Chapter 29: Chapter 29: Collateral Damage

The fire was already out by the time Valen, Enid, and Louise arrived at the Grand Skystone.

Ice mage firefighters were able to put the fire out fairly quickly with their spells at the cost of covering the entire penthouse in a thin layer of ice that froze over the charred walls and furniture.

A young human police officer stood in the hallway connecting to the now frozen penthouse, notepad in hand. Enid had one hand clasped over Valen’s for comfort while Louise, in a rare show of sympathy, had one furry hand on her shoulder as a reassuring gesture.

“The bomb was disguised as a gift box of chocolates addressed to the penthouse suite,” said the police officer. “Do you have any idea who might want to hurt you, Miss Flamel?”

“No one comes to mind,” Enid lied.

The three of them had agreed to keep the Primordial Church a secret to the public and police on the car ride way there. 

While they could tell the police about the Primordial Church now and they might actually listen to them this time around. But with their influence stretching as far as the police force itself, having the police and by extension the public know about them could very well cause more problems that it solves. 

A wild animal will fight with all its might once cornered. One could only imagine what a scorned god would do in the same situation.

“What about you, Mister Vasilis?” the police officer asked. “Do you have any enemies?”

“None that would do something like this,” said Valen. “There’s only some burglars who put me in the hospital and an officer who electrocuted me in the Nocturnal District a couple nights ago, though.”

“Ah, yes.” The young officer looked slightly embarrassed. “It was an unfortunate misunderstanding.”

“That’s a funny way of saying racism,” said Louise dryly.

Valen loudly cleared his throat to draw attention away from her comment.

“Are you sure this was targeted at us, sir?” he asked. “Enid told no one knew we were staying here and we haven’t been posting our whereabouts to social media. Could this have been a random attack?”

“We actually have reason to believe that it might be targeted at you, Mister Vasilis,” said the police officer.

Valen cocked an eyebrow.

“May I ask why, sir?”

The police officer took out his phone, scrolled for a bit, and showed it to them.

“This picture was posted online a couple days ago.”

The phone showed a Chirper post with a selfie of a familiar face to Valen.

It was the balding middle-aged businessman who tried to have Valen kicked out of the Grand Skystone when he saw him there. He was in the hotel lounge in the middle of being escorted out by several security guards.

The text above the picture read ‘Got thrown out of the Grand Skystone because my wife was scared of sharing it with a leech. Shame on the Flamel Corporation for letting something like this happen. Aren’t they supposed to make their customers feel safe during their stay?’

Louise furrowed her brow. “Is that guy talking about you?” 

“I believe so,” said Valen. “He demanded for me to be kicked out of the hotel. Evelyn kicked him out instead.”

“Evelyn?”

“The concierge.”

“Hmph.” Enid tightened her grip around Valen’s hand and rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand. She'd already told Evelyn on the phone to take the rest of the week off if she needed it. Now she wondered if she deserved more than just that. “Remind me to give that girl a raise later.”

The officer zoomed into the background of the Chirper picture and Valen felt his heart drop. He was in the picture too, in the middle of walking into a lift that Evelyn held open for him, his rare red eyes and long black ponytail making him unmistakable in a crowd.

“The bomber most likely learned your whereabouts from this picture,” said the police officer. “We think we may know why they did it as well.”

“You do?” asked Valen. For just a moment he wondered if the police had gotten competent enough to figure out the Primordial Church’s involvement all on their own.

“Yes.” The police officer went back to scrolling through his phone. “You’ve been getting attention in certain online circles.”

“...I believe I know where this is going but I really hope I’m wrong.”

The police officer showed them his phone again. This time, it was a long list of chirps from many different users, almost all men, all posting with the hashtag #NoBatsAllowed.

Valen couldn’t read all of them as the officer scrolled down the disturbingly long list, but the ones he did glimpse still managed to make him feel dirty all over.

‘Five grand spend on her and she’s just gonna go date some gutter bat? Not on my watch!’

