find something we don't want the boys to see."

He heard footsteps coming towards them and stood, announcing to her almost a bit too much.

"I'm going to go collect photos from up top, Dr. K. Be back in a jiffy!"

Turning, he'd see Frank approached, looking almost relieved.

"Good to see you again detective! Looks like a tandem jump gone wrong. They forgot the parachute, sadly!. I'll let Dr. K give you the deets...I've got photos to collect! Catch up with you soon!"

And with that he'd trot off to look at the restaraunt area, take samples of the food and drink, labeling them for analysis and taking swabs of the waitstaff's hands incase there were any weird residues that might be a spreadable contagion. He'd ask the officers to speak with Frank to see if there was a connection with either victim with one Stephen Dyett. Normally the officers would take offense from the rookie giving direction, but they all seemed almost entranced by his joy, and gladly agreed. Zaid would wipe the sweat from his brow, the stairs having drawn perspiration from him, and when one of the officers reached up to give him a high five as he moved towards them to return to Dr. K, he returned the gesture. As he opened the door to the stairs, he heard a commotion behind him. Turning, the officer had apparently walked up to one of the pretty waitresses and encircled her in his arms, planting a big kiss on her lips, resulting in a resounding slap across the face and the beat cop's partner guffawing loudly.

Glancing down at his moist, gloved hand, Zaid's eyes opened in shock and he quickly dried it on his pants, turning away and darting down the stairs before anyone remembered him being there.

[Mora Kaiyroan]

"I try not to smell a thing, boss. Old trick from my Biology 301 dissection days. 3 Altoids and all you smell is mint. Got me through the cadaver labs focused and clean. Though in truth, it doesn't block it all, but the mint keeps your stomach calm. No need to give the testosterone party a reason to leave vomit bags in your mailbox for a month, yeah?"



Mora would look at Zaid with her light colored eyes, her face unreadable, as he handed her the tin. There was a considering look on her face in and her eyes. Silently she’d accept the tin. Had he forgotten she was a necromancer? In his excitement to be brought along, he must’ve forgotten that one tiny detail. That, and a fresh body didn’t immediately smell. There hadn’t been enough time for the body to decompose enough from the time of death to their arrival. For the time being she’d just accept the mint and hand him back the tin. The detectives were to close to them, for her to have a whispered conversation with him. As it would be attention getting. Nothing like a couple of spooks conspiring in whispers to draw a cops curiosity. Especially sharp ones like Murr and Frank. Mora highly doubted her ‘conspiring’ with Zaid would go unnoticed so soon.



‘Thank you.’ She’d say simply, glancing over at murr and frank to see how close in proximity they were to them. But her attention would be immediately drawn back to Zaid when he ran the blood test on his project. Hearing his words that the man wasn’t registering as human. Glancing back at the man’s corpse, her eyes trailing the length of his body, and the bloody trail it had left behind. There was no reason not to think he wasn’t human. At least for someone who was supernatural she reasoned. She was certain that the cops just assumed that drugs were probably involved and thats why he’d been able to keep dragging himself. Just like stephen, able to keep going despite the condition he had been in.



But the fact that, the blood sample had errored out on Zaids machine was troublesome. Some sort of hybrid? Her face would grow distant in thought as her mind began to run through some possibilities of hybrids that could be like this. She’d nod when he said he’d never seen it before, waiting for him to test the woman. He’d come back whispering again, her nodding as she listened.



"Woman is clean. Nothing strange...just our swan diver here. I'm going to bet once we get him back to the slab, a good combover is going to find something we don't want the boys to see."



‘I will call landyn and let him know we’re going to need to run some inhouse labs.’ she’d say quietly. She’d glance over her shoulder hearing the approaching footsteps. Seeing frank approaching them. She’d turn back to Zaid before adding in agreement. ‘I can almost guarantee you’re right Zaid, and no, we definitely don’t. At least not yet.’



She had to stop herself from shaking her head at Zaids sudden surge of energy as he stood up excitedly and rambled quickly at Frank, trying to play it all of like there was nothing for frank or murr to hear or see. Which for now, Mora completely agreed with him.

‘Just a second frank.’

