The Demon's Game: Chapter 1 - Fight or Flight
Prologue
Detective Campbell of the Solaris Police Department looked on the scene with tired eyes. It had been his third call out to a crime scene in a week, and by the same killer. A man who was a ghost. The killer used a different weapon each time he killed. He left no traces anywhere near the scene. The police could identify the guns he used when he used one. They could not find a fingerprint or hair or anything that would provide a name and a face to go on, even if they knew where the killer stood when he killed his victims.
They couldn't even find a hint of blood or skin on the victims that indicated they had managed to fight back against their attacker.
"He used a sub-machine gun this time." His right hand man, Detective Watson, briefed him the moment he crossed the police tape. "Emptied a whole clip down the alley, and made each shot count. I've never seen anything like this. The orientation of the bodies suggest they were all facing him and were gunned down within seconds - nobody had time to turn and run."
"So he's a trained killer, and we've known that since the first body showed up four days ago, James. Our killer shot a crossbow from a hundred metres away and hit his first target in the eye in the middle of a crowded street."
"There's no consistency to his method aside from the efficiency of his killing... Are we sure it's one guy? Nobody could have the resources to do this on their own."
"He might have people supplying him with weapons and gear, but I don't see how more than one killer could pull this off and not leave a single clue. All the other murders point to a single weapon, wielded by a single person." Detective Campbell was frustrated. It wasn't his first time tracking down a smart criminal, but this was the first time he was truly chasing a ghost.
"I'm going home, James. There's no point staying here until the forensics guys are done with the bodies. I suspect that's the only clues we're getting tonight."
* * *
Elsewhere, Charlotte Freeman, a young female college student, was running from a group of thugs chasing her. She had been on her way home from a party when they had accosted her and tried to abduct her down an alley. She managed to break free and flee their grasp for the moment, but now they were chasing her through the park leading back to her campus. There was nobody around at this hour and no one to save her.
Their leers and taunts rang in her ears between the sound of her panting, and she knew she had another five hundred metres to go before she reached the gate. Her pursuers were gaining on her, however, and she knew she wasn't going to make it out of the park before they caught up to her.
Then there was a loud clap of thunder, and the voices behind her started to sound frightened. There was another loud bang, and another, all within seconds of each other. She turned around and saw three dead bodies lying on the ground - the men who had been chasing her. Someone had come to her rescue, though she wasn't certain she wanted to be around to thank someone wielding a gun.
There was only one sensible thing left to do. Charlotte Freeman turned around and ran, sobbing and screaming all the way back to her dormitory.
* * *
There was a young man sitting in front of a laptop, typing away on the keyboard when his phone rang. He had just received a text message. A job well done. The money has been transferred to your account. Any trouble? - D
He smiled at his phone, and anyone looking at him would have thought he received a funny message from someone, if there had been anyone around to observe him. He typed a reply. No. Found a group of stray dogs chasing a scared rabbit though. Shot three of them, the rest ran. Should inform authorities to go round them up. Might have rabies. Assignment will be finished by end of the week. - R
'R' returned to his work, knowing there would be no reply.