‘Lol this Valen guy should just kill himself if he thinks he has a chance with damsel.’

‘If that leech touches a hair on my queen’s head then I’m going to prison for murder.’

“Okay,” said Louise. “What the actual fuck is wrong with these people?”

“These kinds of chirps have been going around since Miss Clara Chambers made the video asking for your release.” The police officer put his phone back in his pocket. “You may want to lay low for a while. Obsessive fans have done some pretty messed up stuff in the past. Right now we’re investigating some of the more vocal and violent ones to see if they have anything to do with it.”

“Much appreciated, sir,” said Valen. “But if what you say is true, would it be alright if our names aren’t made public? At least until the bomber’s been arrested? I fear that news of this might encourage more obsessive fans to try something similar.”

“Understandable. If that’s what you want then I’ll tell the reporters that the intended victims wished to remain anonymous.”

“Much obliged, sir.”

“No problem, Mister Vasilis,” said the officer. “Although, I doubt this will keep people from speculating and coming to the same conclusion as us.”

“We’ll take whatever semblance of privacy we can get,” said Enid. “Can we go now? I want to be gone before even more paparazzi get here.”

“Of course, Miss Flamel. We’ll contact either you and your friends if anything comes up on the case.”

“Thank you.” Enid turned her back on the officer and dragged Valen by the hand down the hall with her. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

“Where do we go now?” Louise asked.

“That spare manor we were staying at while Valen was in the hospital.” Enid only continued speaking when the doors to their private lift closed. “I thought the Primordial Church wouldn’t dare hurt us somewhere this public. I was wrong.”

“It’s not your fault,” said Valen. “You couldn’t have known something like this would happen.”

“Why don’t we ask the Silver Star Society for a safehouse?” asked Louise. “Might as well use their resources now that we’re working with them, right?”

“To be honest, I still don’t trust Colton,” said Enid. “I’d rather stay somewhere neither he nor the Primordial Church knows about.”

“Good point,” said Louise. “But are you sure we’ll be safe at this new place too?”

“We can only hope it is.”

The lift doors parted and the three of them stepped out into the underground parking lot. It was mercifully empty, most of the reporters having focused their attention on the lobby trying to get to the scene of the incident for that elusive first scoop.

Louise already had the car keys ready in hand when a familiar voice made the three of them freeze in their tracks.

“Hello Valen.”

It was a woman’s voice. Calm and smooth as silk, speaking the commontongue with a distinct accent that marked her as someone from the far east.

“Detective Takara?” Valen slowly turned around to face the kitsune detective.

She had traded her snazzy waistcoat for far more inconspicuous streetwear. Baggy black jacket, dark denim trousers, and black trainers with no visible branding. Even her bushy fox tail was nowhere in sight, presumably wrapped around her waist and hidden under the jacket. A generic look for someone trying to not be noticed.

“I believe I told you to call me Keiko,” she said with a smile.

Louise shoved both hands back into her hoodie pockets, eying the off-duty detective with a suspicious glare. “What are you doing here?”

“Just thought I’d come by to check in on you merry bunch.”

“How’d you know where we were?” asked Enid.

“I’m a detective, Miss Flamel,” said Keiko. “Finding people who don’t want to be found is kind of my job.”

Valen was pretty sure she must’ve figured it out through Chirper but didn’t mention it.

“We’ve already talked to the police,” he said. “We’ve told them everything we know about the bombing.”

“But not everything you’ve told me, I take it?”

Valen’s silence was her answer.

“That doesn’t matter though,” Keiko continued. “I’ve been put on sick leave so I’m not here as a police officer. Just a concerned citizen.”

“Well as you see,” said Enid, “we’re fine. And we’ve got places to be before the paparazzi get here so if you’ll excuse us.”

Enid waved Louise and Valen over and started walking to the car. Louise followed her with car keys in hand. Valen turned to talk to Keiko one last time.

“Your concern is appreciated, Keiko,” he said. “But we really ought to get going now.”