She’d offer in greeting. Taking the moment of zaid distracting him with his rushed but excited babble, to gently lift the hand of the man. Looking at the palm and the skin of his fingers, looking for embedded glass and blood smears. What she found instead, wasn’t just broken bits of embeded glass, but the wounds from the glass itself, seemed to be festering around the wounds themselves. She couldn’t examine both hands with Frank right ontop of her. She’d release the mans hand, her body having served as the perfect cover to prevent Frank from seeing exactly what she’d been looking at.



Zaid was absolutely right. They did not want the boys to see this. Yet.



She’d stand again, facing Frank. She’d raise a brow, a slow but sly smirk would pull at her lips. ‘Come to fumigate my crime scene or try and ask me to dinner again?’



Clearly she was joking. But it was still enough to have Murr snort, cover his mouth and walk away. A few feet away he could be heard laughing. He knew first hand how bad those beer farts could get. Wait, frank had asked mora to dinner? Frank was clearly leaving out some details or Liz was. Murr hated being left out of the loop. But he couldn’t go back until he’d collected himself enough to be restrained from calling frank old grey bush in front of the crypt keeper.



She’d glance down at the corpses on the ground. Her head moving as her focus from one to the other. From where she stood, she could see the marks on the poor woman’s wrist, and from the circumference that she could see without comparison, looked about the right size to fit the palm of the dead mans hand.



‘Tragedy.’ She’d offer first. Before lifting those light ocean colored eyes up to him. ‘I think Zaid might be right about the failed tandem jump. I just don’t this she was a willing volunteer.’ As if to emphasis her point, she’d move over to the woman. With her gloved hand she’d lightly as she could lift the sleeve of the womans arm a little more to expose the bruising that Frank had noticed.



‘Such a waste. I wonder how many times she tried to leave him, before this happened.’ She’d glance up at the restaurant watching Zaid go about taking samples and photographs. Before looking back at Frank.



‘I suspect this is just a tragic murder suicide of a victim and her abuser.’ She’d look at frank wondering if he bought her hypothesis. There was sound above that sounded like flesh meeting flesh in the form a slap. Followed by choice words that followed the noise and loud masculine laughter. That pulled her attention away from him and back up to the restaurant, where she saw one cop doubled over in laughter while one, was clearly trying to apologize to an extremely upset waitress.



She’d glance over at frank a small smirk on her face. ‘Looks like you got some ‘policing’ to do upstairs.’ She’d smirk some more. It was rare she cracked jokes. Even really stupid ones.



She’d look away again hearing the rapid footsteps coming down thethe stairs followed by a high energy Zaid coming out at a rapid pace. Was that a guilty look on his face? She shook her head. She was seeing things. She’d look back at frank. ‘I’ll let you boys get back to it. So Zaid and I can finish.’ Her way of dismissing the detective. She’d wait for him to walk away and zaid to come to her side again.



Her eyes would follow Frank, making sure he was out of hearing distance, whether he’d gone to address the situation up top, or was going to heckle Murr into doing it. Either way, Mora wasn’t taking risks of the clever detective sniffing out something the spook squad wasn’t ready for him to sniff out.



Finally she turned to Zaid, and patiently she’d speak. She was trying, even though it was easier than it had been, to not be ‘herself’ and that cranky cold unpersonable person she’d always seemed to be with Zaid.



‘You really don’t smell that.’ It was a statement not a question. Her eyes would hold Zaids gaze watching everything his face did in observation, before she continued gently. 'Fresh bodies don't start to smell in under an hour. It usually takes about 2-3 given the right conditions before they do.' she'd paused to make sure he was paying attention and he hadn't gotten distracted while she was explaining to him. 'I want you to try again. And tell me if beyond a doubt you don't smell something.'

