Outlanders

Chapter 4: Mystery Awaits

Lawrence trudged out into the now dusk lighting on the city, his mind wandering aimlessly. The sight of that arm gave him the chills, the gleam of its glow in the cylinder case it was captured in gave him goosebumps on all of his skin. The cool evening blew into his face, the wind pushing softly onto his body. Lawrence’s eyes glanced behind him, the glass building that he once was in was now distant. Nearly a dot amongst the other buildings. The sidewalk long and narrow, the trees brushed between each other from the wind's chimes. The shadow that was once reflecting his image had faded, the lights from across the way glinted in the large river below, the reflection of the lights giving the river its flourish. The sound of his steps echoed in his ears, the car horns blared from the other side of the city. Many figures passed by swiftly, cars passed quickly on the road to and from. Lawrence’s eyes scanned everything he saw, his thoughts continuing to plague him, images of the arm haunted his mind. Subconsciously, he placed his human hand on his robust arm, questioning his place in the city he was brought to.

As his thoughts wander, “Well isn’t this a wonderful surprise!” A voice rang out. Lawrence’s eyes shot up, his mind startled. The man had silver-like hair that trained down the side of his face, his frosty blue eyes seem to almost glow in the night. His attire was old fashioned, a simple white vest with vintage black dress pants with designer shoes. His collar was unbuttoned, only enough to see a glimpse of his collar bone. A smirk plastered on his facade, his eyes staring straight into Lawrence’s soul. Lawrence’s face scowled, he knew who he was. The “Silver Fox”.

“Awww come on, that’s the face you greet a savior?” The “Silver Fox” pouted with exasperation.

Lawrence’s eyes glared with a start, “As much as I want to give a hug and kiss your cheeks, I don’t think I want to see YOUR mug here..” He said sarcastically, his tone cold.

The “Silver Fox” clicked his tongue, “What a shame…and here I thought you were warming up to me” The “Silver Fox” put his hand to his chest, his face playing an act of sorrow.

Lawrence’s voice lowered in irritation, “If I was warming up to you I wouldn’t be backstabbing the NightWalkers, like you did that night with my father.” Lawrence’s back slowly began to turn away from him, not wanting to look at the man. Suddenly, The “Silver Fox” appeared before him, his posture straight, arms crossed with a little grin spreading across his face.

“Ah but your father had forgiven me did he not?” The “Silver Fox” had put his hand on his shoulder, “I was only doing the greater good for the little family we have!—-“

“The only thing you did was get people killed, not just one, but many” Lawrence’s eyes burned through his skull. “I’m still surprised you’re still in the group, because if I was the leader, I would’ve kicked you out right then and there” Lawrence’s voice went dark.

A sigh escaped the “Silver Fox”, “you do realize that that time was long ago, in the past and over with.” The “Silver Fox” spoke sternly, his face inches closer to Lawrence’s, his frosty eyes soon clearer to see. “You cannot keep everyone protected, not even your father. You of all people should know, Take it from me for example..” His eyes glinted, a hint of emotion hidden beneath them.

Lawrence pushed his hand away violently, “Don’t you think I know that?” Lawrence’s eyes glared with anger. “You don’t have to tell me that twice already.” His voice raised in a fiery tone.

Steps quickly came from behind him, a hand rested on Lawrence’s shoulder, “that’s enough now” the voice spoke.

Lawrence’s gaze shifted, Kai soon appeared next to him, his gaze straight onto the “Silver Fox”. The “Silver Fox” glanced at Kai, his eyes narrowing slightly. Quickly his demeanor changed into a chuckle, “Well I see how it is” He spoke after his laugh. The “Silver Fox”s gaze held with Lawrence, “Just keep in mind what I said” He said as he turned around and began to walk further away from the two, disappearing into the night of the crowd.

Kai gave a sigh of relief, “I'm sorry, me and him were talking together, when he saw you he went straight for you, I had no way of stopping him.” Kai caved into his truth.

Lawrence glanced at the concrete sidewalk, the c***k that was there beneath his feet seemed to grow larger in his mind. “It’s fine” Lawrence assured Kai.

Lawrence’s hand pressed against his forehead, stress catching up to him, a sigh escaping his lips.

Kai looked into Lawrence’s face, his expression saddened, his face turning away towards the large river next to them.

“The “Silver Fox” and I were talking about the Trice War” Kai spoke from the silence. Lawrence lifted his head up to look at Kai, “I understand that the war was only a couple days, mainly because robotics were the top of the decade at that point.” Kai continued. “I haven’t thought about it much, mainly because I didn’t want to…” Kai soon turned his head to meet Lawrence’s eyes, his dark coal-like eyes scanned Lawrence’s face. “But a random thought occurred to me…” Kai spoke quizzically. “Would you think that having robotics back could help humanity? To do the things that humans would have emotions to do…I think it would be much easier with robotics to handle the difficult parts” Kai’s eyes seemed to darken, a hint of an expression that Lawrence couldn’t seem to make out.

