BEYOND 3A: BloodRed and ScaleBlack

The Forty-Third Feather: Lestrade Is An Investigator

After Meggie provided the others with the previous recap, both Corna and Catherine felt greatly uneasy. The former said in disbelief: "Damn, you really killed him?"

Iblis: "Ripped 'em to shreds!"

Catherine: "Oh God, This isn't good. This isn't even remotely close to anything good."

Corna: "She said he called for backup, right? Damn it, it's only a matter of time before an entire fleet shows up outside! Oh, What am I gonna do?!"

Catherine: "Corna, please calm down! There is no reason to be this paranoid!"

Meggie: "Um... Blue Miss?"

Catherine: "Yes?"

Meggie: "You don't understand how much they want her. I read the thoughts of the Chupacabra man."

Jake: "Woof! (Although I agree with Catherine, I believe it is better to be safe than sorry, as the saying goes.)"

Catherine: "Enough of this, all of you! I don't what's gotten into your heads, but there's no proof that things are as dire as you-"

And funnily enough, her argument was interrupted by loud sirens rapidly approaching their location. Corna started panicking, understandably: "Oh GOD! OH GOD! THEY'RE HERE! SHIT!"

Catherine stuttered a bit and tried again to calm her down: "T-that can't possibly be involved with you! There's probably a Corruption rampaging nearby!"

But she was immediately disproven when the many sources of the sirens stopped in front of Dennis' house. A dark-skinned man wearing a beige trenchcoat stepped out of one of the police cars and began talking over a megaphone: "This is the military police, we demand that the wanted individual 'Corna Murmur' reveal herself."

While the kids were panicking, Catherine was utterly baffled, not just by the presence of several dozen military policemen, but also by the man talking. She muttered while peeking through the window's shutters: "What the hell...? Why is Paul Lestrade here?"

Corna: "W-who is that?!"

Catherine: "He's three things; A private investigator, good friends with the Commander, and a terrifyingly competent man. I don't understand... Why is he here? There's no need for him, right? I need to look into this further. All three of you, wait here and don't move!"

Hurriedly, Catherine left the room, went down the stairs, and confronted the large crowd of armed men. They aimed at her, initially, but once she displayed her badge, they all lowered their guns and permitted her to talk to Paul. She immediately asked him: "Mister Lestrade, What is the meaning of all this?!"

Lestrade: "Miss Caddick, I'm certain that I was as clear as glass. We're looking for Murmur's thirtieth recorded reincarnation. I assume you've already found her?"

Catherine: "Don't you play coy with me! Why is the military with you?!"

Lestrade: "Murmur is an especially powerful Beyonder, considering her abilities and the kind of person she tends to be. We've brought over fifty men, but even then I'm doubtful."

Catherine: "What do you intend to do with her?!"

Lestrade: "I was just told to track her down. I sent you both to investigate this house to clear the waters and when I heard there was some retaliation going on, I was as excited as a kid on christmas. Regarding her actual fate, I haven't the slightest clue. It's all up to Alex to decide. Oh, that reminds me."

He then turned on his megaphone again and spoke: "Show yourself within the next three minutes or we'll resort to causing severe property damage to this house." and put it down, continuing the conversation: "Anyway, we had already gone through a few suspected locations yesterday, an apartment complex in Miami, the school near that one, and a few others. I'd really appreciate it if she made this easier for us. It'd suck if we had to shoot her down if she decides to fly away. We've got a couple duck hunters on standby."