She'd watch him follow her instructions before she'd add some clarity to her words. ‘As a necromancer, the smell of death doesn’t bother me. If anything its…’ she paused as she tried to think of how to describe it to him, without coming off more creepier and scary than she already did with most people. ‘It’s almost like a aphrodisiac a powerful smelling perfume that awakens my senses.’ She finally finished. ‘The humans won't be able to detect it, since it is supernatural origin. Which is why I requested you to smell again. I want to know if and what it smells like to you. Because to me...this….this is not death. This is something far worse than death. Its the smells of something evil.’ Her eyes would search his for a moment. ‘And we both know…there are plenty of evil things that go bump in the night.’ She’d glance at the cops still on the scene briefly before looking back at Zaid. ‘As long as its not some lovecraft eldritch terror, I think we’ll be able to handle whatever it is.’ There was a twitch of her lips, a small amused smile would tug her lips into a curve. Again, there was Mora attempting her hand at a sense of humor. Even if it was dark humor, and quite possibly a possibility. But it was her way of trying to make light of a clearly serious supernatural situation.



‘But we need to get these bodies back to the morgue and tested as soon as possible. I think we’re in for an all hands on deck over-nighter. You wanna get the bags, and grab on of the gurneys? I’m going to call landyn and let him know to expect us.’



She’d pull her work cell out and would call the morgue waiting for Landyn to answer.

[jsmith506]

Frank would notice the exchanges between Mora and Zaid. They were hiding something, they had discovered something that trumps the simple domestic abuse hypothesis. However, they did not appear to have all the answers or enough proof to share their findings just yet. He would much rather be in the loop but he trusted these investigators and their judgement. This wasn't the right time or place to get into it, he could follow up with them later.

"You're a busy lady Mora, we can do dinner some other night. And as far as the fumigation goes, I apologize for the other day in your office, I think those quiches I had thr night before for dinner had too much egg. Those things really get me going....

And I'm sharing your concensus, but I'll be really curious to see male casualty's toxicology report. It'd be nice to know what the fuck made him think he was invincible or could fly."

Frank looked upstairs and frowned.

"Excuse me Doc..."

Frank stormed right upstairs and confronted the officers laughing and carrying on.

"The hell is going on here!? People just died down there, this is a crime scene not a speak easy. Have a little respect, the people and staff here are traumatized and you clowns aren't helping at all. You know what, get the fuck downstairs and guard the perimeter outside, you're disgracing your badges and I'm gonna make sure this is documented and if it happens again you'll all be doing foot patrol in south central!"

Frank would let out a sigh and take a breath turning to the distraught woman. "Ma'am, we're these meat heads giving you a hard time? It sounded that way to me, I'll take care of it. Just tell me what happened, and listen, we have grief counseling available for people who witness traumatic situations like this. It's no charge. This woman is really good, I've seen her myself." Frank handed the woman his shrinks business card.

[Mora Kaiyroan]

Mora would smile at frank as he spoke. It was a small one, but there was some kind of pleased vibe to it. As it changed into a secretive smirk. Possibly a slightly flirtatious smirk.



Her face would go back to her usual professional RBF, as he brought up the toxicology report. ‘As am I’ she’d admit. Not quite ready to say that they were running tests in house.



‘Wouldn’t be terribly surprised if he didn’t have something heavy duty in his tox report.’ She mused out loud, before he’d turn to go take care of the idiots upstairs. She could hear them

reprimand them. Landyn didn’t answer the MOD or as she liked to joke the mortician on duty. So she sent the phone a quick text just alerting him, that her and Zaid would be bringing a couple of bodies back, and to plan for a long night.



She’d stuff the phone back into her pocket, going over to help Zaid move the bodies into the body bags, so that they could collect some more samples beneath the bodies and were on their merry way back to the morgue.



Making sure to get plenty of samples where the mans blood and hands had been placed. The glass under the mans hands that weren’t embedded into his skin. She had a feeling those would have some interesting stories to tell.

