IC INBOX

[enarms]

un: j. watson.

Comments

[enarms]

I've been a detective, it's about time I took a promotion.

[ that's a yes. a grim yes scarcely veiled beneath humour, but a yes all the same. he's ready and willing. ]

[revlon]

As I'm sure you've heard, the man responsible for the marketplace bombing is dead. But his associate is very much alive and reportedly frequents Shades Darker.

[enarms]

[ oh

well that's a more solid, navigable piece of information than he's heard in an age ]

Looks like it's time for me to go back to work.

[revlon]

[ Her feelings exactly. ]

Get some rest, first. I know this is going to get a lot worse before it gets better. And the fellow who broke the news in the first place — Qrow — is scouting out the place looking for the gentleman in question.

His name is Chadsef. No idea what he looks like so the tattoo is still all we've got to go on.

[enarms]

Tattoo?

[ is this something he's been spoken to about before? perfectly possible. he's not slept for snatches of more than an hour for at least two solid days, he's not exactly at optimal functionality. ]

[revlon]

Right, sorry.

[ He hasn't gotten much sleep and neither has she. But she's been pounding the pavement and the things she's noticed might not be common knowledge. ]

The people involved have "M" tattooed on their wrists; or, at least, the one I ran into did. And I've heard the same from a few others. I haven't got a clue what it means.

[enarms]

Gang tattoo. Right.

[ makes sense. also an odd, uncomfortable flashback to a different place and time. ]

You've encountered one of them?

[revlon]

I did.

[ She pinned the guy under her knee in an alley in the middle of the night. But that's a story for another time. ]

There's more. Actually, quite a bit. But you ought to have a listen to that transmission, first.

[enarms]

Alright. I'll go and do that now.

[ a brief delay before the next text ]

Jesus.

[ why does every discovery have to further verify exactly how Fucked this entire thing is ]

[revlon]

That about sums it up, yes. To which part?

[enarms]

Most of it. If not all of it.

The attack coming from an outlier and potentially neither state. Knowing a recipe for a cure exists but we only know one ingredient and it's the one we don't have immediate access to.

[revlon]

And the other ingredient is supposedly in our backyard but we don't know what the hell it is.

I've spent the past few days putting a few things together and none of it bodes well. Our suspicions from the other day are proving to be correct, unfortunately.

[ They can't trust anyone. God, this is familiar. ]

[enarms]

Yeah? Which one? [ they're suspicious of Basically Everyone at this point, are they not ] There are people in the Institute? The Sanctuary?

[revlon]

And the Guard. If the rumours are true.

[enarms]

Excellent. The whole thing.

[revlon]

I wish I was more surprised. But this means whatever efforts we've tried to make may have been sabotaged from the start.

[ The investigations, treating the epidemic, finding the cure. It seems almost insurmountable right now, although it could just be because they're so deep in the muck and haven't had a break. ]

[enarms]

Nothing we can do about that now. Can't just give up, there are too many lives on the line.

[revlon]

I certainly hope I haven't struck you as the sort to consider giving up.

[enarms]

Right. No.

So? You came into contact with one.

[revlon]

And was mildly electrocuted for it, yes. By him.

[enarms]

Electrocuted? As in an electric shock, or an active attack?

[revlon]

Both? The man conducts electricity and demonstrated it when I had him pinned down. [ It threw her off him, to be more precise. ] An acquaintance and I chased him down, but we lost sight of him in the theatre district.

[enarms]

Christ. Do you need attention?

[ first things first here please Peggy ]

[revlon]

It was a few days ago and believe it or not, I've had worse. But I appreciate the concern.

[enarms]

That I'll believe.

[ but hang on ]

Lost in a crowd or just lost?