“Not feeling chatty tonight?” she asked. “Well, if you ever need to talk, you have my number. Feel free to call anytime.”

“Duly noted. Have a good night.”

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“You too, Valen,” she said after he turned his back to her. “You too.”

Valen got into the backseat, where Enid was already sitting in wait for him while Louise sat in the driver’s seat.

“You probably shouldn’t have told her about the Primordial Church,” said Enid after Valen closed the door. “She’s going to be even more interested in you now than before.”

“You’re probably right.” Valen fastened his seatbelt. “But it felt like the right thing to do at the time.”

“Curiosity killed the cat,” said Louise as she backed the car out of their parking spot. “And a fox is just a cat in a dog’s body. She’s not going to stop wanting to know what your deal is after all that’s happened.”

“It’s not like we can bring her into the fold now,” said Valen. “I doubt Colton would be very open to the idea of letting a cop in on his secret society.”

“Speaking of which,” said Enid. “We should probably call him now.”

“Right.” Valen took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts until he got to Colton’s number, simply named ‘Tutor’ for anonymity’s sake.

“Put him on speaker.” Louise drove them out of the underground parking lot into the shining night. “And don’t tell him where we’re going-I still don’t trust that guy.”

“I wasn’t planning to.” Valen tapped on Colton’s contact, then the speaker icon which filled the car with a droning dial tone.

A few moments later the phone on the other side picked up and Colton’s voice came from the other side.

“To whom do I have the pleasure of addressing?”

“It’s Vasilis, sir,” said Valen. “We’ve finished things up here.”

“Has anyone been injured in the incident?”

“A few ruptured eardrums from the sound of the explosion but nothing serious,” said Valen. “But it seems the Primordial Church is getting bolder with their attempts on our life. I’m not sure what they might try next if they care this little about collateral."

"Agreed," Colton replied, "I would suggest that you lie low for the time being."

"And what are you gonna do?" Louise asked, speaking loudly to be heard from the driver's seat. "We can't kill a god by just hiding you know!"

"Is that Miss Blanchette? I assure you, I share your eagerness a thousandfold. But I would rather kill a god rather than have it kill me."

"What's your plan then?" Enid asked.

"We defang the snake before cutting off its head."

Valen saw Louise roll her eyes in the rearview mirror. 

"In plain commontongue, please?"

"The Primordial Church relies on drugs and miracles to fill their ranks with the weak-willed and desperate. Miracles to bribe over those desperate for a cure to what ails them. Drugs to trick weak-willed into poisoning themselves with the Unborn God's blood. We can do nothing about the miracles at the moment but we can still interfere with their drug trade."

"What do you suggest we do?" Valen asked.

"I will use the Society's connections within the Nocturnal District's nightclub scene to ascertain where the drugs are coming from. You three will keep yourselves out of the spotlight until I have formed a plan that requires you to carry out."

"That's it?" Enid asked. "You really don't need us to do anything else?"

"There is a time and place for action, Miss Flamel," said Colton. "Oh, and do not worry about the repair costs to your hotel. I have already transferred more than enough funds into your Bank of Dragon's Rest account to cover it. Not that you really need it, but please consider it a token of my gratitude for helping Mister Vasilis bring this matter to my attention."

"Wait, what?" Enid took out the brand new phone that she had to buy after the last two broke. She quickly signed into her banking app and found a couple extra millions added to the billions already there. "How did you-"

"I have my ways," he said plainly. "I shall be in touch once preperations are complete. Do stay safe in the meantime though."

And with that, Colton hung up.

"You know, he sounds a lot less intimidating over the phone," said Valen before pocketing his own phone. "Also, you might want to change your bank account password. Just in case."

"Agreed." Enid looked unamused as she started tapping on her phone screen. "I'm going to make it something less easy to guess."

"What was it before?" asked Louise.

"A birthday," Enid replied, leaving out that it was Valen's birthday instead of her own.