[darkheart]

Zaid would hurry over to Mora as she beckoned and asked him to smell the corpse. The truth was that he didn't want to smell it. Of course he noticed the inky, oily rot that reeked of something wrong. It distorted his chakras and sent all sorts of static through his energies. The very whiff of it made him uneasy. But there was no mortal smell. A coroner and an intern wretching over fresh bodies would only draw attention and concern, followed by consternation and teasing. He was putting on a show as he'd done for many years in hiding who and what he was. The little mints did help with his stomach's unease - it was a natural remedy for nausea. Despite the supernatural nature of the smell, the physical effects were very mortal. He gave Mora a little nod to indicate he smelled it and agreed with her that it was evil. He, on the other hand, wasn't easily convinced that they could handle it. He hadn't noticed any newcomers at the Reverie, so there were no rare supernatural creatures checking in. And this was the second known dropped body. Whomever or whatever this creature was, it was skilled at not being noticed and staying off grid. It was either an extremely skilled predator or something with cautious, devious intent. In any case, they were no closer to even identifying it, so it had the upper hand and that made it very dangerous.

He'd wait for Mora to get done with her on site analysis, then bag the bodies. He'd mark the male's bag with a silver sharpie, then wheel them both over to the meatwagon. As Frank returned from his dealing with the mess Zaid had unintentionally made, he nodded.

"Stacked and packed. We'll get them to the morgue and let you know once we start getting results."

He'd nod to Murr and the other officers, then hop into the vehicle and wait for Mora to get in. His voice was sullen and reserved, not because of her but as a reflection of the smell and violence they'd just iced up.

"What do you bet we find marks on the head and between the toes again? I'll bet you lunch who or whatever killed Stephen Dyett killed this one too. Abuser like that doesn't off themselves....throw her over, maybe...but anyone who abuses a woman like that is too much in love with themselves to just off themselves. Between that and the smell, something is scary off here, Dr. K."

[Mora Kaiyroan]

Mora would follow behind zaid heading toward the driver side of the vehicle, calling a good night over her shoulder before getting in and shutting the door. She’d glance over in surprise at Zaid and the tone of voice that he used as she started the car.



She was quiet for a long moment not answering him as she forced a smile and a wave at the detectives as she backed up the ‘meat wagon’ and drove away from the crime seen. Once it was in their rear view mirror she’d finally speak.



‘I fully agree with you. He wouldn’t have jumped himself.’ She was quiet for another long moment like she was thinking or choosing her words carefully. Zaid wasn’t wrong. There was definitely something ‘scary off’ about the whole situation. ‘I don’t think we are only going to find marks on this one Zaid. I suspect whatever this….is….is next phase of whatever was going on with Dyett.



‘What I don’t understand, is why this one smells, but dyett didn’t.’ She’d muse outloud. A cold shiver would move up and down her spine. ‘I got a quick glance at his hand before Frank picked up on me not over sharing with him. The wounds where he’d been crawling that glass got embedded in….they were festering’



Her jaw would tick as she ground her teeth silently while they drove. Her mind going into over drive trying to think of what the hell they were about to be dealing with. ‘I’d like to try a couple different samples of the body with your machine, just incase we missed something the first time when it errored out. For instance those wounds I found on his hand. I don’t think we’ll see different results, but I’m not opposed to ruling things out if we did get different results.’



They’d get to the morgue and Mora would help unload the bodies, wheeling them inside. She’d direct zaid to take the mans body into one room for her. She’d pass the woman off to Landyn, explaining briefly it was a presumed murder suicide, but to watch for anything ‘unsual’. Since there was nothing normal about the other body.



She’d meet Zaid in the exam room changing into surgical scrubs. She’d slowly unzip the body bag and would immediately gag. It was like the body bag had acted liked a barrier and had hotboxed the bag with the stench of evil. She’d have to turn away coughing and gaging for a moment before forcing herself to stand up she finish unzipping the bag revealing the man’s body still fully clothed frozen in his final position. Still coughing and gaging a little Mora would turn the fan on in the room and grab a couple of masks, handing one to Zaid. Just incase there might be some kind of air contaigent they’d thought about too late.



‘I’ll take his head, you take his feet, and we’ll meet in the middle. But lets collect as much off of him as we can before prep him for autopsy.’

[darkheart]

Zaid would nod quietly to her, starting to remove the clothing with a cutting shears.