Lawrence's eyes widened in surprise, “I understand how you might think of it that way…” Lawrence spoke with a start, his eyes training to the other side of the city. “But even if most people had forgotten about the Trice War, the ones who really remember would not want to deal with it no matter what.” Lawrence’s mind went back to his fathers story, the arm gleaming in his mind's eye. A sudden occurrence appeared in his mind, “Wait…If he was killed by a robotic…” Lawrence’s demeanor staggered for a moment, “How the hell did he get that arm then….?” Kai, who has been watching Lawrence, tilted his head slightly. Confusion settled in Kai’s expression. Lawrence’s mind continued to question further, “The robotics was only made 10 years ago…so it wasn’t that long…but most of them, if not all of them were scrapped….” Lawrence’s thoughts pulled together. The incident with William Kingson and the conversation between Tristan and his father came to view. Lawrence’s eyebrows pinched together, “The incident with William Kingson involved machinery…but I wasn’t informed of what kind…” Lawrence began to think deeper, his eyes glancing to the railing only inches from him and the river. “The documents….” Lawrence began to whisper continuously.

Kai, who had been silently confused by Lawrence's quarrel, finally spoke out, “What are you—-“ Suddenly a loud boom echoed. Startled, both Lawrence and Kai looked to the direction of the loud noise.

Lawrence’s eyes widened in fear, the sight of his fathers work place was engulfed in flames.

“ Holy s**t…” Lawrence spoke, tinting with horror. Instinct flooded into him, his feet moving so quickly that not even rabbits would catch up to him, “Oh god…” Kai rushed behind Lawrence, attempting to catch up to him. Lawrence’s rushing feet were the only thing he heard, the sound of panicked passers heightened, the sound of fire alarms from the building echoed into the night. Lawrence’s breath quickened, his heart pounding in his ears. His mind going miles a minute, his fears coming back to haunt him. Finally, Lawrence came to a full stop, the blazed building crumbling before him. The woman, who had been at the front desk, came out stumbling, soot covering her face, her breathing haggard.

Lawrence rushed over to the woman, his mind scattered, “Where’s my father?! Is he still in there?!” His voice raised in fear.

The woman coughed viciously, “I…believe he was still in his office….” The woman soon was helped by passers, two of them helping her on each side, taking her away from the burning fire.

Lawrence’s expression shattered, his feet already running into the burning building, “Hey! Don’t go in there! It’s too dangerous!” Kai yelled out for Lawrence, but he had already been drowned out.

Lawrence ran as fast as he could, his mind could only think of his father, the fate that would fall onto him. Lawrence jumped through the broken glass door, his feet stamping the steps he had just went up for a few hours ago. Once he had stepped into the large hallway, it was engulfed in flames. His eyes scanned the place wildly, landing to see a large hole on the side of the building. Without a second thought Lawrence ran to the side of the building's large gap. Looking around the area, the building closest to the one that was destroyed had inflicted damage to the other, broken glass windows impacted the other building. Lawrence’s eyes glanced downward, a figure laying at the bottom of the building's alley.

Lawrence’s voice raised, “DAD!” He yelled out, jumping down without a second thought. Landing on a large garbage bin with a large tinging noise, he jumped down and saw what he didn’t want to see. His father laid there before him, pooled in blood, his body almost twisted. His eyes still open in fear, as if he would have been a taxidermied animal. His once glinting green eyes faded, lifeless eyes replacing the once vibrant green that he once had. Lawrence’s eyes stared at the one thing that caught his attention the first time, a large hole inside his fathers body. The large opened hole pooled continuously, his inner organs squished and torn to see. Pieces of his rib cage stained in fresh blood. The clothes that were once cleaned and lint free were now stretched and torn, red had forever stained his professional outlook. The sight of the blood still staining the concrete, had forever plagued Lawrence’s mind. The sound of everything from the fire alarms and the burning embers, the panicking citizens had all but faded away.

Lawrence’s body crumbled to the ground, his body hunched over to see his fathers lifeless body. Lawrence’s eyes blurred, his mind pounding. His breathing, rapid. His mind replayed every memory he had of him. His every advice, even his voice. A drop of water fell onto his human hand. One after another, a downpour soon came. The sky seemed to mourn over his fathers death. The blood soon ran away from the body, the rainwater washing the concrete in wet blood. His mind didn’t want to believe his eyes, Lawrence had refused to believe if what he saw was a nightmare.

“Son…” A voice rang out, calling out to him. Slowly, Lawrence lifted his head up. Amid the falling rain, a man stood before him, his trench coat slicked with rain. His hat soaked in the falling water, his hair in black ringlets. Lawrence’s eyes seemed to now be stripped of his life, the light that was once in his eyes seemed to disappear. Lawrence soon stared at the man's eyes lifelessly, seeing the man's glowing eyes in the falling rain.

Finally, after a long while of silence, “I’m Griffin Tears, a detective working for the Frolis Detective Agency” The man's voice was low and smooth, as if he had used it many times to persuade his criminals into confessing to their crimes. Griffin's eyes stared at Lawrence’s hunched body, daring not to move an inch from where he was. The rain had soaked Lawrence’s brown hair, the rain dripping off the slightest strand.

“I believe you could answer some questions for me” Griffin stated to the distraught young man sitting before him. Griffin sighed, “If you answer, I will help you in finding your murder. If not, this case may end in a way that you think may be unjustified.” Griffin spoke matter of factly, his words riddled in truth. No hint of lies were hidden deep inside. Lawrence’s metallic hand suddenly hovered his fathers eyes, closing them shut. The pounding of the rain hit both of the men’s ears, the distant sirens blaring.

After what seemed like an eternity, Lawrence stood up, his eyes glared a flaring glow, his amber eyes burning with rage and resentment. “I will answer your questions..” Lawrence spoke with grunted rage, his anger uprising in him, soon to erupt at any given moment.

Griffin glanced down at the lifeless body, the rain soaking the body in its blood. “Let’s get to it then.”