Chapter Text
North Jamrock : abandoned shopping center.
In a little gray corner of the suburbs, accompanied by the smell of burning trash. The building is four stories tall; a testament to a bygone era, when this part of Revachol was considered economically stable. Nature has begun to reclaim its rights: moss covers the broken escalators, wild germanders grow between the cracks in the tiled floors. Bird songs break the monotony of the otherwise sterile environment.
The place would be pretty if it weren’t littered with trash and piss. Many hobos have made it their home; the walls are covered with graffiti. It’s a Friday night: two police officers walk among near ruins of a nail salon on the third floor. The place used to be called “Evil Queens”, but the front sign is covered with dust and grime, and thus reads as “Evil Queers”.
HARRIER: “Look, Kim! Another business run by the elusive homo-sexual underground!”
RHETORIC: Sure, that’s probably what this establishment was called.
CONCEPTUALIZATION: Bold and daring. I like it.
KIM: “Officer, please, I need you to focus. This way.”
It has been roughly a year since Martinaise. Kim has been working for precinct 41 ever since. He’s had a rough year. He keeps pulling the worst assignments, out of sheer bad luck. It’s almost like a mysterious curse has befallen him. Messy robberies, brutal murders, inexplicable disappearances, he’s had to repeatedly deal with hardships and violence. It’s beginning to show.
It has also been a rough year for Harry, though that was to be expected. He hasn’t drunk a single drop of alcohol since his major blackout in Martinaise, and his body is punishing him for it. Despite his best efforts to remain positive, he has been forgetful, irritable, and depressed. Still, there’s progress. He’s been sleeping better these days, and even though he’s still sweaty and dirty, at least he doesn’t reek of booze anymore.
On this lonely Friday night, the two lieutenants walk through the abandoned shopping center in search of a woman called Amandine Chevalet. Amandine is a thief. More specifically, she loves to steal machines: radios, filament memories, cables, antennas, radiocomputers, she’s even been seen ripping out the engines of a few motor carriages. No one knows what she plans to do with all the equipment she has gathered, nor where she is keeping it, but she has gathered quite a reputation in Jamrock after stealing an expensive radiocomputer directly from the RCM. Some call her “The Software Ghost”, while others call her “The Hardware Ghost”, because no one in Jamrock really seems to know the difference between those two words, and assume they mean roughly the same thing.
Amandine has been tormenting the RCM for three months by now. But tonight, Harry and Kim are following a solid lead. Maybe they’ll finally be able to track her down.
HARRIER: “So, do you mind reminding me what the plan is?”
He’s fidgeting with his neck tie while he’s saying this, wondering if it’ll give him any advice. But his tie hasn’t spoken to him in a while, which he finds a little strange.
KIM: “Again? I’ve had to explain the plan twice already. It’s not that complicated.”
ESPRIT DE CORPS: He’s tired and frustrated. Unusually so. You’ve always wondered if there was a limit to his patience. Today, you may finally find out – if you keep this up, that is.
EMPATHY: This case has been hard on him. Try to not be too weird, for once. Try not to be too much like yourself.
CONCEPTUALIZATION: I get it. Let’s propose a plan of our own then. Prove to him that we can be useful too.
LOGIC: We’re only catching a thief after all. How hard can this be?
HARRIER: “Right, the plan, which I totally remember. Well uh, how about this? We know Amandine is hiding inside the old video store. We walk through the front door, shout: ‘Halt, we are the law,’ and shackle her immediately!”
Kim blinks twice.
ESPRIT DE CORPS: He’s had it with you.
ENDURANCE: No, he’s merely tired. He hasn’t been sleeping well lately. He’s trying to stay awake. This was a good idea, and he’s glad you said it out loud.
KIM: “Officer, according to our intel, this video store is huge. One witness described it as ‘a veritable maze of empty shelves and dusty cables.’ You were with me when you interrogated them, even.”
EMPATHY: Right, her name was Yvette! She was so sweet, really eager to help out, and she even offered us candy.
ENCYCLOPEDIA: Yvette used to work at the NJSC (Northern Jamrock Shopping Center), back when it was still functional. She was a waitress in a restaurant called “Le Crabe marteau”, which specialized in seafood, from ‘15 to ‘23. It went bankrupt it ‘23.