"Maybe Dyett didn't have a chance to progress to this stage? I mean, he didn't off himself...Frank shot him. Maybe he didn't have a chance to progress far enough in whatever was going on with him? Perhaps like a virus or infection the conditions worsen the longer the 'infected' is afflicted? If you consider the supernatural elements, vampires for example, you don't just turn instantly. The post mortem bite takes time to turn your system. The longer they stay alive the more powerful the condition is and the stronger they become the less human they become? Maybe whatever is causing these changes take time to set in. Didn't Dyett's wife say he started behaving erratically slowly over time? And our jumper here was having dinner with his victim before hand. Maybe there are time or hormone triggers? What if the release of hormones due to emotional stability reacts or speeds up whatever the neurological and physical changes are? I don't know...I'm just spitballing here. I am, however, sorry to inform you that you'll be buying me some steamed dumplings. I have the same mark between the toes. I bet if you shave the head you're going to find a mark up top!"

He'd tap the top of his head indicatively where he'd found the mark on Dyett. Pulling of the underwear and shirt he'd whistle a low note.

"Oh my...what have we here? Check out these tattoos on the hip and lower abdomen. Those are not your normal street art...."

There in black and red ink were tattoos that looked like an ancient script of some sort. While they were embellished with an almost demonic braid of thorns adorned with skulls and naked bodies trapped and intwined between the jagged shoots, the lettering was apparent amongst those nameless faces meant to suffer eternally in the subdermal layers of the dead man's skin.

"See these marks here? They look almost like ancient Phoenician but it's not a language I'm familiar with. Maybe a forgotten dialect? Or perhaps some new unwritten language put into a phonetic language so someone could read them aloud with the right vocalization? Very, very strange Dr. K. The more we dig into this the less I like it."

He would grab the clippers as Mora scrubbed up for the internal autopsy. Even though she was going to start with the head, her distraction in wanting to root around inside the body had taken over. He buzzed of the hair and nodded quietly. The mark was right where he thought it would be, though it was covered with a skullcap tattoo similar to the others. Shaking his head, he took the iodine sponge and cleaned the surface of the body properly as Dr. K had taught him, then stepped back.

"All yours, boss. Let's see what we get."

He moved quietly out of sight to grab the steel garbage can in the corner. He had a nagging feeling that both of them might have more need for lunch after expelling breakfast. Dollars to donuts this one was going to be a smeller.

[Mora Kaiyroan]

‘ I don't know...I'm just spitballing here. I am, however, sorry to inform you that you'll be buying me some steamed dumplings. I have the same mark between the toes. I bet if you shave the head you're going to find a mark up top!"



Mora was quiet as she listened to Zaid's all very sound and very logical theories. The problem was, at this very moment there were too many questions. That made narrowing down the theories to the more probable ones. But She definitely agreed with one thing wholeheartedly was the progression. Why was this one different from Dyett?



She’d glance up at Zaid, giving him her full attention as he finished his speech with the bet. A slow friendly seeming smile crossed her face.



‘Well Zaid, I’m just going to hand over my card now, so you can buy as many steamed dumplings as you want, and whatever your little heart desires.’ She’d watch him tap his head before going back to work at undressing the corpse. Mora would take the opportunity to pick out the remaining glass shards from the man's hands, putting them in petri dishes for collection. She’d look up hearing Zaid whistle, she’d turn her head to look at him as he divulged what he’d found hence removing the man's clothing.



"Oh my...what have we here? Check out these tattoos on the hip and lower abdomen. Those are not your normal street art...."



Mora would move from where she stood, pausing long enough to lid and label the dish before putting it down on the nearby cart. Having a headlamp on her head, she turned it on, to get a clearer brighter view of the tattoos, while Zaid spoke. For a moment his words faded to the background and her head tilted slightly. The letters on the tattoo flashed before her eyes twisting and moving like flames in a fire before brandishing a single word that vanished before she had a moment to comprehend it. But recognition was felt.



‘...so someone could read them aloud with the right vocalization? Very, very strange Dr. K. The more we dig into this the less I like it."



At that moment, the room felt cold even to mora. Zaid’s final words resting heavily in the air around them. She took a breath, looked at him, and turned almost distractedly unable to respond without thinking about her answer first. This was not the time to psyche each other out.

'Unfortunately we don't have a choice. We have a job and we're the only ones who can do it. We walk in two worlds, the real world and the human world. Unfortunately it means the monsters do exist.