Louise drove quickly. Not fast enough to be breaking the law but fast enough that people may wonder if there was a woman in labour on board.

The car CD player fought off any awkward silence during their drive, shuffling between Valen's jazz CDs and Enid's alternate rock.

"Oy, Thunder Tits!" said Louise during one of the softer jazz songs. "You mind if I put some of my own CDs in here later?"

"What kind of CDs are talking about?"

"Pop music," Louise said bluntly. "Maybe some Thalia Quick songs."

"I didn't take you for a pop person," said Enid, hiding her surprise behind her usual frown.

Louise grinned at her through the rearview mirror. "I'm full of surprises."

Valen couldn't help but smile too. It might not seem like much, but Louise being comfortable enough around Enid to admit her real taste in music gave him hope for the two getting closer. It was high time Enid had some friends other than him.

While the three of them continued to talk about amiably sbout music in the car, the wealthy streets outside grew quieter and quainter. Soon, they found themselves in an entirely new district of the great city.

Although the buildings of the district were old, they all well-mantained with new coats of paint in contrast to the dilapitated slums of the Noctutnal District. 

Tavern-inns bustled with as much life now as they did in back the olden days, ancient cottages glowed with electric lighting, and towering steeples of ptistine churches watched over it all long after the gods they were built for had left.

" I didn't know you had property in this area," said Valen. "We're in the Dragon's Heart, right?"

"That's right," said Enid. "The manor we're going to was a birthday gift from my old man."

Of all the districts in Dragon's Rest, the ones named after parts of the dragon were the oldest. And of those districts, the Dragon's Heart was the oldest. 

True to its name, it was the heart of Dragon's Rest cultural heritage with buildings and family businesses that dated all the way back to the Age of Gods. Aside from some alterations made to accomodate a modern lifestyle, the Dragon's Heart remained largely the same as it did when the gods were still around.

If one were to pluck a Dragonite knight from the Age of Gods and plopped them down in the middle of the Dragon's Heart, they would have no trouble finding their way around.

A rueful snort escaped Louise's nose.

"Your dad gave you a manor for your birthday?" The friendliness she had when talking about her taste in music disappeared upon being reminded of how different her and Enid's upbringings were. "The most my dad ever gave me was a softer beating."

Louise brought the car up to the tall gates of a grand estate, which immediately parted when Enid tapped an icon on her phone.

To get to the manor itself, Louise had to steer the car around a vast but empty courtyard full of overgrown grass and weeds where there should've been hedges and gardens.

The place looked even larger up close and twice as imposing. It looked like something between a storybook castle with the conical towers jutting from its black tiled roofs and a traditional mansion with its long boxy exterior the colour of collected dust.

"This looks bigger than your other house," said Valen, peering out the car window.

"It doesn't look like an alien art project either," Louise added. "I don't get why you didn't just live here in the first place. It's so much nicer."

"The other one was closer to the metro," said Enid. "Round the left and follow the path to the back garage."

"Got it." Louise drove slowly past the manor, the narrow but not impassable path finally forcing her to slow down.

"Wait." Something about the manor door caught Valen's eye. "Stop the car."

"Huh?" Louise parked the car right in front of the manor doors and turned to Valen. "What's up?"

Valen squinted at the manor's double doors. Upon confirming that one of them was slightly ajar, he unbuckled his seatbelt and drew his butterfly swords.

"The door's been opened," he said before immediately getting out of the car.

He rushed towards the door to examine it closer. It was official. Someone was definitely inside or at least had been.

They'd even left the lockpick they used to break in still sticking out of the keyhole.

Enid and Louise got out of the car themselves and hurried to his side. Their expressions hardened upon noticing the lockpick in the opened door's keyhole.

Louise drew her knife from its leather sheath.

"What's your call?" she asked, already rearing for a fight.

"Stick together," said Valen. "We don't know what to expect."

"Alright." Magical static started growing around Enid. "Let's go."

Valen took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and found a corpse lying in the foyer.

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