VOLITION: We somehow remember all that, and yet we couldn’t pay attention to what Kim was saying when he laid out the plan for us?
SHIVERS: Inside a cold, broken building, an old woman inspects the ruins of a video store. The smell of cigarettes and chemicals has been replaced by the aggressive fragrance of dust and mold. Rows upon rows of empty shelves warp her line of sight, as broken glass creaks under her boots.
Harry doesn’t know what to say. Realizing that he has angered Kim, he feels like adding anything would make the situation worse. Still, he tries to catch the lieutenant’s eyes, and shoots him a pleading look. Kim grumbles.
KIM: “It’s really not that complicated. We agreed to locate the video store first, and to study its architecture before we barge in. We don’t want our little mouse to escape through a back door before we can apprehend her now, do we?”
HARRIER: “Ah, I see. So let’s say there are two exits; you could stand in front of the back door while I walk through the front door. So if Amandine tries to run away, she’ll either have to go through me, or you!”
KIM: “Yes, that is precisely the point. We’re both armed, so threatening her into submission should not be an issue. We’ll arrest her and finally put this case to rest.”
REACTION SPEED: Hold on.
HALF LIGHT: Something is wrong. Your body is tense, suddenly. You feel your fingers twitching.
INLAND EMPIRE: A bad omen. What could it mean?
REACTION SPEED: Oh god. You forgot to bring the shackles. You left them inside the motor carriage.
ESPRIT DE CORPS: Kim specifically told you to bring them. He thinks they’re in your bag.
DRAMA: You cannot let him know that you forgot them, sire. He is already irritated, and if he finds out, his ire will most likely be formidable.
COMPOSURE: But can you hide your embarrassment? You’re sweating.
HARRIER: “Yes, it’ll be another job well done for this duo of super-cops!”
COMPOSURE: Dear me. Why did you have to say it like that? You audibly gulped after you finished that sentence. Now he has to suspect something.
Kim glares at Harry, his expression unreadable. Harry replies with a wink accompanied by finger guns. He’s wearing thick rubber gloves that squeak as he flexes his fingers. The smile is a bit frozen. He can feel the sweat accumulating on his armpits and lower back.
PHYSICAL INSTRUMENT: You are seriously terrified of this binoclard. Why? He’s only expressing mild disapproval, and you’re already quaking in your boots. Get a grip.
KIM: “Anyway, let us not linger. The sooner we finish this job, the sooner we can go home, and focus on more interesting cases.”
EMPATHY: He really is tired. It’s not just a hard day or a hard week for him, it’s more than that.
INLAND EMPIRE: A sinking feeling overtakes you. The lieutenant’s present is deeply unpleasant, but what about his future? You feel as if he is about to be swallowed by a dark cloud.
Harry simply nods, and begins to jog toward the third floor. After skirting the ruins of a tiled fountain, he faces a metallic spiral staircase.
VISUAL CALCULUS: It will hold your weight, but the axis is slightly tilted, so it may be unstable. Be careful.
ELECTROCHEMISTRY: Will it? You’re not exactly as light as you used to be, sober star.
Harry stops in front of the staircase, and pokes his own belly pensively. It has grown significantly since Martinaise. Overall, he’s a lot bigger: his thighs squish against one another when he walks. His cheeks are a little rounder, softer. His old shirts don’t fit him anymore; but as the lieutenant says, it was about time he threw them away. Harry mumbles to himself.
HARRIER: “It’s not my fault. Being a recovering addict is hard. I’m always starving for some reason.”
KIM: “Officer, I can barely hear you. What did you say?”
LOGIC: He called you ‘officer’ again.
REACTION SPEED: Better hurry.
HARRIER: “It’s nothing.”
Harry glares at the staircase like it’s some kind of mythical giant that he has to slay in the frozen ruins of a city. His glare seems to say: ‘It’s going to be you or me, staircase. Only one of us will survive this dreadful encounter.’ Then after taking a deep breath, he begins to walk up. The stairs creak under his weight, but the overall structure remains stable.