She’d lick her lips as she began rooting around in the cupboards near the washing station. She was relieved that her predecessor was enough of a nut job like her first lead coroner had been. Which was to keep a sander dust mask on hand. The old quak swore it kept smells and particles out.



But that wasn’t exactly Mora’s concern, so much as how much the horrible smell had begun to smell a little sweeter. Like corruption. She was glad her back was to Zaid as she felt herself grow ridgid at the first tendrils tickling her nostrils tantalizing and engaging. She closed her eyes and held her breath. She wouldn’t be like them. She thought. She would not give into evil and corruption. Desperately she opened a drawer digging around and once again blessing having a predecessor that was like her first geriatric teacher had the same beliefs when it came to smell. A assurabley stale pack of cigarettes was found toward the back. Mora would break off the filters and stuff them up her nose, still breathing through her mouth. Sweet meant dopamine. Dopamine meant it was finding its way to her mind, which is exactly what she whished to avoid. Having witnessed first hand what evil and corruption did to someone of her line.



Could hear zaid behind her buzzing the man's hair off, grateful to him being sensitive to her distinctiveness. She was trying to center herself for this. Because until now she’d never faced evil and corruption quite like this. She remembered what her Auntie had told her once when Mora had asked if only demons were evil. And her Aunt shyra would laugh in her usual amused manner and at the same tone pity for how young her niece was. ‘No child, Evil comes in many forms. Man is known for their evil, other races thrive upon it. Don’t forget you will always be the evil in someone else's story my love. No matter how you narrate it.



Mora would take another deep breath through her mouth, gloving up and picking up the mask she’d nod to Zaid. Even this close, and even with the cigarette filters in her nose the sweet smell of corruption was still creeping into recognition. But not enough to pull. Just enough to be intuitive.



"All yours, boss. Let's see what we get."





Mora would take a deep breath and let it out raggedly and uncomfortably. ‘Let's do this.’ She’d say before she pulled and fitted the mask and the head map all on her head comfortably and stably. Adjusting a pair of safety goggles that suction themself against her face. Just in case it wasn’t just smelly but juicy. She’d hear him pull the trash can over and send him grateful eyes. The corners of her eyes crinkingly in a soft and friendly almost welcoming manner, as a way of being grateful.



Breathing through her mouth and the mask almost made her giggle, like it was a half assed attempt at recreating Darth Vader in the morgue. That is until she thought she caught movement, or was that buzzing she started to hear the closer she moved to the sternum of the body. Hesitatingly, she’d pick up the fresh scalpel from the tray, being right handed she’d start from the corpse's left side, her left hand resting atop the chest.



Her breath would catch, as she felt the briefest vibration beneath the corpse's dead skin. Mora’s fingers trembled slightly, as her stomach clenched. This corpse was already going to be a new one to her. She’d place the scalpel to the corpse's skin with the intention of starting the Y insiscession. When the buzzing began. She looked up at Zaid, her hands hesitating.



‘Do you hear that?’ she’d asked in a muffled voice waiting for Zaid to nod his answer. She’d nod in return and continue to push forward with the scalpel directly into the flesh starring the incision as she did the skin almost seemed to ‘crunch’ a little bit. Similar to the feel of an exoskeleton. As she made the incision the humming would come to a crescendo when hundreds of flies suddenly burst forth from the incision in the skin, the flies swarming both Zaid and Mora’s faces.



Mora would let out a high pitch feminine screech loud enough to be heard in the second examining room where Landyn would be working. But as Mora and Zaid flail their arms swatting at the mysterious swarm of flies that just suddenly began to explode into tiny puffs of smoke. Till they were all gone.



Mora’s heart hers beating heavily in her chest as she suddenly let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She was fighting back memories from centuries past. The last time she’d smelt anything at all like this. Thankfully the old nutjobs theories so far held some truth.



She returned the scalpel to the skin, but there was no further bursts of surprise, that is until she’d finished the Y incision and had started to pull back the skin.



Upon reflection, it would be hard to tell what was the first disturbing part that Mora had noticed first. Was it the continued satanic looking language that seemed to cover every inch of the reverse side of his skin?



Or was it the way the skin continued to crack open without her assistance, a jagged line moving up his face and through the middle of his skull. As if her original thought had been closer to reality as the exoskeleton meat suit fell or rather slopped off the internal occupant. Inside shriveled, malnourished, horribly emaciated was the man whom they’d just cut open, but in the physical state they had found dyett in. Only difference in their physical states was John Doe had closed and sealed eye sockets like it had been born with no eyes or occipital lobes, and there was no mouth to speak of as well, there was the faintest definition, indicative that a form had been in the worlds of development. But whatever happened tonight had interrupted the process.

There was a moment of stillness, that Mora could legitimately feel herself holding her breath her gloved hand reaching out to tenatively touch the inner corpse. It would surge up suddenly at her touch, its head flailing around in a silent scream before collaspsing back where it had been before her touch hand caused its animation.


Mora’s hand would just freeze and the hand holding the scaplel would just carelessly fall to the lab's floor. Her breathing was hard as she took a step back hissing like a vampire meeting a cross.



In her mind she could hear her uncle Kaleb when she was but a child, before he’d been corrupted and later put down. It would be the last time she’d heard his voice.



‘Fetch the hex bag witch. We’ve got evil amongst us….’


The world began to swim a little and Mora would grip the edge of the table afraid she was going to faint, as her knees were growing week. Had the currupotion finally won the battle and was taking over her, or had the actual smell of evil finally got so bad she she could no longer take it, and was about to faint as a result. 

'Fetch the...' she'd start to say before her eyes rolled back into her skull and she collapsed to the floor. 

[darkheart]

Zaid would watch as Mora dug into the corpse surgically. He held a small notepad and a pen to record her technique and notes he had on her vocal observation. He was still her intern, after all, and there was much Mora could teach him about autopsies and technique. When the flies exploded into the room, his eyes went wide and he waved his arms and tried not to squeal several octaves higher than he normally spoke. He only avoided this by clamping his lips together in fear that bugs would fly into his mouth. Within seconds, however, they were gone. He looked to Mora in horror and confusion. His mind exploded with the words, "What in the hell was THAT" but he couldn't find his voice to speak them. He'd seen some weird things at the Reverie, but nothing like this. This was some weird Lord of the Flies shit. It got weirder still when Mora flat out hissed at the corpse. Zaid's eyebrow went up and he looked at her like he was trying to figure out if he had some kind of contact high from the corpse or if this was actually happening. She began to speak, and then passed flat out. Blinking twice as she hit the floor, the shock suddenly broke as he realized something was terribly wrong not just with the corpse or the situation, but also with Mora. He slid on the floor, pulling her head onto his lap and began not so gently smacking her cheek and calling out to her.

"Dr. K....Dr. K!! Come on....don't do this to me....DR. K!!! SHIT!!! LANDYN!!! GET YOUR SKINNY ASS IN HERE!!!!"

[kinkednitemare]

-=Landyn had missed the call but had gotten the message he'd set up for the bodies and when they got back to the morgue he'd take the one he was assigned. He'd been working on the initial intake doing so alone which was fine by him. Generally if he and Zaid were doing things together it could get a bit...goofy from time to time and really he wasn't ready for the talk that they no doubt needed to have about what happened at the end of the meeting. He would go about notating what was going on with the skin of the body and kind of talk himself through the process he knew oh so well by now. 

things were going alright though there was this weird feeling of just...dread in the pit of his stomach and he couldn't shake it for whatever reason. It happened sometimes, but this lingered much longer then he was comfortable with. Having work to focus on it helped to try and ignore it but that all came to a screeching halt when he suddenly heard Zaid screaming his name. He'd put the items in his hands down quickly and come running into the room to find Zaid with Mora's head in his lap. He was slapping her and even more worrying she wasn't responding at the moment. He would look surprised for a moment but then would move to the first aid box to get the smelling salts.=-

What the hell happened man?