VISUAL CALCULUS: Told you.
Kim follows after Harry, and suddenly they’re on the third floor. The lights are out, but the setting sun’s dying rays are still being projected through the broken windows. The floor is littered with debris; the wall on Harry’s left has partially collapsed.
SAVOIR FAIRE: Be careful. If you trip and fall, you may alert Amandine. You’ll need stealth and dexterity if you want this operation to succeed.
Harry carefully proceeds. He takes gentle steps, one after the other. He likes to imagine that the rubble is alive, and that it’s talking to him. “No, don’t put your foot here, officer. This is my head, and it will really hurt if you step on my head. Put your foot here instead. Those are my abs, they are solid enough to withstand your weight.”
LOGIC: Maybe this is what Joyce meant when she claimed that you were insane.
Regardless, the technique works, and soon Harry finds himself standing in front of the door. The video store is still standing, and the area that surrounds it is surprisingly clean.
SHIVERS: In the ruins of an old shopping center, a woman searches for a place to live. She is weighed down by a heavy backpack, overflowing with electronic components. She wants to be left alone. A few weeks later, rats begin to die at an alarming rate. She leaves their corpses on the floor, and boards the windows. The smell is trapped, and has nowhere to escape. It’s a clear message. After a few months, the woman has managed to clear the fourth floor; it’s hers.
HARRIER: “But where are the rats now?”
KIM: “Rats? I suppose they have better places to be. I don’t think they would find a lot of food here.”
Harry tries to look inside the video store, but all he can see are shadows.
KIM: “You can see anything?”
PERCEPTION: You’d need your flashlight. But that would alert Amandine. You can hear something, however. The faint humming of machinery.
HARRIER: “I can’t see anything, but I can hear a machine. She’s definitely inside.”
KIM: “Perfect. Stay here then, I’ll go looking for a back door. I’ll give you a sign when I found it.”
Harry nods at the lieutenant, who walks along the edge of the wall.
INLAND EMPIRE: There is no sugarcoating it. You have a bad feeling about this. One way or another, this mission will fail.
LOGIC: Why would it? You are perfectly prepared.
PHYSICAL INSTRUMENT: And sober.
ESPRIT DE CORPS: You still forgot the shackles.
HAND EYE COORDINATION: Who needs shackles when you have a gun?
PHYSICAL INSTRUMENT: You’ve got this, son. Your body is a powerful law-abiding machine. And you’re feeling really energetic tonight. Trust your muscles.
PERCEPTION: The lieutenant is trying to catch your attention. He has found the back door. He wants you to go in.
SAVOIR FAIRE: Remember: slow and steady. There may be a secret third exit, for all you know. Or she may be armed. Amandine hasn’t killed anyone yet, but you don’t want to be her first victim.
Harry pushes the door open, slowly. It barely makes a sound. A quick glance confirms Harry’s initial impression: the video store has been cleaned up thoroughly. The floor is littered with cables of all sizes, some of them stitched together with tape. The hum of machinery is stronger here.
VISUAL CALCULUS: The place isn’t as big as Yvette made it seem. It’s oddly large for a video store, but it’s certainly not a maze.
INTERFACING: Amandine should be easy to find. Just follow the cables.
Harry takes out his flashlight, and shines it on the floor. Its dim glow barely gives him any visibility, but it’s enough to know where to place his feet. He progresses slowly, toward a corner of the video stores. The shelves have been moved to form some kind of cubicle. Inside, a woman in her thirties is sitting on the floor, screwdriver in hand. She wears dirty overalls and thick leather boots. She smells like someone who hasn’t showered in months. It’s a musty, earthy smell that reminds Harry of a wild animal.
INTERFACING: She’s building something huge. A radiocomputer? No, she stole a few of those already. So what is she even making?
COMPOSURE: She’s relaxed and focused. She hasn’t noticed you yet.
SAVOIR FAIRE: Keep going, you’re doing great. A few more steps, and you’ll have her cornered.
But before Harry can take another step, a very large crashing sound comes from the other side of the video store. Amandine flinches, looks around herself, and immediately spots Harry. She stands up and immediately begins to run.