-=He'd frown as he came over kneeling down on the ground with them. His eyes looking her over. He'd start checking her vitals, heart, breath...waiting to hear what happened from Zaid so he knew what else to look for. Did she hit her head? In hale something she shouldn't have? He'd compile the questions he'd have after getting the quick and short story from Zaid.=-

[Mora Kaiyroan]

Mora watched as Zaid went blurry and suddenly there was darkness. The darkness was short lived as the swee smell of decay would swirl its way into her nostril, stirring her from what felt like a deep sleep. She’d sit up tiredly, looking around her. Beneath her hands she felt soft spongy earth. And would look down at ancient dark moss covered ground. A look of confusion would pass over her face as she suddenly realized that not only was she no longer in the morgue but she was somewhere else completely. All around her whas a dark green haze almost fog like casting a green hue on everything in her view. She’d look around her trying to gather her bearings. But there were none to be had. The same smell, sweet this time, seemed to thicken in the air wrapping around her like a fine silk scarf that entangled itself around her body.

But something wasn’t right about the smell. had always While decay had always smelt sweet to her senses. It had never smelt so sweet that it was like cake to a necromancer. That was the first sign that things were wrong. Desperately wrong. She struggled a little trying to brush the smell away from her. And for a time it would leave her be. She’d let out a sigh of relief of whatever it was, was leaving her be for the moment. She’d sit there looking around herself looking for anything that would help explain where she was or why she was there.

But there was nothing but haze. That is until there were vibrations coming from beneath the earth and her feet. Mora would pause, the palms of her hands resting on the moss having grown still listening, and trying to feel what was moving beneath the earth. But she felt nothing. Just movement. In front of her a skeletal hand would burst through the earth, its flesh stringy and melted looking as it clung to the bones. Mora’s eyes would widen and she’d crab walk back a few feet from the rising corpse.


She didn’t raise it. And yet it was rising. She watched in horror as the corpse dug its way out of the ground until it was on all fours facing her. Its clothing ragged and broken, its flesh melting and draining from the bones. The pitiful creature looked like the end result of a radiation poisoning victim the way the skin looked festered and melted.


There was more movement and more sound. A 2nd corpse in a similar condition rose from the ground next to the first. The first would reach towards her what left of its flesh dripping off its bones and plopping onto the ground. They both tried to make sounds but the only sounds they made were raspy broken sounds. Repeated death rattles emanating from their rotting chests.


They continued to crawl towards her. And Mora would half scramble half crab walk back as fast and as far as she could from them Her back hitting something solid like a wall or a tree. But she could back up no further. Her eyes were wide with fear. These weren’t her zombies. These weren’t her corpses that she’d risen from the ground.


Her fingers would dig deep into the earth beside her. She’d closed her eyes and she pushed all of her magic all of her strength into the ground, trying to pull the dead back into the ground where they belonged. But they did not heed her call to return. They continued towards her, her magic having no effect on them.


A cloaked dark figure would appear behind the corpses. Its hood hid their features so she could not see what it was that controlled the corpses. As it was clear that whatever it was was the one controlling the dead. Mora’s eyes would widen as she felt her power being siphoned through the ground being pulled towards the cloaked figure, drawing and draining her magic the longer her fingers remained dug into the ground.

It felt like invisible hands had her hands pinned into the ground and took a superhuman effort to rip them out of the ground before she was siphoned dry of all her magic. Just as one of the corpses reached out and touched her knee. Mora Screamed.



Mora remained unresponsive to Zaid slapping her cheeks, trying to revive her. Her body limp, as he held her head in his lap. Her body continued to remain unresponsive even after Landyn arrived to the scene, removing the mask and cigarette filters from her nose. Checking her vitals and waving the smelling salts under her nose.


But the salts didn’t have the desired effect. Instead her body began to convulse violently, making it appear like she was experiencing a grand mal seizure. Between convulsions, words could be heard in whispered hisses emanating from mora’s mouth. Nothing intelligible enough to understand. But distinctive enough to realize it was at least three different languages. Her body would shudder and the whispered hisses would become more rapid and a little louder.. As she was saying the words faster and faster. They were loud enough, that depending on one's exposure to languages, would be what they’d pick up on. The words being uttered were spoken in a turbulence of latin, french and gaelic. And then nothing. Mora would go silent and her body would grow limp once more.